“I know you are. It’s nothing to worry about. Listen, I have to go.”
I hung up the phone as I reached the bathrooms. I’d deal with my brother later. The bathrooms were all unisex, so I tried each of them. Only one was locked. I knocked on that one.
“I’ll be right out.”
“Open the door.”
I couldn’t hear it, but I swore she caught her breath. I waited. Waited. I knocked one time, loudly. “Now, Lenora.”
She unlocked the door. I stepped in, shut the door with the bottom of my shoe, and locked it behind me. She was looking down and sniffling, so I gave her a minute. When she looked up, it was obvious she’d been crying — mascara clumped and puffy lips. I hadn’t kissed her last night. I wasn’t sure why, but I regretted it as I jerked off this morning. Seeing her lips like this, all I wanted to do was kiss her. So I did, because what the fuck difference did it make if I crossed another line? I stepped forward, cupped her face, and brought my mouth down on hers. I meant for it to be hard, but our lips moved slowly. Her tongue sought mine first and I granted permission immediately, deepening the kiss, holding her face closer to mine, lifting her ass with my other hand, and slamming her back against the wall as the kiss turned frenzied. Fuck. I was already hard and having difficulty remembering what made me come after her. I pulled away.
“What’s wrong?” I asked against her lips.
Her eyes welled with new tears, her lip wobbling. I backed away and let her set her feet on the ground. Tears didn’t bother me. I’d made grown-ass men cry. Crystal was always fucking crying, and it annoyed me most of the time. Seeing Lenora cry didn’t sit well with me. She was already going through enough and was too innocent to suffer.
“Tell me.” I lifted her face so she’d look at me. Tears slid down her face, and I leaned down and licked them before they reached her mouth. Even that tasted good. Jesus.
“You shouldn’t be here, Rocco,” she whispered.
“Tell me what’s wrong.”
“I. . .” she shook her head, averting her eyes. “You shouldn’t be here.”
“Lenora.”
“I’m fine,” she said, closing her eyes and taking a deep breath. “I’m fine.”
I stared at her, feeling completely out of my depth. For all I knew, I was the reason she was crying. Did she regret last night? My chest felt heavy at the thought because if that was the case, I couldn’t help her. I couldn’t give back what she gave me, what I willingly took, and if I were being honest, I wouldn’t even if I could. Maybe that made me a selfish bastard, but she’d trusted me. Would they check for her hymen? Was that what she worried about? Fuck. It would make perfect sense if she were worried about that.
“Is this about last night? Do you regret it?” I asked.
“What?” Her eyes flashed to mine. “Of course not. Last night was special for me. I would never regret it.”
“It was special for me too.” She bit her lip and tried to turn away. I cupped her face and held her chin so she’d look at me. “What is it?”
“You’ve had sex countless times. I’m sure a lot of them were special. That will be my only special time.”
“Lenora.” I closed my eyes briefly to take a breath.
I had done a lot of fucked up things in the past and accepted guilt for them all, including the ones I had tucked away and tried to forget. Breaking this girl's heart wasn't something I wanted to add to that list. She was too pure and deserved better. As I opened my eyes, I found her waiting for me to say something else. I knew she wanted some kind of declaration of love or some bullshit that I couldn’t give her, so I gave her the truth.
“None have been as special as last night. I mean that,” I said.
A quiet sob left her lips. Unable to see the pain any longer, I wrapped my arms around her and set my chin on her head.
“I can’t do this,” she whispered, and I knew she was talking about her wedding.
“You’re so strong, baby. You can do anything,” I whispered against her hair, inhaling her scent once more before I pulled away.
She reached up, grabbed my face, and kissed me. It was a soft yet demanding kiss that made my insides quake with something terrifying. It felt like a goodbye. I’d always hated goodbyes.
15
ROCCO
“What happenedwith my sister the other night?” That was Dom’s voice behind me, nearly giving me a heart attack with his question.
My hands stilled on the deck of cards I’d been shuffling. My stomach squeezed.What happened with his sister?Motherfucker. He was going to try to kill me, and even though I could have him on the ground in ten seconds, I would have to let him kill me because what I’d done was unforgivable. I hadn’t reached out to Lenora because I wanted to give her space. Quite frankly, I wanted to get away. I felt Dean's eyes on me, and I wanted to tell him to go to hell. However, I kept my head down and played cards as if I were unaware he was addressing me. For all I knew, he could have been speaking to Russo.
