La Cosa Nostra, This Thing of Ours (17 page)

His free hand goes to the nape of my neck where he holds me so I am forced to keep his gaze. 

"I. Am. So. Sorry," he breathes every word, his face is sullen.

I am up in his arms
with my feet dangling, our bodies pressed together. I smell his amazing scent. My senses are in overload. Love for this man is all I feel at this moment. All I want to do is tell him it is okay, and tell him to make love to me. 

"Liam, we need to talk,
" I speak solemnly and low.  His face just inches from mine, the heat between us is like an inferno. 

"No, no, no. Petal, he said some
things he needed punched for. You are not leaving me because of that asshole." He keeps his hold on me, but shuts the door. Lifting me up on the kitchen counter, he positions himself between my legs and does not let go of my neck. I bring my hand up to his wrist that is by my jaw. I can't help it and turn my head to kiss his inner wrist. 

"This has
nothing to do with Jax. I agree he deserved some of that." I nod but cock my head at him so he knows that the punch to the face would have been sufficient. 

"Ok
ay, so I got a little hot under the collar. I should have stopped," he agrees, but there is still a smile twitching up on his lips. 

"This is so hard for me–
"

"What
, Petal, just tell me. We will make whatever work," he interrupts me with a statement that doesn't help me at all.

"We need to stop seeing each other
," I blurt out and instantly feel queasy. He lets go of my neck and places both hands on the counter on either side of me. Leaning forward so he is at my eye level, he purses his lips.

"No, we don't!"
he exclaims like it is just a fact.

"I ca
n't get any deeper into this–"

"Yes
, we can," he interrupts me again, this time putting his index finger over my mouth. "What did I tell you, what did you say to me?" He pulls his finger down my lips to my chin and lifts my chin up to meet his eyes. 

"That was during sex." I blink repeatedly, fanning my eyelash
es at him and pursing my lips. This makes him laugh that deep throaty laugh that melts my heart. 

"Do you always say things you don't mean during sex?"
His hands move to my thighs, his eyes never leaving mine.

"Don't have much experience in that department.  Do you say t
hings you don't mean during sex?" I place my hands on top of his that are now on my upper thighs. Even though I have on jeans, I can feel the intense heat that is emitting from his touch.

"Never," h
e boasts, not wavering for a second.

"Never, you have never said
'you are mine' to a girl before." I roll my eyes in disbelief. He's so possessive I just can't imagine it. 

"Hell no, especially not that." He chuckles lightly. 

"What would you say to girls in bed then?" Lord help me, why am I asking these questions.

"Oh you know, things like,
‘Nice tits’ or ‘You have a great ass’," he says, all casual, but honest. 

"You've never said something you didn't mean to a girl to get her into bed?"

"Petal, I don't know how to say this without sounding completely egotistical, but I have never had trouble getting a girl in bed. That is until you." He takes my hands in his, brings them up to his mouth and kisses the palms.

"Yeah, I can see that
," I admit, with a giggle.
Hell, of course he never needed to lie to get a girl in bed. I mean, he's the Italian Sex God.
Who right now happens to want to be with me, but for how long? Until I am no longer in his system?

"I told you last night
I wasn't letting you go, that you are mine. In fact, I even said I was yours.  So I don't know what you are trying to tell me here, but I'm not letting you go, Harper Troy. I know you feel the same way." The persistent ass has a good point.

"What's going to happen when I l
eave Chicago in thirteen days? Are you going to move to Iowa and become a farmer?" I cock my head at him again, waiting for a response. All I get is a head thrown back in deep laughter. 

"Do you have to be a farmer to live in Iowa?" He
's still laughing and still holding my hands, but now he is holding them together at his chest. 

"I'm being serious
, Liam, you know that I am just a fling to you. Why–"

"You are not a fucking fling to me." The laughter has stopped and those dead serious dark eyes are on me. 

"Then what am I? Don't forget that three days ago you thought I was only after your money." I don't know why I am starting an argument, but this shit needs to be sorted out. 

"I don't know
, Harper, but it is more than I have ever felt before in my life. I'm not letting you go, because right now I don't think I can keep breathing without you," he confesses, putting his head down he stares at our hands together.  

"Liam," I lo
wer my head to catch his eyes. He keeps his head down, like he is ashamed of what he just said. "Liam, look at me," I order. He does, those dark eyes pleading with me, pleading to not leave. If there was any doubt ever that I was in love with this man, all of it is gone. I am head over heels in love, dive-in-front-of-a-bullet-to-save-him in love. 

"Harper
, at first I thought you were just something I wanted because I couldn't have you. Then the night we kissed at the club that was it for me, that first taste, even though I said the stupidest thing in the world that night. I have thought of nothing else but you from the moment your eyes met mine," he says, his eyes are watery. He's not crying, but I can feel the emotion coming off of him.

"Baby?" I whisper.

"Yes, Petal," he whispers back with a smile forming on his lips. 

