Kira’s eyes widened. “You’re certain?”

“Oh yes, I’m certain. I just don’t have the hard evidence I need yet.” He slid his hands down the elegant arch of her spine, settling them over the curve of her butt, her skin soft and warm against his palms.

Touching her was soothing and right now, he needed soothing. Anger burned inside him, along with the acid sting of an old and familiar grief that mention of Katie always brought up. Not that he mentioned Katie. Ever.

He’d broken his silence on her now though, and even though it had hurt, it had been good to say her name, good to acknowledge who she’d been to him, because it had been such a long time since he’d even said it out loud.

But it was only after that he remembered why he shouldn’t talk about such things and especially not to Kira. He should have known, not that it was information that his father could use in all probability, but it was a weakness Lorenzo didn’t want him to know about.

Except . . . maybe his father wouldn’t know.

Lorenzo stared down into Kira’s wide eyes, now almost as dark as the sky above their heads. He hadn’t been expecting her to confess, not at all, but he was glad she had.

It meant she trusted him.

You can use her.

It was what he’d been wanting to do all along, and at the beginning of the evening, he’d had no problems with that. Yet that had been before she’d told him the truth about herself, about the difficulties she’d been trying to overcome.

Before he’d told her about Katie.

They’d shared secrets, and like he’d feared, it had changed things between them.

Yet what else could he do? If he wanted to investigate Ivan’s role in his father’s activities, the best way to do that was to use his daughter. Hell, his father and Ivan were using her to get to him anyway, so if she was discovered, say, searching her father’s office, then she could spin some lie about how she needed information for her own mission. Or she could act like a pretty airhead who’d stumbled into the wrong office.

He couldn’t do it himself, not when they were already suspicious of him. Anyway, the worst that could happen to her was that she might get told off, no big deal. She wouldn’t lose out on the money she wanted for her little business, he’d make sure of it.

No, he couldn’t not use her. He needed that evidence. His father had killed his mother as surely as Lorenzo himself had, and the old prick needed to pay.

“I can’t believe it,” Kira murmured. “I mean, stealing from your own company? Why would he do that?”

“I don’t know, and I don’t care. All I care about is finding that evidence. He’ll probably find some way of getting out of a jail sentence, but I’m pretty sure he won’t be able to get away with remaining CEO.”

Her darkened gaze searched his face. “What? And you take over?”

“Yes.” He found himself stroking her unconsciously, his thumbs moving back and forth on her soft, silky skin. “He’s always been planning for me to do so anyway, so this will just be earlier than he thought. And of course, his retirement will not be voluntary.”

Her brow creased. “You sound . . . pleased.”

“Of course, I’m pleased. I’ll be fucking ecstatic.” His anger simmered, a constant smolder that had been burning for years. “I don’t want a needy bitch, Lorenzo. I’m already married to one . . .”

Kira frowned suddenly, her fair brows drawing down. “You hate him, don’t you? Why?”

Christ. Was his anger really that noticeable? He’d thought he kept it better hidden than that.

She gave a shiver, and he realized that he wasn’t stroking her anymore, but gripping her hard and probably far too tightly. He relaxed his hands, taking a deep, silent breath and trying to force the fury away.

She was still naked, and he’d torn her dress off her. Clearly, he was going to need to fix that. Shrugging out of his shirt, he held it up. “Put your arms out.”

Her nose wrinkled. “Come on, you can’t distract me that easily. What did he do to you, Lorenzo?”

“Arms.”

Sighing, she did as she was told and he drew the cotton up to her shoulders then concentrated on the buttons. There was no reason not to tell her, and part of him wanted to. He’d told her everything else, so what was one more thing?

“It wasn’t what he did to me,” Lorenzo said as he began to do the shirt up. “It was what he did to my mother.”

“Oh.” She remained still as he fastened the buttons on the shirt, but he could feel her gaze on him. “What did he do?”

And you. You’re to blame, too.

Lorenzo focused on slipping a button through the button hole. “She was from Wyoming and never adjusted to life in New York. It made her unhappy, but Dad wouldn’t let her go back.” Yes, and you know why. “He made her stay in a place she hated, with a husband who cheated on her and didn’t give her any fucking support. He knew she was emotionally fragile, but he treated her like dirt anyway. So she self-medicated with pills and vodka.”

