Page 5 of The Dante (Those (Damn!) Texas Dantes #1)
She was quiet, but not withdrawn. Not uncertain. Her body pulsated with the aftershocks of what they’d shared, and he could feel it—the slow, delicious unraveling, the way she sank deeper into the realization of what had just happened betweenthem.
His.
Titus shifted onto his side, gathering her against his chest, one arm wrapping securely around her waist. He didn’t speak.
There was no need. He registered the moment her body softened into his, her cheek pressing lightly against his shoulder, her breath warm against his skin.
He let himself enjoy it, this rare moment of stillness, of peace, of knowing she was exactly where she belonged.
But he also knew the moment wouldn’t last. Notyet.
She let out a slow breath, her fingers tracing lazy patterns over his chest. Titus watched her movements, his body unmoving, but his mind sharp.
Was she thinking about last night? About what it meant?
Each slow drag of her fingertip across his skin felt deliberate, like she was committing the shape of him to memory.
Aquiet sort of intimacy, one he hadn’t expected but wasn’t about to stop.
His chest tightened, warmth spreading through him as he let her linger, let her take what she needed from the moment.
Because whatever she was searching for, she would find it withhim.
She let out a slow breath, as if steeling herself, then murmured, “We should get up.” Her voice lacked conviction, quiet and unsure, like she said it because she thought she should, not because she wantedto.
Titus tightened his hold, pressing a kiss against her hair with a small smile. “Not yet.”
Jazz released a soft laugh, but didn’t pull away. “We have a family brunch.”
“Brunch can wait.” He ran his hand down her back, fingers tracing lazy circles. “This is our first morning together, our first day as husband and wife. Everyone else can wait. Everything else can wait. Right now, all that matters is us.”
She tilted her head back, her green eyes searching his face. “You don’t wait for anything.”
His smile deepened. “Except for you.”
A flush crept over her cheeks, but before she could respond, Titus shifted, gathering her into his arms in one fluid motion.
A startled gasp left her lips. “Titus!”
He stood effortlessly, carrying her as though she weighed nothing. “You need a shower.”
She arched a brow. “Are you saying I smell?”
“I’m saying I want to take my time with you.”
Her breath hitched, and he caught the way her fingers wrapped around the back of his neck, the way her body instinctively leaned into his. Satisfaction streamed through him as he carried her into the bathroom, stepping beneath the warm steam rising from the shower.
“Titus—”
“Hush, wife,” he murmured, setting her down carefully. “Let me take care of you.”
Her breath hitched slightly, her fingers tightening against his bare shoulders, but she didn’t protest. He felt the way she hesitated, as if caught between resistance and surrender, and it only deepened his satisfaction. She was getting used to this—to him—whether she realized it ornot.
She was snug in his embrace, her curves pressing against his chest, fitting perfectly as if molded for him alone.
He held her against him with ease, savoring the way her warmth seeped into him.
The faint scent of last night lingered on her skin, amix of jasmine and something uniquely hers, something that had already imprinted itself into hismind.
She snuggled against him, her breath warm against his throat. He knew she could feel his heartbeat, steady and strong, just as she could feel the tension spiraling inside him. He was holding himself back—for her. Fornow.
“Do you always do this?” Her voice was quiet, edged with something unreadable.
He arched a brow. “Do what?”
“Carry me like I have no say in it.”
A slow smile tugged at his lips. “You don’t.”
She huffed a breath, but he caught the way her body relaxed just a little more, molding into him. She could protest all she wanted, but she wasn’t pushing away. She wasn’t fighting him. That, more than anything, told him exactly what he needed toknow.
“You like it,” he murmured, voice thick with certainty. “Even if you won’t admit it.”
She said nothing. But her silence gave him answer enough.
She didn’t pull away .
Didn’t speak.
Instead, she simply let him take care of her.
Her breath came in slow, measured intervals, as if she was absorbing the sensation of his touch, the way his hands moved over her skin with unhurried care.
He could feel the tension gradually seeping from her muscles, the way her body adjusted to the intimacy, to him.
Every delicate shiver, every unconscious sigh, only reinforced what he already knew—she was learning to trust him.
And he would make sure she never regrettedit.
He reached for the soap, lathering his hands before sliding them over her skin. Slow, methodical, deliberate.
Jazz trembled under his touch.
His fingers smoothed over her shoulders, down her arms, over the soft curves of her waist. He lingered, tracing the delicate hollows and dips of her body, savoring the way her skin warmed beneath his touch. Worshipping. Claiming.
His palms traveled lower, mapping the curve of her hips, pressing into the softness there, establishing himself in the reality of her beneath him. He wanted to memorize every inch of her, to leave an imprint so deep she would feel him even when he wasn’t touchingher.
His breath ghosted over her damp skin, and she trembled, her body responding before her mind could resist. He felt the moment she surrendered—when her muscles loosened and she leaned into him, her trust offered silently.
That, more than anything, set a fire low in his gut.
He had her now. And he would never let hergo.
When he reached her hair, he gathered it gently, tilting her head back beneath the spray. Her eyes fluttered shut, her lips parting slightly.
Titus swallowed hard.
Fuck, she was beautiful.
When he was finished, he turned her to face him, his hands framing her jaw, thumbs brushing lightly over her damp skin.
He studied her, memorizing every shift in her expression, the lingering haze in her eyes, the way her breath caught as he tilted her chin upward.
She was so effortlessly beautiful, standing before him with the water streaming down her bare skin, her lips slightly parted, her body softened by the heat surroundingthem.
He wanted her to look at him, to see him, to understand that this wasn’t just about claiming her body. It never hadbeen.
He searched her face, watching the flicker of hesitation, of unspoken thoughts she wasn’t quite ready to voice.
He knew what she was trying to process, the importance of what had passed between them settling into something more real, more permanent.
And yet, she didn’t pull away. She stayed within his reach, her gaze locked onto his, her pulse fluttering beneath his fingertips like a silent confession.
Slowly, deliberately, he leaned in, pressing a kiss to her forehead first, lingering there for a beat before trailing his lips down the slope of her cheek, pausing just at the corner of her mouth. Awhisper of a touch, apromise.
“You’re mine, Jazz,” he murmured, voice thick with certainty. “And I take care of what’s mine.”
Green eyes lifted to his, searching.
He knew what she was looking for. What she was trying to understand. The questions were there in her eyes, unspoken but undeniable. Was this real? Was it only possession? Or was it somethingmore?
He could see the hesitation, the heft of everything unspoken, the way her body leaned toward him even as her mind tried to hold back.
It was instinctive, inevitable—just like them.
He wanted to answer her, to tell her that fate had already decided, that there was no escaping him.
No escaping this. But she had to come to that realization on her own.
And she would. Because she already belonged to him, whether she understood it yet ornot.
What was this? What did itmean?
Titus could have told her. Could have crushed her last illusions and laid thembare.
But she wasn’t ready.
Instead, he leaned down and kissed her, slow anddeep.
Then he murmured against her lips—soft, certain, unshakable.
“Dry off and get dressed, wife.” He gave her bottom a loving slap. “We have a family brunch to attend.”