Total pages in book: 92
Estimated words: 87704 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 439(@200wpm)___ 351(@250wpm)___ 292(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 87704 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 439(@200wpm)___ 351(@250wpm)___ 292(@300wpm)
Her breath catches, and she fists her hands in my hair, dragging me closer until her mouth crashes back into mine. The kiss is desperate and consuming, raw with everything we’ve fought for. I can feel her trembling slightly in my arms, but she doesn’t pull back. No. She only holds tighter, sinking her teeth into my bottom lip, demanding more.
I let out a low, gravelly groan and give her exactly what she wants, slanting my mouth over hers, drinking her in with deep, drugging kisses. She clings to me, her hands demanding against my skin, gasping softly as the cool water ripples around us, brushing over us in lazy caresses.
“Luca…” she breathes, her voice barely louder than the waves.
And the sound of my name on her lips, fragile and wanting, wrecks me.
I tighten my hold on her, anchoring her hips flush against mine, letting her feel how much I want her. The smooth brush of her thighs around me, her calves tightening with a slow, sensual squeeze, ignites the darkest, hungriest desires in me.
I tip my head back slightly, just enough to look at her, and she stares down at me with wide, unguarded eyes, vulnerable in a way that makes my chest ache. She traces her thumb along my jaw, brushing over the stubble, and her gaze softens, so full of tenderness and trust it nearly brings me to my knees.
“I love you,” she whispers, the words so soft they almost vanish into the ocean air.
But I hear them. Fuck, do I hear them?
They stop my heart and freeze my body, drawing my arms tighter around her, knuckles whitening with the need to hold her closer. My throat works hard against the ache that rises there. She’s said it before, but now, with the stars in her eyes and the sea at our feet, it feels holy.
I cup her face in my hands, my thumbs trembling slightly as they stroke over her cheeks. “Say it again.” My voice is barely there, rough and broken, but she hears it.
She leans in, her mouth brushing against mine, her breath warm and sweet. “I love you, Luca. My husband.”
I close my eyes for a beat, feeling the weight of it—the promise, the gift of it—pour over me like baptism. Like salvation.
Aemelia makes me want to be a better man worthy of her innocence and love. I don’t know what that will mean when we leave this paradise and return to the prison of our lives, but I have a feeling that nothing will remain the same for long.
When I open my eyes, I meet her gaze fiercely, my voice hoarse and cracked from the force of what I feel. “I will never stop loving you. Not for a day, not for a minute. Never.”
And then, I kiss her again as the sky loses the warmth of the day, with the taste of salt forever lingering on our lips.
Day 4
ANTONIO
The night is still, except for the rhythmic lap of the waves against the stilts of our villa. Luca and Alexis left an hour ago to play cards in a bar up the road so that I can spend some time alone with Aemelia. It’s been our arrangement since we arrived, and I’ve relished the intimacy it brought to our time together.
I sit on the edge of the bed, propped against the headboard, legs stretched out in front of me. The silk sheets are bunched around my waist, and Aemelia is tucked into my side, her head resting on my chest. She traces idle patterns against my skin, her fingertip gliding over the small scars and jagged marks that tell the story of my life. A life that existed before her and a life that now only makes sense with her in it.
She runs her finger over a narrow scar just below my ribs, the mark from a knife fight years ago. Her lips brush the raised flesh as if her kiss alone could erase it. I catch her wrist and still her hand, bringing her fingers to my mouth. I press a kiss to each knuckle, reverent and tender. She doesn’t realize how easily she undoes me with a gesture so small.
“You’re quiet,” she whispers, tilting her head back to look at me. “Are you okay?”
I turn to my side, pinning her beneath me. She gasps softly, but her eyes never leave mine. She trusts me. Completely. That knowledge sends a dull ache through my chest. She’ll never know all my sins, but she accepts me as I am—a flawed man in a flawed world. A man who’d do better if my circumstances were different.
“I’m more than okay,” I murmur, brushing a strand of hair away from her face. “I’m wondering how I ever lived without you.”
Her lips part slightly, eyes going soft and glassy. I lower my head, kissing her slowly, deliberately. My hands slide down her sides, revering every inch of her, memorizing the slope of her waist and her skin's warmth.