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I wake up,blinking away the remnants of sleep. As my focus sharpens, I see Lana sitting on the edge of the bed. Her back is to me, bare and graceful. I'm struck by how beautiful she looks in the soft morning light filtering through the curtains.
"Good morning.” I run my palm down her warm back.
She turns to look at me, uncertainty clouding her eyes. “I didn’t mean to fall asleep. I should have left.”
“Is it a problem?” I feel her words personally, but perhaps there’s another reason. Maybe Elio doesn’t like her to be out all night. “Because I'm glad you stayed."
She looks at me, surprise flickering across her face, as well as confusion and conflict. Those last two feelings I understand, as I feel them too. We both know this thing between us is complicated, dangerous.
"Listen," I say, my voice soft but firm. "When we're alone like this, it's just us. No jobs, no family obligations, no reasons we shouldn't be together. It's just Henry and Lana."
I see her shoulders relax slightly, and a small smile tugs at the corners of her mouth. "Just Henry and Lana," she repeats, as if testing out the words.
I reach out to Lana, my hand open in invitation. For a moment, she hesitates, and I wonder if she'll pull away. But then her fingers intertwine with mine, and she allows me to gentlypull her back onto the bed. She lies down next to me, her body close but not quite touching.
I turn on my side to face her, drinking in the sight of her. Even with the uncertainty in her eyes, she's breathtaking. My body responds to her proximity, desire rekindling. I want to make love to her again, to lose myself in her warmth and forget about the complications of our lives.
But as I glance at the clock on my nightstand, reality comes crashing back. It's later than I thought, and I remember that my car is still at the restaurant where we met last night, requiring me to need more time if I’m to get to work on time.
"Damn. I hate to say this, but I think we need to get moving. I need to Uber to my car before I go to work."
Lana follows my gaze to the clock and nods. “I need to get to work too.” She starts to sit up, but I tug gently on her hand, not quite ready to let her go.
"For the record," I say, my voice low and husky, "if time wasn't an issue, I'd keep you here all day."
A flush creeps up her neck, and she bites her lip in a way that makes me want to forget about work entirely. Perhaps we can kill two birds with one stone.
“I need a shower. How about you?” I waggle my brows so she understands what I’m suggesting.
“Need help washing your back?”
“And other parts.” I give her a quick kiss and then exit the bed.
She joins me in the shower, and I’m again in awe of her perfection. It’s like God himself molded her. My soapy hands roam over her body, marveling at her curves. She’s tied her hair up to keep it from getting wet, and it’s all I can do to stop myself from releasing it and running my fingers through it.
It isn’t long before I pin her to the shower wall, hook her leg over my hip, and thrust inside her. Our gasps echo aroundus, growing harsher, louder as pleasure builds. As my orgasm gathers power and then finally releases, I’m filled with twin feelings of rightness and frustration. Why is it that I’ve found a woman who excites me, not just sexually, but intellectually as well, and I can’t make her mine?
We dress, and while she offers to take me to my car, we both know that being seen picking up my car together so early in the morning could be risky.
I escort her to the door as she prepares to leave. For a moment, we simply look at each other. The night has been amazing. Just Henry and Lana. But now we’re back in reality, the real world, and the mood of it hangs like a lead weight around us.
“Henry—”
I lean in, unable to resist, and kiss her softly. It's a gentle kiss, full of the things we can't say out loud. When we part, I feel like I see the same longing and frustration in her eyes that I feel in my own heart. What a fucking tragedy we are.
17
LANA
I’m doomed. I’m either going to lead to my own heartache or my family’s destruction. Maybe both. All because I’m falling for the one man I shouldn’t fall for. Here I am, Lana D'Amato, ice princess of a crime family, kissing the very detective who's hell-bent on bringing us down.
"See you later?" Henry asks, his eyes twinkling with hope, even as I can see that he, too, recognizes how doomed all this is.
I muster a smile. "Maybe. If you're lucky."
I leave his apartment, stepping into the elevator to return home. What am I doing? The smart action would be to cut everything off with Henry. Even the search for Lazaro. I can’t develop feelings for Henry. Not without risking everything and everyone around me.
I drive home, my mind reeling, my heart cracking. I enter our estate grounds and park Lazaro’s car in the garage. I walk to the house, entering from the back and making my way to the foyer to take the stairs up to my room to change my clothes. It occurs to me that if my brother is observant, he’ll notice I’m in the same clothes I wore yesterday. I’m making the proverbial walk of shame. Great. Just what I need.
