“Oh my God, no. Holy crap, this is something else. I’ve never worn anything so extravagant. Fuck, I can’t. Finnegan, I’ll lose it—oh wow, it’s heavy. I love it so much, but I’m legit afraid of it. Or afraid of myself. What if I drop it? It’s so cute.”

I chuckled at her frenetic rant and got comfortable in the corner of the couch.

“Seriously.” She crawled up into my lap, mesmerized by the ring on her finger. So was I, but for another reason. It filled me with possessiveness to see it there. It looked right. Perfect, even. “This is scary.”

I took her hand and kissed the top of it. “In a good way, I hope.”

“As long as I don’t lose it.”

“The diamond’s insured. Don’t worry about it.”

I’d grown antsy waiting for her to finish her bath, so I’d taken a shower to pass the time. Then I’d gotten the soup and fresh rolls that Ian had prepared in the main house before spending a solid twenty minutes pacing and clearing the couch of her shit. So it was possible I’d gotten the ring on her finger the minute she’d reemerged from the bathroom wearing my boxer shorts, a tee big enough to drown in, and her hair in a damp, untidy bun at the top of her head.

She’d never looked more adorable and naturally beautiful.

“You should eat.” I kissed her forehead and patted her stomach. “I can hear it snarling, you know.”

She grinned self-consciously. “I’ll eat when I can stop staring at this.” She stuck her ring in my face, and I laughed. “What’s this cut called? Emerald?”

“Cushion.” I made a decent art thief, but I knew a whole lot more about jewelry. And I’d wanted something special and rare for Emilia. I’d had help from two designers to find the perfect gems. In the end, I’d chosen a pale blue cushion-cut diamond surrounded by tiny stones in a diamond-encrusted platinum band. If I had any say, it would never leave Emilia’s finger.

She bit her lip and lifted a brow. “Did you steal this?”

I coughed around a laugh and squeezed her to me. “No, you little shite, I didn’t steal it.”

“I had to ask!”

Down to chuckles, I lifted her off of me so she could get some damn food into her stomach. If my suspicion was correct, she hadn’t eaten since lunch in school.

“Crap!” She shot right up and stared at me in alarm, and that was how easily my heart jumped up into my throat. “I was supposed to work today!”

Jesus Christ, she couldn’t scare me like that. “Sit the fuck down, woman.” I took a calming breath. “You don’t work there any longer. All that is over and done with. Work, school, you name it.”

She sat down, processing, and it was as if she couldn’t grasp what I was saying.

“We’ll get the paperwork sorted next week,” I promised her. “This late into the semester, I reckon summer school or holding off a few months would be best, but I can make some calls if you wanna graduate this May.”

“I don’t care right now,” she whispered. “I’m really quitting all of it?”

“All of it,” I confirmed. “It’s done.” Scooting forward, I opened the containers from Ian and was glad it still seemed warm. “Remember I wanted to take you to Philly this weekend?”

She nodded hesitantly.

“What would you say about staying there?” I asked. I handed her a container of broccoli cheddar soup and a spoon. “We can ease into it if you want. Stay here sometimes and in the city sometimes.” I’d be more than okay with that. With my folks moving out here soon, I needed to see Pop often enough for when we discussed Italy. As long as I had more access to Philly than I had right now, I’d be golden.

“And you have a place in the city too…?”

I nodded. “I have a condo in the same building as Patrick in downtown Philly.”

She ate a couple spoonfuls of soup, her gaze never really leaving mine. “What you’re saying is we could be living in the city within a few days.”

She was too cute. “Yes, Emilia. Within twenty-four hours, technically.”

“Let’s do that.”

She sure as fuck wanted to get away from here. And no one could blame her.

“Consider it done.” I kissed her cheek before tucking into my meal. It’d been hours since I ate, so I was gonna fill up on bread. A bowl of soup didn’t cut it. I was a growing boy. “Will you be ready to sit down with lawyers anytime soon?”

She knew what I was talking about, and she was less hesitant now. “Yes. I’m ready.”

Maybe a little too ready. After everything she’d been through, I’d have to make sure she didn’t overwhelm herself in her excitement to get away from her old life.

