Page 72 of Mafia Obsession

My breath stutters. “I… Uh…”

His cock pulsing with lingering drops of water. “And yet, I’m willing to wait to be inside you. But this is what waits for you when you accept what power you have over me.”

“I… Well,” I continue to stutter. I want him to be crazy. Unbound and unhinged.

If I can survive that.

“And just so you’re aware, I get tested before and after any sexual arrangement. I’m clean, Lourdes. When you submit to me, I will take you bare.” He fists his cock. “Are you on birth control?”

My body tingles with how real this just got. “No.”

“Then I’ll make the proper adjustments. I have no intention to impregnate you against your will.”

“Do you want children at all?” I ask, fighting for every breath as he stands there naked.

“Not a topic for right now.” He strides toward me, and it’s like a tree coming at you.

I’m shadowed by his height and girth. The heat of him envelops me, and I don’t know how long I’ll hold out before I lie down and spread my legs for him.

He’s so close I can smell the soap and a hint of spicy lotion. “But for some reason, you make me want things I never thought I’d want.”

Then he casually disappears into his closet as if he didn’t just detonate something inside my chest.

My pulse pounding in my ears, I still have to get dressed. I grab a black bikini and a lightweight pale blue sundress and take them in the bathroom to get ready for our day on the boat.

Inside, I press my back against the door. The mirror reflects my flushed cheeks and wide eyes. My heart is racing, not just from Ares’s naked body, but from how controlled and intense he is. Sex with David was routine, uninspired, from what I can remember. I’m certain that with Ares, it will be anything but. I worry if I’ll be able to satisfy him.

I strip from my nightgown and step under the shower,letting the warm water calm me. I finish and dry off with the softest towel ever. Getting ready to slip my arms through the bikini top, I notice the bra cups are lined with shiny beads. I look closer. Oh God, are those diamonds?

“Holy shit.”

The string bikini bottom sits high on my hips and low in the front. It’s trimmed with another row of diamonds. The top offers a good eyeful of my cleavage, but covers enough that I feel supported and comfortable. But as little as it covers, it looks classy.

Just not very conservative, yet I remind myself that Europeans often sunbathe topless. Americans have stamped shame on nudity.

I twirl around admiring myself in the mirror. Satisfied, I pull the sundress over my body and head out of the bathroom.

Ambling to Ares’s closet, I peek inside. He’s buttoning up a linen short-sleeved shirt to go with his salmon-colored linen shorts when he sees me.

“Do you want something?” he asks.

Yes. You.

“Is this okay for the boat?” I finger the dress.

His eyes rake up and down my body. Slowly, he moves toward me and grabs hold of my chin. “It’s more than okay. It’s perfect.”

Chapter 26

Ares

Lourdes and I greet Elani in the salon, watering indoor plants. She asks what we would like for breakfast and also what she could pack for our boat trip. My phone beeps repeatedly with incoming texts during the exchange, and it’s hard not to grumble. I mute my cell, but my phone continues to vibrate with more incoming messages.

I suspect Daria has urgent news about David. Lourdes strikes up a conversation with Elani, so I step onto one of the terraces to call Daria.

“Have you located Sinclair?” I ask when she picks up.

“The tag suggests he’s driving around hunting your assassin, Quinlan.”