Octavius

final bonus chapter

FINLEY GENOVESE

I paced back and forth from the kitchen all the way down to the foyer of the mansion and anxiously played with the thread of my black skirt. 10:30 p.m. Darn, he should be here.

I headed back to the kitchen, cursing under my breath when I noticed the consistency of the dish.

It was a little liquified than I expected or what I'd read in the manual I bought but I'd wanted to make something special for him.

I didn't cook much or even attempted except if you counted the birthdays of Octavius where I baked him a cake for Octavius' birthday and Cosimo always complained about losing his tastebuds.

        And I would have never tried again but Octavius was returning back from a week long business trip with Silvio, and I wanted to make tonight special.

Or somewhat special. Hence the cooking manual. I'd practiced three times today and with each trial and error, I managed to cut down on my prep and cooking time.

Go me!

Wolf and Growl took turns running through the living room, barking in a familiar chorus I knew much too well.

        The ding sound of the front door unlocking to the entry of the passcode and I couldn't help the jitters rushing through my body like a lit sparked wire. He was here.

And from our usual routine, I knew he wouldn't call out my name or announce his presence, no, he was more of a quiet and deadly storm approaching out of nowhere.

        Having the ability to pull you into his radar and orbit and there was nothing I could do to prevent the collision.

Wolf let out a high pitched whine at my foot demanding my attention while Growl rushed over to the room to greet Octavius, his loud ecstatic barks filled the room.

I caught a glimpse of those dark amber eyes first. Tracking me down in an instant and a certain softness appeared in them.

        Dark suit, disheveled white collared shirt and the splash of color on his wrist from my cherry scrunchie.

The heavy intensity of his gaze followed me, lingered and grew in a thick coat of gasoline as he cornered me against the fridge.

"Topolina." Rough, tattooed hands came up against my hip and his touch burnt a trail of hot desire all the way to my face.

        A thumb caressed the side of my chin, and pulled my chin upward to meet his gaze. "Hi."

"Hi." I couldn't help but smile at him, my heart skipping foolishly at his presence. He had the mere ability to pull on my heartstrings like a puppeteer commanding a puppet.

Standing on my toes, I threw my hands around his thick neck holding him tight and crushed my body to his in a hug.

He was taken back a bit, the rough sound of shock came out in a soft gasp against my earlobe but he regained his composure by placing a hand on my back.

        Resting his face in the crook of my neck, his beard tickling my skin and breathed a harsh gruff sound of satisfaction.

"I've been waiting for you."

He hummed softly. "Hm. You have? I'm sorry I'm late. Fuckin' traffic on the road was hectic."

        I sighed blissfully when his hand caressed my stomach and another tattooed hand brushed down my hair. Playing with the half-up, half-down style I'd experimented with. "What have you been up to?"