“Oh,” I sighed, understanding dawning. “And the baby’s okay?”

  “I’ll monitor you closely, but there’s nothing in the tests to indicate anything but a normal pregnancy,” he assured me.

  “Thank you,” I whispered through tears, happy ones this time. The tension I’d been carrying inside eased, and I sagged in Nic’s arms.

  “No, thank you,” he corrected.

  I smiled up at him blearily. “We’re pregnant,” I whispered in awe.

  “I never doubted it for a minute,” he answered arrogantly, turning my tears into laughter just in the nick of time.

  “Mommy! You saved me and then Daddy saved you. I knew he would.” Sophia ran into the room and threw herself into my arms, Allegra following behind her, along with several of Nic’s men.

  “I did, too,” I murmured into her hair.

  My heart melted at hearing her call me “mommy” for the first time, as I listened to her chatter on about watching her favorite movies in a special room her daddy had locked her and Nonna in to make sure they were safe while he rescued me. I looked up at Nic and raised my brow, curious about her description. He smiled mysteriously and shrugged his shoulders. One of my hands stroked her hair as the other rested on my belly. It wouldn’t be long before I’d have two children to love. Nic had done more than save me—he’d given me the family I’d always longed to have.

  Five

  Nic

  “Nic, please,” Gianna begged, running a hand down my torso and attempting to palm my cock.

  “No, bellissima,” I sighed as I caught her hand and brought it to my mouth for a soft kiss. It took everything in me to turn her down. It had been three weeks since I’d brought Gianna home from the hospital, and I’d somehow held off on making love to her so she could recover. I discovered a thread of steel in my control I didn’t know I had. It developed from my fear of losing my sweet Gianna. What if I lost control, got too rough, and hurt her or the baby?

  I’d only ever been with one woman, if you could even classify her as a woman. We were teenagers, just kids, and didn’t really know what we were doing. After she had found out she was pregnant, she was filled with resentment toward me. Our relationship, physical or otherwise, ended. Then Sophia was born, and we never saw her again.

  The doctor had told me to wait for a couple of weeks before resuming “relations,” his word, with Gianna. I wanted to wait a little longer, just in case. She was still tired and though the bruises had faded, she seemed to drag physically. I was simply going to have to keep replacing the heat of her pussy with the icy cold water in my showers.

  We were lying in bed, her soft body draped all over me as I held her close. I brushed some hair away from her face and kissed her forehead. “You’re not well, mia dolce.”

  She huffed and shoved away from me, breaking my hold on her and sitting up. “I’m perfectly fine, Nic. Except for my need to be fucked!” she snapped.

  My eyebrows shot up into my hairline at her use of such vulgar profanity. I loved how delicate Gianna was, her innocence, and sweetness. But, I had to admit, when she let out a little bit of the naughty girl inside, it was a complete fucking turn on and my already stiff dick jumped up to salute her. I was going to make it one of my missions to see this temptress more often in the bedroom.

  I stifled a laugh, but obviously didn’t do a good enough job because she climbed off the bed and stomped into the bathroom, slamming the door behind her. I lay back on the mattress, putting my hands behind my head and trying to talk down my cock.

  My ears pricked at a sound from the bathroom, a familiar moan, and I shot up from the bed, racing to the door. Throwing it open, I froze at the sight of Gianna in the shower, with her hand between her legs. Oh, fuck no.

  Stalking over, I shoved the door open, snatched her wrist away, and used it to drag her up against my body. Bringing her fingers to my mouth, I licked them clean, eliciting another moan. Satisfied that I’d gotten all of her essence, I gripped both of her wrists and anchored them behind her back.

  “No one makes you come but me,” I snarled. “Not even you. Those sounds, your moans and screams of pleasure, they belong to me, Gianna. They are mine and I will not share them.” I stared at her with a hardened gaze, making sure my warning was clear. “If you need a release, you will come to me, or you will wait. Do you understand?”

