Page 67 of Ruined By Capture

He responds by spreading me wider, his tongue venturing higher, circling my ass hole. The sensation is so new, so forbidden, that I nearly collapse. His thumb finds my clit at the same moment his tongue is still licking, and stars shoot in all directions behind my eyelids.

CHAPTER 23

Igrip the countertop, trying to steady my racing thoughts. The smell of fresh coffee fills the kitchen as I wait for the pot to finish brewing. My body still hums with satisfaction, muscles pleasantly sore from taking Melania against the shower wall not thirty minutes ago.

Cazzo.

The coffee machine beeps. I pour two mugs, adding a splash of cream to Melania's.

I hear the water shut off upstairs. She's finishing her second shower of the morning—necessary after I joined her in the first one. My cock stirs at the memory of her wet skin against the tiles, her gasps echoing off the bathroom walls as I took her.

"Focus," I mutter to myself, setting the mugs on the kitchen island.

I take a long sip of black coffee, letting the bitter heat burn away the fog in my brain.

I hear her footsteps on the stairs and straighten my shoulders. When she appears in the doorway, her hair is damp, cheeks flushed from the hot water. She's wearing another set of Lucrezia's clothes—dark jeans and a simple white t-shirt.

"Coffee's ready," I say.

I slide Melania's coffee across the counter, watching her closely. Something's different about her today. The haunted look from yesterday has morphed into something more determined. Her shoulders are squared, her movements more purposeful.

I won't mention it unless she wants to talk. Some demons need to be faced in silence.

"Thank you," she says, wrapping her hands around the mug.

She takes a sip, then looks up at me with those amber eyes that see too much.

"I've been thinking about my father," she says, tapping her fingers against the ceramic mug. "And I realized something. If Raymond kept such detailed records of their business, my father would have done the same."

I raise an eyebrow, waiting.

"My father has several safes in his office," she continues, her voice quickening with excitement. "He's opened all of them in front of me at some point, except for one." She suddenly smacks her palm against her forehead. "God, I'm so stupid!"

"You're many things,piccola. Stupid isn't one of them."

"No, you don't understand." Her eyes are bright now. "I never analysed him enough to question what he kept in there. I just accepted that some things weren't my business. But what if?—"

"What if that safe contains his version of Raymond's records," I finish for her.

"Exactly." She sets down her coffee. "If we could access that safe?—"

"Could your father have a crypto wallet as well?" I ask.

She considers it. "He's more old-school, prefers paper records. But..." she pauses, "it might also be on a USB. He wouldn't trust that something so important would exist only in one format."

I take another sip of coffee, studying Melania's face. She's got that look—the one where her mind is galloping ten steps ahead of her words. The wheels keep turning behind those tiger’s eyes.

"But?" I prompt, knowing there's more.

She sighs, twisting her mother's ring. "But I've hit a wall with Raymond's security. He uses levels I can't pass through. It's the government, right?" Her shoulders slump. "The files we've retrieved so far aren't enough to bring them down. We need more concrete evidence."

"The safe," I say, connecting the dots.

"Yes." She meets my gaze directly.

I set my mug down, my thumb outlining my bottom lip as I consider what she's really asking. "You want to reach Leonardo."

Her eyes widen slightly, surprised by my directness.

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