Page 8 of Late Night Caller


Font Size:  

“Nico, whatever you need me to do, you know I will.” All too willing to do this for me. I’m not sure if I should kiss her or smack her ass for offering herself up so freely.

“What I want is going to piss you off.” Green eyes are shimmering with sadness, not for herself but for me. “The only way I can keep you safe and in my life is to bind you to me completely. I’m not taking this lightly. You’ll become my wife tonight.” I watch as she swallows what I’m assuming is a lump in her throat. When she scrambles to get off of me, I drop my hands. Try as she might, there’s no way to leave my house unless you know the password as well as have a thumbprint sent to the monitoring system, another thing to add on my never-ending list.

“Nico, you’re being ridiculous. You’d rather we get married than use me as bait. Make it make sense to me, please, because the man who was just buried deep inside me, who is now giving me one option, isn’t the same man who whispered, what I’m sure means something important to youor was that your way of making me feel loved without using the word?” Journey is naked, opening drawers, slamming them shut until she finds a shirt of mine and slides it over her head before she goes through the drawers once again until she lands on my socks. Watching her bend to put one on and then the other shouldn’t make me happy. The way she’s carrying on, wearing my clothes, it’s better than her finding a heavy object and throwing it at my head.

“You mean the fucking world to me. Not only would us being married protect you from this Russian prick, it’d make it damn hard for a cop to pick you up, question you for hours on end, trying to lure information out of you about me and the famiglia.” I get out of bed and reach for my own shorts. A level playing field is going to be key because there’s a look of pure annoyance written all over Journey’s face.

“Was this the meeting you had with Wylder, about marrying me off like I’m some cow on an auction block?” she huffs out, walking the length of the room to the glass doors, looking out them instead of at me. I didn’t tell her the reason for meeting Wylde at his office, only that I had to speak to him. I slide my shorts on and walk towards her. It’s not the ideal situation, and I haven’t said that four-letter word to her. That doesn’t mean what I feel for her isn’t strong, if not stronger than some measly word that is used more often than it should be.

“You’re not a cow, Journey. I told your brother the options. He didn’t agree with any of them but told me you’re a big girl and can make your own decision. The thought of using you as a lure to this fucker makes me murderous. He’s known for selling not only drugs but women. One wrong move, and you could be lost to me forever. That’s not happening, vita mia.” My hands take hers in my own, holding them, fingers threaded together as I raise hers to the glass doors. My body cocoons hers, feeling the slight tremble after admitting more than I should to her.

“It’s really this bad?” The back of her head lies against my shoulder. My lips graze her neck.

“Worse than your wildest imagination and then some. I know it’s not the fairytale wedding you’ve dreamed of as a little girl, but one day soon, when my parents are back and things have settled down, I’ll give you exactly what you deserve,” I admit.

“If we get married, it’s forever?” I mash down on my back molars, pissed that she’d ask such a question, taking in the fact it’s my own fault. We clearly haven’t discussed as much as we should have throughout these past few months. Another thing to fix. Jesus, what a mess I’ve made of her life.

“It’s forever. If you ran away, I’d chase after you, bring you home, and tie you to our bed. I may not do a lot of things right, Journey, but this I will. We’ll be married in every sense of the word.” My thoughts go rogue, thinking about a few years down the road, my ring on her finger, a baby I put in her belly, thinking about the noise of other children filling this otherwise empty house.

“I should be pissed at you. Honestly, I’m not above kicking you between the legs and hurting your balls. This isn’t what I expected at all, putting me on the spot, changing things so drastically when it could be as easy as me sitting at a bar to reel this disgusting pig of a man in. How will we even explain this to my parents? Mom is going to kill you, and your mom, oh my gosh, I don’t even want to think about all the fast talking you’ll have to do to pull this off.” Journey relaxes her body against mine. Once again, she’s right. I’ll have a lot of ruffled feathers to smooth come tomorrow. The rest of the afternoon is for us, and tonight, well, I’ll be taking Journey Donotello all fucking night.

“Leave that up to me, alright?” My teeth nip at her neck, and my cock loses its will to stay soft as she arches her ass into my groin. It seems we’ll be celebrating early after all.

FOURTEEN

Journey

“Areyou sure this is a good idea?” Delaney asks for the tenth time since he’s arrived at Nico’s place. Truth be told, I have no way of knowing if it is or isn’t. In all fairness, running for the hills probably would have been a better idea, but losing Nico would have stopped me in my tracks. The man who’s never upset was today. Things really are rocky, and until he can get a lock on this situation, I’m not going to add any stress to his life. Am a I pushover? Probably, but when you love someone, you do some really stupid shit, and I’m not a fool to deny that this isn’t one of those moments I should dive in headfirst.

“Absolutely. Did you pick up the dress from my place?” When I packed to come to Nico’s, I had no idea today would be my wedding day, so the clothes I had stowed in my bags were more athleisure, bathing suits, a pair of jeans, a few tops, and a couple of dresses.

