Stronger

by Janet Nissenson

  He unzipped her jeans before shoving them along with her panties down past her hips, then, without warning, pushed two fingers inside of her drenched slit.

  Dante swore softly beneath his breath, the words indecipherable but unmistakably carnal. “And you’ve got a Grade-A pussy to go along with these amazing tits,” he crooned, his fingers swiftly finding a rhythm that was threatening to send her spiraling over the edge with each thrust. “Sweet and tight and hot as hell. I love fucking this pretty pussy, with my fingers and my tongue and especially with my cock. I’m going to use all three of them on you tonight, honey, going to make you come so many times that you’ll have trouble walking tomorrow. But you won’t mind, will you?”

  “N-nnoo!” she cried plaintively, so desperate to come that tears began to track down her cheeks. “I won’t mind. I never mind. Please.”

  “So fucking wet,” he rasped. “So damned hot for it. And always, always so responsive. Come for me now, honey. Yes, just like that!”

  She screamed as the climax took her over, too far gone with the pleasure that swept through her to even think of muffling her cries. But instead of urging her to keep it quiet, Dante encouraged her to just let go.

  And she kept letting go for the rest of the evening, eagerly following his lead as he took her to bed - where he followed through on all of the tantalizing promises he’d made her. He put her on her back first, instructing her to squeeze her breasts together as he began to slide his penis through the deep valley between them. He kept his eyes downcast, as though enthralled at the sight of his cock slipping between her breasts. But unlike the last time he’d done this, he didn’t come, instead rearing back on his haunches before patting her on the ass.

  “Turn over.”

  When she complied, he covered her with his body, drawing a gasp of surprise from her lips as he thrust inside of her with one swift movement. His powerful thighs straddled her hips, pinning her in place as he took her from behind. Cara bit down on her pillow each time he slammed his cock deep within her body, each near-savage thrust causing her to shudder in response. The futon squeaked and shook with the force of their fucking, and just before he made her come again she hoped faintly that the rickety frame would hold up under the pressure.

  Dante was seemingly insatiable tonight, keeping at her for hours. Even after he’d come long and hard, his cock was still semi-erect, and it would only take a short while for him to be at full arousal again. And in between he went down on her, using his lips and tongue and those clever, talented fingers to bring her over the edge again and again. And then those very actions would make him hard again, and he’d have just enough time to roll on a new condom before sliding back inside of her sore but all too eager body.

  At some point, though, he must have exhausted her because she woke groggily when he gently touched her bare shoulder. She peeked up at him through one eye, unsuccessfully stifling a yawn as she realized he was dressed.

  ‘I need to go,” he murmured, brushing damp strands of hair off her forehead. “But I cleaned up the dishes, put away the leftovers.”

  She smiled up at him sleepily, catching hold of his hand. “See?” she murmured teasingly. “Told you that was your most attractive quality.”

  Dante laughed, bending to press a soft kiss to her lips. “Brat,” he chided. “I’d keep trying to change your opinion but you’ve worn me out, Cara mia. And you look pretty wrung out, too. Get some sleep, okay? I’ll give you a call during the week.”

  It was on the tip of her tongue to ask him to stay with her for once, to slide back under the covers and hold her close as they fell asleep. But as she tried to work up the courage to ask for this one thing, he gave her one final good night kiss before leaving - the way he always did.

  And as she succumbed to exhaustion, both her body and emotions wrung out from this night in Dante’s arms, she wondered how much longer she could hold herself back from asking him for more. Or, worse, one of these nights letting it slip out that she was crazy in love with him.

  Chapter Fourteen

  “How many more of these godawful weddings are we going to be expected to attend before we die?” groaned Rafe Sabattini in a low voice. “This damned tie is cutting off my circulation.”

  Dante grinned at his younger brother, who was clearly ill at ease whenever he had to wear a suit and tie like today. Unlike Dante, who considered such attire a requirement of his chosen profession, Rafe was a general contractor - the owner of a company with nearly forty full-time employees - who was used to wearing jeans, T-shirts, and boots to work every day.

