by Vivian Wood
Consoling me, as it were. And to my surprise, it works a little. That, or I just expend all my energy here on this bench, clutching his jacket and sobbing.
When I’m done, I am beyond spent. And Luca seems to know it somehow.
He helps me up off the bench and guides me out of the cemetery, putting me in the passenger seat of his car. Then he drives me back to his house and takes me to my bed.
I curl into a ball on my bed, exhausted. And Luca stays with me, rubbing my back lightly until I fall asleep.
28
Luca
I am wondering, at this precise moment in time, what it would be like to keep Cate. I’ve been thinking about it for a couple of days. But right now I’m looking at her while she makes coffee in my kitchen, wearing a set of snowflake-patterned pajamas and a forlorn expression on her face. She puts her arms on the counter and leans down, watching the coffee drip.
She is sexy, yes. And pretty easy to be around when she finally runs out of smart remarks. But seeing how she handled my parents the other night… how they basically loved her and paid almost zero attention to me… that was such a relief that I am now wondering how I could keep her around.
And seeing her break down at the cemetery… there was a sad sort of magic there in the air. She was vulnerable and raw, I was silent and supportive…
It was kind of odd but also kind of impressive that we were both so fucking adult about everything. It gave me a glimpse into what we could be if we were actually a thing.
So yeah, I want to explore that feeling. And I think it will take longer than the five days we have left before Madisyn’s wedding.
I mean, what I assume is Madisyn’s wedding… I haven’t exactly checked up on her or anything. Frankly, I would pull out of going altogether, but I don’t want to upset the delicate balance Cate and I seem to have just now.
I look at her, pouring steaming coffee into two mugs and adding a splash of cream to each.
I don’t want to pay Cate for additional time…. I don’t want that sort of arrangement. Just… I don’t know. It would be nice if she were just to want to stick around. I would just have to convince her that we — me and her — are worth sticking around for.
What would happen if I told my lawyer not to file the annulment paperwork? Or not yet, at least.
She turns and slides one of the mugs of coffee to me. “Here.”
I take the coffee, watching her as I take a sip. It’s burning hot but creamy and delicious. Smiling, I take another sip.
“Thanks.”
Cate looks at me, her gaze calculating. “I’d like to take you to a place.”
Setting my mug down, I wrinkle my forehead. I tease her. “You’re going to have to be more specific before I’ll agree to it. You could be planning to take me to the industrial part of downtown where you’ll drug me and steal my kidneys.”
She rolls her eyes. “Luca, seriously.”
My lips lift. “I seriously like having both my kidneys, Cate.”
She snorts. “You are impossible.”
When she picks her coffee mug up like she’s going to leave the kitchen, I snake my hand around her waist. “Wait, wait. Tell me more about where you want us to go.”
A mischievous look settles on her elfin face. “Nope. I’m not going to tell you anything. I want to give you the address and have you drive there first.”
I pretend to think about it. “Hmm. What will you give me in exchange for this huge amount of trust you’re asking of me?”
Her lips quirk. She sets down her mug and pushes up onto her tiptoes, brushing her lips across mine. “I don’t know. What did you have in mind?”
I kiss her neck and she giggles. Cupping her breasts through their brightly-colored flannel covering, I whisper in her ear. “I bet I can make you beg me to fuck you.”
She rolls her eyes and grins. “I don’t know about that.”
Kissing her again, I release her. “We’ll just see about that. One mystery trip will cost you one hour with me, doing whatever I want.”
She bites her lip, a salacious grin on her face. “That sounds fair. It’s a deal. Get dressed and meet me at the car in ten minutes.”
I drink my coffee as I put on a clean white t-shirt, dark blue jeans, and my leather jacket. What sort of place is Cate taking me to? I honestly can’t imagine.
On the ride there, I try to guess.
“Is it a motorcycle sales place?” I ask.
Cate slides me a look. “It’s definitely not that.”
