“It’s in the far south. If you think of Italy like a boot, it’s on the heel, facing the gulf. The land is very sunny. It’s like the whole place is bathed in gold sometimes, and we don’t get winters as harsh as the rest of the country up north. Taranto itself is very old. It was a Greek settlement, a long time ago.”
“Woah,” Serena says, raising her eyebrows. “The house I grew up in was built in the forties, and I thought that was old.”
“All the buildings are sun-baked, for the most part. Imagine if you turned gold into stone, they’d look kind of like that. Only not as pristine. There’s a lot of black soot on everything because of the factory nearby.”
“Sounds romantic,” she says with playful sarcasm.
“It’s an acquired taste,” I say with a chuckle. “The old town looks a something like the Little Italy up in Manhattan. Lots of clustered apartments, clothes lines strung up over narrow alleyways that motorini—er, scooters—zip down, big churches here and there...and the old military fort looms over everything on the water. Something about the palm trees and shining sea puts you at peace, though. It’s hard to describe if you haven’t seen it.”
Serena is quiet for a moment before saying, “And you’re from the old town?”
“No,” I say, tossing the cores of our now-eaten apples into a trash can as our shoes click on the paved walkways. “My family lives a little ways out of the city. In the country. It looks like…” I frown, trying to draw a comparison. “Have you ever seen those old Western movies?”
Serena blinks, then bursts out laughing. “Wait, what?”
“No, seriously,” I say. “They filmed some of those down in southern Italy. It’s like a desert, but...more trees,” I say, realizing I’ve never been to an American desert to compare to. I shake my head, laughing at myself. “My dad used to take me on drives around some of the villages in the area. They’re really beautiful. They use a lot of smooth white stone that never goes dark like the ones in Taranto do. And some of them are up on mountains where you can see for miles in any direction.”
“Wow,” she says softly.
“When I was...very small,” I say, holding my hand down to my knee to show how tall I was, “my dad would carry me on his shoulders and point out some of the other villages from this park up on a mountain ridge. Then we’d go get gelato from the little shops close by, and he’d tell me about the places he went when he was growing up.”
I feel Serena’s steady gaze on me, and the look on her face reminds me that I’m starting to get a little misty-eyed. I blink it away, and shake my head. “That was a long time ago, though.”
There’s silence between us as we walk slowly, and finally she says, “Your dad sounds like a good guy.”
I nod.
“The place reminds me a little of what my dad used to describe,” she says, and she wraps her arms around my bicep to lean her head on me as we walk. “He was just a teenager when they left Sicily, but it sounds like they’re a lot alike.”
“Sicily and the mainland? They have everything and nothing in common,” I say. “But they’re both beautiful places. We ought to go sometime.”
“Just up and go to Italy?” she says, a slight laugh to her voice, but I smile at her perfectly sincere.
“Why not? I’ll make sure you get time off from work to close the shop for a few days.”
“Oh god, I could never!”
“When customers come in, I’ll ‘encourage’ them to make a few purchases,” I say, playing up my best menacing accent and cracking my knuckles. Serena giggles and slaps my chest in protest, but I surprise her by scooping her up off the ground and spinning in a circle with her, then planting a kiss on her lips as she throws her arms around my neck. It was painful in my condition, but worth it.
We look at each other for a long moment, smiling, and I know we’re both losing ourselves in the fantasy for a little bit.
“It’s starting to get dark,” I finally say, gently setting her down. “I ought to get you back.”
We make our way back toward the car and climb in, but once we’re driving, I can’t help but feel like something’s lacking from our little date. After a moment, I look over to Serena.
“Feel like going for a drive?”
“A drive?”
“I know someplace nice,” I say. “It’s too nice a night to waste inside.
A few minutes later, I turn off to head toward Orchard Beach, an idea forming in my mind. When Serena realizes where we’re headed, a confused smile plays across her lips. “Luca, it’s like, eight at night!”
“I want to show you something,” I say simply, parking the car. “It’s on the far end of the beach, this way.”