Maybe if you hadn’t begged her not to leave, she might have been happier. Maybe if you hadn’t given your father ammunition to use against her, she wouldn’t have ended up dead.

He shoved the thoughts away, hard. That had happened so long ago, back when he’d been twelve years old, overhearing a conversation he shouldn’t have listened to. Full of fear that the parent who actually seemed to care about him was going to leave.

“Man should be an island, son . . .”

He should have learned that lesson back then. But he hadn’t.

The soft brush of Kira’s fingertips along his jaw made him blink, bringing him back to the present. “He was really that bad?”

“He was worse. I told you that’s why I wanted to keep Katie a secret. He would have used her against me at some point.”

The way he used you against Mom . . .

Kira’s hand dropped to his shoulder, the feel of her palm on his bare skin somehow delivering comfort as well as an electric shock that went straight to his cock. “So this is . . . revenge?”

He hadn’t thought of it in those terms, especially when revenge was an inherently selfish motivation and he wasn’t supposed to be that person anymore. “Not for me. For my mother.”

Her thumb moved on his skin, as if she couldn’t bear to stop touching him. “I can understand that.”

“Good. Because it’s going to happen. You can make sure of that. But . . .” He hesitated, looking into her deep blue eyes. “I am going to need help.”

One fair brow lifted. “What kind of help?”

“I told you I need evidence I can take to the board. But that’s been difficult to find. Mainly because it looks like Dad’s got someone hiding his digital tracks.” He paused, belatedly realizing that she might have something to say about his suspicions regarding her own father.

Her eyes narrowed. “What?”

“There’s only one person who deals with the money side of things and who’ll do whatever Dad tells him to do. And that person isn’t me.”

Kira’s mouth opened, then shut again. “My father,” she said and it wasn’t a question. She knew. “Of course, he’d do it.”

“Yes, that’s what I suspect. But I need to confirm it.”

“How?”

“Any evidence he’d been covering up for Dad will probably be on his computer somewhere. Either at work or at home.”

“And how can you find that out?”

“I can’t. Or at least not without rousing suspicion, and I know Dad’s already suspicious. That’s why he placed you as my intern. I’m sure he thinks I’ve either discovered his little secret or have gotten wind of it, but he’s not sure. He needs proof before he makes a move against me.”

Her frown deepened. “Why would he make a move against you? You’re his son.”

Jesus. She of all people should know how little ties like that meant to some people. Selfish people. The fact that his mother had clinical depression hadn’t altered his father’s behavior toward her. He’d viewed it as something she’d just have to get over, that she needed to harden up. It was a weakness, and if there was one thing his father hated, it was weakness in any form. Especially emotional weakness.

Lorenzo lifted his hands from her skin, cupping her face between his palms. “He doesn’t care about a little thing like that. He demands loyalty, definitely. But there’s only one person he truly cares about, and that’s himself. And he’ll protect himself however he can.”

“So you need to check out Dad’s computer? See if he’s been covering up for your father?”

“Yes.”

There was a pause, her gaze searching. “You’re asking me to do this for you, aren’t you?”

Of course, she’d understand that, she wasn’t stupid. So he didn’t treat her as such. “Yes,” he repeated. “You’re the only one who could get away with it without rousing suspicion if you’re caught.”

The look in her eyes flickered slightly, as if she was weighing something up. Then she said, “In that case, count me in.”

His heart kicked at the simple declaration. At how she didn’t question him for reasons or want explanations. She accepted what he wanted to do and offered to help. Even though it meant ratting on her own father.

“Are you sure?”

“I’m sure.” There was no hesitation. “If he’s helping Cesare then he’s breaking the law.”

Christ, she was all in? Just like that? Putting her own family ties at risk as well as the arts-and-crafts classes she was hoping to start up? And those classes were important to her, too, he’d seen it in her eyes.

He curved his fingers under the delicate line of her jaw, pressing them against her smooth skin. “Do you need time to think about it?”

Annoyance flashed across her face. “No. And don’t be so patronizing. I said I would do it and I—”

“I’m not being patronizing, I promise. I just don’t want you to make any impulse decisions that would end up making things worse for you.”

