The Dictator (Banker 2)

He lifted his body above mine and looked me in the eye. “Fuck. So much come.”

“I can probably handle more.”

He gave me a heated expression before he kissed me. “Maybe in another hole.” He slowly pulled out of me, and the second he was gone, everything seeped out between my legs. He stared at the insides of my thighs with approval. “It’s no surprise I knocked you up. No amount of birth control can stop that.” He got off me then retrieved his boxers and sweatpants.

I turned on my side and prepared to go to sleep.

Cato came back into the room, but he headed for the door.

“What are you doing?”

He opened the door but kept one hand on the knob. “Going to bed.”

“You aren’t going to stay?” I asked in disappointment.

He turned quiet, like he was considering it. He used to sleep with me all the time, but now it seemed like he never wanted to do it again. “Good night, baby.” He walked out and shut the door behind him.

I woke up from a nightmare at five and couldn’t go back to sleep. I lay there with my eyes closed, but my heart rate wouldn’t slow down. Images of what I’d seen kept flashing across my eyes.

I finally gave up and made my way to the kitchen. I didn’t know if anyone was awake this early, but I could probably find some leftovers in the kitchen. I walked into the room as I rubbed the sleep from my eyes and spotted Giovanni in the kitchen, scrubbing a pan in the sink. Cato was at the kitchen table, wearing a workout shirt and shorts. He sipped his morning coffee and read the newspaper. “You guys are awake this early?”

Giovanni turned off the faucet and turned to look at me. “Miss Siena, you’re an early riser this morning.”

“I woke up and couldn’t go back to sleep.” I walked to the counter close to Giovanni. “Thought I would get my day started.”

“How about some coffee and breakfast?”

“That would be great.”

He made me an Americano then turned back to the stove. “I’ll make something good. Give me a few minutes.”

I carried my coffee to the table and sat across from Cato.

He was still reading the newspaper, his plate untouched. There were white cubes on the dish, along with sautéed vegetables.

I squinted as I tried to make it out. “What the hell is that?”

He lowered his paper and glanced at his plate. “Tofu.”

I made a face. “That’s not breakfast.”

“It has no sugar, no carbs, and no fat.”

“So, it’s garbage,” I said with a straight face.

He smiled slightly before he folded up his newspaper and set it down. “You just think that because it doesn’t have cheese on it.”

“Even cheese wouldn’t make that good.” I sipped my coffee, wishing it had caffeine in it. Two things I loved most had been taken away from me—alcohol and coffee. “And why are you awake so early?”

“I’m always awake this early. I work out in the morning.”

“You work out at five in the morning?” I asked incredulously. “Five? The sun isn’t even up.”

“I use my private gym, so it doesn’t matter. And if I don’t work out in the morning, then when?”

I shrugged. “Don’t work out at all.”

“Trust me, you wouldn’t want me to stop working out.” He grabbed his fork and ate a few bites.

Giovanni brought me my plate. “Belgian waffle, egg whites with cheese, sautéed kale and mushrooms, and sourdough toast.” He set it in front of me.

“Now that’s what breakfast is supposed to look like.” I pointed at my plate. “Delicious. Thank you, Giovanni.”

“My pleasure, Miss Siena.” Giovanni walked back to the kitchen.

Cato watched me as he ate breakfast. “He likes you more than he likes me.”

“So do most people.”

He smiled as he kept chewing.

I dumped the syrup on my waffle and ate that first.

Cato sipped his coffee and kept watching me.

“Why won’t you sleep with me?” I blurted.

His mouth halted for a second as he took in my question.

I’d been living with him for a long time, and not once had it happened. He purposely avoided it.

He took another bite and stalled as long as possible. “I don’t want to.”

“I figured that part out. But why?”

His eyes dropped as he stabbed a piece of tofu with his fork. “Too intimate.”

“More intimate than fucking?” I asked incredulously.

“I just don’t want to, alright?” He turned stern, treating me the way he treated Bates when he stepped out of line. He raised his voice as well as his anger, and that made the air in the room feel formidable.

Despite the tender moments we’d shared, he still had his guard up. He always kept me at a distance, even when we looked into each other’s eyes and rocked together. He would never give me all of himself, not like he did before. The wound of my betrayal was still fresh.