Wanted Dead or In Love: A Small Town Romance (The Cortell Brothers Book 3)

by Giulia Lagomarsino

  “Well, Jack said he was starting to get offended that you hadn’t called him.”

  I smirked. “He always was a whiny baby.”

  I noticed that though she smiled, it didn’t really reach her eyes. She was sad, and I couldn’t help but feel that it was because of me. I walked over and sat down on the bed beside her. I hadn’t held her in days. Things had been so tense between us that I couldn’t bring myself to reach out and hold her. But the more distance that grew between us, the more I felt like part of me was missing. She was my everything for seven years. She was the only person that I could really talk to, and now we were practically strangers. It felt so wrong.

  I grabbed her hand and gave it a squeeze. “Hey, what’s wrong?”

  She gave a side smile, but wouldn’t look at me. “I just…I feel like I ruined your life. You should have seen all those people in town, worried about you, wondering what had happened to you. Joe took care of it, but it was hard, knowing that I had ripped you away from all that.”

  I smirked at her. “A town full of nosy people that want to gossip about each other?”

  “They’re more than that. I can tell they were all really relieved to know that you were home.”

  “Speaking of which, Derek said that we’re basically good to resume our lives. They don’t think anyone will retaliate against us since your brother intervened.”

  “So, what happens now?”

  “Well, Derek and Hunter are done here. He sent the other team home earlier today, but he kept the cameras and sensors up around the place.”

  “Why? Is he worried about something?”

  I shook my head. “Derek is just paranoid. And…I may have asked him to keep them in place for a while. I figure it’s better to be on the safe side.”

  She blew out a breath. “I can’t believe it’s over. I mean, I never really thought this day would come.”

  “I know. Do you remember that night that we stopped here and watched them from outside?”

  “Yeah.”

  “I can still remember how sad I felt, knowing I would never see them again. But the funny thing is, as much as I’m glad to be back, it all feels so foreign to me, like I don’t belong.”

  “You just need time to adjust.”

  “Do I?” I asked, looking deep into her eyes. “Or has our time together changed me so much that I don’t know how to live this life anymore?”

  She didn’t have an answer for me, and I suspected it was because she felt the same way.

  “Anyway, now that it’s all over, we have one more hurdle to deal with.”

  “What’s that?”

  “My parents.”

  She sat up straight, her face draining of all color. “You…want me to meet your parents?”

  “Well, I can’t just introduce them to Alessa and say she came from the fairies. Besides, when I talked to my parents this afternoon, they were dying to meet the woman that kept me alive all these years.”

  “You almost died because of me.”

  I sighed, running my thumb along her cheek. “I wouldn’t change anything that happened between us. I jumped in front of that bullet because I would rather be dead than watch you die. And I would do it again in a heartbeat. I love you.”

  Her eyes flicked down and she reached out to grab my hand. “Can I ask a favor?”

  I nodded.

  “For just tonight, can we put our differences aside and just be us?”

  She wanted me to forget that she was still seeing Levi, but I wasn’t sure I could do that. It hurt too much. But as I stared at her, I couldn’t tell her no. I may not understand her friendship with Levi, or like it, but was I really willing to lose her over it? That was a question that I didn’t have the answer to yet.

  So, instead of holding the line and refusing to give in, I stripped out of my clothes and got into bed with her, pulling her into my arms. She was always so strong around me, always the leader, that sometimes I forgot that she just needed someone to be there for her and do the heavy lifting. I could do that for tonight.

  Her hand slid up my chest and she looked into my eyes, so much worry there that all I could do was kiss her. I knew this was hard on her, but in the end, I wouldn’t give in on my demands. I wanted all of her to myself. I didn’t want to share with another guy, and I definitely didn’t want to compete for her. I wanted her to choose me because I was the only man she loved.

  “Tell me you still love me,” I murmured against her lips.

  “I do.”