Her mouth opened then shut again, her lips compressing, as if she’d stopped herself from saying something. The annoyance in her gaze died away as quickly as it had come. “Okay,” she said on a long breath. “I understand and I appreciate what you’re doing.” Her gaze focused on him, all of a sudden intent. “But I don’t need to think about it. Dad wasn’t the greatest father anyway, and besides, I want to help. I want to help you.”

He didn’t miss the emphasis and it made something catch inside him, made his chest tighten. “I’ll make sure you won’t lose out, Kira. I’ll make sure you get those classes started. I promise.”

Her mouth curved. “Let’s just see if I can do it first. It’s the opportunity that’s going to be difficult. I could get on his computer at work without him knowing—if I’m careful—but it’s his home office that’s going to be tricky because he’s always in it.”

Lorenzo thought about it a moment. “Don’t worry about the computer at work. That’s too risky because of the surveillance cameras and I have someone who can handle that anyway.” Actually, he didn’t need Kira to search Ivan’s offices. Nero could deal with the issue himself by hacking into it via the DS Corp. intranet. But the home computer—which Lorenzo was pretty sure was going to be where any incriminating files might be—was an issue. Luckily, he had an idea. “Isn’t it your parents’ annual garden party next weekend?”

“Yes. But how is that going to help?”

“You’ll be expected to attend, won’t you?”

“I wasn’t planning on it.”

“You should. Because Ivan will be too busy with his guests to worry about anyone getting into his office.” Lorenzo stroked his thumbs along her jaw. “Also, I’ll come along too, so if you need a diversion, I’ll create one for you.”

Kira’s attention had dipped, focusing on his mouth, her gaze going smoky. “As long as you let me know what I need to do, I think I can handle that.”

Of that he had no doubt. There was determination in her, he already knew that, and a tenaciousness that equaled his own.

He touched her lips with his thumb. “I’ll give you all the details you need, don’t worry. But before any of that happens, there’s a couple of other things I want to do first.”

“What things?”

Her voice had gone husky and soft, her body pressing delicately against his, and he was getting hard again. He didn’t want to think about this anymore. Not about his father or Katie. Not about grief and pain and anger.

He was tired of the battle, the fight to keep his emotions in check. The war between the hunger inside him and the need not to give into it.

Just for one night, he wanted to not fight. He wanted warmth and pleasure, and the softness of white skin under his hands, silky white hair against his pillow

Just for one night he wanted to be selfish.

Just for one night he wanted Kira.

So he bent his head and used his mouth on hers to tell her exactly what things he meant.

* * *

Five days later, Kira sat on the low leather couch in Lorenzo’s office, watching silently as a massive, black-haired man paced up and down in front of Lorenzo’s desk.

She tilted her head, trying to spot some resemblance between him and Lorenzo, and there should have been some, considering Nero de Santis was Lorenzo’s half-brother. But apart from the black hair and their height, she couldn’t see much that was similar at all.

Nero’s features were harsh, angular, and without the pleasing symmetry of Lorenzo’s. But there was something infinitely compelling about him nonetheless, and maybe that was where the resemblance lay. Both of them held the same kind of dark de Santis charisma that demanded attention. It was there in Nero’s strong jawline, his blade of a nose, and his deeply set black eyes. It was also there in the mesmerizing way he paced up and down, strong and fluid and graceful as some great beast.

Apparently, he’d once been a recluse who never left his house, though whatever his issues had been, they clearly weren’t a problem now.

“Yeah, I can hack into Ivan’s office computer, but what makes you think we even need to bother with his computer at home?” Nero’s dark gaze glittered as he stopped pacing and stared at Lorenzo.

“I don’t think Ivan would keep any records at DS Corp.” Lorenzo leaned back in the large, black executive chair that sat behind his desk. “It’s too risky and besides, Dad’s far too paranoid.”

Kira took a silent breath, trying to drag her attention away from him and the casual way he was sitting, one elbow on the arm of the chair, the other resting on one powerful thigh.

An impossible task, as she’d discovered over the last few days.

