Page 24 of Bound By Honor

“Tell me you want this,” she demands softly. “Tell me it’s not just duty or protection or?—“

I cut her off with another kiss, pouring everything I can’t say into it. My hands explore her curves with reverence and hunger, memorizing every soft sigh, every shiver.

“You think this is duty?” I growl against her throat. “You think I lie awake at night thinking aboutduty?”

Her nails scrape my scalp. “Tell me what you think about.”

“You.” I press closer, letting her feel exactly what she does to me. “Always you. Driving me crazy, haunting my dreams, making me want things I can’t?—“

The words die in my throat as her lips find mine again, softer this time, full of promise and heat. My hands slide down her sides, relishing the way she shudders under them. For one perfect moment, the world narrows to just this—her taste, her touch, the soft sounds she makes against my mouth.

10

LUCIANO POV

I devour her mouth with mine, my control shattered beyond repair. Her lips part with a soft moan, and I taste the heady mix of passion and need. Her tongue dances with mine, each movement a silent plea for more.

She arches against me, her curves molding perfectly into my body as we stand in the dimly lit living room. My hands slide down her sides, memorizing every curve through the thin material of her dress. The soft sound she makes when I reach her hips nearly unravels me.

“God, Luciano,” she breathes, hands fisting in my hair. “Please.”

My restraint hangs by a thread. “Wait.” The word tears from my throat as I tug her hand. “Not here.”

The short walk to the bedroom feels endless. Each step is punctuated by stolen kisses and wandering hands. My suit jacket falls somewhere in the hallway, her nimble fingers already working on my tie.

When we finally cross the threshold, moonlight spills through the reinforced windows, casting her in silver light.A bedside lamp casts a warm golden glow across the sheets, creating shadows that dance across her skin.

I ease her back onto the bed, my body following hers like a shadow. The moonlight catches in her eyes, turning them molten with desire. For a moment, I just look at her—hair spread across my pillow, chest rising and falling with quick breaths, lips parted in anticipation.

“You’re beautiful,” I breathe against her neck, tasting the racing pulse beneath her skin. Her back arches slightly as my lips trace a path to that sensitive spot behind her ear, drawing a soft gasp from her throat.

Her fingers thread through my hair, tugging me closer as she arches against me. The movement sends fire through my veins, and my mouth captures hers in a fierce kiss that tastes of longing and demand.

Her hands slide down my chest, tracing the muscles of my abdomen before moving to the buttons of my shirt. Her fingers tremble slightly, but she holds my gaze as she works each button free.

I meet her gaze, the unspoken question hanging between us. Her lips, swollen from our kisses, part on a soft sigh as I ease her dress down her shoulders, baring her to the moonlight. My hands shake slightly as I reach behind her to free the zipper.

“Wait.” The word ghosts across my lips, her breath mingling with mine. Her fingers trail down my chest, and I feel her heart racing against mine.

I force myself to be still, though every muscle in my body aches to claim her. When her eyes meet mine, they’re dark with desire, but there’s something deeper there—a vulnerability that makes my chest tight.

“Tell me,” I breathe against her skin, my lips brushing her throat. “Tell me what you want, Aurora.”

Her fingers dig into my shoulders as she arches beneath me.

“You,” she whispers, the word breaking on a soft moan. “Everything. All of you.”

A curse tears from my throat at her boldness. “Aurora?—”

She catches my face between her hands, and the heat in her gaze steals my breath. “Don’t think,” she murmurs, pulling me down until our lips nearly touch. “Just feel.”

My control frays at her boldness. I worship her skin with lips and tongue, moving lower, her scent wrapping around me like a promise. The soft sound she makes when I reach the curve of her breast nearly unravels me, but I savor her like this, committing every touch, every sigh to memory.

I kiss the swells of her breasts, my thumbs grazing her peaked nipples. She’s so responsive, every soft sound urging me on. My hands slide down her sides, over the curve of her hips, and she shudders.

“Luciano, please.” Her hips tilt up, her need clear, but I want to give her more, take her to the brink of madness before I give her release.

“Shh.” I move lower, my mouth brushing across the curve of her stomach. “Let me enjoy every inch.”

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