Amara’s soft snoreslet him know she’d given in to the exhaustion he’d brought upon her. In direct contrast to her boneless, sleeping form, he could practically hear his own nerves humming. Perhaps he hadn’t gotten the answers he’d wanted, but watching Amara give herself over to the sadistic pleasures he’d inflicted on her was a high he could easily become addicted to. She was a drug, far more dangerous than anything Gio sold on the streets.
Uncle Gio will be furious. Her words had been slurred with sleep, but he was absolutely certain he’d heard her correctly. What exactly was Giorgio going to be furious about? Her supposed robbery attempt? Their spending the night together?
He couldn’t shake the feeling it went deeper than either of those, but he had no proof. No real answers.
Daddy will hate me.Those words had crawled under his skin and burrowed there. What could she possibly be keeping from him that would make him hate her? Glancing back at her sleeping form, his heart constricted painfully. The affection he’d always had for her over the years had quickly morphed into something much deeper during her short stay.
Sitting there in the dark corner of her bedroom, he made himself a vow. Whatever it was she was hiding from him, whatever her true intentions had been when she’d snuck into his room, they would find a way to work past it. Because after tonight, there was no doubt in his mind that Amara Vitali was meant to be his.
With that thought in mind, he dug his phone from his pants pocket and shot Benny a message asking for dinner to be brought up in an hour. He spent some of the time watching Amara sleep and ordering replacements for several key items in her bedroom.
Finding what he needed in red instead of pink or purple turned out to be more difficult than he’d anticipated, so he ended up contacting one of his preferred sellers for quotes on custom pieces. The prices his seller gave him weren’t too far off from what he’d normally pay, so he happily placed his orders, and added an extra twenty percent to have the orders rushed.
At the half hour mark, he moved to the bathroom, where he ran a bath for them before returning to the bed to wake her.
“Amara. Wake up,piccolina.”
Her forehead scrunched with aggravation and she flopped onto her opposite side, turning her back to him. Chuckling, he gave her shoulder another gentle shake.
“Do I need to get the strap out again?” he asked as sternly as he could manage when she refused to budge.
That got her attention. Her eyes popped open, bright with a hint of fear mixed with raw need. “No!”
“Then it’s time to get up,piccolina.” Leaning down, he slid his arms under her and scooped her up out of the bed. She was heavier than he’d anticipated, which led him to believe there was more muscle to her than she let on. It was obvious she kept herself in shape, but he hadn’t expected her to be so sturdy.
The tub was nearly full when he placed her on her feet by the tub. “Salt or bubbles?” he asked, reaching for the basket he kept nearby for such instances.
“Bubbles!” Her answer was as immediate as it was joyful. When he raised an eyebrow in surprise, her cheeks went pink and she shrugged. “I love bubble baths,” she admitted quietly.
“Duly noted. Any particular scents?”
“Lavender. It helps me relax after—” Seemingly catching herself, she bit her bottom lip. “After a long day.”
It was on the tip of his tongue to press. But perhaps he’d been going about this all wrong. She hadn’t so much as cracked during their session. Trying to force her to tell him what was really going on obviously wasn’t going to work, and he honestly wasn’t sure he had the stomach for it any longer. His original plan to get answers, punish her, then send her on her merry way no longer appealed.
It was time to play the long game.
“I believe I have some lavender in here. Any other scents you enjoy?” he asked, keeping his tone light and casual as he filled the tub with her chosen bubbles.
“Vanilla. It makes everything smell like a bakery.”
Who would have ever guessed the ice princess of the Vitali family still had such a soft, sweet side to her? “I’ll be sure to get some vanilla. In you go,piccolina.”
He scooped her up again and stepped into the tub, cradling her to his chest as they sank into the steaming water. Her low, appreciative moan shot straight to his loins and he felt his cock twitch in response.
Down, boy.
“This feels lovely,” she said with a sigh. “Thank you.”
“This is what daddies do.” He pressed a kiss to the side of her neck. “They take care of their little ones.”
“And here I thought the whole Daddy thing was just an excuse to spank my ass.”
“I can’t deny I enjoy that aspect of it, as well,” he confessed, running his hands up her sides to cup her bubble-covered breasts. Her head fell back against his shoulder as he rolled her nipples between his fingers. “But I also enjoy caring for you.”
“You don’t care for me, though. This is all because I broke into your room and tried to drug you, remember?”
“Semantics.”