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“Very shitty. You didn’t deserve that. I… I want to be better for you.”
It struck me just then how close that was to something Zander had told me, and I fought the smile that threatened to surface on my face in response to it. I liked hearing that I made these men want to try to better themselves.
Whether or not they actually would was still up for debate, but until they proved otherwise, I’d give them the benefit of the doubt. After all, if it wasn’t for someone giving me the same respect, I wouldn’t be here.
“So,” Luca paused, glancing around, “are you here alone? You shouldn’t be, after what happened. If it was your father, you shouldn’t go anywhere without someone watching your back.”
“Zander’s here,” I said, picturing the man himself hiding near the trees a good ways away, watching our interaction with envy raging in his heart. Oh, Zander.
“Oh, right. Your bodyguard you never go anywhere without.” Luca glanced around, clearly not seeing him, because when those eyes landed back on me, their intensity was masked by something else, something deep and hungry. Lust? Love? A combination, or something in between?
I didn’t know why any of these men cared about me. I didn’t think I was deserving of their adoration, their love, or hell, even their lust. I wasn’t the all-impressive Shay Arrowwood. I was just me. Giselle Santos, the girl who would no longer be her father’s heir because she would be a Moretti.
Fuck. I had to do everything in my power to push off the wedding. I didn’t want Moretti as my last name.
“How do you think he’d feel if he saw me kiss you?” Luca asked in a hushed tone, the question so sudden and out of the blue all I could do was stare at him, my lips parting.
“Uh” was all that came out of me. Not very smooth, but this whole thing wasn’t a situation I’d prepared myself for. I might be smooth in the thick of a gunfight, but when it came to feelings like this? They were still all new to me.
Luca took a tiny step toward me. His hands were no longer in his pockets, now hanging at his sides, though those hands lifted. His fingertips brushed my cheeks in a sweeping motion, his hands cupping my face. I didn’t tense up, didn’t jerk away like I would’ve for most everyone else. I was too caught up in the look in those dark eyes.
The inner battle in me was one the old me was losing. Where I would’ve pushed him away, been disgusted that he was touching me because he was Rocco’s son, the new me was already lost in the way those hands felt on my face. I didn’t think about his father or what he did to me. I didn’t think about any of the current problems surrounding my life. The only thing I did was let him tilt my head back and close my eyes the moment his lips pressed against mine.
Luca’s mouth was sweet on mine, not overly possessive. That said, the kiss was still very eager; I could taste it in the way it grew more fervent, more heated as the seconds ticked on. It was like one of those kisses in the movies, where the camera was slow to zoom out and circle around the embracing couple. The whole world faded away, nothing at all mattering to me other than the feeling of his lips on mine.
I didn’t pull away, didn’t come up for air. My lungs burned, my body not quite realizing I could breathe in through my nose. All I wanted to do was take him in, lean against him, memorize the feeling of his lips. I didn’t care who he’d kissed before, nor did I think about the other men I’d recently given myself to. In that moment, it was just Luca and me.
His hands swept back, tangling in my hair, pulling gently. His whole body practically cradled mine as we stood there, embracing like there was no tomorrow. And when you were born to families like ours? There might not be. Tomorrow was never guaranteed, so you had to take what you could when you could. This kiss was no different.
But, God, did it feel good. It felt right.
And it was over far too soon, because Luca’s mouth tore off mine, his body lumbering back as someone pulled him off me. Zander had appeared, one hand on Luca’s shoulder, curled around it like he wanted to break it.
“Mouth off of her, you prick,” Zander growled out. “You’re not married to her yet.”
Luca shrugged him off, refusing to back down. “Last I checked, neither are you.” Not the best comeback, but he wasn’t wrong. Zander certainly wasn’t married to me, either. Neither of them were, and that was why this was so ridiculous.
I folded my arms over my chest, kind of annoyed that Zander had interrupted the kiss. I noticed both of them had their hands into fists, so I said, “If you two throw down, I’ll make sure I never kiss either of you again.”
That got them to stop and stare at me, and then at each other. They both knew what that meant, and if I said they were both fine with it, I’d be lying. They both wore their jealousy right on their faces, and as I flicked my gaze between them, I couldn’t stop myself from laughing at how silly this whole thing was.
That, I think, only got them more upset.
“Why the fuck are you laughing?” Zander asked, gesturing to Luca. At least his hands weren’t fists anymore. “You seriously want to kiss this freak again?”
“Does that mean you’ve kissed him before?” Luca asked, flicking a thumb in Zander’s direction. “I should’ve fucking known. I could tell by the way he watches you like a creep—”
Zander turned toward him. “Who are you calling a creep, you freak?”
Luca mimicked his position, both men once again posturing at each other, trying to downplay the other and prove that they were the bigger man, AKA the better man for me.
And that was just stupid.
I darted between them, thereby stopping them before they erupted into an actual fight. A group of mothers pushing their babies in strollers walked by on the path, giving us all looks, and I fought my urge to tell them to mind their own fucking business.
To the guys, I said, “Stop it. Both of you, cut it out right now. I will not have you two at each other’s throats. Zander, yes, I think I want to kiss Luca again, and Luca, yes, that means I’ve kissed Zander before.”
As if he had to get the last word in, Zander growled out, “Among other things.”
