But in a way, he’d been right back there in the limo. There were no guarantees and maybe she didn’t deserve this. But denying herself what she wanted with all her heart wouldn’t change the past. Wouldn’t bring her friends back. Wouldn’t make her ADHD go away or make her parents magically proud of her. All it would do is make the pain worse. And she’d hurt for such a very long time.
Lorenzo had told her once, that first night they’d had together, that she had to stop punishing herself, and she hadn’t thought that’s what she’d been doing at the time, but maybe she had. And maybe it was time to stop.
Maybe it was time she allowed herself some happiness, if she had the courage to take it.
Kira had been a lot of things in her life, but a coward wasn’t one of them.
So she didn’t think. She obeyed the overwhelming urge that filled her, the feeling that had probably been lurking inside her from the moment she’d watched him smile at Katie all those years ago, lifting her hands to his face, pulling his mouth down on hers, kissing him desperately as the tears slipped down her cheeks. Giving him his answer.
When she finally lifted her head, she found they were both on the terrace floor beside the couch and he was holding her so tightly she knew he wasn’t going to let her go.
“I’m sorry,” she said huskily. “I don’t need guarantees. I always knew that. But . . . I was so tired of being hurt, and I thought that not being with you would hurt less. But it didn’t.” She pushed her fingers into the black silk of his hair, needing to keep touching him, keep reminding herself that this was real. “I think in the end it was about me feeling like I didn’t deserve you. Because of the accident. Because of my entire freaking life. I mean, I let so many people down, Lorenzo, and I couldn’t bear the thought of letting you down, too. Everyone in my entire life has been disappointed with me, and I just couldn’t bear the thought of disappointing you.”
His smile had vanished, but it was okay, because the fierce expression, the hunger that lived inside him, was there on his face. Burning hot, scorching her. “You can never let me down, Kira Constantin. You can never disappoint me. I love everything you are, and I never want you to change. The only thing I do want is your heart.” His arms tightened, his expression becoming even fiercer. “Give it to me, beautiful girl. Please.”
This time it was her turn to smile. To smile at him the way he’d smiled for Katie. The way he smiled at her just now. “You idiot,” she said softly. “You’ve had my heart since I saw you in Bryant Park when I was fourteen.”
The look in his eyes flared. “I’m not a nice man, Kira. I’m an asshole. And if you want to talk about what we deserve, I sure as hell don’t deserve you.”
“You’re also a liar.” She leaned forward and kissed him hard. “Of course, you deserve me. Who else is going to put up with my temper tantrums?”
His mouth was on hers again, hungry, with the sweet edge of desperation that she loved. “Tell me you’re mine,” he whispered. “Tell me I get to keep you.”
“I’m yours, and you get to keep me. For however long that will be.”
“Forever.” The lightning in his eyes was electrifying. “I want you forever.”
“Then forever it will be,” she said simply.
Epilogue
“It’s very simple,” Rafe said mildly and without preamble, leaning back in the massive black leather chair he was currently occupying. “I intercepted Nero before he could take the information to the board, and I have already spoken with Dad myself.”
Lorenzo stared down at the computer screen. It was currently displaying the interior of Rafe’s office, his middle brother staring blandly back at him.
Rafe had always been a particularly difficult person to read, especially because he never let any sign of his true emotions show. His expression was inevitably relaxed, laid-back, and charming. As the face of DS Corp. and heading its PR arm, he was the consummate politician, always calm, always smooth, and always with the perfect sound bite. Yet sometimes his silver-blue eyes glittered with an edge that was scalpel sharp and very, very dangerous.
They were glittering now.
“I don’t care what you do with the information,” Lorenzo said, just as mild, because he actually didn’t care. He didn’t even know why Rafe was bothering to call him about this. “I know you’re pissed Nero and I exposed Dad’s embezzling, but the truth was always going to come out.”
His brother gave him a neutral smile and lifted a shoulder. “You mistake me. I’m not pissed you exposed our father. In fact, I’m pleased because it saved me the trouble.”
