Page 100 of The Don’s Omega

“Thank you. You’ve all been so kind.” Elio swallows hard, appearing touched.

Ginevra doesn’t get up to hug him, but she says, “There’s nothing as stressful as when your family is sick. I’m glad your brother is doing so well, Elio.”

“Thank you, Ginevra,” Elio says softly.

I step forward. “I’ll go upstairs with you.”

“Okay.” He nods, holding my gaze.

We go up the stairs together, my hand on his back. The house is mostly quiet around us, the sounds of Mama and Noemi cleaning in the kitchen fading below as we head to our wing of the home.

When we reach his room, he turns to me. I have no idea what he’s going to say. I know he’s tired, but I want him to sleep in my bed tonight, even if he doesn’t want sex. I just need him near me. But I hesitate to tell him that. I don’t want to do anything that seems controlling that might bring the chill back.

Our eyes meet and he looks nervous. “Would… would you mind if I slept in your bed tonight?” he asks softly. “I don’t want to be alone.”

Would I mind?

I go still. “Of course you can sleep in my bed, Elio. I want you there every night.”

“Okay, good.” He bites his bottom lip. “I… I wasn’t sure.”

I shake my head. “How can you not know how much I want you with me?”

He lifts one shoulder.

“Come on.” I smile at him and lead the way to my room. I open the door and he follows me inside.

He hesitates. “I… I need a shower. Two days at the hospital has done nothing good for my hygiene.”

“My shower is all yours.”

He looks at me, a little spark glittering in the green depths Then he pulls his shirt off over his head and drops it on the floor. My pulse picks up as I run my gaze over his sinewy torso, but I don’t try to touch him. I’m on my best behavior.

“Come shower with me.” His voice is hushed.

Excitement races through me. “Yeah? Are you sure?”

He nods. “Yes. I want you to.”

“You said you were tired. You don’t have to invite me in there with you,” I say softly. “You don’t owe me anything, Elio. I’m glad Fabio is doing well. I’m glad I could be there for you. I’m glad you’re home. That’s enough for me.”

He frowns. “Do you not want to join me?”

I laugh gruffly. “Of course I do. I’m merely trying to be respectful. I know you’re exhausted, and I’m not sure how good my self-control will be if we’re together naked and wet in a shower.”

He hesitates. “Maybe I don’t want your self-control to be good. Maybe I want you to lose control with me.”

I’d be lying if I didn’t admit his words excite me. “Don’t tempt me if you don’t mean it, Elio. I won’t be able to stop. I want you bad. It’s been too fucking long since I had you.”

He moves closer, and he slips his hand around the back of my neck. My pulse stutters as he presses his hot mouth over mine. His kiss is hungry and greedy and my dick throbs at what it means. He wants me as much as I want him. After weeks of the cold shoulder, I’m like a man dying of thirst finally tasting cool, clear water again.

When the kiss ends, I grab his hand and take him with me to the bathroom. My bathroom is dark stone and glass, and when I turn on the water the steam comes up fast, climbing the walls, blurring the mirror. We undress the rest of the way without speaking, the quiet between us charged.

He steps under the spray first and I watch. It sheets down his back, darkens his hair from gold to something deeper, pools in the hollow above his collarbone. He tips his head back into it and the bite mark on his throat shines wet, the scar pale against his flushed skin. The sight of it makes my gut clench. My mark on his skin will never not excite me. He’s mine and only mine. No one else better ever dare touch him, or I’ll murder them.

I step in behind him. The space is large, but I crowd him, my chest against his back, the water spilling over both of us. When I put my hands on his waist, he sighs and leans into me without hesitation.

I don’t like thinking about what happens between us when the three years are up. Maybe this started as a business deal, but that’s not what it is to me anymore. He’s mine. Even if he thinks I’ll one day let him go, he’s fucking wrong. He’s never leaving me. I won’t let him. I’ll never let him go.