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“You’re doing so good already,” I grunted, sliding deeper as I kissed her neck. “You’re taking my cock so well, Sofia.”

And then I was buried to the hilt, bottoming out with a grunt that made my chest tighten. Sofia was beautiful under me, flushed and sweaty and panting, a picture of heaven.

“Fuck,” I groaned deeply, pulling out almost immediately before thrusting in again, a little harder this time. “You feel so good, baby. So fucking good. Tell me how you feel.”

“Good,” she panted, dragging her nails up my back. Her head was pressed against the pillows, her hair fanning out beneath her. A bead of sweat rolled down the valley of her breasts, and I licked it clean. “So good.”

“Yeah?” I rolled my hips hard, sliding in and out, settling into a relentless pace. I alternated between rocking slowly into her and pounding with punishing thrusts. I buried my face into her neck as I fucked her, her arms wrapping around my shoulders, holding on tightly like I was the only thing that kept her from completely falling apart. I craved every second of it, and she did too—her moans, her nails breaking the skin of my back, her eyes rolling back, her toes curling into the sheets.

I held her against me, feeling her heartbeat beneath my palm as I thrusted. For once I wasn’t thinking about what I could take from a moment or how quickly it might end. I was thinking about her. The way she looked at me as though she saw something beneath everything I’d spent years becoming was frightening…and compelling.

“Oh God,” she gasped, louder and louder with every thrust. “I think I’m gonna―”

My tongue was in her mouth before she could finish her words. Her body trembled against mine as she came, her walls fluttering around my cock as her orgasm wracked her bones. I chased mine as well, my thrusts growing sloppy and quick, and then I came so hard I shivered, mind-numbing pleasure ripping me apart piece by piece.

She pulled me close as she moaned, still trembling with passionate quakes. I pulled away from her briefly, but she came for me. She put her head on my chest, and I listened as her breathing gradually settled. I looked down at her and realized I didn’t want to let go, either.

***

Sofia had fallen asleep against me so quickly that for a good five minutes I simply lay there looking into the dark of the apartment in confused disbelief. I wondered what had possessed me to get this far with her.

Her head laid against my chest, her arm around my waist. The woman who’d spent this evening batting away every bit of control I tried to hold, was lying so peacefully beside me that I could hardly believe it was possible.

I found myself confused that she’d trusted me enough to sleep. I looked down at her face. She looked so much younger with her guard lowered. A single black strand of hair had fallen over the curve of her cheek, and I very deliberately smoothed it away without disturbing her.

I’d spent too many years learning not to become attached to anyone I could possibly lose. Relationships were weak points, and caring about someone gave my enemies something to use as leverage against me. I’d learned that as well as anyone in the world.

And yet here I was, lying next to a woman I’d known for less than a week, watching her sleep. I should’ve left. It was what I normally did in this kind of situation. It was the simplest way to avoid an awkward morning.

I could’ve slipped back into my clothes, walked right out of her door, and been home before dawn. I’d be back to life I knew, where things made sense. But I stayed through the night.

Sofia shifted on her side and turned into my chest. Somehow, that felt familiar. I couldn’t understand it, but it wasn’t the first time I’d felt it. Sometimes I caught this look on her face, one I could never place. Even now, asleep, her face held a familiarity I couldn’t understand.

I couldn’t place the connection; all I knew for certain was that warmth grew inside me as I looked at her. It was this protective instinct taking over, and that in itself terrified me. I knew where it would lead. Protecting someone always led to making decisions for them.

I’d already crushed people with that instinct. I’d even killed men while thinking like that. Sofia knew almost nothing about me. To her, I was Ronnie, just a businessman in a crisp shirt, sharp tongue, and expensive shoes.

She would never know of the violence my hands had committed, or just how wide the circles of the enemies I’d collected spread beyond these apartment walls.

Having her attached to me would put her in danger eventually, and that simply wasn’t acceptable.

I really should have gotten dressed and walked right out the door before morning.Instead, I pulled the blanket up over her shoulder and rested my head on the pillow, finding myself lying peacefully beside someone for the first time in a long time…but the peace felt weird. It should have been comforting, but something was still bothering me.

Sofia was still asleep at my side, oblivious to the frantic thoughts in my head. Memories of the strange calls I’d received in recent days resurfaced with a familiar, prickling unease.

At the start, I’d dismissed them as simply someone playing games, but the timing began to make me uneasy. I never recognized the numbers.

Trevor’s warning had only added to my unease. The news that someone had recently started making inquiries about old syndicate financial records was out of place. He didn’t know who it was, but he’d spent long enough in the game to know when someone was meddling in things they shouldn’t.

I shifted on the bed and glanced at Sofia. She had no idea my life was a mess or how much she meant to me yet. My chest tightened at the thought. Where did that come from?

I sighed and let sleep finally do its job. I dreamed I was back at the house. It was dark, but smoke filled every room, hot in my lungs as I coughed my way through. It mirrored itself on the walls in orange and yellow flashes.

Nearby, I could hear a child crying. I followed the sound until I reached a closet door. Behind the hanging clothing, a small girl crouched.

She was staring at me with round eyes filled with panic. I reached for her, smoke churning and swirling around me like hot oil on a stove.

Someone suddenly screamed behind me, followed by the sharp boom of a gun. The girl’s features faded into oblivion. I sprang awake suddenly, my heart thumping chaotically.