by Cora Reilly
“You could carry it over here. The pan is heavy.”
Nino followed me into the kitchen, his warm palm pressed up against my back.
“It needs five more minutes,” I told him after another peek inside the oven, avoiding looking at his face because that led to me looking at his mouth and that led to more distracting thoughts. Nino regarded me quietly. He cupped my face and brushed his thumb over my cheekbone.
“You are nervous.”
I licked my lips, my eyes drawn up to his mouth then a bit higher. He moved closer and kissed me, slow and hot and with a promise of more. His tongue was almost playful as it circled mine, teasing but still dominant. Flustered, I pulled back. It was the first time Nino had initiated a kiss, the first time we’d been intimate outside of our bedroom.
“That’s what I’ll do tonight,” he murmured then added in an even lower voice, “Between your legs.”
I shivered. Nino was less careful around me; it was exciting and terrifying, and I didn’t want it any other way.
He pulled back, gray eyes evaluating my face. He reached for my wrist, brushing his thumb across the sensitive skin before he kissed it. “Remember, there’s nothing for you to fear when you are in bed with me.”
I nodded. My dry throat made swallowing difficult. “I think the lasagna is done.”
Nino took out the large pan and carried it into the gaming room. I carried plates, napkins, and cutlery. Savio, Adamo, and Remo had already taken their usual seat. For a moment, I considered asking them to have dinner in the dining room but then decided against it.
“That smells good,” Adamo said as he leaned over the lasagna the moment Nino set it down on a wooden trivet.
“Are you sure she didn’t poison the food?” Savio asked with a grin, but he was already loading up his plate with lasagna.
Nino put his hand on my knee as he sat down beside me. “Kiara and I have plans for tonight, so I don’t think she will poison me just yet. Am I right?”
Heat blasted my cheeks.
“TMI, Nino,” Adamo muttered.
“TLI if you ask me,” Savio said with a grin. “It was more fun when you still shared your fuck adventures with us, Nino. Now I only get to hear Remo’s twisted shit.”
I was sure my head would explode with embarrassment any minute.
“If you don’t want to hear my twisted shit, I’ll share it with only Nino and Fabiano in the future.”
“I don’t think anyone wants to hear it,” I said.
Remo leaned back, regarding me with a sinister smile on his face. “Not everyone’s cut out for shitty vanilla sex, so sue me. And if I remember right, Nino and Fabiano enjoyed the rougher side of things too before your women castrated you.”
I chanced a look at Nino, but his face didn’t give anything away. The lasagna was delicious, and the men dug in as if it were their last meal. As usual, they taunted each other and argued. It always gave me a strange sense of belonging when they acted like family around me.
After dinner, Nino and I retreated to our wing. When Nino closed the door to our bedroom, I peered up at him curiously. “What did Remo mean with the rougher side of things?”
Nino shook his head. “It doesn’t mean what you think it means.”
“You don’t know what I think,” I said quietly. “Maybe you are a genius, but you aren’t a mind reader.”
Nino wrapped his fingers around my wrist and tugged me closer. Then he leaned down. “I don’t have to be a mind reader to recognize the look on your face, Kiara.”
I sighed. “So you never …?” My voice shook.
“Never,” he said firmly and relief filled me. His thumb stroked my wrist. “How about we explore some more now?”
I gave a mute nod, excitement coursing through my body. Nino led me toward the bed. “If you want me to go down on you, it would be wise not to have me restrained … unless you feel comfortable sitting on my face.”
My eyes flew open in shock. “No,” I finally managed. “Definitely not.”
Nino’s lips twitched at the corners. “That’s what I thought.”
My cheeks were hot as I rolled my eyes. Stepping closer, I stood on my tiptoes and curled my hand around Nino’s neck. He lowered his head at once, claiming my mouth and wrapping an arm around my back. I lost myself in his kiss until he began to lower us to the bed. I felt the soft mattress beneath me as Nino hovered over me.
He pulled away, his eyes tracing my face. “Fear?” he asked quietly, holding his body above me.
