“Angelo, I’m already involved,” I remind him. “I work here, remember?”
“No, I mean in my personal life,” he clarifies.
A sharp stabbing pain penetrates my heart. “Why?”
He looks at me through his lashes. “The night I took you to Don Bellini’s house, it was supposed to be safe. But the Fuccillos arrived, knowing his place would be heavily guarded. Something’s amiss and until I figure out what, I’m afraid of what could happen to you.”
Trepidation seeps through my skin. “Are you telling me to leave? Or that you don’t want me?”
“No, angel,” he says, cupping a hand against my cheek. “Right now, you’re everything I want. You have no idea how much I want you. But do you have any clue how scared I was that night?”
A nervous giggle races up my throat and escapes before I can repress it. “Yeah, it scared me too.”
“I could have lost you.” As his eyes slide closed, his hand falls from my cheek.
“But you didn’t. I’m still here.”
His eyes open and sorrow emanates from them. “I can’t imagine my life without you in it. But I can’t put you in danger like that again. My life is full of danger, Eva. And it’s only a matter of time before I lose you completely.”
My hands slip from behind his neck to cup around his face. “Remember John? Remember what he did to me? I’m still wearing the bruise.”
He opens his mouth to respond but I don’t allow him to.
“I’ve lived in danger for my entire life, Angelo. One day, I’ll tell you everything about my past. I know being with you could mean the end of my life, but I’d rather spend those few precious days with you than without you. Every day, I live in fear that the monsters from my past will find me. If they do, I’m good as dead, but I have you to protect me.”
A rogue tear slips down my cheek, and he uses his thumb to wipe it away.
“I’ll always protect you,” he whispers.
Even though it sits perfectly on his shirt, I address the knot of his scarlet tie. “How can you if you push me away?”
One corner of his mouth curves and he says something in Italian before switching back to English. “How about you tell me who I’m protecting you from?”
“You really want to do this now?”
As he rests his forehead against mine, his eyes slide closed. “How dangerous are they?”
“If I’m alone, God knows what they’d do to me, and I’d rather not find out. But if I have my hero with me, they’d never touch me.”
One corner of his mouth hitches up and he chuckles.
“Fine, I’ll be your hero,” he says, sliding the tip of his nose down the length of mine.
My eyes flutter closed and the hummingbird beats her wings. The warmth of his lips rests against mine and in that moment, I lose myself completely to him. His lips part, allowing his feather-light tongue to trace the line of my lips. I part them, allowing him to seek my tongue. Another jolt of electricity amplifies my senses when he finds it. I can taste the whiskey he recently drank and I find it excites me further.
He groans into my mouth and winds his arms around my waist, pulling me closer, and yet not close enough. There’s still air between us, and it needs to disappear. One of my hands clutches his neck tighter and my fingers tangle in his hair, holding his mouth captive against mine, while the other hand grips his shoulder like a vice.
I didn’t think it was possible to love him more than I did, but my love grows with each passing second. One of his hands slides up my back, threading his fingers in my hair, deepening our kiss, and I release a quiet moan.
He pulls back and my eyes flicker open. The love and desire he has for me emanates from his eyes. My lips curve into a wide smile and a giggle emerges.
For months, I’ve dreamed of this moment, yet nothing I conjured up compares to the real thing. My imagination doesn’t do him justice, not by a long shot.
I nuzzle his nose with the tip of mine before leaning in for another kiss. My tongue eagerly searches for his. Nothing else matters. Not my past. Not the future. Just him and me, here and now.
“I love you,” I mumble into his mouth.
I feel heat rise to my cheeks when I realize what words spilled out. My eyes spring open as I pull back, terrified of his reaction. A smile laces his lips and his eyebrows raise briefly.
“I wasn’t expecting to hear that,” he says, causing my cheeks to burn. “But I’m glad I did. I love you too.”
He pulls me into another kiss, but then the music from the club blasts into the room for a second before silencing again.
