“Understood. I'll be there this afternoon.”
I don’t immediately walk back to Matilde, first texting one of my men to meet me at the bakery in an hour. When I return to the apartment, I find Matilde staring at the ruined floor, fear written on her face. It only works to enrage me. I don't like seeing her like this. Happy, annoyed, aroused—but never scared.
I wrap an arm around her shoulder and pull her to my side before turning to Mr. Davis. "Lorenzo Rossi will stop by to install a security system,” I tell him. “Let me know if you notice anything else.”
Matilde stiffens at my words but doesn't speak until we're back in the bakery.
"What was that?” she hisses, turning those stunning blue eyes to glare at me. “What do you mean that Lorenzo’s coming to install a security system without even discussing it with me?”
“You were sound asleep last night when someone broke in. I'm sure you'd appreciate the extra security measures I’m putting in place to ensure your safety.”
“That’s my call to make,” she rages, her eyes firing up. I’ve never seen Matilde this worked up. Usually, she’s the calm and shy sister. This is out of character for her—and so goddamned sexy. My dick hardens in seconds as I watch her pace. “I get to decide what happens to this place!” she hisses, stopping to stab a finger at my chest. “I will deal with the intruder my own way.”
“And how do you intend to do that?” I ask, snagging her finger and backing her against the glass display counter. She gasps when I cage her, those livid eyes growing alarmed. “Tell me,biscottina. What’s the plan?”
“I…I’ll call the cops," she whispers, her breathing growing choppy. "Then I'll hire my own security guy to install the cameras and everything.”
“Or you could just let me take care of you,” I rasp, my eyes dipping to her mouth. I watch the way her cheeks deepen from light pink to apple red. “I'll be more effective and faster than the cops.”
“I don’t need you to take care of me!”
“Oh, but you do,” I whisper, watching with amusement as those eyes fire up with heat. Christ above, she’s a sight to behold. More than anything, I want to touch and kiss her, but I’ll be damned if I make the first move. This stubborn woman has made it quite clear for months that she doesn’t want me close, despite her body saying differently. If she wants my touch, she’ll have to ask for it with that same sexy mouth that’s beenpushing me away. “It’s my job to protect you, Matilde. I’ll deal with whoever broke into your place before they have a chance to do it again.”
“I don’t need your help,” she says stubbornly, placing her hands on my chest. I wait for her to shove me away but groan when she runs them down my chest instead. I can tell the action takes her by surprise too, but she doesn't pull away. “I…I can deal with it on my own.”
“You sound even less convincing now,” I rasp, dipping my head lower until my lips are almost touching hers. I swallow down the need to push in and kiss her, my breathing ragged as I drag my nose along her jaw, getting drunk off the sweet scent of her. “I would never hurt you, Matilde, and I damn well won’t let anyone else do it either.”
“Why? Is it because you’re my bodyguard?”
“Is that really what you think?” I say hoarsely, touching the tip of my nose to a sensitive spot behind her ear. “You’re not just an assignment to me,biscottina.”
She shivers against me, her fingers clenching over my T-shirt. “I like the way you smell,” she says after a long beat of silence, her voice dipping low. I can feel her visibly fight the heat burning between us, and when she loses the battle with herself, her hands move to my shoulders. “Luca,kiss me.”
I push back to look at her, biting back a growl when I read the need in her eyes. Her pupils are dilated, watching me in a way I haven’t seen since that night in the garden. Her sexy little mouth is begging to be kissed, but I made myself a promise.
It doesn't matter that I want to slide my hands under her blouse and touch the pebbled nipples pushing against her top. Or how hard my dick aches with the need to be inside her. Christ,how many nights have I spent jerking off, picturing my tongue buried in her wet pussy, tasting her, pleasuring her?
But I refuse to touch her any further. For all the walls she’s built between us for months, it’s her call to break them first. “If you want to be kissed, you know what to do, Matilde.”
She bites her lower lip, her hands sliding up my neck to cup my jaw. There is need in her eyes as those pretty blues meet mine. “You’re bad for me,” she whispers, her eyes dipping to my mouth. “But I can’t stop wanting you.”
She gets on her toes and presses her mouth to mine before I can react to her words. Need slices into my chest like a sharp knife and chips at my control. The second her lips touch mine, I push in, sliding my hand into her hair and fisting the soft strands. I angle her head to the side as I taste her lips in ways I’ve imagined for these past months.
She opens her mouth, allowing me to dip my tongue in, seeking more of her. My dick is so hard it borders on pain, but I can’t move away from Matilde and her intoxicating taste to take care of my own raging arousal. I’m a madman as my tongue strokes hers, savoring her need and…innocence.
For six fucking months, I’ve had to live off the memory of that kiss we shared in the garden. And for months, that was enough. It had to be.
But not anymore.
She whimpers when I move my mouth hungrily over hers, drinking from her lips like a starved man. And I am—every bit starved. I haven't touched another woman since I met Matilde, and now, I can't keep my hands off her.
“So beautiful,” I groan as my hand travels up her leg and beneath her skirt. My cock jolts in my pants when my fingerscoast up the silky-smooth skin of her thighs, and when I touch her panties, she jolts against me, moaning into the kiss.
She’s perfect. Everything about Matilde Marino is perfect.
From the taste of her lips to the feel of her—and heaven above, she drives me crazy with the little sounds she makes when I kiss her.
Mine!
