“I’ve known you a lifetime, so I know this is something you are going to do with or without me.” His words were almost chilling as he gave in. “So, I’m going to help you, but if you want this to work, you have to play their game better than they do.”
“I’m listening.”
“I know they’ll let you in. Their curiosity will get the better of them, but it’s getting past the grandmother that will be your biggest hurdle. The elders have a lot of power.”
“No kidding,” I muttered, but he ignored me. I could almost smell the smoke as his brain worked overtime.
“I could slip you my location now and then via a third party. That way, you can prove to them that you can be useful. You can start to gain their trust. But,” he stepped closer, “you need to know they’ll test you in unspeakable ways. You’ll have to react fast without thought. Any hesitation and they’ll see right through you.”
“I can do that.”
His hand slipped into my hair, and he pulled my head back gently so I’d look at him. I was thankful I’d just finished covering up most of the bruises left over from Mariano.
“What happened after you left my house with my nonna? Did she hurt you?”
His eyes showed me a glimpse of the storm raging inside him. The truth was on the tip of my tongue, but I couldn’t say the words. “Just some threats, if I returned to the house.”
“Is that it?”
“Yes.” He nodded, and I realized he was spinning out with everything else, so he didn’t spot my lie. I left out the part about how Mariano attacked me because Elio had enough on his plate right now. I could deal with my coke-snorting want-to-be lover myself.
“All right.” His tongue touched his lips as he thought. “The number one thing is we can’t see one another. We’re over, you hate me for everything I’ve done, and you’re more than ready to educate the Coppolas on the Capris’ way of life.”
“Oh, Elio.” I hated this. I wished our lives were anything but this.
“We can’t communicate, no phone calls or texts, completely cut off.” His lips hovered over mine, and I drank in his scent, preserving this moment like the addict I was. “Nonna’s got soldiers everywhere, including the lobby of this hotel. Always know you’re never far from listening ears. The Coppolas pay good money for gossip, and Nonna’s looking for any excuse to prove that I can’t let you go.”
“Okay.” I barely got the word out.
“I was followed here, so if this is the end for now,” his jaw ticked like the words ate at his soul, “we’d better make it look good.” He dove down and caught my lips with his as he moved my hands to the jacket of his suit. “Hate me Sienna, show them we fought.”
I let my mind go to all the painful emotions that had pierced my heart and reminded myself that this life was meant to be painful. It wasn’t the happy fairytale we were promised in storybooks. I pulled my hand back and slapped him across his face. He growled then grabbed my hand and turned my ring around, so it was facing inward.
“Again,” he ordered, but when I hesitated, he shook his head. “You see, that’s the problem, why you can’t do this. You can’t think, you just need to react.”
Slap!
He lunged forward and grabbed my head and stole my breath as he forced my mouth open, kissing me with such force that I yanked on his shirt and sent the top two buttons flying across the room. I jumped in his arms and wildly tousled his hair with my frantic hands. He massaged my thighs as my legs squeezed his hips. We were savages.
We weren’t okay, but we needed to sell this, and I wasn’t about to let his nonna win. No one was going to win but us.
Suddenly, he put me down then fell to his knees, hiked up my dress, and disappeared underneath.
“Elio!” I moaned as I lifted one leg up over his shoulder, and his tongue split my folds. “This wasn’t part of the plan.” I tried to steady myself, but he wasn’t wasting any time. He dove his skilled tongue deep inside me, circling my sensitive nub. My head clouded, and my body temperature rose to the point of pain.
Anger, frustration, and need hit me all at once. I was becoming crazed in the cocktail of emotion. My stomach tightened, sending confusing signals to my head. Once again, my heart tossed caution to the wind, and my mind was left to stand guard solo.
Stop thinking… I begged myself…just have this moment. Say goodbye now so we can say hello again another time.
My legs started to quiver, and that lovely ball of excitement grew. Hunger hummed low in my pelvis, warning me I was close. “Yes,” I almost screamed, “more, Elio.”
Then he was gone, and I felt everything inside me jerk back into a tight coil.
“What the hell!” I snapped when he stood. “Why did you stop?”
“Two reasons. One, if you’re going to be pissed at me, you need to act like it.”
“I already was!”