Total pages in book: 99
Estimated words: 94124 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 471(@200wpm)___ 376(@250wpm)___ 314(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 94124 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 471(@200wpm)___ 376(@250wpm)___ 314(@300wpm)
Since we’re not fully out of the woods yet, I push forward, my stance stable but also fragile. “You don’t want a life like that for your child, Vanni,” I say confidently. “I grew up hating my father, and I’ve never even met him. Don’t force your child to walk the same path. Give him or her the best start possible. Spare their mother.”
The furious delivery of his words skates goose bumps across my skin. “She is not my child’s mother.”
“You don’t know that,” I fire back, heartache in my tone. “None of us know that.” I ignore the hope flaring through Valeria’s eyes. “I wish I could give you a definite answer, but I can’t. All I can do is stop you from making a mistake that will change the course of your child’s life.”
The tear that topples down my cheek reaches him more than words ever could. In under a heartbeat, he crosses the room, falls to his knees, then squashes his forehead to my stomach.
My claim of bilingualism is put to the test when he mutters words into my stomach. I don’t know every word he speaks to his child. He’s talking too fast. But the portions I catch make his intent known.
His child will be raised with the love of both a father and a mother.
When he lifts his eyes to me, wordlessly announcing who he wants to fulfill the role of mother, I weave my fingers through his hair, grounding him, and then glance down at Valeria.
She’s still frozen on the floor with her mouth ajar.
I wait for her gaze to meet mine before giving her a look that says everything: Go. Now.
She appears as if she wants to argue, but the sight of Giovanni on his knees, silently pleading for me to be his rock through his latest crisis, silences her.
After standing on shaky legs, she slips out without a sound.
Five seconds later, the softness of the bedding caresses my curves, and Giovanni buries his head between my legs.
29
GIOVANNI
Valentina’s back bends harshly when I drag my nose down the drenched folds of her pussy and my approving growl rumbles through her core. I love how her scent is changing more and more each day. It’s growing in strength like our child is in her stomach.
It’s been a week since she cracked my world open with two short words.
I’m pregnant.
I’ve replayed her confession so many times it’s imprinted on my skull. It will never fade.
I also can’t stop searching her body for new curves I know are still months away.
Valentina’s maternal instincts are just as vehement. I don’t think she realizes how often she does it, but she rests her hand on her stomach a minimum of three times a day. She’s already protecting what’s inside. Our child.
The beating of my heart is as loud as a world-famous drummer performing a rock ballad. I’ve spent years living in a world where nothing lasts. Now there’s this. A future that’s ours for the taking.
I can’t wait to shout my triumph so boisterously that the stone walls of Carlisle shake, but I have a few more months left to wait.
Until Valentina reaches the safe zone, I have to keep the news in our little bubble.
I don’t mind. The world hasn’t earned the right to savor our bliss with us just yet.
Excluding visiting Valentina’s mother each evening, we haven’t left our room all week. I didn’t want to, and there was no real need to leave. The maids slip in with trays of food we only consume to keep our strength up enough not to pass out, and my brothers toss treats through the door like we’re wild animals they’re trying to tame.
The fantasy comes to an end this morning, though. Valentina has a meeting with her mother’s medical team at 10 a.m., and I have another beast to break in at 9.
My father must not know how close I came to killing Valeria. If he did, he would have requested a meeting days ago. I think he’s hopeful Valentina’s attention has dampened my wish for revenge enough that he can revive the storm that nearly destroyed our legacy without needing to buy a raincoat.
If the heart trekking through my veins is anything to go by, he’s on the money.
I’m no longer hungry for vengeance or for a war. I’m starved for the scrumptious palette of Valentina’s greedy cunt when she shivers through back-to-back orgasms.
The reminder sees me stuffing two fingers inside her wet pussy and replacing my thumb with my tongue.
All it takes is one swipe of my tongue over her nervy bud, and she fists the bedding in a white-knuckled hold. As her moans bounce around our room, her toes dig into the mattress and her expression shifts from turmoil-filled to satisfied.
I wait for the stars to finish detonating before I slap down her hips and continue my pre-breakfast workout.