Her night with Lorenzo had ended up turning into a full day, that had then led into another night. Which had involved a mad rush back home on Monday morning to get ready for work and grab some more clothes, neatly avoiding her parents and their questions as she went back out the door again. Lorenzo had waited out in his car in the street for her, but she’d made him drop her around the corner from the DS Corp. Tower so they wouldn’t be seen entering the building together.

Still on a sex high, Kira hadn’t really paid attention when Lorenzo had told her that it would be better for both of them if they considered their weekend a one-off and that now their chemistry had been dealt with, they should go back to being boss and intern.

Her head in the clouds, her body humming, she’d simply nodded in agreement. Even when she’d sat at her temporary desk, trying to force herself to concentrate on her list of tasks for the day, she hadn’t fully taken in the implications. In fact, it wasn’t until she’d been called into Lorenzo’s office that afternoon to be given yet another list of things to do that it had hit her.

He hadn’t responded to her smile or her casual greeting. He hadn’t looked at her at all. He’d delivered his orders then dismissed her in exactly the same way as he had when she’d first come to work for him.

All her warm feelings had drained away in that moment, a disappointment she had no right to feel sitting heavy in her gut. It was another instance of her not paying attention, which should have made going back to a purely professional relationship a relief.

Yet as she’d turned around after Lorenzo’s cold dismissal and walked out of his office, it wasn’t relief that she felt. Disappointment sat inside her and continued to sit there as the week had progressed, playing havoc with her concentration even more than her blissed-out state had.

Going into work felt like torture, the minutes she had to sit in that office by herself an agony. She found herself living for the rare moments when she had to meet with him, even though he gave her absolutely no sign that their hot, desperate weekend had ever happened. Treating her exactly as what she was: his intern.

She didn’t know why it hurt, when she’d known right from the start that there could be nothing between them. They’d discussed it and agreed. It had only been a weekend of sex, nothing more. Yet she hadn’t been able to shake the hunger that gripped her whenever he was near. The need for his touch. His arms around her, containing her, taking the control so she didn’t have to hold onto it all the goddamn time. So she could relax and be herself, even if it was for only a moment.

It killed her.

It was killing her now, sitting here while he and Nero discussed their plans to take down their father. Plans she should be listening to, but couldn’t because she kept getting distracted by Lorenzo. By the gloss of sunlight in his black hair. By the stretch of cotton across his broad chest. By the stillness of his posture and the way he tilted his head when he concentrated. By the flash of silver in his eyes.

Nero stopped, turning abruptly, and with a jolt, Kira realized he was staring at her, his gaze dark and hostile. “Lorenzo apparently trusts you, but I don’t,” he stated flatly. “If what you’re doing gets back to Dad—”

“It won’t get back to Dad,” Lorenzo interrupted, his tone cool. “I’ll be accompanying her to this party, so I’ll be able to keep an eye on everything anyway.”

“As long as he doesn’t get suspicious.” Nero didn’t look away from her. “And you don’t get cold feet about Ivan.”

Kira lifted her chin. Finding out her father might potentially be covering up for Cesare de Santis stealing from his own company hadn’t been a shock. It was pretty much something he would do considering he was loyal to Cesare completely. And she didn’t feel any doubts about searching his office for any incriminating evidence, either.

If he’d been breaking the law, then he needed to answer for it. After all, she was taking responsibility for her own mistakes, so why shouldn’t he?

“Don’t take this the wrong way,” she said, staring back at Nero. “But I don’t know you from Adam. I mean, I’m sure you’re a great guy and all, but I’m doing this for Lorenzo.” Without thinking, she flashed Lorenzo a glance, sharing with him her certainty.

She’d forgotten that for the past few days he wouldn’t even look at her. Now though, his gaze met hers, and she felt the impact hit her like a freight train.

Helpless desire surged in her veins, and she almost forgot herself, almost gave in to the need to climb straight over his desk and crawl into his lap. It was only the past six months of iron control that stopped her, that made her look away, her heart hammering in her chest,

“Yeah, and that’s another question I have,” Nero said, his voice deep and gravelly and harsh. “Why the fuck are you suddenly helping Lorenzo? What did he do? Make you an offer you couldn’t refuse?”

Still reeling from that look, Kira couldn’t think of a single response.

