“Luka, I should apologize to your family,” I say. “And your father.”
Luka shakes his head as he sits down. “He’ll come around, Sofia.”
“But he’s not wrong,” I argue. “What we’ve done... It will have horrible consequences for all of us.”
“We’ve always known that. Nothing has changed.”
“But, I...”
“Sofia, don’t waste your breath,” he says. “My father might not be wrong but what we did was right, and I’d do it again.”
“You would?”
“In a heartbeat. You and Lucian belong beside me, not hidden in the shadows of a whiny tyrant.”
I look at the fire, feeling warmer than ever. “Beside you?”
“Yes.”
“In what way?”
“In every way, Sofia.”
I pause, letting the words sink in for a moment before pulling away. His eyes follow me as I stand up from the fireplace. “Luka, I just fled from one mafia family. You want me to join another?”
“We’re different than they are.”
“How? Strip away the Zappia name and what makes their business any different than yours?”
He rises and bridges the distance between us. “You’re right. On paper, we both do bad things for bad reasons, but what happened today at the Zappia estate would never happen here. The Lutrova business is built by those who bear the name. That would include you and, someday, that will include our son. Your voice is just as important as mine and not a single person here will ever tell you not to use it.”
He lays a hand on my cheek and I feel a shifting warmth from his fingertips.
“And…” His thumb traces a line across the bruise under my eye. “I’d never lay a hand on you, Sofia. Not unless you wanted me to.”
I look up at him and his thumb falls to my lips. “Luka…”
His mouth brushes against mine and I nearly drop the grip on my blanket.
“What do you want, Sofia?” he whispers, pursing his lips to kiss the edge of my mouth. “Tell me your fantasies.”
The word trembles my spine. “My what?”
Luka kisses me and I pull closer to him like a magnet. His hands crawl inside the blanket and wrap around me. “Your deepest desires,” he says, leaning in to lay his lips on my exposed neck and I melt into his touch. “Tell me what you want, and I’ll do it. Whatever you need.”
I quiver, unable to think clearly as blooms of pleasure travel my skin.
He hugs me closer to his taut body. “Sofia...” He whispers my name again and I twitch, falling even harder into his kiss. His tongue parts my lips and my senses explode.
Luka leans down and picks me up so fast it makes me dizzy. He cradles me close and kisses me again. I cling to him, my head on air, completely devoid of any sense but my desire for him.
He lays me onto his bed and stands over me, staring down at my body. Never have I ever felt so needed or wanted than when he’s gazing at me. I can do nothing but breathe, gently twitching on his pillow as he unbuttons his shirt and discards it to the floor.
I pause, realizing that I have not seen this much of his skin before. That night together was so quick and wild. We never dabbled in sweet anticipation before. I bite my lip, seduced by his pale, tattooed torso. I’d only ever seen the ribbon curling up his neck on one side, but now I know it was just the tip of the black ink iceberg. Letters and symbols cover his body, each one telling a story of his life as a Russian mobster.
He smiles at my flushed face. I inhale a deep breath as he sits down beside me and lays a strong hand on my waist.
I push forward and he rests his left hand on my cheek. His thumb glides across my skin, calloused but warm. His grip on my waist tightens as he pulls me closer to him. I expect him to kiss me but he lets his lips linger in front of mine.
His warm breath strikes my cheek as he pushes closer. “Tell me,” he whispers. He kisses my jawline, pressing firmly against me.
I feel his aching desire bleeding out of him, just waiting to unleash itself on me, but he keeps it under his control. I sigh as he kisses me again, this time lower down on my neck. He parts his lips and I feel the tip of his tongue taste my skin.
“I, uh...” My voice falls as my mouth turns dry. Not from embarrassment or shame. No one has ever asked me anything like this before. I was never allowed to have needs and desires of my own. “I don’t know,” I finally say, chuckling softly as another kiss fires sparks down my spine.
Luka looks me in the eye, and I crumble beneath his gorgeous, gray gaze. “Lie back,” he says.
