would make a difference. It had, but not in a good way. She’d racked up arrests for DUIs, theft, that kinda stuff. I’d lucked out. Going with her would’ve been jumping out of the pan and into the fire.”
Maximo sat and wrapped his arms around me. I greedily soaked in the comfort and attention before leaning back.
Taking another of those easy breaths, I unloaded the last bit of weight from my soul and shared something I’d never spoken out loud. Something I’d barely allowed myself to think. “I was happy you killed him.”
A flurry of emotions ran wild across his handsome face. He opened his mouth, but I put my fingertips to them.
I needed to get it all out. Let it all go.
“Shamus being dead meant I wouldn’t have to be on guard against his fists or his enemies’ knives or his buddies sneaking into my room or bill collectors or any of the other shit I dealt with because of him. When you brought me here, it was the first time in my entire life I could sleep through the night. That I could relax. That I didn’t look over my shoulder.” Tears blurred my vision, slowly sliding free. “It was the first time I felt safe and like I had a home.”
Even with loathing burning in his gaze, his touch was gentle when he cupped my cheek and wiped away my tears.
“Thank you for giving me that,” I whispered through the lump in my throat.
When I dropped my cheek to his chest, he wrapped me tight in his arms and pressed his lips to my forehead. “I’ll always give you everything, Juliet.”
“I just want you.”
“Always give you that, too.”
Feeling emotionally drained, I’d shared all there was to share. It was his turn. “Tell me about your family.”
I didn’t think he actually would, but with only a brief hesitation, Maximo said, “My old man was a lot like yours. Greedy. Always out for more. Blinded by it. He never appreciated what he had,” he gave me a pointed squeeze, “and he lost it all.”
“How?”
“Remember I told you I inherited three of my casinos?” At my nod, he continued. “My great-grandfather built Moonlight and Star. My Grandpa Sal took over and added Sunrise. When he died, he didn’t leave them to my father. He left them to me.”
“Why?”
“Because my father would sell out at the first decent offer. He was an entitled bastard who had no interest in putting in the work, whereas I’d been learning the business since I was a kid. Grandpa Sal knew I’d die before I let our family’s legacy go. Unfortunately, he was the one who died when I was sixteen, so my father got temporary control anyway.”
Maximo got a faraway look in his eyes, the shadows of ghosts haunting him.
“We can talk about something else.” I shifted to climb off him but didn’t get far.
His palms slid to cup my breasts, the shadows in his eyes growing into a different kind of darkness. “Having these perfect tits right here is very distracting.” He pinched my nipples, squeezing to the point of pleasure-pain.
When he released them, I moved fast, rolling before he could grab me again. A moment of panic widened his eyes, making my heart pang with guilt and regret. But I wasn’t running. I just grabbed his tee off the floor and pulled it on before straddling him again.
He ran his thumb across his bottom lip. “You wearing my shirt is not helping me focus.”
At his tell, I had to know… “What’re you thinking?”
His lips curled into a hot, wolfish smirk. “That I can feel my come mixed with your sweetness dripping out of you.”
A tremor went through me. He’d made me come so hard, there was no way my body could handle more. But I found myself willing to take the pain.
There’s a reason I put on the shirt, and yet I don’t remember why…
Oh. Right.
“Now who’s being distracting?” I asked.
“Still you.”
I understood if he didn’t want to talk about his family drama, but I still wanted to know about him. “Tell me more.”
He stroked the flyaway hairs from my face, his gaze landing on my messy bun and his jaw clenching. “Put your hair in a ponytail first,” he shot back, like we were in some bizarre negotiation.
“That’s all? And here I thought you were some big shot businessman. I’d have negotiated for more.”
“In that case—”
“Nope, too late.” I undid my bun and shook out my hair before refastening it in