“Ryah.” He turned me to face him once we stepped into our bedroom.

“I want you to hear me out for a second. Imagine I have this female friend. She doesn’t have family so I invite her to dinner. A dinner my girlfriend cannot attend. How would you feel?”

Sitting on the bed, I covered my face. “I’d be pissed.”

“Exactly.”

I peeked up at him. “Rocco, you know under normal circumstances we would’ve had dinner together. But ever since the shit that happened between you and my dad, that’s been a little difficult. I was between a rock and a hard place.”

I stood and placed his arms around my waist. “You not being there left a sinking feeling in the pit of my belly. I missed you.”

“You didn’t call,” he snapped.

“Nor did you because you were upset. We won’t always see eye-to-eye, Rocco.”

I placed my hands on his face, forcing his eyes on mine. “But I want you to know I love you so much. I hated that you couldn’t sit by my side.”

Standing on my tippy toes, I attacked his lips.

He tugged at my waist harder, deepening our kiss. Pulling back a bit, I stared at him. “When I see Levi going forward, you or Faith will be there. Just like when we hang out.”

“That’s best, Ryah. Because I don’t trust him alone with you.”

My heart raced. Shit.

“I tolerate his ass because of you. I’ve caught him staring at you like you’re the feature in his dreams. Do you have any idea what it took for me not to make him disappear?”

My eyes widened.

“I’m trying to share you with that motherfucker, but I’m hanging on by a thread. He has one more time to look at you like that then he’ll come up missing.”

I caressed his chest. “Ok, baby.” Swallowing hard, I hugged him tighter.

At that moment, I decided to end my friendship with Levi.

My fingers worked quickly unbuttoning his shirt. “We have a little free time on our hands. We should go to the boardwalk tomorrow.”

“Sounds fun.” He smiled.

“I love you, Ryah.”

His words warmed every inch of my body.

“Give me what I crave. You.” I winked.

He blushed. Rocco Andrisani, blushed.

“You used my words.”

“I did, baby.”

Rocco’s big hands slipped inside my shorts and gripped my ass.

I bit his bottom lip, then his neck.

“Ryah, I fucking love when you bite me.”

I smiled against his flesh. “We have that in common,” I moaned.