Isabella

Stephan texted me on the burner phone, instructing me how to escape my property without being seen. I pretended to have a headache so I’d have an excuse to go to bed early. Brian believed my lie. He was downstairs, manning the front door, when I enlisted Carmella’s help to sneak out of the house.

“Mi amore, your father will find out,” she insisted.

“Please, Carm.” I held my hands in front of me, begging her. “I love Stephan. I want to be with him… not Karl. I can’t marry that awful man when my heart belongs to Stephan.”

“I want to help you, believe me I do. But your father will have my head if he knows I helped you in any way.”

“Just watch my back, okay? Can you do that?”

She sucked in a deep breath, and then pulled me into a hug. “Be careful, Isabella. I don’t want to see anything happen to you.”

“My dad is evil, but he would never hurt me.”

She held me at an arm’s length. “I used to think that… until I found something about your brother in Mr. Parisi’s office.”

Just thinking about Mark made my heart sink into my stomach like an anchor hitting the ocean floor. He was the only person who knew what it was like to ride the waves of my father’s career. And now he was gone. Because of that, I no longer felt whole, like a part of me was missing without my brother in my life. Carmella and Stephan were all I had left.

“What did you find?”

“Something I shouldn’t have seen.” She shook her head, as if she wasn’t proud of herself. In all the years I’d known Carmella, she’d never snooped, never spoke ill of my father. “I don’t think Mark killed himself. I knew your brother well, and he was never suicidal. I raised you both, even tended to Mark when he was sick or at his worst. A few days ago, I overheard your father on the phone in his office.”

“And?” I bit the inside of my cheek, nerves bubbling up in my chest. “What did he say?”

“He said with Mark out of the way he could proceed with his plan.” She removed a crumpled piece of paper from her pocket and handed it to me. “And then I found this in the garbage can. I don’t normally go through the garbage, but seeing Paternity Test at the top of the page had caught my attention.”

I unfolded the paper and read the words three times before I could look up at Carmella. My eyes widened along with my mouth. I stared at her in horror, both of us standing in my bedroom unsure of what to say next. A brief silence passed between us, where I tried to process her words.

“My dad wasn’t Mark’s father. How is this possible?”

Carmella shrugged. “Your mother is never home. She may hide her affairs, but she’s been having them for years. Their marriage was about convenience, not love. More like a business arrangement.”

Mark looked like my mother, where I was the spitting image of my father. But I never once considered that Mark wasn’t a Parisi by blood. I glanced at the paper once more to check the date.

“He had the paternity test ordered two weeks before Mark died.”

I thought long and hard and remembered the unusual fight my parents had while Mark was still alive. My parents were arguing over the contract they had agreed upon long before my brother and I were born. She was telling him she’d held up her promise to give him two children, whether or not they were his.

“What if I’m not his, too?” I held the paper with hope, but also fear that he would kill me if that were true.

“Then you would be free,” she whispered.

“It could also make me the next target on his list.” I folded the paper into fours and shoved it into the pocket of my jeans. “What if that’s the reason he wants me to marry Karl Vos? If his entire life was a lie and the media found out, it could hurt his reputation and his campaign. My brother’s death gave him some sympathy points in the polls, but he’s still trailing behind his opponent.”

“He wouldn’t kill you. Two dead children would look a little suspicious, don’t you think?”

“But he could marry me into a wealthy family to get rid of me. I could tell from talking to Karl that I would be treated no different with him. He was cold and arrogant. If I marry Karl, it would be the worst two years of my life. I got a gut feeling from him. He’s just as bad as my dad. Maybe even worse. Why else would he agree to this?”

“I wish I knew the right thing to say.” Carmella stroked my arm with her fingers. “You deserve better than this. Mark did, too. But as long as you sneak around behind your father’s back, you will never be safe. He will punish you for it.”

She was right. But I no longer cared what my father did to me. One night with Stephan was worth his wrath.

I kissed Carmella on the cheek, and she smiled. “Let me worry about your father. I’ve endured him long enough. I can handle him.”

My cell phone buzzed in my pocket. It was Stephan telling me the coast was clear. We’d gone over the position of each camera on my property and the timing of them. I knew how many steps to take, how many seconds to wait. Whether my father still found out or not was of little concern to me.

“I have to go,” I told Carmella, giving her one last smile before I left the bedroom.

Stephan caged me against the wall, claiming my mouth with violent possession. He was hungry for me, my body aching in response to his need. With strong hands he roamed my body, and with each rip of my clothing, before I knew it I was naked and panting when he tore his mouth from mine. His eyes raked over my thighs, and then landed on my bare pussy, until he reached my painfully hard nipples. It was as if he were trying to commit every inch of me to memory. And it killed me. Because for a second, I wondered if this was the last time I would see him.

