Page 24 of Satisfying the King

Oh.

My.

Gosh.

His words floated around and surrounded my heart—and squeezed it so tight I found it hard to breathe.

“I’m keeping you, Giselle. You’re mine. Anywhere you go—” his head bent to mine, “I go, too. No more talk of dying. Fuck.” He kissed me and I kissed him back. I let my hand rub his thick, strong arm and savor this moment—and file it away in my memory. I’d pull it out on the bad days. The bad days that I knew would soon return.

Too soon.

On those days, I’d close my eyes and remember trotting over Carlo’s gigantic estate on a beautiful horse.

Feeling free.

And taken care of.

Yes.

I’d remember the most perfect moments from our trip here.

But right now, I was going to enjoy it while I could.

When he let me go, he grabbed a plate and dragged the plastic off the top. It was prosciutto wrapped around melon slices and cheese. Carlo held it up to my mouth and I took a big bite. “Mmm, so good,” I mumbled out and chewed. The sweet, fresh melon burst into my mouth. The salty, cured ham made for the perfect combination.

Carlo popped what was left of that piece into his mouth. “Good, right?”

I nodded and kept chewing.

“It’s the perfect pairing of flavors. Much like us.” He swallowed and picked up another piece. “I’m the dry, cured meat, and you’re the juicy, sweet center.”

That made me giggle. “I didn’t know you could be this cheesy.”

He smiled and held another slice up to my mouth. “We’ll save one for Daniella. I bet she’ll love this.”

A warm, silky feeling glided all over my skin. Even though nothing was touching it.

“That’s kind of you to think of her,” I said and finished chewing.

Carlo used his thumb and wiped a trickle of juice that had escaped my lips. “Why are you thanking me for thinking about Dani?” His voice held a jagged tone to it.

“Because,” I stared into his eyes, “she’s not your kid.” Okay, maybe I was a little blunt. It was the truth, though. And I’d meant it as something nice.

Now that I replayed it over in my head—I decided it was probably the wrong thing to say to Carlo.

“I love her like she’s my own. And that kid claimed me the first time she saw me at Nick and Eve’s wedding.” He pointed out.

And then I felt like crap.

Because that wasn’t quite the truth.

“Umm,” I said, my eyes falling down to the picnic blanket.

“What?” His fingers grasped my chin and lifted it up. His worried gaze made my heart break.

“That wasn’t the first time she saw you,” I finally admitted to him after all these months. My stomach twisted and turned.

His head tilted and stared at me without blinking. I watched his Adam’s apple bob as he swallowed. “What are you talking about? When was the first time she saw me?” His eyes narrowed, and I prepared myself for how he was going to react to what I’d say next.

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