Page 33 of Unfettered

The nurse leaves, and as soon as the door closes, Sandro leans more heavily on me. Burying his face in my abdomen as I thread my fingers through his hair and pull on the strands, giving him a little pain to help ground him.

“He’ll be okay, Sweet Boy,” I reassure. “He’s too much of an asshole to die.”

Sandro lets out a watery laugh. He looks up at me, his blue eyes swimming with affection, mixed with sadness and fear. “Do you think Carter’s right?” he asks.

Sighing, I nod. “Carter knows him as well as you and I do. He knows what Cris looks like when he’s in love…I do as well. I can tell you now, he does love you, Sandro. As messy, confusing, and insane as that is.

“What you two found in that cell, it’s real. It simply got lost beneath all the bullshit. But, as we discussed, none of that was any fault of your own. You’re the product of your upbringing, as is Cristian, and even I am to an extent. Though I was never ‘normal’ from the get-go. Still, what the three of us lived through…no one else could understand.”

He gives a wry grin. “Well, four. Since Luca was there with me, much like you were there for Cristian.”

I hum, but don’t agree nor disagree. Luca was too weak to do what needed to be done, and he allowed the person he was supposed to protect to get hurt. I grimace, because in many ways, I did the same. There are so many things in our past that I failed to protect Cris from, even though I tried my best. Hell…I allowed myself to get locked up and turned into a shell of myself for a long time because of it. Luca got off easy. Fucker.

Still, knowing my Sweet Boy had someone, even someone as…barely tolerable as Luca, eases a little of my ire. Not much, but some.

Sandro releases Cristian to place both hands on my hips, looking up at me with such trust…such devotion, it makes me want to shove him to his knees and put my cock in him. He’d let me, too. I can tell by the look in his eyes. The want and need there.

He’d do anything to please his Daddy. It’s a heady feeling that has my cock hardening. Sandro must notice because he squirms in his chair, eyes darkening, as his tongue darts out to lick those sensual lips.

Leaning down, I kiss him, long and slow, dominating his mouth as he opens so easily for me.

Knowing I have the former Il Padrone at my beck and call? It fills me with a pleasure I never thought I would have. Not after what he did, where he’s been, the hell he’s put himself and our loved ones through. But…that’s the thing about this life, isn’t it? None of us are good people.

Allesandro may have done something he can’t take back, but haven’t we all. You only have to look at my relationship with Benjamin, how all in we went without concern for what would happen when the dust settled.

I don’t regret anything about my Topolino. I never will. The same can be said for the Boy in my arms.

Hurt, lost, and desperately in need of love and care. Sandro will never be a mistake or regret.

Not even when I help him rise out of the ashes of the fire he set himself. My Sweet Boy will learn to embrace everything he is, because his Daddy will have it no other way.

Pulling back, I smile at the whimper he lets out. “Soon, Sweet Boy,” I reassure him. “Patience is a virtue, but don’t worry. Daddy won’t make you wait too long for a taste of him. I can’t wait to feel this hot mouth wrapped around my cock.”

Setting a thumb on his bottom lip, I can imagine how good his lips will look stretched around me. It’s enough to make me ache with need. But…not yet. My Sweet Boy will learn that good things come when he waits, and his Daddy can be patient when he wants to be.

Moving away from him, I break our connection, only to sit in the seat beside him, wrapping an arm around him. He snuggles closer, breathing deep through his nose. I kiss the side of his head. “Good Boy.”

When he has himself back under control, he reaches out for Cristian again, even as he rests against me.

We stay like that for a long while. Sandro soaking up my presence and leaning on me, even though he’s there for his love. Their relationship might be undefined, but if anyone deserves to discover how deep their love goes, it’s the two of them.

Cris may have pissed me off, and ruined his relationships with both his son and husband, but that doesn’t mean I will ever fully abandon him. No matter how many times I may want to.

A groan comes from the man in the hospital bed, and Sandro sits up, alert as he watches Cristian carefully.

Another pained whimper, and Cristian tries to move without opening his eyes.

“Shhh. Stay still, Dolce Cuore,” Sandro urges. “You’re okay. Don’t move.”

Cris sucks in a breath, and his eyes flutter open and closed a few times before he finally blinks them open all the way.

Onyx eyes filled with pain and confusion meet mine, before he flicks his attention to Sandro.

“I’m right here, Sweetheart,” Sandro tells him. “You’re okay.”

Cristian’s lips part, but no sound comes out. He closes his mouth and clears his throat, trying again. “R…Roman?”

“Is fine,” I reassure him. “He’s with Emilio, because the little shit would have wasted his life away waiting for you. Keegan is fine, too. He’s not too happy that he has to be nice to you, or some bullshit like that, but I assured him he doesn’t. You deserved to be shot.”