With my foot finally clean, I made my way back to the bedroom. Time to tackle that spill before it claimed any more victims. And by victims, I meant me.
It proved to be exceedingly difficult. The sticky stuff clung to my hands, my knees, even my elbows, and I fought it like a stubborn enemy in an epic battle. Every swipe was a skirmish, every scrub a full-blown clash, and I was beginning to wonder if this floor had declared war on me personally.
I was mid-swing, scrubbing with all the might of a warrior facing a fearsome foe, when I caught movement out of the corner of my eye. Felix was standing in the doorway, arms crossed, watching me with an amused smile.
“You’ve done more for this house in the past few days than I managed in months,” he said, voice easy, but I could tell he wasn’t just talking about the cleaning.
“I don’t think you did anything for the house before I got here,” I teased, swiping at a stubborn streak of sticky gunk as I spoke.
He raised an eyebrow, that amused smirk still tugging at his lips. “You really do take over everything, don’t you?”
“I told you,” I said, waving a hand at the mess I’d been battling, “I work better when I have a purpose.”
“You would have been shit at the strip club, then,” Felix responded. “No purpose there except getting high and money.”
“Guess you made the right choice bringing me here, then.” I grinned, swiping the last of the sticky mess.
Felix stayed quiet for a moment, leaning against the doorframe, his usual smirk fading into something softer. “Ididn’t grow up with anyone I could trust to get things done right,” he admitted slowly. “Everything I touch ends up… complicated.”
I paused as his words hung in the air, a weightiness settled around us. My gaze dropped to the floor, a flurry of emotions swirling in my chest. I wasn't used to seeing this side of him; vulnerable and raw. It was like peeling back the layers of a carefully constructed facade to find a tender heart.
“But… what about Rocco?” I asked, and I immediately regretted my question.
Felix’s shoulders tensed slightly, and I could see the tension ripple through him. “He’s my twin. He’s reliable in his own way.”
He paused, running a hand through his hair, eyes flicking away before meeting mine again. “You make this easier.”
My heart stopped. I had this giant, dangerous man telling me I made his life easier. It didn’t compute. My brain short-circuited somewhere between disbelief and pride, and I had to force myself not to laugh, or cry.
I leaned back, letting the remnants of my cleaning battle drift away on the breeze of his vulnerable admission. I had never witnessed this side of Felix before, and I felt a warmth creeping into my cheeks, a kind of exhilaration tinged with uncertainty.
“I didn’t think I could matter to someone like you,” I admitted, my cheeks heating as the words slipped out.
And just like that, Felix’s mask slid back into place, the vulnerability vanishing as quickly as it had appeared. The hardened mafia man returned, but the tension between us shifted, charged in a different way.
He straightened, clearing his throat. “Enough with the cleaning. It seems to me,” he said, eyes roaming over me like he was appraising me, “that you need a shower.”
Heat flared in my chest, a mix of embarrassment and something far more dangerous, as his gaze lingered longer than necessary.
“Oh, um, I’ll get right on that then,” I said, pushing myself off the floor to stand.
But before I could take a step, a pair of large hands wrapped around my waist and pulled me back against him. My breath hitched, caught between surprise and something else, as heat radiated from his chest into mine.
“I’ll come with you,” he murmured into my ear.
Before I could respond, he lifted me effortlessly, pressing me flush against his chest. The heat from his body pressed into me, every subtle movement sending sparks along my nerves. His lips brushed the shell of my ear, low and deliberate, and I couldn’t help the soft gasp that escaped me.
I wrapped my legs around him instinctively, holding on as his arms tightened around me. Every inch of him pressed into me, his warmth and strength igniting a heat I couldn’t control. My hands tangled in his hair, pulling him closer, and the sound of his low, approving murmur sent shivers straight through me.
I tightened my legs around him as he started walking down the hallway, and the movement sent my ass rubbing against his hardness. His free hand slid between us, tracing low on my stomach, and I couldn’t help the moan that escaped me.
Felix’s lips brushed against my ear, voice low and husky. “Careful. You’re making it very hard to focus on getting you to the shower.”
His lips found my neck then, sucking gently before growling softly against my skin. “Fuck,” he muttered, holding me tighter as we continued down the hallway to the bathroom.
Finally, we reached the bathroom. He didn’t slow down, just shifted me slightly so I could step inside, but stayed close enough that our bodies still pressed together. My heart hammered, everynerve on fire from the walk down the hallway, and I couldn’t stop the heat pooling between us.
My body shivered with anticipation as he slowly pulled my shirt over my head, the fabric sliding against my skin like the softest touch. His eyes trailed over every inch of me, dark and intense as he took his time. Tracing his fingers across my collarbone, around my breasts, down my abdomen, before reaching my sensitive bundle of nerves.
