His hand moved between us, wrapping around himself, stroking in time with my thrusts. I watched him chase the edge, getting closer with every movement.
"Luca—I'm—"
"Let go. Come for me."
He did, spilling over his hand with my name on his lips. The sight and feel of it pushed me over the edge right behind him. I buried myself deep and came hard, grinding against him through the aftershocks.
For a long moment we just stayed there. Connected. Both breathing hard. Both wrung out and satisfied.
I pulled out carefully and dealt with the condom, then came back to bed. Pulled Valentino against my chest and held him close.
"Stay," I said quietly. "Not just tonight. Stay with me."
"I'm not going anywhere." He pressed a kiss to my chest. "I'm exactly where I want to be."
We lay there in comfortable silence, both processing what had just happened. The physical intimacy had been incredible but it was more than that. We'd built something tonight. Chosen each other properly. Said things that mattered.
"Luca?" Valentino's voice was quiet.
"Yeah?"
"Earlier, when you said you were falling in love with me. Did you mean it?"
"Every word." I held him tighter. "I'm falling in love with you, Valentino Russo. Have been for a while. Just finally admitted it tonight."
He was quiet for a moment. Then: "I'm falling in love with you too. Even though it scares me. Even though we barely know each other. I'm falling and I can't stop."
Relief and joy flooded through me in equal measure. "You don't have to stop. We can fall together."
"What if we fuck this up?"
"Then we fuck it up together. But I don't think we will." I kissed the top of his head. "I think we're building something real. Something that can survive the complicated beginning and become something beautiful."
"You're a romantic underneath."
"Only with you. Don't tell anyone. It would ruin my reputation."
He laughed against my chest and I felt it echo through me. This. This was what I wanted. This easy intimacy. This comfort. This feeling of rightness that came from being with someone who saw you completely and chose you anyway.
"Thank you for tonight," Valentino said. "For the date. For being honest. For letting me in."
"Thank you for giving me the chance. For staying. For falling with me."
We drifted toward sleep tangled together, both content in ways we hadn't been before. Tomorrow we'd deal with the FBI and the complications and all the external threats. Tonight we just had this—each other, chosen and real and falling in love.
CHAPTER 7: VALENTINO
I WOKE UPto the smell of coffee and the sound of Luca humming in the kitchen.
For a moment I just lay there, processing the domesticity of it. The penthouse was filled with early morning light, soft jazz playing from hidden speakers, and the man I'd confessed to falling in love with last night was making breakfast.
My life had become completely surreal.
I pulled on boxer briefs and one of Luca's t-shirts and padded barefoot into the kitchen.
Luca stood at the stove in pajama pants and nothing else, his hair unstyled and falling across his forehead. He looked up when I entered and smiled. Just a soft, genuine smile that made my chest tight.
"Good morning," he said. "I'm making eggs. How do you want yours?"
