Page 36 of Blue Blood

But he didn’t either. He simply stood there, painfully aloof.

A minute passed.

Then, two.

“Did an issue come up here…?” Ana ventured, at last, clasping her hands together stiffly. At his uncomprehending stare, she clarified, “With the Pittsburgh leaders or the strip club owners–after Jon's death.”

Gio's face darkened at the reminder of the man he had murdered, and he denied it. "There's been no–" he began to explain, but then a visible resolve set into his face.

It was like a crack had lodged in his cool demeanor, spreading emotion out like fractured shards until every muscle and every bone came alive and became focused on her. Determined, he stepped closer, watching to see if she would flee. But her feet held firm, chained by his unbending attention.

“There were no issues," Gio said roughly. "I came here–for you."

Her pale brown eyes went wide. “But…I was going to return on Monday.” Only two days away.

“Were you?” His suspicion chilled her.

“Of c-course. I just had to get through work, but I would’ve come back then.” As soon as she'd worked up the courage.

Gio searched her face intensely, assessing the sincerity of her words, before dipping his gaze to the base of her neck, where her pulse jumped with nerves. “I couldn’t take the risk.”

…of her escaping?

“Besides…I don’t trust the security here.” His eyes narrowed on the hallway where the staff had disappeared. “Before you left home, I inspected your car. But I could not allow you to travel back from here without the proper checks.”

Oh.

Warmth flushed through her, along with surprise. Gio hadn’t even said goodbye to her or acknowledged her in those last days before her trip. So knowing that he’d secretly checked on her safety threw her for a loop. She didn't know what to say to that. Pain and anger still stung her, but his gesture had thrown bittersweet joy into the mix, confusing her.

Ana did not respond for a long time, still silent and distant as she processed his statement. She looked out the window to see if he had brought his own driver, when Gio suddenly reached for her hand.

“Forgive me," he rasped, his large hand tightening around hers. "It was wrong…for me to let you leave like that.” His eyes were wild and dark at her silence, looking so tired, as if he hadn’t slept in days. “The house has been too empty.”

Ana’s lips parted. Gio looked so open and tender then, the way he did only when he spoke of his family. She never thought he would ever glance at her that way, not even for a second.

She felt something in her crack then. All the emotions she’d bottled deep inside over the last week, the hurt and sadness at their separation, seeped out of her. Drowning her. This whole time, she’d feared he did not care. That she alone had been swept up in the madness, foolishly carried away by the precious few affections they had shared. But seeing Gio now, staring at her with such painful vulnerability, it was clear that no matter what he felt–he was not immune. He looked like he’d lost as much sleep as she had in the past week.

He had come all the way here…to the place where his parents had been brutally murdered–for her.

Unable to keep up her guard any longer, Ana reached up to him and gently touched his jaw, rubbing the faint stubble there.

The muscle clenched under her touch.

Her lashes lowered to half-mast at the effect she had on him, and she swayed forward. Thrusting her fingers into his thick hair, Ana pulled him until their lips fused together.

Chapter 8

Muffled whimpers escaped from her.

Followed by a rough thump.

“Gio,” Ana cried out when he pressed exceptionally hard, pleasure licking through her core until she was trembling all over.

“Shh.”

The harsh command only made her clench tighter around his length.

He cursed viciously, dropping his head to the curve of her neck as he gathered himself, his breaths puffing against her skin. Beyond him, Ana stared blindly at the fireplace and portraits hanging above it in the lavish living room. She watched in a daze as the paintings visibly shook under the force of their movements.

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