As we approach the sand, Serena gasps at the sight, and immediately, I start looking around for danger, but then I hear her voice.
“Oh my god, Luca, look at the water!”
My concern melts away as I look up at it. The full moon is low on the water, casting a carpet-like stream of white reflective light on the gentle waves. There’s not a cloud in the sky, and it couldn’t be more beautiful.
I feel Serena looking at me, and I turn to see the most pleading eyes I’ve ever seen. “Do you want to go for a walk on the beach?” I ask with an arched eyebrow and a wide smile.
“How’d you guess?” she says, laughing before she darts over to the sand, kicking off her shoes and picking them up. I shake my head as I catch up to her and do the same.
We make our way out onto the beach proper. We’re not the only ones out here tonight—I can see a few people further down here and there—but we’re the only ones in this area. No other sounds but our feet crunching in the sand and the gentle sounds of the waves kissing the shore.
Serena goes almost to where the icy waters touch, and I start leading her to where I have in mind. The beach is pretty flat and open, and we’re technically not supposed to be out here this late, but nothing’s going to bother us while I’m around.
Before long, we come up to a little outcropping of rocks, and I lead Serena around it. “What’s this?” she asks, and I crouch down to squint at the rock, looking it up and down. After a moment, I smile and point to something.
The words VOGLIO TORNARE are carved in a crude hand, a little weathered but still there. Serena blinks at it blankly.
“When I first got here, to America,” I say, “well, I told you about how I was kind of a shit. I ran away from home once, the first few weeks. I really didn’t want to be here. So I ran all the way out here to this beach and hid out for...I don’t know, a few hours.” I grin. “I was a rebel, but I got bored easy.”
Serena reaches out and brushes her hand over the words. “Did you write this?”
“It means ‘I want to go back,’” I explain, nodding. Serena is quiet for a few moments.
“It must have been hard, getting used to somewhere this new,” she says. I’m thoughtful for a moment, but then I reach up and pull her down with me, rolling onto the sand, and she yelps as I hug her close to me.
“I might have settled down if I’d had you to distract me sooner,” I whisper into her ear, and she wiggles in protest, giggling. Soon, though we find ourselves sitting up, Serena between my legs as we watch the bright, moonlit water.
“Think it’s dangerous out here?” Serena asks, leaning her head back against my shoulder. Wisps of her hair flutter as I breathe in and out.
“Could be,” I say, reaching to my pocket, “I’ve never had to worry about that kind of thing.” I pull out a switchblade, opening it and letting it gleam in the moonlight as Serena looks down at it.
“Are you kidding? Giant, musclebound Italian guy with a knife?” she teases, but I squeeze her to me, chuckling as I plant a kiss on her neck. She squirms away from it with a smile, and I pepper her neck with kisses until she starts turning her neck up and scooting her butt into my crotch, her playful giggling melting away to short breaths.
“Why, are you afraid of something?” I ask, lowering my voice, and I brin
g my knife up to her collarbone. She hold still as I let the blade glide across her skin, and it gives her goosebumps.
“...Maybe I like a little danger,” she says, and I feel her shiver wonderfully against my hardening manhood. I smile, and my throat rumbles as I bring the blade up to her chin and whisper into her ear.
“Little lady like you should be careful, coming out so far with a dangerous man.”
Even in the moonlight, I can see her cheeks start to flush with color. Her eyes flash to the rest of the beach. “We’re pretty exposed out here,” she breathes.
“I don’t care,” I growl, my hand reaching up to her breast and squeezing it. She suppresses a yelp, and she bites her lip. “I don’t care if someone sees, I want to take you, Serena.”
“God, I want you, Luca,” she whimpers. She gives the shore one last worried look, but the same energy within her I’ve always known she has overtakes her. “Are you sure it’s safe?”
“Trust me,” I say, and I slip my jacket off to lay on the sand before I pull her onto it carefully. Her chest is rising and falling, hair spilling over her shoulders as she looks up at me and the knife, terrified yet full of need.
