And even the devil isn't immune to temptation.
“A kiss.”
She blinks. “What?”
So innocent.
She has no idea what she does to me. No idea how close I am to losing control. No idea how long I’ve dreamed of justtouchingher.
“If you insist on paying me back,” I murmur, stepping closer, “you can do it with a kiss.”
Her lips part again. A thousand thoughts flicker in her eyes. I see shock, confusion, fear, curiosity.
Before she can answer, I take her hand gently in mine and bring it to my lips.
I kiss her knuckles, slow and reverent. Show her how it's done.
If it's the last time I touch her, I want to remember it for the rest of my life. Want her to remember it for the rest of hers.
“Like this.”
5
ERIN
Akiss?
I stare at him, stunned. My heart skips, then thunders.
He can’t be serious.
Men like Luca don’t want girls like me. They don’t ask for kisses as payment. They don’tneedto. He could have any woman he wanted—gorgeous, confident, put-together women who don’t spend half their lives scrubbing dried marinara off white tablecloths. Women who don’t live in tiny apartments or live off ramen and overtime.
I, on the other hand? I’m just me.
A broke waitress with too many bills and a brother I can’t save. Now this man, this impossibly beautiful man, is asking for a kiss?
“You’re joking,” I blurt.
He doesn’t smile. Doesn’t blink.
“No,” he says, softly but firmly. “I’m not. But like I said, you don't need to repay me at all. So, if you don't want to do it, I won't press.”
My breath catches. I feel dizzy again, but this time it’s not from fear or hunger. It’s from the sheer weight of being seen, of beingwanted.
But it doesn’t make sense. None of this makes sense.
“I’m not...” I trail off, then swallow. “I’m not anything special.”
He steps closer, his eyes fixed on mine. “You’re everything,angioletto.”
That makes something inside me twist.
Working at an Italian restaurant, you pick up a couple of words here and there. And what he just said? "Angioletto"?
It meansangel.Little angel, to be specific.
He’s saying it tome. My eyes widen.
