Antonio
My heart thudded as I stared at Callie. Her face was cold, and I could tell she had not forgiven me or was even that willing to listen to me.
“So out with it, Antonio,” she said. “What do you want to tell me?”
“I want to explain to you—”
“Explain what?” she cut me off. “Why you did it? I already know. My dad slept with your mom, and you blamed him for her death. But hey, we found out that it wasn’t even my dad that killed your mom. It was Tommasso Romano.”
“I know,” I said softly. “Everything I thought I knew was wrong.”
“Well, I’m with you there, buddy,” she said.
I grabbed her hands and pulled her toward me. “I know you’re upset with me. I just want to explain.”
“What do you want to explain, Antonio? Look what’s happened.” She started to cry. “I just feel so betrayed and hurt, and I don’t even know how I’m supposed to feel. My mom is back. My mom that I thought was dead. I just don’t understand how it’s possible. My heart breaks. If I’d known she was alive, I would’ve looked for her. Your father raped her. Do you hear what I’m saying, Antonio? My mother had a baby with your father, and not because she wanted to.” Her voice broke. “I know he was an evil man. He was, but I know you must be hurt that he’s dead, that—”
“I’m not,” I said, and it was true. I had no remorse that my father had been taken out. “What he did to your mother, what he did to my mother, what he did to Luisa, what he did to countless other women, it wasn’t right. He was an evil, evil man, and I was going to take him out myself anyway. I know that makes me sound cold and hard and…”
“I know you’ve killed people before,” she said. “And while that should disgust me, it doesn’t.” She shook her head. “Not if those people were evil.”
“When I found out that my mother had been having an affair with your father, I hated her,” I explained, “because I felt like she chose your father over me and Alessandro. But then when I found out that your father was driving that night and he crashed the car and left her dead so he could rush to his wife, I hated him. Every single emotion I had that was negative was reflected at him, and my entire life was built upon trying to get revenge.”
“I know,” she said, nodding. “And I do understand.”
“I know you understand, but I was wrong. Getting revenge on him, I was wrong.”
“Why?” she said.
“Because I shouldn’t have used you to make him pay for his sins. I knew that you were special—different—from the first time that I met you.” I lightly touched the side of her face. “I know these are just words to you right now, but I was attracted to you, your aura, your sense of humor, your beauty. From the first moment that I met you, you knocked me off my feet.”
“Sure,” she said, rolling her eyes.
“I know you don’t believe me, but you had to have felt those moments when we were together. It felt larger than life.”
“It did to me,” she said, nodding. “And I think that’s why I was so shocked when I found out you’d been lying to me the entire time.”
“I wasn’t lying to you the entire time,” I said. “I did care for you. You did make me want to be a better man.”
“No, I didn’t,” she said, determination in her eyes. “If we’re going to be honest here, Antonio, you need to be honest.”
“Okay,” I said. “I said I was going to be a better man for you, and I didn’t really believe it. But the joke of this whole thing, the irony is that you did make me want to be a better man. My feelings for you trumped the want for revenge. And I know you might never believe me, but it’s true.”
“So, then, why did you fucking kidnap me again and pretend?”
“Because I just needed to be around you. I needed to see you. I was so caught up in jealousy of you and Josh and you and Troy and you and any other guy out there. I was just so pissed off that you wouldn’t speak to me or give me the time of day or…”
“Because you’re not used to that from women, are you?” she said. “You’re used to them falling at your feet.”
“I wish I could say that’s not true,” I said, shrugging, “but it is.”
“So you wanted me because I didn’t want you.”
“I wanted you because you became a piece of my heart, Callie,” I said softly. “And when you were taken from me, I knew I would cross through heaven and hell to find you and get you back.”
“I just don’t know what to say,” she said.
“I thought my mom was still alive for a couple of moments.” I walked over to the side of the room and looked out the window at the city, the sparkling lights, and the cars driving down the street. “I thought the world was going to be a better place and everything would be okay because hey, if Callie’s mom’s alive, maybe my mom’s alive, too. You know?” I turned and looked back at her. She had a sad expression on her face. I could tell she felt sorry for me, and I didn’t care. Because at that moment, I felt like the lost little boy I was when she died. “My mom loved me, and was one of only three people in the world that ever really loved me. And now two of them are dead,” I said.
“Jimmy.” She looked at me, and tears started falling from her eyes. “I’m so sorry, Antonio. I’m so sorry. I wish that…”
“No, he died to protect you. He died being an honorable man. He was a good guy. Jimmy? He was the best guy I ever knew, better than me, maybe even better than Alessandro. He was loyal, and I loved him. And he died protecting you because he knew that I loved you, too.”
Callie’s eyes widened, and she took a couple of steps forward. “We’re not good for each other, Antonio.”
“I know,” I said, running my fingers through her tussled hair. I gripped the side of her face. “You’re good for everyone, but I’m not good for you,” I said, pressing my lips against hers. She gasped, and I wondered if she was going to push me away, but then I felt her fingers in my hair. And before I knew what was happening, we were taking each other’s clothes off. We had a primal need to be with each other, to mate, to feel skin upon skin. I didn’t care that I was dirty. I didn’t care that she was dirty. I just needed to be with her. “I love fucking you, Callie,” I said. When we were both naked, I carried her to the bed and lowered her on to it.
“Shut up,” she said, shaking her head and pressing her lips against mine. Her fingernails dug into my back and ran down until they squeezed my ass. I shifted and spread her legs wide open and rubbed the tip of my cock against her entrance, getting her wet and ready.
She moaned slightly as I slid into her fast and hard and furious. I fucked her passionately. I fucked her with all the love I had inside of me, and then I kissed her and held her. I could hear her moaning as she came close to her orgasm, and then I pulled out, flipping her body over and pushing her ass up. I grabbed her hips, pulled her back into me, and slid into her again, reaching underneath her and grabbing her nipples, and pulling as I fucked her some more. She screamed as I reached between her legs and rubbed her clit. I knew she was about to come, and I wanted her to know there was nothing better than this, for me at least. And then she erupted, and I could feel myself coming closer and closer to my own orgasm.
I grabbed her hips and slammed her ass back harder and harder until I felt myself erupting inside her, my seed filling her up, and I didn’t care. Finally, I pulled out of her, leaned down on the bed, and kissed the side of her face. She reached up and touched my eyebrows.
“We shouldn’t have done that, Antonio.”
“I’m sorry,” I said. “I didn’t…”
“I wanted you to. I needed you to,” she said. “I love being touched by you. I love being with you. I love the feel of you inside of me.” Her eyes were bleak, and she offered me a half-smile. “But we’re not good for each other, Antonio, and I don’t want to see you again after this.”
My heart broke as I listened to her words. “I love you, Callie. I fucking love you.” She shrugged slightly, and I didn’t know how to respond to that. My heart broke, but I understood where she was coming from. We’d gone through so much, and how could she forgive a man like me, a wolf, a monster? “You deserve a really good guy,” I said. “You deserve the world, and I wish that I could be the one to give it to you. I wish that I could’ve been the man that you deserve. I wish I could’ve been your Prince Charming, riding in on a white horse and saving you from the monster. But I was the monster, huh?”
She pressed her finger against my lips. “No more, Antonio. No more.” She shook her head softly. Her curls cascaded down past her shoulders, and I stared at her beautiful face. I didn’t want to leave this moment. I didn’t ever want to move past this space in time being with her, but I knew I had to.
“I just want you to know: always remember, I will always love you, my little lamb,” I said softly and gave her one last kiss before I got up.