“Are you two planning on spending the whole night in here?” Mario asks.
Heat rises to my cheeks and I pull back, only to bury my face into Angelo’s neck.
He chuckles. “Thanks, Mario. No, we’ll be out in a bit.”
The music floods the room again and fades out.
He nuzzles into my hair and presses his lips to my head. “You can come out now. He’s gone.”
“Well, that was embarrassing,” I say as I lean back.
He shrugs. “He’s seen worse.”
I arch one eyebrow, and he laughs at me.
“Nothing like that. As much as I want to spend the whole evening in here with you, we should probably go out there,” he says, gesturing to the door with his head.
A content sigh slips past my lips.
“Okay,” I say and back up for him to stand tall.
He gathers my hand in his, lacing our fingers together, and leads us towards the door.
“Wait,” he says, releasing my hand, only to hook his arm around my waist and twirl me to face him.
He leans me back against the door, pressing his body against mine. With gentle fingertips, he tilts my head up and leans in for another kiss. My knees buckle and if it wasn’t for his strong arm around me, I’m sure I would collapse.
This kiss is different somehow. Hungrier. Like he can’t get enough of my lips. As he leans away, I witness the passion dwelling in his eyes. Passion that matches mine. The hummingbird continues to beat her wings and I pant for breath.
One side of his mouth curves as he raises his eyebrows briefly. “I think we should leave before I do something else,” he murmurs.
I can’t abate the rising glow in my cheeks, nor the curve of my lips.
He gathers my hand and leads me back to the table.
Alice greets me with wide eyes and an equally wide smile.
“So?” she asks the moment I slide onto the sofa beside her.
I glance around for Angelo and find him standing with Mario beside the table. I’m not about to talk to Alice about what just transpired in the office while the guys are standing there. Having Mario walk in on our moment was humiliating enough.
“Later,” I mutter, jerking my head towards them.
“Ange, I don’t know about you, but I could use a drink,” I hear Mario say.
Angelo chuckles. “Yeah, me too.”
“Tesoro? What do you want to drink?” Mario asks.
“A cosmo,” Alice tells him.
“We’ll be back,” he tells us, leading Angelo away from the table.
“What did he just call you?” I ask Alice once they’re gone.
“Tesoro. It’s an Italian term of endearment, men use it often for their partners. It’s similar to calling your partner ‘love’,” she explains. “Okay, now that they’re gone, you’d better start talking.”
A rose blush stains my cheeks and I giggle. “We kissed.”
“Well, duh. I figured that out when he took off with you. How was it?”
More heat flushes my cheeks and I’m sure I resemble a glowing beacon. “Best. Kiss. Ever.”
She laughs. “And? Did you talk?”
“A little. He’s worried about bringing me even more into…this,” I admit. “But I’m already involved anyway. I work here.”
“Still. Coming from someone who’s dating one of them, I get it. He doesn’t want to put
you in danger.”
“I’m in danger anyway. And I’d rather spend the time I have, however long it is, with him than without him. I told him that.”
She chuckles. “You’ve got it bad, babe.”
I hear Angelo’s warm chuckle as he sets a Coke in front of me and slides into the booth next to me. I turn to look at him and he steals a quick kiss.
“Are you ladies done gabbing now?” Mario teases as he sits down next to Alice.
“For now,” Alice says.
We chat and sip on our drinks for a while before Angelo gets up to go grab another round for us.
“Eva, come on. Let’s go dance,” Alice suggests.
Mario gets up to let her out, and I slide out of my side of the booth. The moment I rise from the sofa, Mario gathers me in his arms.
“Can I get a hello now that you’re not sucking Angelo’s face off?” he teases.
“Oh, my gosh,” I mutter, turning into a glowing beacon once again and burying my face in his chest.
He laughs. “Hey, I’m happy for you. Both of you. Do you realize how difficult it was for me to keep my mouth shut?”
