Page 50 of Poison and Wine
A squeak of alarm escaped my lips as Callum’s hands shot out to grip my waist. While my first instinct was to push him away, I froze under the intimate feeling of his hands on me. When he dragged me against him, my senses became overwhelmed by the nearness of him. The woodsy smell of his cologne that held an aura of power. The lust burning in his blue eyes. The strength of his arms around my waist.
To my surprise, he didn’t slam his lips to mine and take what he was owed. He brought his hands to cup my face. With his thumbs feathering along my jawline, Callum tenderly brushed his lips against mine. At first, fear froze me. I’d only had one other man kiss me, and it had been hurried and clumsy. But Callum wasn’t an inexperienced teenager. He was a man who exuded sexual prowess.
After a few seconds of tenderness, he crushed his lips to mine. A pleasant jolt hummed through my body at the feeling of his mouth on mine. When Callum thrust his tongue into my mouth, my fear short-circuited into desire, sending a shudder through my body. My arms, which had been frozen at my side, encircled his waist. As Callum’s tongue swirled along with mine, I gripped the back of his suit jacket, tugging him closer against me.
This surge of desire and intense emotion at the feel of his kiss was extremely pleasurable. I had no idea it would be like this. That I could enjoy kissing Callum. As our tongues battled against each other, the heat building between my legs turned into an inferno. I hadn’t desired a man sexually since I entered the order.
But I did now.
Even though he had kidnapped me and forced me into marriage, I wanted Callum. I wanted his fingers and tongue on my body. I wanted his cock buried inside me. I wanted him to claim every part of me.
The sound of whistling and appreciative male laughter broke through the spell, dousing whatever desire I’d felt. I pulled my arms away from Callum’s back and brought them to his chest. As I tore my lips from his, I shoved him away.
At the sight of his cocky smirk, my fingers itched to slap him. His arrogance was not what I wanted to see after we’d shared such an intimate moment. I wanted what I was feeling to be reflected in his face.
“Did my lips deceive me, or were you kissing me back just now?” he teased.
My reaction frustrated me both with myself and him. Since I didn’t want to give him any satisfaction, I refused to respond. With his lips next to my ear, he added, “Since I had you practically purring from just a kiss, Kitten, I can’t wait to see what you do when I put my mouth on your pussy.”
“Don’t flatter yourself, pig.”
“You know you liked that kiss.” He jerked his thumb at Seamus and his brothers. “Hell, even they know you liked that kiss.”
Embarrassment overwhelmed me at the thought of the others witnessing our kiss. Although part of me wanted to sprint inside to escape the humiliation, I held my ground. “Can we please sign the registry and be done with this?”
“Of course, Kitten.” With a wink, Callum added, “After a kiss like that, I’m at your mercy for the rest of the day.”
Chapter Fourteen: Caterina
With both trepidation and a peculiar sense of anticipation, I watched as the ink dried on the marriage license bearing both Callum’s and my names. When I tore my gaze from the document to Callum’s, he gave me a genuine smile. “Ready to go home?”
I knew he referred to Boston, not New York. After I’d joined the order, New York was no longer home for me. It possessed too many bad memories as well as monsters who could hurt me. For the second time that day, I repeated, “Ready as I’ll ever be.”
“Go get changed. Nera and the guards have been packing up for us. We’ll leave in the next hour or two.”
I nodded before heading up the stairs. When I got into the bedroom, Nera was closing a suitcase that Callum must’ve purchased for me. At my appearance in the doorway, she smiled. “I left out a dress and a pair of shoes for you.”
“Apparently my new husband likes me in dresses since that’s all he bought for me,” I mused.
“The boss said to buy them because he wasn’t sure if you’d been allowed to wear pants for a long time.” She gave me a knowing look. “He wanted to make sure you were comfortable.”
“That was kind of him,” I replied softly. Once again, it was hard imagining the man who had kidnapped me and forced me into marriage could be thoughtful and compassionate. As much as I hated to admit it, he’d been more considerate than cruel.
“It was.”
Turning my back to her, I asked, “Would you do me the honors again?”
“It would be my pleasure.”
Just as Nera started with the first button, Callum burst through the door. At my sharp intake of breath, he barked, “We have to go. Now!”
“What’s happened?”
“Your father and some of his Sicilian relatives are on the way.”
As my eyes widened, Nera’s hand came over her mouth. “Are my brothers with my father?” I asked.
“No. They’re in Palermo.”