"Will you
take what is yours now, please?" I scoot closer to him on the counter and wrap my legs around his waist. Running my fingers through his hair, I pull gently on it.

"Always," h
e groans before our lips crash together in a feverish kiss. Our teeth collide as we fight to get into each other's mouth. His hands cup my ass as he lifts me off the counter and carries me with my legs wrapped around his waist into the bedroom. Our kiss never breaks as he lays me gently on the bed, he holds himself up with his elbows. Lying between my legs, he breaks our kiss.  Tucking a strand of hair behind my ear, he kisses the tip of my nose lightly. 

"I love you," he whispers
without hesitation.

"Liam, I love you
, too, oh my God, do I love you." I beam at him, making him smile a bright delicious smile. 

"P
etal, I am never letting you go," he says again, before returning to my lips, kissing gently at first, but more frantic when I start to squirm beneath him. I can feel him hard against my center as he works to get my shirt over my head. Removing my bra he leans up to look at me. "You are so beautiful," he moans. Taking one nipple in his mouth he bites gently. I arch my back pressing my body into him. 

I push on
his sweatpants to get them off as he works on my jeans. Stepping off the bed for only a moment he pulls at my jeans from the ankles. He kicks off his sweatpants that are now around his ankles. 

"Condom,
" I order, when he is just about to crawl back on the bed. He growls in an unsatisfactory way. 

"We h
ave to get you on birth control. I don't want any barriers between us," he grumbles, coming back to the bed. He tears the foil packet and rolls it on himself. 

He soon forgets he was upset when I motion with my
finger for him to come to me. Crawling on the bed like a tiger stalking his prey, he positions himself between my legs again. I wrap my legs around his waist, as he thrusts into me. 

"
Liam, baby!" I scream in pleasure. Though I am getting more used to his size, it still hurts every time, it's a good hurt though.

"God
, you feel so good. I love you so much," he moans into my throat, moving in and out of me my hips bucking to meet his thrusts. "Say my name when you come, Petal," he pleads, sensing I am close. "I want you to always say my name. Your orgasms are mine, you are mine," he growls low and throaty, making me that much closer. 

"Liam, oh
God, Liam," I scream as the pleasure overtakes me, I feel my eyes fluttering from the pleasure. 

"
Fuck, you are so fucking wet," he moans, his thrusts harder, deeper, and faster. He comes with one last hard thrust. He lies on top of me, our bodies soaked with sweat. I feel his heart beating so hard against my chest, beating in rhythm with mine. He rolls off of me and quickly discards the condom then pulls me into his arms, so that every part of his body is touching some part of mine.

"I love you," h
e says again, putting his hand under my chin to lift my head to meet his gaze.

"I love you
, too," I say sheepishly. God I hope he means it, because there is no way in hell I will survive this if he doesn't.

"What's wrong?" He
instantly senses my mood change and lifts himself on one elbow so he can see me better. 

"Nothing
, baby, I'm just tired." I don't want to tell him about my feelings right now and ruin this perfect moment. I snuggle into the crook of his arm as he pulls the blanket over us. I am out like a light in a matter of seconds.

Chapter 19

Liam made me breakfast that mornin
g before I had to go to class. He also joined me in the shower where we had really good up-against-the-wall shower sex. He talked me into going to The Guardian tonight so he could formally introduce me to his father. Apparently, other than the office, that is where Salvatore Tarseta spends all of his time. So that's where we have to go. Even though I really don't want to, it seems important to Liam that I meet his father. 

"I want to introduce you to him, not as a
bartender, but as my girl," he says coyly, swooping me up in his arms, he kisses my neck.

"I like that
," I giggle.

"What?"
he says against my neck, moving to nibble my earlobe.

"Being called your girl,
" I squeal, his soft kisses are tickling me. 

"Well get used to it
, Petal." He beams at me. 

He wants to take me to class, but I have to go home first and change. Plus, I will need to go home after class to get ready for the night.  Tomorrow is the last day of classes before final exams start next week. He didn't like it when I told him that I needed to spend the four days before finals at home studying. He already wanted me to move in with him. 

I promised that after
I graduated we would figure something out. I still hadn't been denied the work study program for U of I. Either way, even if I had to go to another school, we would figure it out.  

I am running to class when I see someone comin
g out of the corner of my eye. Turning, I see it is Jax, with one hell of shiner. 

"Harper?"
he yells when I turn away from him. I'm still not sure I want to talk to him after the things he said.

"What?" I yell
, still walking in the opposite direction. With his long legs he catches up to me in no time.

"Stop!
" He grabs my arm spinning me around. He is staring at me in the most pitiful way. I don't really think that he deserved the black eye and the gut punch, but what did he expect when he started goading Liam? 

"
Jax, I'm late."

"Are you still with him?"
he demands, making my head snap back at the tone.

"Yes."

"After he did this?" His eyebrows shoot up in shock.

"You s
aid some awful things to me, to him. I mean really, what did you think was going to happen?  You barged into my apartment uninvited and started ripping into both of us," I yell back at him.