I’m pulled back to the moment when Aria runs past me and jumps on the bed. She giggles when she bounces twice and lands on her back. My dark mood lightens more, and I can’t help but laugh at her childish behavior. The little girl knows just what to do to brighten whatever mood I’m in.
Once she’s situated underneath the covers with Mr. Waffles beside her, I start tucking them around her sides, “accidentally” tickling her when I pass by her ribs. She giggles and squeals, and it’s a wonderful sound to hear. I may not be this child’s mother, but there’s no way I could love her any more if I were. She makes it impossible to not fall for her. It saddens me to think her real mother threw this chance away to watch her daughter grow. It devastates me that Aria never had the opportunity to share that special bond only a mother and daughter can have.
“Can I ask you something, Jules?” Aria asks.
I sit beside her on the bed and brush away her bangs. “Sure, baby.”
Her lip wobbles and tears gather in her eyes. “Is Daddy mad at me?”
I suck in a breath, pain lancing my chest. Forcing back the moisture that wants to gather in my eyes, I ask Aria with a strained voice, “Why would you think that, Aria?”
Her eyes fall to her hands that are gripping Mr. Waffles tight. “’Cause he doesn’t come home until after I go to bed.”
“Oh, sweetie. It has nothing to do with you.” My heart splinters at the pure anguish on Aria’s face as I wipe away the tears rolling down her cheeks. “He’s just been working late.”
That’s a lie, and I hate lying to Aria, but there are times when it’s best to not tell the truth, especially to child Aria’s age. Theo and I will be having a long talk tonight once he gets home. That is, if it isn’t too late, like it was last night.
Her eyes meet mine and the pain in them guts me. “You promise?” she asks tearfully.
I bend down and kiss her forehead, wishing so much I could wipe away any doubt in her mind. “I promise, honey. Your daddy loves you very much and he misses you just as much as you miss him.”
She nods, and her little arms wrap around my neck. “I love you, Jules,” she whispers against my ear. My throat clogs at her sweet words, and I squeeze my eyes shut, hoping like hell I can control my emotions until I leave the room.
I take a calming breath, kiss her soft cheek, and pull back. “I love you too, Aria.” And I do. I love this little girl so much.
The hopeless expression is gone, and a smile replaces it, bringing back the beautiful cherub girl of before.
I smile, glad her despair is forgotten for the moment. “Good night, baby. I’ll see you in the morning.”
“Good night.”
I kiss her cheek one more time before getting up from the bed. Leaving the light on in her closet, I close the door until it’s only left open a couple of inches, just the way she likes it. I leave her room, my emotions all over the place, and walk out into the living room. Taking a seat on the couch, I wait for Theo to get home.
I wait, and I wait.
After three hours, I know it’s going to be another late night. Getting up from the couch with an irritated sigh, I go to the bedroom to get ready for bed. After Aria leaves for school tomorrow, I’ll have a talk with him. He needs to know his daughter is feeling neglected, and I swear to Christ, he better do something to fix it. No child should ever feel that way. No child’s eyes should ever carry that desolate look.
I climb into bed, my eyes already drifting closed before my head hits the pillow.
I STRETCH LAZILY AND smile when I feel warm breath at my neck and the hard body at my back. A heavy arm lies over my side as fingers tickle across my lower stomach, eliciting goose bumps to pop up over my skin.
“Mmm… that feels good,” I whisper, and arch my back, wanting more of the featherlight touches.
“It sure does,” a deep voice growls in my ear. Hips press into my butt, and I feel the hardness of his dick.
When his hand on my stomach travels south, butterflies form in my belly in anticipation. The first touch of his finger against my swollen clit has me gasping at the pure bliss it brings to my body.
I clench my legs together, trying to capture his hand. He chuckles behind me, his breath fanning against my fevered flesh.
“So impatient,” he rumbles.
“Please,” I beg, shifting my hips. “I need more.”
“I know what you need, baby, and I’ll give it to you.”
His fingers move away from my clit, and I whimper at the loss. It fades away into a moan when he lifts my leg, placing my foot behind his calf, and wedges his thigh between my legs, exposing my pussy to his greedy hands.
My nails dig into his forearms when his finger grazes my slit. His dick slides between my butt cheeks and he grinds it against me.
“Fuck me,” he breathes. “You’re so fucking wet for me, Jules. Only for me.”
“Only for you,” I repeat.
He pulls on my nether lips, driving me insane, before sliding a finger inside. His lips at my shoulder suck on my flesh, then he groans when I purposely clench my inner muscles around his finger.
“Vixen,” he growls, and gives me another finger, just like I knew he would.
I giggle, but it quickly turns into a soft cry when his thumb meets my clit. “Two can play that game.”
His free hand moves to one of my breasts and he tugs on the tip before plumping it into his hand. He moves his hips back, and a second later, I feel his dick slide against my slick pussy. Wanton need has my hand reaching between my legs to grab hold of his hard length. I want to put him at my entrance and have him push inside me, but his fingers are in the way, and he doesn’t seem to be done playing yet. I’ll give him a few more minutes, and in the meantime, I press him against me as close as I can get. He’s slick from my juices, so my hand easily slides along his firm shaft.
“Say my name,” he groans against my ear, pushing another finger inside me. “I wanna hear you say my name.”
My thigh muscles tighten, and I bite my lip to keep back my shout. I’m so close. I just need a little bit more….
“Luca.” The name comes out a sigh.
“No,” he snarls, then shoves his fingers into me harder, his thrust so forceful, his knuckles hit my pubic bone, causing me to wince. “Say my name.”
I frown and my hand on his shaft stops moving. I don’t understand what he’s saying. I just said his name.
“Luca, what are—”
When I try to turn over and face him, he stops me by putting his arm around my chest. His other hand is still at my pussy.
“Theo,” he barks, his arm squeezing me tighter. “That’s my fucking name…”
MY EYES SNAP OPEN, and I know immediately my dream is much more than a dream, it’s my reality. I’m naked from the waist down, and I have no idea how it happened. I feel Theo’s hand between my legs, his fingers sliding through my damp folds as he brutally forces them inside me. I open my mouth to scream, then remember Aria is right down the hall, and this is the very last thing she needs to witness.
“Please don’t,” I beg him quietly and try to push his hand away.
I lift my leg from over his so I can slide away, but he just wraps his around mine. This closes my legs, but that doesn’t stop him. I’m so slick from my dream that it leaves my thighs wet and gives him enough moisture to still pump his fingers inside.
“You’re a fucking tease, you know that, Jules,” he growls in my ear. “I wanna hear you say my name. Not his. You’re mine, not fucking his.”
I say his name, but not in the sense he wants me to.
“Theo, don’t do this. Aria is right down the hall.”
Tears slip down my cheek, dampening the pillowcase I’m lying on.
“I’ve waited long enough, Jules. It’s my turn now, so I suggest you shut the fuck up so you don’t wake my daughter.”
When his fingers leave my pussy, I quickly try to move my lower half away from him. My hands claw at the arm across my chest, breaking the skin, but it doesn’t relent in its tight hold.