“Hmm.” I purse my lips. “The other day, you showed me a video of a celebrity whose husband brought a sloth into her bedroom just because she loves sloths.”
She wrinkles her nose. “So?”
“So are you taking me to a secret sloth sanctuary or something?”
She rolls her eyes. “No, definitely not. And by the way, her husband only got her the sloth experience because he knew how much she loved them. And because her crying at seeing the sloth was so adorable. Somehow, I don’t think you feel the same way about sloths.”
I shake my head. “No, I don’t.”
She sighs heavily. “I think you’re getting the wrong idea about this place anyway. It’s more of a… mmm… a thing that revolves around me. I’m just taking you with me because I want you to see what I’m going to spend your annulment money on.”
I raise my eyebrows. “Wait, really?”
She looks out the window, her expression unreadable. “Yep.”
I turn that over in my head for a bit. We start to go through a neighborhood that I know for some reason. Large brick houses that have mostly seen better days. I squint and I try to remember why I know the address Cate gave me.
Then we pull up outside the house she lived in with her parents. I turn off the engine, trying to understand why we’re here.
She turns to me, excitement on her face. “It’s stayed the same, don’t you think?”
I lean down and look at the house. It’s actually in worse repair than I remember it being in. The gutters are overflowing with leaves, the concrete path leading to the dingy front door has several breaks in it.
“Do you not own this anymore?” I ask, slowly piecing things together.
Cate shakes her head. “No. My grandmother had to sell it when my parents passed away.” She looks at the house longingly. “But look.” She takes a worn piece of paper out of her purse, unfolding it and smoothing it out. I look at it carefully and see that it’s a real estate listing for the house. “It’s for sale!”
I give her a puzzled look. “Why are you showing me this place?”
“Because I want you to know what I am planning on spending the ten thousand dollars on. That money, plus my own money that I’ve saved… they’ll go into buying this place.” She scrunches up her face. “Well, once I earn a little more money. I think I’m about ten thousand short but I’ll earn that pretty quickly working at the bar.”
Of all the things I thought she might show me, her escape route from this marriage wasn’t one of them. I’m silent for a few beats. My eyes scan her face and she frowns.
“I thought you were going to be more supportive about this.”
I lift a brow. “About you buying a crumbling property that I have nothing to do with?”
She glances out her window, biting her lip. “I wouldn’t call it crumbling.”
I sigh sharply. “The house is in obvious disrepair, Cate. I hope you didn’t tell me about it as a way to tell me that I should buy it. Because aside from you having an emotional attachment to it, the house might as well be razed.”
“First off, I was not trying to get you to buy it. I don’t know where you came up with that idea. And why are you being so mean right now?”
I shrug, feeling out of my depth here. “You say I’m being mean, I say I’m being a realist. This place is barely standing up, Cate.”
“It is not!” She hits my arm.
I look at her, my expression stony. “Are you saying that you’r
e ready to move out?”
She looks taken aback by that. Cate shakes her head. “No. I mean, I’ll move out when you want me out. Or when our annulment comes through, whichever comes first.”
I take a deep breath, looking at the house again. “Is that it? We push forward and get the annulment so that you can move out?”
She stares at me, a little stunned. “I didn’t realize that there were any other options, Luca.”
My forehead wrinkles. “There are, though. I mean… there should be, at least.” I glance straight ahead, my hands coming up to the wheel. “I care about you, Cate.”
I just thrust the statement out into existence, my stomach twisting. It’s how I feel, yes. But I don’t know about how Cate feels so there is every probability that she’s going to be appalled.
“What does that mean, exactly?” she asks softly. She touches my arm, drawing my gaze.
I look at her, my stare intensifying. “I don’t know,” I admit, my voice a low rumble. “But I think you feel it too. That this could be something, if we just let it grow a little.”
She blushes but she doesn’t look away. “I care for you too, Luca. It’s just…” She pauses, a muscle twitching in her cheek. She swallows. “I know I’m not very good at talking about how I feel. But that doesn’t mean I don’t feel anything.”
