Chapter 39

Camila

My eyes fluttered open as the bed dipped. Through the darkness, the fresh scent of bodywash filled my senses as Dante’s warmth settled to my side. I reached out, laying my fingers on his warm skin. “You showered?”

My body shifted as he wrapped his strong arm around me and pulled me to his side.

“I did, beautiful.”

His words vibrated in his chest. “What we did tonight was messy, not something you need to see.” Peppering my hair with kisses, Dante inhaled, filling his broad chest with air. “You always smell so fucking good.”

Tilting my chin, I looked up at his strikingly handsome profile. “I soaked in the tub before going to bed.”

“I expected to find you upstairs.”

“Giovanni is in our guest room.”

Dante scoffed. “He was in our kitchen watching the elevator. I told him to go upstairs to his own fucking bed.”

My smile grew. “He was out in the kitchen?”

“He’s a good soldier and takes protecting Luciano women seriously.”

“Have you heard from Miguel?” I asked.

Dante inhaled. “Your father wants him to stay in California. With all the shit going on with the cartels, Andrés wants his men close. I don’t blame him.”

I sat up.

There was a lot to unpack in Dante’s statement.

“I’m okay with a new bodyguard.”

Dante’s large hand rubbed up and down my back. “You’re not going to fight me on the bodyguard thing?”

“After today, hell no.”

My husband’s laughter filled our suite. “My wife is cussing. She’s either having an orgasm or being definitive in her statement.”

I felt my cheeks move upward. “Not orgasming. And I don’t swear during sex.”

In one fell swoop, my head was back to the pillow and a man made of solid muscle had me pinned to the mattress. “You do, beautiful, and I love to hear every word, noise, and sweet, sensual sound that comes from your lips. I wouldn’t want you any other way.”

Lifting my hand, I pressed it to his chest. “Tell me about the cartels. You’re using the plural.”

Dante inhaled and exhaled, his toothpaste-scented breath coating my face. “Tonight, we received confirmation on a theory Aléjandro and I have been working on since the attacks the night of our wedding.”

I shook my head as dread bubbled into my bloodstream. “I’ve overhead Papá and Uncle Nick talking since before the alliance. They’re not always talking about the bratvas. Their distrust goes further. They don’t trust Elizondro Herrera. I remember how upset they were that he and Ana came to Cat’s wedding. They blamed the famiglia.”

Dante knitted his eyebrows. “Why in the hell would the Mafia invite a second drug lord to a wedding? One was more than enough.” He shook his head. “Their suspicions were partially accurate. Herrera is a threat. He was behind your abduction. We got that directly from one of the abductor’s mouths. Herrera was also responsible for the attacks on the two Roríguez homes. We even learned that he was to blame for the raid last week at Emerald Club.”

“Brazen.”

“That’s what you called it a week ago. Your description got me thinking.”

“What does this mean for the alliance?” I asked with more than a little fear at the thought of losing what we’d accomplished.

Dante scoffed. “El Patrόn’s number-one son is currently spending the night in the capo dei capi’s home. I’d have to say that the Luciano/Roríguez alliance is solid.”

I ran my palm over his hard shoulder and down his muscular arm. “I’m very glad to hear that. I’m rather fond of the Luciano/Ruiz alliance we have going.”

“You’re now a Luciano. You’re famiglia.”

Before I could comment, Dante’s lips seized mine.

The warmth within me multiplied as Dante pressed his solid chest over my breasts, my nipples beading against the satin and lace of my nightgown. Parting my lips, I allowed his tongue entry, their dance teasing my tastebuds with minty freshness as his roaming touch moved lower.

Dante stilled. “If you’re too sore…”

Lifting my hand to his smooth cheek, I grinned. “You shaved too.”

“I did.”

“I’m not too sore. The bath and muscle relaxers helped. I want this. I crave being close to you. You make me feel safe and loved.”

“You’re fucking safe and loved, Camila. Never doubt that.”

“I didn’t. Even when I woke in that truck, I knew you’d do whatever you could to save me.”

I sat up as Dante lifted the hem of my nightgown. Wiggling, I helped as he pulled the soft material over my head. His touch roamed, gently and reverently, over my skin as if he too needed reassurance of my safety and our connection. Kisses rained down as the air filled with his praises and promises accompanied by my chorus of hums of pleasure.

Endorphins flooded my circulation as I became lost to the deep baritone timbre of his voice and the omnipresent feel of his body against mine. Ambers within me caught fire, stoked by Dante’s pursuit to bring me pleasure. Sparks ignited as he kissed and sucked my breasts, leaving my nipples diamond hard and goose bumps in his wake.

It was as he teased my folds, finding me wet and ready, that the combustion reached record temperatures, sizzling and scorching as he pressed within me.

“Those muscle relaxers must not be working,” he said with his warm breath teasing the sensitive skin near my ear. “You’re so fucking tight.” He brought his nose to mine. “No one touches you and lives to talk about it. Do you understand?”

I nodded. “I’m yours, Dante.”

My back arched as he pressed his length within. There was something different in his movements, something slower and yet deliberate. This wasn’t fucking. This was making love and keeping his promise. The night passed slowly and tenderly, our mutual need for closeness resulting in multiple sessions of lovemaking. We’d fall asleep in one another’s arms to be awakened by the other’s affection.

Sometime before dawn, I awoke to his tongue lapping my core. My orgasm was so intense and powerful that if not for the full-body convulsions and his iron grip of my hips, I might have thought it was a dream. As the sun rose, I found us spooning, my back to his front, and his arms encasing me, protecting me.

A wiggle of my behind and I was acutely aware of his hard cock seeking entrance from behind. I moaned at the filling sensation of him once again within me. Slow and luxurious thrusts combined with his attention to my breasts and clit sent fireworks exploding behind my closed eyelids. Dante continued as my body languished in satiation. His guttural roar reverberated deep in his chest and echoed off the walls as he found his release.

Breaking our union, I rolled until his dark brown orbs dominated my sight. “What happens now?”

“Aléjandro is going to take Mia and Valentina back to San Diego. Silas has neutralized the threat next door.”

“What about Herrera?”

“Aléjandro and Reinaldo are going to consult with Jorge.” He inhaled. “Jorge and Dario will have the final words in the decisions, but if the Roríguez cartel is at war with the Herrera cartel, they’re not in it alone.”