I wanted her to have a choice. But I wouldn’t show weakness, not in front of Luca, not after I’d already displayed such during our meeting. He wouldn’t have reason to doubt me. Not even my wife’s pretty face and her cute smile could soften my resolve. But a nonexistent choice could still feel like a choice.
“I know what’s expected, Cassio. I know what it would mean for you and my father if we don’t present sheets in the morning.” She swallowed.
I touched her arm, feeling her warmth seep through the thin fabric. “Then make it your choice.”
She searched my eyes. “Okay,” she said quietly.
Relief filled me at her reasonability. At least that distinguished her from my late wife. She surprised me when she headed to the bedroom without prompting. I followed a couple of steps behind her. For the first time, I allowed myself to see her as a woman—something I’d avoided at all costs until now but was a necessity for tonight.
The dress accentuated her narrow waist and the beautiful curve of her hips and butt. Arriving in the bedroom, Giulia stopped and glanced over her shoulder. Despite her obvious nerves, she smiled before she set her purse down on the bench in front of the king-sized bed. Her eyes rested on it for a moment, her blush deepening, then she cleared her throat.
I moved closer to her. Her strawberry scent wafted into my nose, making me wonder if she’d taste just as sweet as her choice in perfume suggested. I took in the intricate lace of her long-sleeved bodice, lingering on the swell of her breasts.
“I have to cut you out of your dress,” I said as I unsheathed my knife from the holster at my chest. Another tradition we couldn’t evade.
She regarded the blade with a small frown before she nodded. Turning around, she tilted her head to the side so her hair wasn’t covering the lace top of her back. Her throat was long and elegant, perfectly unblemished, and I had to resist the urge to press my mouth to it and mark her as mine. Sparing her had appeared easier when we hadn’t been married yet. That I had ever considered it an option seemed ludicrous now. She shifted her face and peered up at me through long lashes, nerves in her eyes.
“Everything okay?” she asked quietly.
“Of course,” I clipped, my voice harsher than intended because I was annoyed at myself. She averted her eyes and stiffened.
An apology teased the tip of my tongue. It never passed. I slid my finger below the lace to lift it off her skin. Goose bumps pimpled every inch of her body when I touched her soft skin. I brought the knife down and cut through the undoubtedly expensive fabric. The resulting hiss made Giulia jump. I stepped back the moment the knife reached her skirt.
Giulia pulled her dress down slowly, her back to me, and I couldn’t look away as she revealed inch over inch of her smooth back. She was topless and only wearing a very skimpy white lace thong. My eyes rested on her perfect ass cheeks, round globes I wanted to sink my teeth into and bury my cock in, a cock that was growing hard watching her.
“Is it okay if I freshen up?”
Her voice tore through my rising arousal. “Of course.”
The gruffness in my voice made Giulia risk a glance up at my face. Then she hurried into the bathroom. Terrifying my young wife before I had to claim her was a fucking stupid thing to do.
Loosening my tie, I walked over to the bench and sank down. My wedding ring, similar to my last one, seemed to mock me. I set my tie down beside me, listening to the sound of running water. Giulia would need patience and care. I had never had much of either to begin with. Since the mess with Gaia, even less than before. I propped my arms up on my thighs, trying to reach a state of mind that would allow me to treat my young wife right. I didn’t want her to resent me.
The door opened, drawing my attention to it and Giulia. She wore a dark blue silk nightgown that reached her knees and hugged her slender frame. Her hair fell down her shoulders in soft brown curls, freed of the too-cute sunflowers. Giulia didn’t move from her spot in the doorframe and nervously smoothed out her bangs then traced the floor with her bare foot.
“What now?”
I met her gaze. She looked to me for guidance, and that was the one thing I had no trouble giving her. I straightened to my full height and held out my hand. “Come here.”
Taking a visible breath, she moved closer until she stood right in front of me. Without her heels, she only reached my chest. Her strawberry scent was more prominent than before, and even though I’d never been a man for the sweet things in life, I suddenly craved it.
I reached up and cupped her head. She held her breath. For a moment, I regarded her pretty face before I leaned down and pressed a simple kiss to her mouth to see how she’d react. She stayed still. Running my thumb over her cheekbone, I repeated the motion. She softened against me.
