Page 83 of Ruthless Oath

“I can handle anything you give me.” I ran my thumb over the head of his cock, twirling it around the tip. “Anything at all.”

“Because you’re fearless.” He attacked my mouth, kissing me powerfully. “I knew that when you didn’t flinch after almost taking a bullet at the auction.”

“I don’t know about not flinching.” I squeezed his fully erect length. “But I knew you had my back.”

He lifted me up and slammed me into the wall.

“I can answer your question now,” I said.

“You don’t have to.” He entered me all the way, taking the air from my lungs.

“I want to.” I hooked my legs securely around his hips as he braced his hand against the wall. “I don’t want to leave you.”

“When Ricardo said he couldn’t find you, I didn’t expect to feel the way I did. I didn’t plan on you.” He plunged into me, giving me all of him. “I have so much going on in my life.”

“You have a lot of responsibility.”

“Why did you have to come in and complicate things even further?”

I’m meant to be yours.

He kissed my neck and breasts as he thrust into me. The mist of the shower covered the two of us in a sultry haze, and the water poured over our bodies. The steam thickened to the point where I could barely see him, but his eyes were still visible. Maybe it was because I had committed them to memory, but I knew they were gazing into mine. They were conflicted and uncertain.

“I’m sorry,” I whispered. “I didn’t mean to make things harder for you.”

“But you have.” He kissed me with an unfamiliar tenderness. “Now I have to figure out what to do with you.”

Nineteen

Marchello

Choices.The more options you have, the more power you’ll possess.

The problem was, right now, I didn’t seem to have many.

I leaned back in my chair, staring at the old books filled with magic, mayhem, and history on the shelves. Memories of reading them with my mother filled me with a sense of happiness I hadn’t experienced in a long time.

Marchello.I could hear her soft, comforting voice as clear as the church bells that rang out at her funeral.A well-read man is a powerful man.

I didn’t know it then, but she was trying to find another way for me and Milo. She wanted to open doors for us that didn’t include guns, bloodshed, and territory.

Choices.

Would she have approved of mine? Up until now, I never questioned myself. My loyalty had always been with my family. My job was to help run my father’s business—to keep us safe and in control.

If my mother hadn’t gotten into that car that day, my life might have gone in another direction. I was a month away from leaving for Princeton. All that reading from an early age had paid off, but college wasn’t in the cards for me. My father had other plans.

At least she died believing I would be more than a gangster. More than a trained killer who did whatever had to be done to protect the Accetti name.

I stared at the cathedral ceiling.I hope I didn’t disappoint you, Mama.

“Hey. Are you busy?” Lissia stood in the doorway, holding a plate with a large piece of cannoli cheesecake, but the dessert didn’t entice me. She wore a white half-sweater that stopped just below her belly button, revealing her smooth stomach, and navy shorts that sat low on her hips.

“I’m always busy.” I pushed the chair away from the desk. “Where did you get that?”

“Ricardo froze it after we didn’t eat it the other night.” She came into the room, stopping on the other side of the desk. “I thought it was good when it was fresh, but now it tastes like ice cream.”

“Did you happen to encounter Ricardo in that outfit?” I looked her over, taking in her bare feet and long, toned legs.

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