Chapter 15: Chapter 15

PRESLEY

~You’re ugly. There’s nothing special about you. Girls like you are a dime a dozen.~

~You can’t do anything right. You’re worthless.~

~You’re terrible in bed. Why do you think I cheated on you?~

~You will never do better than me.~

~You bitch! You made me look like an asshole!~

Presley shot out of bed with a gasp, holding her cheek with shaking hands while she tried to get her breathing under control. The nightmare could get much worse, but the slap across the cheek never failed to wake her up.

“Jesus Christ!” A startled Santino jumped up beside her, his hair sticking up on one side. “You scared the shit out of me, Press. Are you okay?”

She blew out a breath and let her head fall to her knees.

“Yeah. It was just a bad dream.”

“I’ll grab you some water.”

She watched as he stumbled out of bed, appreciating the view of his backside as it left the room. He was covered in tattoos all the way down to his waist. She was pretty sure there was one wrapped around the front of his thigh, but she didn’t want to get caught staring.

He came back into the room, holding two bottles of water and slid into bed next to her, unscrewing the cap. Dark, smoldering eyes fringed with thick lashes watched her cautiously.

“You want to talk about it?” he asked.

“No, I’m okay,” she mumbled, her voice shaking.

She sipped her water and closed her eyes. A wave of nausea hit as her nerves attacked her stomach. She gagged and covered her mouth, scrambling out of bed and rushing for the bathroom.

Santino was hot on her heels, crouching beside her and holding her hair back as she emptied the contents of her stomach. She leaned back against the wall when she was done. He handed her a damp washcloth and sat next to her.

“I’m sorry,” she whispered. “I haven’t had one that bad in a while.”

“I’m here if you would like to talk about it.” He offered again.

“Sonny, it’s just…it’s bad.”

She stood up and grabbed her toothbrush. She wasn’t sure if she was ready to tell him. She wasn’t sure she would ever be ready to face that again. She started scrubbing her teeth harder than she should have.

“Sweetheart, I know about bad,” Santino said softly. “I’ve had a whole lot of bad stuff dumped on me.”

Presley finished brushing and rinsed her mouth out as she replaced her toothbrush. She leaned against the sink, wary eyes watching Santino in the mirror. Maybe she should give him a glimpse into her dark past.

“Um, I don’t want to go into detail, but my last relationship was…abusive.” Her fingers traced the scar on her chin. “My ex, Abel, was… He wasn’t a nice guy, and I went through a lot with him. Verbal and physical abuse that still affects me. He’s in jail right now, but he’s set to get out soon.”

“Sweetheart.” Santino pulled her around to face him and in for a hug as he exhaled a deep breath. “Life is bad, but it can be good too. And right now, I’d like to enjoy some good with you.”

Presley couldn’t help the pink color that floated across her face. His hand cupped her cheek, and she melted into his touch. They stood staring at each other as he slowly leaned in, brushing his lips across hers. Gripping his muscular biceps, she drew herself closer to him, deepening their kiss.

They separated as Santino’s ringtone blared out, breaking the spell they were under.

SANTINO

Santino tried to not let the interruption take away from their moment. He tried to put the focus back on her and ignore the call.

“I know you’re a busy man, Sonny,” she said. “I understand if you need to go and deal with things.”

He stood, placing his hands on her hips and pulling her toward him. “If you want me to leave, I will, but I’d like to stay. I feel good around you. Relaxed, finally. I was so nervous about seeing you.”

“You were?”

“Yes. I’ll tell you about it, but I’d like to not do it in the bathroom.”

He smiled at her, and she matched it. He led her back to bed and they crawled in, facing each other.

He took his time looking at her, taking her in. She had long lashes, which brushed her cheeks when she closed them. Her blue eyes were tired, but he knew what they looked like when they sparkled. Her lips were full, and he knew from their brief kiss how soft they felt against his own.

He saw two faint scars on her lip and the bridge of her nose. There was one on her chin and another along her hairline. He wondered if he didn’t know about the origins, if he would have even noticed them.

But seeing the damage up close enraged him. Making sure Abel never laid another hand on her was going to be one of his top priorities. He would talk to Elio about tapping their inside guy to deal with Abel once and for all.

“I find it hard to believe you were nervous,” she whispered. “You’re so confident and sure of yourself. You have a very commanding presence.”

“A pretty girl makes any man nervous. Add in a major dick move and not seeing you for five days, and trust me, I was nervous. Worried that I screwed up bad enough, you wouldn’t think I was worth the time of day,” he whispered back.

She smiled and Santino’s chest tightened. She was breathtaking, her hair loose and tousled.

“Thank you for all the flowers. They are beautiful.” She hesitated a moment. “What does ~dating~ mean to you?”

He thought, fingers trailing along her arm.

“It means I get to kiss you a lot. I get to come knock on your door at one minute after six because I missed you. I get to swap plates with you when we go out to eat. It means trust, communication, honesty, and caring. I don’t share. That’s nonnegotiable. So, if you think you want to date other people, we need to talk about that.”

He felt her hanging on his every word.

“Now, tell me what dating means to you,” he said, his heart flip-flopping in his chest.

He wasn’t sure why he was so nervous. She took a deep breath and let it out through her nose.

“It means forgiveness, honesty, communication, kindness, and trust, like you said. It means good and bad happen, but that we work through it together. As far as dating other people, I’m not interested in that. But if you get a better offer, I ask that you don’t cheat on me; just let me go.”

She bit her lip, eyes flicking away before finding his face again. “I’m afraid, Sonny. I haven’t dated anyone for two years, and I don’t have or believe in casual sex. I don’t want to be a disappointment for you.”

“The only way I could fathom possibly being disappointed in you is if you weren’t honest with me,” Santino assured her.

“About the sex,” she started.

“I’m in no rush, Presley. Am I looking forward to it? You bet your beautiful ass I am, but I’m more focused on getting to know you right now.”

“Okay. Good,” she said with a sleepy smile. “That was an unexpected talk.”

“It was, but I’m glad we had it.” Santino felt more at ease as well.

He reached forward and brushed the hair from her eyes, his gaze dropping to her full mouth. He very much wanted to kiss her right now. As he started to lean toward her, a shrill ringing sounded again. He groaned.

“You should get that,” she whispered. “It’s probably Elio.”

Santino snatched the phone from the nightstand, making two attempts to unlock it before he finally answered.

“What’s up?!” Santino snapped. “I’m a little busy, so this better be important.”

“Your mother’s jewelry and the bonds are gone,” Elio said.