Page 50 of Mafia Star

“I must have been dozing off.”

“You’ve done that four times already. You were already asleep.”

“What? No.”

“You were. I could tell even without you twitching.”

Fuck. Was I drooling? Was I snoring? Fuck. Was it some worse bodily sound?

“You’re practically rolled onto your side. Your arm is around my waist.”

I hadn’t noticed. I twisted at the waist and draped my right arm around his waist. He adjusts me as he slides farther under the water. I’m lying belly to belly with him, my hips between his legs, my pussy just below his cock. He’s hard, and it would be easy to mount him and fuck. There’s plenty of room in the tub. But neither of us moves beyond breathing.

“Daddy, I’m so comfy. I could fall back to sleep like this.”

Except it’s probably only midafternoon. It’s a little early to be thinking about sleeping the night away with me on top of him.

“We can add some more hot water, and we can soak as long as you want.”

I raise my left hand out of the water. My fingers are already raisins.

“How long have I been in here?”

“Probably an hour by now.”

I doubt I’ve taken a bath this long since I was a little girl with toys trying to do the backstroke in a traditional size tub.

“I have work I have to do.”

I sigh with regret. I’d really rather take a nap with Marco. But I assume I’m sharing his bed tonight. He said he’d feel better with me here, and he doesn’t want me out of reach.

“Fine. If you insist.”

He sounds playfully beleaguered.

“I’m not such a fan of adulting, but I like my place and my car. My student loan company says they like my money.”

I roll over and sit up. He tugs me back a little and massages my shoulders. Now I don’t want to and can’t go anywhere since he insists. Whether it’s my back or my pussy, his fingers are magical.

“You can work wherever you’re comfortable. My office. The dining room table. The living room.”

It surprises me that he offers me his inner sanctum. I guess there’s nothing there he worries about me seeing. He— oh! He hits a particularly tender spot. He feels the knot and works on it. He’s better than any professional masseur or masseuse. I might keep him just for this. My mind goes blank as I enjoy the pain that leads to pleasure. The bath. The massage. The way he held me. I have never felt so taken care of in my adult life. This is what he’s been promising me since the beginning.

“Tesoro mio, I’ll finish the rest tonight. I plan to enjoy working your entire body. But I have a feeling you won’t enjoy this a hundred percent— maybe ninety-eight —if you don’t get your work done.”

“How’d you know?”

“Because we’re alike. Knowing the work is there will lurk in your mind until it’s done.”

Again with the mind reading. But it isn’t some secret power. It’s a connection because he said we’re alike.

The tub’s faucet is on the side, so the front connects to a walk-in shower. We don’t linger as we rinse off, though I can tell we’re both tempted. Our first bath and our first shower together and no sex. A bit disappointing, but in a way, it’s nice to know we can be naked together without having to fuck. There’s more to this than just sex. We dry off, and he offers me a t-shirt and a pair of boxers since his basketball shorts looked like they’d come to my calves.

The afternoon passes with the same speed as my bath. Emails, billing, drafting, ordering— it zooms by as I work at the dining room table. I didn’t feel right taking over his office. He works at the opposite end except for when he had to take some calls. Most were in English, and they were related to some construction projects his family has. I didn’t listen closely. A few were in Spanish, and I could follow along with those too. But I had no idea about the two in Italian. He stepped away mostly so he wouldn’t interrupt me. I thought it was sweet.

We make dinner together, Marco and I sharing a bottle of wine on his balcony as we grill steaks and vegetables. It’s so completely normal. Our conversation jumps around from our siblings to more about what we studied in college and grad school. Alcohol rarely gives me heavy head, but I think everything from this morning drained me more than I realized. I’m exhausted by the time we’re done with dinner. I help do the dishes, but I’m drooping. Once we’ve cleaned up, Marco suggests we head to bed. He follows through on his offer to give me a full body massage.

Much to my dismay this morning, I realize I fell into a practical coma. I don’t even remember Marco getting into bed next to me. I have a vague recollection of snuggling closer to him in the middle of the night. I wake to his shoulder beneath my head, and his hand stroking my back as sun filters through the curtains.

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