Page 18 of Made to Sin

“I don’t believe a man can be friends with a woman without anything going on between them.”

“She’s been a family friend for years. If I wanted to date her, I already would have.”

I shrugged, not convinced. “I’m just saying. Feelings can change in a blink of an eye, Luciano. But I wouldn’t expect you to understand, considering you have none.”

“How about you stay quiet, yeah? Don’t make assumptionswhen you know nothing.”

“And if I want to?” I challenged, raising a defiant brow.

He released an amused breath and ran a gaze down my nearly naked form again. “That’s a question we both know you don’t want the answer to, Katarina. Watch how you talk about her.”

He was right. I didn’t necessarily want to know what he would do when provoked, but the condescending attitude made me want to prove him wrong.

“If you came here to lecture me on how I should speak about yourgirlfriend, feel free to leave.”

I wasn’t sure if it was my emphasis on the word “girlfriend” or the blatant dismissal, but, within a blink of an eye, he had me pressed up against the freshly closed door.

With one hand around my throat, the other one laying flat on the wall beside my head, he emphasized, “Let me remind you that you are speaking to a don, Katarina.”

I rolled my eyes at the power play but discreetly shivered at the hot Italian spew fanning my neck. “What? Is she not a girl and your friend? Girlfriend.”

He decided he had enough of my attitude, tightening his hand so my airway was partially limited. “You sure like to talk for someone with nothing new to say.”

Rather than fear, the feeling of wearing his hand like a choker sent a budding stem of need through my veins. He could burst my windpipe in seconds if he wanted, yet my body anticipated pleasure.

“This,” I gestured my hand to our conjoined bodies, “is getting old, don’t you think? You really need a new way to pick up women because this choking trick is not working.”

I was lying, using a similar phrase he said to me before. It worked just fine. If anything, I was positive women begged him to hold onto their throats.

“Shut up,” he snapped.

“Make me.”

My breathing labored as his thumb pressed harsher onto my neck. “Do you enjoy pissing people off? One day, you might just mess with the wrong person.”

“So you’re the right person to piss off?” I said through pants.

He drew small circles around my pulse. “Don’t get into fights you can’t win, sweetheart.”

His voice was coated in a sunken grate that caressed from my ear to my toes, evoking a twisted need. I should have been offended by him, but my body had other plans. From the way he was looking at me to how he was touching me, I couldn’t distinguish if the wetness between my legs was pool water or because of him.

“So, show me how I’ll lose,” I breathed.

The air tensed. My words acted as a reminder of how I was nearly naked and dripping wet against him. Every inch of his body against mine felt dirtier, every water bit screaming for more. I fell against the wall, revealing the desire I had for him.

Except he didn’t feel the same.

I watched the intense flames in his eyes dwindle as he roughly removed his hands and turned to leave my room. The only telltale sign of this encounter affecting him was the clenched fists by his side and the slight tremor in his back.

My stomach dropped at the abrupt switch, my body not understanding the change in demeanor. All sensualities grew cold as did my skin, freezing without his touch.

If I needed a reason to stay away from Luciano, this moment was the perfect example. My pride was bruised, and the boss gained more blackmail on me.

He was bad, bad news.

The slightly opened window brought in a new gust of wind and, albeit warm, it racked a shiver from my drenched body. If I didn’t dry up soon, I was going to catch a cold.

For the second time within the past four hours, I headed to the bath. I took extra long, not getting out until my skin waswrinkled and begging me to stop. The Benevetis had left by the time I finished, so I stayed in bed with a romance novel.

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