| BOOK SIX | THE LONDON CRIME KING | A DARK MAFIA ROMANCE NOVEL |
This book contains adult language and subject matter, including graphic violence, drugs and explicit sex that may be disturbing to some readers.
This series is NOT a typical romance...
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Terrence watched me from the deep shadows of the night as I traipsed through lawned gardens, where the dense stand of trees bespangled with ornamental string lights set a soft glow along the cobbled pathway for a safe journey back to the hotel.
It's amazing what fresh air and a late-night stroll can do for someone's mental health. I left the reception in a state of feverish perturbation, overwhelmed by the ultimatum to follow my heart, as I should not be imposed upon by anyone, let alone the sister's overzealousness in matchmaking services and courtship manoeuvres, but thirty minutes of alone time did me a world of good. It provided the perfect opportunity to determine whether harboured feelings for a particular man should be pursued.
Not that it took long for me to draw a conclusion. I knew this morning, when en route to Mary's suite for advice, well before the man presented himself in a déshabillé of picture-perfect handsomeness, we had unfinished business.
Inhaling a breath of encouragement, I raised a fist to the door and vacillated between optimism and pessimism in the encumbrance of unpredictability. Now that I am here, ready to wear my heart on my sleeve, I struggled with feelings of potential rejection.
Taking the phone out of my bag and typing the password to unlock the screen, I thumbed through contacts, clicked on his name and sent the first thing that came to mind.
Me: And your heart's against my chest. Your lips pressed to my neck. I'm falling for your eyes. But they don't know me yet.
He read the text five seconds later.
My heart palpitated.
He is on his phone now, reading the messages as they land. It only heightened nervousness, knowing that he was waiting to see what I had to say.
Big Guy: Then, why do you push me away?
Me: I've been feeling everything. From hate to love. From love to lust. From lust to truth. I guess that's how I know you.
Big Guy: Yeah, I thought you were falling for me, too.
Me: So, I hold you close to help you give it up.
Big Guy: What is this, Emma? Just be straight with me.
Me: So, kiss me like you wanna be loved.
Big Guy: What? Where are you?
Me: Open the door.
Not bothering to check if he had replied to the final message, I slipped the phone into the clutch bag's side compartment, breathed in courage and tapped the door determinedly.
Part of me expected the curtain to twitch or the peephole to bedim. Most people are chary of opening the door without safety procedures, especially when it is late at night and eerily dark outside.
