Say You Love Me Read online

  When Cesar winked at me, some of the tension drained from my shoulders. Okay, guess we were going with a lie, but it’s not like Jake would understand the truth.

  Jake’s mouth fell open, revealing orange food residue on his tongue. “Then why were you so angry, Auntie?”

  “Because they messed up the house,” I answered without batting a lash. That kind of wasn’t a lie. I was angry with them for destroying my plaster.

  “Is that why Mr. Angus and Miss Sara left?” Jake asked.

  “Yes,” I explained, feeling strengthened when Cesar pressed my hand. “Sara hates messes.” Especially messes that involved her innocent, darling daughter handcuffing naked men to the bed and hanging from a sex swing.

  Jake frowned at the crumbs surrounding his plate. “So does Irm-uh, Señora Gonzales have to stay with us?”

  I shifted uncomfortably, shaking off Cesar’s grasp when he laughed under his breath.

  “Yes, she’s our new housekeeper.” I looked Jake squarely in the eyes. “Why, is something wrong?”

  Irma judging me was bad enough, but if the woman had done anything to upset Jake, she would have to go.

  He picked up his fork, pushing his food around on the plate. “She has a mean face, like my old teacher.”

  Ugh. She did. This was so not good, because Jake’s old teacher was a first-class bitch. “I noticed that, too, Jake. Maybe after we get to know her, she’ll have a nicer face.”

  And maybe dancing pigs will fly out of my ass.

  Jake vehemently shook his head. “Miss Bently never had a nice face, and I was in her class almost the whole year.

  Boy, this kid was smart. Too smart. At the rate he was learning, in a few more years he’d know exactly why Uncle Esteban had been chained to the bed.

  “Yeah, I know. Don’t worry, Jake. If things don’t work out with Irma, then I will find a new housekeeper.” I did my best not to cringe as the words poured from my mouth. No going back on my word now. Irma had one week to turn that scowl into something at least partially resembling a smile.

  Jake’s brows dipped beneath his bangs as he licked cheese off his fork like it was an ice cream cone. “You promise?”

  I drew an X over my heart. “Of course.” I took a bite of enchilada. “Ohhh,” I groaned as the gooey cheese and tomato sauce melted in my mouth. “Mean face or not, she makes good enchiladas.”

  Cesar chuckled, twirling cheese around his fork. “Damn good enchiladas.”

  Jake’s eyes lit up. “They are good. Don’t get rid of her yet, Auntie.” He shoveled such a big bite into his mouth, I feared he’d choke on it.

  “Okay,” I said, reassured again when Cesar squeezed my hand. I only hoped I could tolerate her long enough to keep her around.

  * * *

  After we tucked Jake in for the night, leaving Nacho and Macy sleeping at the foot of his bed, I took a hot shower and then Cesar and I sat on the balcony, leaning back in our chairs with our feet propped up on the rails. I didn’t feel the slightest bit of guilt when Cesar poured me a glass of wine. After today, I had certainly earned it.

  A thunderstorm was moving into the area. I could smell the threat of rain in the humid, thick air. Heavy, dark clouds hung low in the sky, illuminated by the light of the full moon. I always loved Texas weather before a storm. Everything was so eerily still and beautiful. I wasn’t fond of the storms, though. My mom had been killed in a hailstorm when she lost control of her car. If only she’d stayed home that night, but she’d had a meeting with someone who was supposed to hide her, my sister, and me from my abusive father.

  I took a sip of wine and pushed dark thoughts of her out of my mind. My childhood had been rough after I lost her, but it was much better now.

  I took Cesar’s hand when he offered it, rubbing his knuckles. His hands were worn and calloused, working man’s hands. Even though he spent a lot of time behind the scenes at his five auto-repair shops, it wasn’t unusual for him to lend a hand when they were short mechanics. I was learning how good Cesar was at fixing things, and not just cars and plaster. In a way, he fixed me, holding me together when life threatened to fall apart, being a good role model to my nephew, who looked up to Cesar as if he was his father.

  I brought his fingers to my lips. “Thank you.” I feathered a kiss across his knuckles.

  He arched a thick brow. “For what?”

  I turned his hand over, kissing his palm. “For everything you do for me and Jake.”

  “No need to thank me.” He leaned in, cupping my chin. “I enjoy doing it.”

  He kissed me, nibbling my bottom lip while I sighed into his mouth. When he pulled back, a ray of moonlight painted his dark hair an ethereal silver. His eyes were touched with the same glow, but they darkened along with his expression, reminding me so much of the unpredictability of Texas storms. “I’m sorry about my brothers.”

  “It’s okay.” I shrugged. “They were just being human, I guess.”

  “But I know how much Angus and Sara mean to you.”

  I rubbed that kink in my neck that reminded me too much of our nagging old housekeeper, a pain I needed to get rid of but didn’t know how. “They do mean a lot to me, but they’re going to have to learn to be more understanding.”

  He brushed aside my hand, digging into that sore spot. “Is your neck still bothering you?”

