by Penelope Sky
“I’m glad you like him. It seemed like you two were connecting.”
“I didn’t realize kids could be so cool.”
“Well, Luca is amazing. I know I’m biased because I’m his mother, but he really is. He’s grateful for what he has and wears his heart on his sleeve. He’s the kind of boy that will catch a spider in the house then let him go outside. He’s sensitive…”
“I’m sure he gets all of that from you.”
She shrugged. “Maybe.”
I leaned in and kissed her on the mouth, unable to resist an embrace. It’d been so long since I had that mouth on mine, been the recipient of those fiery kisses. I wanted to take her to bed upstairs, but I had no idea where the little man was. So I made the passionate kiss short, knowing I would have to finish it later.
When she pulled her lips away, her eyes were lit up with desire. Her hand moved up my chest, and she gripped the fabric of my t-shirt, like she wanted to keep kissing me. Her fingers were always demanding, gripping me the same way I gripped the back of her neck. She licked her lips then nibbled on her bottom lip for a second.
I nearly kissed her again.
“Carter?” she whispered.
“Yes, sweetheart?” I knew whatever she was going to ask me was serious, based on her tone. “There’s something I want to ask you. I just don’t know how to ask it. I’m not sure what I’m trying to say.”
“Try and we’ll figure it out.” My arm rested around her waist, hugging the curves of her hips. My chest was pressed to hers, and I could feel her plump tits. This woman had the kind of body that drove me wild. Fantasies popped into my mind, all involving her tits and ass.
“Alright…” She broke eye contact for a moment, staring at my chest before she lifted her gaze to meet mine again. “Now that I have Luca back, I never want anything to happen to him again. Knowing he was in that orphanage all alone still keeps me up at night. I want him to be safe, to grow up without being afraid of what might happen. I’ve always considered myself to be a strong woman because of everything I’ve accomplished, but being Egor’s prisoner just showed me how incapable I really am.”
“That’s not true, sweetheart.”
“It is true,” she whispered. “I’m not strong enough to protect Luca. If someone wanted to cause us harm…I wouldn’t be able to do anything to stop it. That thought terrifies me, not because of what might happen to me, but what might happen to my son.”
“What are you asking me, Mia?” I wasn’t sure where this was going. I told her she could live here as long as she wanted and continue to work for me. As long as she was under my roof, she would never have to worry about stuff like that.
“I…I don’t know. I see the way you are with him, and I see how powerful you are. You’re the reason we’re both here. You’re the reason we’re safe…from everything. I always got the impression that you weren’t interested in relationships or commitment, marriage or a family. But you and I seem to have something special…a unique connection. Unless I’m wrong?”
Now was the time to tell her otherwise, but I kept my mouth shut. I didn’t pretend that there wasn’t something here, that she didn’t make my heart beat to a special rhythm. “Yes, we have something…” I’d never bedded one woman this long before. I’d never gone through so much work to have a woman. I’d never risked my neck for someone else the way I did for her. I constantly bowed to this woman, moved mountains to give her whatever she wanted. It didn’t matter that she’d been beaten and raped. My attraction to her never waned. I didn’t think about what happened to her before I came along. I only thought about the two of us.
She was quiet as she tried to figure out what to say next. “We would love to spend the rest of our lives here, to be protected by a powerful man like you. No harm would ever come to us with you around. I could raise my son and live a peaceful life.”
“And that’s something I’ve already offered to you. You know I’ll protect you.”
“I know,” she whispered. “But…I guess I want more. I want a powerful husband who will keep us safe at night. I want a man my son can look up to. I want to give him the best life possible. I never want to be afraid of the evil and cruel men out there.”
I hardly listened to anything else she said because all I could focus on was the word husband.
“I will give you anything you want in return. Not only my body, but my devotion and commitment. I already care deeply for you, Carter. I’m so loyal to you…would do anything you asked. You can have you own flings in the background and keep your personal life how you want it, but I can fulfill the other part of your life. I can be a wife to you, make you a home, and if you want to have children…I’m sure we could make that happen. I could raise them and do all the work so you don’t have to…if you’ll protect us for the rest of our lives.”
I stared at her blankly, unable to believe what she’d just said. “Did you just ask me to marry you?” I blurted out the words in a harsh tone, shocked that this woman put that kind of offer on the table.
“Yes…” Redness entered her cheeks, her embarrassment turning her into a tomato. “Not exactly, but yes. It’s just an idea. I didn’t mean to offend you. Just forget what I said. I just—”
“You want me to be your husband?” I asked, still incredulous. A woman like her could have any man she wanted, regardless of her past.
“Yes. Me and every other woman in the world.” She rolled her eyes. “I was under the impression you weren’t looking for something serious from anyone. So, with me, you can have both. You can have a family and have your legacy continue, while keeping the life you have now. In exchange for your protection…I thought it would be a fair trade. But forget I said anything, okay? It was a stupid thing to ask.”
