I'm shivering now, chilled by the sudden surge of adrenaline.
He steps closer to me.
"Why are you telling me this now?"
"Because you need it and Sofia needs you to succeed. If this war continues, we all end up dead."
Dante's scowl starts to dissolve in front of my eyes, especially when he rubs his hand down over his face and sighs deeply.
"You said you didn’t want to get involved in my world."
"I don't, but I'm already involved whether I like it or not. And if sharing this information gives us a chance to survive, then it's worth it."
He reaches out and cups my face in his hands.
I don't pull away, but I do feel tense.
He's right.
I haven't wanted anything to do with his world and when I first thought of this solution for him, I didn't say a thing.
I was angry and hurt, and I wanted him to suffer.
But seeing him be so angry, I felt guilty.
I had a truth that could fix this stress and I held it to myself.
"Thank you," he says.
"Don't thank me. Just use the information to end this."
My shoulders slump, but he pulls me tightly against his chest and breathes in a deep whiff of my hair.
"I'm sorry I frightened you, Angelica. It's the last thing I wanted to do." I'm startled by his genuine apology and I pull back to look up at his sincerity scrawled on his face. He really means it.
"Well, you have a lot of work to do in that department then, don't you?" I'm joking, but he grows even more serious.
"And I'll work harder every single day for the rest of my life to make sure you understand that I mean what I say."
His hand returns to cup my cheek and he leans down, brushing his lips over mine.
I'm moved by his confession, sucked into his gravity where I find myself floating between wanting to shrink back from his world and yet wanting to be closer to him, to know him more deeply.
His kiss stays gentle for a moment before I begin to respond, then it turns ravenous as his hands slide lower to my hips.
"Let me have you," he says gruffly. "I need to feel you against my body and let this stress melt off me. Let me have you…"
I can't even respond.
All I can do is nod and let him lift me and carry me to the bed where he lays me down softly.
His lips consume mine in a deep kiss, his tongue exploring my mouth as I wrap my arms around his neck and pull him closer to deepen the contact.
He moves his mouth to my neck and kisses a trail to my collarbone while his hands unbutton my blouse.
The fabric parts to reveal my bra, and he pushes it up to expose my breasts.
He cups one breast in his rough palm and kneads it gently, the texture of his skin contrasting with mine. "Your body never stops surprising me," he growls as he enjoys fondling me.