  I slid my hand down her body, watching as her eyes grew more intense. When I slid a hand over her panties, her breath hitched just before her eyes slid closed. I slowly ran my knuckle over her clit, back and forth, just enough pressure to make her beg me for more. I pinched her clit through her panties, feeling her gasp against my neck. My cock was raging, begging to be inside her, but I also wanted to drive her insane.

  I kissed her sweet lips and then slowly slid my tongue along her jaw. I nipped at her earlobe, drawing it inside my mouth as I pressed down harder on her clit. She gasped and slid her fingers up the back of my neck and through my hair, gripping it tight.

  “Oh God,” she gasped.

  I licked the shell of her ear, letting my hot breath skate across her skin. “Tell me what you need.”

  “You know what I need,” she said breathlessly.

  “I want to hear you say it.”

  “I need you to fuck me.” She gripped my hair between her fingers and pulled me to her neck. I took pleasure in licking the length of her neck, biting the delicate skin at the crevice of her neck and shoulder.

  “We don’t fuck,” I corrected. “We make love. We always make love.”

  “Then make love to me.”

  “Not until you tell me that you’re mine.”

  “You know you are,” she growled.

  “But you still see him. You still think about him.”

  “Not like you,” she panted as I circled my thumb around her nipple. “You know I only want you.”

  “Promise me,” I growled, frustrated that I had to stake my claim in this way.

  She gripped both sides of my head and forced me to look her in the eyes. “I only want you. He’s a friend, but you’re my lover and my best friend.”

  My lips crashed down on hers and I shifted, sliding between her thighs. I rammed my cock against her pussy, her cream coating my pajama pants. I was dry humping her, fucking my cock against her. It was driving us both insane, but it was working. The more I teased her, the more she begged me for more.

  “You don’t love him,” I reminded her, slamming my cock against her again. “He means nothing to you.”

  “That’s what I keep telling you,” she said irritatedly. “Stop being so damn jealous and fuck me!” Her hands slid my pants down over my ass, then she gripped my cock and spread her legs farther, pulling me toward her. “Do it,” she urged.

  In one swift motion, I was seated deep inside her. My balls pulled up and I squeezed my eyes shut to keep from coming right on the spot. I would never get tired of the feel of her pussy wrapped around me. I started fucking her hard, slamming my cock into her, taking every moan and turning them into screams.

  Her fingers found my sac and started massaging, playing with me as she grinned at me wickedly. If that was how she wanted to play, I would be happy to go along for the ride. I pulled out and flipped her over, slapping her hard on the ass before I yanked her to her knees. Spreading her cheeks, I slid inside and gripped her hips. She looked over her shoulder at me, almost challenging me.

  “Is that it?” she asked, her eyelids fluttering slightly.

  “Not even close.”

  I got lost in the rhythm, fucking her so hard that the bed was slamming against the wall. But it still wasn’t enough. I pulled her upright, holding her body against mine as I ground my hips against her ass. My cock swelled from the tightness, and if anything, I was harder now than I was when I first slid inside her.

  Palming her breasts
, I pinched her nipples. She threw her head back on my shoulder, her neck exposed to me. I licked and sucked as I gripped her hips and lifted her off my cock, then slammed her back down. She cried out and then rose on her knees, taking control of everything. Her breasts bounced in my hands as she rode my cock harder and harder. My heart raced out of control and I could feel every inch of me lighting on fire.

  “I’m gonna come,” I whispered hoarsely. When she didn’t stop bouncing on my cock, it took everything in me, but I pulled her off me and fisted my cock, shooting my load all over her back. She was panting on the bed, lying on her stomach. My cum was dripping down between her ass cheeks and I could still see her arousal glistening between her legs. Swiping my shirt off the floor, I wiped away my cum and then lifted her ass in the air, burying my face in her cunt.

  Her legs shook and her pussy clenched as I shoved my tongue inside her and fucked her, taking every last drop I could draw from her. She cried out as more cream flooded my mouth. Her legs collapsed, but I caught her and flipped her over, taking in her beautiful body as she laid sleepily on the bed.

  “Trying to prove something?” she asked.

  “Just fucking him out of your head,” I said, sliding my arms around her.