Lorenzo frowned. “Care to explain what you mean by that?”
Rafe put his elbows on the desk and interlaced his fingers. “Not really. I only wanted to assure you that I have no intention of planning any revenge or making any move against you or Nero.”
Revenge? That was not Lorenzo’s first thought he had to say.
“Well, thank God for that,” Lorenzo said coolly. “I was worried there for a second.”
“You should be, brother mine. Because Dad has agreed to step down and has given control of DS Corp. to me.” Rafe’s smile widened, the cold scalpel edge glittering brightly in his eyes. “And I have no intention of giving it up.” Then he reached out toward the camera and the screen went dead.
Lorenzo stared at it for a second longer, debating whether this news mattered to him or not. Then, deciding it didn’t, he pushed shut the laptop, left the living room, and took the stairs two at a time to the terrace.
Outside, the stars were already out, burning like the tea lights glimmering in the holders scattered about.
But nothing was as bright as the woman lolling against the pillows of the daybed, her pale, naked form only just visible between the curtains he’d hung around said daybed for privacy’s sake. In the past few weeks, he and Kira had used it often.
Ducking back through the curtains, he pulled off the shorts he’d been wearing to save Rafe’s blushes, and got back onto the daybed, sliding down beside Kira and tugging her back into his arms, where she belonged.
“What did he want?” Kira asked.
“To tell me that the information we collected on Dad is now his and that apparently he’s spoken to Dad already and the old bastard has agreed to step down.”
“So what does that mean?” Kira folded her hands on his chest and looked at him. “Are you the big boss now?”
“No,” he replied slowly. “Rafe is.”
Kira’s eyes widened in surprise. “Oh? But aren’t you the eldest? The heir?”
“I was.” Reaching out, he grabbed one pale curl and wound it around his finger, relishing the softness of it against his skin. “But I guess I’m not anymore.”
Her forehead creased. “Wow. But aren’t you upset about that? I mean, you don’t look upset . . .”
He thought about it, though not for very long because he already knew his answer. “No. I’m not upset. It was never about the company for me, not really. It was more about taking Dad down than anything else, and now that’s been accomplished . . .”
“Are you going to find something else then?”
He shook his head, rubbing the lock of hair around his finger with his thumb. “I don’t think so. I like the job and besides, someone’s going to have to keep an eye on that sneaky bastard Rafe. It may as well be me.”
“You are very good at keeping an eye on people,” she agreed, giving him a wicked look from beneath her lashes. “Oh, by the way, the center said yes.”
He grinned, pulling the lock of hair again gently. One of the community centers she’d been courting had shown a great deal of interest in her kids’ classes, and she’d been expecting a decision from them today. “That’s fantastic. Then again, they’d be crazy to refuse.”
She blushed. “Well, you never know.”
“I do,” he said firmly. “I always know.”
“Such arrogance, Mr. de Santis.” Her blue eyes were glowing. “Next you’ll be telling me yo
u’re never wrong.”
Goddamn she was lovely, and he never got tired of looking at her. Never got tired of being with her, period. Which reminded him . . .
“I got you something,” he murmured, shifting on the daybed and reaching for the small box he’d hidden under the pillows earlier, wanting to surprise her.
She blinked, looking down at the box he was holding out. “Lorenzo . . .”
“You know it’s not an engagement ring. You’ve already got one of those.”
Color washed over her skin. “Yes, I know. But still. You don’t need to get me anything else.”
“Of course, I do.” He held out the box. “Go on. Open it.”
Kira sat up and took the box from him, shaking her head. But she opened it up anyway and he watched as her eyes went wide, giving him one startled glance before looking back down at the box again.
Pleasure lit her face and wonder, too, as she reached down and brought out the necklace he’d brought her.
The small, platinum paper crane swung and turned on the fine chain it was attached to.
