I drew back, enjoying the scowl on Gianna’s face. She didn’t get the chance for a retort because I started working on her stitches. It didn’t take long and Gianna winced only twice. “Done,” I said, setting down the scissors and tweezers. “Do you want your reward now?” I rubbed her pussy.

She glared.

“You just have to say the words.” She pressed her lips together. “No?” I said, taking a step back, and stopped touching her.

“As if I need you for that,” she said snidely, and then she opened her jeans and shoved her hand inside.

I exhaled as I watched her fingers move under the fabric. “Fuck.” I stepped up to her and ripped her jeans and panties down her legs.

Gianna didn’t stop caressing herself. Her slender fingers rubbed her clit nimbly while she watched me through narrowed eyes. It was the hottest thing I’d ever seen.

“Open your legs a bit wider,” I ordered. To my surprise, Gianna obeyed. Her eyes were clouded with lust as she teased herself. Damn, I could see how wet she was.

I leaned back against the wall, tugged down my zipper and pulled out my cock. Gianna stroked herself even faster when I wrapped my hand around my hard-on and started jerking off.

“This is messed up,” she whispered. She didn’t take her eyes off my cock and I couldn’t take my eyes off her fingers that worked her pink nub.

“Who cares?” I growled. “Put a finger in your pussy.”

She slipped one finger into her tight opening.

“Another one,” I demanded.

She barely hesitated. But I couldn’t fucking take any more. I staggered forward, shoved her hand away and buried myself deep in her. She shuddered around me as her orgasm rippled through her. After a few thrusts, I came too.

“This is so messed up,” she said again, her voice heavy with sex.

I didn’t pull out of her yet. Instead I rested my forehead against her shoulder and caught my breath. “Messed up is good.”

“I knew you’d say that.”

***

“This thing is fucking annoying,” she said after another round of sex that evening, wiggling her leg with the ankle monitor in the air. It had bothered me too the few times I’d come into contact with it during sex, but I wouldn’t risk taking it off. Not only would Luca blow a gasket, I’d also have to supervise Gianna myself 24/7 without the monitor.

“You’ll get used to it.” I tried to pull her against me but she slipped away, moving to the edge of our bed.

“No cuddling as long as I have to wear this thing,” she said.

I laughed. “As long as you don’t ban sex.”

“Maybe I will do that.”

I moved my hand down from her stomach and ran a finger over her clit. “Why would you want to punish yourself like that?”

“You are an arrogant bastard. Maybe you think your cock is magic, but let me tell you something: it isn’t.” She didn’t shove my hand away from where it was stroking her. Maybe she didn’t notice but she’d even parted her legs a bit more to give me better access. I light traced her soft folds. I loved her silkiness and the way her body responded to me. I didn’t increase the pressure, only lightly brushed my fingertips over her pussy. She was probably still oversensitive so I needed to be careful if I wanted to guide her toward another peak. Her lips parted and her breathing quickened ever so slightly. I leaned over her and sucked her nipple into my mouth. Pushing her over the edge this time was ever better because I wasn’t busy with my own lust. I could completely focus on Gianna, her labored breathing, hooded eyes, hardening nipples as she succumbed to her orgasm.

I didn’t even care when Gianna turned her back to me afterward, trying to punish me by not reciprocating. I’d gotten what I’d wanted.

“You realize that sex is all there is between us, right?” she said angrily.

“Sex is important.”

“Sure, but it’s not all there is.”

“It’s not all there is,” I said, annoyed.

“Yes, it is, and there won’t ever be more. Don’t think I like you just because I like to fuck you.”

“Thanks for the heads-up,” I growled.

Gianna

I was still annoyed at myself during breakfast, especially because Matteo’s expression was far too smug despite my harsh words. Maybe he thought I’d been joking, or maybe he didn’t care.

My body had a mind of its own, always eager for his touch. It didn’t help that Matteo looked like a male model with his tight white shirt and messy black hair. He was sex on legs, and knew it.

“We are invited to dinner at one of the leading families this week, so Aria and you should probably go dress shopping.”

I dropped my spoon with the yogurt. “You want me to attend a social event with you?” I couldn’t believe he’d drag me into public so quickly. We’d been married for two weeks and the gossip mills were probably still going strong. “Everybody will be talking behind my back.”

Matteo shrugged. “I don’t give a damn what they think and they know better than to say anything in front of you or me.”

“I know those women, they won’t miss an opportunity to talk trash about someone, especially me.”

“Ignore them. It’s not like their opinion matters. They will always talk shit about you. That’s all they can do.”

I didn’t care what they said, but I’d never enjoyed myself at social functions and I doubted that would change any time soon. “I know, but I hate these gatherings. Everything about it is false. People who wouldn’t hesitate to thrust a knife into your back smile into your face if they hope to gain something from it.”

For a long time I’d thought I was anti-social and just didn’t like to be around larger groups of people but during my time on the run, I’d attended several parties and I’d never felt out of place. Even though I’d been pretending to be someone else then, I’d still felt truer to myself than I ever did around the people in our world.

“You’ll get used to them.”

“I don’t want to. That’s why I ran away.”

Matteo searched my face with a curious expression, then his lips twitched. “So you didn’t only run from me?”

“Don’t get your hopes up. You were definitely one of the main reasons,” I said.

“But not the only reason.”

I rolled my eyes and took another sip from my coffee. “Do I really have to attend the dinner?”

Matteo rose from his chair and startled me with a quick kiss on my mouth. “Yep. I won’t suffer through it alone now that I have a wife who can share my anguish. Just do what I do when I have to talk to idiots, imagine how it would feel to slice their heads off.”

Despite how often I’d pushed him away, Matteo seemed intend on making it work between us. Why did he have to be so stubborn? Couldn’t he finally grow tired of me and give me the chance to get away? “That’s easy for you to say, but not all of us make a habit out of killing people.”

Images of Sid wanted to anchor themselves in my brain again, but I couldn’t bear them right now and forced them away.

“Then imagine how it would be to watch me kill the people that annoy you. As your husband it’s my duty to kill your enemies after all.” Matteo smiled his cocky grin, his eyes lit up with humor. My stomach fluttered in a scary way and I quickly tore my gaze away from him and emptied my cup.