I take my shirt off and toss it aside, letting my whole torso gleam in the moonlight, and her eyes devour me. She reaches up to run her hands over my muscled body, and I put the knife in my teeth to rip her shirt up over her arms. Her bra comes the next moment, and I feast my eyes on her exposed body.
I take her wrists in my hand and hold them up over her head, planting a knee on either side of her as I draw the blade slowly across my tongue.
“Be still,” I caution her, slowly bringing the cool metal down to her torso. Her breathing is quick, but she nods softly and relaxes a bit at my deep, reassuring voice. “No sudden movements. I need all your trust, Serena.”
“I want this,” she says, red cheeks beautiful under stray locks of hair. “I want you, Luca.”
I bring the knife down to her left breast and trace a circle around her nipple. She draws in breath at its cool touch, but I’m careful not to make more than the faintest contact. I’ve practiced this on myself before trying it with anyone, much less my Serena.
The blade slides around her breast, and I bring it to the other, playing dangerously close to her areola. My hand brings the knife to the nape of her neck, where I draw it across slowly, so slowly, wetting my lips as I watch its progress.
I pause to look up into her eyes, and they’re wide with excitement, and she’s breathing through her mouth. I smile and look back to the knife to bring it up to her chin, then to her lip, where I let it linger for a moment before gently using it to nudge her mouth open.
When that’s done, I close the blade and toss it aside. The next moment, I attack her mouth. Our lips lock, and my bulge is growing rock-hard.
Our tongues explore each other’s mouths, and my hands slide down to her hips, squeezing them greedily, possessively.
We don’t even talk. The heady drive of our lust is too strong for that tonight. I bring my mouth down to her nipple where I’d had the knife just a few moments ago, and my teeth do what the knife was too shy to do. I hear her gasp as my tongue washes over it, and meanwhile, I use my hands to start working her pants down. I have no patience tonight. I’m going to claim her, hard and fast.
As soon as her pants are down, I put my fingers to my mouth to wet them, but when I put those fingers to her lower lips, I find her already soaking-wet.
“That’s my girl,” I groan between kisses. I let my teeth graze her nipples one last time before I undo my own pants and let my shaft out, eager to meet her needy pussy.
Serena
His cock spears deeply inside of me as I cry out and arch my back, my hands grasping at either side of me, only to grab fistfuls of sifting sand. I close my eyes and feel my whole body tense up. The coarseness of the sand brushing against my back is just ever so slightly painful, adding a sharp edge to the pleasurable sensations between my legs.
Luca pauses for a moment, letting his massive length and girth fill me, the head of his shaft pressed squarely against that lovely, forbidden spot. I open my eyes again, slowly, to blink up at Luca with anticipation. He’s looking down at me with an almost peaceful smile, but there’s that fiery spark in his green eyes that tells me I’m in for the ride of my life.
I can’t believe that the seed that was planted between us so long ago still blooms so strongly. The trust, the love, the lust I have for him… He makes me feel like a love-struck teenager all over again. He’s awakened things in me that I didn’t even know were there.
And somehow, his presence in my life… it’s soothed those old pains instead of inflaming them. When he first came back in my life, the memories I’d repressed came rushing back, and I had to face the demons in my past. The darkness that was lurking in the corner of my psyche.
But when I’m with him… I feel such love. Such trust. I knew he’d never hurt me, not even by accident, as that cool blade had run up and down my body. So instead of frightening me, it simply thrilled me, and made me feel so… alive.
He runs his hands down my body, from my neck all the way down to squeeze my thighs, prying them open wider as he gradually slides his cock back out of me. I want to wrap my legs around him tightly, keep him inside me as much as possible. It’s like an instinctive, almost animalistic need. To keep him. To hold him here. As though if I were to let him go, he might disappear into the fog rolling down across the beach. But I remember his words the other night at the bar: I’m not going anywhere.
