Page 57 of Ruthless Boss

“Yes. I love you like fucking crazy,” he admits, his eyes holding mine hostage with such intensity, I could burst at any moment. “I was miserable when you were gone, but I wanted you to have your shot at the new life you dreamed of. When you went, you took something with you, and I felt?—”

“Less free?” I say tentatively, holding my breath.

“Yes. When I’m with you, my world is complete in a way that’s brand new. It scared me at first because as the depth of those emotions grew, I felt confused and guilty.”

“Because of Andie?”

He shrugs. “For a while, yes, because I didn’t love her back. What I know now, though, is that you, Gia, are the one for me. It’s not just that I wasn’t able to give or receive these feelings… In a way, I was waiting for you to come along. Even if it took me a while to realize.”

My heartbeats are so out of control that I hear buzzing in my ears as my blood pounds in my veins. My body is in a delicious overdrive of emotions.

“I love you too,” I say in a low, careful voice like every word is so delicate it could break.

“Marry me.” He holds my hand and deposits the gentlest kiss on my wrist. “Marry me, and I promise I’ll be the husband you deserve.”

Marry me.His words swim in my brain. More than his bracelet, more than his declaration of love, he wants to marry me. My insides soften, and a warm glow flows through me. I don’t even know how practicality will play a role in this—can I get divorced from a dead man who’s not officially dead yet? We need a lawyer to take care of these details. The bottom line is that Dante is offering lifelong commitment.

“Yes. Yes.”

He lets out a long exhale. “You will? Fuck, I almost died just now.”

“I’m making you work for it, aren’t I?”

“I’ll work relentlessly for you,” he says, putting his arms around me. “Until my last breath.”

Oh, my god. I touch my forehead, light-headed. Damn it. I believe him. I want to work for him, too. For us, until we die. I want to be his forever. I want to be his… now.

I’m out of breath, my chest rising and falling in shallow pants. “How about we get started?”

32

Gia

“I don’t want to break you,” Dante whispers.

I’m not sure he says that because I still have some coloring on my face from the bruise or the healing wounds in my stomach—the lingering visual of what happened days ago. Maybe he means he doesn’t want to break my heart and eviscerate me emotionally.

Either way, I trust him. More than anyone, more than anything.

“Then don’t,” I say.

He lowers his lips to mine, and the moment his tongue coaxes my mouth open, my blood shifts into a dangerous hot simmer. He kisses me with intensity and urgency, and every part of me throbs for more. I circle my hands around his neck, and he carefully stands and takes me with him, scooping me in his arms to the short walk to the bed.

He eases me on the mattress, and the adoration in his eyes quickens my heart rate.

Our eyes meet and lock.

Damn it. I love him. He loves me—and we both deserve each other.

I take off my clothes to get us where we need to be quickly. I pull the shirt over my head and peel off my pants and underwear until I only wear the glistening bracelet he gave me.

An inescapable sensation of joy bolts me, and I stretch out my hand, inviting him to join me in bed. Now, more than ever, there’s nobody else with us. Not the ghosts of my past or the anxiety of the future. We’re in the moment. We’re free.

He removes his clothes, and with each piece that falls on the floor, my heart beats in a louder staccato until I can hear it beat in my ears. When he’s naked, his delicious big cock jutting out, I part my legs, so damn ready for him to come inside me.

But Dante has other plans, I realize, as he goes around the bed, lowers himself between my legs, and leans onto the mattress. He winks at me, and I sink my teeth into my lower lips, arousal flowing through me.

He swipes the flat of his tongue on my inner thigh, and I quiver, letting out a moan.

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