He jutted his chin. “‘What ifs’ are not definitive.”

“Seriously, Rocco. Losing happens. You can’t win everything,” I pointed out.

“Our shipping company employs thousands of people all over the world. They count on a confident, steady hand. That’s what my grandpa instilled in me. I spent time at every job, worked as Chief Executive Officer, and I know what we need.” He believed in himself. Failure wasn’t something he’d been allowed to consider. However, I had experienced it. And I didn’t understand why we should make things more complicated with everything on his plate.

I sighed. “Having a child earlier than planned doesn’t mean you’re giving up.”

He tightened his jaw. “No. My children must come from love, or I won’t have them. That’s what I learned from my dad. I won’t resent my offspring. I need them to feel loved.” His voice caught, and his Adam’s apple bobbed.

This was the Rocco I held all night after his grandfather passed. He finally broke the armor that his family expected him to carry all the time.

I went to him and wrapped my arms around him without a thought, only the desire to soothe him because he was hurting. He sighed approvingly and closed his arms around me, holding me tight. I snuggled in with the visceral urge to curl up in his arms like when we slept together. Rocco had also become my comfort and safety. He stayed in my arms for a long while, and I silently held him. When I felt his tension ease, I shared my own thoughts about what happened.

“Luca didn’t lose faith in you. He was experiencing the weight of death, and he wanted to control what was beyond his reach. It was selfish, but I was there for that dinner. He loved you dearly and was so proud. Yes, he did say he wanted you to have children, but he was also fascinated by your work and your dream. And, for whatever reason, wanted us together.”

He pressed a kiss to my forehead. “That’s the easy part of it, Bella. He adored you. He said if I had your heart, I’d have all I’d ever need.”

“He had a way with words,” I mused and laughed, but my laughter turned into a sob. I missed him.

“Oh,mia bella, Adelina,” Rocco murmured. He pulled me tighter against his broad chest and held me, kissing the top of my head and whispering soothing words. “The only thing he got right was giving me you. With you, I can be.” He didn’t explain, but I could understand. His family, colleagues, and employees needed him to be a powerful, charismatic leader, but with me, he didn’t have to put on all the charm. That feeling of being special to him rose. My whole life, I wanted to feel like I mattered and not just for what I could do. It terrified me how much I needed it. I tried to push away and stop my feelings. But Rocco hugged me tighter and kissed my face and cheeks. He moved us to sit onthe edge of the bed, pulled me to straddle his lap, and held on. Awareness shifted to our bare bodies touching, and everything shifted.

“Mmm, Adelina,” Rocco kissed me, and I parted my lips.

My hand moved over his chest, feeling the strength and power in his broad, solid shoulders down to his defined abs. It was bolder than anything I’d ever done: the branding of my touch on his skin. But I felt possessive; I wanted to own him, take more of him as my own. He moaned and shuddered under my hands, his cock thickening between us.

“I love the feel of your hands on me,” he whispered. He kissed me deeply, then down my neck; I clutched his hair, fingers sinking into the thick strands, then pulled his head back, bringing his full lips to my mouth, and we kissed. His tongue teased mine, then slid down my chin to the hollow at my throat. He kissed down my arms and across my stomach; his soft presses on my skin lingered, marking me.

He flipped me over and pressed kisses down my back, then over my ass, and I finally groaned. “Rocco….” It seemed too personal, but then he flipped me over again, and the softness in his gaze dissolved my protest. “I crave the feel of your beautiful, sexy body in my hands…trembling on my lips. Your deep blue eyes haunt my dreams…Let me take pleasure in you, my Bella.” I melted hearing his charming words. There was no denying anything to him. His hands reached my breasts. “Mmm… your skin’s so soft.” He caressed my nipples that had already stiffened to his touch. He moved me down on the bed, sucking a nipple into his mouth. “I love your tits.”

I breathed harder with my mouth open.

“I love it when you kiss me,” I whispered.

“I can’t get enough of you,” he whispered back.

He got me to stand and moved down to his knees, kissing my stomach and moving lower to nudge his nose against my sex;he moaned and then licked up my slit. It was so intimate. Heat surged through me, and I shuddered. “Ohh, my God.”

He grabbed my hips and dug in a tight grip, keeping me close.

“Ohh,” I sighed heavily.

“Take me where you want me, Bella,” he commanded.

I grabbed his head and pushed my hips forward, and pulled him to my pussy. He groaned and lapped me with his tongue, using hot, long licks, determined and oh-so-familiar strokes of my clit, making me wetter. “You taste so good.”

“Mmm,” I moaned heavy.

Rocco kept teasing, gripping my thighs tight as he rubbed his tongue through my hot folds and on my clit so passionately. My body throbbed and ached to come. I felt weak. “Ohh, Rocco, I’m going to come….”

He suddenly stopped and pulled back.

My chest heaved with a loud groan of frustration.

“I felt it too, Bella. You’ll come when I’m inside of you,” he said in a demanding, low tone. He stood, and I went down on my knees and took his cock in my fist, eager to make him lose control. I ran my tongue over my lips.

His jaw sharpened. “You want it, suck it,” he said in a low tone.

I opened my mouth, and he pushed it in, and I started noisily sucking on it hard.