Page 79 of Mafia Toy

“Is that a problem?” he asked, moving closer.

I stared into his eyes for a long time and moved closer to him. My heart was racing, pounding against my chest so loudly that I could almost hear it in my ears. His lips were millimeters from mine.

“Are you going to answer me, princess?” he murmured.

“No,” I whispered. “It’s … it’s not a problem.”

“Good,” he said, brushing a thumb down the center of my lips. “Because I wouldn’t stop even if it was a problem for you.” He paused for a moment, gaze searching my eyes and then dropping to my lips. “You belong to me.”

And then he crashed his lips onto mine.

46

sage

On our flightback to the States, Laila and Constantino sat together, both working on their laptops. I brushed my drawing pen across my tablet and hummed softly to myself, desperately wanting to draw Constantino, but not in front of him.

I had never been kissed the way he had kissed me in bed last night in such a long time. Even my ex-boyfriend—who, honestly, I was surprised hadn’t reached back out to me since I’d broken it off with him—hadn’t kissed me like that. Ever.

Instead of drawing Constantino or Laila, I drew Riccardo with a funny nose and a cookie in his mouth. He would get a kick out of it … or maybe not, but I didn’t care. He was too easy to piss off that it was sorta, kinda funny.

“What are you up to?” Laila asked, tilting her laptop down to look over it at me.

Turning the tablet in her direction, I showed her the drawing. She stifled a giggle and glanced over at the guards, who all sat together. I didn’t know what their problem was, but they were serious all the time, never smiling once.

“I’m working on an outline for the auction,” Laila said with a genuine smile.

Warmth spread through my chest at her smile. She was actually going to go through with it, making plans and writing out all her ideas. It made me so freaking excited for her. She had told me she had wanted to do this since she had met Constantino.

But Bethany was the reason she hadn’t planned anything.

And now, after we had talked, that had changed. I hoped that I had given her the confidence to do what she loved from now on, but I still feared that as soon as Bethany found out, she would put Laila down and force her to stop.

Laila would tell us that Bethany didn’t have anything to do with her decision, but Constantino and I would know better.

I needed to figure out a way to get rid of Bethany for good because if Laila wanted me to stay with them far past the contract length of a year … I didn’t know if I would be able to deal with Bethany for the rest of my life.

Though … I really did want to stay with them.

Sure, I hadn’t spent more than a month with them, but I …

I think I love them.

After swallowing hard, I shook my head and returned to my drawing.Stupid, Sage. Stop it.

They couldn’t feel the same way about me. They were married to each other and had a happy life together. But that kiss last night with Constantino and spending this week with Laila without her best friend …

It had been the happiest week of my life.

The only way I could think of possibly getting Laila to finally dump Bethany was to—

No.

I pressed my lips together and scolded myself for even beginning to thinkthat.

That I needed to use Laila’s desires against her. That was dark as hell and such a betrayal. I couldn’t allow myself to betray her trust like that. I couldn’t allow myself to … to think about helping her have a family with Constantino just so she would have to choose between us and Bethany.

Her fingers whizzed across her keyboard, a gentle smile painted on her pink lips.

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