I hold his stare as I lean back against the pillows again. He follows me down and towers over me on his muscled arms.
“Touch me,” he says.
My fingers twitch as I reach for him, unsure of which spot to claim first. I choose his chest, allowing my trembling fingers to touch the black tattoos crowding his pecs and abs. He flexes and his skin tightens around his muscles as my fingers dance along them.
Luka plants kisses on my neck again, igniting an even greater passion inside of me. I rest my hands on his waist as my senses dissolve. The room spins, twisting and tearing me until I practically break beneath him.
For three years, I was a married woman. For three years, my husband never made me feel like this.
“I...” The words flow from me, rolling through my mind before can process it. “I want you to use your mouth on me.”
He never did that either.
Luka crushes his lips on mine, his kiss full of pure lust. “I was hoping you’d say that,” he whispers. He sinks his teeth into my bottom lip, drawing a subtle moan from the back of my throat. “I’ve wanted to taste you for so long...”
I tremble while he attacks my collarbone with hard, wet kisses. “You have?”
He caresses down my breasts and holds me closer to him. “Yes,” he answers, rolling us onto our sides. “There isn’t a sane man alive who wouldn’t drink every drop of you.”
I forget about everything. It all fades away. My life as a Zappia woman. My death as Gio’s bride. It’s like my entire lifetime never happened and Luka Lutrova whisked me away the second he saw me.
Luka reaches down my body to slide his hand inside my flannel slacks and I fall back into him, returning his kiss with all the fire rising in me. He slides them down to my ankles, leaving me in nothing but my panties and a loose top. I raise my arms over my head and he smiles at the invitation. He pulls my top off and tosses them both away, quickly returning to pull my naked body against him.
I feel his bulge pressing between us, begging to be inside of me, but Luka ignores it. He ignores his own desires and listens to my body instead, touching and kissing me based on my reactions. My nipples spike against his palms. My thighs quiver around him. My entire body heats up, struck aflame by a single flick of his tongue on mine.
I lie back and he descends me.
A nervous itch invades my mind. I can’t decide if I should close my eyes or if I should watch. If I should keep my hands to myself or if I should run my fingers through his dark hair. I bite my lip to try and steady myself, but I can’t control the overwhelming ecstasy teasing every nerve.
He lays kisses along my belly and, for a moment, he pauses. “I wish I could have seen you…”
“When?” I ask.
“Carrying our child,” he says. “I never thought about it until I saw him for the first time. Then, I felt regret… I missed it.”
I reach out and push my fingertips through his hair, drawing his eyes up to look at me. “You’re together now,” I whisper, soothing the pain in him. “You’ll be a greater father than Gio ever was.”
“Let that be the last time you say his name.” He stares back at me with hard eyes, full of love for me and disdain for the life he liberated me from. “Forget him. Forget all of them.”
I smile and he rises to kiss me, slow and firm with passion on his breath.
Once again, he travels downward. He hooks his fingers into my panties and pulls them d
own to my toes, pausing near my feet to kiss up my ankles and knees. He eases my thighs apart, slowly guiding me without an ounce of impatience in his eyes.
Another wave of nervous fear aches me, but I’m so drawn in by lust. It passes in a flash, leaving me aching and burning for him.
“Stop me if I go too far,” he says, his breath gliding across my inner thighs. “Tell me what you want, what feels good…”
I inhale sharply as he plants a kiss on my mound, teasing the hard throb buried underneath. The excitement runs deep, curling inside of my gut like a bag of snakes. It’s chaotic and twisted, but I feel in total control.
“Keep going,” I whisper, resting a shaking hand on his head.
Luka parts his lips and closes his eyes as his mouth disappears from view. His tongue caresses my folds, barely grazing the sensitive skin and lightning tingles my spine.
I hold my breath to keep from moaning and my thighs twitch against his shoulders. He licks me again, pushing between my slit. My mind goes blank. My temperature spikes. My vision turns white as pleasure takes me over.
“Luka…” I moan his name and I feel his lips curling as they hug my clit. “Oh, god.”
