Page 179 of Sinful Games

I laughed, rinsing off the last plate. “Oh really? Can’t blame him. I am quite the catch.”

Caia nudged me playfully with her foot. “Don’t get too full of yourself.”

I dried my hands and leaned in closer, my arms caging her in against the counter. Our noses almost touched. Her cheeks flushed, those emerald eyes of hers flashing with uncertainty as her hands rested in her lap.

I tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, my lips grazing her skin. “I hope your friend knows I’m already crushing on someone else,” I whispered.

Her breath hitched.

“Is that so?” she murmured, barely above a whisper.

“Absolutely,” I replied, letting my lips brush the edge of her ear. “I’m completely smitten.”

Her hands moved from her lap, creeping up to my chest where I knew she could feel my heart racing through my shirt.

“And who might that be?” she asked, a teasing smile creeping onto her lips.

I tilted my head, brushing my nose against hers. “I think you know.”

I leaned in, teasing her lips with mine, the soft touch igniting something wild inside me. Her lips parted slightly, and I took the chance to deepen the kiss, letting everything else fade into the background.

It was slow and charged, hitting me like a shot of adrenaline after two fucking years of feeling a ghost. Her lips pulled me back to life, making me feel like I was finally waking up from a long, dark sleep.

Her hands gripped my shoulders, pulling me closer, like she wanted to drown in me. I wrapped an arm around her waist, crushing her against me, the heat radiating off her body.

I tangled my fingers in her hair, those silky strands slipping through my grip as I tilted her head back, plunging deeper into the kiss. She responded with a soft, breathless sigh. When we finally broke apart, our foreheads resting together, we were both panting.

“Yeah,” she whispered, her voice trembling. “I think I do.”

“Of course you do. You know me inside and out,moya solnyshka. You’re the only one I’ve ever let truly own a piece of my heart.”

Her hand brushed my cheek as she pulled me closer, planting a soft kiss on my lips. “Only a piece?”

I stared deep into her eyes. “You’ve got half, and Lukyan’s got the other half. He’s a part of me, just like you are. So, you both share my heart completely, until the day I die … and even beyond that.”

Chapter

Fifty-Nine

“Beware the fury of a patient man.”

?John Dryden

Alexsei

“I think Lazzio’s got it all wrong—the real masterpiece here is you,moya solnyshka,” I whispered, pressing a kiss to the back of her hand, my eyes locked on hers. “You’re fucking gorgeous.”

She smiled softly, a flush creeping up her cheeks.

We’d been stuck in silence for the last twenty minutes, the limo creeping through traffic packed with celebrities, New York’s elite, and a few lucky bastards invited to Angelo’s latest spectacle. If it weren’t for my plans tonight and the most extraordinary woman beside me, I might’ve bailed.

Well, with Scarlett performing, I would’ve had to show my face regardless.

My eyes roamed over Caia as my thumb caressed her hand. She looked like a goddamn dream. Her sleek bun framed her face with effortless elegance, and her bold red lips popped against the vivid green of her sparkling eyes. That long, velvety black corset dress hugged her curves, shimmering with every movement. A delicate diamond choker glinted at her throat, making her even more mesmerizing. She was stunning, the embodiment of every wild fantasy I’d ever had—and she fucking was.

“Stop being so sweet, Alexsei. I won’t kiss you again.”

After last night, when her lips finally met mine after two long fucking years, I was hooked. I held her tight, afraid she’d vanish, but she pulled away gently, caressing my cheek and letting her eyes reveal everything she felt before retreating to her room and locking the door. I stayed in the kitchen grinning like an idiot because I knew my wife was finally finding her way back to me.

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