  I held Carly against my side as we waited for my dad to pull up the driveway in their rental. I could already see Ma on the passenger side, smacking him in excitement. I grinned at how happy she was.

  “Don’t get too excited,” Derek leaned in to whisper. “You still have to explain all this shit to her.”

  “It’ll be fine,” I said confidently. “She’s going to be so happy to see me that she won’t care about what happened or why.”

  “Keep dreaming,” he muttered, taking a step back.

  “Are you sure I should be here?” Carly murmured. “Maybe this should be a reunion for just you guys. She probably wouldn’t want me here.”

  “Bullshit. She’ll love you.”

  “The woman that got her precious son taken away? Somehow I doubt that.”

  “Just watch. She’ll love you. She may be a little upset when we explain everything, but she’ll get over it. I promise.”

  Carly blew out a breath and shifted Alessa on her hip. “Do you think she’s going to be mad about Alessa?”

  Someone huffed a laugh behind me, but I didn’t know which brother it was.

  “She’ll probably love you more because of Alessa.”

  “Right,” Carly sighed. “When she hears what happened, she’ll hate me.”

  I squeezed her shoulder for comfort. “Relax, it’ll all be fine.”

  Dad parked their car behind the rest of the vehicles and Ma jumped out, not even waiting for Dad to get out. “My boys!” she squealed. “All together at last!”

  She ran up the steps and I thought she would run right to me, so I held my arms open, but she ran right at Carly, not even stopping as she slammed into her and Alessa, who sat on her hip. Carly glanced over at me, her eyes wide. I was a little pissed off to say the least. Her son that was missing for seven years didn’t get the first hug? What the hell was up with that?

  “Uh, Ma?”

  She pulled back and smiled at Alessa, making cute faces and tickling her. “You’re so precious, aren’t you? Yes, you are. Yes, you are.”

  “Ma,” I repeated.

  “What?” she asked, not even bothering to look at me.

  I rolled my eyes in exasperation. It was like I wasn’t even there. “It’s good to see you too.”

  She straightened and stared at me. “I can’t believe you were gone for seven years and didn’t once think to stop and call your mother. What kind of son are you?”

  “I couldn’t call you. We were on the run.”

  “A postcard would have worked,” she said. “You’ve seen those spy movies. There’s always a way to contact someone, right Derek?”

  I glared at him, but he just grinned. “Tons of ways. He could have set up a dummy email and gotten ahold of you that way. Or he could have gotten a burner phone and called, just to let you know he was alive. Hell, there are even carrier pigeons that could have sent the message, completely untraceable.”

  “Thanks, man. That was a lot of help.”

  “I do what I can.”

  “And as for this little lady,” she said, taking Alessa from Carly, “she’s just the sweetest thing in the world.”

  Then she turned her glare on me, and then Robert and Eric. One by one, she walked up to us and smacked us on the back of the heads. “I don’t know what is wrong with my sons. I didn’t raise you to get a woman pregnant before you married her.”

  “Hey, she got me drunk,” Eric pointed to Kat.

  “Me?” Kat screeched. “I wouldn’t have gotten you drunk if you could drink more than a wine cooler.”

  “Who meets someone in a bar and takes them home that night?” Eric shot back.

  “You!”

  “Oh, that’s rich. Blame the guy!”

  “I do blame you,” she countered. “If you hadn’t been so drunk, you might have remembered the condom.”

  I cringed at the direction of the conversation, but then Ma jumped in. “Really, Eric, if you can’t handle more than a wine cooler, I’m not sure what you were thinking meeting her in a bar.”

  “I did it because of Andrew,” he pointed accusingly at him.

  Ma shook her head. “Blaming someone else for your mistakes is never the right way to go. And as for you,” she said to Robert, “I’m not sure why it took you thirteen years to get back together with this sweet girl,” she said to Anna, “but I’m angry that it took you so long.”

  “We were only apart because you sent me away,” Robert grumbled.

  “And I would have thought that after some growing up, you would have gone back for the woman you loved. Poor, Anna, having to fight tooth and nail all her life while you just went on to make millions.”

