Page 35 of Borrowed Bride

“Not here,” Marco grinds out between clenched teeth as he hauls me with him back out of the warehouse. “You have some fucking explaining to do.”

14

MARCO

“What the hell were you thinking? Are you trying to give me a heart attack or something? Were you trying toscareme?” I crowd Gianna up against the wall in her bedroom, studying every detail of her flushed face.

I’d been far too angry to speak to her on the drive home but now, in the safety of her bedroom, I can let loose.

“No,” Gianna says breathily, panting softly. “It was nothing like that!”

“Then what? Sneaking out of here, giving your guards the slip. Coming to that meeting?” My heart punches against my ribs, skipping a beat every time my mind flashes to the disaster that Gianna could have faced. “You could have been hurt. You could have been shot! What were youthinking?!”

“I wasn’t though,” Gianna says softly and both her hands cup my face, stroking my jaw. “I was concerned because of Emilia. I wanted to be there in case anything bad happened, that’s all. And I’m okay, look at me Marco. I’m okay. You’re okay.”

I should be furious. Iamfurious but something about looking into her deep, sparkling eyes is slowly diffusing thatrage. It’s not lust that drives me to keep Gianna safe anymore. There’s a deeper connection here, and I need to protect it.

If she ends up like the rest of the women in my life, there’ll be no coming back from the dark pit that will swallow me whole.

“I need to be able to trust you,” I snap. “When I tell you to stay here, I mean it. I told you what happened to Fawn, you saw my sister—” My throat tightens and the words catch in my throat. “I need you safe, you hear me? I need youhere.”

“I need you safe too,” Gianna murmurs, and her thumb trails over my chin. “You expect me to wait here like some good little wife when I didn’t even know if you would come home. How am I supposed to deal with those feelings?”

“By not putting yourself in danger!” My skin flushes hot, like the first burst of a too-hot shower scalding my shoulders, and the sensation sweeps down my back and across my torso. Gianna’s eyes dart between mine, then she leans in and kisses my lips sweetly.

“I’m sorry,” she whispers, so close that her lips write the words against my own. “I’m so sorry.”

“You will be.” I kiss her hard, dragging her away from the wall and spinning us around until I’m facing the bed. Then I shove her down onto it. She bounces once, and as she settles, I crawl over the top of her. I need to feel her. Every inch of her. I need to imprint every single detail into my mind, and I won’t stop until the image is pixel perfect.

Our kisses are hard and biting, devouring one another as a scorching heat rises between our bodies. I thrust my tongue into Gianna’s mouth and she moans, rolling her hips up to meet mine. I bite her lower lip, and there’s a spark of blood as she hisses and jerks her head away, then I bury my face into her neck and sink my teeth into the juncture of her shoulder.

I crave her harder than any drug that’s ever crossed my lips. Clothes are tangled and torn in our desperation to free ourselves,and we snatch breathless kisses in between grunts and growls. I pin her to the bed, lavish attention over her throat and down to her gorgeous breasts. She pulls my hair. I nibble her nipples and suck until they peak red and sensitive. I kiss her belly, tracing the curves that flow as she breathes and begs me for more.

When I thrust inside her heat, I maintain eye contact and hold her in my gaze watching every emotion dance across her beautiful face. The pleasure at being filled and stretched, the satisfaction at being held and cared for, and then the impatience when I don’t move.

“Please,” Gianna gasps.

“Promise me,” I growl, nose to nose. “Promise me you will never put yourself in danger ever again.”

“I promise,” she swears, and I believe her.

I fuck her hard, pouring every ounce of my desire into each thrust. Gianna is shunted up the bed toward the pillows, so I slide one hand around her throat and lightly pin her in place while my other hand slides between us and toys with her clit. Her eyes widen and she moans, draping her legs around my waist as both her hands clutch at my wrist. She doesn’t try to pull me away. She just holds on and clenches her pussy around me like a vice each time I pull out.

It’s like she doesn’t want me to leave as much as I never want to.

The air is filled with heat and the slick sound of flesh impacting flesh. The song of our moans interrupts each time we kiss and soon, there’s nothing but the primal, desperate chase of pleasure. Gianna scratches down my arm as she comes with a scream, arching off the bed like the curve of a bow. Her tight muscles milk me, drawing my orgasm out of me with the force of a punch and I bury myself as deep as I can, flooding her insides with me and only me.

Then I kiss her slowly and take her hands in mine. With interlaced fingers, I stretch her hands above her head and pin her there.

“Never again,” I whisper against her. “Or I’ll never fuck you again.”

“No,” Gianna whines lazily. “Never again.”

I’m about to pull away when my knuckle grazes something sharp under Gianna’s pillow. Releasing her hand, I grasp it and pull it free. It’s just a photograph and I almost toss it when something—or rather someone—catches my eyes.

My entire world freezes, like a sudden cold snap has swept through the room and encased me in ice. My change must be instant because Gianna is immediately wiggling out from underneath me.

“Marco?”

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