Simple Pleasures: A Terlizzi Family Prequel (The Terlizzis) by Cora Kent

Author:Cora Kent [Cora Kent]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Cora Kent
Published: 2024-07-29T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 5

Lucia

My emotions swirl together in a dizzying, intoxicating mix whenever Saverio is near. He has a way of riling me up and satisfying my deepest desires at the same time. It's like being under the influence but with a sharper edge of anger tingling through my veins. I can't help but feel both drawn to and repulsed by him, like a moth to a dangerous flame.

“I’ll fuck every man in Topeka,” I threaten.

His grip on me is like iron. “Then I’ll have to kill every man in Topeka. Do you want that on your conscience?”

Saverio is so infuriating. I twist in his arms to look up at him. The glow of righteous indignation burns bright in his gaze. “I don’t want to marry you.”

“And that’s why we haven’t gotten married,” he replies with a lazy grin. “I won’t force you to wed me before you’re ready, Lucia.”

But he’ll hold me hostage in the meantime. He has my future in his hands. I had a boyfriend last semester with whom I thought things were getting serious. He was another teacher at my school. He didn’t have a single threatening bone in his body. Then Saverio found out about our relationship, and within a few weeks, it was over. Not only did my boyfriend break up with me, he left the school and filed a restraining order against me.

Saverio scoffs at the comparison to my brother, claiming he would never stoop so low as to imprison a woman until she succumbed to his desires. Yet, he holds me captive with invisible bonds, manipulating my every move without the need for physical restraints. I am his helpless prisoner, held against my will by the power of his twisted love.

“What if I never want to marry you?” My stomach erupts with a fluttering sensation, like a swarm of butterflies taking flight and creating a pool of excitement within me. Their delicate wings beat against my insides, causing my heart to join in the dance.

“You don’t have to marry me for me to get what I want, Dandelion.” Saverio reaches up with his free hand to cup my chin with his thumb and forefinger. “I have only ever wanted you. I don’t need a ceremony to enjoy you. I don’t need all of my family and friends around to get what I want from you.”

A shiver runs down my spine, causing tiny bumps to rise on my skin and the fine hairs on my arms to stand at attention. The sensation is like an electric current, tingling and intense. “What do you want from me?”

When Saverio smiles, his whole face lights up. He’s handsome in any light, but even more so when he’s happy. “You having my babies.”

I recall the solemn and somber day of Gianluca's funeral ten years ago. If I had known that something as innocent as allowing Saverio to pick dandelions beside me would result in my current situation, I would have fought harder to make him leave. Regret settles heavily on my chest, a bitter reminder of our choices and their unforeseen consequences.

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