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And just as I realize that I’m losing control, my eyes fly open in panic, and I look down and see him there between my legs, his eyes locked onto my face, and I can’t hold on. I let go and feel myself unravel, spinning out into pleasure only, joy, a tingling running through all of my limbs, rolling out in waves until I can only hold onto the bed against the twitches and jerks that roll through my body.Chapter ThirteenTommyI pull myself up beside Carina on the bed, laying my head on the pillows next to her, taking in her dazed expression. “Good?” I ask, with a grin because I already know the answer.
“Good,” Carina agrees breathlessly. I can see the beauty of the afterglow hanging over her, the slight flush in her cheeks, the faraway look in her eyes. I draw her close to me, against my chest, tucking her close to my heart.
I reach for my phone and look at the screen as I hold her with the other arm, typing one-handed. I send a message to Enzo, telling him that I won’t be available tomorrow for any business matters. Then I amend it for the rest of the week. Emergencies only. This week will only be about Carina, and especially tomorrow. It must be the most special I can make it, the best day of her life until now.
I put the phone to one side and allow my thoughts to drift. I know the men won’t like this. They’ve already been getting restless. Carina shivers slightly and I reach down to draw up a blanket, pulling it over her bare legs until she’s covered up, and she relaxes again. I need to do something, soon, to secure their loyalty again. It’s tedious, but this is the game we play. Every now and then, I have to remind them why they follow me – and what will happen if they choose to betray me.
Tension has been brewing in the city between us and our closest rivals, dealing with that should take care of two birds with one stone. But I’m sure it can wait until the week is done. It has to. I have other plans in mind.
I think about dinner, realizing we haven’t eaten it. Strange to say, but I’m not even hungry. I feel satisfied as if Carina is all the nourishment I need. Or maybe I just know that skilled as my chef is, he will never make something that tastes as good as her.
I’m about to say something to Carina, to ask her if she wants to eat, when I realize that her breathing has slowed. I tilt my head as gently as I can, to look at her without disturbing her. When I get my head to the right angle to see her eyes, I realize they’re closed.
She’s fallen asleep.
A strange pang hits my chest, a feeling of… happiness, I think. She fell asleep in my arms. That must mean that she’s beginning to trust me. I don’t think I could achieve that even if I made her come a hundred times if she didn’t trust me. If she didn’t think there was no possibility that I could ever want to hurt her.
I smile to myself, reaching out blindly across the wall until I encounter a light switch and turn off the lights. I will stay here with her tonight, to make sure that she’s safe. To make sure that no one tries to harm her again. I will stay until she wakes, to face the day together – and, quite likely, a breakfast of cold pasta.Chapter FourteenCarinaI wake up slowly, from a sleep that feels more restful than I’ve had in a long time. There’s no alarm blaring in my ear, no rush to get ready for the waiting ovens. I just wake when I’m done sleeping, from a pleasant dream into an even more pleasant reality.
I blush when I realize where I am, still in his arms, just as I was last night, the last thing that I remember. Not only that, but I never even managed to get dressed again, or change for bed. There’s a blanket laying beside me, as though I kicked it off sometime during the night, and I reach for it, trying to cover myself up subtly before Tommy notices.
“I did see it last night, you know,” he says drily, right beside my ear.
I yelp in surprise and then huff, sitting up and away from him as I finish covering myself with the blanket. “You could have told me you were awake,” I say accusingly.
“When?” Tommy asks mildly, blinking at me. “In the millisecond between when you started to move and I said something?”
I huff again, but only because I know he’s right and I don’t have a comeback. In the light of morning, Tommy looks softer somehow. After a moment of looking at his face, I realize it’s his hair, falling forward over his forehead, instead of pushed back and held in place by whatever products he usually uses. He looks nicer like this – kinder. Not that I can say whether I prefer it like this or the hot version that he wears every day.