Luckily Lorenzo forestalled her. “That is none of your concern, Nero,” he said in his usual flat, cold tone. “All that matters is that she’s going to do what we want.”

“If those files are there,” Nero amended, his attention shifting to Lorenzo. “We have no idea if they are or not. Or even if there are any files.”

“There will be.” There was nothing but absolute confidence in Lorenzo’s tone. “If there’s one thing I know about Dad it’s that he likes to keep records, no matter what they’re about.”

Nero gave him a dark look. “Fine, but I’m not betting on that entirely. I’m going to keep digging elsewhere. You can’t hide everything forever online and everyone, no matter how good they are at hiding themselves, eventually leaves a trace.”

Lorenzo shrugged. “You do that. But my money’s on Kira.”

Beneath the chaotic desire raging inside her, a helpless warmth glowed. When had anyone been confident of her abilities? She didn’t know if anyone had, still less said it out loud to someone else.

She didn’t trust herself to look at Lorenzo this time, keeping her attention on Nero, though her question was for both of them. “So what, exactly, do I have to do? Download spreadsheets? Transaction records? What?”

“I have a little piece of code I’ve written that I’ll put on a thumb drive,” Nero said. “All you have to do is switch the computer on, put the drive in it, and I’ll be able to hack in and download the contents of the hard drive. Once that’s done, all you need to do is take the drive out.”

Well, that sounded easy. “That’s it?”

“Yeah, that’s it.”

“Okay,” she said slowly, turning over the plan in her head, concentrating. “Dad keeps his office locked at all times and he has the latest model DS Corp locks installed on all the doors.”

“Not a problem,” Nero said shortly. “I can probably get them open—”

“No need,” she interrupted before she could stop herself. “I know the codes already. Dad hasn’t changed them since I was small.” She couldn’t help grinning, first at Nero then, forgetting utterly that looking at Lorenzo was a bad idea, at Lorenzo, too.

Again, his gaze met hers with an almost physical impact, making her grin falter. Until she saw the minute curve of his beautiful mouth, a softening so slight she might have missed it if she hadn’t been looking straight at him.

It made the helpless glow inside her become a blaze and this time she couldn’t tear her gaze away.

“Fuck,” Nero muttered, his voice breaking the sudden silence, making Kira realize she’d been staring at Lorenzo far longer than was strictly necessary.

Luckily Nero’s attention wasn’t on them. He was staring at his phone and scowling. “Sorry,” he said after a second. “I have to go.”

Shoving his phone back in his pocket, he barely spared them a glance as he turned and strode to the door, not even bothering with a good-bye as he went out.

Kira sucked in a shaky breath, conscious that she and Lorenzo were now alone.

She focused on the wall behind him rather than meeting that mesmerizing stormy gaze directly. “Is he always that rude?” She tried to keep the atmosphere light. “Seems like a de Santis trait.”

“Nero doesn’t do well around people,” Lorenzo murmured.

“Apparently not.” She kept looking at the wall above his head. “Well, do you need me for anything else?”

A silence fell, heavy and thick, while an electric tension whispered over her skin.

She desperately wanted to meet his gaze, feel it hit her again, a reminder that what had happened between them over the weekend had been real and that he’d felt it like she had.

But she knew it would be better if she didn’t. There was danger in being with him, she could feel it in the instant rush of desire she felt around him, in the longing that tugged at her whenever he was near. She’d been good for the past six months, been strong and in control of her emotions, hadn’t let them get the better of her.

Yet he had the power to overturn all that control so easily, undo all the work she’d put into modifying her behavior. She couldn’t give in, she just couldn’t.

So she concentrated on the gun on the wall, the lighting gleaming along the barrel, waiting for him to dismiss her.

The silence drew out, drew thin, pulling tight.

Her skin prickled. He was looking at her, wasn’t he? She could feel the pressure of his gaze gather like a storm about to break.

“Kira.” Her name was little more than a growl, deep and rough. “Look at me.”

Don’t. You shouldn’t.

She took another breath, staring at that fucking gun, at the light gleaming on it. “I have work to do, Mr. de Santis. Are we done here?”

“Look. At. Me.” The command in his voice was absolute and she found herself obeying him helplessly.

