Page 51 of Of Vows and Betrayal

“Ophelia, damn it.” I run a hand over my face. “What was I supposed to tell him? That you’ve been the source of all my wet dreams for the past two months?”

“Oh!” Her eyes go wide, and she looks away, her face even redder.

Taking a deep breath, I try to calm the storm inside me. “What you heard wasn’t the whole truth. I said those things to Tiago because I had to.”

She glances back at me, her eyes still wide, her face flushed with embarrassment and something else—hope, maybe?

“Javier, I—” she starts, but I cut her off, needing to get this out before I lose my nerve.

“You’re not just a job to me. You’re not a means to an end. You’re…” I shake my head, struggling to find the right words. “And it kills me to see you with him, to see you hurting.”

The cab driver shoots us a glance in the rearview mirror, and I force myself to lower my voice. “I need you to understand that whatever happens, I will protect you.”

The cab pulls up in front of my apartment building, and I pay the driver, helping Ophelia out of the car. We walk inside in silence, the tension between us thick and electric.

Once we’re inside my apartment, I close the door and turn to face her. She’s looking around, and somehow, the splash of color she brings seems to belong in the oversanitized, impersonal place that I call home.

“You’re safe here. No one will find you.”

“I want to stop being safe.” She shakes her head. “No, what I mean is that I’ve been thrown into this life without being asked, and since then, my choices have been dictated. I haven’t stopped thinking about you. I want you, too, and to hell with the consequences.”

I step closer, unable to resist the pull between us. “Ophelia, I need you to know something. I won’t let anyonehurt you. Not Romero, not your father, not anyone. You’re mine to protect.”

Her eyes meet mine, and for a moment, the world fades away. “I think I’m falling in love with you.”

Her words hit me like a punch to the gut, and all the anger, all the frustration, melts away.

“It’s going to be a mess. This complicates everything,” I say.

“I don’t care.” She thinks that because she doesn’t know the whole picture, and I’m lying to both of us when I tell myself that everything will be okay.

I lift my hand and let my fingers graze her soft cheek. I trace her jaw with my thumb and tip her face up to meet my gaze, making sure there’s no conflict there.

“Phee,” I whisper. “You’ve done it now.” I brush my lips against hers. “We can’t ever go back to what we used to be.”

She nods, not fully understanding the gravity of my statement, but nothing matters at that moment. I want whatever fevered emotion is swirling in her stormy eyes.

I crash my lips onto hers, devouring any thought of protest or fear. I kiss her with a fiery desperation, in a way that I’ve dreamed about doing but never thought would happen. As I kiss her, the sensation of being utterly alive pulses through every fiber of my being, and it’s like I’m finally living again.

I let my lips trail along her neck, tasting her skin. She tastes just as she looks—sweet and innocent, with a hint of floral that is completely intoxicating.

“Javier.” Her voice wobbles just the tiniest amount, thenerves finally coming through. I smile against her shoulder.

I reach behind her, my fingers trembling as I slowly unzip the ugly satin dress. It’s not like her at all. I give her enough time to change her mind, my heart pounding with a mix of hope and fear. I can’t believe I am this lucky to finally have her in my arms, and I expect that at any moment, she will be snatched away from me.

As she should be, my mind whispers in my cloud of lust.

“Are you sure?” I murmur against her ear, my hands pausing as they rest on the small of her back.

She nods, her eyes meeting mine, filled with fear and resolve. “I’ve never been more sure of anything.”

I slide the dress off her shoulders, my fingers trembling slightly as I expose her soft, delicate skin. The dress stops at her hips, and she stands before me, vulnerable and beautiful.

I want to touch her, taste her, explore her every curve with my fingertips, with my tongue.

I reach over to cup both her breasts in my hands.

The smallest of moans escapes her lips, and my twitching cock springs to life. If her laugh is like a breath of life, her moans are orgasm inducing. I wanted to hear more of them.

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