Her eyes were glowing a deep, intense blue and she didn’t speak, but he didn’t need her to. The memory and love he saw in her face told him everything he needed to know.
And much, much later, when candles had guttered out and the stars were burning more brightly in the sky, and they were resting in each other’s arms, their heartbeats slowing finally and their breathing calming, Kira looked up at him, her eyes dark, the color of the sky above them. “Smile at me,” she whispered, the paper crane lying gleaming in the hollow of her throat.
So he did. The smile that was hers and hers alone.
Just like his heart.
Read on for an excerpt from the next Billionaire Fairy Tale novella
THE BIG, BAD BILLIONAIRE
Coming soon from Swerve
Ella’s eyes had gone silver, like the stars in the sky, a pretty contrast to the delicate pink blush that stained her cheeks. Her skin felt so soft against his palms, as soft as he’d always imagined it would be. No, maybe even more so.
A kiss. Right now.
The lovely cupid’s bow of a mouth was the same pink as her cheeks, and he knew it was going to taste so fucking sweet. She was so little and fragile and perfect. Scared and yet so very brave at the same time.
Offering him something that he wanted very, very badly indeed.
He took a slow, silent breath, staring down into her face. Fearfulness glittered in her eyes, along with a defiant anger that made his blood pump hard in his veins. She was looking at him directly, all her attention on him instead of glancing away, and he felt it move over him like sunlight. Making him want to lift his head and close his eyes, glory in the warmth of it on his skin.
She’d never looked at him like this before, and it made him hungry for more. He didn’t want to be ignored or held at arm’s length, not by her. In fact, he couldn’t stand the thought of it.
This was what he wanted. Her attention on him. All her passionate emotions—whether fury or desire or fear-—directed at him. Yes, and now he had that attention, he definitely wasn’t going to give it up.
Patience, remember? You should wait.
Yeah, he knew that. But fuck, she was offering what he’d wanted very badly for years, and maybe he should take it. After all, hadn’t he always planned that tonight he’d take a kiss from her? See what kind of chemistry they had between them? Perhaps he should have been upfront with her from the outset, but he hadn’t wanted her to run from him.
Sure, it would be a pity not to have the dinner, but he was in no hurry. There would be plenty of time for other dinners. Yes, he’d wanted her to give the kiss to him because she was as desperate as he was, not because she was pissed, but then you couldn’t have everything.
You can’t let her dictate terms. Once she knows she has power over you, that’s the end.
Ridiculous. She had no power here and they both knew it. But maybe letting her think she could manipulate him wouldn’t be a bad idea. People became careless once they thought they had the upper hand. They became complacent, dropped their guard. Which is exactly what he wanted from her.
“A kiss now, huh?” He pressed his fingertips lightly against the softness of her skin, enjoying the warmth against his palms. “Are you sure that’s wise?”
“I’m sure.”
She swallowed and he couldn’t help but follow the movement of her long, pale throat, to the pulse that leapt and fluttered at the base of it. Pretty. So very pretty.
“Okay, then.” The words were a little husky, which should have worried him yet didn’t. Not with the heat of her body so close to his and the rain-soaked scent of flowers all around him, muting the constant restlessness that moved like a million ants beneath his skin. “Have it your way. I’ll have the kiss now and then take you home.”
She inhaled, and he could feel tension gather in her jaw and neck. In the rest of her small, slender body. It looked like she was bracing herself for an unpleasant task that she was nevertheless determined to endure.
Brave little bunny. Silly little bunny. Did she really think kissing him would be unpleasant? It made him want to play with her a bit as a punishment, for that and for wanting out of his special dinner.
He let his gaze roam over her, stroking his thumbs along the line of her jaw before sliding his fingers along and around the fragile curve of her skull, tipping her head back further, exposing her throat.
Her eyes widened in alarm, her body going rigid.