I stared at her without focusing on her features. I knew I wanted this woman to stay, to live in my house indefinitely. I could have paid her off and gotten rid of her a long time ago. I wouldn’t have spent so much time with her son if I didn’t care about her. I wouldn’t have been faithful to her for so long unless there was something here. I wanted to keep her forever anyway, but I felt like shit forcing her to do that. Now she was doing it freely, giving me exactly what I wanted.
I never wanted to let this woman go. “Yes.”
“Can we just forget about it?” she asked. “I was just—” Her eyes widened when my answer sank into her bones. “Wait…what?”
“Yes.” I watched her reaction change, watched the relief enter her gaze. “That sounds like a fair trade to me.” I wanted this woman by my side every single day, even with a kid of her own. I never wanted her to leave, and by agreeing to her terms, I could have her for the rest of my life. She was creating her own sentence, committing to a lifetime of being with me. I’d never wanted to get married anyway. I didn’t want to find a woman who would love me for me and not my money. Why would I waste my time doing that when I already had that woman right here?
Mia wanted me for me.
Still shocked, she stared at me with a stunned expression. “I guess I wasn’t expecting you to say yes right away…or say yes at all.”
“Me neither.” My hand cupped her cheek, and I looked into her gaze, seeing a woman who’d stolen my obsession from the first time I looked at her. It was like an arranged marriage, something of convenience for both of us. I could have her for the rest of my life, have her fill the role I wanted, and she could have a powerful man to protect her and her son. It would be simple, uncomplicated with all the emotions that accompanied romance. And I could also have a family without having to deal with diapers and vomit all the time. It fixed all my problems. I was about to turn thirty, and I wasn’t getting any younger.
“Wow…I don’t know what to say.”
I rubbed my nose against hers. “I have one stipulation.”
“Alright…”
“You have to sleep in my bed every night. Not his.”
Twenty-One
Bones
The gate was left open for us,
so we followed the dirt path around the manicured gardens until we reached the two-story Tuscan home with the two large pillars in front. With a lush front yard and an even bigger backyard, it was a piece of property slightly bigger than my place near Lake Garda.
Vanessa eyed the house as it came into view, speaking quietly under her breath. “Whoa…”
I parked near the front of the house then hopped out. The place caught my eye because of the large stone wall that wrapped around the property. Walls had restrictions in the region, and they couldn’t exceed seven feet in height, but since this property was considered to be a historic landmark, the walls were double that height. Since the walls were covered with beautiful green ivy, it didn’t seem like the place was surrounded by concrete. The extensive landscaping along the wall, the thick trees and lush plants, made the wall even more invisible.
Vanessa walked up to the front of the house, studying the historical building with her arms across her chest. The paint on the walls was weathered and beaten, standing the test of centuries.
I watched her figure as I came up behind her, eyeing that dark hair as it reached down to the center of her back. “It was built in seventeen hundred.”
“Really?” she asked in surprise. “It looks old, but wow…”
I wasn’t sure if Vanessa would like it or not. The only reason I picked this place was because it seemed to be the safest. The walls were thick and tall, and it was impossible to see the house from the street because of the extensive landscaping. If someone wanted to target us, it would be very difficult even to figure out if we were home. After what happened, safety was all I cared about. There was no way in hell I was letting anyone take Vanessa away from me again.
We headed inside, seeing the downstairs parlor with the small tile and wallpaper. The place was charming, filled with timeless architecture that didn’t exist in other residences. Her family’s estate was about a hundred years old, making it far newer than this place.
Vanessa explored the house, looking at the kitchen, the dining room, and then taking the stairs to the second floor. There were five bedrooms there, the master bedroom having the most space, along with an enormous closet. There was also a small room that must have been an office, which overlooked the backyard. It would be a perfect place for her to paint.
I hovered behind her, waiting for her opinion on the piece of property. I wanted to buy it, but she had the final say in the matter. If she didn’t like it, I would have to find a new place that was just as safe. If nothing like that existed, I might have to build something.
She went into every room, touching the old paint on the walls and inspecting the dirty windows. It hadn’t been inhabited for a long time, and now it was on the market to cover debts to the government.
Vanessa was usually vocal about her opinions, so her silence told me she didn’t like the place. Her thoughts were always transparent to me, but now she was closed tighter than a clam. She headed down the stairs again and looked into the backyard, where the lush backyard stretched for another acre before it hit the wall. With her arms crossed over her chest, she examined the bright flowers against the greenery of the grass and trees.
I came up behind her, my chest reaching her back and my hands moving to her arms. I rested my lips against the back of her head, the smell of her shampoo heavy on my nose. My fingers gently grazed against her soft skin. “Baby.” She still hadn’t said a single word to me.
“I love it…”
My fingers froze in place. “You do?”
