“What path?” Grace shouted. “You haven’t even met Lucas. You don’t know what he’s like. Besides, he’s given up his old life.”
Sadie shook her head, looking sad for her, like Grace was some kind of naïve woman who didn’t know any better. Grace knew Sadie only had good intentions. Sadie protected her all her life—from bullies in high school, even Bert. Grace could stand up for herself now, make her own decisions.
“Men like that won’t and can’t change. What would your dad say if he knew you were going out with a criminal like Lucas?”
Silence in the room. Thick tension hung between them. That was it. Sadie had crossed a line and she knew it. She should’ve never brought up her dad into this conversation.
“My father’s dead, so it doesn’t matter,” Grace said flatly.
Besides, her father might be a hard-assed cop who upheld the law, but he also believed in giving second chances. Hell, before he died, her father worked in a program that tried to help reformed criminals get back on their feet. If he were alive, he would’ve been appalled to learn she was dating Lucas, but she bet if her father had the chance to get to know her man, he’d reconsider his opinions.
“Grace, you can’t handle a man like him.”
That almost sounded like a challenge, but Grace refused to bite Sadie’s bait.
She turned on her heel and marched toward the front door. Leaving seemed like the best idea, especially since the next words out of her mouth would likely be something she’d come to regret.
“Wait a second. Don’t you dare walk out on me just because you don’t like the fact. I’m telling the truth.” Sadie grabbed her arm, and Grace jerked it back. Sadie widened her eyes in shock.
“The truth? You have no right giving me crappy advice when your own life’s far from perfect.” Grace was already at the front door. She yanked it open. Leave now, she silently told herself. She was going to say something hurtful to her best friend, but Sadie was asking for it.
Sadie narrowed her eyes at her. “What do you mean by that?”
“This isn’t the first or tenth time I’ve cleaned after you right after you passed out.” Grace chewed the inside of her cheek. “I’m late for work and this isn’t going anywhere. We’ll talk more another time.”
“Fine. Suit yourself. I’ve tried to warn you. You’re the one who refuses to listen.”
Sadie practically pushed her out the door then slammed it shut. Grace balled her hands to fists and let out a frustrated groan. She kicked at the door, only to let out a yelp.
“Ow. Stupid idea.” Grace punched at the door. “Sadie? You owe me an apology. This time, I’m not giving in. You’re wrong. Lucas isn’t what you think.”
She bet Sadie was still there, hovering, looking at her through the keyhole. Was Sadie waiting for her to apologize? Every single time they had a fight, Grace was the first to cave. She was the type of person who couldn’t stand anyone being mad at her for long and disliked that about herself.
Grace headed to work, feeling good about herself. She arrived at Paolo’s, exactly on the dot.
“So, you’re Lucas’s girl,” the manager, Elena said, sounding skeptical. Elena eyed her up and down.
Elena said she’d been the manager here for nearly twenty years and was the owner’s sister. She must be around in her forties, but she already had lines on her face and whites in her black hair. This woman was no pushover. Grace reminded herself she had to get herself on Elena’s good side.
“Do you have any experience working at a restaurant?” Elena asked.
“I’ve had plenty of waitressing experience,” she said. Grace was about to take her résumé out from her bag, but Elena grabbed her hands and turned her palms up. She seemed to study the calluses there and nodded.
“That’s good but experience doesn’t cut it here.” Elena paused, as if considering her next words. “You’re with Lucas, so you understand his line of work. Certain men come and go as they please here. You’ll soon learn the names of the regulars, those who work for the Familia. They always drink for free, but we charge them for food. Understand?”
Her earlier fight with Sadie came back to haunt Grace. Men like Lucas couldn’t change, Sadie had said. Her father used to echo those same words when he talked about the men working for the mob in the city. Lucas had left that life and tried to pursue a different path. Grace respected him for that.
Besides, Lucas had been nothing but a gentleman with her. The sex last night had been explosive, but he hadn’t forced anything on her. She told the dubious voices in her head to shut up.