  “It wasn’t millions,” Robert grumbled. “And there’s nothing poor about Anna. She’s got a sharper tongue than a razor. Besides, we got married at Christmas.”

  “Fake married,” Anna cut in.

  “What?” Ma gasped. “You fake married her? Without inviting your own mother? Why would you do that?”

  Robert’s eyes widened in panic. “Well, you see…there was this client and…Josh ran away for eight years!”

  “Seven,” I corrected, “and only because I was on the run from people trying to kill me.”

  “And on the way you managed to get this poor woman pregnant.”

  “Actually, Mrs. Cortell,” Carly spoke up, “that was my fault. My birth control shot ran out and I didn’t get it renewed.”

  “See?” I said smugly.

  “And you didn’t take care of her?” Ma asked.

  “I had just been shot!”

  “And after all those years on the run, you hadn’t figured out yet how to dodge a bullet?”

  “I was protecting her!”

  “And then you got her pregnant,” Ma tsked. “Honestly, I don’t know what I’m going to do with you boys.”

  “I didn’t get Claire pregnant,” Derek said smugly.

  “No, and you didn’t bring her here either.”

  Derek’s grin dropped and Ma moved on to Will. “And when are you going to find a nice lady to settle down with?”

  “I won’t ever find anyone as nice as you,” he said, sucking up to her. She pursed her lips, shaking her head slightly.

  “No woman will ever want you if you’re a momma’s boy.” She moved on to Joe. “And what’s this I hear about you joining a biker gang?”

  “It’s not a biker gang, and everyone’s really nice.”

  She sighed heavily. “It looks like Andrew is my last hope.”

  “He’s a hacker,” Eric practically shouted.

  “Oh, my baby would never do anything like that.”

  “That’s exactly what he does.”

  Ma smiled and pinched his cheeks. “Don’t worry, we’ll find a nice girl to straight
en you out. Now, I want Kat, Anna, and Carly to join me inside while your father talks some sense into the seven of you.”

  The ladies disappeared inside while we stood there, properly chastised for our life choices. Dad walked up the steps and grinned. “Happy we’re home?”

  “I can’t believe it,” I said in astonishment. “Gone for seven years and she pretends like I’ve just been on vacation.”

  “Come on, let’s grab a few beers and you can tell me all about the past seven years of your life.”

  “You’re not going to yell at me?” I asked warily.

  He barked out a laugh, slapping me on the shoulder. “We’ll save that for your mother, but if she asks, I tore you to shreds.”

  Carly

  “So, tell me all about this situation with my son and your family,” Mrs. Cortell said as she sat with Alessa on her lap.

  Kat grabbed some coffee for all of us and sat down at the table to listen. I glanced at Anna, hoping she would help me. I didn’t think I would be separated from Josh and have to do all the explaining. She was probably going to hate me.

  “Mrs. Cortell-“

  “Please, call me Elizabeth or Ma. Nobody calls me Mrs. Cortell.”

  “Elizabeth,” I said hesitantly. “I’m really sorry for what happened with your son.”

  “What happened exactly?” She seemed curious, but not upset. Still, I proceeded with caution.

  “My name is Carlotta Scavuzzo. My father is, or was, head of the Scavuzzo crime family.”

  “My, my,” she chuckled. “I think I see why he didn’t call.”

  I smiled slightly and continued. “The day your son disappeared, I was at a gas station and I saw him watching me. I had run away from my family four years before that, and I had never had anyone find out that I was alive. But the way your son was watching me, I assumed that he was there for me. I left the gas station, but had to pull over when I had a flat tire. And there your son was, ready to help. I tried to get him to leave,” I insisted. “I didn’t know if he was a good guy or a bad guy, but I knew that he couldn’t be wrapped up in my mess. But he wouldn’t leave. He insisted on helping me. And that’s when someone tried to kill us. We escaped, but we heard them talking and they were discussing getting rid of all the evidence. They saw his truck. There was no way they wouldn’t know who he was.”