Page 51 of Of Grief And Gratitude

Romeo’s grin was feral as he leaned over my former date, and part of me found it fucking hot that he was defending my honor. His dark tone sent a chill down my spine, turning into a full-body shiver. “If you ever speak Riona’s name again, I will introduce you to my brother. He’s rather adept at removing tongues.”

Ben blanched, and I realized two other large men in black suits flanked our little group, their relation to Romeo unmistakable. Nobody in the café dared to look in our direction, everybody suddenly finding the front of the coffee shop fascinating as the bulky Neretti muscle surveyed the situation. It hit me how massive the Neretti reach was in the city if the family could walk into any establishment and run the place for their purpose.

Shaken, I watched as Romeo’s stormy expression vanished, replaced with a congenial smile as he reached down and pulled Ben to his feet, leaving him wobbling as he tried to gain his footing. Romeo removed a piece of lint from the grey suit jacket and patted Ben’s shoulder hard enough to knock him off balance again briefly. “Nice chatting with you, Ben. Have a good life while it lasts.”

He left Ben standing, mouth gaping open like a fish, and pivoted back to me, leaning his head to the side until his neck cracked audibly before he wrapped an arm around me and led me toward the exit. I barely had time to reach for my purse, snagging it at the last second, and couldn’t turn to look back at Ben through Romeo’s bulk.

One of the Neretti men, a man with a jagged red scar running down his jaw, held the door as Romeo pulled me through the entrance and into the pouring rain, coming to a stop at the curb where a blacked-out SUV waited on the street. The other man, slightly taller with a more military haircut, opened the rear door and took up position behind the steering wheel while Romeo ushered me into the back seat, buckling my seatbelt.

I couldn’t form words, and a part of me realized it was probably shock after witnessing Romeo threaten a man’s life. He settled in the seat next to me, buckling in and spreading his legs since they nearly bumped into the passenger seat in front of him. The vehicle pulled away from the curb, and I absently watched as the city blurred past the windows.

It wasn’t until we reached the underground parking lot in Romeo’s building and he pulled me from the SUV that I found my voice again. I twisted free of his grip and spat, “What the hell was that?”

“Not here, Riona.” His words brooked no argument as his fingers wrapped around my upper arm, dragging me to the elevator.

“Sir.”

Romeo paused when the scarred man spoke, looking over his shoulder and addressing his men curtly. “I can handle it from here.”

The suited men each nodded once and returned to the vehicle, the engine revving to life as Romeo tugged me into the elevator after him. He kept his bruising grip until we were inside his home, where he released me abruptly, making me stumble.

“What the hell?” I rubbed my arm, and his glare softened briefly. Without warning, he yanked on my coat sleeve and removed it, pulling the neck of my sweater down until I heard the fibers tear from the force. His fingers skimmed my upper arm where he’d held me.

“Not bruised,” he grunted, shrugging out of his damp suit jacket. He pointed to the black leather couch. “Sit.”

“Fuck no,” I snapped, crossing my arms over my chest indignantly. “Explain yourself. That was totally uncalled for!”

Romeo moved in front of my face before I could blink, his hand gripping my jaw and immobilizing my head, forcing me to look into his stormy eyes. “You’re right. What you did was uncalled for.”

I tried to speak, but he gripped harder, squeezing my cheeks until moving my mouth became uncomfortable. Anger flared, but fear crept in along with it. I wrapped my hands around his large forearm, uncertain whether I could pull him off me.

“Listen and listen well, Riona.” His voice was quiet thunder, a violent tornado wrapped in a spring rainstorm. “Don’t ever put yourself in that situation again. I never want to get a call from my father’s men telling me about my girlfriend’s infidelity. You’re fucking lucky they called me and not my father.”

“What?” I squeaked out, my eyes watering from the pressure on my jaw.

“Fuck, Riona. When I think what could have happened….” Romeo’s entire body shook. “He could have ordered your death to avoid the family looking weak.”

The gravity of the situation sunk in slowly as I searched Romeo’s face, realizing that what I’d mistaken for anger was terror. He’d been afraid for my life. A tear fell free, touching his fingertips and snapping him out of his intense focus. Brushing it away, he pulled me to him in a hug that stole my breath.

“Promise me,” he said raggedly, fingers spearing through the braid at the back of my head and holding me tightly against his chest.

“I promise,” I whispered against his white dress shirt, my tears dampening the expensive fabric as I wrapped my arms around his waist. “I’m sorry.”

His chin brushed the top of my hair as he shook his head. “I’m not mad at you.”

“I know.”

Romeo used the hand in my hair to tip my face up, and his lips crashed down on mine, desperate and searching. My mouth opened with a gasp, and his tongue thrust inside, tasting and exploring me as I met each motion with mine. He picked me up, and I wrapped my legs around his waist, kicking my flats off while he carried me to his bed, lips still locked on mine.

My back hit his mattress, the silky black covers cool under my body. He didn’t even wait for me to settle before he was sitting me up and tearing at my clothing, whisking my sweater and camisole over my head and burying his face between my breasts, planting open-mouthed kisses over the swells as his hands deftly opened the clasp of my white lace bra. He flung it wherever my tops had landed and pressed me to the bed with a large palm on my chest, leaving me panting as he unfastened my jeans and gripped both pants and underwear, roughly pulling them off my legs.

“Spread for me, mia fiamma,” he demanded. My knees dropped to the side as he tore his suit off and knelt naked between my thighs, his cock hard and bouncing with his heartbeat. “Tell me you’re clean and on birth control.”

“Yes,” I squealed as he descended, mouth sucking and lapping at my center.

“I’m clean,” he grunted, swiping two fingers through the wetness waiting for him and thrusting them into my pussy.

My hips bucked as he stroked against my top wall, tongue flicking my clit rhythmically until I begged him for my release. “Romeo. More. I’m so close.”

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