Page 51 of Forbidden Cravings

Rising, I snatched the bra from his hand, looking at it, then at him, tilting my head as I took him in. My mob boss was back, my passionate lover tucked behind his façade.

“Only if you keep calling me princess.”

He yanked me against him, pulling the blanket from me. “It’s my nickname now, no one else’s. And if the prick calls you princess again, you call me. I’ll be on a plane in seconds to beat the shit out of him.”

My giggle was light, and he smiled, kissing me again. I lifted the blanket back up and followed him out, watching as he put his suit jacket on and slipped his gun back in his pants. I reached up and fixed his tussled hair, running my fingers through his thick ebony locks. The green in his eyes had shifted to a sage hue, their intensity warming me to the core.

His fingers brushed over my face, and he took my chin in them. “I don’t want you here anymore, Case. You’re too far away, and I can’t protect you out here.”

“It’s never been a problem before. Donelli keeps me safe.” But I knew the real reason. He wanted me with him, and I wanted to hear him say it. To give me a reason to give everything I knew up.

But he didn’t give me the reason I wanted to hear, keeping it undisclosed, like saying it would change things more than they already had. “Donelli can’t keep you safe. He’s vulnerable, and he admitted that. I have no choice but to leave you here as a sign that I still trust him, but I’ll find a way around that. For now, you stay. It’ll give me time to face Tyson, but once we work it out, I’m bringing you home.”

“With you?” I asked.

“With me,” he answered. He released me, walking toward the door but stopping at the scarves that hung on my coat hooks. He fingered them, saying, “Riley has a set of these. I haven’t seen them in so long. They were our mother’s.” He peered over at me.

“And those were mine. My parents went with yours on that trip, remember?”

“I’d forgotten,” he said, letting the purple one slip through his fingers. I had three of the scarves, the brighter colors. Tyson had taken the other three darker ones when she’d died a few years back.

“I wear them sometimes. The softness reminds me of her.” I took the purple one from him, running it against my cheek. “This one is my favorite, the one I wear the most.” Taking his hand, I placed it in his palm, folding his fingers around it.

He looked at me, his brows furrowing.

“Take it. It’ll be like a piece of me until you can have all of me.”

His fingers gripped the scarf tight. He brushed my hair back from my cheek, then kissed me once more, the kiss so emotional it left me weak. He ran his fingers over my cheek, lingering on my bottom lip before his eyes darkened again, his moment of softness gone as quickly as a summer rain. “No more going out to clubs. In fact, you keep close to Donelli. And always keep your gun and your phone on you.”

“They’re at Donelli’s in my purse.”

He pulled his phone out and dialed. There was a second of silence before he said, “Casey left her purse there. Have one of your men deliver it. I don’t want her without her phone.”

There was a muffled acknowledgement on the other end, and he hung up.

“You have my number. You call me or Tyson at the first sign of anything.”

I nodded, not liking how hard his expression had become, his tone deadly serious.

“A few days, Casey. That should be enough time to sort things out with Tyson. Then you’re mine, completely.”

My heart leaped into my throat, and I let out a strangled cry. The corner of his mouth lifted to form a sly grin as he tucked my scarf in his pocket. He said nothing more, leaving me to stare at the door and missing his presence the instant he was from my view.

Returning to my bedroom, I avoided looking at the bed and instead cleaned up. The shower should have been soothing, but I hated every drop of water that hit my skin and washed Mason’s touch from me. As I was toweling my hair dry, there was a knock at the door. I peered out, seeing Runt, one of the bodyguards Donelli assigned to me. His name always made me chuckle because he was anything but a runt. If I had to guess, I’d say he was the largest of them.

“The boss sent this over,” he said, holding my purse out to me. He wore a mischievous smile, and I was sure he knew what Mason and I had done.

“Wipe the smirk off your face, Runt. It’s not the first time I’ve had a man over.”

“No, but it’s the first time it’s been someone like Mason Brinks.” He shook his head. “Is it true your brother doesn’t know?”

I rolled my eyes. “You guys gossip more than women I know,” I teased, closing the door on him.

I could hear him laughing on the other side. My phone showed a barrage of text messages and missed calls from Tyson. The last one read,Call me and tell Mason to get his cock out of you and come home so I can make sure it never touches you again.

Great, not only was he pissed, but he was throwing threats around. I dropped my purse on the table, glancing at the chair where Mason’s jacket had been. There was a strange emptiness in my chest, that same one that had been there when I’d left Treemont. It had lingered until today, Mason filling it.

My stomach twisted in knots as I dialed Tyson. I wasn’t sure what to say, but he didn’t give me a chance to say anything.

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