“Thank God I’m some great wordsmith, then, huh?” I answered once she leaned back to find my eyes, and I held her chin. “Want to hear more of the list?”
She quietly nodded.
“A sibling for Chiara.” I paused. “And to be your husband. Still need to check—”
“Are you asking . . .”
“I’m asking.” I guided her face closer, drawing her mouth near mine.
“You know, for a man who doesn’t know the rules to baseball, you’re pretty great at home runs.” A few tears escaped down her cheeks as she smiled.
“Is that a yes?” I hoarsely asked, hating I didn’t have a ring. And although I’d asked her dad a week ago for permission to marry her without a specific timeline in mind, on the flight home today I’d decided it’d be tonight. I couldn’t wait. I’d closed the book when it came to my past, and Maria and Chiara were my future. “Will you marry me?”
“Yes! Yes, I will marry you.” No hesitation, not even a little. She eagerly nodded before kissing me. Soft and delicate before it turned bold and ravenous. When she broke away, she said, “I have a request, though.”
“Anything, Tesoro.” I slanted my brows, studying her. Unsure if I’d ever experienced a feeling of happiness like I was right now, knowing she’d be my wife.
“Well, since nothing about our relationship has exactly been conventional, what if we take our chances and go with the flow?”
I wasn’t following, so I just smiled and waited for her to explain. Damn, I was so in love with this adorable woman.
“No condoms. If it happens before we’re married, it happens,” she finally said. “What do you say?”
“What do I say?” A hearty laugh fell from my lips, and I had this woman face down in a second, holding the weight of my body over her. “I’ll show you, cara mia,” I murmured against her ear, the head of my cock nudging her pussy.
She hooked her feet around my calves and pleaded, “Then show me.”
I did as my girl asked, filling her deep. Slamming into her tight pussy over and over, holding her at the nape of her neck. “Fuck,” I groaned, feeling her walls tighten around me, and I internally cursed at how phenomenal she felt. “You’re going to get me in trouble if I get you pregnant before our wedding, aren’t you?”
“Just with my parents.” She lightly laughed. “You can handle them.” Maria lifted her chin and mouthed, “Fire,” before winking.
I wet my lips, shaking my head. “You’re asking for it. You can’t help but be bad.” I slid free from her, and she moaned at the loss of contact.
“And you know exactly what to do with me.”
My lips spread into a slow grin as I rasped, “Oh, believe me, I do.” I stood and scooped her into my arms and tossed her over my shoulder, slapping her ass hard, and she squealed. I carried her toward the window and set her down, sliding open the curtains. “I’m pretty sure sex against a window, risking someone seeing us, is on that list of yours, right?”
“Yes,” she confessed with her back to the glass. I hooked her leg to my side and hoisted her up just enough to position my cock at her center. “Give it to me. Hard and dirty,” she nearly panted as her pussy swallowed my length in one fast movement, and she cried out.
Gritting down on my teeth, I slapped my free hand on the glass over her shoulder and leaned in and kissed her as I gave it to her just as she wanted. As we both needed.
I’d never get tired of her. She was mine. A real treasure. And I had truly been lost without her.
And now . . . I was finally found.
EPILOGUE
Maria
Six Months Later
“I just can’t get enough of him.” I rocked Dante in my arms at my sister’s restaurant. Named after his late grandfather, he looked like a little man, dressed in adorable jeans with a blue button-up shirt.
“He’s a ham, that’s for sure. Already a charmer.” Natalia smiled, staring at her son in my arms. She’d returned to work only last month, but she wasn’t ready to have anyone else watch him yet. So, twice a week, she brought him to the restaurant, and Ryan would swing by after work to pick him up.
“Can I hold him?” our bartender Christian asked, already peeling him free from my arms.
It was almost five, so the restaurant would be opening soon. I’d had a catering gig earlier, but now I needed to head out and pick up Chiara. Standing alongside Christian, I folded my arms while I studied my handsome nephew. “I should probably head out. The day care closes soon.”