Page 34 of Forsaken Promises

But beneath the pain, there’s something else. A flicker of determination, a spark of defiance that refuses to be extinguished.

Never say never. Those words echo in my head, a mantra that I cling to like a lifeline. Sofia may think she’s closed the door on our love forever, but I refuse to accept that. I refuse to give up on the bond that we once shared, the connection that still simmers between us every time we touch.

A Sicura never gives up. It’s a lesson that’s been drilled into me since birth, a code that I’ve lived by for as long as I can remember. I’ll be damned if I let Sofia’s stubborn pride and wounded heart keep us apart forever.

I pull back from her, my jaw clenched as I meet her gaze head-on. “You say you’ll never love me again,” I say, my voice low and intense. “But I don’t believe that, Sofia. I can’t believe that. Because I know what we had was real. Besides, if you didn’t love me, you wouldn’t react so strongly whenever I’m near you.”

She opens her mouth to protest, but I cut her off with another fierce kiss, pouring all my pent-up emotion in the slant of my lips against hers. She resists for a moment, but then her body arches into mine with a hunger that belies her previous words.

When we finally break apart, both of us breathing hard, I rest my forehead against hers. “You can try to push me away, Sofia,” I murmur, my voice rough with desire. “You can tell yourself that this is just physical, that it doesn’t mean anything. But deep down, you know the truth. You know this is worth fighting for.”

15

SOFIA

As Dom kisses me with a desperate passion, I feel my resolve start to crumble. My body responds to his touch as if no time has passed at all, as if we’re still those same love-struck teenagers who couldn’t keep their hands off each other.

But I refuse to let myself fall into that trap again. I won’t let him break down my walls, won’t let him see how much he still affects me.This is just physical, I remind myself firmly, a way to satisfy the ache that still lingers between my thighs, the need that only he has ever been able to fulfill.

I kiss him back with a ferocity that matches his own, my nails raking down his back as I arch into him. I pour all my pent-up frustration and anger into the clash of our lips, the bite of my teeth against his skin.

I want to prove to him that I don’t need his love, that I can take my pleasure from him without giving him my heart in return. I want to show him that I’m not the same naive girl he once knew, that I’m stronger and harder and more resilient than he ever gave me credit for.

But even as I lose myself in the kiss, even as I let the fire consume me from the inside out… I can’t shake the feeling that this is more than just a battle of wills. More than just a way to scratch an itch or settle a score.

Because beneath the anger and the hurt, beneath the walls I’ve built around my heart… there’s still a part of me that yearns for his touch, a part of me that craves the way he makes me feel, the way he sets my soul on fire and makes me forget everything else.

It’s a dangerous thing, this desire that still burns between us, a double-edged sword that could cut us both to the core if we’re not careful.

But in this moment, with his hands on my skin and his breath hot against my neck… I can’t bring myself to care. I can’t think beyond the pleasure that’s building inside me, the release that I know only he can give me.

Our hands feverishly claw at one another. I tear off his suit jacket and fumble with his shirt buttons. Dom yanks my dress off me, letting it pool onto the bed before he kicks it onto the floor.

I pout. “That was a Gucci dress.”

“I’ll buy you ten of them,” Dom snarls before he drops to his knees, kissing my chest and stomach on his way down. He rips my panties in half, dropping them to the floor with one hand.

Fuck, that’s so hot. Seeing him so… animalistic makes me wet.

I cry out in excitement at his eagerness as he presses his hot face between my thighs. My thighs part involuntarily, and I yearn for more.

Dom looks up at me, his eyes dark. I buck my hips at him, a silent plea for more. I close my eyes and arch my back as I feel his tongue at my entrance. Fuck, this is irresistible.

I moan and press my head back against the pillows. Pulses of pleasure vibrate throughout my body as his tongue flicks furiously at my clit.

“Mmm, more,” I moan, grabbing a fistful of his hair, guiding his head. Dom runs a hand up my thigh, and it’s like electric currents jolting through my body.

He inserts his fingers in my wetness and moves them back and forth. He knows my body. There’s a familiarity that feels right, and he knows just where to push.

I cry out as delicious ecstasy consumes me. I can hardly think properly. All I can feel is how wonderful his fingers are inside me. It’s not fair.

Dom roughly grabs my hips and removes his mouth from my pussy. I nearly whimper at the loss of pleasure, but Dom turns me over so my ass is pushed against his throbbing erection.

I moan again and wiggle my ass against him, yearning for some friction. Dom’s fingers squeeze into my hips almost painfully as he thrusts vigorously inside me. I cry out in pleasure.

Dom keeps one hand on my waist as he grabs my hair and yanks. My back arches, and my eyes smart a bit from the pain, but I don’t tell him to stop. Telling him to stop means I’m losing, and a Marino never loses.

Besides, it kind of feels amazing.

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