Page 73 of Valentine's Slave

I smile, and warmth spreads through me. “What does your uncle think about me?”

Valentino chuckles. “I refused to speak to him for the first week. But I couldn’t get you out of my head, and finally, I wrote down how I felt about you in a journal he gave me. It helped me see things more clearly, and then I called him. He told me I had a choice to make. I could either follow my old habits and stay where I had always been, or I could follow my heart and go where I had never been. That was when I understood that I’ve never truly been in love.”

“But you were married,” I say.

Valentino looks at me with passion in his eyes. “While I felt intensely for Emelia, it was an immature, boyish feeling that knew nothing of sacrifice or discipline or bettering one's self for the sake of the relationship. It was a rocky, turbulent kind of high that we both chased and clashed over, which was why we had so many problems. But with you . . .” He pauses as he strokes my hair behind my ear. “With you, I want to be a better man. The sex is out of this world, but beyond that, you inspire me to have better values, to fight for what I believe.”

I’m bursting inside.

“Today, I waited outside of your sister’s place for Malcolm to come home from school,” Valentino says. “I stopped him on his way in, and I explained that I had a mission to win his aunt’s heart back, and I needed his help. I told him there was a remote-controlled toy that would get her attention, and I showed him a photo of the remote to your special panties.”

My mouth falls open. “You did not get my nephew to bring you the remote to your sex toy!”

Valentino chuckles. “I never said I was perfect. I didn’t tell him it was for the panties, though. When you headed out for yourdate, I followed you at a distance. You’re gorgeous, by the way. I had to resist grabbing you off the bus and kissing you right then and there.”

I can’t stop smiling. “But why the unknown number?” I asked.

“I didn’t know how you were feeling about us,” Valentino says, and the wordusawakens butterflies in my stomach. “I wasn’t sure if you would read any of my messages.”

“Well, you gave yourself away pretty quick with the master talk,” I reason.

Valentino shoots me a smirk, and with that, my panties start vibrating again.

“Hey!” I swat at his hand.

He holds them both up above the table. “Don't blame me.”

“Liar.”

The waiter comes by to ask what we want. Valentino orders a non-alcoholic beer, and as I ask for what flavours of Schweppes they have, little pulses blast against my pussy, and I punch Valentino under the table.

“I’ll have—lemon,” I say as another jolt of pleasure goes through me.

As soon as the waiter leaves, I turn to give Valentino a real punch, but he attacks me first, leaning in, devouring my lips with his.

All the air whooshes out of my lungs, and I moan against him. His tongue finds mine, and he takes my face between his hands. My heart is hammering against my chest, and my pussy gets even wetter, no vibrator required.

When he pulls back, I feel like I’m in a haze.

“I want to kiss you forever,” Valentino says, eyes sparkling. “I want to take you out on dates forever.” He leans in, running his lips over my neck. “I want to fuck you forever.”

I can’t speak. Tears fill my eyes all over again, and my chest begins to heave.

“I want to marry you, Ava,” he says. “But first, I want to date you.” He looks deep into my eyes. “Will you be mine?”

My tears spill over. I can’t help it, and I nod, half sobbing. “Yes.”

Valentino crushes me to his chest. The hug warms me to my core, and then he pulls back and kisses me deep and slow, his hands roving down to my waist. I want to feel him everywhere. I want to lose myself in him because I’ll never lose him again.

And then, his phone rings.

“Give me one second, love,” he says, and a thrill goes through me at the new name. He picks up his phone and puts it on speaker. “Hey there, wingman.”

“Did it work?” I hear Malcolm’s voice, and my tears fall even harder. Hailey and Malcolm and I don’t need a man to protect us, and many boys have grown up just fine without fathers, but I want to give Malcolm everything possible. I want Valentino to be a role model and mentor for him.

“It definitely worked, thanks to my right-hand man,” Valentino says. “She said 'yes'.”

I hear Malcolm’s voice. “Scoreeeee! Can I tell Mom?”

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