He went still. Absolutely still. His arms nearly crushed her. “Say it then. I need the words. Say you belong to me and that you’re committing to me. Look at me, Francesca, and say it and know there’s no taking it back.”

She moistened her lips and lifted her lashes to look into his piercing blue eyes. There was such a mixture there. Possession. Desire. Triumph. Demand.

“There’s no taking it back, Francesca,” he warned.

She licked her lips again, right over the spot where his teeth had bitten. “I won’t take it back, Stefano,” she said softly. “I want to be yours.”

“And you’re committing to me? You’ll wear my ring. You’ll come into my family? Be a part of us,” he prompted.

A ring? He hadn’t said anything about a ring. That was going even further than she’d anticipated he’d want. A part of her was thrilled. The sane part was terrified. Already it felt too much like ownership. As if he had already branded her in her bones. In her soul.

“Don’t.” He tipped up her face, forcing her to stay in eye contact. “I get that you’re afraid, dolce cuore. You have to trust me. Rely on me. That’s what I need from you. I’ve got you, Francesca. All you have to do is let me have you.”

She tried to think straight, but her body already belonged to him, her breasts aching for his touch, nipples pushing hard against the material of her dress. Between her legs, she felt empty and needy. Burning. Tension coiled so tightly she was afraid if she moved she might shatter. If she didn’t have him she might not make it through the night.

“I can’t think straight when you’re so close to me.” She could barely speak. His heavy erection pressed against her, high, along her waist and she felt every long, thick inch of him like a burning brand. “You’re taking advantage.”

“I’ll take any advantage I can get. Right now, Francesca, I’m being gentle. Push me and I’ll do more to get your yes. I’ll have my fingers buried inside of you and if that doesn’t work, it will be my mouth working between your legs. I’m shameless when it comes to you. This is a battle I can’t afford to lose so yes, I’ll use any means necessary to make certain your answer is what I want.”

She licked over that throbbing spot on her lower lip again. “Is this what I would have to look forward to once we were together? You using sex to get your way?”

“Absolutely.”

She wanted him so much. She could stall all she wanted, but in the end, she knew she would give in to him. “I said yes,” she pointed out. “I may be scared, but I said yes.”

He bent his head to brush kisses over her eyelids, almost as if he were closing her eyes so she wouldn’t see the elation sweeping through him. But she did. She felt it.

“I’m going to kiss you one more time, Francesca, and then we have to finish up so we can go home. It’s too dangerous to be in public when I need to be inside of you.”

The raw desire in his voice scraped at her, clawed at her belly, matching her own. She wanted to be home, too, as quickly as possible.

“Give me your mouth, bella.”

She did so without hesitation, needing the fire pouring down her throat and into her body. Surrounding her heart. The familiar flames rushed over her breasts, connected her nipples straight to her clit, so that she pulsed and throbbed with desperation. His mouth was pure sensuality. Hot with passion. His taste was addicting and when he began to lift his head to pull away, she chased after him with her mouth.

He caught her chin firmly. “Bambina, not here. I don’t have as much self-control as I’d like, not when it comes to you. I’m not about to fuck you against the wall where someone could just walk up on us, but we keep this up and it could happen.”

It was nice knowing she wasn’t alone in what she was feeling, but right at that moment, the idea of him “fucking” her against the wall was a blatant temptation.

He transferred his hold to her hand and stepped back to allow her to move away from the wall. “My cousins are here from New York. I’d like you to meet them.”

She blinked up at him, feeling as if she was coming out of a fog, or an erotic dream, and couldn’t quite shake it off. “I met them the other night, remember?” They made her nervous. She wasn’t certain she wanted to see them again in her present state of absolute craving. They saw too much.

He smiled down at her. “More cousins. You met Lanz and Deangelo Rossi. They’re brothers. They came with two other cousins, Salvatore and Lucca. Their last name is Ferraro as well. Salvatore and Lucca have one other brother, Geno. No sisters. Girls don’t seem to run in our family much.”