“Why are you still wearing a jacket?” she asked after the third simple kiss.
Pulling back, I shrugged out of my jacket and flung it over the bench. Giulia’s eyes took me in.
“And the vest?”
Stifling a smile, I started unbuttoning the vest. She didn’t act how I’d feared, not how Gaia had acted. The last button gave me trouble, but before my frustration could rise, Giulia pushed my hand away and opened it with her elegant fingers. I dropped the vest to the bench as well.
Giulia let out a small breath. “You look really strong.” She reached up as if to feel my bicep then faltered. I gripped her hand and pressed it against my arm then flexed my bicep.
Giulia let out a small laugh, and my own lips twitched. She peered up then darted her gaze behind me. Taking her hand again, I led her closer to the bed.
“Lie down.”
She reclined on the bed, becoming visibly tenser. I pushed off my shoes then stretched out beside her, still almost completely dressed. Gripping her hip, I dragged her closer to me and leaned over her.
A hint of nerves crossed her beautiful face. I focused on her body, not her face, and pressed a kiss to her neck. She was still, holding her breath. Not a great reaction but not too bad. I pressed another kiss to the spot right below her ear, and she surprised me by twitching and letting out a giggle.
A teenage girl giggle. I paused then raised my eyes. She bit her lower lip, her expression caught between embarrassment and an uncertain smile. She looked like such a fucking girl. Of age, my ass. She was legal, but her antics, her reaction, her expression… they weren’t those of a grown woman but of a girl on her way to becoming a woman.
I pushed up, stifling a sigh.
“I’m sorry,” she said quickly. “I didn’t mean to laugh. I’m ticklish.”
She regarded me with uncertainty, her eyes suddenly filled with anxiety. This wasn’t going how I hoped it would. The makeup and elegant dress had made her look older. Now, without a touch of makeup and dressed in her nightgown, she looked like the teenager that she was.
I did what was necessary. I threatened, tortured, killed, so sleeping with my wife should have been a piece of cake.
I ignored her apology and stood. The faster I got this over with, the better. I removed my shirt, followed by my pants and socks. When I reached for my boxers, I noticed Giulia’s gaze. Her eyes were huge, which made her look even younger and more innocent, and she stared at me in a mix of fascination and fear.
I released my waistband, deciding it was better if I kept my cock covered for now. If she let out a terrified shriek upon seeing it, I’d tell Luca to screw himself on the fucking sheets and then my blood would definitely tinge them red.
Perched on the edge of the bed, I reached for her knee, touching it lightly.
She twitched again and bit her lip, trying to hold in another giggle.
“I’m fairly sure I know one place where you’re not ticklish,” I said sardonically.
She pursed her lips. “You can’t know…” Her eyes widened. “You mean…” She sucked in a quick breath. At least she understood my comment. If she’d stared at me blankly, I would have lost it.
I knelt on the bed. I wanted to relax her enough to keep her pain to a minimum. My first wife had cried through our first time together, an experience I really didn’t want to repeat.
I pushed up her nightgown enough to reach her panties, and my groin tightened in a familiar way seeing the valley between her thighs. I touched my fingers to her hips, sliding them into the waistband of her underwear.
She was perfectly still, watching me with parted lips and that damn innocence that was going to kill me. “Can I take them off?”
It was a rhetorical question—we both knew what was expected.
“What if I say no? Would it matter?” she asked with a hint of insolence.
“Would it make you feel better if I continued despite your saying no? It certainly won’t help me.”
“I doubt you’d care. It certainly won’t hurt you as much as me.”
Anger surged through me. I moved over her, bracing myself beside her shoulders. Her hands came up as if to ward me off, soft palms pressing against my chest. Her eyes widened, and she darted them to my pecs, her fingers shaking against me.
“Listen up. You’re right, you’ll be the one who’ll experience discomfort, but I can guarantee you that being bratty about it doesn’t help. If you work with me, it’ll be better.”
“It’s not just the pain. Until this moment, men were allowed to kiss my hand or dance with me at social gatherings, nothing more. And now you’re here, over me, half naked, and I’m half naked, and soon we’ll both be naked, and you’re going to…” She sucked in a deep breath.