“Yes.” She moved into the dining room. “We can have our family dinners here. The kitchen is big enough to make holiday meals once in a while. The backyard has lots of room to play. We might have to put a pool in, but I guess we can go to my parents if the kids want to swim.” She moved to the bottom of the staircase. “There are five bedrooms, so that’s enough room for three kids and an office. It’s a little bigger than I wanted, but I think it’s what we need. It’s also very private…”
Within forty-five seconds, she painted my whole life in that house. She showed me the three kids I would have, the afternoons I would spend with her parents by the poolside, and the dinners I would be cooking since she couldn’t work a pan. It was a family life I’d never wanted, but now that it was here, I could see it so easily, so vividly. Seeing the excitement on her face chased away all my fear. I’d never intended to love a woman, but when I met her, that was all I wanted—to love her fiercely. Now my purpose in life was protecting her and making her smile. It was a big responsibility, but I loved every moment of it.
She turned back to me. “What do you think, Griffin?”
“Let’s get it.”
She smiled as she returned to me, her hands crawling up my chest. “You love it, then?”
“Why do you think I showed it to you?” It didn’t matter where we lived. All I wanted was something safe, a fortress where I could keep her and the kids hidden away.
“I love that it’s old. It has so much history, so much character. I love my parents’ place, but it seems modern compared to this.”
“It’s a historical landmark, so I’m not sure if getting a pool is possible.”
“That’s okay,” she said. “My parents will love having us over every summer.”
I imagined they would have us over every season of the year. “Then let’s do it.”
She jumped into my chest and wrapped her arms around my neck. “Our home.”
I held her against me easily, her body lighter than air. “Yes. Our home.”
I hadn’t returned to the winery since we’d come back from Morocco. I wanted Vanessa in my line of sight at all times. Now that I had her back, it was impossible for me to let her go. Now that someone had laid a hand on her, I couldn’t let her slip through my fingers again. I accompanied her to the gallery every single day. Instead of being helpful by assisting her customers or handling the shipments, I just watched her the entire time. Sometimes my gaze turned to the windows to see if anything suspicious was out there waiting for us—but there never was.
A couple left the gallery, leaving the two of us alone together. Vanessa walked up to me, wearing a blue dress that made the swell of her tits look incredible. Her hair was curled, and her gold hoop earrings hung from her lobes. With sun-kissed olive skin, she was gorgeous, even when she wore the angry expression she did now.
I gave her the same look I always gave her—like I might rip off her clothes and bend her over the desk.
She crossed her arms over her chest. “It’s time for you to go back to work.”
I’d agreed to take over the winery for her father, but that was twenty minutes away. It would be impossible for me to protect her when there was distance between us. I didn’t care about the commitment I’d made to her father, not when I had a more important commitment to fulfill. He hadn’t asked me when I was returning, probably because he knew exactly why. I stared at her with the same seriousness, disregarding her cuteness.
“You’re chasing away my customers.”
“I’m not doing anything.” I hovered in the background like a statue.
“You’re brooding in silence like a gargoyle. It makes people uncomfortable.”
“Tell them I’m security.”
“Why would a gallery need security?”
Because men broke in and took my woman just a week ago. I held her gaze without rising from the chair, being difficult on purpose. “If they don’t like it, they can leave.”
“And they are leaving,” she hissed. “I need to sell this stuff, Griffin.”
“We have plenty of money.”
“That’s not the point, and you know it.” She walked over to me, her gold sandals slapping against the floor as she walked. “It’s time for you to go back to work with my father.”
I shook my head slightly. “This is where I belong.”
“You’re really going to sit there and watch every little thing I do?”
“I’m not watching you.” I watched everyt
hing around her, from the way customers interacted with her to the way the men stared at her as they walked past the windows.
“Griffin, this is unnecessary.”
I didn’t want to argue with her, not after what we’d been through. All I wanted to do was cherish her, live our lives in peaceful bliss. “I will decide what’s necessary. Go back to work and ignore me.”
“Excuse me?” Her hand moved to her hip as she shifted her weight. “You’ll decide what’s necessary? This is a partnership. We’re a team. We decide things together.”
“Yes.” I’d always believed Vanessa was a capable woman who could handle herself. But then my whole world crashed down around me and scared the shit out of me. “But it’s my job to protect you. I’m not letting anyone take you away from me…ever again.” I didn’t want to sit in the gallery all day when I could be lifting weights or doing something more productive, but Vanessa was my responsibility.
Her eyes softened slightly, but she still seemed angry. “I get that, but the threat has passed. It’s over.”
It was over, but I was still afraid. “I’m not ready.”
“Not ready to what?”
“Walk away. I can’t be twenty minutes away from you.”
“Griffin.” She stepped closer to me until she sat across my thighs. Her arm hooked around my neck, and she looked into my face, her feet dangling above the floor because she was too petite. “I understand you’re scared. I was scared too. But we have to move on with our lives. If we keep living like this…they win.” Her hand cupped my cheek, and the second she caressed me like she loved me, I turned soft. “My art is what I’m most passionate about. I need to paint, and every time I sell a piece, it gives me this amazing joy. My artwork is going to hang in someone’s home…it’s such an honor. I can’t stop doing that because I’m scared.”