Without warning, Luca suddenly slams into me, his cock hammering into my pussy. I let out a shriek of surprise and pleasure, and Luca claps a hand over my mouth as he begins to thrust harder and faster. A thrill runs through my body at the newness of this; I’ve never had anybody cover my mouth during sex before. After what I went through as a teenager, with anybody else I might be scared. But I trust Luca completely, without question. I know he would never, ever hurt me. And the joy of feeling so safe coupled with the hint of danger makes everything that much sexier.
“Shh,” he whispers, passing his thumb delicately over my lips. “Someone might hear you.”
“I’m sorry,” I gasp, feeling my body tingle with ecstasy as he pumps into me again and again. “I’m trying to be quiet but— oh fuck— it feels so good.”
I can barely get the words out, as wave after wave of pleasure rushes over me. Luca gives me a devilish grin and leans down to kiss me just as I open my mouth to let out another involuntary cry. He slips a hand down between my legs, his fingers finding my clit easily. I inhale sharply as he works my clit while his cock slams into me incessantly. His breath is hot on my neck, teasing me, until he finally kisses the ticklish skin there and starts to nip and suck. I’m overwhelmed with the competing sensations all over my body, my eyes rolling back and closing. I lift my hips again and again to meet his thrusts, moaning words without meaning.
“So good for me, baby,” he purrs, the words dancing tantalizingly across my neck. I tremble with anticipation of looking in the mirror later to see the mark he’s leaving there.
It might be juvenile, but I have always loved seeing those pink and purple love bites on my skin, a reminder of intense pleasure that lasts for days. It’s a symbol, a trademark, telling the world that I belong to someone. And the thought of belonging to someone like Luca… well, it doesn’t get any better than that.
“You’re mine,” he growls, almost as though he can read my thoughts. I groan, dragging my hands down his back and wrapping my legs around his waist, pulling him in close to me. I need to be closer, always closer to him. I can never get enough.
“I love it when you say that,” I murmur. I can feel my pussy clenching around him, preparing for an inevitable climax. “I am yours. I belong to you. I always have.”
“Gonna make sure everybody knows it. I’m going to claim you, mia passerotta. You’re mine.”
And with that, he lunges forward to suck a biting kiss into t
he flesh just above my collarbone and I yelp as my body trembles through an orgasm. I’m whimpering now, nearly incoherent with the overwhelming symphony of sensations.
“Good girl, very good,” Luca whispers, stroking the hair back from my face and planting a soft kiss on my lips. “I want you to ride me, sweetheart.”
With one swift, fluid movement, he grabs hold of me and spins around so that his back is on the sand and I’m straddling him. I’m still swaying in the throes of pleasure, but I start working my hips, leaning forward to let my clit rub against him as I ride his cock. Luca reaches up to caress my breasts, rolling my nipples between his thumbs and forefingers, sending shockwaves of pleasure down to my core. I start to lose control, bouncing up and down on his cock with abandon, needing to feel him slam deep inside of me even though it almost hurts. I’m greedy for it now, all coyness and shyness completely faded away by my desire.
“Oh my god,” I groan, leaning backward and arching my back as I ride him. Luca pulls up to a sitting position, tugging my legs around him so that we’re straddling each other now, facing each other. He gently strokes my face before aggressively taking a fistful of my hair and holding me in place. I never thought I would love being manhandled like this, but everything Luca does is delicious. Perfect. With him, I can completely let go of my insecurities and anxieties and just be. At any moment, someone could come walking down the beach and find us here in the most vulnerable position. We could be discovered. A cop could show up. We could get in trouble for this.
But I don’t care. It’s worth the risk. Luca is worth every risk.
Even though I’m technically on top, Luca seizes control, thrusting into me while he holds me in place with both of his powerful hands firm on my hips. My second orgasm shatters over me and I start to scream, but Luca lets go of my hip to cover my mouth with his hand again.
“Such a good girl for me. I love feeling you come all over my cock, Serena. I want to make you feel so good,” he snarls, never relenting in his fast, hard rhythm. I’m losing myself to the shivers of intense pleasure, the world melting away around me. All that matters is this: Luca and me. Together.
[Killer 01.0] Killer for Hire Page 15
