CHAPTER 38
After the monitors confirmed that Kate’s breathing was normal, Dottor Beltrami released her, and Enrico and Ruggero took her home.
Kate and Enrico were finally in bed, freshly showered and curled around each other, when she said, her voice soft, “Tell me about the judge and his family.”
“To prove my innocence, I have to confess to something else.”
She raised her head, one hand pressed against her chest. She wasn’t going to like this, was she? “What happened?”
He sighed. “It is a sad story. And I am not proud of it.”
She held his eyes. “I need to know the truth, no matter how ugly.”
“If you insist.” He sat up and settled against the pillow behind his back. “One of my men, Sergio Grantini, thought he could play both sides. He started working for Carlo as well. When Carlo and I both came up for indictment before Judge Dinelli, Carlo saw his chance to escape the charges and put me in jail.”
“How does Sergio fit in?”
“Sergio’s gun—with his prints on it—would be used to kill the judge and planted at the scene. Sergio would ask for immunity in return for testifying against me. He would say I ordered the hit.”
“How did you find out about this?”
“Sergio started driving a car he could not possibly afford, so Ruggero had him tailed. When he learned Sergio was meeting with Carlo, we questioned him. He confessed it all. In exchange, he asked for mercy for his family.”
“What about Dom’s family? You’re not—”
“Of course not! They are my family too.” He hissed in frustration. “I considered letting him go tonight. That is how much of a monster I am.”
Kate stroked his bare shoulder. “I’m sorry. It’s just…” She shook her head. “You live such a different life. I’m still getting used to it.”
He crossed his arms. “I wish you had more faith in me. I am not Carlo.”
Kate’s eyes pricked with tears. “I know.” She kissed his cheek. “I do know it.”
He let out a breath, then put an arm around her, pulling her close. But her mind wouldn’t shut off. “Where is Sergio buried?”
“He is at the bottom of the lake, weighted down. I am sure there is nothing but bones now.”
She glared at him. “You say that so cavalierly.”
“Was I supposed to go to jail for something I did not do? He betrayed me.” He took a breath, then his voice lost all traces of anger. “Dom accused me of being softhearted when I spared Sergio’s family. And perhaps I was. But they were innocents.”
She held his gaze. He was still holding something back. “It occurs to me you benefit otherwise by keeping them alive.”
“What?” he asked, startled.
“As long as they’re alive, it looks like Sergio has run off. That he wasn’t executed as a traitor.”
“That was part of my thinking.” He eyed her. “Maybe Dom was right. Maybe you were working for Carlo.” The lightness in his voice told her he was joking.
“I’m not an idiot.”
“Far from it. The way your mind works, it is as if you were born to do this.”
Kate didn’t want to agree, but she couldn’t argue. “What if Sergio’s boy discovers what you’ve done?”
Enrico shrugged. “He will have the right to vendetta. But only Ruggero, you, and I know what happened, now that Dom is dead.”
“Surely, someone else knows. Who tailed Sergio? Your men aren’t stupid.”
“But they are well-paid.”
“It wasn’t enough for Sergio.”
“It should have been.”
Kate sighed and scrubbed her hands through her hair. “How can you stand it? You can never trust anyone.”
When he didn’t answer, she looked at him. He had the oddest expression on his face. “What?” she asked softly.
“That is why I need you, Kate. I need someone I can trust unequivocally.”
She held his eyes. “So do I.”
Neither one said anything for a while, then she said, “There’s something I still don’t understand. How does Sergio’s death prove you didn’t order the hit?”
“Because he was dead before it happened.”
“So how did Carlo have the gun?”
“The plan was never for Sergio to participate. Carlo did not want to chance Sergio’s getting killed if the judge’s guards got lucky. He needed Sergio to testify. But there was one thing wrong with Carlo’s plan. My men and Carlo’s always wear gloves, and they wipe the guns before dropping them. No one is so sloppy they leave fingerprints.”
Kate nodded. “Yes, that’s an obvious flaw.”
“But not to a man like Fuente. Even though it is clearly a frame, he will never admit it.”
Fuente. It still came back to him. Was there any way to get him to see Rico’s side? “Tell me, what would you have done about the judge if Carlo hadn’t intervened?”
“The judge was an inconvenient person,” Enrico admitted. “Very inconvenient. Immune to bribes and other sorts of pressures.”
“What pressures?”
Enrico pursed his lips. “Threats. He was not afraid to die.”
“So what would you have done?”
“Kidnapping. His son. No man can resist once the threat to his family is real.” He squeezed her shoulder. “The boy would not have been harmed.”
Kate shook her head. “It’s still a terrible thing to do.”
“Not when there is no other reasonable alternative.”
“How about leaving the ’Ndrangheta?”
She still didn’t understand. After all this time… would she ever? He sighed. “It is unthinkable. And inescapable. As long as I live, I am a threat. Think of all I know. The ’Ndrangheta cannot—and will not—let me walk away. Ever. I can never leave this life. All I can do is live it according to my terms, my code. And try to impress that code upon my men and my successor. That is all I can hope for.”