“Does a bee make buzzing sounds?” When I called him after settling down from the bombshell Nico landed on my lap, it was with calmness. Of course there was a need to rage, but after the last week I’ve had, I was tired—physically, emotionally, and now mentally. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not marrying Nico for the hell of it. I truly do love him even though he can’t and won’t say those words. I can see a life with him if he allows me to.

“You’re the absolute best.” There was one dress that had yet to see the light of day: a cream dress, feminine and delicate with a side of spice in appearance. The fabric beneath the lace hugs my body in all the right ways, showing off my hips and the curves of my ass. I clearly was not blessed in the chest but have enough junk in my trunk to take some from it and place it up top if I wanted to. I’m not doing it, though, so instead I find clothes that flatter my body. It was my luck when the brand sent me an email asking for me to do a try-on, tag the company, and give my audience a discount code. It’s not slated to go live until next weekend; that didn’t stop me from emailing them asking if I could release it earlier since, you know, it’d be the perfect wedding dress for the occasion.

“I am. I’m still not sold on this idea. I know you and Nico have been together for a few months, but why the big rush to get married?” Delaney doesn’t know the truth about the way Nico is asking me to marry him so suddenly and we’re keeping it that way, the less that know the less harm that could come to them. The less anyone knows, the better. As in, only our immediate family will know, so for now, I’m going to lie to my best friend, which makes me want to curl up in a ball and cry. But there’s no time for me to dwell on what I can’t change. Hopefully, when things settle down, I’ll have the courage to tell him, and Delaney won’t hate me for it.

“I love him, Delaney. I truly do. All you see the guy who’s hardened, not the one who crawls into bed with me, warding off the cold, cherishing me, or the fact that it doesn’t matter how busy he gets, there’s a text or a phone call daily.” These aren’t the only reasons I’m completely infatuated with all things Nico; they are just the few I can put into words. There’s a whole other facet that happens in the bed. I’ll never discuss that with another, not even my best friend, not because I don’t trust him, but that area of our lives is just that—ours.

“Okay, I can’t say that I understand what you’re saying. We know the reason for that, too. Looking for love in all the wrong places definitely should be the theme song of my life,” he makes a joke to the old country western song that plays in one of my favorite movies,Urban Cowboy. “I’ll support you no matter what.” He ties the back of the dress for me. Did I mention the straps are dainty, crossing over my shoulders to tie in the middle of my back? The front is gorgeous; the back it’s a showstopper.

“Thank you, and seeing as you’re standing up for me while Wylder is for Nico, we kind of need both of you.” As soon as he’s done, Delaney is fiddling with his tie. God, if Pierre doesn’t snatch this man up, I’m going to have to really do some digging to find him the right guy for his happily ever after. He deserves it and so much more.

“I wouldn’t miss it for the world, plus it’s my job to make sure you’re not getting cold feet. At least that’s what all the movies show when there’s a man of honor.” I slide into my heels. The sole is the same color as my dress, a clear band across the top and tying at the back of my ankle in the creamy color. Delaney knew exactly which shoes to choose when he stepped into my closet after locating the dress. Truly, he should have been a fashion designer or influencer instead of a realty mogul.

“You’re doing a great job,” I tell him after tying each heel and standing back up. My hair is in soft waves, a few pins holding it together on one side, so it doesn’t take away from the beautiful dress.

“It’s time for us to go, Journey. I can hear Nico pacing outside the door.” This may not be a real wedding of sorts, but that didn’t stop me from wanting to still have a sense of traditionalism. Nico wasn’t impressed when I gave him the choice to either get kicked him out of his room, or I'd move to another room in his four-bedroom house, which by the way has seven bathrooms. Who needs that many, and who would want to clean them weekly? Definitely not me.

“Alright, I guess we’ll show the big beefcake what we’re working with. Would you mind taking a few pictures with the backdrop in Nico’s room before we leave? The campaign will want to see them before they’re posted, and with us keeping this intimate, I didn’t ask my assistant to come along,” I ask, holding my phone out towards him.

“Always. I assume you’ll want some with Nico as well?” I nod in response as I open the door and am stunned into silence. Nico is wearing a four-piece suit—black pants, jacket, waistcoat, and tie. The white shirt makes it stand out, and I know if I were to rub my fingers along the fabric, it would be the softest material ever.

“Mi togli il respire.” My head cocks to the side, trying to decipher what he just said to me. “You take my breath away.” He doesn’t say that word a woman like me longs to hear, yet when he uses those words, it’s like he does, and I know for now that will have to be good enough.

“Nico,” I say, taking a deep breath, trying to find the right words to say. “You’re handsome.” It’s lame, but the hint of the smile he gives me lets me know he understands. His hands go to my waist, mine go to his chest, and his lips meet mine, a light peck so as not to ruin my lipstick. I don’t mention that it won’t go anywhere and is smudge proof, knowing if we start this, it won’t end until we’re both naked and breathless.

“Are you ready, vita mia?” The sound of Delaney clicking the shutter button on my phone is the only sound in the doorway, and I’m thankful I asked him to take pictures.

Source: www.allfreenovel.com
Articles you may like