Page 25 of Raphael
"That might be the hardest part," she teases, reaching out to trace the muscles of my abdomen with her fingertips. "Especially when you walk around shirtless like you did yesterday morning."
I catch her wrist, my cock already hardening in my briefs at her touch. "I'm serious, Annie. This isn't just about discretion. It's about safety. Your safety."
She sobers, nodding. "I understand. I'll be careful."
I release her wrist, but she doesn't pull away. Instead, her hand drifts lower, tracing the outline of my erection through the thin fabric.
"We still have time before Marco wakes up," she suggests, her innocent expression at odds with the boldness of her touch.
"You're insatiable," I growl, but I'm already pushing her back against the pillows. "And you should be too sore for round two."
"Maybe," she admits, spreading her legs in invitation as I move between them. "But I want you anyway."
I pull my briefs down just enough to free my cock, already fully hard at the sight of her spread beneath me. "This is going to be gentler than last night," I warn her, rubbing my tip against her entrance to test her readiness.
She's already wet, her body responding to me despite any lingering soreness. "I trust you," she says, reaching up to cup my face. "I trust you with all of me, Raphael."
Those words—that trust—hit me harder than any declaration of love could. I push into her slowly, watching her face for any sign of discomfort, but she just sighs in pleasure, her body accepting me more easily than last night.
"Fuck, Annie," I groan once I'm fully seated inside her. "You feel so goddamn perfect."
I make love to her slowly this time, savoring each stroke, each gasp, each flutter of her pussy around my cock. I kiss her deeply, swallowing her moans as she builds toward another climax. When she comes, it's with a soft cry of my name, her bodytrembling beneath mine. I follow shortly after, pulling out at the last second to spill across her stomach.
Afterward, as I clean her with a warm washcloth, she looks up at me with those amber eyes that see too much. "This isn't just sex for me," she says quietly. "I need you to know that."
I sit beside her on the bed, taking her hand in mine. "It's not just sex for me either," I admit. "I don't know exactly what it is yet, but it's... more."
She smiles, seemingly satisfied with that answer for now. "So what happens today? Do I go back to being just Marco's nanny?"
"In front of him, yes," I say. "But behind closed doors?" I bring her hand to my lips, kissing her knuckles. "You're mine, Annie. And I'm not letting you go."
The possessiveness in my voice should probably concern me, but the way her eyes darken in response tells me she doesn't mind. Not one bit.
"I like the sound of that," she says.
The sound of little feet pattering down the hallway breaks the moment. "Daddy? Are you awake?" Marco calls.
"Time to be professional," I whisper, standing quickly. "Get in the shower. I'll distract him."
She slips from the bed, grabbing her discarded clothes. Before she heads to the bathroom, she rises on tiptoes to press a quick kiss to my lips.
"See you at breakfast, Mr. Conti," she whispers with a playful smile.
As I throw on a t-shirt and sweatpants to go greet my son, I'm struck by the sudden realization that my life has irrevocably changed in the span of twenty-four hours. I've eliminated athreat to my family, taken an innocent woman into my bed, and somehow, improbably, found something I never thought I'd have again:
Hope.
Hope that maybe, just maybe, I can have it all. My loyalty to Dante, my devotion to Marco, and now, this unexpected connection with Annie. The danger is still there. The complications haven't disappeared. But for the first time since becoming a single father, I'm not just surviving—I'm reaching for something more.
And I'll be damned if I let anyone take it from me.
Six Months Later
"Uncle Dante's here!" Marco shouts, racing to the front door before I can even get off the couch.
I share an amused look with Annie, who's putting the finishing touches on dinner in the kitchen. She's officially moved in with us now, though we maintain the fiction of her occupying the guest room whenever Marco's awake. At five, he's observant but still blissfully unaware of the true nature of our relationship.
Dante enters with his usual commanding presence, Elena beside him. They've become regular dinner guests over the past few months, ever since Dante figured out what was happening between Annie and me.
