Total pages in book: 66
Estimated words: 63282 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 316(@200wpm)___ 253(@250wpm)___ 211(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 63282 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 316(@200wpm)___ 253(@250wpm)___ 211(@300wpm)
“Oh . . . You want me to get a piercing there?”
“Yes,” Luca says.
“I’ve never thought about it. Does it make anything feel better?”
“From what I’ve been told, it makes everything feel better. You're already really responsive, but I’d love to see how much more sensitive you can get.”
His words send a thrill down my spine. At the same time, my chest fills with warmth, knowing he's still thinking about me and fantasizing about me, even though we’ve been humping like rabbits.
“What about a tattoo?” I ask.
“You want to get another tattoo?”
“Maybe. I don't know. It's just something I’ve been thinking about.”
“What kind of tattoo?” Luca asks, suddenly all business.
“Why do you ask? Are you going to give me a $100 tattoo for free in exchange for a blow job?”
Luca laughs. “Something like that.”
I hesitate. I don't know if he's going to think I’m stupid. “I’m thinking of a word. Tattooed in black. Cursive handwriting.” I pause. “Or whatever your handwriting looks like.”
“My handwriting?” Luca asks with a frown. He eyes me suspiciously. “What's the word?”
“Doll,” I say quietly.
“No,” Luca says quickly. He shakes his head. “No.”
“Okay,” I say, taken aback by his strong reaction. “I know tattoos of lovers’ names are a bad idea because people break up.
“This is different, though. I just feel like . . . You're the first person to have made me feel like I have enough . . . Like I don't have to keep running around looking for my next fix . . .” When I raise my gaze, I see Luca watching me with deep concern etched into his gorgeous features.
“It's not what you think,” I say quickly, panic filling my chest. “It's not like I want more from you. It's about my personal realization.”
I hope he buys my bullshit.
“I don't care what your reason is,” Luca says brusquely. “You will not make that part of you the center of your identity. Not on my watch. Bad shit happens when you do that.”
I hate being told what to do—this is exactly why I don't let myself get attached to some guy. But the way Luca said it . . . The care and concern he shows in that comment . . . I don't know what it is, but apparently, I don't mind being told what to do by Luca.
“Is that what that girl did, the one who died? She made her sex addiction the center of her identity?” I ask as jealousy grips my heart. I wonder if she's the reason why Luca doesn't get emotionally involved with anyone.
Luca goes silent. Pensive. “You can say that.”
“Was she an old girlfriend?”
Surprise registers in Luca's piercing eyes, which glow in the morning sun. He studies me. “What if she was?”
I shrug, even though my heart rate jumps up at the thought of being found out. “I was just curious.”
“She was my sister,” Luca says quietly.
“Oh.” I raise my hand up to cover my mouth.
“She . . . I tried to save her, but you can't help someone who doesn't want to be helped. I learned that the hard way.” He adds, “Our parents . . . We grew up watching them shoot up in the living room. It wasn't always shooting up. They smoked, too. And snorted.”
The air in the kitchen thickens as the atmosphere grows heavier.
“Sorry, Luca,” I say. “I had no idea you even had a sister.”
“There's no reason why you’d know. I never talk about her.” Luca clasps his hands together on the table. “I hate how predictable my life is—and my sister’s, too.
“Our parents were addicts, and so we got caught up in the same problems, too. In any case, when she died, I felt like I’d failed her, and I just had to get away from the city.”
“Sorry,” I repeat. “You never talk about her . . . Not even to Peter?”
“Not even to Peter,” he confirms.
“Why are you telling me, then?” I ask, my heart racing.
“Because you asked,” he says simply.
“That's all it takes?”
“Do you want it to be harder?” Luca asks, curiosity dancing in his eyes.
I shake my head. “I just wonder why nobody knows about your past if it's so easy to get you to tell the story.”
“I don't tell people anything,” Luca says. “Just you.”
My heart does a happy backflip. So I am special.
“I also don't care whether other people get piercings, by the way. But you . . .” Luca’s voice trails off. A sinful grin spreads on his handsome face. “How about we do it on Tuesday? It’ll be a quiet afternoon for me.”
“Okay,” I say.
“I can't wait to see you go wild when I play with your new piercing.” Excitement sparks in Luca's eyes.
I give him a smile. I love how eager he is to do this. I can't get over how much he wants me and how much that turns me on.