She lowers her gaze, her hand falling away from my arm. I shift toward her, cupping her face and turning her gaze back to me. She looks at me, brows furrowed, her teeth biting into her lower lip.
Ever so slowly, I brush my kiss across her lips. Her eyes sink closed as she opens her mouth against mine. She tastes amazing, her vanilla cinnamon flavor bursting across my tongue. I need more of it. My hand slips around her waist as I pull her close.
I always need more when it comes to Cate. More of her drugging kisses, more of her quiet moans. More of her soft body burrowed against mine as we rest, my arms shielding her or caging her, I don’t know which.
She’s the first to pull back, her pupils dilated, her breathing ragged. “Take me to your bed, Luca.”
I nod, frowning. “We’re not done with this conversation though, are we?”
She bites her lip, hard white against soft, plush pink. “Not unless you want to be done.”
Smiling stiffly, I start the car and throw it into drive. All the way home, I turn over the words she said to me.
I care for you too, Luca.
Is that enough for us to take a chance on?
I don’t know, but I’ll be darned if I don’t want to find out.
29
Cate
I want him, I think. I want him bad.
I miss a step somehow, tripping and dropping half the towels, sprawling towards him. He reaches out to keep me from falling, grabbing me by the shoulders.
“Ooh!” I say, my breath coming out in a whoosh.
“Easy,” he says, steadying me. I shiver again as I stand up straight, and he looks at me with a very serious expression. “We should get you out of these wet clothes.”
I let my head fall back, looking up at him. He stares down at me, bringing his hand up to push back a couple of pieces of hair that are plastered to my forehead.
I don’t dare to breathe. I don’t dare to speak. I’m frozen under his beautiful green gaze, waiting for him to make a move.
Luca cups my cheek, running his thumb roughly along the outline of my lips. He bites his bottom lip; for the first time since I’ve met him, I know without a doubt what he is thinking.
He wants me.
Suddenly I push up onto my tiptoes, bringing my lips a fraction of an inch from his. I gaze into his eyes, asking him a wordless question. Is it worth it?
Almost begging. His gaze flickers down to my lips. I can feel his breath against my mouth, his warm breath fanning across my skin.
Then he closes the distance, his expressive eyes closing. His mouth presses against mine, warm and soft. He kisses me with no trace of the hesitation he must feel. No, his kiss is hard and dominant and full of passion reawakened.
He slides up a hand around me, pulling me the last step toward him, my soft body hitting his hardened frame. My hands come up to his chest, clutching his shirt.
His free hand begins unzipping the hoodie, peeling it off along with my cardigan. I shiver, from nerves and from being cold, and he senses it.
Without a word, he sweeps me off of my feet, carrying me up the stairs to my bedroom. I wrap my arms around his neck, feeling so small and delicate in his grasp.
He automatically goes to the master bedroom, which is the same one I use. Inside, the room is very girly. The bed is made of cedar wood, four posters with white lace curtains and an ivory coverlet.
But he ignores the bed, heading to the en suite bathroom. With only its clawfoot tub, I don’t see what he wants with the bathroom, but he carries me over to the tub anyway.
Luca sets me down, turning on the taps. Then he proceeds to undress me, pulling at the strings of my wrap dress. I step out of my shoes and help him with my dress; soon it falls to the floor, and I am left shivering in my matching white lace bra and panties.
The steam starts to fill the room, its heat very welcome. Luca kneels to take off his Converse, then looks up at me.
“I’ve imagined this a hundred times,” he admits, his voice thick with emotion. “I’ve thought of a thousand different scenarios, different positions. Imagined which ones would give you the most pleasure.”
I shiver again, but this time it’s not from the cold. I bite my lip, afraid that if I speak, I will break the spell.
“You know what I want, more than anything right now?” he says, reaching out and caressing my hip.
“What?” I say, my voice barely more than a whisper.
“Take off your bra and panties, and sit on the side of the tub for me.”
