Page 52 of Vows of Betrayal

“If he's feeding you,” my grip tightened on her, “then he wants to fuck you. I don't care how old he is. Or how fucking nice he is.”

Francesca's back straightened, and she tried to pull out of my grasp—but I wouldn't let her. “Well, Stefan,” she narrowed her eyes, “he can want whatever he wants. But, no. I don't want to date a sixty year old man. Bernie has only ever been kind to me. He lets me use his cable and WiFi for free. And he could easily get a different renter in here who'd pay double what I am.”

I barked out a sarcastic laugh. “Because he wants to get into your panties, Chesca.” Fuck, that guy was pissing me off, and I'd never even met the asshole. But I would. As soon as I could make it down those fucking stairs.

“He's renting to me illegally, Stefan. And he knows I'll keep my mouth shut. That is why he keeps me around.”

I leaned in closer—much closer. And crushed my lips against hers. She opened immediately with a small mewl.

No fight left in her.

Not even a little.

Fuck.

The intensity with which she kissed me back made my cock so fucking hard. Her tongue searched out mine and I growled.

I fucking growled into her mouth and took over the kiss. She submitted to me beautifully. And I knew this was how she'd always be. Ready and willing for me to take over. And it excited the shit out of me.

“Okay, okay,” she breathed out, breaking our kiss. “You need to settle down and eat. You can't get upset like this. It's not good for you.”

It was difficult for me to catch my breath. I wanted to claim her.

Right here.

Right now.

But I also knew she was right. This wasn't good for me. I'd healed. But I still had a long way to go. And attempting to fuck Francesca would likely end in disaster. And that wasn't something I wanted.

No.

The first time I fucked Francesca—when I took her virginity—I wanted it to be perfect. Just like she was.

I wanted her to remember it for the rest of her life.

“Eat,” I said, still finding it difficult to catch my breath. “And if you mention that asshole's name to me one more time—”

She gave me a small smile, and then lightly kissed my lips. “Shh,” she said directly against my lips, “eat.”

We grabbed our plates and sat back. Francesca turned the TV on and found a channel that didn't suck too badly.

And then we ate.

In silence.

16

Stefan

“Voila!” Francesca exclaimed. Happily shooting her hands up into the air in celebration.

I leaned over and took a look at what she'd been working on most of the afternoon. Somehow, she'd made, drawn, and filled in three new pieces to complete the puzzle. Her homemade ones were still fairly obvious. But fuck if she didn't do an excellent job.

“Unbelievable. Where'd you learn how to draw like that?” I carefully touched the smooth top of one piece with my finger.

“Oh, careful. I still need to add some clear glue around them. So they don't get ruined right away.” She stood and crossed the floor to where her backpack sat. And yes, I stared at her ass as she bent over and picked it up. “I swiped some medical grade glue.” She grinned and headed back to the couch. She unzipped her backpack and riffled through it and pulled out a small bottle. A piece of paper peeked out and I pulled it out the rest of the way.

“Hey, don't,” she said, and tried to grab it back from me. I held her back with my arm while I read the letter.

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