“I understand. You won’t regret this. I’m a hard worker and I work fast,” she added. “Also, Lucas told me he loves his family but he’s no longer in that line of work.”
Something crossed Elena’s face. She didn’t expect softness to replace the hard edge on Elena’s face.
“He did. I’m proud of him for making that difficult choice, but don’t tell him that. It’s not easy, changing the course of the path set out for you ever since you were a child. Everyone gave him flak for leaving the family business.” Elena seemed to look at her in a different light now. “I was working when he brought you here. Lucas hasn’t been back here in a long time.”
Grace didn’t know what she should say to that.
“Come on, I’ll introduce you to the rest of the staff and I’ll have someone show you where everything is,” Elena finally said.
“Thank you,” Grace said, following Elena to the kitchen.
Chapter Eleven
Once the coffee was done, Grace poured it into two cups. Dressed in nothing but one of Lucas’s oversized shirts, she padded to him and set his cup next to his art supplies. She didn’t speak, not wanting to interrupt his work.
She took a step back and silently watched him. He never minded. A week had passed since they first had sex. Ever since then, her entire life shifted. She’d never been happier, quitting her old job and working at Paolo’s.
Lucas had been right. The pay and the management were better. She wasn’t sure if it was because the staff knew she was Lucas’s woman, but it didn’t matter. Grace pulled her own weight.
He had moved from the studio to finish her painting in his apartment. Grace spent most of her nights here and was hardly at the apartment she and Sadie shared. When she’d told her best friend she was seeing Lucas, Sadie was against her decision.
Grace sipped her coffee in quiet contentment. Lucas seemed focused and she didn’t want to disturb him. She set her cup down, deciding to take a shower, but Lucas finally set his paintbrush down.
Lucas sipped the cup of the coffee she’d made. He eyed her and just one searing look made her nipples harden under the thin fabric of her shirt. Grace clenched her thighs, already feeling horny. She still ached between her legs after the rough lovemaking from the night before but like an addict craving her choice of drug, she already missed the feel of Lucas’s cock inside her.
It was Sunday, her day off from work. She didn’t have any plans, except lounging around in Lucas’s apartment. Grace figured after his morning painting session, they could have lunch, maybe see a movie or perhaps stay in all day. She certainly loved it when he lavished his attention on her.
“You hungry? What do you want for breakfast?” she asked him, squeaking when he tugged her close.
Paint spilled on her shirt as he sat her on his lap. “I’ll have you,” he answered.
Grace giggled when he slipped one big hand past her thigh to touch her pussy.
“Bad girl. You’re not wearing any underwear?” Lucas asked against the shell of her ear.
Grace blushed and gave him an honest answer. “I forgot.”
She woke up like this, with nothing but his shirt on and he knew it. He seemed to love it when she walked around in his apartment in nothing but his shirts. Lucas caressed her pussy, making her moan. Grace pushed her breasts against his hard pectorals as he stroked her back and forth. He moved his finger to her clit and began rubbing h
er there.
“Need to be in you,” he murmured, pushing two digits into her slick folds. Her heart hammered at those words because she wanted the same thing.
He kissed her, setting her skin on fire. She responded, parting her lips so he could thrust his tongue down her throat. Grace forgot her own name. Nothing else mattered but the kiss of their bodies. She craved, no needed Lucas to bury his cock deep inside her, owning her all over again.
Lucas worked her pussy faster, and she found herself thrusting her against his hand. She would’ve been appalled by her behavior a week ago, but shame had flown out the window a while back.
“That’s it, baby. I want to see you come for me. Do it now.” Lucas pushed two, three digits in her wet hole.
Grace let out a shuddering breath as she shattered, coming long and hard against his hand. She panted, only for him to steal another kiss on her lips, rendering her breathless for a couple of seconds. After her orgasm subsided, she sagged against him, resting one hand against his chest. Grace wanted something bigger than his fingers.
