Buttons and Shame (Buttons 4)

Kissing her came to mind.

“Who was that?” She lowered her cup and returned it to the counter.

“Depends. How much did you hear?”

“A good amount. Something about wanting to talk to me…”

Now I didn’t see the point in hiding anything. “That was my sister-in-law, Pearl. She sticks her nose where it doesn’t belong. She’s not happy about my arrangement with Tristan. Pretty pissed, actually.”

“Oh?”

“She’s been through the same thing and wants to help you.”

“Help me?” Her voice escaped as a whisper.

“Yeah. I told her I’d think about it, but I don’t think talking to her will do any good.”

She grasped the handle of her mug but didn’t take a drink. “So, she was trafficked?”

I nodded.

“When?”

“About two years ago.” Time went by fast. I remembered the day I met her when we took her from Bones’s estate in Rome. She was fiery, violent, and good with a knife. She fought harder than most men did on the battlefield. Now it didn’t surprise me that my brother fell for her so hard.

“She escaped?”

I shrugged. “Kinda. She was owned by someone else, but my brother and I broke her out. It wasn’t to save her. We were planning on using her to get revenge after what her former master did to us. But Crow decided to fall in love with her instead.”

“And she fell in love with him?” she asked with surprise.

“I couldn’t believe it either. So now they’re married and live in Tuscany.”

“And she’s never wanted to go home?”

“She didn’t leave much behind in America. Doesn’t have a family or many friends.”

“Oh…”

“I’ll tell her you aren’t interested.” I poured myself a mug of coffee then came around to her side of the counter. Her coffee was a little lighter than mine because she added cream and sugar. The second I was closer to her, I felt my hair stand on end. She didn’t smell exactly the same as she did last night—because she smelled like me.

“Actually, I do want to talk to her. If she came all the way over here…she sounds like a considerate person.”

I hid my disappointment as best as I could. I didn’t want to share Adelina with anyone, not when I only had a limited amount of time with her. “I’ll let her know.”

She pulled the mug to her lips and took another sip.

I wanted to get down to business again, but she just woke up and she had an empty stomach. I should let the poor woman eat something and relax before I pinned her to the bed and fucked her from behind.

I couldn’t be completely barbaric.

“Hungry?”

Her hand moved to her firm but tender stomach. “Starving. Everything here tastes so good…”

I suddenly felt like shit when I remembered how she used to be starved. Now I wanted to make her a feast for every meal to fatten her up as much as I could before she had to return to that daily torture. “How about pancakes, eggs, and bacon?” I grabbed two skillets hanging from the hooks that hung from the ceiling.

“That sounds like a dream.”

“Then I’ll get to it. Grab me the carton of eggs from the fridge.”

“You’re gonna cook?” she asked incredulously.

She thought I didn’t know how to work a kitchen? “Yes, I know a thing or two.”

“I thought I was supposed to do the cooking and cleaning around here? Isn’t that what you said?” She grabbed the eggs from the fridge and gathered other supplies, like the refrigerated bacon and the pancake mix from the pantry.

“I’ll give you the day off.” I tossed the butter in the skillet and melted it before I prepared the pancake mix.

She continued to watch me with incredulity, like this was some kind of trick. “I can do it. I don’t mind.”

“You take care of dinner. I’ll take care of this.”

When she finally believed me, she grabbed her cup of coffee and took a seat. She stared out the window and to the Tuscan fields in the distance, in quiet contemplation. I wondered what she was thinking, and I would do anything to know that information.

“You doing okay?” I poured the batter into the pan and watched it bubble. I shouldn’t care if she was sore or uncomfortable. Asking her about her feelings implied that I cared, which I didn’t. But I wasn’t sure why I asked to begin with.

“Yeah, I’m fine.” She stared down into her coffee.

“Sleep well?”

“I’ve slept like a rock since I got here.” Her long brown hair trailed behind her, slightly messy from rolling around in my bed all night. “It’s been really nice…” Her voice trailed off, probably thinking about her time in Tristan’s dungeon.

“I’ve slept well too.” On the nights she shared my bed, I didn’t wake up once. I was rested and ready to start my day the second the sun rose. I didn’t have dark and twisted dreams like I usually did. Maybe she chased away my nightmares. Or maybe it was just a coincidence.