Page 86 of Attraction (Mobsters + Billionaires 3)
He touches his nose to mine. “Mm-hmm.”
Glaring playfully at Darnell, I ask, “You mind driving me to the airport one last time?”
“Not at all, boss.”
22
FORD
I knowthat I should want a refined man. A man of similar stature in the community. I should definitelynotbe falling in love with a mobster.
Maybe that’s why this is so delicious.
When we part with Darnell in Milan, Luca has tears in his eyes as he wishes his employee, now friend, well. Maybe this is the real reason. I’m not getting some cookie-cutter, Stepford husband with no emotion. Luca said it himself—he owns all of his emotions. The anger, the joy, the sadness, the uncertainty, the pull of his conscience.
We get settled into Rand’s pretty jet, and as soon as we take off, I climb into Luca’s lap. His private little smile tells me exactly how much he enjoys this, and I crawl up against him, loving how he automatically puts his arms around me. He reclines the seat, and we shift into a comfortable cuddle. The flight crew only disturbs us to provide refreshments and let us know when we are landing in New York.
We both have busy, overwhelming lives that wait for us, but things have changed. Our entire lives have shifted, and we both know it. We say very little on the flight home, letting the closeness and comfort of our bodies do the talking for us.
Kej greets us at the airport with a smile. “So, Ford, when do I get to go on a magical trip and find my one true love?”
“Are you serious? I’m not letting you go anywhere. You’re single for the rest of your life.”
Grinning, he fake punches my arm. “I was kidding. You’re already too late.”
He ignores my gesture to explain, and Luca avoids eye contact.
Hm. I’ll be getting to the bottom of that.
The drive back into the city is slow but uneventful. I whine when we drop off Luca first.
“Little bird, I’ll drive with you to your house.”
I shake my head. “No, that doesn’t make any sense. But now you’ve got me addicted, and if you think I can go days on end without seeing you, you’ve got another thing coming.”
“Days? Doll face, I’ll be surprised if I can go hours.”
I crawl onto his lap and pepper him with kisses until Kej clears his throat.
“Sirs, my apologies, but an officer is approaching the vehicle. He probably wants to know why I’m double parked in front of one of the most exclusive buildings in Manhattan. Little help here?”
Grinning, Luca pulls back, his lips as red and kiss-swollen as mine. He kisses the space between my brows.
“This changes everything, you know?”
I nod. “It does.”
It feels like the words are on the tips of our tongues. It’s a little too soon and a long time coming, and I’m not particularly worried about it. I know we’ll get there.
I slide back into my seat, and Luca kisses my hand, one knuckle at a time, before getting out of the Mercedes. The officer sees Luca and stops, sending him a wave. Kej pulls away, and a deep melancholy follows us home, like maybe I left my heart behind and now my body doesn’t know what to do.
“Oh my God, how dramatic,” I groan to myself.
“Got smacked upside the head by the love bug, did you?”
“With a two-by-four,” I joke, though not really.
Since it’s only the two of us, Kej drives around back and lets me in through his apartment.
