Chapter 13

Mara’s POV

Our journey was a calm silence, all the way to the sofa and coffee table that sat in the far corner of the room. “How about I put something on to watch while we eat?”, he suggested, as we sat the food and drinks down on the table. I nodded again, becoming too tired to even speak. “Okay, gattina (kitten), sit down”, he ordered gently.

I did as I was told and sat down on the couch. When Luca turned on the television, the Simpsons was playing.”Can we watch this, please?”, I asked softly, scared he would look at me like I was crazy for asking. “Absolutely, piccola (little one)”, he answered happily, as he sat next to me. I was shocked that he didn’t poke fun at me. Carl did it all the time.

“What just went through your mind, bambina (baby girl)?”, Luca asked, as he grabbed my plate off the table. “Nothing”, I lied, horribly, I might add. Luca grunted, as he put my plate back onto the table.”Marabella, my sweet”, Luca growled, his fingers laced into my hair at the nape of my neck and gripped firmly. He drew my face close to his, drawing a faint gasp from me.

“I will spank you for lying to me”, he warned. My breath stuttered, “Carl always made fun of me if I watched cartoons. I was just surprised you didn’t”, I confessed. Luca’s face contorted from frustration, to anger, to sympathy. “I’m not him, piccola (little one). Something you will come to learn, amore (love). You can watch whatever you want with me”, he said gently. “But this is the last time I am going to threaten to spank you. The next time, I will pull you over my knee and actually do it. No more lying, piccola (little one)”, he growled, his face turning stern.

“Yes sir”,I whispered. “Good girl”, he uttered, before placing a soft kiss on my lips. “You need to eat, bambina (baby girl)”, Luca said, releasing me and picking my plate back up and handing it to me. I picked my burger up and began chowing down on it. Luca did the same with his. Once I was finished, Luca handed me a cup of water. “Drink your water, baby girl”, he ordered in a low murmur. I took the glass from him and did as he instructed, as I zoned out into the show.

Luca’s POV

I kept a close eye on Mara to make sure she finishes her water and doesn’t fall asleep with it. That, and I’m quite worried about her. I wasn’t expecting her to snap at Sergio in the kitchen. Hell, I didn’t expect a lot of what happened today, but it happened. She had held herself together so well after today’s events, that I had forgotten her fragility, until she snapped at Serg.

Even as I held her and she cried earlier, though, it was only a release for her, not a weakness. That is something I’ve come to learn about her. But, I can see that the innocent being disregarded is a trigger for her, and that is understandable, considering how big her heart is. She told me she was too tired to talk about what was bothering her. And I see that, in the way that she is zoned out into the cartoon. She isn’t even laughing at the funny parts.

I sat my empty plate on the coffee table and took Mara’s glass from her hands. It wasn’t completely empty, but I felt satisfied with how much she had drunk. “Piccola, you need to brush your teeth and use the restroom before bed”, I coaxed, as I helped her stand up. She nodded softly and headed toward the ensuite bathroom.

I went into the closet and put on a pair of sweatpants, stripping from the outfit I was going to wear to dinner. The closet door, that connected to the bathroom, opened and Mara stood before me, in only my shirt. My blood immediately pumped straight to my dick, at the absolute innocence that flowed from her. Her eyes were half closed and her hair was messy all the way to her hips. “Bambina”, I mutterd. Her eyes met mine momentarily before she rubbed her hands down her face and whined.

“What’s the matter, piccola?”, I asked, as I approached her and took her face in my hands. “I need shorts”, she uttered softly. I smiled, “No you don’t, my shirt is long enough. But, you do need your hair brushed”, I chuckled. “Go get in bed, bambina. I’ll grab your hair brush”, I instructed, as I nudged her back through the door, after placing a kiss on her forehead.

I was quite surprised that she didn’t argue with me about it. I followed behind her and quickly grabbed her brush off of the counter as we passed it. My hand didn’t leave Mara’s back as I guided her to bed. Poor thing, drug her feet the whole distance. I helped her climb into the bed, subsequently giving me a beautiful shot of her black cotton panties. I had to bite my tongue to hold back my urge to groan at the sight.

I settled on the bed behind her and started brushing the knots from her long curls. Every time a knot got caught, I would cringe, but Mara didn’t budge. I took my time brushing her hair. I was enthralled by how her head would lull with the brush, or she would moan with the right pressure. But, I was also mesmerized by the shine in her silky hair each time I passed the brush through it.

Once I was done, I had Mara lay back on my chest, so that I could still run my fingers through her hair. The feel alone, relaxing me. I played with her hair long after she fell asleep. Stroking her hair, until I lulled myself to sleep.