“I take it we’re getting married soon?” Emilia questioned.

There was no way to beat around the bush with this. The sooner, the better. “Uh, yeah. However soon you and my mother can put together a wedding.” I’d have to speak to Father O’Malley. They took Pre-Cana classes seriously in our church, and I was going to renegotiate those a bit. No way I’d sit through months of premarital counseling.

“Don’t look so constipated, Finnegan. I know what I’m getting myself into.”

I choked around a mouthful of soup and reached for a napkin. Oh, how I fucking doubted she knew what she was getting herself into, but fair enough. I could be more direct if she wanted.

“It’s gonna be a big wedding,” I admitted. “I guess I don’t want you to change your mind.”

“And go back to what I fought myself out of today?” She shook her head. “I’d rather kill myself. You have a big family, and you surround yourself with lowlifes. I’m counting on a packed church.”

“Lowlifes,” I muttered and bit into a roll. “That’s harsh, princess.”

“Cry about it.” She smirked. “#MobstersArePeopleToo.”

I let out a laugh, wondering if life could ever get dull with her by my side. “You’re the one marrying a man you call a mobster. What does that say about you?”

“Oh, there’s no hope for me.” She was being lighthearted about it, so I went with it. I didn’t correct her. “Okay, so you said your mom and I are gonna plan this thing. Does that mean you don’t care about the hows and wheres?”

“My wedding won’t be a snooze-fest, so I’ll be in charge of the music. The where is already taken care of. I’ll talk to our priest on Sunday.”

She cocked her head. “Are we going to church?”

“If you don’t mind.”

“No, that’s okay.” She dished up some more soup and dipped her bread in the spoon. What a weird technique. “Sarah helped me download a couple games on my phone. I can feed my fishies or crush candy.”

My mouth twitched in amusement. “You’re not religious one bit, are you?”

“I’m really not. If I were, I’d have to say God is a narcissistic dick.”

“Don’t hold back,” I chuckled.

“What about you?” She eyed me curiously. “Do you believe in all of it? The sins, the Commandments, the—”

“No.” It made me happy that she asked questions rather than dismissed it. “The men who wrote the Bible are just that, men. They have no more credibility than any man today who claims to speak for God.”

“Hmm. Okay. So who decides what’s right and wrong?”

“The law, mostly, in terms of what gets you behind bars,” I replied, a smirk tugging at my lips. “And sometimes I’m wrong.”

She grinned. “You don’t say.”

I laughed through my nose and tried to phrase it better. My faith was, after all, important to me, and I wanted her to get it. “Look. You’ll find enough contradictions in the Bible to make anyone lose their mind. Luckily, God gave us the ability to choose our path.”

Father O’Malley told us the law was for society to follow. Faith and the scriptures were matters of the heart.

“So you chose neither of those.”

“I fucking swear,” I chuckled. “I’ll give you that one, but I’m gonna try to make you understand sometime.”

“I don’t outright reject religion, Finnegan.” She smiled. “Faith can be both a burden and a strength, but no, I don’t get how a man who breaks the law for a living can be religious.”

I narrowed my eyes. “Allegedly breaks the law.”

“Right.” She gigglesnorted.

* * *

“You seem…different.” I wasn’t complaining—far from it—though it did raise some questions.

Ever since she woke up, she’d been affectionate, in a good mood, and open to discussing a future in which she shared her life with my family and me. Sure, that future would be only three years on paper. For now. Somehow, I’d get her to change her mind. Still, she’d been so repulsed by the notion before.

Now she was cuddled up in my lap. We bickered about the Netflix selection and fought for the last Rolo. I got the last chocolate; she got to pick the movie.

“I’m gonna ride this relief for as long as I can.” She yawned and played with the drawstrings of my sweatpants. “Just the thought of never going back makes me wanna jump up and down.”

I gave her a squeeze and pressed a kiss to her shoulder. “I’ll keep you safe and happy.”

She tilted her head back and smiled sleepily. “I believe you.”

Every time we were this close, I swore I’d never seen anyone so beautiful. It was crazy. She literally had the ability to make my breath hitch, and it didn’t bode well for me. I had to keep my head clear.

