She pushed up to her elbows. “Not for you.”
Something in my chest tightened at her statement and the thought of another man touching her. I’d never been the possessive type with any woman and never had to be. I made my expectations known and set clear boundaries from the beginning. Except for Melina, they’d all accepted where they stood. But with Leni, something was different. I felt a claim over her, the wordminescreaming, flaring inside me.
Not for you.
Fuck that. I wouldn’t share her, not at least until…
I wasn’t sure.
Wrapping an arm around her back, I pulled her over me so that she lay on my chest, using my thumb to smooth her surprised expression.
“Silas, as good as you are…I can’t…”
There was still a slight shake in her voice, and I couldn’t help but laugh, my chest filling with pride, knowing I’d been the one to put that flush on her face.
“Not that—for now—but I don’t share, love.Not for me?No one else.”
She narrowed her eyes at me, a smile never leaving her face. “Is that right? No one else because you say so? We’re not exclusive. We’re just business associates.”
“You let all your business associates tongue-fuck you in the shower?” I felt heat rising up the back of my neck.
“Careful, Silas,” she warned, pushing down on my chest with her hands in a motion to get to her feet. But I tightened my grip, holding her to me. She didn’t fight against my protest, her eyes on mine, waiting to hear what I had to say.
“Look, at least for now. Just me and you.”
She patted my cheek in an almost condescending manner, and if it hadn’t been for the way her nipple ring grazed across my wet skin, I would have probably bent her over my knee and reddened her ass.
Though that was never off the table.
“Don’t go falling in love with me, Silas. You and I both know we could never work.”
I let her get to her feet this time, her words rolling in my thoughts as I followed, exiting the shower while she stayed to clean up. Before I could dwell on her words and the strange flutters they conjured, a knock at the door had us both whipping our heads.
“Santino?” she questioned, shutting off the nozzle.
I shook my head as I slid on some joggers. “He would have called or texted. Thought you said no one knew of this property.”
“And I meant what I said.” She stepped out and wrapped a towel around her middle, reaching into a medicine cabinet. When she placed her finger on a sensor, a drawer slid open, and she pulled out two Glocks. “Come on. Let’s go greet our guest.”
“Looks like just one man,” I said, pulling up the feed on my phone. Helena pushed a gun to my chest, but as she tried to walk by, I grabbed her arm. “Hey, hang back, get dressed. Let me take care of this.”
“Oh, that’s rich. I’m not a fucking damsel, Silas.”
“You’ve stabbed me three times. Loud and clear. It’s just one guy. You’re naked. Let me send him on his way and be done.”
She folded her arms over her chest, gun still in hand, and rolled her eyes. “Fine, macho man. But if you get ambushed and shot in the face, I’ll climb right out that window and disappear.”
I scoffed and exited the doorway. “Thanks for having my back.”
“I’ll always choose me first. Remember that,” I heard her say as I entered the living room. Even though I knew damn well her words were said jokingly and purposefully, it didn’t sting any less.
I brought up the live feed of the stranger on the screen again. He was strategically turned away from the camera, immediately sending me on high alert. He wasn’t a salesman or a local. He was trained. Readying my weapon, I crept to the door and looked through the peephole. Dark hair and a tattoo on the right side of his neck came into view.
Maybe he’d go away if he thought no one was home. Confronting him could be risky if he’d arrived with company. The most concerning part was the fact that he hadn’t tripped the alarm, and I briefly wondered if we’d been careless enough to forget to arm it in the first place.
A blue iris suddenly covered the entirety of the glass. “I can hear you. Mind opening the door?”
American.