My back arches and he lays his hands on me to keep me calm, but his touch drives me even wilder. Just as I think the ecstasy can’t get more intense, Luka alters his speed and pressure and I charge even deeper into oblivion. It’s too much to take, but not enough to make me yield.
“Luka—”
Everything shakes, tormenting me to the core, but he doesn’t slow down. He nibbles and sucks and laps at me, forcing an even greater pleasure without even trying. I trust the firm hands holding me down, gripping them with all my strength.
The tension breaks in me. I flex my jaw to keep from screaming, but the climax is far too intense. Luka knows it and he opens his eyes to watch me squirm, taking every bit of my torment for himself.
I force myself to breathe as I collapse hard against his bed. My mind goes completely blank. I loosen my grip on his hands as my body comes down from it all. I cover my face as my cheeks burn red and I laugh as every emotion flows through me at once.
Luka says nothing as he climbs my body, leaving kisses as he goes, but his eyes scream with devious happiness. “Do you want more?” he asks.
“Dio mio, yes,” I breathe, fighting the cackle taking hold of my gut.
Luka laughs with me and I kiss him hard, pulling him over me to rest between my legs. I feel his bulge once more, now pressing even harder against me and I reach for his slacks. He doesn’t fight it. He lets me push them down, giving me the freedom to take what I want.
I slide them below his rear and wrap my fingers around his hardness. He inhales a heavy breath with each firm stroke I give him. He kisses me harder and faster in gratitude, pushing a steady hand between my thighs to cradle my clit in his fingers.
Pleasure for pleasure. The mutual act brings us closer and my passions erupt again. We grind together, groan together, and Luka doesn’t stop until he wrecks my body and I drip against his open palm.
He shifts down once again with an eager tongue and I turn my body to align my face with his tempting cock. Primal instincts drive me to please him as much as he’s pleased me. As he kisses and laps my core, I part my lips for him and take his sizable shaft into my mouth.
“Sofia…” He sighs with great longing. “You don’t have to— fuck—”
I suck him harder, pulling him deeper inside. He yields to it, unable to fight the surging heat of my mouth.
He returns to me and matches the rhythmic sucks against my clit. I moan around his cock as he groans into me, both of us sending fierce vibrations through each other’s bodies. His nails dig into my twitching thighs as mine latch onto his. Pain blends with pleasure, tearing both of us apart, but it’s me who crashes first.
I pull him out as I come, letting myself scream. Luka chuckles against my folds, taunting me with quick flicks of his tongue.
Finally, I press a weak hand against his forehead. “Luka, please—” I laugh.
He retreats and releases my thighs. “As you wish,” he says, grinning as he shifts over to lie beside me.
I relax in his thick arms, humming softly as he traces the edge of my arm with his fingertips. His hand dips further behind my back, but the movement suddenly stops when he feels the rough lines carved into my skin. He stiffens beside me, too kind to ask.
“It’s all right,” I say, turning onto my stomach.
Luka exhales hard with his eyes on my back. “Christ…” he whispers.
Scars. Mostly old, but the sharp sting of each one echoes in my memory.
“I wasn’t the most obedient child,” I say.
“They did this to you after I spoke to you?” he asks, the words difficult for him to say. “In the garden?”
“That was just the first time. The worst of it came later.”
He sighs as he drags his fingers down my spine. “I’m sorry.”
“I tried to run away once,” I say, my chest clenching. “I was twelve. Eleven, maybe. A guard grabbed me before I could get outside the wall. He dragged me back and threw me on the floor of Antony’s study.”
“Sofia…”
“Antony took off his belt and…” I swallow hard. “The last thing I remember was looking up and seeing a crowd of people in the doorway. Beatrix, the boys. House staff. None of them helped me. They just stood there and watched with these… stone cold faces.”
Luka kisses my shoulder.
