I kept my lips pressed to hers, leisurely taking time to feel every part of her succulent lips. Hers moved in tune with mine as I pulled her body flush with mine, feeling every curve that I had missed for so long. The memories didn’t do it justice.

Moving one hand to her head, I laced my fingers in her sweat-drenched hair, turning her head to deepen the kiss. It wasn’t fierce, but it was intense. Every move, she met me, taking and giving. I licked her bottom lip and then her top as her body rocked, her knees apparently wanting to give out. I wrapped my arm around her waist, holding her to me securely.

Entering her mouth, my tongue rubbed and caressed hers, feeling entangled. We took our time exploring each other as if this were our first kiss, and nothing we could do would be enough. We needed more.

I cupped her face, pulling her away from my lips. Her eyes were still closed, but a smile graced her lips. I moved softly, kissing her again before quickly pulling back.

Our breathing was coming in short pants like we hadn’t had air for hours, and in a way, that kiss had felt that way. Nothing else mattered. The world didn’t exist, only us in this moment.

Her eyes fluttered open, her smile still present while I rubbed slow circles over her cheek, enjoying seeing her in the flesh.

“Take me home.” Catarina’s eyes flared, not from anger, but lust. And as much as I would love to, I had work to do.

“I’ll take you home, and I will find out who did this. You’re too damn important.”

“You’re going to find out who sent it?”

I pulled her close, giving her a soft peck then pulling her away to look in her eyes. “Yes, dolcezza. I will find out who is doing this. No one will hurt you.”

“Be careful.”

As my heart did some stupid sputtering shit, I smiled, unable to keep from kissing her again.

“Always. One more thing, Rex is with you now.” She stilled in my arms. “Scraper still is, but I’ve got this guy Rex who will be with you, too, until we find out who is doing this.”

“I need to meet him.”

“You will.” As soon as I told him his next task.

He would love this one.

***

After drawing Catarina a bath, I left her to soak while I made a couple of calls. One was to Rex, who was on board for his next job, and the other to Matteo. In only a short time, he had already figured out the pictures were the originals.

After the trial, my mother had been given all of Dad’s things, so someone must have gotten the shots from her home. I had put an instant call in for her to have detailed security and her home swept.

Matteo sent the notes to Techie, who had some type of handwriting program he could run to see if there was a match in some database thing. It sounded difficult, but if he could find the asshole, I would take it. He had also begun running fingerprints, even though several of us had now touched them.

Matteo also had Techie pull video from Catarina’s house, her office, and everywhere else she had been, looking for anything suspicious. It wasn’t answers, but it was something. We would also look at all the surrounding areas for anyone suspicious.

I thought about my past, and while I had made a shit load of enemies—as one did in this business—I couldn’t think of one stupid enough to come after the underboss’s daughter to get to me. I was an only child with only my mother, Zan, and Damian for family. The last two were dead.

I mentally flipped through those in California I was close to. Those guys had been there the last six months nonstop. None of them would have had time to come here and stalk my girl.

While other families were always trying to get further in, going after Catarina would have been a death wish for them. Better yet, why go after her to get to me? The only way to get more from our family was to take out Vino, so that made no sense, either.

My mind kept reeling, making everything in my head spin around in confusion. I had no fucking clue who this guy was or what his motivation was.

I moved quickly, not realizing how long I had left Catarina in the tub. Opening the bathroom door, I saw her beautiful face was turned toward me, her eyes closed and face relaxed. The fear and worry had been washed away, and her cheeks were rosy from the heat of the water, her voluptuous breasts cresting just over the water. My dick stirred at the sight, but I knew she had been through a lot today, so I needed to back off—even if my dick would be pissed off.

I stepped close to the oval shaped tub, reaching for two towels and laying them on the tiled ledge. Lifting my hand, I brushed my fingers over the softness of her rosy cheek. “Catarina, time to get out, baby,” I murmured, giving her small strokes.

Her beautiful blue-green eyes fluttered open, a smile forming on her tempting lips.

“Time to get you in bed.”

She yawned, lifting her arms from the water and stretching them above her head. The arch of her back pushed her breasts high above the water, her normally light pink nipples coming out a deep red.

I groaned at the vision as her eyes opened and she began stepping out of the tub. The water cascaded down her voluptuous body, making my mouth water. For nine months, I hadn’t touched her, hadn’t touched anyone, and damn if I wasn’t dying inside to do exactly that.

I reached for the towel and reluctantly wrapped her delicious body in the soft fabric. She began to place her foot on the floor, but I beat her to it, sweeping her up in my arms, and then I heard the sweetest sound.

A giggle escaped her lips. I’d missed that sound. It was so much better than over the phone, and I knew at that moment, I would do whatever possible to make her do it again. It was the best sound ever.

“You pick me up like I weigh nothing,” she said into my chest, shivering as I stepped out of the bathroom and into the coolness of her bedroom.

“Because you don’t,” I scoffed. “Every curve you have, I wouldn’t trade for the world.”

She audibly sighed, melting farther into my body. I pulled her blankets down, though not very skillfully considering I was holding her, and then laid her down. The teal bedding wrapped around her body as I pulled the blankets up, covering her.

“Are you going to lie down with me?” The timidity and fear in her question had me biting back a curse. As soon as this day was over, I would show her exactly what she meant to me and that I was never leaving her again.

“Of course. Let me go shower. I’ll be right back.”

After taking the fastest shower I could manage, I headed back to a very asleep Catarina. I stared at her for long minutes just to make sure she was real, that this was real. We were finally in the same room, and it wasn’t my imagination playing tricks on me.

Stripping off my towel, I climbed into bed, gathering her up in my arms. My girl. I kissed the top of her head, and her leg swung over the top of my thighs while her head rested on my chest. I pulled her tight and drifted off to sleep.

***

Catarina inched down my body, one slow kiss at a time, a sexy smile playing on her lips with each touch. Her tongue darted out, tracing the lines of my abs while I gripped the sheets, trying to hold back my body’s reaction to thrust.

Her hands joined in as her fingertips snaked around my chest, leaving goose bumps in their wake. Her dark hair swept around her back with loose pieces floating down my body, each touch feeling like an angel’s kiss. Then Catarina moved between my thighs, continuing to kiss my skin. She trailed around my groin to my thighs and back up where one hand cupped my balls, rolling them between her fingers, causing pleasure to surge through my body.

Her eyes looked up through her eyelashes as she opened her mouth wide, taking my hot flesh between her beautiful lips. Fire raced to my dick, short circuiting every other part of my body as her tongue licked the purple, throbbing tip around and around then moved to the underside where she licked the deep vein in earnest. Her lips closed back over where she …