I opened my eyes in surprise. Having her cheek pressed against my palm felt good. Her eyes searched my face nervously, as if she worried that I would refuse her. I stroked her cheekbone and, slowly, her lips pulled into a grateful smile. My stomach filled with warmth. I tore my gaze away from my lovely wife and took in the sticky mess I’d made. “I need a fucking shower.” I wiped away the worst of it with a tissue before I slid out of bed before I could get my cum all over the sheets.
Aria rolled over to her side, positioning her arms and legs so she was covered.
Did she think I’d leave her lying there? “Come on. I don’t want to shower alone.” Aria quickly took my hand and I pulled her with me into the bathroom.
I turned on the water, then stepped under the hot stream. I tugged Aria against my body and pressed a kiss to the top of her head. She beamed up at me like I’d given her an expensive gift. I began washing her, enjoying the feel of her skin under my hands. Aria relaxed, her eyes closing. I’d never washed another person, never felt the urge to do it. I embraced her from behind, then bent low until my mouth was close to her ear.
“So was it okay for you?”
Aria nodded with a sheepish smile. “Yeah.”
I pressed a kiss to her throat, my arms tightening around her middle. “I’m glad, because I really enjoy being in your mouth.”
Aria turned red but I could tell that she was pleased. Had she been worried I wouldn’t enjoy it?
She tilted her head to glance up at me. “Are you angry that I didn’t, you know, swallow? I bet the women you’ve been with so far always did.”
She was right, but I’d never warned a woman before. They’d been able to tell the signs of my orgasm and could have pulled back if they’d wanted. They never did though. “No, I’m not angry,” I said honestly. “I won’t lie, I’d love to come in your mouth, but if you don’t want that, it’s okay.”
I really hoped Aria would give it a try and enjoy it.
Ten minutes later, we returned to bed. It was close to midnight and I had an early day ahead of me, but sleep deprivation was definitely worth it. Aria snuggled up to me and put her cheek against my chest. I turned off the light then wrapped my arm around her. How could this feel so right? As if it had never been different?
I wasn’t even sure where exactly I’d dropped my gun. I always knew where I had my weapons when I was around other people, but with Aria…I just didn’t feel the need.
“When your father told you to marry me, what was your reaction?” Aria’s voice drew me out of my thoughts.
I wondered what she expected me to say. “I’d expected it. I knew I’d have to marry for tactical reasons. As future Capo, you can’t let emotions or desires rule any part of your life.”
Aria didn’t say anything. I was glad for the dark, because I knew she would have looked for something in my eyes again, something that would never be there. “And what about you?”
Aria exhaled. “I was terrified.”
“You were only fifteen. Of course you were terrified.” She’d been so young and innocent. She was still too innocent for me.
“I was still terrified on the day of our marriage. I’m still not entirely sure you don’t terrify me.”
This side of me, the side Aria got to see, it was one no one got to see. It was as gentle as I could ever be and she was still scared of me? “I told you, you have no reason to fear me. I’ll protect and take care of you. I’ll give you anything you want and need.”
She only had to ask. Father didn’t give a fuck how much money I spent. We had more than enough, and soon everything would be mine anyway.
“But the Famiglia always comes first. If you had to kill me to protect the business, you would.”
My fingers on her waist clamped up in shock.
Born in Blood. Sworn in Blood.
I could practically feel the sting of the tattoo needle when the motto of the Famiglia had been inked into my chest.
I’d sworn my life to the Famiglia. Becoming their Capo, leading my men, was the future I’d been raised for, the future I lived for. Every breath I’d taken so far, every life I’d ended, every wound I’d suffered had brought me closer to my goal. There had been nothing else in my life. Before Aria, my first thought when I got up in the morning had been about business, and so had been my last before I’d fallen asleep.