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Placing my hand on her back, she softens under my touch as we head outside.

My phone vibrates in my pocket, but I send Mika’s call to voicemail. He must be worried, but I’ll call him later.

As the driver takes us to the airport, every nerve ending relaxes, knowing we’ll be back home soon. I am beyond exhausted but also revved up at the same time.

Once we take our seats and are ready for take-off, she smiles, placing her cheek on my arm. “Thank you.”

While her gratitude warms my chest, I am programmed to love this woman either way.

That includes being by her side as she conquers the world.

Interlinking our fingers, I bring her hand to my mouth, placing a kiss on her palm.

“I am still mad at you.”

“I am too, amore. But I am sure we’ll figure that out to both our liking.”

The desire coursing through my veins turns my blood into an inferno. When I take her, she will have absolutely no doubts in her mind that the only choice she has is to be mine. I postpone that plan, both of us needing our sleep to recharge.

Caressing along her arm, we fall asleep until a jolt takes me out of my deep slumber. Fuck, I slept like the dead. Still slightly disoriented, I see that she’s still fast asleep when the flight attendant tells me we’re about to land.

I can’t wait to lock us up in the penthouse so no one can disturb us for a while.

But first, I must inform Mika. I send him a text, telling him to meet me at the penthouse. Then I place my lips on top of her head and say, “We’re home, vitta mia.”

She mumbles something unintelligible before she rubs her eyes. They instantly sparkle when they lock on mine. A lightness spreads through me. I could levitate above the ground any moment now. Only she has this power over me.

In my car, she realizes where we’re heading, and she bites her lower lip. “We’re going to the penthouse… I was there before I left.”

“So you saw.” Raw emotions lodge in my throat. It’s impossible to form words.

“That you’re obsessed with me. Yes.”

I chuckle. There’s no denying facts. I own my madness just like I own her heart and her pleasure.

The moment I park the car, she jumps into my arms and with mouths pressed together, I try to find my way to the elevator. Inside, she helps me by swiping the keycard, and I type the code into the panel.

Feeling her body against my front and her tongue tangling with mine ignites a fervent need inside of me that makes me want to just fuck her until the end of time.

And because I forget my damn mind when she’s in my vicinity, it’s only when Mika clears his throat that I find my way through the haze of lust.

She slides down my chest. “Do we need to do this now?” she whines.

She looks so flushed and ready to be fucked that I want to kick myself for suggesting having the talk now. Knowing my best friend, he wouldn’t have stopped until he got his answers. To show how serious he is, he moves toward the living room and plants his ass on the armchair in front of the sofa.

We sit across from him, and I say, “We were in Venice.”

“I’ve heard. My phone hasn’t stopped blowing up.” He scowls, raking a hand through his hair, jaw clenched to the point it might snap. “Why not tell me? I would have gone with you.”

“That was my revenge, brother. He took everything from me, so I took everything from him.”

“Do you think I would have stopped you?” He looks at his sister with so much hurt and guilt. “I would have slaughtered him…” Then he whips his head to me. “I’m so fucking mad at you. Not to say the implications it has in the underworld.”

I know but I don’t regret it. It was her life at stake.

“The Syndicate has been silent. That means they’re preparing to send us a message. We should prepare for war.”

“I’ll talk to them.” It’s their choice. I got what I wanted, and I will defend it with everything in me.