Chapter 31

Marabella’s POV

I washed my hands and up to my elbows, before putting the leftover riggotto in the oven. I knew that there was plenty for everyone. Ma usually cooks more than enough. When Rex came down, I dipped two plates, one for Sergio and one for Timmy. I also made sure to pour a glass of orange and water for both of them.

“Can you tell the soldatos that their dinner is in the dining room?”, I asked Rex. “Yes ma’am”, he nodded, taking the two trays from me. “Thank you”, I said. “You’re welcome”, Rex smiled. I dipped Luca a large plate and poured him a glass of orange juice and a glass of water. Then, I took the remaining food to the dining room.

As I reached into the cabinet to get plates, I felt large hands grip my waist and a body pin me to the counter. I gasped and dropped the plate that was in my hand. Luca’s hand reached out and caught it before it could hit the counter and shatter. “Careful, little one”, he muttered in my ear. “Luca, you scared the shit out of me”, I chastized. “You’ll eventually get used to me doing that, principessa”, he said, reaching up and grabbing the plates and cups for me.

“I assume these are going to the dining room”, Luca said. “Yes, sit down and eat. I’ll take them”, I said, grabbing the cups first. “I don’t think so. I will sit down and eat when you are next to me”, Luca growled, picking up the plates. “Lead the way, principessa”, he said, playfully. I smiled, as I walked towards the dining room. “Thank you for keeping a lid on things tonight. It would have been so much worse without you. Marco probably would’ve died, Timmy too”, Luca said remorsefully.

“I’m just glad I could help”, I said softly. We sat the cups and plates on the table. Luca stopped me in his arms when I tried to turn and walk away. “You did more than help, bambina. You saved lives”, he said sternly, cupping my face in his hands. I sighed, “We don’t know that yet, Luca. Anything could happen”, I replied. “But, now they have a chance. They didn’t when they were brought in”, Luca growled, frustrated.

“Oh, sorry, boss”, a soldato said, as a herd of them started to file into the room. Luca slowly released my face and wrapped his arm around my waist. “Don’t be. Come, sit down and eat. Thank you, all of you, for helping in delivering the return of my brother”. Luca said, loud and clearly. A collective, “Famiglia per sempre (family forever)”, rang through the dining room. “Eat up and get some rest, it’s late”, Luca said, as he directed me back to the kitchen, where his food was.

“Did you eat?”, he asked, as we sat at the bar. “Yes, I did”, I answered. “Promise?”, he inquired. “Yes, Luca. It’s how I made sure that Ma ate all of her food”, I promised. Luca smiled, “Good girl”, he praised, before digging into his food. I yawned, catching Luca’s attention. “I know you are tired, piccola. But, we both need a shower first. Why don’t you go ahead and go jump in”, he suggested. I nodded and placed a kiss on his cheek before going upstairs.

When I got into the shower, I let the water run over me for a few moments, before I started washing my hair. When I turned to rinse my hair, my eyes were closed. I felt Luca’s hands entangle into my hair to rinse it. I squeaked as I grabbed onto his forearms. I didn’t open my eyes though, worried I would get shampoo in them. Besides, I knew who was in the shower with me.

“Luca”, his name fell from my lips with a touch of excitement. “Shh, I’ll behave, I promise”, he whispered, as he tenderly worked the shampoo out of my hair. “Do you have your stitches covered?”, I asked, skeptically. Luca chuckled, “No, bambina, I don’t”, he answered. “Luca, you are supposed to have it covered”, I scolded him. “I’ll be fine, principessa. I promise. I just couldn’t miss an opportunity to take care of you, like you did everyone else”, he explained.

I relaxed into his touch, letting my hands fall to his sides. “Good girl. We still have a game to play. But, since it’s late and you did so much, I’ll let it slide tonight”, he purred. “Are you going to tell me what type of game it is?”, I asked, peeking up at him. Luca chuckled, “No, piccola. I’m not”. I sighed, as he spun me around to put conditioner in my hair.

“I’m going to wash your body, piccola. I wanted to warn you before you started feeling my hands”, Luca whispered softly into my ear. “Luca, I can-“. “I know you can, bambina. But, I want to”, he interrupted my protest. His hands glided against my back smoothly, before circling around my waist. My breath stuttered with his movements, my body coming alive with his touch.

“Are you uncomfortable, piccola?”, he asked, his lips moving against my earlobe. “No”, I answered in a murmur. His hands washed my stomach, before passing over my breast and chest. I gasped and my breathing became erratic. “You are making it hard for me to behave”, he groaned, sliding his hands back over my breast and down my stomach to my thighs. My legs parted slightly, allowing room for his hand to slide between them, making him growl.

“Fanculo, bambina (fuck, baby girl)”, he groaned. His movements were deliberately slow as his fingers passed between my folds. I moaned at the sensation, making Luca burry his head into my neck. His hands gripped my hips, his breathing heavy. “I’m going to finish washing and rinsing you. But, then I need you to get out of the shower, bambina. My control is slipping”, Luca said, his voice strained.

I swallowed hard and nodded. Luca made quick work of washing the rest of my body down. No longer longering when he rinsed me off. He forcefully grabbed the back of my neck to pull me in for a rough kiss. “I need you to get out of here, piccola”, he said, sounding vexed. I nodded quickly and did as he asked. I wrapped a towel around myself and went into the closet. I chose some comfy sleeping pants, and one of my white spaghetti strap under shirts. I sat on the bed and turned the television on, while I dried my hair. When Luca stepped out of the bathroom, he had a pair of black sweat pants on.

His eyes instantly found mine, the fire in them coming back to life. “Come faro a sopravviere a te? (How am I going to survive you?)”, he mumbled to himself. It’s ironic, because I was getting ready to ask myself the same question. “Can you believe that it’s 4:30 in the morning?”, I asked, groggily. “I know, bambina. You did amazing tonight”, he told me, climbing in bed next to me. “So did you”, I said, curling up in his arms.

“Only because of you, piccola. Get some well deserved rest”, he whispered, kissing my head and then turning off the bed-side lamp. “Goodnight, Luca”, I muttered. “Good night, piccola. Sweet dreams”, he uttered, pulling me closer.