His gaze was a sharp silver blade, cutting right through the heart of her, making her tremble, though she tried to repress it. Okay, so she’d obeyed, but she could be strong. She could resist the pull of him. She had control over her urges, of course she did.

“When you told Nero you were doing this for me, you looked at me,” he said carefully. “And you nearly moved, but stopped yourself at the last minute.” His attention was concentrated like the sun through a magnifying glass, igniting her desire, her need. “I want to know what were you going to do.”

Her mouth had gone dry, and she had to fold her hands in front of her to stop them from reaching out to him. “Nothing.”

“Bullshit.” He sounded rougher now. “What was it, Kira?”

Her heart shuddered in her chest. “Why do you want to know?”

Another silence followed, taut, vibrating.

He was sitting so still, but the way he was looking at her . . . there was a hurricane behind his eyes. “Why don’t you want to tell me?”

Her breath caught, the desperation she’d been trying to hide all week winding tighter and tighter. “You’re my boss. I’m your intern. Isn’t that the way we’re going to play it from now on? Wasn’t that what you said?”

His gaze didn’t even flicker. “Tell me, Kira.”

And the words came spilling out. “I wanted to climb right over your desk and into your lap.”

He said nothing for a long moment.

Then he shoved his chair back, his silver eyes never leaving hers.

She knew what it was. An invitation.

Her pulse began to skyrocket. It was all she could do to stand where she was and not immediately move toward him. But she had to remain in control. She had to.

“Lorenzo . . .” She couldn’t stop the way his name came out, husky and soft. “I’m trying to be good. I’m trying to do what you said and be your intern.” She took a shaky breath, half desperate. “I’m trying to stay in control of myself.”

The lines of his face had hardened, became fierce and set. “I don’t want you to be good. I’ve had three days of trying to be around you without getting hard and it’s not working.” His lips peeled back in a snarl. “It’s not fucking working, and I’m not doing it anymore. I don’t want you in control of yourself, Kira. I want you fucking wild. So get in my lap. Now.”

She didn’t think, didn’t hesitate. Her hold on herself shattered as easily as a wine glass hurled onto a concrete floor. She dropped the folder she’d been holding, papers flying everywhere, but she ignored them, already moving.

As if she’d been waiting all week just to hear those words.

Lorenzo hit the button on his intercom. “Hold my calls,” he ordered roughly. “And if anyone comes through my door, they’re fired.”

She was at the desk, pulling her skirt up, getting onto the desktop, crawling over it to him, pulled inexorably by the look in his eyes. By the need pulsing hard between her thighs.

I want you fucking wild . . .

She obeyed her instincts, sliding off the desk and going down onto her knees right in front of him, her heartbeat rocketing. His expression became even more fierce, taut with hunger. He spread his thighs and she was leaning forward, surrounded by his heat and the scent of him, musky with male arousal.

Her mouth watered. She wanted to taste him so badly.

She reached to undo his belt, her fingers shaking. It felt like an interminable amount of time to get it undone, but he helped her, and then the top button on his pants was being unfastened and she was drawing his zipper down.

She couldn’t stop the groan that escaped her as she reached inside his boxers and found his cock. He felt so good, hot and hard and velvety. God, she’d been dreaming about this ever since the weekend. Dreaming of tasting him, touching him.

He made a growling sound, his hand fisting in her hair. “Yes. Fucking suck me, Kira. Do it.”

She didn’t need to be told twice, opening her mouth and taking him in slowly, savoring the moment. Savoring the taste of musk and salt and the other, delicious flavor that was all Lorenzo.

He made another sound, half groan, half snarl. The hand in her hair tightened, his free hand slapping down on the desk in front of him. “Fuck, yes.”

Kira curled her fingers around him, delicately exploring the smooth, sensitive head of his cock with her tongue, relishing the tremor that went through the whole of his body as she did so, his fingers in her hair almost painful. Then she did it again, grazing her teeth over him this time, the guttural sound he made her reward.

She leaned against him, his powerful thighs spread on either side of her, taking him deeper. Sucking him harder.

She knew what to do. She’d done this to men before. But those encounters had always been mindless. It was not mindless now. Every sense she had was concentrated on him. On tasting him. On giving him as much pleasure as he could handle, because he wanted her wild and so that’s what she’d give him

She could focus. And she was going to focus on him.