  “Well,” drawled Dante teasingly, “when you consider the number of cousins we have on both sides of the family, and then figure out how many of them are still single, you’ll have your answer. Though, of course, by the time the youngest ones are all married off, it will be time for the kids of the older ones to have weddings of their own. It’s called the Circle of Life, little brother.”

  Rafe scowled, tugging irritably at his collar. “I can think of a different term for what it really is - dolore nel culo.”

  Dante snickered in response to his brother’s colorful language. “Better not let Mom hear you describe attending her godson’s wedding as a pain in the ass. He’s also her favorite nephew.”

  Rafe shrugged. “He’s also a wuss. What self-respecting dude refuses to have a stripper at his bachelor party because he promised his fiancé he’d be a good little boy. Brandon better be careful or he’s going to spend his entire marriage being pussy whipped.”

  Dante held a finger up to his lips and shook his head. “And you’d really better not let Mom hear you say something like that. Otherwise, you’re going to be the one with a pain in your ass.”

  The brothers shared a good-natured chuckle as they continued to mill around the flagstone courtyard where the wedding ceremony was due to start in just about fifteen minutes time. Roughly half of the guests had already taken a seat in one of the rows of precisely arranged white wooden folding chairs. But since the chairs were sitting out in direct sunlight, and it was still over ninety degrees at nearly four o’clock in the afternoon, the other half of the attendees had chosen to stand in the shaded courtyard for a little while longer.

  The winery made a nice setting for an outdoor wedding, mused Dante, though this particular place was a bit too commercial for his tastes. The winery was one of the newer, trendier ones in the area, less than fifteen years old, and lacked the character of many of the more established venues. Dante thought fondly of the small, family-owned vineyard adjacent to the restaurant where so many parties and holiday celebrations had been held over the years. Wines were only produced in small amounts, just enough to serve at the restaurant or distribute to family members. The winery boasted a century old stone farmhouse, a grove of shady oak trees, and a pond where swans and ducks cohabitated in peace. It would, he realized, make a much cozier, more intimate setting for a wedding than this ultra-modern facility he was presently at.

  Cara would love the place, he thought, then just as quickly wondered why in hell he was thinking about her at this particular moment.

  ‘Maybe,’ he scolded himself, ‘because you can be something of a dick to her at times. You always used to tell Nick that he treated Angela like shit the first time they were together. Are you really behaving all that differently now with Cara - discouraging her from calling you, taking her places where you won’t run into anyone you know, not introducing her to the family when you know how damned happy that would make her?’

  Dante reminded himself that he’d made it all too clear to Cara from the beginning what their relationship would be like, and that he had no intention of getting serious with anyone for the foreseeable future. But the rationale that had formerly helped to assuage his guilty conscience had, as of late, been failing to do the trick. It had been especially difficult not to feel guilty after seeing the hopeful look in her big eyes when he’d mentioned the wedding. And though she had tried hard to
paste a cheerful smile on her face and maintain a casual tone to her voice, she hadn’t been able to entirely hide the hurt she so obviously felt at not being invited along this weekend.

  He blew out a sigh of frustration, realizing with a sinking sensation that he was going to have to do something about this situation with Cara very soon. Things had become way more intense between them than he had ever envisioned, and he was starting to develop real feelings for her. It was the very last thing he had imagined happening the night of their first date, but it had been damned near impossible to resist someone as sweet and funny and kindhearted as she was for very long.

  The problem, he reflected, was that Cara was too nice a girl to string along for very long. She needed - no, deserved - someone who would take care of her, make a real commitment to her, bring her into his family. And what he needed was to decide - soon - if he could possibly be that someone. And if it ended up that he wasn’t, then he was going to have to figure out a way to break things off with her gently.

  “There you are! I’ve been trying to hunt the two of you down for the last half hour. Rafe, quit pulling at your shirt collar, will you? Once the ceremony is over you can get away with taking off the tie and jacket. But leave it alone for a little while longer, okay? Christ, you aren’t five fucking years old, you know!”