It was ridiculous to be scared because it was Nino, but how Durant had felt hovering over me always returned to my mind, even if I didn’t want the memories to hold me back.
Nino lowered himself to the bed beside me, and I quickly returned kissing him. He complied without hesitation and as usual took lead. I surrendered to his expert tongue, feeling my center heat. His hand stroked my side then slipped below my shirt, touching skin and creating goose bumps. His fingers reached higher then brushed over my lace bra. My nipples puckered under the touch, and I moaned into Nino’s mouth. His hand cupped my breasts and kneaded lightly at first then his touch grew firmer. Gathering my courage, I reached for Nino, needing to feel him. My hands slid over his muscled chest, down to his ripped stomach until I reached the hem of his shirt. I tugged at it.
Nino pulled away from my mouth, sat up, and yanked his shirt over his head. My eyes took in his torso, the muscles, the scars, the tattoos, and as usual, my body filled with thousands of butterflies. Before he had even lain back down, my hands were already roaming over his chest. He propped himself up to allow me to explore. His eyes were on my face, but my eyes remained on my fingers as they stroked his pecs then grazed his nipples.
He exhaled, and I repeated the motion, loving that I could break through Nino’s cold demeanor with such a small touch. It felt empowering. Exhilarating.
“How about we get rid of your shirt as well?” Nino murmured, hands reaching for the hem of my shirt. I raised myself up so he could pull it over my head.
His eyes traveled over my body, lingering on my breasts, and then his lips returned to mine as his fingers tugged at my nipple through the lace. He helped me out of my bra. Fingers and lips caressed my breasts, shoulders and stomach, as he left a burning need in their wake. Despite my body’s need, I froze when Nino reached for my panties. So far he’d touched me through the fabric. It gave me the illusion of safety.
I lifted my hips, and Nino took me up on my invitation, but his eyes remained on my face as he laid me bare to his eyes. His palm stroked my thigh then slowly up it, moving over the small patch of dark hair between my legs. I held my breath when his thumb touched my slick nub for the first time without a barrier. Arching up, I moaned.
His finger nimbly stroked my folds, but he never dipped between them. I wasn’t sure how good he was at reading me … if he understood that having his fingers so close to my entrance scratched the surface of painful memories. Nino moved to the end of bed and eased my ankles apart. I knew what he was about to do and tried to make my body relax.
He stretched out between my thighs, his tattooed biceps flexing as he parted me wide. My center clenched, followed by my thighs, when he lowered his gaze to my center.
“Fear?” he asked quietly, intently. I wasn’t afraid of that. He had never done that to me.
“Nerves,” I admitted.
“Of what?” His breath ghosted over my wet heat, and I trembled with anticipation, nerves, and need.
It was hard to explain. “I don’t know.”
He leaned forward. “This is going to be good for you, Kiara. Try to focus on my tongue and my lips. Don’t think about anything else.”
His breath fanned over my clit, and then his tongue slid over me lightly, dipping between my folds before it fluttered over my nub. I whimpered from the sensation.
“Good?” Nino asked against me, his voice deep and calm.
I nodded, my fingers digging into the bedsheets. Nino’s tongue did a small flutter a
gain, and my muscles finally loosened. He eased my thighs farther apart with his shoulders and dragged his tongue down to my opening. I tensed briefly, and he moved back up quickly. Again, his tongue fluttered over my clit then over my folds before he dipped lower and repeated the same motion over my entrance. Intense pleasure coursed through me, and this time my body didn’t tense. Nino’s tongue flicked lightly over my opening then he twirled it around and increased the pressure, easing the tip into me. I released a surprised gasp.
He let out a low hum, which sounded like approval, and my eyes darted down to watch him. His gaze rested on my folds as he circled my opening with his tongue. He seemed to enjoy it, and that realization banished the last of my nerves. He flicked his tongue over my clit again, with light nudges and twirls, and then I could feel something building; tension tightened deep in my core, mounting with every lick and flick, until I shattered. I cried out, shuddering through my release.