It had only taken him seven days to memorize every inch of her body, to find all her secret spots, which areas made her giggle or gasp. Grace also made a roadmap of his body in her mind. The intimacy between them was explosive but it wasn’t just sex between them.
Day after day, Grace was slowly uncovering the man underneath the shell. Lucas kept telling her he was no good for her, but she didn’t care about the sins he committed in the past in the name of the Severin Familia. That was a different man. The Lucas she knew was changed, wanted a different life, and she was now a part of that life. Grace didn’t want to change a single thing about him.
Besides, it was too late. From the first moment they met in that surveillance room, he had already captured a bit of her heart, dug his hooks deep into her skin. There was no way out. Not that Grace would exchange what she had now for anything. Together, they were a force of nature.
He withdrew his mouth from hers and reached for the hem of her shirt. Grace raised her hands, letting him pull it off, rendering her completely naked to his gaze. She sighed, tangling fingers into his hair as he lowered his mouth, burying his head between her breasts. Lucas grazed her left nipple with his teeth, licking and sucking at it. Her bare pussy felt damp over the rough fabric of his pants.
Grace cried out when he bit her and left his teeth marks over her breast.
Lucas lifted his head and used one hand to undo his jeans. All that while, his intense and hungry gaze never left hers. “Pull my dick out. Guide it to your hole,” he said, the command raising the hairs over her arms.
She reached for his prick and slid closer to him so their bodies could touch. Lucas’s cock was thick, long, and already hard for her. They no longer had a use for condoms. Lucas hadn’t been with anyone a while. They were both clean. Grace liked it when he fucked her raw, no piece of thin plastic between them.
Lucas pushed inside her, not pausing once. Grace gasped, holding on to his shoulders as he sheathed his dick all the way inside her. Like always, she marveled at his girth, how he filled her completely. She willed her pussy muscles to clench hard on his cock, making him groan.
“That’s it,” he gritted out, gripping her hips hard. Lucas was bound to leave bruises, but she didn’t mind. She loved waking up every morning in his apartment to see the marks he left on her skin the night before.
He didn’t move yet, instead, his gaze pinned hers, as if he wanted to remind her who her body, her heart belonged to. As if she needed a reminder.
“How should I ride you?”
“Fast and hard,” she whispered.
When they first became lovers, Grace was terrified of her desires, but Lucas told her she shouldn’t be. He lured out that brazen, bold side of her she never even knew existed. Lucas told her never to be ashamed of what she wanted. He certainly never held himself back from telling her all the filthy things he wanted to do to her.
He rode her, slow, leisurely strokes at first, making her feel good. The initial burst of pain she felt bled away, replaced by sheer ecstasy. Grace fluttered her eyelids and moaned as he began to rut her faster. She grew wetter as he went deeper with each push, seemingly able to breach her most intimate places.
Grace circled her arms around his neck, panting as he continued to ride her. Each time Lucas buried himself in her, he made sure to brush against her clit. The pressure inside her started to build, a dam on the verge of collapse. The living room fell away from her line of sight. She came all over his cock, screaming out his name.
Lucas held her tight and fucked her a few more times before spilling his load inside her cunt. A sigh of contentment slipped from her lips as she sagged against him. Her bones felt like jelly. She rested her head on his shoulder. He reached out, brushed the strand crimson strands that fell across her face.
He pressed a quick, gentle kiss on her cheek. Lucas still hadn’t pulled his prick out of her.
“Should I leave you so you can continue working?” she asked him.
Lucas shook his head. “No. Let’s stay like this a little longer. I’m done for the day.”
Grace looked over her shoulder to peer at the portrait he’d painted of her. The sexy, voluptuous redhead, confident in her nakedness, floored her. He managed to capture that hidden side of her she’d kept buried all her life.
“Will it be done soon?” she asked.
“Just a few more finishing touches and I’m done.”