“I woke up face down on my bed a few hours later,” I continue. “My skin felt like fire. There was a chain around my ankle. They wouldn’t let me out for weeks. Beatrix escorted me to the bathroom, brought me meals. Rosalie wasn’t allowed to see me. All I could do was stare at the wall. Then, one morning, Beatrix came in with my breakfast, and I smiled. The next time she came, I smiled again. I kept smiling until the chain went away. Eventually, my door was unlocked, too. I resumed my studies. I did my chores. I served my family with a smile.” I look at Luka, his eyes heavy with sympathy and anger. “They thought they’d broken me, but I was just waiting.” My lip quivers. “I was waiting for you, Luka Lutrova.”
He wraps his arms around me, not wanting to hear anymore. I cling to him, painful echoes melting away as he crushes his lips on mine.
“Let me stay,” I whisper. “Please don’t let them send me back.”
“I won’t,” he says, kissing me again. “I promise.”
I turn onto my back, and Luka settles between my open thighs. My mind is weak and exhausted, but my body still aches with desire for him. I can feel the same on his lips, in his touch. We could fall asleep in each other’s embrace now and wake up even more in love, but years of waiting make it impossible to stop.
Luka aligns himself as I cradle his hips with my thighs. His cock presses along my slit, but he doesn’t enter me yet. He waits, leaving tender kisses on my lips as he teases me with his tip.
For years, I’ve wondered how love was supposed to feel. I’ve only ever been used and discarded until now. I don’t feel the same way with Luka. I feel appreciated. I feel powerful. I could ask him to stop, and he would. I could ask him to pleasure me again, and he would. He could ask anything of me, and I would provide it knowing how good he’d make it feel for me, too.
“Take me,” I say, our lips grazing.
He wants to, I can feel it in his kiss, but still, he holds back.
“Please, Luka. Take me.”
Luka chuckles at my torment. He shifts his hips, purposefully rubbing my most sensitive places. I gasp as pleasure builds inside, and he steals every breath with a new kiss.
“You’re so beautiful when you moan,” he says with a smirk.
“Then, you should make me do it again.”
“Oh, trust me,” he growls. “I will.”
We laugh, our mouths and bodies crushed together. He reaches between us, taking hold of his shaft as I position my legs a little wider. His tip parts my folds, and I bite my
lip as another wave of pleasure invades.
Luka teases me a final time before thrusting inside.
Tears instantly spring to my eyes, but I feel no pain. I feel love. Quivering, aching love in every inch of my body as he moves in and out of me. I dig my nails into his back, unable to stop as passion takes over.
He groans from the depths of himself. His hips pulse between my thighs. Our bodies bounce on the bed, grinding together as heat builds between us.
I moan for him, and only him. “Luka.”
He gives me all of him. Each thrust brings me closer to my fall. I close my eyes as my entire body crumbles beneath him.
“Luka—!”
He covers my mouth with his hand. I cry out against his palm as my climax hits harder than ever. His body goes tense as he comes with me, spilling inside until we’re both wet and shaking. Every muscle trembles. Sweat dips off his brow onto mine. He removes his hand from my mouth and kisses me, refusing to stop until we both beg for air.
Luka collapses against my breast. Our hearts pound with a steady rhythm, syncing together as I run my fingers through his hair.
“This is how it should have been,” he says after a while. He gently raises his head and looks me in the eye. “That night in the garden.”
“Maybe,” I say, smiling. I take his hand, and he entwines our fingers. “But I wouldn’t change a thing if it meant I could have this every night until the end.”
Luka pulls my hand closer. “As you wish,” he whispers as he kisses my knuckles.
* * *
“Luka…”
I don’t think I’ll ever grow tired of saying his name.
My thighs twitch around his waist. He keeps his hands on me to hold me up. His lips never leave my skin, wandering from my neck to my collarbone to my face and back again.
I roll my hips, riding his cock as the morning sun spills in from the window above the bed. His grip tightens on me and his warm breath strikes faster as pleasure catches up with him. Watching him, feeling him, pleasing him — it’s all just as satisfying to witness as it is to experience my own climaxes.
I feel him come and I smile as his eyes squeeze closed. He presses his lips against my breasts, grunting and heaving breath after breath until the wave passes through him.
Killer Love Page 13