He groaned her name as she began to suck him in earnest, her hand curled around the rigid length of his cock, pumping him. Increasing the suction.

Then all at once, her head was being jerked back and his hands were under her arms, lifting her up, pulling her into his lap.

She blinked at him, slightly dazed as her knees came down on either side of his narrow hips, her skirt tight around her thighs. Gasping, she put her hands on his shoulders for balance as he wrenched her skirt up.

The lightning was in his eyes, hunger stark in every line of his beautiful face. She shuddered at the intensity of his expression as he reached between her thighs and wrenched aside the drenched silk of her panties.

“I need to be inside you,” he said hoarsely. “I need us to be together.”

And his arm came around her, an iron band pulling her close, and she felt the head of his cock push against her, push inside her. Her mouth opened on another strangled gasp as he slid deep, and she couldn’t help rolling her hips to take him deeper, relishing the burn and stretch of her pussy around him.

His intense silver eyes were inches away and she was caught, pinned by the look in them. He began to move, his breathing harsh, holding her gaze with his as he thrust up hard into her.

The pleasure unfurling inside her was annihilating. Soul destroying.

Her fingers dug into the heavy muscles of his shoulders as she moved with him, coming down hard on him every time he thrust up. She was panting, and she knew she was going to lose herself. She knew it. But that gaze of his was her lifeline, and she didn’t look away.

And when his free hand came up behind her head and forced her mouth to his, she went with it. Hungry and desperate, but not mindless. Not mindless anymore.

Their movements got faster, the kiss becoming feverish.

She bit him, desperate for more, and he gave it to her, the angle of his thrusts changing so he hit her clit with each upward movement of his hips. Kira shuddered, reaching down between her thighs without a thought, stroking herself.

“Yes,” he murmured hoarsely against her mouth. “Fucking touch yourself, beautiful girl. Make yourself come. Let me watch you.”

So she kept stroking, the bliss of his thrusts and the intensity of her own finger on her clit sending the sensation sky high.

Then the tension broke, and she was shaking as pleasure exploded through her, his name torn from her in a harsh scream. The brilliance of his gaze swallowed everything, and she was drowning in ecstasy, drowning in pure silver.

Drowning in him.

His mouth pressed to hers as he gripped her tight, his own thrusts falling out of rhythm, becoming uncontrolled, as wild as she was. Then he stiffened, tearing his mouth away and turning his face into her neck, a savage groan breaking from him, his long, powerful body shuddering as the climax took him, too.

For long moments afterward, he kept his arms tight around her, his breathing warm against the skin of her neck, but she didn’t mind. In fact, she loved the feeling of being held and contained, of having his warm body to lean against, of being able to sift her fingers through his thick, black hair.

“We can’t go back,” he said eventually, his voice muffled against her neck. “I can’t go back. I want you too much. I . . . need you too much.”

She didn’t ask what he meant. She knew. For a second, the relief was so acute she couldn’t speak.

He wanted her. He wanted her like she wanted him.

“Good,” she replied, when she finally found her voice again. “Because I want you, too.”

Lorenzo’s hand was in her hair all of a sudden, gently tugging her head back. There was something fierce in his eyes, something ferocious. “No, this isn’t just want, Kira. This is more. I need you.” His lips peeled back in one of those snarls again. “And I shouldn’t. I fucking shouldn’t.”

Her heart kicked at the look in his eyes, at the hunger that burned there. And yet there was anger there, too, as if he didn’t want the feeling. It made a sliver of hurt slide under her skin. “Why shouldn’t you? What’s wrong with needing me?”

His hand tightened. “You know why. It’s dangerous. For both of us. “

“For me, yes. But I don’t understand why it’s dangerous for you.”

His expression twisted. “Katie died because I needed her. Because I couldn’t handle my grief on my own, the way I should have. I was selfish. It was all about me, and so she died.”

The ferocity in his face, the pain, was like a knife in her heart. “Needing someone because you’re grieving isn’t selfish, Lorenzo. God, sometimes you can’t deal with that kind of stuff on your own.” She searched his face. “Who told you that anyway?”