There was urgency in his actions. But when Stephan licked his lips and said, “Mine,” I melted into him.

“I’m yours,” I breathed against his lips and they parted for me once more.

He hooked his fingers through my curls and lifted me up by my ass with his other hand, moving us toward his bed. This was the first night I was in Stephan’s house. He shared it with Nino, who wasn’t home. For once, we were alone and free to take all the time we needed. But Stephan was in a rush.

He lowered me to the bed and stared down at me as he removed his clothes. “I don’t deserve you,” he said under his breath. “But I can’t stop myself from having you.”

Using my elbows for support, I sat up with my legs spread open for him. “You’re right where you belong. With me.”

He covered my body with his, and his thick cock dug into my thigh when he kissed me. Stephan bit my lip and made a growling sound. It was so primal and sexy my core begged for him to be inside me.

“You’ve always belonged with me.” He grabbed the choker around my neck and tugged hard enough to pull me to him. “But I’m not a good man. I’ve done things you won’t like. I will keep doing them. Because this is how I was raised. I don’t know anything else.”

I pressed my palm to his cheek and looked into his eyes. “I don’t care if you’re a criminal or a cop. In my experience, there’s not much difference between them. Even the good guys are bad.” I ran my thumb over his bottom lip, and he stuck out his tongue to lick me.

A fire blazed behind his beautiful blue eyes. “Mine,” he muttered as he kissed my left breast. “For however long I can keep you.”

His deep, sensual voice sent shivers down my spine. Every inch of my body was on fire from each kiss he left on my skin. But his words struck me like a knife to the chest.

“Keep me. Please, Stephan.” The words barely escaped my lips.

“You know I can’t.” Stephan gazed up at me as he made room for himself between my legs, throwing both of them over his shoulders. He silenced me by sticking out his tongue to make contact with my clit, his eyes finding mine in the process. When he sucked on my clit, two fingers sliding inside me, I moaned his name. My eyes closed for a second from the overwhelming sensation that rocked my core.

“Stephan,” I purred. His breath on my skin felt so good a brush of warmth spread up my legs and arms to my cheeks. My body jerked, the sensation so overwhelming I couldn’t keep still.

“Stop moving…” Stephan squeezed my thighs, “… or I’ll have to tie you down.”

I rocked my hips on purpose, challenging him. He smirked, as if he knew what I was doing, and dropped my legs to slide off the bed. He lifted his tie from the floor. It was a navy-and-light blue mix that matched his eyes. Wanting to give him the fight I knew he craved, I turned over to crawl away from him, up to the head of the bed, when he grabbed both of my legs and pulled me toward him.

“You’re only making me want you more,” he growled, and then climbed into bed with me. After he flipped me over, he pinned my arms together. He held them above my head and bound each of my wrists with the silky fabric, before he tied them to the iron headboard.

“It’s like you were made for me, Isabella.”

The more the taut fabric dug into my wrists the more I writhed beneath him. He resumed his position between my legs, lifting one over his shoulder, while he held the other in the air with his hand. His tongue made contact with my tiny bundle of nerves, hitting every pleasure point at once. I rocked my hips, greedy and hungry for more of his tongue. I wanted more of him, needed more. When it came to Stephan, I could never have enough. He filled the emptiness inside me, made me feel complete.

Even with my arms attached to the headboard, it wasn’t enough to keep me still.

“Tell me,” I screamed, hitting the peak of my climax. “Why won’t you keep me?”

My body trembled from his skilled tongue. A brush of heat rushed over me, my orgasm hit me with a violent force that crashed over me in waves. I was drowning in Stephan, consumed by the high he’d given me. He made me feel alive. Most of all, he helped me forget everything in my life. Even if it was only for a few seconds.

He licked my juices from his mouth and set my legs on the mattress. “There are some things I can’t tell you.” His voice was deep and raspy. “I’m already taking a risk by having you come here.”

Stephan sat back enough to stroke his cock, and my mouth opened in response. “This is what you do to me,” he grunted. “I want to fuck your pretty mouth.”

In answer, I opened my mouth wider.

He straddled my head with his thighs and shoved his thick cock inside, almost choking me. With my hands bound above my head, I submitted to him completely. My eyes watered, tears streaming down my face. His eyes flickered with excitement, and I knew without him saying it aloud that he loved to watch me deep throat every inch of him. Even though I was gasping for air, I loved feeling him. Everywhere.

He pulled out of my mouth, my lips swollen and cracked. They hurt when he dragged his thumb along my bottom lip, but nothing compared to when he slammed his cock into me. Hard, rough, violent, he took from me without warning.

