Luca

My mother and Elena hardly left the living room all evening. They were catching up on years over wine—several bottles of wine—and Charlotte and I decided it was best to let them be. The only time they even paused was when Layla went into the room, and once it was time for her to eat dinner, they went right back to their own conversation.

Charlotte made dinner and she and I were watching Layla play in the backyard over a glass of wine ourselves. We put dinner away and settled in on the patio furniture, her legs draped over my lap and the fire flickering in her eyes. I was still fighting the urge to pinch myself that this was actually my life.

Seeing Charlotte and Layla together was an absolute dream. The way they understood each other was mesmerizing, almost like they shared a brain. The same mannerisms and expressions. It was almost eery. I thought I would get used to it by now, but it still enthralled me.

"What are you staring at?" Charlotte smiled, her eyes holding a seductive glint to them.

"You." I chuckled. "You're so good with her."

"Well, I've had years of practice." She smiled, and then her face fell as if she realized what she had said. "Luca, I'm sorry. I didn't mean it like..."

"You don't need to apologize, Char." I assured her. Her comment hadn't hurt me, but it did get me thinking.

"Tell me what she was like when she was a baby." I smiled, setting my glass of wine down. I picked her foot up and started massaging the bottom of it, imagining a time I would have done with after a long day when she was pregnant.

Charlotte looked out to where Layla was kicking a ball around and sighed, seeming to get lost in memories. I would have given just about anything to be inside of her head at that moment.

"She was horrendous." She laughed sharply.

It wasn't what I expected her to say at all, and I couldn't help but laugh myself. "Come again?"

Charlotte blushed, as if she was afraid to admit it. "She was a tough baby. She was colicky and cried all the time, like there was nothing I could ever do to comfort her." She frowned. "She'd cry, and I'd cry and most days I wondered who ever thought I could actually be a mother." Tears pooled in her eyes. "She would never sleep and I would spend hours pacing out little hallway trying to soothe her. Jenni would try to help, but nothing worked. It was like she just... She knew it wasn't right. That we were missing something."

It was difficult listening to her talk about it, for more reason than one. I hated that she had to go through that on her own. I wished I could have been the one pacing the hallway with her, given her a small break and tried to soothe Layla myself. And I also hated that I would never get to experience that. Not that it sounded all that fun, but it was a small piece of Layla's life, and Charlotte's, that I'd missed out on. That Charlotte and I should have gone through together. The fact that that bastard Grant took that from me still made my blood run cold. At least he was out of our life now and couldn't do any more damage.

A tear slipped out of her eyelid and she tried to wipe it off of her cheek before I saw. I leaned forward, kissing the trail it had left.

"You are an incredible mother, you know that? I can't even imagine going through what you did by yourself and for Layla to turn out as wonderful as she has. You don't give yourself credit for how you handled it. I'm so proud of you for raising her the way that you did those first few years."

"I wish you could have been there." She whispered, not taking her eyes off of our vivacious daughter who didn't seem to have a care in the world.

"I do, too, baby." More than anything.

"I'm so sorry, Luca. I don't know what I was thinking when I trusted Grant. I should have called you myself." She closed her eyes, shaking her head softly.

"Hey," I comforted, leaning up and pulling her farther onto my lap. "It doesn't matter. All that matters is that we're together now, and nothing is going to get in the way of that. Nothing." I kissed her cheek. "Besides, maybe we'll get to experience that baby stage again one day, together."

Charlotte arched her eyebrow. "Marriage and more babies on the same day? Are you trying to scare me off?"

"I'm just making sure you know how serious I am about you." I kissed her neck, scraping my rough stubble across her sensitive skin. The buzz from the wine made me feel even more desperate for her than usual.

"You know, we've got to figure out what we're going to get her for Christmas. We're running out of time." Charlotte finished what we left in her wineglass before setting it next to mine on the table.

"I have a few ideas." I said, sitting up a little straighter.

"Oh, yeah?" Charlotte seemed surprised.

"A horse?" I grinned, throwing out my first suggestion. I was kidding, of course, but I enjoyed getting a rise out of Charlotte.

"She's three, Luca." Charlotte laughed.

"You're right. How about a cell phone?"

Charlotte narrowed her eyes at me playfully. "Do you have any serious suggestions?"

"Okay, all kidding aside, what about a playground for out here?" I said, looking around the backyard. She loved playing outside and right now she couldn't do much besides run. "Like with a slide and a swing set. Maybe even monkey bars."

Charlotte looked out into the yard as if she was visualizing it herself. "You know, that's actually a pretty good idea."

"I know." I smiled triumphantly. "That was easy. Now why don't we put her to bed a little early and head upstairs ourselves?"

"Okay, I am pretty tired." She yawned and stretched her arms above her head.

"Oh, I didn't say anything about sleeping." I chuckled. "I have plans for you, my love."

Charlotte

I left Luca to put Layla to bed and jumped into the shower. It had been a long day, and I knew tomorrow would probably be no different. The conversation I needed to have with Carmen was looming over my head. I had a sinking feeling that she was going to be upset with me for deserting Luca like I did. She had every reason to be, but now that Luca and I were trying to move past it, I was hoping we all could.