I gaze at him through my lashes. “About what?”
“About how I wished you and Angelo would just get over yourselves and admit you were in love with each other,” he says.
As I tighten my arms around him, I rest my cheek against his shoulder. “Thank you, Mario.”
“For what?”
“Being such a great friend. Believe it or not, you really helped me that night.”
He tightens his arms around me and rests his lips on top of my head. “Anytime, Eva.”
“Do we need to be worried?” Alice asks.
We turn towards her and find her standing with Angelo. Both have their hands on their hips and their eyebrows arched. Did they rehearse this while Mario and I were talking?
I giggle. “I don’t know. It’s kind of like payback, don’t you think?”
“Hilarious,” she deadpans before her lips spread into a grin. “But can I get my boyfriend back? You’ve got your own now.”
A flurry of butterflies flutters around my stomach. This is the first time anyone has said it out loud. My eyes flutter towards Angelo. He lowers his head and kicks at the invisible dirt before gazing at me through his lashes.
Mario releases me and I tiptoe towards Angelo, somewhat nervous. For all the words that were exchanged in the office, we never actually discussed the status of our relationship or put a label on whatever this is. And he’s not the type to be tied down to one woman. A pair of frozen hands grips around my chest. What if he doesn’t want to date me? What if this is just a fling for him? A conquest?
But then Angelo releases his hands from their confinements and draws me into his arms, a place that has never felt so right or so safe. He buries his head in my hair and inhales, like he’s trying to memorize the scent.
“I love you,” he whispers, touching his lips to my head.
Once again, I’m overthinking everything.
My hands glide up the length of his suit jacket and drape around his neck. The hummingbird beats her wings as I stand on tiptoes to nuzzle his neck.
“I love you too,” I whisper.
“Five…four…three…two…one. Happy New Year!” everyone screams.
I’m too busy glancing around the room with fascination to notice Angelo is patiently waiting for me. But his patience runs out and he hooks an arm around my waist, tugging me towards him.
I giggle before our noses touch.
“Happy New Year, angel,” he says.
“Happy New Year,” I tell him.
He kisses me, as soft as a whisper, but with all the love he has for me.
My eyes flutter closed and my hands run along his back, until my fingers can entangle in his hair. And suddenly, we’re the only two people in the room.
“Unhand my best friend,” Alice says before she bursts into laughter. She’s had way too much to drink tonight.
Angelo reluctantly releases me, only to have Alice crush herself against me and make me topple. Somehow, I regain my balance before we both land on the floor.
“Happy New Year!” she squeals in my ear as her arms tighten around me.
“Happy New Year,” I say between giggles.
“This year will be great. I can feel it! You’re in love. I’m in love. They’re both great guys. And I love you!” she squeals, tap dancing on the spot.
“And you’re sloshed,” I giggle. “But I love you too.”
I’ve spent countless hours with Angelo over the past five months. In the club, in his car, even in his home. But now that we’re officially an item and I’m dressing for our first date, I’m a bundle of nerves.
“Hey, at least you picked out a dress,” Alice says as she enters my room with her extensive makeup collection.
I sit on the edge of my bed and flatten out the invisible wrinkles of my blue dress.
“Picking the dress was easy. He’s wearing a blue tie tonight.” I grin.
She furrows her brow. “What’s the color of his tie got to do with your dress?” Her eyebrows raise. “Oh, you’re matching. That’s so cute and sad at the same time.”
“Hey!” I cry, lightly slapping her arm. “It’s an inside joke.”
She laughs, almost dropping her accessories. “You already have inside jokes? You’re a couple of dorks.”
“Where’s your case?” I ask when she dumps the armful of beauty products on her bed.
“Well, I planned to bring the straighteners and the small makeup bag, but then I decided I needed a brush and hairspray, makeup brushes, plus I have this new foundation which I think will look great on you. And it wasn’t until I left my room that I realized I should have brought my case.”
