Total pages in book: 92
Estimated words: 87704 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 439(@200wpm)___ 351(@250wpm)___ 292(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 87704 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 439(@200wpm)___ 351(@250wpm)___ 292(@300wpm)
The drive to the private airstrip is silent, filled only with the quiet hum of the engine and the sound of our kisses as we pass Aemelia between us, hungry for our wife. Our private jet is waiting when we arrive, and the crew is already prepared for takeoff.
Aemelia’s breath catches as she steps onto the plane, taking in the plush leather seats, the dim golden lighting, and the bottles of champagne chilling in a crystal bucket. “This is… incredible.”
Alexis grins, pulling her onto his lap as he pours a glass. “Only the best for our wife.”
Antonio sits across from them, his gaze softening as he watches her. “We want you to have everything you never had before, Aemelia.”
I sit beside her, tilting her chin toward me so she has no choice but to meet my gaze. “From now on, you’ll never want for anything again, mi amore. The world is yours.”
She swallows hard, her fingers tightening around my wrist. “I already have everything I need. I have you.”
I grip her jaw in my hand, staring into the eyes of the woman who’s found her way into my heart. “You were never meant for this life., but you were meant for us. You’ll wear our name before the world, Aemelia Venturi. And in private, you’ll wear nothing but our marks.”
Her smile illuminates the universe.
The engines roar to life, and as the plane ascends into the night, carrying us toward the sun-soaked paradise of the Maldives, I know with certainty that the war we have fought, the blood we have spilled, was all worth it because it has led to this.
To her.
To us.
Forever.
BONUS EPILOGUE
THE HONEYMOON
Day 3
LUCA
The sun is a dying ember on the horizon, spilling streaks of molten pink, yellow, and orange like flames across the sky, turning the ocean into a shimmering field of gold. I lean against the wooden railing of our overwater villa, a glass of whiskey forgotten in my hand, and watch her.
My woman.
My obsession.
Our obsession.
Aemelia stands ankle-deep in the crystalline water, the waves licking at her calves, the hem of her gauzy white cover-up damp and clinging to her thighs. The sea breeze plays with her hair, sending wild strands whipping around her face, and she laughs softly at the sensation. That sound cuts through me like a blade made of light. I’ve spilled blood for her, but I’d spill oceans more to hear that laugh.
I set my glass down and stalk toward her. She senses me before I reach her—she always does—turning slightly, a sly smile tugging at her lips. I wrap my arms around her from behind, dragging her back against my chest, inhaling the scent of sun-warmed skin and saltwater. She melts into me without resistance.
“You’ve been staring at me for ten minutes,” she teases, her voice a sweet rasp. “I was starting to wonder if you’d gotten bored.”
I let out a low hum and brush my lips against the shell of her ear. “Bored?” My voice is rough, thick with disbelief. I turn her in my arms, cupping her jaw in my palm, my thumb tracing the curve of her cheek. “No, princess. Why would I be bored when I have the best view in the world?”
Her gaze softens, but she doesn’t speak. Instead, she presses her forehead to mine and lets me breathe her in. For the first time in my life, there is no power play, no battle for dominance, just peace.
I tilt her chin up and catch her mouth with mine. Soft at first. Reverent. Like a man who’s still afraid his dream might slip through his fingers. But when she makes a needy little sound, I deepen the kiss, claiming her slowly and thoroughly, like I have all the time in the world.
Because with her, I do.
I carry her into the calm ocean, relishing the gentle lap of the waves against my thighs as the water rises around us. The sea is warm like liquid silk slipping over our skin, and she clings to me, her arms twined around my neck, her legs locked around my waist. She’s weightless in my arms, her soft, sun-kissed body pressed so perfectly against mine it feels like she was made for me.
The dying sunlight highlights the graceful line of her bare shoulders, the delicate slope of her neck, and the curve of her spine. I run my hand slowly down her back, and she shivers when my palm flattens over the curve of her ass, a soft gasp escaping her parted lips. I capture the sound with my mouth, swallowing it down like a man starved.
“You feel that?” I murmur against her lips, voice rough, heavy with possession. “The ocean around us. The sky over us. The sand below us. My money, my name, my power…” I cup the back of her neck, holding her so she can’t look away. “They could take all of it from me, and I wouldn’t fucking care.” I press my forehead to hers, my voice nothing but sand and salt air. “As long as I have you.”