Page 47 of Stolen Touches

“Tore? What are you doing?”

“I’m taking you home.”

“I was in the middle of a conversation.”

“I could see that,” I say and use my elbow to press the button for the twelfth floor. “You won’t be talking to my men unless necessary. Or any men, for that matter.”

“What?”

“You heard me.”

“Don’t be ridiculous.”

The elevator chimes as we reach the top floor, and the doors slide open. I set Milene down, but instead of letting her exit, I press the stop button and take a step toward her, caging her within the cab by pressing my palms against the walls on either side of her head. “No talking to my men, Milene.”

“Jesus, what’s gotten into you all of a sudden?” She tries to slip free, but I grab her around her waist and pull her body to mine.

“Do. Not. Test me,” I whisper, placing my hand at theback of her head and pulling her face toward mine. “Because if I see anyone else looking at you the way Pasquale just did, I’ll end them.”

“For God’s sake, Salvatore. That’s absolutely . . .”

Pressing my mouth against hers, I swallow her words, and slide my left hand under her T-shirt. Milene gasps and stiffens for a second, but then her hands move around my neck, drawing me in.

My lips brush against hers before I pull back a hair’s breadth to look her in the eyes. “I will end him, Milene. Whoever it may be,” I say and slide my hands down the sides of her body to her thighs. I grip and lift her up, pressing her against the back wall. “Got it?”

Milene nods and wraps her legs around my waist, then moans when my hard cock presses against her sex. I don’t remember ever wanting a woman so madly that she occupies my every waking thought.

“Why is there a cat in your living room currently sharpening its claws on the Persian rug?” my mother says from somewhere behind me.

“We’re busy, Ilaria,” I say and keep attacking Milene’s lips.

“So I can see.”

Milene wriggles in my arms, so I let her down reluctantly and my eyes follow her as she exits the elevator and dashes across the hallway, past Ilaria, and into the penthouse. Damn that cat.

“You let her bring a cat here?” Ilaria asks.

I walk by her and head right toward the living area. “It’s not a cat. It’s the devil’s spawn. And, wasn’t Cosimo supposed to be meeting you?”

“He’s on his way,” Illaria replies.

Ada set the dining table for breakfast, so I pick a chair that gives me an unobstructed view of the living room. Milene stands in front of the bookshelf with her hands on her hips, trying to coax Kurt down from the top of it. It has something that looks like a piece of sausage in its mouth.

“How old is she?” Ilaria asks and takes a seat next to me.

“Twenty-two.”

“Young. She did good down there. Is she a medical student?”

The cat leaps off the shelf and scurries under the sofa. Milene twists, crouching to look under the furniture.

“A nurse.” I reach for my coffee and take a sip.

“Why did you marry her, Salvatore? Cosimo said it was because of some agreement with the Chicago Family, but we both know no one canmakeyou do anything.”

“I’m not exactly sure, Ilaria.” I tilt my head, leering at Milene’s firm ass as she continues to peer beneath the sofa. “She’s completely screwed up my brain. I’ve started acting irrationally.”

“How so?”