I turned my head to the side and moaned, his tie digging into my skin. He leaned forward, holding my legs against his chest, his cock sliding so far into me that he owned my body. Stephan was a man who claimed his property.

After we both came, he kissed each of my breasts and then stared into my eyes, his cock still inside me. “I wish I didn’t have to take you home. I’m working on a plan. But don’t rush anything. Don’t ask any questions. The less you know, the better.”

I smiled. “I thought you couldn’t keep me.”

“I can’t right now. But that doesn’t mean I don’t want us to be together.” He pressed his lips to mine and gave me a quick peck at the corner of my mouth, before he moved to my cheek and neck.

“I love you,” I whispered, and he stopped his exploration of my body with his mouth.

Stephan’s eyes burned with desire. He cupped my cheek with his hand, a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth. “I love you, too, raven. It’s always been you.”

His fingers caused my skin to tingle when he reached above my head to release my hands. He dangled the tie above me, a smirk on his lips. “This is only the beginning. In time, I will show you everything I like.”

“As long as it’s with you, I’m sure I will love it.” I moved my hands to his back and dug my foot into his ass. He was still hard, his cock growing thicker.

Stephan slid in and out of me so slowly my raw pussy ached with each thrust. He made love to me, soft and sensual as if it were my first time all over again. With Stephan, every moment was special. No matter how hard he liked to fuck, I knew he wanted to be what I needed, what I wanted. He felt as though he didn’t deserve me. But he did. And he showed me by how much he worshiped me.

I hooked my legs around his back, and he kissed me. Each flick of his tongue brought me closer to my release. I came along with him, and this time, it was even more perfect than before. Because he loved me. I loved him. We were one step closer to having it all.

“You’re the first and only girl I’ve ever loved.” He stroked my jaw with his thumb. “I would do anything for you, Isabella. But being together can get both of us killed. What we have is dangerous. Plenty of people want to take it away.”

“They can’t take this away from us, Stephan.” I covered my heart with his hand. “My heart belongs to you. And only you.”

Stephan squeezed my breast with a smile. “And mine belongs to you.”

He moved so slowly inside me that every part of my body sizzled from the heat that pricked my skin. For as much as I loved his rough touch, it was in this moment that I truly felt loved by this man. I clutched the feather charm around my neck and stared into his eyes. My body was slick with sweat. So was Stephan’s. And when he pressed his lips to mine, I could taste his saltiness mixed with my juices.

After Stephan shattered my entire existence, leaving me gasping for breath, he came inside me. Stephan let out a deep breath, his face completely relaxed, and then he slid out of me and rolled onto the other side of the bed.

I curled up against him, and he held me tight in his arms, as if he was afraid to let me go. We had so little time together that what we did have was precious. The thought of being apart made my heart swell with sadness, a few tears sliding down my cheeks.

“Hey, don’t cry, mi amore.” He swiped at my tears with his thumb and then kissed my skin in the same place.

I smiled at his words. “Carmella has been calling me that since I was a baby.”

“You’re my love, too. I promise to take you away from this. I just need you to be patient and wait for me.”

“I will. I would wait twenty years if it meant we could be together without any interference from our families.”

“It won’t be that long. I hope.” He laughed, slipping his fingers through my curls. “But it will take time.”

“Carmella showed me something tonight. Maybe it could help us get away from here.”

Stephan sat up, taking me with him. He leaned against a stack of pillows, his eyes fixed on me. “What did you find?”

“My father had a paternity test done for Mark. He wasn’t his father. The results came in two weeks before Mark’s death.”

He stared at me in shock. “That bastard. I knew something was off about that night. But why would your dad do something so public?”

“I was wondering the same thing. Maybe he was angry that he’d taken a son who wasn’t his under his wing. He’d planned to help Mark run for public office someday. But Mark was always unstable. He had issues that no one could fix. He had a drug problem.” Stephan nodded, and I continued, “It all stemmed from his manic swings. His mood changed all the time. One day, he would be on top of the world and happy, the next he would be in his room sulking or binge drinking and snorting coke.”

“It doesn’t make sense why your dad would want him dead. He could have cut ties with him.”

“My guess is he did it save his re-election campaign. All my dad cares about is winning.”

“We will find a way to beat him. This is a good start. That kind of information could destroy him.”

“Mark’s paternity doesn’t prove anything.”

“It gives your dad motive.” He smirked, his eyes lit up with excitement. “All people would need is a little doubt about your old man to get the vote to swing in favor of his opponent for good. The only way to truly destroy a man is to take what he loves most. And your dad’s is his power.”

My smile mirrored his. “Let’s take that asshole down.”