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For the first time, making the sign of the cross felt right.
And necessary.
Then I ran out after her, determined to show the stunning woman how much I loved her.
The beautiful girl who’d come into my life years before had returned, a perfect bird with injured wings.
Now it was time to make good on the promise I’d made to her.
Soon, she would belong to me. Only this time, the little bird would never be allowed to fly away.
CHAPTER 21
Christiana
I knew he’d followed me.
The man I’d dreamt of. The man I desired.
The man I hoped to marry.
Francesco…
I waited in the courtyard, uncertain of almost everything else in my life except for the fact Francesco wouldn’t be able to stay away. I believed him when he said he’d burn down the world in order to find me. A part of me wanted him to.
As I wrapped my hand around the iron railing facing the street, my heartbeat echoing loudly, I sucked in my breath.
There was more traffic than normal, cars whizzing by on the residential road as if determined to get to their destinations quickly. Yet in my mind, just like had happened before, the entire world stopped turning on its axis. I was risking so much by even being here, yet my father was far too busy being embroiled in business with Dante to pay any attention to the fact I still wasn’t wearing the ankle monitor, finding a way to pretend I’d returned it into position. Given the device was a GPS tracker only, I’d simply slid it under the covers, using pillows to make it seem as if I was fast asleep.
Childish? Yes. Risky? Without a doubt, but the moment I’d laid eyes on Francesco, everything had changed.
Seconds later, I felt his presence and my pulse increased to the point I could feel it in my throat. The sound of his footsteps as he moved closer sent a wave of tingles starting at my chest, drifting slowly to my toes. The slight chill in the air brought a round of goosebumps, but the warmth between my thighs was increasing with every inch he drew closer. I closed my eyes, pretending we were the only two people in the world and that no one could ever find us. As I turned my head, I tried to keep from making a single sound.
We were stealing another few precious moments in time, creating another memory. I only hoped this one would lead to another.
And another.
“You thought you could run away from me,” he growled from right behind me, his heated breath skipping across my cheek. “You seem to forget that I’m the Big Bad Wolf.”
“You might be but I’m not Little Red Riding Hood.”
“I’m not certain about that, little dove. You are all grown up. The better to eat you.”
I don’t know why his teasing words created such a rumble of butterflies in my tummy other than to hear the deep longing in his voice was captivating. I kept my fingers tightly wound around the iron posts, moaning when he placed his hands on top of mine. Then he pressed his full weight against me and I arched my back, resting my head on his shoulder.
He pressed kisses against my cheek and I shuddered in his hold. “Take me away from all this, Francesco. Forever.”
“I will, baby. That much I promise you.” When he backed away, I stiffened but he quickly spun me around, cupping both sides of my face. “I’ve waited far too long for this moment, my sweet lady. I want you. I need you. I will have you.”
Francesco reeked of passion, so much so I was captured into a moment of sweet abyss, able to block out everything but the man standing in front of me. As he crushed his mouth over mine, I rolled my arms over his shoulders, tangling my fingers in his hair. I leaned into him, the kiss sweet yet explosive. My blood pressure increased, my mind a whir of thoughts and longings, incapable of putting two coherent words together.
The electricity was as if several bottle rockets were going off inside, fighting with the elements of fear. I no longer cared whether I was a good girl or not, preferring to be sullied by the powerful man and his insatiable needs. The taste of him was just as explosive as his touch, which seared every inch of my skin.
I was lightheaded, longing to laugh and cry at the same time. I’d thought this would never happen again. And I’d never wanted something so much. He pulled me off my feet and I couldn’t help but wrap a leg around his, pulling myself in even closer. Just the feel of having his thick hair in my hands was incredible, so much so lights flashed in my periphery of vision.
He pulled me further into the shadows and against the aging brick, rolling his hips back and forth. The feel of his hardness pressed against me left me breathless. There was something so enigmatic about the way he dominated my tongue, tasting me as if he’d been abandoned in a desert for months, only now able to quench his thirst. When he broke the kiss, he raked his teeth from one side of my jaw to the other, his heavy breathing forcing me to laugh.
I clamped one hand around his arm, fearful he’d suddenly vanish, nothing more than an apparition, a wish manifesting itself into a bubbled fantasy. But as I squeezed his muscles, gyrating my hips back and forth, there was no denying he was very real.
