Page 71 of Salvatore

Even as his fingers stroke my hips, the humiliation I felt that night resurges.

“Remember that idiot you were talking to. Sam?”

My brows raise, both because he catches me off guard and I don’t know where he’s headed. “You mean Max, the part-time counselor?”

He nods, though it seems to annoy him when I say his name. “Want to know what I thought when I saw you with him?”

“That you wanted to pound him to a bloody pulp?” I offer, although I’m not joking.

“Yeah. I did. There stood the perfect guy for my woman.” He pauses. “Someone you’d probably go for, if you weren’t with me.”

I realize what he’s saying. But Max isn’t who I want. “Salvatore,” I begin, only for my voice to trail when I catch his expression.

“I wear a suit,” he says. “That doesn’t make me a professional, or a man someone would picture you with. I’m not clean cut. I didn’t go to college. And I’m nowhere near where I want to be for us.” He glances briefly toward the picture of my dog, Moonlight. “That doesn’t mean I’m not trying. And it sure as anything doesn’t mean I want anyone else. You have the power to destroy me, Adrianna,” he says, stroking a strand of my hair away from my face. “You’re the one holding all the cards and you don’t even fucking know it.”

My hands slide over his shoulders as I search his face, my heart clenching over what he tells me.

“I wish you could feel everything I feel when I look at you,” he says. “I wish you could understand how alone I am without you. If you did, you’d never doubt who you are to me.”

His large hand smooths along my cheek to gently hold my face. I mean to say something, so he knows that I feel the same way. But as quickly as my thoughts come, so does his mouth against mine.

“I’m sorry,” he says once more, his breath a sweet whisper along my cheek. “Please, miabella. Let me show you what you mean to me.”

He pulls me in to straddle him, his tongue eagerly welcoming my taste. My hips instinctively shift against his lap, rubbing hard. He scrunches his eyes closed and his head lolls back, exposing his throat.

I nip his chin and slide my tongue along his ear, adding more pressure to his lap. I expect him to flip me over and yank off my clothes, but he allows me to play and take control. As I nibble his neck and rock my pelvis, I pop the buttons loose from the front of my pajamas. When I reach the last, I pull his head forward, and offer him a breast to suck. My taut nipple skims over his lips just once. He cups the swell, his tongue flicking greedily.

My head snaps back and my hips grind harder when his pulls turn deliciously aggressive. He tugs off my bottoms as I free his erection, my body anxious to receive his.

My movements are clumsy, not as smooth as I’d like. But as I fall onto his lap and join our bodies, I tap into that wild side that wants nothing more than to please her lover. He groans as I increase my speed, alternating between bouncing and gliding. Our gazes lock as he continues to touch me.

“That feels so good, baby,” I whimper, biting down on my lip when my core tightens and grips him further.

It doesn’t take me long to peak, not with his lustful stare upon me, not with how his hold on my hips helps me go faster. Our lovemaking is loud, sinful, powerful, and he likes it. No, he likes me. I orgasm two more times before he finally releases, his body bucking beneath mine.

I smile as he fills me, rocking slowly and holding him gently. Yet when his stare drills into mine and his fingers tease the points of my breasts, I’m not sure either of us is ready to stop.

He rolls me onto my back, pushing up to stare at my face as his hand glides between my breasts. “I’m going to pull out, okay?” he says, his quick breathing making it hard for him to speak.

I edge up on my elbows, shifting my hips to draw his attention and keep him in place.

He lowers his lids and releases a curse. “Aedry, I’m not supposed to be here. Don’t make it harder for me to leave you than it already is.”

I gasp when he pulls out. Again, he curses, falling beside me. “You’re leaving?” I ask, tilting to face him.

He opens his eyes then, but only partly, stroking my face. “I’m supposed to go round with Vin. But I couldn’t stand the thought of not seeing you, even for a little while. Lucca is covering for me.”

“You’re going to watch Vincent as he visits his other establishments?” It’s something he hasn’t done, or at least mentioned, in a while. I was hoping that after the last incident, someone else would accompany him. Or that Vincent would request a police escort.

“The businesses he’s checking in on are in a better area,” he assures me, likely reading my thoughts. “It should be fine.”

“But you don’t know for sure, do you?” I ask.

He strokes my hair. “If he didn’t need a security team, he wouldn’t have hired me. North Jersey, it’s getting worse when it comes to gang violence and people desperate for money. I have to make sure someone running a business and trying to stay ahead like Vin succeeds. You understand?”

“I suppose,” I say. “I only wish it didn’t have to be you.”

“It’s either that or strip for money,” he adds, smiling. “Both pay about the same. If you prefer, I’ll consider switching professions.”

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