  She considered me thoughtfully for a moment, but then, wisely, yielded with a nod. Her plump lips turned down into a pretty pout and the image of them wrapped around my cock had me so hard up, spots were floating in front of my eyes.

  “You’ve been turning me down,” she muttered. It dawned on me then, I’d been so focused on not fucking her that I hadn’t thought to relieve her ache in other ways.

  I rested my forehead against hers and sighed. “I’m sorry, mia dolce. It kills me that I’ve left you wanting.” Releasing her hands, I stripped off my soaking wet boxer briefs and threw them on the floor behind me, before I dropped to my knees. I placed a reverent kiss on the place where our baby rested and another on her pubic bone, before wrapping my hands around her hips. I ran my tongue lightly up her pussy lips, from bottom to top. Then moved one hand to rest above and hold them apart. Another lick, this one deeper, and I groaned at the sweet flavor.

  “You taste so fucking good, Gianna. I’ve been starved for your juices.” She whimpered, and I went back to eating her, paying special attention to her clit and driving her wild. “Come, mia dolce. Come on my tongue.” When her moans reached a certain pitch, I sucked her little bud hard, biting down, and lapping up every bit of her cream flooding my mouth as she shattered apart.

  I got to my feet and she slumped forward, sated and exhausted. Sweeping her into my arms, I stepped from the shower and set her gently on her feet. “Hold on to me while I towel you off, mia dolce.” She dutifully followed my instructions, and once we were both dry, I picked her up again and strode to the bed.

  I got her settled, then climbed in and reached for her. She came willingly into my arms and dropped a kiss on my lips before melding her mouth to mine. Our tongues danced in passion, and I poured every bit of my love into the kiss. She swung a leg over me and began to slide on top and straddle me. “Bellissima,” I admonished with a growl.

  She didn’t say anything, just flopped down beside me in defeat, then turned on her side to face away. I hauled her to me until she was snuggled against me, back to front. She muttered something under her breath that sounded a lot like “stubborn donkey butt.” I buried my face in her hair and chuckled silently.

  * * *

  “Bye, Daddy!” Sophia trilled as she skipped into my home office. It was wonderful to see her so healthy. When she reached me, I lifted her onto my lap so she could kiss my cheek.

  “Have a great day at school, preziosa.” I kissed her forehead and set her down again, smiling broadly as she pranced back out of the room.

  I shook my head in a bit of awe. I had the cutest kid, the sexiest fiancée, and another little one who would surely be the sweetest baby. My lips automatically dipped into a frown when I thought of the word fiancée. I wanted to have the sexiest wife. Gianna was stalling, for some reason. Changing the subject when I brought up dates. I was running out of patience, and if she didn’t do it soon, she was going to find herself at the courthouse in a proverbial shotgun wedding.

  My phone rang, snapping me back to reality and I picked up my cell, swiped the screen, and barked, “DeLuca.”

  “We lost the trail, boss,” Enzo replied. I could practically hear him grimace.

  Furious, I slammed my fist down on the desktop. “What the fuck, Enzo?” I bellowed. “How does that motherfucking scum keep slipping through your fingers?”

  “We think he’s after Carly,” he admitted. “Word is, he’s been asking around about her. But, the last source we talked to gave him disinformation. We spoke on the phone and set up a meet. When we got there, he was dead. The fucker stabbed him with a kitchen knife and took off. The trail goes cold there.”

  Thinking about Carly and the chemistry I detected between her and Brandon, I was pretty sure where his head was. He wasn’t just going to find her; he was going to claim her. And he needed to be warned if Pat was on their six.

  “Keep looking,” I instructed, then hit the disconnect button. Dialing another number, I returned the phone to my ear.

  “Nic,” Brandon answered in a gravelly voice. It was full of tension and what I suspected was rage.

  “There’s a good chance Pat is hunting your woman.”

  “My woman?” Brandon scoffed. “No way is that pain in the ass mine.”

  “You keep telling yourself that,” I remarked dryly. “Either way, stay off the grid and keep an ear to the ground. Any idea where she is?”

