Page 29 of His Wife

I’m pulled out of my reverie by Alexius’ voice. “It still amazes me, no matter how often I stare at this view.”

He’s standing at the farthest end of the terrace, hands in his pants pockets, and for me, he completes the breathtaking image of the Rome skyline. Majestic. Marvelous. Magnificent.

“Come on.” He turns and holds out his hand, beckoning me closer, but I’m frozen with slight apprehension.

“I…um. I don’t…”

He narrows his eyes at me. “Don’t tell me you’re afraid of heights.”

“Well,” I drag out the word, and my cheeks warm.

“You were just on a plane for nine hours.”

“I know. I’m not afraid of heights.” I pull my lips in a straight line, the heat in my cheeks burning hotter. “It’s, um…”

“Leandra, out with it.”

“It’s an edge thing,” I blurt. “Whenever I stand close to a ledge, I have this bone-numbing fear of falling over.”

He turns toward me, hands tucked back into his suit pants pockets. “Come here,” he orders. The collar of his white dress shirt is unbuttoned, a pair of Ray-Bans hiding those burning sapphire eyes, and like a stupid moth, I’m bewitched by the flame—a flame luring me to the literal ledge.

I step forward, but still again. “You standing there looking like a man who sinks his teeth into women like me daily might not be enough for me to walk all the way over there.”

“What if I tell you I’ll reward your courage?”

“With what?” I ask, the energy around us starting to crackle.

His lips spread into a sexy as fuck grin, and he starts unbuckling his belt just as Maximo walks out on the terrace, stopping in his tracks when he spots us. Alexius doesn’t even look his way when he says, “Get the fuck off the terrace, Maximo. Or better yet. Get the fuck out of the penthouse. Now.”

Without saying a word, Maximo backtracks and slides the glass doors closed.

I purse my lips at Alexius. “That was rude, don’t you think?”

“It was either that or letting him watch.” He pulls the belt from around his waist, the sound sending electricity up my spine.

“Letting him watch what?” I murmur, my breath already becoming labored.

“How I’m going to help you overcome your fear of standing on the edge.” Every word is laced with seduction, and I already know what he plans on doing. There’s no way I’ll be able to stop him. I don’t want to.

He starts walking toward me, the belt in his hand, and I can feel my pussy starting to throb in anticipation. I back up a few steps, and he notices, lifting a brow. “Don’t,” he warns. “Do not walk away from me.”

I freeze and watch him while holding my breath, and when he reaches me, I exhale gently, his closeness wrapping around me like it always does. He reaches out, slips the coat down my arms so it pools around my heeled boots on the ground, and I shudder as he runs the belt along my cheek.

“You’re so fucking beautiful, do you know that?” he murmurs before lowering his head to capture my lips in a searing kiss. My body responds to his touch like it’s been starving for it, my lips burning with the inferno he ignites with a simple sweep of his tongue. I offer no resistance while he captures my hands in his palms, easing them behind my back, looping his belt around my wrists, binding them together, cinching it tight. I arch my back, pressing my breasts into his chest just as he breaks the kiss, trailing his lips down my neck. “You are the only woman I want to fuck for the rest of my goddamn life.” My nipples harden in response, straining against the fabric of my blouse. My moan drifts from a breath, and I close my eyes as he reaches up and cups my breasts, gently squeezing and rolling them, slowly teasing me with waves of pleasure moving through my body. When he cups my sex, his hand brushing against the denim, I know I’m lost.

Slipping his hand out from between my legs, he slides it up my waist and around my middle, his chest now flush against my back. “Open your eyes, stray.”

I open them and gasp, staring out over the Rome skyline, my heart beating in my throat. I didn’t even realize we were moving, that he was slowly guiding me to the half-wall barrier surrounding the terrace. The air smells like looming rain, a storm headed toward us far in the distance. I can hear the bustle of people, the noise of engines, the city of Rome alive below us.

Through the heat in my core and the ache between my legs, fear starts to curl inside my gut. “Alexius—”

He yanks the belt tied around my wrists. “You are a Del Rossa, Leandra. You have the entire world at your feet, and there is nothing you need to fear. Not while I’m the twisted son of a bitch who will cut out the hearts of those who hurt you and lay them at your feet.”

The promise that echoes from his words makes me shiver. It gives me a sense of power, confidence, knowing he’d be a brutal savage if I needed him to.

My pulse races, a cold breeze whips through my hair, and while I stare out in front of me, the view clear and far, I know he's the cause of my rapidly beating heart. Not fear. Him.

“There are three things I’d like to address right now.” He presses closer to me, his hard chest rippling against my back as his hand slithers up under my blouse, sparks dancing from my skin to his palms, fingers teasing along the waistband of my jeans. I shiver, electric currents surging through my nerves, down my arms, and up my legs to ignite a spark in my stomach where it grows into a flicker…a flame…until I feel like I’m going to explode. That’s what a simple touch from this man can do to me, my sex throbbing with a need to be stroked and teased.

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