“Yes, and my bedroom is so far away. It would have taken hours for you to go back for it.”
She glares at me, causing me to giggle.
“All right, what are we doing with this monstrosity you call hair?”
“Hey! It’s not a monstrosity! A French poodle in dire need of a haircut, maybe. But not a monstrosity.” Though she is right. I washed it last night before I went to bed. Big mistake. When I woke up this morning, I looked like I had a giant burning tumbleweed on my head.
Now she’s the one giggling. “Want me to straighten it?”
“Yes please.” I turn my back towards her and wait for the familiar sensations of her combing me hair with her fingers.
“Do you know where he’s taking you?” she asks.
“He mentioned some restaurant, but I don’t remember the name.”
“Oliva Verde? Uliveto? Casa Della Pasta?”
“Wait, what?” I say, twisting my torso and glance over my shoulder. “How do you—” I sigh. “Scrap that. Mario takes you out a lot, doesn’t he?”
She shrugs. “He’s taken me to a few places.”
“I bet if I let you carry on, you’d prattle off a few more, wouldn’t you? And no, that’s not a challenge.”
“Do you want me to finish your hair or not?”
I turn back. “I think he said Ulie something or another.”
“Uliveto?”
“Yeah, that one.”
“Ooh, dinner and dancing.”
“Is there anything I should steer clear of?”
“No. The food’s really good. Ooh, get the gnocchi. It’s to die for.”
I lower my head and watch my hands comfort one another. “This is weird.”
“What is?”
“Us talking about Angelo and Mario. It wasn’t too long ago that you were telling me to avoid him like the plague.”
“Well, he grew on me.”
“Did you spend a lot of time with him?”
“Not more than you.”
I glance over my shoulder towards her. “That doesn’t answer the question.”
She sighs, allowing her hands to fall into her lap. “It’s not like he was there every time I went out with Mario, but I got to know him pre
tty well. And before you ask, I still feel like crap about it because I learned pretty quick how amazing he was.”
A wide grin spreads across my face. Even though she forbade me to have a relationship with him, I’m happy she agrees with me. He is amazing.
“For the record, I wasn’t going to ask,” I say.
She raises her hand and twirls her finger. “Let me finish your hair already.”
I giggle. “Yes, Mom.”
“Shouldn’t that be hairdresser?”
I shrug. “Mom, hairdresser, you’re all the same thing. Do you have plans for tonight?”
“Yep. Mario’s picking me up.”
“In jeans?”
She giggles. “He’s seen me in worse, but we’re going to his place tonight. Oh, that reminds me, I won’t be home tonight.”
“Doesn’t it feel so much better to be open with everything?”
She sighs. “Like you wouldn’t believe. Then again, you would because you were keeping your own secrets too.”
A hot blush stains my cheeks. My hands comfort one another.
“How much did you know or suspect?” I wonder.
“Honestly? I knew you liked him because your face lit up every time his name was mentioned.”
I’m sure I resemble a glowing beacon by now. So much for disguising my emotions.
“But I didn’t know how close the two of you were. Okay, turn around.”
As I turn to face her, I clutch my cheeks, hoping to reduce the intense glow. Though at least she’s too engrossed in her beauty supplies now to notice.
“Let’s see if we can hide that bruise today,” she begins. “Angelo will want to see the whole of your face tonight and not risk inhaling your hair when you two get it on.”
Well, that did it. Now my face is bright enough to light the city.
When she sits up with her makeup brushes in hand, her eyes widen and the corners of her mouth twitch.
“Don’t!”
“Don’t what?” she asks, emitting innocence.
“Don’t laugh at me.”
She bites on her lip and mumbles. “Wasn’t going to.”
“Liar.” I pout.
She can’t contain the bubbling giggle anymore. “Okay, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to make you blush.”
Twisted City: (Twisted City Book 1) Page 31