"I can make them very good. Why?"
"Well, I'm going to need to go and pack if I'm going for a trip to Ireland. I'll need help to carry my bags," Marcella said innocently.
"As your host, I feel I must assist you." Cosimo laughed under his breath, sending a shiver through her.
Marcella scraped her teeth over the side of his neck in retaliation. "You're a true gentleman."
Cosimo's hand dropped to her ass, sending another hot thrill through her. "I wouldn't go that far."
37
If anyone noticed them slipping out of the garden, no one had mentioned it or tried to stop them.
Marcella had never brought a man back to her apartment with the intention of seducing him. Apart from a few tradesmen on a job, Cosimo was the only man she had let over the threshold at all.
"Are you sure your kids are going to be okay with me coming to stay at the house?" she asked, unlocking the door.
Cosimo laughed. "Yes. They all but insisted that I pressure you to come to Ireland. As I said, you can have a guest room, so you have your space to get away from us all if you need to. We just want you there so we can focus on finding your grimoires."
"It's sweet of them. I know I am a new woman in your life, and the family house is where their mother raised them," Marcella said, chewing on her bottom lip.
"And that is considerate of you, but they all like you, Marcella. Not just me. You aren't some random hookup. The whole house has changed since their mother was alive too. My tower is different as well. It's not like you will be in a space whereshe was in that regard," Cosimo replied with an understanding smile.
"I just want to be sure. The last thing I wish to do is to upset them." Marcella grinned, trying to lighten the mood again. "They are all too good at magic for a start. I don't want Reeve turning me into a frog or Apollo poisoning my food."
Cosimo laughed softly and rested his hands on her shoulders. "Trust me,tesoro, my children will blame me and not you if anything happens." His warm hands slid down her bare arms, the touch sending an ache through her. "Did you figure out everything you needed to today?"
"Yes," Marcella replied, her breath catching as she looked into his eyes. A lock of his silver and black hair had fallen down over his forehead, and a dragon was staring out at her. He wasn't as worked up as he had been in Forli after fighting with Carlo, but there was a feral wildness about him when he focused on her like that.
"Anything I should know about?" he asked, his fingers circling her wrists.
"I don't want to smother my magic, but I do really need something to help me control it. I want to use it without worrying about what I might do. What happened with Renata and Carlo... Using the dead that way... It scared me afterward. The anger I felt wasn't all mine. It was from all the dead of Forli, and it was too much to have it running through me," Marcella began and exhaled loudly. "After we find the grimoires, I want Maria or Valentine to help me with that and my other magic. It can't be you that teaches me, Cosimo."
That made him raise one dark brow. "Can I ask why? I am capable."
"I know you are, but I'm not in love with Valentine and Maria," Marcella whispered, and his eyes widened.Please don'treject me. Please don't hurt me, she begged silently, her heart raw and ragged just uttering the words.
"You love me?" he asked.
Marcella's throat was dry, her tongue sticky. She needed to get the words out because if he rejected her here, then she wouldn't be stuck in Ireland with no way to get home.
"Yes. I still think it's far too quick, but I'm in love with you," she said, straightening her shoulders. "I needed the day apart from you to work out if it's more than just lust or fascination, but it's not only those things. If it were, I wouldn't feel like I'm missing a limb when you aren't around, and after a few hours of settling my magic and emotions yesterday, that's how I felt. I've never been this way with anyone else and?—"
Cosimo broke her rambling off with a kiss. His hands cradled her face, his mouth warm and so welcoming, it was like coming home. He tasted of sweet Chianti and something that was so innately Cosimo that she couldn't get enough of it. She ached to feel his skin against hers, the weight of his body pressing down on her.
He kissed along her jaw to her ear and whispered, "I love you too."
Marcella's self-control snapped, pulling at his clothes. Cosimo lifted her up in his arms and headed toward her bedroom. They hadn't gotten as far as switching on the lights, but he didn't stumble against anything. She smiled against his lips. It was good to know his dragon side could see in the dark. Magic sparked in his aura, and the candles she had in the room lit up.
"Magicians," she said fondly against his lips. "Always showing off."
"You wait until I show you the really good tricks I have up my sleeves."
Marcella ran her tongue over his collarbone, making him swear. He pressed her up against the wall, his hands under the skirts of her dress. They moved against her soft thighs, his fingers sliding inside her satin panties. She whimpered with the first brush against her clit, her hands tearing at his shirt to get it open.
"Gods, you're so hot and slick," Cosimo growled, pressing a finger into her. Marcella's teeth dug into his shoulder to smother her moan. "Fuck, it's not enough. I need you on my mouth."
Cosimo lowered her to her feet. He didn't waste time stripping off her dress. He went straight under her skirts. There was a ripping sound, and her leg was over his shoulder, his mouth on her pussy, making her cry out.