  Dante chuckled at the sudden, whirlwind appearance of his baby sister Gia. Though he supposed at twenty-five, with a college degree, and a job in the environmental studies field, he couldn’t really think of her as a little girl any longer - especially since she could frequently curse like a sailor.

  “Hey, hey,” chided Dante, deliberately rumpling Gia’s raven curls because he knew it pissed her off. “Let’s watch the language, shall we? You’re lucky Nonna isn’t here to overhear you. You remember what she did the last time she heard you swear.”

  Valentina was not one of the invited guests today since Brandon was from Jeannie’s side of the family - the youngest son of her oldest brother.

  Gia shuddered in recollection. “Yeah, unfortunately. I think my ears are still ringing from that time she boxed them. But, hey, forget about that. Dan, you are not fucking going to believe who’s here today! I just saw her talking to Laine’s mother inside the tasting room. Can’t believe she’s got the goddamned nerve to show up this way, and the bitch had better not even look my way after what she did to you ‘cause I won’t think twice about taking her down. Fucking traitorous..”

  Dante placed a palm over his sister’s mouth. “Cool it with the swearing or this time I’ll be the one to box your ears. Now, who exactly are you threatening to take down here, tiger?”

  Gia’s stormy eyes flashed dangerously. She had always been something of a tomboy, battling fiercely to tag along with her older brothers. She’d practically idolized Dante, the only real father figure she had known, given how young she’d been when their father died. Gia had grown up into something of a badass, and Rafe liked to tease that if she didn’t stop scaring off men the way she did she would never find one brave enough to marry her. Gia more often than not simply flipped her brother off when he said something like that, and took great pride in projecting a tough girl image.

  And even though she was the youngest, Gia was fiercely protective of her siblings. When Katie had ended things between her and Dante this past winter, Gia had volunteered - a little too eagerly for his liking - to “kick that skinny bitch’s ass if she ever comes near you again”. She had been furious at Katie’s betrayal, while the rest of his family - except perhaps for his grandmother, whom Gia took after far too much for his liking - had only been supportive and understanding.

  Gia’s normally loud voice lowered to a pitch barely above a whisper as she revealed her news to her brothers. “It’s your ex - Katie. Can’t believe the evil bitch had the nerve to show her face here today. She’s just lucky Nonna isn’t here, because she’d be the one getting her ears boxed this time!”

  Dante stared at his sister in shock, unable to wrap his brain around what he’d just heard. “You must be mistaken, Gia,” he mumbled. “Why would Katie be here today? Brandon would have told me if she had RSVPd.”

  Rafe snorted. “Seriously, Dan? Our cousin has his head in the clouds half the time. Even if Laine had bothered to tell him she was coming, how long do you think he would have remembered that fact? Or thought that it might be cool to give you a heads up.”

  Gia nodded in agreement. “Brandon’s an airhead. And he does whatever Laine tells him to do. So it’s a surefire bet that if she made him promise not to say anything to you about Katie he kept his mouth shut.”

  Dante shook his head. “I don’t doubt that she’s here. After all, she and Laine have known each other since they were kids, and their parents are close friends. It’s just - well, surprising, I guess, that she’d attend knowing I’d be here.”

  Gia looked as though she’d love nothing better than to spit in disgust. “Nothing would surprise me about that witch,” she hissed. “She probably just wants to show off to everyone, brag about how she’s some famous actress.”

  Dante hesitated before asking his next question. “Was she - is she here alone? Or did she have a date with her?”

  Gia rolled her eyes in disgust. “Seriously, Dan? Please do not tell me you still have it bad for that woman. Please? Because I remember like it was yesterday how depressed you were after she took off for L.A. Every time I talked to you on the phone I wished I could give you a good slap and snap you out of it. So if you’re even thinking of hooking up with that skank again, I’ll…”

  “Just answer the question, Gia,” barked Dante. “And knock it off with the insults, okay? Don’t forget you’re talking about a woman I was seriously considering marrying.”

