Thirty-Six

 

 

Aria

Looking down at my feet, at the bags I dropped, I bend down to pick them up but Gio gets to them first. I’m able to snag a glimpse of him up close and he looks just as beautiful as he did a year ago. He’s wearing a pair of jeans, a t-shirt, and tennis shoes. He looks the most casual I’ve ever seen him. His forearms look solid, muscular like he’s been working out, and his facial hair is just how I used to like it, just long enough to feel the stubble against my lips… and between my thighs. But he also looks sad. He has dark circles under his eyes like he hasn’t slept recently and I immediately wonder if he’s here because something has happened.

“Thank you,” I say once he has all my bags in his hands. “Would you like to come in?” My words come out so calmly, I question my sanity. Gio nods his head yes but doesn’t say anything else. We enter my flat and I start to put the groceries away into the refrigerator to busy myself, my eyes constantly glancing toward Gio, who is leaning against the counter following my every move. Once I have no groceries left to put away, I offer him a drink. “I have water, orange juice, white wine, and…” I look down and spot a beer in the back. “…beer.”

“You drink beer?” Gio’s brow quirks up.

“No, it’s Trevor’s.” The words come out before I can stop them and Gio’s eyes turn cold.

“The guy you were with at the bakery?”

“You were watching me?”

Gio doesn’t even try to deny it. “I came here first and the doorman steered me in the direction of the bakery. We are going to need to speak to him about privacy. Is Trevor your boyfriend?” I shake my head and pour myself a glass of wine, needing it to calm my nerves. “Fiancé?” I choke on my sip of wine, coughing to the point that Gio comes over to me, grabs my glass and places it on the counter, and pats my back. Jesus, this is not going well.

“I’m ok. Thanks.” I clear my throat to get a hold of myself. “No, Trevor is just a friend from school. You didn’t answer me. Would you like something to drink?” He shakes his head and walks to the living room to have a seat. I follow behind and once we are both seated I say, “It’s been a long time and you are far from home. Is everything ok?” Gio shakes his head again.

“Are you going to actually speak or should I keep throwing out questions for you to nod to?” He chuckles softly and that small laugh has my chest tightening, my eyes opening, and my heart pumping. It’s like a switch has been flipped on, and all the darkness is now full of color and light.

“Fuck, I’ve missed your sass.” His fingers come up, twirling a strand of my hair. “You died your hair black. It looks good on you.”

“I needed a change.” What I needed was the darkness to match my state of being. For the last year I have lived my life to the tune of black, white, and grey. The moment I was forced to walk out of Gio’s life, my world lost all its color.

“I don’t know what I’m doing, Ari.” Gio shakes him head and gives me a half smirk. “I came here without a plan. Without thinking this through.”

My head goes down and I mess with my hands unsure of what to do or say. “Baby, look at me.” Gio lifts my chin and gives me a small smile, one that has my heart quickening. It’s been over a year since I’ve been with this man but one simple touch and he has my body going crazy.

“What are you doing here, Gio? What’s going on?” My words come out serious, demanding an answer. He can’t just come here, walk back into my life and fuck with my head and my heart. I won’t survive it. It will be hard enough once he leaves after he’s said whatever it is he came all the way across the world to say.

“I need you close to me,” he mumbles, and without even asking permission, Gio lifts me up by my hips and places me into his lap so my legs are straddling him. My hands go to his shoulders to steady myself and our faces are only mere inches from each other.

“I came here for you. I need you Ari. Sei il mio cuore.” You are my heart. I gasp and shake my head as his words sink in.

“Don’t do this, please.” My head continues to shake as I will the traitor tears away, but it’s no use. They build up and fall down my cheeks. Gio’s fingers catch them before he cradles my face with his strong hands.

“I love you. You are my heart. I can’t breathe without you, baby. I’ve tried. I can’t do it. The day you left, my heart stopped beating. My chest closed in on me and it felt like I was suffocating. Every day it feels like it’s a job just to get up and breathe. I need to breathe again, baby.”

My tears fall harder with every word he speaks, each one hitting home. “I feel the same way,” I choke out. “But- But nothing has changed.” My tears turn into sobs as my head collapses into Gio’s neck, his arms encircling me and holding me close.

“Everything has changed,” he whispers, “I’m out, baby.” My head shoots back up, my eyes meeting his.

“What does that mean?”

“It means I’m out of the organization. At the request from my mom, my dad let me out. I’m here for you, for us. You are all I want, all I need.” His lips meet mine, soft and gentle. He kisses me once, twice, three times before pulling back, leaving me wanting and needing more. “What do you say, baby? I was thinking maybe I could crash here for a while until I figure my shit out. I’m currently homeless and jobless.” He smirks and I laugh, the sound feeling so foreign but good.

“You’re moving here? Like for good?”

“That all depends on you… Will you have me for good?” This time it’s me that initiates the kiss. My lips crash into his, my tongue seeking entrance. Gio grants me access, his tongue swirling around mine as we get lost in each other. The kiss is more than two lips gliding across each other. Two tongues entwining. It’s two hearts finding their way back to each other. Two souls connecting. And for the first time in a long time, I feel like all the colors in my world are shining brightly.

