Page 20 of Mafia And Taken
“Sorry, it’s a pretty nasty bump you’ve got there.”
He ran his fingers around the rest of my scalp. His fingers felt strong and somehow reassured me.
Everything about him was strong. I looked up at his arms and I could see his muscles flexing. I inhaled his scent—a mix of soap and sandalwood. As his fingers massaged my scalp, I sighed and gave into the relaxation radiating from his fingers.
He looked down at my face and paused for a few moments, staring intently at me, before he brushed his lips against mine—softly and without any demands or expectations.
ALESSIO
I pressed my mouth up against her lips, feeling their fullness. And her sweet scent, with its slight hint of berries, enveloped me.
She had stilled, taken aback by what was happening.
I brought my hands up to her narrow shoulders, gently holding her in place so she wouldn’t run from me.
As I lightly brushed my lips against hers again, I heard a small sound escape her lips.
I felt one of her hands reach up and tentatively touch my chest. She parted her lips, and I accepted her invitation, using my tongue to explore her mouth.
She met my tongue with hers, although hesitantly, as if not quite sure what to do.
It reminded me that Cate, as a Mafia daughter, probably hadn’t been kissed before. And that thought pleased me immensely.
Suddenly, I pulled away. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have done that.” My tone was abrupt.
She looked confused, but I couldn’t worry about that right now. This wasn’t how things were supposed to go. I had a job to do, and I needed to get on with it.
“Come on, let’s go for a walk outside. The fresh air will do you good.”
“Okay, um…I’ll just wash my hands and face first.” A blush had spread over her cheeks, and I watched her quickly walk into my bathroom before hearing her turn on the tap.
I don’t know what had made me kiss her.
Something about her had called to my inner desires.
I wasn’t usually impulsive. Normally, I thought through everything I did, weighing up the pros and cons before deciding the best course of action. Today, however, something had made me want to taste her before she could slip from my grasp.
Shaking my head, I dragged my mind back to what I needed to achieve. She’d said a couple of times that she wanted to go home. But if she tried, she would soon find out that she was my prisoner here and that there was no way she was leaving until I got what I needed out of her.
After a couple of minutes, she emerged and didn’t say anything as she followed me downstairs.
“Here, you might want to put on a sweater.” I handed her one of my sweaters, which she pulled on over her top. It was far too big on her petite frame, making her look even more vulnerable. I pushed that thought from my mind—I needed to focus on the task at hand.
We went outside. Our mansion had extensive grounds, plus its own woods and orchard. We walked toward the woods, eventually reaching Danio and Debi’s old treehouse, with its weather-beaten flag blowing in the breeze. The flag had a logo saying ‘Debi and Danio’ around a teddy bear face.
“That flag is cute,” Cate smiled as she looked up at the treehouse.
“Yeah, it is. Marco and I built the treehouse when we all first moved into this house.”
“Your siblings wanted a treehouse?”
“It was my idea—to try and cheer them up. They were grieving the death of our parents and I wanted to do something fun for them.”
She looked at me as if she were trying to figure me out.
As we strolled past the treehouse, I pulled her small hand into mine.
I don’t know what made me do that, but I needed to touch her. I needed her close to me.