Sorry for the delay... More sexy chapters to come shortly. ;))) Hang on!
“Save it for someone who doesn’t know you, Thea. Since our first time together, you’ve been quite… enthusiastic in my bed. I don’t care if you’ve been with other men who have made you scream and moan. Now you’re here, with me. And I bet you can be just as hot and eager again. I can tell how much you want me.” She stared up at him, her gaze heavy-lidded as a sense of bravado overcame Thea. Her cheeks turned fire red, while her teeth clenched furiously as humiliation washed through her.“You’re wrong…” His brow arched, and he grimaced tightly.“I’m not, piccola.” “My God… You’re insane… And you’re imagining things.”“I’m quite sane. And I can prove it. Easily.” Damiano cupped her jaw. She pushed his hand.“Don’t touch me!” Thea yelled. “There’s not a chance in hell I want you now.” But Damiano could see it in her eyes and feel it in her voice that she was dying for him. That she was aching for him.“The hell you don’t,” he growled.“You’re damned rig
Silver, gold, or cream?! Something celebratory for this insanity? Thea fumed in her bedroom as she confronted her open suitcase.“The hell with you and your celebration, Damiano Chiaramonte!” she exclaimed. He was out of his mind, no question about it! The power had clearly gone to his head. There was no way she was going to dress up in a sparkly party dress for their vows. Because this wasn’t a special occasion, and she had nothing to celebrate. She looked among the few clothes she had in her suitcase, and just then, a slight smile appeared on her lips.“But since you’re insisting on getting married, since you’re forcing my hand… Fine! Be careful what you wish for, signor Chiaramonte, because you might get it!” Damiano might have all the money and the power, he might have the upper hand, but she would not meet him dressed like a shiny doll. Not a chance! She would dress for the occasion… her way. Which
They drank. Thea swallowed, the cold, slightly sweet, slightly tart champagne fizzing and warming all the way down. She glanced down into her glass, watching the tiny bubbles rise to the surface, admiring the champagne’s pale gold color against the cut crystal stemware. Her head jerked up, and she looked at Damiano.“If it’s okay with you, I would like to go and get Lawry,” she said, fighting to keep her tone neutral. “We’re about to take off, and I’d be more comfortable flying if he were here with me.”“But he’s fine where he is. Maria, the new nanny, is taking good care of him.” Thea drew a deep breath, then slowly exhaled. Had she heard Damiano right? Was he making decisions for her? Was he deciding how and when she was to see her own son? She fought the wave of nausea rolling through her.“I miss him, Damiano. I haven’t spent much time with him today…”“You didn’t because you left him. You regularly left him,
Thea stood inside the jet’s bedroom, listening to the door close softly behind her, knowing it was but a whisper of sound and yet, inside her head, it resonated with the force of a prison cell door. Inside her head, Thea heard the sound of a key turning, locking. She was in so much trouble. And she’d brought all this trouble down on Lawry’s head, too. They were now on their way to Taormina, in Sicily. The home of the Chiaramontes, and the center of their power. No allies, no friends… But spies everywhere... Thea was sure about that. Yes, she was about to walk into the lion’s den. In a few hours, she and Lawry will meet the entire family. She will come face to face with Giorgiana Chiaramonte, Damiano’s mother. Even if Damiano was the head of the family, Thea knew who really was… the boss. Trapped… She was trapped. And the worst of it was that Damiano didn’t know who she really was, nor could she let him discover the truth. God only kne
Her lips parted with surprise.“What?”“Your house is just a half mile back. Not far, but certainly not comfortable in the rain. Please, be careful. The pavement is undoubtedly slippery.” Thea crumpled into the seat, her expression one of horror.“Damiano…” she protested, her voice strangled. She looked hurt and bewildered. “Goodbye, Thea.” Damiano was tired of being judged by her. Everything she said and did was extreme, and it was hurtful. He wasn’t a mobster, and he loved his son. Damiano never thought it would be possible for a man like him to feel so much love for a child. But he was under Lorenzo’s spell. He was a good man, a good person. After what happened to his father, he’d worked too damn hard to restore respectability to his family to allow anyone, much less Thea Walker with her questionable morals and mysterious past, to dishonor the Chiaramonte family.“Damiano… Please…”“Please, what? Come on, Thea. Let’s be honest. How can
“I won’t sign a thing! I will never abandon my son!” Thea said, in a shaky but determined voice. She sat as far from him as she could on the limousine’s black leather seat.“Lawry is too small… You cannot take him away from me. He still needs his mommy.” Thea was upset… She kept staring out the tinted window. Damiano had expected that reaction. Nothing that happened that day had surprised him. He’d just turned her world upside down… as they’d both known he would.“I see.” Damiano gave her a long look and saw her little frame shaking. She was in shock. Water kept dripping from her thick sweater and the ends of her hair, and her teeth chattered, even though the heater blasted hot air all over them. He found the temperature stifling, but left the heater on high for her, thinking it was the least he could do, considering the circumstances.“Would you like to go to your place and change?” he asked gently.“No. I’m fine.”“Okay. Marco, take us to the airport,” he