"I prefer you kissing me."
They were given a secluded table on a balcony overlooking the Adriatic Sea. Each of the small balconies was designed so a couple could be totally private. Celebrities visited the hideaway often and they came to relax, enjoy themselves and not be bothered by fans or the paparazzi.
Casimir sat close to her, rather than across from her, both facing the turquoise sea. He threaded his fingers through hers, brought her hand to his mouth to kiss the back and then brought it beneath the table to his thigh, pressing her palm deep. "It's beautiful here, Lissa," he observed.
"I love the farm," she said. "It's become my home, but this place will always be my first love."
"In spite of the terrible things that have happened?"
She nodded. "Luigi doesn't represent these people. He's the anomaly. I'm Italian. I love being Italian, and I'm proud of my country."
"I understand," Casimir agreed. "I feel the same way about my homeland. When this is done, and we're free, I want to show you my country. It's beautiful as well. We can make our home on the farm, but we'll have Italy and Russia to visit often."
"I hope so." He'd just said our home. As in he'd be moving in with her. She knew that was the natural progression of things between a man and a woman when they loved each other, but she had always considered she wouldn't live long - people who did the things she did rarely saw old age.
He brought her hand up to his mouth again, this time scraping at the pads of her fingers with his teeth. "What is it, golubushka? You suddenly looked as if you might faint on me."
The waiter came, took their orders and smiled at them both. "This balcony is very private. When you prefer more privacy, you can close the doors and the privacy sign will be up. No one will disturb you."
Lissa burst out laughing when he left. "He thinks we're having an affair."
"Of course he does. He's very romantic and you're a beautiful, classy woman and I'm your bodyguard. That's the epitome of romance."
She laughed softly. "I'll have an affair with Tomasso, but I think Casimir might object."
"Not necessarily, as long as you don't fall in love with him. And you aren't going to get off that easy. Not that I would mind closing those doors and cutting us off from the rest of the world for a time, but we need to get a few things straight. What made you look a little faint?"
"Of course you aren't just going to let it go," she said with a little sigh. "This doesn't bode well for our relationship."
"Our relationship will be just fine," he corrected. His eyes pierced right through her, saw too much. "You're the one not quite ready to commit."
She scowled at him. "I've totally committed. Totally. I admitted I love you. That's a huge step, Tomasso."
"I was in the security room for a while and these balconies are private, no cameras or audio, so we're alone, and you call me Casimir when we're talking about our relationship. I want you to know just who you're talking to."
She ducked her head. "It was nothing."
"Malyshka, just tell me what's gotten you upset."
"Not upset, just a little thrown. You said we'd make our home on the farm. I hadn't thought beyond the here and now. I didn't think about you coming home with me and moving into my house."
A slow, sexy smile softened the hard edge to his mouth. "Our house. Prakenskii men claim it all. Woman. House. The contents. All of it. It belongs to us."
She couldn't help but laugh. "I can't say I haven't noticed that trait in your brothers. I don't know why I didn't think ahead. I'm not good at sharing space."
"You share just fine. I'm in your bed, you give me whatever I want."
She couldn't control the blush. He was talking about more than space in her bed. He made certain she didn't require much in the way of space. At night he dragged her body tight against his, clamped his arm around her waist or ribs, pinned her with one thigh while the other slid between her legs. He liked to sleep that way. Her back to his front. Not a whisper between their bodies.
Lissa didn't think she'd ever go to sleep with another human being in her bed, but she found he wore her out in very good ways and she drifted off immediately, feeling safe, her body sated and her heart happy. She liked the way he kept her palm tight against his thigh, his long fingers occasionally stroking a caress along the back of her hand. He liked contact and he wasn't shy about demanding it.
"I guess I just hadn't thought beyond the Sorbacovs." She whispered the admission.
"Malyshka, I hadn't thought much beyond the Sorbacovs either, until I met you. Now, it's imperative we both survive - and we will. So that means... We share the same house. Our house. Our bed. Our world," he finished.
Lissa liked that he was so confident they'd both come out alive after going after the Sorbacovs. She wasn't going to back away from that goal, not even now that she'd found Casimir. The truth was, the Sorbacovs would continue to send killers after all of them. There were children to protect now. Her sisters. The men she was coming to love as brothers. She had a family now - a real one. They might not be of blood, but they certainly were in her heart. "I lost one family. I'm not about to lose another."
"You're as determined as I am," he said, his eyes on hers.
When he looked at her like that, completely focused on her, as if she was the only person in his entire world, she melted inside.
"I've always wanted to come here and explore the grounds," Lissa admitted, changing the subject again, wanting this time to be for them alone. "I've never had the chance, but we've got time today if you don't mind."
His smile was slow in coming. Sexy. "Giacinta, I would take the opportunity to spend the day with you anywhere, any way I can. I was alone my entire life. Now, I've got you. I'll never get enough of being with you."
She liked that. How could she not? She tried not to beam, but she was fairly certain the expression on her face could have lit up a dark night.
"Tell me about them. Your sisters. I'd like to know about the women who managed to tame my brothers, especially Gavriil. I didn't believe there was any hope for him. How did your sister - it's Lexi, right? How did she manage to get him to stay around long enough to convince him to remain there on the farm?"
Lissa knew her expression softened. She loved Lexi, truly loved her. "Lexi's special. They all are, but she's... fragile. Strong. Perfect. She wouldn't think so, but I think Gavriil saw all of that right away. She was kidnapped when she was just a little girl by a cult. She didn't escape until she was seventeen. She's an earth element and can grow anything just about anywhere, so the cult's farm thrived with her around. The man forcing her into marriage was a pedophile, so he wasn't enamored with her more adult body, and suffice it to say, her life was a nightmare. When she
escaped, the cult murdered her family in retaliation."
He drew in his breath sharply. "I hope Gavriil got them."
She nodded. "They came after her again, and it was a big mistake. Gavriil isn't going to let anything happen to Lexi. He's different with her. Not yet with the rest of us, but he's getting more comfortable around us."
"You like him."
She nodded. "Very much. I didn't think I would. He's... alpha. I don't know any other word for it. No one is going to get around that man. Well, with the exception of Lexi. Not even his brothers. I could tell they were a little uneasy around him and that made me worried for my sister, but I didn't need to worry. I should have worried about the men coming after her."
Casimir suddenly released her hand, and she glanced up to see the waiter heading their way with their orders. He made a show of putting the artfully presented food in front of them and then disappeared back inside.
"It doesn't surprise me about Gavriil. My two oldest brothers had it the worst. There were several schools. They were taken to the two most brutal of those. Viktor's school had the worst reputation. About half of those going through that school died before their training was complete. I don't know much about Viktor, he's been undercover for years now. Deep undercover. He's got a target that so far he's been unable to get to, but he won't quit until he's taken him out. I'd never want that man coming after me."