I turn bright pink, but I know I have to do it. I slowly take off my bra, exposing my breasts to him, my pink nipples pebbling in the steamy air. I see him suck in a breath and then bite his lip. It’s so sexy when he does that, I don’t think that it’s fair.
I’m aware of my pounding heart as I shimmy out of my panties, leaving me completely naked. Vulnerable.
“Sit,” he commands, his eyes roving over my naked skin. He may be kneeling still, but his order leaves no doubt of who is in charge here.
I step backwards and sit on the ledge, overwhelmed with self-doubt. Here I am, completely naked, and he’s still fully dressed. What if I don’t live up to his fantasy?
Luca moves forward, reaching up to tug my mouth down to his. I bury my fingers in his short, dark hair as he invades my mouth, our tongues dancing together.
I feel his hands on my knees, pushing them open wide. I resist at first, until he stops for a second and murmurs, “Relax, Cate”. I let him part my knees, baring my pussy.
I expect him to go right for it, but he doesn’t. Instead he moves closer, kissing my jaw, my neck, my shoulder. I run my hands along his strong shoulders, feeling the muscles in his upper back as they move.
He kisses my right breast, cupping my bare flesh and closing his lips over my nipple. I throw my head back and groan as he sucks and licks at it, using his teeth to draw my nipple to a hardened point.
“Fuck,” I gasp, beginning to writhe against him. I feel my pussy growing wet, and I am just brazen enough to press my mound against his chest.
He releases my breast from his mouth with a loud pop, kissing his way down to the top of my mound. I hazily hear a voice in the back of my head saying that Luca is really here, in this bathroom, and he’s about to eat my pussy. Is this real?
I push the voice aside as Luca runs the tip of his tongue up and down my slit, teasing me. “Luca…” I implore. “Please.”
He kisses my thigh instead. “Please what?”
“Just… please,” I say, scooting forward an inch. “I’ve already waited for what feels like forever. Don’t make me wait any longer.”
He considers me idly, kissing my inner
thigh a bit more. When he withdraws, I can’t help it.
“Luca!” I whine.
But he surprises me again by pulling me by the hand toward the bedroom. “We need more space,” he says simply.
I head toward the bed, and he lets me go. I sit down again,
He starts to strip, first his clingy dark shirt, showing off his pecs and biceps and abs in a stunning display. Then his black jeans, his legs long but powerful, each nearly the size of my body. Soon he’s left wearing only black boxer briefs…
And I might be drooling a bit. Luca moves toward me, as sinuous and powerful as a jungle cat. I move back on the bed, but he grabs me by the ankle.
“Stay,” he orders.
My eyes go wide; he can give me commands anytime, I swear. He climbs on the bed and lays beside me, his eyes burning like twin firebrands. I roll onto my side, using my knee to try to hide my nudity a little, but he won’t have it.
“Uh uh,” he says, pushing my knee back. “There’s no reason to hide from me. You are gorgeous, every inch of you.”
I flush, nodding a little. He trails his hand from my collarbone to my breast, and down to my hip, giving it a squeeze.
“You’re so fucking pretty, Cate,” he tells me, meeting my eyes. “You drive me crazy, almost every day, just by being yourself. I can hardly stand it.”
I don’t respond right away. I wouldn’t even know how to begin answering that kind of compliment. Finally, I manage, “I feel that way about you, too.”
Luca isn’t listening, though. Instead, he pushes himself onto his knees, bending down to kiss my collarbone, the top of my breast. He kisses my nipple, then sucks the nipple into his mouth. His mouth is so hot and wet, and my hips raise of their own accord.
My mouth opens, a mewling cry coming out. He laves my nipple with his tongue, then releases it. I make a disappointed noise, but Luca has other concerns. He kisses his way down to my navel, pushing my knees apart to make room for himself.
He pushes me up the bed as far as possible, then finds a comfortable spot between my legs. He pushes one knee up, trailing kisses along the inner thigh.