“Dad.” The word was bitten out. “It was a lesson he instilled in me early on. Every man should be an island, he used to say. You shouldn’t need anyone, shouldn’t want anyone. A man should be self-sufficient and strong. Too much emotion made you weak.”

Her chest tightened. “Do you really believe that? Because if you do then you must think I’m the weakest person you’ve ever met.”

Another fierce expression crossed his face. “Fuck, that’s not what I meant. You’re not weak, Kira. You’re the very opposite of weak. But you’re not selfish with it, you’re—”

“Of course, I’m selfish with it.” She put her hands on his chest, holding herself away from him. “I do whatever I want. Follow every impulse. I don’t think about the consequences it will have on people.”

“Yes, but that’s not your fault. That’s your condition.”

“I can’t blame everything on my condition, Lorenzo. At some point, I have to take responsibility for it.”

He stared at her a second longer, then his attention shifted. He moved, pulling carefully out of her and putting his clothing back to rights, before he did the same for her, too. “I am taking responsibility. That’s what I’ve been doing since Katie died. Or at least I should be. But I . . . I just can’t fucking keep away from you.”

She paid no attention to his attempts to smooth her skirt down, staring at his starkly beautiful face. “It’s not just about Katie though, is it?” Because it wasn’t, she could feel it deep in her bones. “This is about something more.”

Lorenzo busied himself for a moment with her skirt, stroking along her thigh. Then he said, “When I was twelve, I overheard an argument Dad was having with Mom. She told him that she hated New York and that she was going to go back to Wyoming. I couldn’t bear the thought of her going, of her leaving me there alone with him. He was so cold, and I hated him. So I rushed in and begged her not to go. And Dad . . .” A bitter laugh escaped him. “He said that of course she couldn’t go. That she had to stay.” His lifted his gaze to hers. “She had to stay for my sake.”

Sudden understanding curled inside Kira’s chest. “It’s not only Katie you blame yourself for, isn’t it?”

Lorenzo’s gaze was inexorable, sharp with grief. “Mom hated New York. Hated it. And sometimes I think that if I hadn’t rushed in and told her not to go, if I hadn’t wanted more from her, perhaps my goddamn father wouldn’t have used me to keep her here. She would have gone back to Wyoming. She would have been happy. She wouldn’t have drowned herself in fucking vodka and sleeping tablets.”

Kira touched his face, running her fingers along the exquisite line of his carved cheekbones, wanting to soothe the raw note in his voice. “Do you really believe that? Sure, I can imagine her wanting to stay for you. But you didn’t pour vodka down her throat or give her pills. Those were her choices.”

His long black lashes fell, veiling his gaze. “I held onto her very tightly. I wanted her to stay so very much, and I was afraid she’d leave. And when Dad told her she had to stay for my sake, I was . . . glad.”

“You were twelve. Of course, you didn’t want her to leave. Of course, you were glad.”

He looked away, shaking his head. “She withdrew from me after that. I think she blamed me, too.”

She gripped his chin, turning him back to her, meeting his gray eyes. “You didn’t kill her, Lorenzo. Just like you didn’t kill Katie. You loved them and you’re taking responsibility for their deaths because you couldn’t protect them. You couldn’t save them.”

The look in his gaze burned her. “No.”

Kira leaned forward so her mouth was inches away from his, staring right at him. “Yes. Why else were you resisting me? It wasn’t only yourself you were protecting, you were trying to protect me as well. And that’s not selfish, Lorenzo. Not in the slightest.” She hesitated. “Though I’m not quite sure what you think you’re protecting me from.”

An emotion she couldn’t read flashed across his face. Then he lifted his hands, pushed his fingers into her hair, gripping her. “I’m protecting you from me, beautiful girl. I want too much. It hurts people, and I’ll hurt you eventually.”

Slowly, she shook her head. “No, you won’t. I’m tougher than I look.”

“You’d better be.” A muscle jumped in his jaw. “Because I can’t give you up, Kira. Not yet.”

It was wrong to feel relief. Wrong to let the sudden surge of need flood through her.

But right now, she didn’t care.

“What makes you think I’ll let you?” she murmured.

And then she kissed him before he could answer.