Nino groaned against me, moving lower, and lapped at my entrance with slow strokes. My eyes widened as my walls clenched again under his ministrations.
“Ride it out,” he ordered in a low voice.
He began to use firm licks to heighten my pleasure again. It was incredible, impossible. This felt better than anything ever had.
“Nino,” I whimpered as he worked me with gentle care. “This feels so good.”
“Good,” he rasped against my folds, and I trembled at the sound. “I want you to come again for me, Kiara. Can you do this for me?”
“Yes,” I gasped out, and he flicked his tongue along my clit before he focused his attention on my entrance. He pressed his mouth firmly against me and his tongue entered me again. His tongue felt so good inside of me as he moved it slowly. His thumb found my clit, and he rubbed the same soft circles.
I bucked my hips restlessly, overwhelmed with the wondrous sensations. It was building even quicker this time, my flesh oversensitive but still eager for more. My hand flew down to Nino’s head, gripping his hair, and then I came even harder.
Nino’s fingers stroked my folds. “I’d like to put my finger in you.”
I met his gaze. His expression was calm, self-assured. I swallowed.
He dipped one finger between my lips. “Say something. Tell me to stop if you don’t want this.”
“I … I’m worried it’ll hurt like last time.”
“It won’t,” Nino said firmly with certainty. The tip of his finger moved a bit lower. I tensed, remembering the pain from long ago, the feeling of breaking, of helplessness.
Nino regarded me, his finger lightly tracing my opening, but he didn’t push in. He reached up with his other hand and stroked my lower belly. “Try to loosen up, Kiara. You are very wet, and my finger will be very pleasurable against your sensitive walls if you allow it.”
I tried to relax, but my body clamped down with fear from the past. Nino kept stroking my opening and folds. “Let me help you,” he murmured.
He startled me when his hand fluttered up from my stomach to the ticklish spot over my ribs. I gasped out in laughter and twitched. Then Nino slipped his finger into me. He immediately stopped the tickling.
“Oh,” I breathed out and stilled. It didn’t hurt at all. Slowly, his eyes found my face. He began moving his finger, and I moaned at the sensation.
“Why did you tickle me?” I asked thickly as Nino kept thrusting inside me with his finger. He rubbed my clit lightly.
“I distracted your body. Your brain had assumed my finger against your opening was a threat because you expected pain, so I went and posed another threat your synapses had to focus on. Usually it works best with actual pain, but tickling is effective too because the body reacts in a similar way.”
I shook my head. “You are good at this.”
His lips twitched, and his gray eyes questioned me. “I’ve studied the workings of the body for a long time, especially its reactions to pleasure and pain.”
I didn’t doubt it. I moaned as he did something with his finger inside of me, a light rotation.
He repeated the motion and rubbed his thumb lightly over my clit. “Do you like this?”
How could he even ask? “Yes,” I managed to get out. His lips took the place of his thumb over my clit as his finger slid in and out slowly.
“Come again for me,” he said in that silky, dominant tone, and I fell apart under the combined sensation of his finger and his mouth.
My entire body burst with waves of pleasure. I trembled for a long time, trying to catch my breath. Nino pulled his finger out and then shocked me by lifting it to his lips and putting it into his mouth.
“I enjoy your taste, Kiara,” he said in a more textured voice as he knelt between my legs. My eyes were drawn to his pants. He was hard, aroused because he’d had his mouth on me.
I sat up, reached for his briefs. “I want to give back.”
Nino slipped out them then knelt on the bed again. I was in front of him and reached for him. He groaned. I moved slowly then leaned forward, and he met me halfway. His lips claimed mine and tasted like me. We kissed as I pumped my hands up and down, his eyes boring into me with more than cold scrutiny. Our kiss turned desperate, uncoordinated. Nino tensed in my grip. I watched the small twitches of his muscles, the sharp pull of his mouth, listened to his quick pants, and it felt right.
CHAPTER 18
KIARA
Leona gave me a look. “Are you nervous too?”
