Page 62 of Shadows of Obsession

He breathes the words against my lips, and I can't help but smile. Not just any smile - one that comes from deep inside because this thing between us isn't just in my head. He's showing me, proving it with every move.

"I’d guessed you'd already met," he tells me, smiling against my mouth.

My look is questioning, so he clarifies.

"When Goran called to tell me that he couldn't find her and I came to the hospital, I approached her and she smelled like flowers. Victoria always smells like sugar cookies, never flowers. Then I met you, and one day you wore the same perfume," he tells me so simply, as if there's nothing special about it.

"You can recognize perfumes that easily?" is all my mind can produce right now.

"Your perfume? Always," he tells me while his nose sniffs at the base of my neck.

Right now I'm wearing a perfume sample I threw in my bag.

"Let's go inside, you'll freeze out here. Plus, I have a surprise for you," he tells me when I finally let go and we head toward the house.

"I don’t think Porto likes me very much," I tell him as his hand wraps around my waist and pulls me toward him.

"It's not your fault. I rescued him from someone who organized illegal dog fights, and he's still recovering from trauma. But he's a good dog and has been very receptive to training."

My heart shrinks. I can't comprehend all the torture those animals go through and how someone would pay to see such a thing.

"What happened to the other dogs?” I don't want to think about it, but the words leave my mouth before I can stop them.

"I have two shelters for them outside the city, where someone permanently takes care of everything they need. They have land, and it's a safe place for them to enjoy freedom but not be in danger of being caught by the wrong people, in case they escape from the enclosure and aren't seen."

My heart can't handle this man.

"Can we talk before dinner?" I ask him, because there are things that have been gnawing at me since morning and I can't avoid them anymore.

"Sure, but first let's see your surprise."

Roman takes my hand and leads me up the stairs to his bedroom. The butterflies in my stomach go crazy just feeling him next to me. It's as if I've opened the cage where I kept them captive and now they’re unrestrained. It thrills me that I can touch this man when I want and how I want, without feeling guilty anymore.

I still have moments when I'm troubled by the fact that he's part of the mafia, but after every moment spent in his house, among the people he cares about, it becomes easier to accept the situation.

This man has two shelters for dogs. My heart is going to explode, I swear.When he opens the bedroom door and I step inside, he leads me to the walk-in closet, where I stop suddenly in the middle of the room.

Directly in front of me, there's a cube shelf unit filled with perfumes. Every kind of perfume. My eyes pass over the pink, gold, white, and black bottles, and my vision starts to blur. When the first tear falls on my cheek, Roman's voice sounds worried beside me.

"Did I do something wrong? I assumed you'd need your perfumes, and since I didn't know exactly what broke yesterday and what didn't..."

Before he can finish, I throw myself into his arms.

"You didn't have to do this for me. You're already doing too much. I'm not doing anything for you," I whisper.

My heart was already trembling when it came to this man's presence. Roman being attentive and sweet?Okay. I can't handle this.

"The fact that you're here is all I want from you. I want you to want to be here, with me, in my house, without seeing doubt in your eyes. Because I can tell you that I have no doubts when it comes to you, Luna," he tells me with a serious expression, and his mouth covers mine.

My hands slide into his hair. Each second our lips touch shatters my doubts and insecurities. When his hands cup my bottom and pull me toward him, I feel every tense muscle of his body. Although my sexual appetite had dropped dramatically after everything that happened in recent months, now it's as if my entire body has suddenly reawakened, feeling tingles and warmth encompassing me from head to toe.

Suddenly the need for my hands to make contact with his skin becomes too much, and I start pushing his jacket off. My eyes open, and when I see his, how much desire and need is in them, it only injects more boldness into my actions. When the jacket hits the floor, I don't wait more than a second to start pulling his shirt from his pants so my hands can position themselves on his bare back.

Every muscle tenses under my touch, and there's something fascinating about how this man, who I know could hurt me with one hand if he wanted to, trembles under my touch.

"Luna." The sound is more of a breath, and when his mouth touches the pulse at my neck, I close my eyes and know I couldn't stop these feelings even if I wanted to.

Somehow, through all the haze caused by the need to be devoured by this man, I remember that we need to talk. I don't want to let things go further until I have some answers. I know, although it scares me, that whatever he tells me, I will accept his explanations. But I need this relationship to start based on honesty and trust.

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