I was so lost in my thoughts about Carmen that I hadn't even heard the bathroom door open. When I caught the reflection of Luca staring at me in the mirror, it startled me.

"Jesus, Luca!" I put my hand to my chest. "Have you ever heard of knocking?"

He smirked, slipping his t-shirt off and walking towards the shower. "What? I pretend knocked when I wanted to see my pretend wife naked."

I rolled my eyes at him. Some things would never change, and as irritating as he was sometimes, that was comforting. I loved the possessive and arrogant side of Luca.

He opened the door and climbed into the shower with me.

"Now about your little jealous rampage earlier..." He narrowed his eyes at me devilishly, and pinned me against the glass of the shower with his hips. His fingers found their way to my chin, forcing me to meet his eyes.

"First of all," I said, finding a bit of confidence. "It wasn't a jealous rampage. I just was staking my claim. And I feel like I was pretty polite about the whole thing considering the last time I saw the woman, she had her head between your—"

He cut me off with a kiss, gently biting my lip as he pulled away. "Staking your claim?"

I nodded sheepishly.

My knees quaked beneath me as Luca brushed his lips along my collarbone. "You have angry nothing to be jealous about. No one even comes close to you, Charlotte.  But that's not a bad idea. I think I am going to stake my claim, too."

He nipped at my neck. "Here."

"And here." He kissed down my neck all the way to my chest, my nipples hardening under his kisses. Luca grabbed each of my breasts in his hands, roughly massaging them as I draped my head back against the glass. His touch was like fire and ice all at once, sending a rush of shivers across my body and disorienting me in the best of ways. Nothing else existed when he touched me this way.

He fell to his knees, kissing each of my hips as I leaned back against the glass, aching for him to go just a little lower. A moan escaped my lips when I felt his lips at the very top of my vagina. "And here."

Luca stood up, planting a hungry kiss on my lips as he slipped his tongue inside my mouth. HIs fingers slid down my sides and he put his knee between mine, forcing my legs open. When he plunged three inside of me, I gasped out loud.

"And. Right. Here." He smirked against my lips, keeping us connected the entire time. His thumb pressed firmly into my clit.

"Oh, God, Luca..." My heart rate skyrocketed as his fingers drummed inside of me, twisting and turning and stroking me like he was playing a damn piano. My breath hitched as I tried to steady myself, completely at his mercy.

Right when I was on the edge, he pulled out of me and spun me around so that my chest was pressed against the glass.

"Uh, uh," He shook his head. "This isn't for you, baby. This is for me. You want to fuck around and act like a tough girl, we can play that game. Sometimes tough girls have to get put in their place."

HIs hand was on my back, forcing me forward until I braced myself with my hands against the shower bench. My body did sinful things when he spoke to me like that during sex. I liked the sweet and sensitive side of him, but when he took control and dominated me... Jesus, I was like putty in his hands.

"We've talked about this over and over, Charlotte." Luca trialed his fingers across my back, grazing the curve of my outstretched ass. "And you still can't seem to follow my orders. What am I ever going to do with you?" His menacing tone coupled with his delicate touch made my stomach churn with anticipation.

"Stop ordering me around like one of your soldiers?" I taunting, knowing exactly what I was inviting.

"Wrong answer." He hissed, slapping my ass sharply. "I want to hear I'm sorry, Luca. I trust you, Luca. I won't let my stubborn attitude cloud my judgement, Luca."

His hand landed on my butt again, leaving a sharp, tantalizing sting in its wake.  "I can't hear you, Charlotte."

"i..." How the fuck did he expect me to speak when he was manhandling me this way? I couldn't even see clearly, he had me so hot and bothered.

"Yes?" He spanked me again.

"Jesus, Luca!" I cried out, nearly coming from this. "I'm sorry. I swear, I'll listen to you when it's important. I'm sorry. Please, just fuck me."

Luca didn't need any more encouraging, and plunged inside of me. His pace was punishing, but I felt so good I could hardly catch my breath. I'd missed everything about Luca, and his angry sex was no exception. I loved the way he manipulated and moved my body to his liking, knowing exactly the right spot to touch me. This was rough and raw and such a contrast from when we made love, but it didn't make it any less sensual. I loved sex with Luca in any and every way possible. He held me against the glass, rocking his hips into mine forcefully.

"You are so fucking hot." He growled, fisting a handful of my hair and tilting my head back.

"Please, Luca." I moaned, not even sure what I was begging for at this point.

He jerked back on my hair, pulling me up to standing. "You know I like to hear you scream, baby, but if you're too loud, you'll wake Layla up. Can you be quiet for me?"

I nodded in his grasp, desperate for him to continue.

Luca slipped his hand over my mouth, holding it there, not willing to take any chances. His restraint only turned me on more. Our bodies fit together like puzzle pieces as he rocked against me. His stamina was unreal as he pounded into me for what felt like hours. I loved every second of it, falling more and more into a daze and losing track of how many times I came. When he finally climaxed, his teeth sank into my shoulder as he held back his own moans.

"That's my girl." He whispered, nuzzling into the nape of my neck as he tried to catch his breath. His arms wrapped around me and we stood under the steaming water together, my knees still so weak that he was fully supporting me.

If that kind of fucking was what disobeying him got me, this certainly wasn't going to deter me like he hoped.