I stroked her cheek and kissed her. “You should get some sleep.” It was already the middle of the night, and unlike me, she’d been on her feet all day and gone through hell.

“Can we stay here? It’s cozy.”

“Sure.” I reserved the right to move her off of me when my thighs couldn’t handle her pert ass anymore.

We watched most of the movie that’d already started, then dozed on and off for a few hours. Every time I woke up, we were in a new position, though we stayed tangled together.

I winced. My neck was at an uncomfortable angle, and Emilia was lying on top of me.

The TV had been shut off at some point.

With a grunt, I positioned her next to me instead, regretting that we hadn’t slept upstairs.

In the low, predawn light, Emilia’s face was cast in shadows and blues. Her skin was free of blemishes and lines, and she looked peaceful. Her eyelashes almost touched her cheeks. She had the softest fucking skin… Why could I never keep my hands off of her? Even now, as she slept, I had to touch her. I traced the shape of her cute nose with a finger, causing her to twitch.

“Jerk,” she whispered.

I grinned sleepily and nuzzled her jaw. “I didn’t mean to wake you.”

The corners of her kissable mouth twisted up, and she slipped a leg between mine. “Then don’t stick your fingers in my face.” She opened her eyes slowly and blinked a couple times. “Hi.”

“Hey.” I adjusted the shitty pillow we shared. “Next time we sleep down here, we’ll prepare better.” We could’ve at least brought down the duvet.

“I’m perfectly comfortable.”

“Because you’re not six foot three, you midget. You fit under this pathetic excuse for a blanket. My feet are freezing.”

Her eyes sparked with amusement. “You’re cranky in the morning.”

I scowled. I wasn’t cranky. That was the last word I’d use to describe me.

Emilia took the opportunity to get on top of me again, and I could admit I made a noise of complaint. My back ached, and the discomfort had robbed me of my morning wood. If she was going to sit on me like that, I preferred to be hard.

“I never thanked you for coming to get me yesterday.” She splayed her hands on my chest as I stretched out as much as I could.

“You don’t have to thank me for that.” I stroked her thighs absently, enjoying my view. “Have I told you how stunning you are?”

She grinned and ducked her head. “You have. You’ve given me a lot of compliments.”

“Each of them true,” I murmured.

“Maybe…” She leaned down and kissed me softly. “You made me stutter the first time I saw you.”

I remembered. I figured it was because she’d recognized me.

“I think I hated you a little extra because you’re so handsome.” She made me shiver with that one, or maybe it was her tongue teasing mine. “Hot,” she whispered, “sexy…”

Well, fuck me. She seduced me like a pro, making me crave her. Needing more of her, I slipped my hands underneath her boxer shorts, not stopping until I finally got to feel her delectable little ass. Skin-on-skin, I caressed and grabbed at her ass cheeks as we made out like teenagers.

Funny how she made me forget the soreness in my back.

She moved. It was on purpose. I groaned into the kiss when she shifted over my hardening cock, and I had to growl a warning.

She couldn’t realize just how sexually repressed I was.

“Careful, princess.”

She broke the kiss and sat up, and I tried to collect my breath.

She watched me with mischief in her eyes until the playfulness faded and morphed into something heavier. Grasping the bottom of her tee, she pulled it over her head and dropped it…somewhere. I had no goddamn clue where, ’cause fuck me twice.

“Jesus fuck.” I sat up and gripped her waist. “You know you’re not obligated to do anything, right?”

“I know.” She cupped my cheek and kissed me, visibly nervous but turned on. I could feel her. She shimmied her hips over me, and I watched goose bumps appear on her arms.

I shuddered and extended the invisible leash. Up until the day I married her, I only had one limit. She might have others, so she’d have to run this show before—oh, fuck it. There was no way I could surrender control. I kissed her slowly, tasting her, and stroked the soft skin under her breasts.

Emilia lifted my T-shirt next, and I broke the kiss long enough to take it off. Then I was back, hungrier than ever, and I let instinct take over. I cupped the undersides of her breasts, ghosting my fingers over her nipples, and they tightened under my touch. Her breathing hitched. Our kiss grew wilder, and I had to remind myself to breathe.