He ignored it. “Hmmmm, what kind of kiss shall I take? Shall I take it . . .” He ran one thumb along the line of her lower lip. “Here? Or maybe . . .” Letting one hand drop, he brushed his fingertips against the frantically racing pulse at the base of her neck. “Here?” Her skin was so very soft and silky there, too, and he felt the tremble that shook her body as he touched her.
“I said one kiss, Rafael.” There was a thread of something running through her voice. A thread of something . . . hot.
He looked into her eyes, studying the expression in them, a complicated mixture of fear and anger, and . . . was that reluctant excitement? “You did say that. You just didn’t specify where.”
She blinked rapidly. “I didn’t know I was supposed to.”
“Then you’ll know for future reference, won’t you?” He let his hand drop lower. “Maybe I’ll kiss you . . .” One fingertip brushed over the front of her gray sweater, grazing the hardened tip of her nipple through the wool. “Here.”
The breath came out of her in a soft rush of sound, her eyes getting rounder, but he’d already moved his hand lower down, touching the button of her jeans. “Or maybe even . . .” He lightly stroked down the denim covering her zipper. “Here.”
Ella took another gasping breath, shivering, the flush in her cheeks getting deeper, staring at him as if she’d never seen him before in her entire life. It was delicious the way she looked at him. Finally, after years of him watching her, she was at last seeing him.
Suddenly, he wanted to push her. Drop to his knees in front of her and undo the button on her jeans, take down her zipper, spread the denim and uncover that sweet little pussy of hers. Take the kiss he was owed from her there.
But that would be getting ahead of himself. He wanted her begging him for that, and she certainly wasn’t at that stage yet. And besides, he wasn’t entirely sure that if he started kissing her there, he’d be able to stop and that was not what he’d promised himself.
“No,” he said. “Maybe not there. Not yet.” He slid his fingers back along her jaw, cradling her head in both palms and tipping it back even more. The sound of her breathing was audible in the silent room, fast and ragged, her lashes falling, veiling her gaze.
“That’s right, don’t look at me,” he taunted softly, unable to help himself. “I’m too frightening, aren’t I?”
She jerked her head in violent negation, but she didn’t open her eyes.
He wanted to force her to open them, to
look at him, to watch as he kissed her, but then that would be rushing things and he didn’t want to do that. Not with her. A slow seduction was what he was after, a gradual wearing down of her defenses. Because that was the most delicious part of all, undermining her dislike of him, changing it into something else, into a passion she wouldn’t be able to deny.
Rafe let her keep her protective darkness as he lowered his head to the pale arch of her throat. He paused for a moment, inhaling the scent of roses and the tantalizing hint of feminine musk. Allowed himself a smile, because if he wasn’t much mistaken, that was the scent of arousal. The way he had her head tipped back in his hands meant her body was arched into his, and the thin wool of her sweater was pulling tight over her small breasts, letting him see the hardened points of her nipples. Yes, very definitely arousal.
Satisfaction rolled through him, and his smile widened as he closed the distance, pressing his mouth gently against the racing pulse at the base of her throat.
A single kiss. A brush of his lips against her skin. A butterfly kiss to confuse her, to tantalize her. Make her shiver and wish for more.
At least, that’s what he’d intended it to be. But then she sighed, and it sounded like surrender, and all the tension left her body. She became pliant in his hands, leaning into him as if she wanted his touch, as if she needed it to keep her upright.
And something went off like a firework in his head, a switch being tripped.
He opened his mouth, unable to stop himself, touching the delicate skin of her throat with his tongue, tasting salt and roses and something else he couldn’t describe. Something that was intrinsically Ella. Hot and musky and so delicious it stole the breath from him.
He found his fingers curling into her hair, pressing against the side of her head, holding her more firmly as he opened his mouth wider, closing his teeth very gently over the delicate tendons at the side of her neck.
She made a soft sound and shuddered, her hands coming up. And he expected her to try and push him away, but she didn’t. Instead her fingers closed around his forearms, holding on tightly, her breathing frantic as she leaned back into his palms, exposing her throat even further. As if she wanted more.
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