Total pages in book: 19
Estimated words: 18755 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 94(@200wpm)___ 75(@250wpm)___ 63(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 18755 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 94(@200wpm)___ 75(@250wpm)___ 63(@300wpm)
“H-Hi.”
He was in a white dress shirt with its sleeves rolled to the forearm, and he...he was beautiful, she thought with a gulp. It was terrifying, allowing herself to think such things. But she was just so, so tired of having her guard up day in and day out. And after everything that had happened—
Oh!
He was standing right in front of her, and her heart started pounding. His proximity made her feel dizzy. But also, the way he was staring at her made her feel like she was burning up.
“You look nervous,” he said lazily.
“Can you blame me?” she asked helplessly. “You...”
“Yes, what about me?”
His accent was so much more pronounced, and the sound mesmerized her, and she found herself having difficulty recalling what it was she had to say.
“You, um...”
His gaze gleamed, and she realized he was enjoying every second of this, and he wanted her to nkow it.
A choked laugh escaped her. “You’re impossible.”
“In what way, cara?”
“D-Don’t call me that!” She finally had the chance to say this, and she had to, now that she knew what it meant.
“Why not?”
“Because I’m not your darling.”
Dario sighed. “I wish you hadn’t said that, cara.”
“But it’s—”
“Or had I been...amiss in making myself clear?”
“I don’t know what you’re talking—”
He cupped her chin, and her words faltered at his touch.
“When it comes to what we have between us,” Dario said softly, “there must only be truth. And you and I both know, cara...”
Gulp.
“You were mine from the moment you met me.”
She didn’t have a chance to answer, didn’t have a chance to do anything but gasp because the next thing she knew, he had already drawn her close, and she had lost her balance, and he was kissing her again, and it was the kind of kiss that just...
It just completely took over her senses, passion claiming her every thought, and all she could do was grab the front of his shirt—
"Ti sto ricordando a chi appartieni."
There was no way she could translate any of that. But at the same time, she knew. Her body instinctively knew what those words meant, and it was why a whimper had slipped past her lips, and she found herself unable to resist when his hands found the hem of her shirt.
“Look at me, cara.”
Kendra felt like she was in a dream as she obeyed his command, and oh...
She just stopped thinking and started drowning.
Because the way he was looking at her...
The way he was touching her...
Kendra didn’t know how they ended up with her back arching against the wall, her hands were gripping his shoulders—
"Guardami, cara."
She came apart with a gasp, her face pressed into his neck and both hands fisting his shirt and his arms around her like he was holding something he'd been waiting a very long time to catch.
Memories started trickling in, and she could feel her cheeks turning red when she realized what had just happened, and how she had...and how he had...and how...
Oh.
The feather-soft sensation of his lips brushing the top of her head was completely unexpected, and oh, how it made all of her worries and embarrassment go away like a nightmare that faded into one’s unconsciousness.
"You will marry me," Dario said quietly. "No more delays."
And Kendra, still trembling, still pressed against his chest, still trying to remember how oxygen worked, lifted her head and looked into the face of the man who had spent a month silently dismantling every reason she had to say no—
"I'll only say yes,” she heard herself whisper, “on one condition."
Chapter Four
JUST LIKE THAT, SHE was getting married again.
Kendra wasn't sure what was more surreal. The fact that she was standing in a private courthouse in a beautiful cream dress that her equally beautiful future husband had handpicked...or how said husband was still looking at her like she was his most prized possession.
How crazy was that, really?
A man like him could have any woman she wanted, and Kendra had never been the type that made other people feel possessive. Her own mother had chosen Thelma over her, and Porter, well...
He obviously married the wrong twin, too.
But that was fine, she quickly reminded herself as she started walking down the aisle.
All of those things were of the past, today was the beginning of something new, and oh!
Her heart skipped a beat at the way Dario’s gaze glittered with possessive heat when she came to stand by his side. It was just so, so crazy, she couldn’t help thinking helplessly, how much this man wanted her, and how he didn’t care at all to hide it!
The wedding only took minutes to conclude, but she cherished every second of it. This was the one condition she had asked for. That they have the most private wedding possible, and as shameful as this was to admit, it was mostly because she was scared of how Porter or Thelma would choose to cause trouble if her wedding to Dario was ever publicized.