Page 37 of The Red Queen

“Then we will get you a ring and set a date,” he announced. “Make it official.”

Her head spun at the thought of setting a date. They were really doing this; they were getting married. She supposed she didn’t have a choice, but as she’d told him, it didn’t bother her. She’d spent the past twenty-five years having her choices stripped of her. Why should now be any different?

“When?” she asked quietly, averting her eyes so he wouldn’t see the confusion in them.

“Tomorrow.”

“Tomorrow?” she asked, her head snapping up and her voice rising. “We’re getting married tomorrow?”

“No,” he chuckled. “You will get your ring tomorrow. We will be married in a month.”

A month wasn’t very far away, and she didn’t like that he was telling her instead of discussing it. Even if she was to be his captive bride, the way he was speaking didn’t bode well for their future together. She’d once read in a magazine that communication was the key to a successful marriage.

“Will you come with me to choose a ring?” she asked.

“No, I have a business meeting in Rome tomorrow, which is why I came to find you. I’ll be leaving in a few hours.”

“Oh.” She couldn’t hide her disappointment. She’d hoped he would come with her to choose a ring. Weren’t rings supposed to be symbolic of their relationship? She supposed they didn’t actually have a relationship yet. Maybe that was why he didn’t want to come with her.

“Desi.” He tilted her chin until she was looking at him. “I want another taste of what I must miss out on tonight.”

“Oh.” Her tone was much less disappointed.

He kissed her, the touch of his lips against hers exploratory at first. He slid an arm along her back and pulled her up against his chest.

She could feel the heat of him through his suit. She slid her hands up his chest and into his collar, losing herself in the kiss. It was a first for her, this slow seduction. She could feel her senses perk up, then come alive, sending showers of tingles through her body.

She lost all sense of time as he explored her lips, then her neck and the shell of her ear. His harsh breathing was evidence of his desire as well as the press of his cock into the vee of her thighs.

She’d never been so turned on before. Before Giovanni, she’d fucked as hard as she fought. She didn’t have a choice. She lived with rough men who took what they wanted. Nico had never been this sweet, this seductive, with her.

Giovanni’s kiss was exquisite.

“Giovanni…” she moaned.

“Call me Gio,” he said breathlessly against her as he pushed her into the wall and slid his hand into her shirt, cupping her breast and pinching her nipple.

She gasped. “Gio!”

“Si, I love when you call me that,” he groaned in her ear. “Say it again,bella.”

“Gio.”

He held her tight, too tight, but she didn’t mind the clasp. He wasn’t trying to hurt her. He was getting swept away in the moment, the same as her.

“You are so fucking beautiful, Desi.” He gripped the ribbon on her bustier and yanked, tearing it and dragging the top open. He quickly replaced the material with his mouth, searing her with the heat of his tongue as he explored her cleavage. “You captured me from the first.”

Desi wrapped her arms around his head and neck, holding him against her. He was taller by several inches, but since she was wearing heeled boots, he didn’t have to crouch as far.

“Tell me,” she moaned, tilting her head back against the wall to give him better access.

“Hired a private investigator to find out who was causing waves in Miami. He sent me your picture. It stunned me. So fucking beautiful.” He slid his hand into her hair, gripping it and forcing her to arch her neck even more as he explored. “You are even more so in person.”

“If you knew…” she groaned as he sucked on her neck, biting down, and sending a pool of heat zinging straight through her to pool in her pussy. “Why didn’t you stop me?”

“Wanted to know what you were capable of.”

Desi tried to concentrate on his words. He’d known of her for months, had patiently waited for her to make a move. Did he not care that she could’ve hurt or killed his friend, Raina?

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