I brought her free hand up to my mouth and kissed her, staring into her eyes. The thought of losing her sliced into my chest. She was only mine for however long I could keep her.
I dropped Gia’s hand and led her to the dance floor.
She placed the empty glass on a catering tray and molded herself to me. “Thank you, Angelo.” Gia slid her hands up my chest and wrapped her arms around my neck.
I lifted her up, so she was standing on the tips of my dress shoes and held her with her face in the crook of my neck. She was so petite compared to my six feet three inches. I was over a foot taller than her.
“I haven’t done anything worth thanking me.”
“This dance. This night. For once, we get to pretend like we’re an average couple doing everyday things together.”
I leaned my forehead against hers, slowly turning us in circles. “We could never be average.”
She laughed. “Nope, we’re too fucked up for that. At least I got four years of college and the last two years of law school with you.”
We were one year away from graduating law school together. After making it this far, I wasn’t about to let Gia do anything to jeopardize her future. I did everything I said I would, college and all. Even though I didn’t need a degree to do my current job, I would need one for when I took over as the family advisor. I’d be the person our guys called when they needed help with the law.
Gia looked up at me and ran her hand down my arm. “I love you in a suit, but I hate that you look like one of them.”
I glanced over my shoulder to gaze at my father and brothers who were watching us like hawks. Every move we made, they were there, constantly reminding me I was their property. I told Gia she was mine every time I fucked her. But I belonged to them more than her. We both knew it. There was only one way out of my family. This was the path of least resistance, one that also gave me Gia at the same time.
I laughed at her comment. “That’s because I am one of them.”
“You know what I mean, Lo.”
Gia almost never called me Lo. It was what my friends and family called me on the street.
My nostrils flared. I was sick of having this conversation. “You’re either in, or you’re out,” I told her. “And since I’ve already claimed you, there’s no turning back. I would kill anyone who got in my way to find you. Leaving this life would mean death for both of us.”
“Who said I’m going anywhere?” She dragged her fingers along my neck, causing the hairs to stand at attention. “When I gave you my heart, there was only one condition. Don’t break it.”
“That’s a promise I can keep.”
“I should care that you’re a bad man hiding behind the mask of the good man I love,” she admitted. “But you are equal parts mine. I love you down to the darkest part of your soul. There’s nothing you could do to hurt me other than break my heart, something I know you’d never do on purpose.”
“Never, G. My word is my bond.”
“When we get married, I want to have our wedding reception here.” She glanced up at the ceiling, with its old-fashioned crown molding and intricate patterns. A massive chandelier was hanging above our heads, and she stared at the lights as she spoke. “This place is gorgeous.”
“You can have whatever you want.” I pressed my lips to hers and held her tighter. “Everything I have is yours.”
The song ended, and I stopped moving with Gia still crushing my toes with her heeled shoes. “What do you want to do now, beautiful?”
“I was thinking we could explore,” she said, her voice somewhat hopeful. “Maybe find someplace more private. We haven’t had as much time together lately with your brothers always calling and our assignments being such a pain in the ass.” She moved her hands to my shoulders and down my chest until she had my tie in her hands. “I need to feel you.”
The corners of my mouth turned up into a devious grin. “That’s my girl.”
I led her out of the stuffy banquet hall and into a long hallway. The old mansion on the outskirts of Philadelphia was renovated to accommodate twenty event rooms, with a few suites and guest rooms on the upper floors.
I squeezed her hand tighter and escorted her through the mansion until I found a door which opened to a wine cellar. We took the stairs and combed through the dimly lit basement. In the back corner, the furthest away from the entrance, we found a barricade of casks, stacked almost up to the ceiling, creating a wall. It was the closest we would have to privacy if someone were to come downstairs.
“Over here.” I steered her into the small alcove, pressed her back against a wooden cask, and lifted her up in the process. “This is perfect.”
Gia hooked her legs around me, digging her heels into my ass, and smiled. “I couldn’t agree more.”
The wine cellar was cold. She shivered, and I held her tight, with my hands pressed against her back, taking away the chill with my warmth. Through the smell of the fruity aromas that filled my nostrils, I caught a hint of her strawberry lip balm as her lips parted for me.
Gia’s breath caught in her throat when I moved my hands up her bare arms. I stroked her jaw with my thumb, and her entire body trembled in the process.