I laughed. “Nervous doesn’t even begin to cover it. I don’t think I’ll be any good at fighting.” I paused. “But why are you nervous? I thought you’ve practiced with Fabiano before.”
“A few times, yes, but we’ve always been alone. Now there will be people watching.”
I nodded. I wished Nino had chosen to practice alone with me, but I knew he had a lot on his plate because of his upcoming fight against that giant man.
When we stepped out into the training hall, my eyes had trouble taking it all in. The chandelier dangling from the ceiling, the red and gold wallpaper, the broken roulette tables, the beautiful dirty, seashell-shaped windows … It was so typically Falcone to choose something as flashy as an abandoned casino building for their fighting gym.
The men had already gathered around the boxing ring. They were only in fight shorts, and my heart thundered faster at the sight of all that muscle and scars. Even Adamo was muscular for an almost fourteen-year-old.
“Thank God, not the cage,” Leona muttered, and I gave her a questioning look. She smiled. “Fabiano always insists we work out in the cage, and it honestly gives me the creeps.”
My eyes wandered over to the cage, and I had to agree. I was already nervous as it was.
Nino touched my hip when I arrived beside him. “Leona will go first because she already has some practice.”
Trying to hide my relief, I nodded.
Fabiano parted the ropes for Leona, who climbed in with a nervous look toward the Falcone brothers. “Are you all going to watch?”
“No,” Nino said. “I’m going to attack you.”
Leona’s eyes widened. “What? I thought Fabiano would train with me?”
Fabiano shook his head. “Not this time. Being faced with an opponent that makes you nervous is closer to reality.”
Nino swung himself over the rope and faced Leona, his arms hanging down at his side in a relaxed way. “Watch closely, Kiara,” he said.
I nodded.
Nino lunged at Leona, and I noticed Fabiano’s body rocking forward slightly. Leona let out a surprised cry when Nino’s hand clamped down her wrist. He jerked her toward him, and then she was already on her back. He knelt between her legs.
“Leona,” Fabiano hissed. “Remember what I taught you.”
Leona began struggling, but Nino pressed her wrists into the ground above her head, lowering himself, parting her legs further with his muscular thighs.
Remo made a buzzer noise. “There’s no way for you to escape now. You acted too late. Now he’s got you exactly whe
re he wants you.”
I shivered.
“He would have to open his pants. That might give her an opening to attack him with her free hand,” I said.
Everyone looked at me, and I swallowed but stood my ground.
Nino grabbed both of Leona’s wrists in one of his despite her wriggling and showed me his free hand. “Free to open my pants.”
Nino straightened and pulled Leona to her feet.
“Why did you act so late?” Fabiano asked with a frown.
“I was startled, and to be honest … Nino scares me,” she said indignantly.
“Then let’s hope your assailant announces his attack ahead of time and doesn’t scare you,” Remo muttered.
Obviously losing interest, Savio and Adamo moved into the cage and began sparing with each other, but Savio definitely had the upper hand and didn’t take it easy on his younger brother, judging by the force of his kicks and punches. No wonder Adamo was always beat-up.
“Again,” Fabiano said.
Nino grabbed Leona’s arm, but this time she acted instantaneously. She brought her hand up to claw at his face, but he blocked it with his elbow, at the same time dodging her kick aimed at his groin with his hip. Then he threw her down. They ended in the same position as before, and Leona huffed.
“Better,” Nino said with a nod, pushing off her and pulling her to her feet.
“I still ended up on the ground.”
“Your attacker won’t be Nino,” Fabiano said. “He probably won’t be half as fast or strong or skilled.”
They did two more drills until Leona’s face was bright red and covered in sweat. Nino looked like he’d just finished a nice, slow morning walk.
I stifled a smile and when he met my eyes and the corners of his mouth twitched. My body filled with warmth as it so often did in Nino’s presence.
“Your turn,” he said and parted the ropes for me.
Gulping, I climbed inside the ring, and Leona quickly scrambled out, whispering, “Good luck.”
Fabiano immediately wrapped his arm around her waist possessively. Remo shook his head and jumped up on the edge of the ring then swung himself inside.
