I reach up and wipe her tears away. “You are not lost.”
She puts a shaking hand to my face, and I lean into her touch. “You saved me again.”
“I will always save you.” I cover her hand with mine.
“That man.” She swallows hard. “What was he doing out there?”
I don’t want to tell her too much, not when she’s still reeling from what just happened. But I owe her the truth. Carter would demand it. I shouldn’t give her any less.
“You know this life is dangerous.”
She nods, another tear falling that I catch.
“Carter knew it, too.” I rise and sit beside her, then bring her in close, making sure she’s warming beneath the blanket. “But his death wasn’t some sort of everyday violence. He was targeted.”
“What? Why?” She moves closer, seeking my warmth.
I lean back and strip off my shirt, then unwrap the blanket and press my body to hers. Body heat is the fastest way to warm her. Once the blanket is back around us, she melts into me.
“Tell me what happened. Please, Cato. I thought I didn’t want to know the details. But maybe I need to hear them.”
“You do.” Though it pains me to tell her, I recount his murder, the cowardly bullet in the back and the new player to blame.
She listens silently to every word. And when she looks up at me, her tears are gone. “What’s his name?” The violence in her tone sets my soul ablaze.
“Santino is close to ferreting it out. And when I know who and where he is, consider him dead.”
Her jaw clenches. “Why did he come after Carter?”
I stroke her cheek. Fuck she’s beautiful when she’s lethally angry.
“I suspect that when we discover his identity, the reason will fall into place. But there are old vendettas, and the Simonetti name carries a lot of dark history with it. If Carter was targeted--”
“Then I could be next.” She stiffens. “Or little Carter.” Her gaze turns to flint. “I will kill anyone who tries to hurt that little boy.”
There’s my lioness, stunning in her love and strong in her vengeance. “I know you would, lioness. But you won’t have to. I’m upping the security. No one will hurt either of you. I won’t allow it.” I kiss her forehead.
She wraps her arms around me and snuggles into the crook of my neck. “Thank you,” she whispers.
I savor those words from her lips.
“I guess I have to stop avoiding you.”
My heart speeds. I’ve been waiting patiently, tamping down my need to claim her, to storm into her room and show her how much she needs me in her bed. But I would never hurt her like that, never take when she wasn’t ready.
“In fact.” She takes a deep breath, then stands and straddles me before sitting again, her chest pressed to mine. “I think maybe I’m ready to get a little closer.”
I palm her ass, because I can’t fucking help myself. “You’re only saying this because you had such a scare.”
“Don’t tell me my motivations.” She looks at my lips. “I’ve been avoiding you because ...” She meets my eyes. “Because I want you, Cato.”
Have any sweeter words ever been uttered by such a dark angel?
Without reservation, I claim her mouth in a searing kiss that wipes away our past and starts our future.
13
Apollonia
I do want him.
I want him so much it scares the hell out of me. It also makes me do things I shouldn't. I find myself grabbing his short hair and deepening the kiss as I hold him close, not wanting to let go.
As crazy as Cato can make me, he also soothes something deep inside of me. A level of comfort is there. Even when I’d been in the church and smacked him. I didn't fear him. I should. He’s a deadly man. Everyone knows that. Still, for me, I never felt that fear when I looked at him. I felt the opposite, and then I’d intentionally baited and toyed with him, somehow knowing he’d never do anything to harm me.
Because he’d already saved me once. How could I forget that? I hadn’t. I just hadn’t put together he was the same person from that night. The night that had changed my life forever. The one that had taken so much away from me. Cato had held me until I stopped shaking. He was the only light in the darkest moment of my life. He had pulled me from that darkness. And now he’s here again, an avenging angel or a devil, I’ll never know which.
“Cato.” I moan his name as he pulls his mouth from mine. He trails kisses down my neck as he pulls at my clothes. I help him, wanting to be skin to skin with him. My emotions are running high. He was right about that, but we both know I’ve wanted him for weeks now. There has been a pull to him since he’d sat down on the steps of the church with me. I’ve been fighting this with everything. I can no longer resist the feelings I’m having for him.
Cato, on the other hand, has been doing the exact opposite. He hasn't been fighting the pull. His need for me has never wavered. He knows exactly what he wants, and he isn't afraid to take it. His mind had already been made up that he wanted me. A small part of me wants to believe that he’s doing this because he can’t stand the thought of not having me, and not out of some promise he made to my brother to protect me. That he’d seen me and had simply wanted me for himself.
“You have on too many clothes.” I start pulling at his as soon as he has me naked under him. I want to see all of him. To touch every part of him. So much of me has already been laid bare for him. I want to see him, too. I want him to open up to me. He knows so much about me. What do I really know about him?
He pulls back as he quickly strips himself of all his clothes. His eagerness to get naked turns me on even more. My eyes trail down his chest and past his abs to his cock. It’s red and almost angry looking. A bead of cum leaks from the head. He reaches down and strokes himself. Desire courses through me seeing his arousal. The fact that he’s this way because of me does something to me.
“Apollonia.” He groans my name. The small amount of fear I had about him fitting inside of me fades away, only leaving the need. He wants me. His whole body strains with desire for me. Again, I feel that rush of power like I had the other night when Cato spread me out on the bed and made me come with his mouth. I had thought I was in heaven then, but the look he’s giving me now tells me that was only the beginning of what he’s going to give me.
“I want you inside me,” I breathe out. I need this connection. I run my hand down his broad chest. My fingers brush against a few of the scars that are scattered there. Somehow, they make him look sexier. I try not to think about them, because the thought of how he got them terrifies a part of me. How close has Cato come to death? Will he, too, meet the same fate as everyone else I’ve ever loved? Am I setting myself up for more hurt?
As I wrap my hand around his cock, he gives another loud groan. I don’t want to think about losing anything else right now. Not when he makes me feel so good. I want to focus on the now. The pleasure I can have. I deserve this. To get lost in Cato for a night. I can deal with everything else tomorrow. But for tonight, I’m taking something for myself. I need this. I need him.