“Finnegan…” Her breathless plea shot straight to my cock.

I groaned and buried my face against her neck as she squirmed on my lap, and I couldn’t take it. I flipped her over onto her back, ignoring her squeak, and pushed my cock against her pussy. The pressure built up. The air felt thick.

Pinching one nipple carefully, I closed my mouth over the other and sucked. Emilia gasped and arched her back, so I took it as a good sign. I flicked my tongue over the peak, then around it, and I was pretty sure this was more for me than her. I’d seen her cleavage in nice dresses, I’d seen her nipples teasing the fabric of my tees, and I’d thought about having her under me like this more times than I could count.

She moaned every time I went harder, sending ripples of desire through me.

I needed more.

“I want you to touch yourself,” I murmured huskily. At her half-dazed, half-confused expression, I grabbed her jaw and kissed her hard. She just looked too delicious when she was turned on. “Slip a hand down your panties and touch yourself the way you do when no one’s around.”

She flushed in embarrassment, unconvinced. “You’d watch?”

I nodded slowly and looked down between us. Everything about her called to me. From her cute feet and toned legs, to the curves of her hips, stomach, and tits. Then her beautiful face… She was Italian grace and fire, and she didn’t even know it.

“Every second of it.”

She shuddered violently and gave a small nod. “Okay. If you do it too.”

She was a goddamn dream. I kissed her once more, then sat back on my heels between her legs. There was no modesty in my DNA, so I pushed down my boxer briefs unceremoniously and skimmed my fingers alongside the back of my cock.

“Holy fuck.” Her breathing became unsteady, and she scooted farther up to use the armrest as a pillow. “Or I can just watch you?”

I let out a breathy laugh and shook my head. “No dice.”

The discomfort didn’t leave her, yet she didn’t hesitate anymore. She squirmed her way out of her panties, and I had to stifle a groan at the sight of her glistening pussy. My cock throbbed, and I swiped my thumb over the slit to spread the pre-come.

“Use your left hand.” I barely recognized my own voice. Maybe a part of me was in disbelief that this was even happening. “I wanna see your ring when you get yourself off.”

I wanted to fucking come on it.

I inhaled deeply, filling my lungs with the smell of sex.

Emilia broke eye contact and slid a hand down her body, her middle finger disappearing between the smooth lips. The rock on her finger glinted with each little movement, and I fisted my cock and stroked it unhurriedly.

“Will you let me fuck you one day?” I couldn’t not touch her. My free hand went to the inside of her thigh, and it was just as silky as I’d hoped. “Taste you?”

“Yes,” she whispered. “Oh God.” She trembled when I brushed my fingers along the soft crease where her thigh ended. Two of her fingers dipped farther down, then up and around her clit.

“You’re out of this world, princess.” I stroked myself a little faster, unable to look away from her. It was the headiest moment I’d experienced so far, and it made me all the more impatient to give her my name.

She exhaled a moan and rolled her hips. “I’m—it’s not easy with my left. Can I—”

“Let me help.” Something inside me snapped, and I was back to hovering over her. “Use my fingers.” Our lips touched, and she gulped. Hell, some nerves tightened my gut too, but I had to do this. I had to touch her. “Rub them all over you.”

“Fuck.” She reached up and kissed the ever-loving shit outta me, and she did exactly what I’d said. She guided my hand to her wetness, and I moaned into the kiss. Fucking hell, she was so slick, soft, hot, and tempting.

“Emilia,” I whispered, out of breath. “Look at me.”

Her eyes flashed open. The lust surged between us, and she held my gaze as I dragged my middle finger slowly between her lips. I eased my thumb in between too, near the top, and drew a circle around her clit.

“Like that,” she said, sucking in a sharp breath. “More.”

It didn’t take long before she released my wrist. Her eyes fluttered closed, and her chest heaved with every intake of air. My name fell from her lips, and I knew it would never get old.