  Brandon grunted in annoyance. “I’ll admit, she’s good. But, I’m better. She’s leading me on a chase right now and the moment she pauses, I’ll take her.”

  I snorted in amusement, wondering if he recognized his double entendre.

  “Go fuck your woman and get your mind out of the gutter, tuffo merda.”

  All amusement fled at his comment. “Best friend or not, you talk about Gianna like that again and you’ll be singing soprano for the rest of your life.”

  Brandon snickered and I hung up the phone, tossing it on my desk. The door to my office slammed open, making me rear back in shock. If I’d been standing, the sight before me would have surely made me fall to my knees. Gianna posed at the entrance, her hands above her on the door jam, hips cocked out to the side. Her luscious tits were nearly spilling out of a light pink bra and her pussy barely covered by a matching scrap of fabric.

  That was it.

  Nothing else.

  I was so fucked.

  Okay, wrong choice of words.

  “Bellissima?” I gulped and discreetly adjusted my rock-hard cock. It was already leaking pre-come as she slowly advanced, her hips swaying, and her tits bouncing.

  “The house is empty, Nic,” she said in a sultry voice that sent any remaining blood in my brain rushing straight to my dick. “I’m not taking no for an answer this time. I can’t take it anymore.” Her eyes narrowed as she studied me, daring me to argue, but my tongue was stuck to the roof of my mouth.

  When she reached where I was seated, she flung a shapely leg over me and straddled my lap. She lowered herself, and even through the layers of clothes, I could feel the heat of her pussy on my cock. She leaned in and her chest rubbed mine as she whispered, “My hormones have me aching and desperate for you all the time, more so than ever before.” She moaned, and my erection was ready to burst through my pants to get to her sex. “I need you inside me.”

  The thread of control I’d been clinging to snapped and I took over, crashing my mouth down over hers.

  Six

  Anna

  I finally had Nic exactly where I wanted him—hard and hot, super close, and with his mouth claiming mine. It had been an urgent longing that made me act so out of character, but if I didn’t get him to take me, I was going to go insane. In the time we’d been together, he’d managed to get me addicted to his body. With my pregnancy hormones raging through my system, my needs had only gotten stronger. I’d tried flirting and teasing, seduction and begging. None of it had worked. Desperate times called for desperate measures, and I’d finally resorted to taking what I wanted.

  Heat was pouring off Nic’s muscular body as I straddled him, our tongues intertwined as we kissed. I undid the top buttons of his dress shirt, reveling in the feel of his skin under my hands.

  “Ride me,” he ordered in a raspy tone.

  My hips moved, slowly at first. With my knees wedged on either side of his legs, I levered myself up and down. My pussy slid over his hardness with every swivel of my hips, making my panties impossibly wet.

  “It’s been too long. I need you,” I whimpered into his ear.

  “I always need you,” he growled. His hands gripped my hips, pulling me down hard against his arousal.

  “I’ve been here for you to take all along.”

  His fingers tightened on my hips. “Because you’re mine.”

  “Yours,” I whimpered in agreement.

  “Mine,” he repeated, his gaze roaming over my body. He trailed a finger down my chest, making my already sensitive breasts swell even further. They practically spilled from the cups holding them, and with a snap of his fingers at my back, my bra popped open and they sprung free. Nic slid the straps down my arms, and my nipples pebbled under his dark stare.

  My body tightened when he closed his mouth over one of them. His hands held my breasts up for his mouth to feast. His fingers plucked at one nipple, while his lips wrapped around the other. They were overly sensitive from my pregnancy, and his light touch was enough to bring me close to the edge.

  “Nic,” I gasped at the sensation, arching my back to give him better access.

  His eyes were locked on mine as he gripped my hips and lifted me onto his desk, right where he wanted me. He slid his finger along the edge of my panties, making me shudder.

  “Please,” I panted, spreading my legs as wide as I could get them in this position.

  He shoved the gusset of my panties to the side and lashed my clit with his tongue. Then he slipped it between my folds, lapping at me. My head fell back, and I knotted my fingers in his hair.

