Page 52 of Under His Protection

While I stared at her, fantasizing about how I’d peel this shimmering black gown off her gorgeous body tonight, I was aware of how sappy and adoring my expression had to be. If anyone was watching, they’d witness a man very much in lust, and maybe the beginning of love, as I mingled with Nina at my side.

She was no better. After every kiss I stole, following each daring touch, either cupping her ass as I hugged her closer or braced my hand on the back of her neck as I smiled down at her, she looked sated and secure, glad to be with me.

“Mr. Constella,” she teased after I handed her another flute of champagne.

I smirked at the formal address. “Yeah?”

“You can’t seem to keep your hands off me tonight.”

“Try and stop me.”

“Who says I want to?” she asked saucily.

The world would see me infatuated with this young woman who impressed me with every turn of this adventure, and I felt like a king, a god, to be able to know she was here for me and with me. Only.

Nina knew how to play her part well, and after I caught a look of surprise on Eva’s face as we passed her by, I knew that she had been guessing Nina might not be able to handle the pressure. There was no way to hide or cover up that Nina came from a poorer, deprived background. But no one would know that here. She blended in with the rest of us, elegant, poised, and dressed to impress in that tight black gown that accentuated her curvaceous body.

“Are you enjoying yourself?” I asked her after Franco and I spoke for a while about a few people we were trying to keep an eye on. Stefan was chief among our concerns, but I had yet to spot him in this massive ballroom.

“Yes.” She curled up against me, resting her cheek on my chest as she pressed her hand there. “But I wish we could have privacy instead.”

“Why?” I asked, eager to know her answer.

She looked me up and down, coy and sexy. “I want you.”

I leaned toward her, lowering my hand from the small of her back to hold her ass. Pushing her against me, I whispered into her ear. “You can want me anywhere and everywhere.”

I watched her cheek lift in another sly smile. “We couldn’t do that here.”

“Want to bet?”

Just like that, her expression fell. Gone was the mirthful, teasing nature. She was frowning, focused on something behind me.

Bet? Was that the trigger that bothered her? A reminder that her stupid brother had bet on her life? It was just a saying, and she surely knew that, but I felt so confused as to why she would change her demeanor so quickly.

“Dante.”

As soon as her voice reached me, I was confident I’d found the reason for the shift in Nina’s mood.

Vanessa. Her nasally, whiny tone reached me. Nina curled her fingers into my jacket, and I covered her hand with mine.

“Nina?”

Her brow remained furrowed as she seemed to track Vanessa approaching. I had no doubt that she had locked her determined stare on me, planning to get in my face like she always did. She wouldn’t succeed, not while I had Nina in my arms.

“Hmm?” Nina glanced at me a second before I crushed my mouth over hers. Without any further instruction, she played along perfectly. Kissing me back. Moaning slightly. Tilting to ensure a better angle and deeper suction. Her fingers threaded through my hair as she held my head close, and as I wrapped my arms around her, she arched her back to accommodate the force of my kiss, dipping her a bit.

I hoped that coming upon me while I made out with another woman would deter Vanessa completely. Logically, she should’ve witnessed this display of affection and turned around.

But she didn’t. She was still there. Arms crossed and tapping her foot.

“Dante.” She repeated it harsher, with more sass and impatience, like I was an asshole to keep her waiting at all.

I sighed, smoothing my thumb over Nina’s lower lip that I’d tortured with that hungry kiss.

“Dante.” Vanessa wasn’t getting the hint.

Nina smirked, and the devilish expression warmed my heart. “I think some lady is trying to speak with you.”

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