And I’ll reward her well.
“What do you know about my family?”
“You mean the mob?”
I snort but contain my laughter. “The mob. There is no mob any more than there’s something like an American or British accent. There is no one set of people, no one set of rules. We all operate under different principles and codes of ethics, just like there are accents from all over Britain and America as different as night and day.”
She frowns, lathering up her washcloth. “Did your sisters furnish the bathroom with toiletries?”
I shrug. “No idea. Probably. Everything alright?”
Her eyebrows rise when she looks at the milky bottle of body wash. “They have exceptionally good taste.”
“I know,” I say dryly. “I do the family books as well.”
She smiles. God, she’s so pretty when she smiles. Freshly fucked and well rested, her cheeks are a winsome pink, her lips full and sensual. She puts her head under the stream of water and lets it flow over her with a contented sigh.
“This is the biggest shower I’ve ever seen. One might even say it’s built for two.”
I shrug. Her eyes narrow. “Is it?”
“It’s definitely a lover’s apartment here, isn’t it?”
“Mmm,” she says thoughtfully. “Have you… have you been here before?”
I shake my head. “I’ve mostly only ever stayed in my own quarters here at The Castle but haven’t even been here recently. I’ve spent most of my time in Rockport.”
She nods thoughtfully, then drags the lathered washcloth over her body. “I see. You do have many choices of where to go, don’t you?”
I nod.
“Do you like that?” she asks, and she looks genuinely curious. “Like… do you ever wish for a place to settle down. To really settle down?”
“Of course I do.” I shrug. “But I’ve got jobs to do all over the place, and at this particular time, it’s more convenient to stay where I’m needed.”
She’s thoughtfully quiet when I take my turn under the stream of water to lather up.
“I see,” she finally says. “So will there come a time when you really want to put down roots?”
I nod. I close my eyes to rinse my hair and the soap off. “I will, once I get married and prepare to have a family. Most of my family settles down once that happens.”
“Oh.”
My eyes are still closed, so I don’t know what kind of an oh that is. I open one eye and look at her. She looks… almost sad. Her lips turned down, she angles herself away from me so I have her back. I gently swipe the washcloth along her spine. She sighs contentedly.
“You were telling me…”
“Yeah?”
“Your family’s rules.”
“Right. Well like I told you before, we can’t ascend in rank without marriage and children. But marriage to one of the Rossi men has a serious purpose. We’re the heads of our houses. Our loyalty is to our family above all. But those under our protection are expected to obey and follow the rules as well.”
She rolls her eyes. “Of course. All the talk about rules and obedience—"
She stops talking when I lean in and squeeze her cheeks in my hand. “Watch it, baby doll.”
She grins against my hand, so I release her. “What?”
“I like it when you call me baby doll. It’s sweet.”
“I’m not sweet.” I make a sound of disgust as I finish rinsing off. “You should be afraid of me.” I give her a hard, wet slap across the ass to make my point. She squeals and comes up on her toes before leaning in to put her arms around my neck.
“Oh, believe me when I tell you, there’s plenty of fear going on here.”
“Mhm.”
“I’m afraid of being punished by you,” she whispers, her eyes wide and sincere. “I’m afraid of what you could do to me. I’m afraid of what your brothers could do, and I’m afraid of what will happen when the people I work for realize I’m gone. There’s lots of fear, believe me.”
I hold her against me, my hands flat against the small of her back as the hot, steaming shower pelts us. I watch it roll down her face like a rivulet of tears.
“Good,” I whisper. “That’s the only thing that might keep you alive.”
I drag my hand up her body to her head, pull her over to me, and kiss her wet forehead. “Let’s keep you alive, Emma. I have lots of plans for you, and every one of them involves you being very much alive.”
She releases a shaky breath and gives me a half-smile. “My plans involve staying alive, too, so that makes two of us.”
I shut the shower off and reach for a towel. Turn to her, and gently towel dry her off before I secure it around her. I take a second one for myself and quickly dry as well, then lead her back into my bedroom.