Lucia’s Epilogue
Six Months Later
We did it. We drove to Florida. We drove as far as we could from New Jersey and ended up on the very tip of Key West. We bought a modest old house with a strip of private beach and started again.
The renovations on the house would probably take us over a year to complete, but I liked it. It was built in the 70s, and the seller was the son of the sole owners of the place who had done zero updates since its build. It needed a lot of work, but work was a good thing. It kept us occupied, kept our minds busy, especially Salvatore’s.
It was strange at first, as though he didn’t know how to be without the Benedetti mafia behind him. Around him. Taking up all of his energy. Defining him. There was no one to take care of here besides us. Natalie and Jacob had settled in California. Roman took care of the family business with few questions for Salvatore. He’d been so involved when Franco had been boss that he was a natural fit. I didn’t think Salvatore regretted handing everything over, but this life was very different than the one he’d had.
My sister and Luke lived south of Miami, which was just shy of a four-hour drive to Key West. At first, the tension between Luke and Salvatore had been high, but both men had something in common. They’d both nearly died. They both realized what was important, and that was family. I wished they lived closer. I wanted to be around my sister and Effie after having missed out on so many years, but this worked, and it was better than what I’d had for five years.
As happy as Salvatore and I were with the simplicity of things here, there was one thing that bothered him. Dominic’s absence.
He’d hired several investigators but came up short at every turn. Dominic had vanished, and Salvatore struggled to come to terms with that.
I stood outside of our little house at the barbecue looking out at the beach, startling when I heard him.
“You smell like a steak,” Salvatore said, suddenly behind me, his mouth on the back of my neck.
“Christ! How do you always sneak up on me?”
He’d walked around back where I was grilling two steaks. He’d been gone most of the day, picking up supplies.
He laughed and held out a bouquet of sunflowers. “You’re too involved in your head, that’s how.”
I was too involved for a reason.
“I missed you.” His mouth found mine.
“Me too.” I kissed him back and took them. “These are pretty. Thanks.”
“I’m glad you like them.” He looked at the grill. “Early for dinner, isn’t it?”
“I’m just hungry.”
“Well, I’m not hungry for food just yet,” he said sliding his hands down and into the back of my shorts. He squeezed my ass, kissing me deeply, his big body bigger, even more muscular since we’d started working on the house. His skin had darkened in the Florida sunshine. He seemed to smile more, and his face looked more relaxed. I didn’t think it would be possible for him to be even sexier than before, but he was.
“I’ve been thinking about this all day.”
He picked me up. I wrapped my legs around his hips and my arms around his neck.
“I haven’t fucked you on the picnic table yet,” he said, pushing my shirt aside and taking a nipple into his mouth.
“You are a dirty, dirty man, Salvatore.”
“I think you like it, Lucia.”
He set me on the table and continued to kiss me before pulling the peasant shirt over my head.
“Do you remember,” he started, stripping his T-shirt off, “when we were in my study, and I fucked your ass for the first time?”
I felt my face blush as he pushed my knees apart and stood between them, his grin evil and his eyes dancing while he unbuttoned my shorts and pulled the zipper down.
I leaned in close. He thought he was embarrassing me, did he? Taking his hair in my hands, I tugged, turning his head to the side and licking his ear. “I remember I liked it. But who says I’m giving you permission to fuck my ass again?”
One hand raked up my back, pulled the tie out of my messy bun, and gripped a handful of hair.
“I need to ask permission?” he asked, closing his mouth over mine.
This kiss had a hunger to it.
“Don’t you remember what I said you’d do the next time I wanted to fuck your ass?”
I shook my head, although I remembered perfectly. My hands moved to explore his chest. “Refresh my memory.”
“Something about you bending over my desk and spreading yourself open. Something about begging me to do it.”
“You think I’ll beg you to fuck me?” I chuckled and slid my fingernails down his back to push my hands into his shorts and cup his tight ass.