Gio’s hands move down my shoulders, grazing my sides and land on my ass, pulling my body closer to him like even the few inches of distance between us is too much. My hips grind down on his hard length eliciting a moan in me, a feeling of want I haven’t felt since the last time I was with him. He breaks our kiss and smiles wide. “I want to make you dinner.”

“What?” I laugh out loud completely confused.

“I never got to cook for you. I promised to cook for you and I never got to.”

“Right now?”

“Yes, no more wasting time.”

“That sounds like a plan but…I’m kind of thinking maybe we can work up an appetite first.” My lips go to his neck as I suck on his skin. Gio shivers and lets out a groan as I run my tongue up the side of his neck until I get to his earlobe. I pull on it slightly then whisper, “I’m thinking maybe we could be the appetizer.”

Climbing down off Gio, I drop to my knees, spreading his legs enough so I’m kneeling in between them. His eyes widen but he doesn’t argue. I unzip his jeans and tug his pants and boxers down. He lifts slightly to make it easier for me. His dick springs up and it looks as mouthwatering as it did a year ago.

Fuck, I have missed this man something fierce.

It’s hard and smooth, and slightly veiny as it stands at attention needing my undivided attention. Then a thought hits me. How many women got to wrap their mouths around him and taste him? How many women got his attention while we were apart?

“Hey.” Gio lifts my chin so I’ll look at him. “What’s wrong? You don’t have to do this.”

“How many women have you been with?” I blurt out.

“Since you left?” he asks.

“Yeah. I know it shouldn’t matter but I just need to—”

“Zero.”

“What?”

“I haven’t been with a single woman in any way since the day you left. You are it for me, Aria. Now, here’s the thing. Just because I couldn’t be with someone else doesn’t mean I expect you to not have. It’s been a goddamn year but I would rather not know. I just think it would be best—”

“Zero.” I repeat the same word, the same number he gave me.

“Thank fuck!” He leans down and pulls me up into a standing position. “Take your clothes off now,” Gio commands. So, I do. I peel each article of clothing off me until I am standing naked in front of him, his eyes assessing me, and instead of feeling vulnerable, I feel complete, whole. I see the colors returning to the picture.

“Bellissima,” he murmurs. Gorgeous. “Fuck, you are just as beautiful as I’ve imagined every day for the last year.” He cups my sex and says, “Are you wet, baby? If I stick my fingers into your cunt will you be dripping for me?” And my word, if I don’t just about convulse at his dirty talk.

“Maybe you should find out.” I raise a brow as I spread my legs, earning a huge grin from Gio. He sticks a single digit in me, quickly finding out how damn wet I am for him.

“Holy shit, woman.” He pulls his finger out, and gripping my hips lifts me up and onto him, my pussy clenching around his hard length as he fills me completely. It’s been over a year since I felt a man inside me, the last time being when I was raped. I focus on pushing those thoughts away and staying in the moment with the man in front of me, the man who holds my heart. He must sense something is wrong. Cradling my face in his hands, he says, “Stay with me, Aria. It’s me and you. I love you, baby.”

I nod, my emotions getting the best of me. “It’s ok,” Gio coos, wiping the tears away as they fall. “It’s just you and me, for the rest of our lives.” I nod again, keeping my eyes locked with his. I focus on the soft brown in his eyes, the way they warm up when they find me, like deep chocolate and comfort and happiness all rolled into one beautiful man.

“You’re in control, Aria,” he says. How he knows what I need, I have no clue but it shouldn’t shock me. He’s always known what I need. His words hit me and all the horrid thoughts are pushed aside, and it’s only Gio and me and our love right here, right now, in this room. My hands go to his shoulders, his to my hips, and I lift my pelvis up slightly, the feeling of his hard dick rubbing me in a way I’ve been craving for. “That’s it, baby. It’s all you Take what you need.”

Gio pulls me into a searing kiss, our lips and tongues make love as I circle my hips and begin to rock back and forth. I ride his hard shaft slowly, hitting spots I have only dreamt of hitting for the last year. This is exactly what I’ve needed for too long. This man’s hands and tongue and dick in me, on me, all over me. I close my eyes and can see the bright colors of our future. Blues and pinks and reds replace the gray.

When our kiss ends, I lick my lips, his taste lingering on me, making me want more. His mouth goes to my nipple as he licks and sucks on the hardened tip while one of his hands come to my other nipple pinching and pulling it, his touch sending sparks straight to my core. My body and mind crave the way he keeps me locked in the moment. It’s just us. No one else. I can’t believe I ever went this long without him.

My movements turn more frantic, my breathing becoming more labored, as I ride him harder, deeper, my hips bouncing up and down on his hard length as my orgasm approaches. Gio must feel my sex clenching around him because suddenly he is taking over, his hips thrusting up into me, hitting my G-spot over and over again until I am screaming out my orgasm as my pussy explodes with pleasure around his cock, Gio following right behind me. My head drops to his chest, feeling completely satisfied. I had no idea how much I needed him until now, and I know in this moment, I never want to live another day without him.

“How soon until you can go again?” I giggle but I am serious. I need more of this man. For the rest of my life.