  “Nic,” I moaned, my body starting to tremble as waves of pleasure hit me. I was so close to coming.

  “Not without me in you,” he growled, ripping my panties down my legs. Then he undid his belt and slid his zipper down. His cock sprung out, long and hard. “Take what’s yours, mia dolce.”

  I slipped off the desk and onto his lap, moving down on him in one slow, downward thrust until I’d taken his length all the way inside me. Gripping his shoulders, I increased my pace, riding him hard. It didn’t take long before my orgasm was close.

  “Give me your mouth.”

  I tilted my head, and he forced his tongue inside. He devoured me as I writhed in his lap. When he bit my bottom lip, I froze mid-thrust.

  “Do you need me to take control?” he rasped, giving my butt a light slap and making my pussy clench around him.

  “Yes,” I moaned.

  Nic gripped my hips and began to slam me up and down on his length. He hit me in just the right spot, sending me flying over the edge. I came hard, screaming loudly. His fingers dug into my skin as he thrust a few more times, before planting himself deep and filling me with his come. Completely sated, I sagged against him, my arms wrapped around his shoulders.

  “I needed that,” I sighed against his neck.

  “I did too,” he murmured. “So damn much.”

  It eased some of my feminine pique, hearing him admit he’d been denying himself as much as he’d denied me. Oddly enough, it had never crossed my mind that he didn’t want me. But, it hadn’t stopped me from being a little hurt when he kept resisting my advances.

  “Then maybe we should go again.”

  I felt his chest shake with laughter before I heard it. “My girl is greedy.”

  I tilted my head and looked up at him, giving him my best pout. “Only because you denied me for so long.”

  His thumb swept across my bottom lip. “It was for your own damn good, and you know it.”

  “I know why you did it,” I whispered. “But now that I’ve proven I’m more than capable of taking what you can dish out, don’t you think I’ve earned more of it?”

  “Mannaggia,” he hissed. “I don’t have it in me to deny either one of us any longer.”

  “Good,” I said, flashing him a smug grin.

  His hands tightened on my waist, and he lifted me off his lap, rising to his feet. He carried me to the couch, gently laying me down, and following until he hovered over me. “You might have been the one to start this, but don’t for one second forget which one of us is in charge here.”

  My breath caught in my chest at the hint of command in his tone. “You’re the boss.”

  I’d meant it as a joke to lighten the mood, but his eyes flared with triumphant heat. “In more ways than one,” he murmured. “And it’s about time I showed you exactly what it means, me owning this tight little body of yours. This round is going to be slow and easy until I have you begging me to let you come.”

  I shivered at the dark promise in his words. “Yes.”

  “Get ready to cry that out a lot because I’m going to make you scream it over and over again.”

  Nic followed through on his promise. We literally spent six hours making love and rediscovering each other’s bodies on the floor of his office. We just managed to clean up before Sophia’s bus was due to drop her off from school. I was barely able to stand, let alone dress myself, by the time he was done with me. Nic had to run upstairs and grab an outfit, then help me into it. He’d just finished buttoning my blouse and tucking it into my skirt when Sophia came running into his office.

  “Daddy! Mommy!” she cried, making my heart swell with love. “Heidi brought pictures to school today where she was all dressed up in a really pretty white dress with flowers in her hair and in a basket. Do you know why?”

  “No, why, sweetie?” I asked, brushing her hair from her face as she chattered on.

  “Because she got to be a flower girl!” she squealed. “In a real wedding for her aunt.”

  “A flower girl, huh?” Nic replied, flashing me a grin as he quirked an eyebrow up.

  “Yes!” she answered. “It’s no fair. I want to be a flower girl and dress up like a princess, too!”

  “You’ll get your chance as soon as your mommy picks a day to marry me.”

  Sophia’s eyes grew round with surprised happiness. “I will?” she gasped.

  “You will.”

  “Can it be tomorrow?” She wanted to know. “And then I can bring pictures of me all dressed up to school to show to Heidi.”