  “I actually had forgotten that disturbing fact until you just reminded us,” replied Gia sullenly. “But to answer your question - she was alone when I saw her chatting with Laine’s mother. Doesn’t mean she didn’t bring a date, but I didn’t see anyone hovering nearby. Now, can we stop talking about that - I mean, your ex and take our seats? Mom saved a row of chairs for us.”

  Dante acquiesced to his sister’s demands, and followed her and Rafe silently to take their seats beside Jeannie, Talia, and her husband Tony. But it was nowhere near as easy to forget the startling revelation Gia had just shared with him - that the woman he’d been crazy in love with for almost a year, who might even now be wearing his engagement ring if she hadn’t broken his heart instead was here, possibly just a few yards away.

  Discreetly he glanced up every time another guest walked past their row to take their seat, but none of them were Katie. He guessed that she was sitting in a row behind him, but knew that if he dared to turn around Gia would pinch him. Or kick him. Or grind the deadly looking heel of her stiletto sandal into his instep. He sorely regretted all the years he had spent teaching his baby sister how to defend herself, because she was now an expert at fighting dirty.

  It was only when he stood along with all the other guests as the bride began to walk up the aisle on her father’s arm that he spotted her. Katie was seated on the other side of the aisle from where he sat, and two rows back, and she looked so beautiful that his heart gave a little lurch despite his resolve to remain detached.

  She glanced his way then and their gazes met and held. Katie offered up a tentative smile, her blue eyes looking both sad and hopeful. She looked younger, more innocent, and even a little fragile, and he wondered somewhat scathingly if that had been intentional on her part. She was too thin for his liking, a fact that added to the image of fragility, but otherwise looked almost ethereally lovely. Her silky blonde hair was a little shorter than he remembered, tumbling in loose curls about her shoulders. Her makeup looked minimal from this viewpoint, her lips glossed over in a pale, pearly pink. Katie’s dress was nearly the same shade as her lip gloss, a slim fitting sheath of blush pink silk, and she wore pearls around her slender throat. It was a very sophisticated and undoubtedly expe
nsive garment, but a far cry from many of the sexier, dramatic outfits she usually favored.

  Dante continued to gaze at her for long seconds, until Gia poked him in the ribs with her elbow, calling his attention back to where the wedding ceremony was about to begin.

  He resisted the urge to glance back at Katie again, half-afraid that Gia would notice where his attention was being directed and jab him again. Not to mention the fact that there was no way he was going to fall under Katie’s siren spell again, or allow himself to become so dazzled by her beauty and charm that he’d do whatever she asked of him. Her betrayal had cut deep, and it had really only been these past couple of months that he’d considered himself well and truly over her. Dante didn’t know what her purpose in being here today was, but he doubted it was strictly the desire to see an old friend get married.

  Once the ceremony was over, it was time for cocktail hour. Dante mostly ignored the silver trays of canapes bring passed around by the wait staff, being able to tell at a glance that the food wouldn’t come close to what was served at the family restaurant. But he definitely availed himself of the open bar, downing two Tanqueray and tonics in quick succession. He needed the alcohol right now as a way to fortify himself against the shock of seeing Katie again so unexpectedly, and, more importantly, to give himself the resolve to continue avoiding her.

  Two hours later the wait staff was beginning to clear dinner dishes from the individual tables that had been set for eight guests each. Joining Dante and his family at their table was Laine’s widowed uncle and his elderly mother. The uncle - a distinguished, gray-haired man named Keith - was in his early sixties, and had taken an instant liking to Jeannie, even switching seats with his mother so they could sit next to each other. Jeannie, who had dated only sporadically since becoming a widow all those years ago, seemed to return Keith’s interest. There was a twinkle in her dark brown eyes that Dante couldn’t recall seeing there very often, and she was certainly laughing and smiling more than usual. And he didn’t know if seeing his mother openly flirt with another man made him happy for her, or cause his protective instincts to flare up big time.