Bones (Bonetti Brothers #1)

CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE

BONES

I rise to my full height, and wrap my arm around her waist, while kissing her neck and enjoying every moan.

“If I had time, I’d fuck you again. Fucking families.”

Athena leans her head back over my shoulder with a sweet giggle. “It’s sweet though that they care enough to check on me.”

Shaking my head, I tell her the truth, “It’s sweet now, until they smother you with love and affection. It will get old.”

She turns in my arms and gazes at me with a longing expression. “No, Luca, it won’t. I haven’t had anyone that cared about whether I lived or died since I was a little girl. Maybe not even then, but at least when I was little, they pretended. It will never get old because no matter how much time passes, I will learn to live with what happened, but I’ll never forget. Maybe one day, the memory of the torture will fade, along with the bruises, but I don’t think not mattering to anyone ever will.”

Her words take the breath from my lungs. I take her in my arms and hold her, because I don’t know what else to do.

“I’m sorry. This never should have happened to you. It shouldn’t happen to anyone, but it really shouldn’t have happened to you. You’re so good and perfect. I’m sorry.”

Tilting her head back, she gazes at me with her hands on my chest. “You make it better, Luca. I’m okay. Please don’t worry about me.”

I kiss her softly. “Good. Maybe you can convince the women in my family that I haven’t hurt you. So they don’t take my balls.”

Athena giggles sweetly, making my chest constrict. “Don’t worry, big bad Bones, I’ll protect you. ”

I cup her cheeks. “If any other woman said that I’d laugh, but you are the strongest woman I’ve ever met. And I believe you would if you thought it was necessary.”

I grab the body wash and cleanse every inch of her body, trying to ignore her little moans, because my family will be here soon. She does the same for me, stopping to stroke my cock, causing me to bite the inside of my cheek.

“Rinse off, get dry, and dress, because if I stare at your naked body much longer, I’ll be inside you again.”

She gets out, and I rinse myself before turning the water off, and getting out. She puts two bandaids on her pretty tits, and I growl, “Next time, I do that.”

Athena turns to me with surprise. “Why?”

I scowl at her. “If I hurt you, I’ll be the one to make it better.”

“It’s barely a cut. I probably don’t even need to cover them.”

While drying my body with the fluffy white towel, I say, “Can you do as you’re told?”

“Fine,” she sighs as she exits the bathroom.

I shake my head as I watch her disappear. Beautiful fucking brat. And all mine.

I’m not honestly worried about my mother or my sister trying to hurt me, but one thing does scare me. If they try to do the right thing and take her from me, I don’t know how I’d react. I’d never hurt them, but I can’t let her leave either.

I walk into the bedroom and find Athena sitting on the bed, dressed in a light blue dress with flowers scattered on the print. Grabbing boxers, I pull them on. “Are you okay, baby?”

She sighs audibly as I finish getting dressed.

“Athena?”

“Yeah, I’m okay. It’s just, I never really talked to them before, and what if they don’t like me?”

I can’t help but chuckle. “That’s what you’re worried about? They will love you. Chances are very good they’ll prefer you over me. ”

Grabbing my phone, I check the notifications and realize that they’re here.

“Trust me. Everything will be fine, but it’s time to go downstairs, because my mom and sister are here.”

ATHENA

We walk downstairs, and I stand back as Luca opens the door to let his mother and sister inside. He kisses both of them on the cheek, and his mother glares at him. “Always happy to see my son, but I’m here for my daughter.”

“Of course you are,” he says, feigning annoyance.

She rushes over to me and grabs me in a tight hug. “You poor thing. Are you okay?”

I nod as she pulls away, and Penelope hugs me, before glaring at her brother. “Is he treating you okay?”

Luca shakes his head as he walks back to the massive living room area. “Come sit down. You can continue your interrogation in comfort.”

The three of us follow him, and he motions for me to sit beside him. His mother and sister sit on the other end watching us.

Penelope stares at the marks on my face, and I worry she thinks my husband did this to me.

“He didn’t cause these bruises.”

She smiles softly. “I know that. I’m well aware of what my brother is capable of, and beating a woman isn’t in his bag of tricks.”

Luca puts his arm around me and holds me close to him. “The problem has been taken care of.”

His sister looks at me with concern. “Do you have someone to talk to? ”

I smile softly as Luca squeezes my shoulder affectionately. “Luca hired a therapist for me. I saw her earlier today.”

Her face registers surprise, but she smiles. “Good.”

Luca’s mother looks at him with obvious disappointment. “I know everything, Luca. You have always known I wanted you to marry for love, not for money, or to become the head of the family. Marriage should never be a business arrangement. You made this woman, who has already been through hell, marry you. I can only imagine how you achieved this.”

Leaning down, he kisses my cheek. “I love my wife very much. We did not marry for love, but I love her now. Does anything else really matter?”

Her gaze turns to me. “Are you here against your will, Athena?”

My eyes widen at her direct question, and I shake my head.

“No. I love Luca. There is nowhere else I want to be.”

It’s the truth. Of course, it didn’t start out that way, and I will never tell his mother the things he did to me in the beginning, because while they seem to think they know what he’s capable of, I doubt they really do. Not to that extent anyway.

His mother releases a relieved sigh. “Very well. Tell me about yourself. What do you like to do?”

I glance at Luca, because I’m unsure how to answer her. Clearly, I don’t want her to know I’ve lived in captivity for so long, that I don’t really know what I like to do. It should be an easy question, but it’s not. Even when I was with Manny, I wasn’t free.

My husband saves me and says, “She loves the outdoors. We spent the morning outside today.”

“I enjoy shopping too, but I don’t like spending enormous amounts of money like some people.”

Luca chuckles as he pulls me even closer. “You’ll get used to it, Butterfly.”

Penelope says, “We should go shopping next weekend. Shopping and lunch. Just the two of us. ”

I glance at him, waiting for him to say no, but instead, he chuckles. “It won’t be just the two of you. My wife goes nowhere without security.”

She waves her hand in the air. “That’s fine. And probably wise.”

We sit comfortably, talking about everything from the day his father bought this house for Luca, to what he was like as a boy, and his lack of dating experience. I’m tempted to ask how his father is doing, but I don’t, because I don’t want to upset anyone. I’m sure it’s difficult for all of them to know he’s going to die. While I don’t have experience with a close family, I can tell they are one.

When they stand to leave, both Luca and I join them. His mother smiles at me fondly. “Welcome to the family, figlia .”

Luca glances at me and mouths, ‘daughter’.

“Thank you.”

She hugs me and whispers in my ear, “I’m sorry you had the family you did. We are your family now. You’re my daughter. If you need anything, you call me.”

I’m overcome with emotion when they leave. My heart is full after hearing her say that to me. For a moment, I allow myself to feel like I matter. I’ve always thought your family is the one you were born into. Maybe it doesn’t have to be though. For the first time, in possibly my entire life, I have hope for the future. It’s a foreign feeling, but one I welcome.

Once he says goodbye to his family, he turns to me with a grin. “Dinner outside as promised?”

“I was wondering if we could go out for dinner.”

He wraps his arms around my waist and pulls me in, until my body is pressed against his. “Whatever you want, baby.”

I sigh as I return his embrace. “I was hoping you might help me read the menu. I don’t want Penelope to know. And if she wants to go for lunch, I’ll need to read the menu.”

“Of course,” he says, as he leans down and kisses my neck.

“She will likely want to go to Manhattan’s, so I’ll take you there.”