“You make it sound almost honorable.”
“I am not afraid to face God. I’ve confessed my sins; I have atoned. My conscience is clear.”
“The first commandment doesn’t have an escape clause.”
“I have never killed a civilian. I have never killed unnecessarily.” He motioned around him, indicating the house and its furnishings. “And God has rewarded me for what I have done.”
Kate was appalled. “You think God had a hand in this?”
“He punishes the wicked and rewards the just.”
“Beware the righteous man,” she whispered.
He touched her cheek. “I did not say I was innocent. I have sinned. Many times. I’ve broken the first commandment. But God knows why I have done so.”
Kate smiled. Enrico was perhaps the first person of her acquaintance who used the phrase “God knows why” and meant it literally. His belief comforted her. It meant he had limits on his behavior, some complicated system of checks and balances she might never understand. But she trusted that the system existed, that his code existed.
“Do you trust me?” he asked. She nodded, and he tilted her chin up to look in her eyes. “Do you understand?” She felt he was asking for absolution.
Her mouth was so dry her voice cracked when she answered. “I think I do.”
His face relaxed, and his gaze fell to her lips for a second, then he looked into her eyes again. “Do you still love me?”
Kate’s chest constricted. “How could you ever doubt it?”
“Well, you did throw yourself into the clutches of a suspected traitor to get away from me.”
She smiled. “Can I blame it on the pregnancy hormones?”
“I have heard they can make one a bit excitable.”
She leaned forward and wrapped her arms around his neck. “Thanks for trusting me with this.” Her lips brushed his in a feathery touch that sent a thrill of electricity through her.
“I don’t know what I’d do if you didn’t love me.” He pulled her onto his lap. “I’d be lost.” Then he kissed her, his tongue invading her mouth when she parted her lips.
“Rico,” she murmured when he let her breathe. It was the only word she could think of.
He kissed down her throat. Then he paused. “Is it too soon?”
She shook her head and laughed. “Never for this. But are you up to it? I’ve at least had a nap.”
He took her hand and placed it over the bulge at his crotch. She could feel his hardness through the layers of blankets and sheets, and she ran her fingers along its length. “Does that answer your question?” He kissed and nipped at her neck.
“More than adequately,” she teased.
He flipped her on her back and started to push up her negligee, kissing her throat, when he suddenly stopped and looked her in the eyes. The expression on his face was strange, almost angry. “What is it?”
“I do not know if I should say this.” He evaded her eyes.
“What’s bothering you?”
He sighed. “This whole time, other than our first night together, I have been walking on eggshells with you, coaxing you.”
“I hadn’t realized.” She stroked his hair. “Is there something I can do?”
He nodded, his face reddening. “I had not wanted to mention it, but I have felt a little… frustrated. I have not asked for what I want.”
She’d been so selfish, so wrapped up in her own head. Pulling him down to her, she kissed him on the lips. “I’m sorry. I hadn’t considered how you felt at all.”
“It is all right. I just want us to be equals when we make love.”
She smiled. “Is that really what you want? For us to be equals?”
He held her gaze, going utterly still, something about the look on his face making Kate hold her breath. She waited, but he only watched her, saying nothing. What was troubling him? Had she hit the truth with her wisecrack? She stroked his jaw. “You’ve been my slave more than once. Perhaps it’s time I was yours?”
He grinned then and relaxed. “I did not know you could read minds.”
“You have but to ask.” She traced a hand from his shoulder down his back to his waist, feeling the cords of muscles beneath her hands. He was so strong, this man of hers, and yet he’d been so completely at her mercy. So afraid of losing her, he’d held himself back, even in this one place where there should be no secrets. That ended today. “So tell me, is there anything in particular you want?”
He hesitated. “I don’t know the word for it in English.”
“Describe it.”
His face flushed with color again. “That first time, you put your mouth on me.”
She laughed at his blush. He was such a good Catholic boy. “You want a blow job?”
He looked a little puzzled. “I do not recall you blowing on it.”
“No. But that’s what it’s called. I’ll show you.”
“I’d like to stand while you do it.” He rolled off her and met her eyes. Still looking for approval.
“Rico, I’m your slave. Tell me and I’ll do it. I trust you.”
A glint came into his eyes then. He stood up, pulled a pillow off the bed, and dropped it at his feet. “On your knees.”
Kate grinned at the obvious delight on his face. She took her time getting up, enjoying the heat of his gaze upon her. Standing before him, she rose up on her toes and brushed her mouth against his, then she moved her lips to his jaw, kissing along the edge of it until she reached his ear. She breathed into it, a little moan that made him clutch her waist, his hard cock jutting into her belly. Smiling to herself, she continued lower, kissing down the side of his neck, her lips at last reaching the smooth skin below the stubble of his beard. There she kissed and licked him, nuzzling his tanned skin for a moment, breathing in his scent.
