Desire.
A crowd of people moved with the pounding beat on the dance floor. Some sat in little alcoves below candles dripping with wax, touching, kissing…some were in twos, but some were in groups of threes or fours.
“This is not my idea of heaven.” Evelina shook her head.
“Yeah,” I said, “I agree.” Maybe heaven on earth for some, but besides the warmth of desire caressing my skin, my heart was being pulled in a certain direction.
My eyes kept scanning, but nothing substantiated the feeling. Especially not the woman sucking the man’s pointer finger right in front of us.
“But…earthly pleasures…” Evelina trailed off for a second, her eyes scouring the crowd. “Is that—”
My eyes narrowed in the same direction.Shit.Maybe it was. Maybe it wasn’t. There were a lot of men in custom suits, even tuxedos, but it was hard to mistake the build of my brothers. Tall, broad shoulders and chests, slim waists, and long legs that were lean with muscle. Black hair that was slicked back like papà’s. They all wore their hair like his—undercuts.
My stomach turned. I was pretty sure my brother, Mariano, was in a corner with two women, both of them touching him. One was sliding a hand through his hair while the other unbuttoned his shirt.
Evelina turned toward me when I made a gagging noise. I was really close to my brothers, but this was a definite line. Sometimes what is seen can’t be unseen. Not even plucking my eyeballs out would ever erase that little snippet in time.
It only made my desire to find Saverio even stronger.
Where the hell was he in this…fucking pleasure palace?
“Mia?”
I turned to find Evelina staring at me. “Your eyes are almost glowing in here. Dangerous green. Don’t kill my brother, okay?”
“That depends,” I muttered to myself, determined to find him, “onwhoI find him with.”
Okay, so I knew I hadn’t committed to him, not in the way he wanted. I hadn’t saidyesto the connection that existed between us. In honesty, it really wasn’t my choice, but…to get to the point, he expected me to be faithful. To not allow anyone to touch me but him. If that was the deal, same for him.
As I started to move, trying to feel my way past the fog of desire and the haze of whatever still tingled on my lips, a faster song that had been slowed down some started to play. It was no less sexual. Bodies started to move a little faster, causing a lot of friction in the room.
“There—” I pointed ahead of me, to a row of rooms. Some doors were open, and some were closed. “We can start the—” I looked behind me, but I’d somehow lost Evelina in the crowd.
I opened my mouth to call out for Vivi (Evelina), but before I could, a hand took mine and swung me around. The tall, lean body was rock hard against mine. He started trying to move me to the rhythm of the music. I tried to push away, but he held strong.
“Relax,” he said in my ear, his breath warm and full of alcohol. “It’s me. Elio.”
I pulled back some, and he allowed me to. I looked up into his eyes.
“How did you know it was me?” His body seemed to sway, but he wasn’t moving.
He took my right hand and lifted it to his lips. Right before he kissed it, I yanked it back.
“Shit!” I didn’t take my ring off. I hadn’t, not since I put it on. But it wasn’t a piece of jewelry that blended. It stood out, and now I did, too. To anyone who knew me, at least.
He chuckled, throwing his head back. It was weird, how laughter echoed outside of his mouth, but his lips didn’t move.
“You’re very surprising,” he said, eyes scanning me from head to toe. “Very beautiful, too. The most beautiful woman I have ever seen.”
“Where—” I had to stop for a second. I licked my lips and swayed a bit.
He reached out to steady me, and I took a step back. I looked to my left and to my right because I’d run into a group dancing. They didn’t seem to care.
“My brothers? My—”
He lifted his left ear, like he couldn’t hear me over the music.
Oh, fuck this. He was playing games with me. Teasing me to come closer. The music had slowed again, and the desire in his eyes matched the thickness in the air. Without giving him another glance, I drifted into the crowd, trying to blend. I hurriedly turned my ring so the band was facing forward.