“Christ, look at you…” I eye-fucked her and teased every inch of her pussy. Pushing my luck, I circled her opening to see if she’d be okay with it. Judging by her gasp, I hoped so. “Imagine when this is my cock, baby.” I entered her carefully, sliding through the slick tightness. “Jesus,” I breathed out. Flicking my gaze from my own cock to her pussy, feeling how small she was, there was one obvious question that I was gonna ignore for now. For both our sakes.

“More,” she begged. “Your fingers feel so amazing.”

“I’m trying to hold back here.” I chuckled darkly. “I wouldn’t test my control if I were you. You’re tempting as it is.”

“I wanna test it a little bit.” She nipped at my bottom lip. In response, my chest rumbled with a low growl, and I pushed in a second finger. “Oh my God, Finnegan.”

“Touch me.” I spoke through clenched teeth. “Wrap your pretty little fingers around my cock and get me off.”

The subservient look in her eyes might as well have been a shot of Viagra straight into my veins. Her hand drifted to my thigh, and I inched up a little so she could come between us. Fuck, there it is. I groaned against her neck as her fingers tried to reach around me.

She touched me gingerly. “How do I make you feel good—”

“You can’t do it wrong.” I shifted away from her neck before I sank my teeth into a wrong place. The last thing I wanted was to remind her of her bruises. “A little harder than that—just like that. Fuck.”

I fingered her deeper and applied more pressure on her clit. The urgency spread within me like an unstoppable force, and all the pent-up need that’d been bottled inside me was ready to shatter me.

I only paused once to adjust her grip. “When I say stop, you gotta stop.”

“Why?”

“Because I’m gonna come.” I kissed her softly and cupped her pussy. “Right here. I have to. I wanna see you soaked in me. Your clit, these lips, your tight little—”

Her gasp cut me off, and she tensed up. Her hand disappeared from my cock, and before I could tell her to touch me again, I realized she was close. Redoubling my efforts, I rubbed her clit in hard little circles and finger-fucked her in sensual strokes.

“You’re right there, aren’t you?” I rested my forehead against hers, and she cried out a yes that rocked me. “Let me see you come, princess.” Her scent carried enough sweetness to make my mouth water. “I won’t be able to stop myself from pushing my cock through those delicious juices.”

Emilia came with a silent scream. Her nails were digging into my arms, her face and chest were flushed, and her skin was almost as damp as mine. She’d stopped breathing. My own breaths got heavier and heavier, and I withdrew from her the moment she was coming down from her high.

I fisted my cock and stroked myself quickly. My brain became foggy. All I saw and felt was her. My cock shone with her arousal, and I didn’t wanna fucking leave this spot. Her heat drew me closer to my own orgasm, and right before I got there, Emilia’s lips were on my shoulder. Her feet snaked around my calves. Her hands roamed my back, until one of them slipped between us.

I sucked in a breath as she spread her pussy lips. Left hand. My ring on her finger.

A drawn-out groan left me, and I slid my cock along the length of her pussy, rubbing the head of me against her clit. Then the pleasure pulled me under. Hot ropes of come shot out of my cock, landing across her sensitive skin. My eyes nearly rolled back at the sensations.

Emilia replaced my hand with hers, intensifying everything. I watched through hooded eyes while she drew another couple releases from me, one staining her hand and engagement ring. The fine hairs along my neck rose. A few final drops trickled down my shaft, and I was left drained and ready to collapse.

I had to lock my elbows into place so I didn’t land on her. I wasn’t sure she could handle two hundred pounds of dead Irishman.

“Fuck…” The word escaped me in a shallow exhale.

Emilia squirmed under me, and it took me a beat to realize she was trying to make room for me. I was happy to help with that, and soon, I was only half on top of her. Fucking exhausted. My head perfectly comfortable on her chest.

“Let’s not move for a few hours,” I whispered.

She laughed softly. “Your beard tickles.”

I rubbed my chin on her breast and smiled lazily.

I wasn’t kidding about not moving for a few hours, but I was ready to break up with the couch, and we were both a mess. With every muscle in me protesting, I dragged myself off the couch and helped her up.

“Shower, then no moving.” Naked. In bed.

“Are you a cuddle monster?” she giggled.

Apparently, I was.