She stepped back, breaking his hold, and pulled the negligee off. He tweaked the nipple of her right breast, then leaned down to suckle it. Fire tore through her at his touch, and she had to close her eyes. She savored the feeling, enjoying it when he cupped her left breast in his other hand and gave it attention too. Then she pulled away. “This is about you, remember?”
He smiled. “Having your breasts in my mouth is one of my favorite things.”
“You’ll have plenty of time to enjoy them in the future.” She kissed and licked his firm flat pecs, her tongue tracing around his nipples. He inhaled at the contact and she made a mental note to do that again next time.
Continuing her exploration, she sank to her knees and kissed his belly, her tongue tracing the ridges of his abs. She avoided the bruising on his left side. Had they ever made love when neither one was injured? She smiled against his skin, kissing him just above the swirl of his navel. Their course to true love certainly hadn’t run smooth.
She brushed her hand over his cock, running her fingers up and down its length as he shuddered. Looking up at him, she took the root of it in her hand, her thumb teasing the underside of his hard flesh.
When he met her eyes, she took him in her mouth, just the tip, her tongue swirling around the head. Hearing him moan, she would have grinned if she could have. Widening her mouth, she eased down, swallowing more of his length. She couldn’t take it all, but she’d make sure he enjoyed what she could do.
Popping him out of her mouth, she ignored his little sounds of protest, and instead ran the flat of her tongue up and down the vein along the underside of his cock. He moaned and thrust up a little. He certainly liked that. She made another mental note. There was much about Rico she had yet to learn.
Taking him in her mouth again, she lavished attention on the head, giving him all the gratification he’d given her so many times before. Then she began a slow descent, engulfing as much of him as she could, pleased by his groans and the feel of his fingers twining in her hair. How could she have neglected his pleasure for so long? She had a lot of catching up to do.
The feel of her mouth, her tongue, was pure heaven as she resumed working on him, speeding up her movements. After what had happened with Vincenzo, he’d feared asking Kate for anything, he’d feared making any demands on her at all. He’d feared reminding her that he had needs too. But if he trusted her, he had to be honest. Fear was not the heart of love; trust was. Honesty was. Faith was.
When he was getting close to the peak, he took her head in his hands, resisting the urge to thrust the way his cock urged him to. He didn’t want to come in her mouth, not this time. “Enough.” He was breathing hard, each inhale and exhale reminding him of the cracked ribs, though the pain was but a dull ache compared to the pleasure she was giving him. He’d endure it, he’d endure anything to have her. To be with her. To love her.
She sat back on her heels and stroked her fingers along his thighs. “What now?”
“I want to take you from behind.”
“Like this?” She got down on her hands and knees.
“Yes, but on the bed.”
She crawled up on the mattress and presented herself to him, feeling how wet she was from sucking him. She looked at him over her shoulder, her discomfort at being in this position making her seek eye contact, reassurance.
He stood behind her, his hands kneading her hips, then one slipped down between her legs and investigated her dripping pussy, two fingers sliding into her easily. “So wet,” he murmured, leaning down and kissing her just above the crack of her buttocks.
She pushed back onto his hand, biting her lip to keep from groaning. “It’s been too long.”
“And whose fault is that?” he asked, his tone light. His hand moved up to her clit, and he massaged it between two fingers, making her groan.
“Mine, all mine. I admit it.”
He laughed, then kissed her again at the base of her spine, his breath warm on her skin. His hand left her and his erection nudged at her opening. She pressed herself onto him, arching to give him the best angle. He sank into her, both of them catching their breath at the sensation.
He worked in and out of her, withdrawing to his tip before diving back in, but his movements were slow, frustratingly so. Kate soundlessly begged him to speed up, to satisfy the need deep within her for something raw and urgent, but his movements remained teasing, taunting. She clenched her muscles around him, even urging him out loud to fuck her, but his only answer was a sharp smack on her buttocks. He was going to kill her with this. Every plunge of his cock was a sweet torture.
Her climax was building, but she would need something faster to reach her release. They both would. Finally, it came to her. What he wanted, what he needed to hear. What she needed to say. “I love you, Rico.”
Hearing those words unleashed something inside him. “Ti amo, cara.” The words tore out of him as he gave himself over to the silent pleading of her hips, to the contractions of her inner walls as she gripped and released him. He could feel she was lost like he was, utterly lost to this, to their pleasure, to the joy of being together.
He pulled her hips more firmly against him and delved deeper, abandoning himself to his desire to pound into her flat out, his breathing growing ragged with the effort to prolong their pleasure, to make the experience last. He never wanted to forget this moment. When she stopped fighting them both. When he started trusting her not to run.
She rocked beneath him, enjoying the searing pleasure of each thrust, each plunge he made into the very core of her. They were joined. They were one. And she would never leave him again.