“And you’re going to add it to the collection you’re working on?” she asked.
Butterflies fluttered in her stomach at the thought of random strangers in a gallery viewing the piece. Since they’d gotten together, she refused to accept money, although he insisted she take it. It didn’t feel right he should be paying her when he was her boyfriend. Besides, she already had a new job that paid the bills.
Lucas said nothing for a few moments, as if he was gathering his thoughts.
Grace felt a little selfish feeling this way, but she posed for him and him alone. Privately, she only wanted this painting for him. For them. She bit on her lower lip, wondering if she should broach the subject or leave it. The last thing she was wanted was for the two of them to fight but he always encouraged her to be honest with him and herself.
“No. This one is for me.” Lucas cupped her cheek, his hand warm. “I’ve always known that since the first time you came to my studio. I don’t want anyone else looking at what’s mine.”
He seemed to study her expression closer.
“You’re not mad?” Lucas asked at her silence.
Grace let out a laugh, already feeling much better. She understood him. Completely. “Why should I be? I like the fact only you, only we can see it.”
“I intend to hang it right here, in the living room. Right on the wall above the couch.” Lucas gave her a hand a squeeze. “Any guests I’ve invited over will see it, too.”
Grace followed his gaze. Her heart raced a little faster. That would place the painting in a prominent space in his home. His words brought a certain measure of permanence to it. Like he could also see a future with her in it. Grace quieted.
Two days had passed since her fight with Sadie. Sadie didn’t know anything, had no right to pass judgment on others, because her best friend had never really been in any real relationship.
Lucas’s mention of guests didn’t bother her, because he was the kind of man who picked his company. He didn’t just invite any stranger to his apartment, the apartment Grace was also beginning to see as hers, because she spent an awful lot of time here.
“No good?” he asked. Lucas lifted her right hand and placed a kiss on it.
“It sounds like a good spot,” she answered.
“Before I forget, I also have something else for you.”
“A gift?” she asked. “Lucas, for what occasion?”
“Just follow me.”
Lucas put his hands on her waist and set her back on her feet. She picked up her fallen shirt
and put it on, following him to the bedroom. The sheets were still rumpled from where they’d lain on it.
Grace glanced at his room, at her own personal belongings that lay scattered throughout the room. A comb brush there. The stack of books she was reading on the small table next to the side of her body. She even had her own shampoo, soap, other toiletries, and even a couple of her clothes in his bathroom.
He pulled out something from the chest of drawers next to the bed. Something small and metallic. Lucas held it out to the light. Grace put her hand to her mouth, rendered speechless by the sight of the silver key. He returned to her. She held one hand, still unable to recover from her shock as he put it on her palm.
“I’ve been meaning to give you this, but I always keep forgetting. You’re always distracting me. A beautiful distraction,” he told her with a smile.
“Thank you.” She closed her fingers over the key.
“I’d ask you to move in with me, but it might be too soon,” he said.
“Move in?” she asked.
“It’s only been a week but, Grace, you know me. The moment I set my sights on you, I knew I wanted you.”
Lucas was a man who went for what he wanted without apologies. She understood that but accepting his offer also meant moving onto the next level of their relationship. Was she, was he even ready for that?
He neared her, grabbed her shoulders, and gave her a searing kiss that made her nipples hard and her sore pussy tingle. “Think about it. I’m not pressuring you to give me an answer now, but it makes sense.”
“I will,” she promised.
Chapter Twelve
Grace positioned herself on the armchair and contentedly sipped her first coffee of the day. Lately, she’d been waking up an extra hour early to have more time for herself before going off to work. The key to Lucas’s apartment glinted back at her from the coffee table.
Her phone beeped and she took it out from the pocket of her jeans. A message from Steve, asking her if she wanted to hook up sometime. This was the second time this week he’d messaged her. She’d been purposely avoiding answering his messages, hoping he’d get the hint.
Mafia Claimed (Severin Family Book 3) Page 6
