27. Josephine

27

JOSEPHINE

T he sounds of competitive swimming first thing in the morning pull me out of much needed sleep. I have to push myself out of bed, the most comfortable bed I've ever slept in with the most gorgeous view of the sea from Luca's cliff side home.

Peace.

There is finally peace around us as I move to put on my robe and head out to the balcony where Jett is standing at the edge of the pool as Luca does a lap. As soon as Luca finishes his lap, Jett jumps in to do the same. They've been going at this round robin of swimming every morning for the past month since the shit with Duke and Vito imploded.

"Mom! Mom! Are you watching? Look at how fast I'm getting." Jett shouts with excitement in his eyes as if the events that happened never did. His happiness means the world to me and that's what matters. When the craziness of that time pops up, we'll seek therapy. Until then, swimming and days on set as school's out for the summer, are the only things on Jett's schedule.

"Freeze!" I call out to him. Jett's standing on the side of the pool and that's when I notice them.

The socks.

"They're lucky, Mom! You’ve seen how lucky they are. They even make me swim faster. Luca, tell her please." Jett holds both hands out for Luca to intervene.

Luca pulls himself out of the pool, shaking his head. "I'm not getting involved with the lucky sock debate. Even though I can't argue with how lucky they've been to me."

He smiles and walks toward me, dripping wet. I shake my head.

"Come on, Mom. Come swim with us," Jett teases, knowing that Luca will dunk me under the water just to get some laps in, but not today.

"No. Get showered and dressed. The both of you," I hold a hand out to stop Luca from coming closer. "We have to get Sonny and Gina's place after we pick up Monique. Collin said he'll meet us there. Is your doctor friend coming for her?"

Luca shakes his head with a laugh. "Antonio is my friend. Ronan is Antonio's colleague who's into Mojo. Antonio and Ronan are actually busy with, um, family stuff."

I nod with understanding.

"One more lap and then I'll get showered," Jett says.

Luca clears his throat with a firm tone. "What did Mom say?"

Jett's shoulders slump, and mouth drops. "Get showered and dressed, now."

"You're going right back into the pool with Antoni, Sonya, and Virginia," I tell Jett, referring to Luca's nieces and nephew.

"Can I keep the lucky socks on?" Jett asks.

"They're wet and no. But I'll compromise in that you can take them with you. Just hang them out the window or something to dry."

That's all Jett needs to hear to renew his spirits as he dashes around the balcony to go inside, leaving me alone in the room with Luca.

He leans down to kiss me. "Good morning, Jo."

"Good morning, Luca." I let him pepper me with kisses as his mouth moves along the lines of my neck, while his hands pull my robe open. "I never thought you could get any hotter, but being a supportive parent? Panty dropper."

He snickers as his mouth teases my nipples, taking one between his lips. His fingers dip low between my legs, slipping between my folds to coax my body into this moment.

"I like you with panties dropped," Luca replies between kisses before he slides two fingers inside my sex. He drives them in and out to make drip over his hand. I take a step back until I'm at the bed where I can lie back for Luca to have me for breakfast. He licks my clit, using his tongue in a way that speaks to my body like no one else.

When he comes up, his cock is hard and ready. It takes seconds for him to drop his trunks to the floor and push every inch of himself inside of me. The pressure, a hint of pain, an explosion of erotic bliss are the only way I want to wake up from now on.

"We have to make this quick," I tell him what he already knows, panting as my breathing catches up to my pulse.

"You know what makes me come fast," he whispers as he delivers one powerful stroke after another. I watch the ripple of his abs, every muscle flexing and contracting, all to bend my body to his will, his will to make me orgasm incessantly.

"Do what you have to do, but we have to keep it down, too."

Luca's deviously seductive blue eyes lower as he rubs my clit with his thumb, stroking me in and out with his cock, but his other hand rises to cover my mouth. Every stroke comes in hard, fast, visceral, primitive, pleasureful, with jerks that force his gray and brown locks to fall over his eyes.

He turns me onto my side where one of my legs is between his and the other rests on his shoulder. He leans forward to use his massive hand to choke me while slipping two fingers in my mouth to keep me quiet. His free hand wraps around the leg resting on his shoulder as he plants his feet to the ground to drive in and out of me at an insane pace.

It feels like my brain is shaking, but the fucking makes me see stars. My walls clench, desperate to hold onto this feeling for as long as possible, but it has to end. I know it does. Every thrust brings us closer to the edge, to the brink of ecstasy, where we fall in love over and over again.

The slowing of Luca's pace tells me he's close to finishing and when he does, we both let out a breath of exhaustion when he collapses beside me on the bed.

"I don't know how I've gone this long without waking up beside you every morning." Luca's voice is low as I hear him shuffling around in the nightstand. Most likely for his phone. We have a long day ahead. He leans over, kisses me deeply and rolls away to get onto his feet.

"If we don't move faster, Jett's going to come in and jump back in the pool," I mumble.

"No, I'll make sure he stays clean and dry. As a matter of fact, I'm going to hop in the shower real quick. I'll make sure he's good and take him to grab breakfast before we head out for the day. You want your usual? Sunnyside eggs benedict? Matcha latte?"

"Yes, thank you," I tell him as he heads into the bathroom. This is the life. The life I deserve. To not be on eggshells while talking to a man who actively protects me and takes care of me. The feeling of safety in someone's presence when I didn't know it's what I desperately needed, is undeniable.

The sound of my phone ringing pulls me from my thoughts. Mojo's smiling face flashes across the screen until I answer it.

"Hey, Mojo."

"Hey, what does it look like?" she asks.

"What does what look like?" I reply, my brows knitting together in confusion.

"Happiness, peace, and prosperity," she laughs. "I just saw it on the news, Vito Dacosta's going to prison. Indicted on federal charges, one of the only RICO cases brought against someone in the Bay in the past few decades. They'll probably lump him in with other mafia indictments out of New York or somewhere like that. Fucking asshole, him and Duke deserve each other. When are you getting here? Do you think I have time for a quickie?"

"Ew," I giggle. "I mean go for it, I just got mine."

"Ew, I don’t need to know that. I have to ride in the car with you two! Have I thanked you and Luca again, for everything?"

"Every day, babe. There is no me and Luca if you didn't put me in for that role. We're even. You saved my life and we saved yours. There's no score to keep. Except when I tell you, you have two roles to get ready for. The Starlight script is ready, and the Dusk sequel starts shooting in a few weeks."

"YES!" She screeches into the line with joy. "I can't wait. So, hurry up and come get me. We can go over the details and you can show me that gorgeous ring."

"What ring?" I ask her.

"This one," Luca says from behind me.

"See you soon." Mojo laughs maniacally as she hangs up.

I turn to see Luca on bended knee with a ring in his hand. I'm stunned speechless as he speaks. "I don't know when I fell in love with you, Josephine, but I know that I do. From the minute you stood up for me to Agent Shaw at your audition, to scaling the side of a mountain to burn bloody clothes in the middle of the night. You've seen the darkness inside of me and have brought my heart into the light. I don't know how I've gone this long without waking up beside you every morning. I don't want to go any longer without waking up beside you as my wife. Josephine Jo Hansen, will you marry me?"

"Yes, of course I will!"

Tears and words jumble together as my mind reels over how happy I am for the first time since Jett was born. I can't believe this is my life. I can't believe I finally get my happily ever after.