  “Only a little,” I lied.

  He stood, holding a hand down to me. “Come to bed.”

  I silently obeyed, letting him lead me to our new four-poster bed. My knees weakened with anticipation. He left the French doors leading to the balcony open. I didn’t complain. As the wind picked up outside, it brought with it the dewy scent of a warm spring shower, more intoxicating than any air freshener or cologne.

  He sat me on the edge of the bed and pulled my shirt over my head, tossing it to the floor. He tenderly kissed my forehead, encompassing me with his heat and spicy musk as he reached around and unclasped my bra. He slid it off my shoulders and eased me onto the mattress.

  I fell back with open arms, pouting when he refused to come to me.

  He shook his head. “Roll over.”

  I reluctantly obeyed, then giggled when he pulled aside my hair and trailed kisses down my neck. “Stay there,” he whispered. “I’ll be right back.”

  I groaned in frustration when he climbed off the bed. Despite the pain in my neck, I sat, watching him go. He had such a nice, round ass, made all the more sexy in those western jeans. Mm. How badly I wanted to dig my nails into it while he was tunneling into me.

  Cesar returned from the bathroom, wearing rubber gloves and carrying a tube of sports cream. I buried my face in a pillow as he climbed over me. I sucked in a hiss when he poured the cream on my neck, then let out a sigh of relief when he worked the warming medicine into my neck.

  Cesar rubbed the spot for several minutes before it finally began to work loose.

  “Ahhh,” I moaned. “That feels so good.”

  “Is the pain better?” he asked.

  “Much,” I said. “I think that’s enough.”

  Not that I didn’t love having Cesar work the kink in my neck, but I had another kink that needed fixing.

  He twisted my hair above my head, kissing the tip of my ear. “Stay right there,” he said again.

  I wasn’t going anywhere. Between the wine and the massage, I was liquefied jelly, my face sinking deeper into the pillow as sleep threatened to overcome me.

  Oh, so not good. Hurry back, Cesar.

  I was vaguely aware of Cesar returning and rolling me onto my back. He lifted my hands over my head. My eyes shot open when I felt cold steel around my wrists. “Cesar!” I gasped, but he’d already snapped the handcuffs shut.

  When he smiled down at me, I swear I saw devil horns shooting from his head. “No use letting these go to waste.”

  I squirmed against the restraints. “Cesar, you’re awful.”

  “Awful?” He chuckled, slipping off my pajama pants and panties. “If you
want awful, I’ll hang up the swing.”

  “Cesar, no!” I squealed, trying to twist out of the cuffs. Omigod! I couldn’t believe he’d cuffed me. My heart pounded like a hammer in my ears.

  “Relax,” he purred, nuzzling between my thighs. “You look like you could unwind.”

  I stopped squirming when he opened my folds and speared me with his tongue, diving deep before slowly withdrawing, flattening his tongue until he reached that energized bundle of nerves at the top.

  Oh, sweet mercy!

  My legs shook and my hips involuntarily lifted from the bed, and I watched mesmerized as he licked his way back down, his tongue diving inside again while he circled my clit with the pad of his thumb.

  Holy fuck!

  “Cesar!” I cried. “Oh, God!” I twisted and turned, barely aware of my restraints as he licked and teased my weeping flesh.

  I lifted my legs higher while he buried his face in my cunt, licking, stroking, sucking, until I couldn’t handle the torture another moment. And just when I almost reached that pinnacle of pleasure, he pulled back, looking at me with a devious grin.

  “Cesar, please,” I begged. “Let me come.”

  “Oh, you’re going to come, all right, bella.” His chuckle was a low rumble, making more moisture pool between my legs. “When I let you.”

  “Not fair,” I whimpered, rattling my restraints. If I hadn’t been cuffed, I would have mauled him like a wild animal, fucking his hard body until I was screaming his name.

  I licked my lips when he unbuckled his jeans and pulled them down, his engorged head springing from his underwear.

  Damn these handcuffs.

  He climbed up the length of my body and knelt beside my head. He lifted my neck with the back of his hand, angling my mouth toward his cock.

  “Does this hurt?” he asked.

  “Not my neck,” I growled. But the unrelenting throb of unfulfilled desire was nearly unbearable.

  I swallowed his cock as he eased himself down my throat. I slurped up and down his sensitized flesh while he moaned my name, pleased with myself for pulling off his cock with a pop when he begged me to suck deeper.

  “Goddamn tease,” he growled.

  The air whooshed from my lungs when he flipped me onto my stomach. My face was again buried in the pillow, but with my wrists bound, I didn’t have much freedom to move.

  He hauled my ass into the air, spreading my legs before jamming his cock deep inside me. I groaned with delight as that bundle of nerves swelled like a balloon, then whimpered when he slowly slid out.

  “Fuck me, Cesar,” I cried. “Fuck me harder.”

  “Be patient,” he admonished, slowly sliding back inside.

  I struggled to raise myself on my elbows, grinding my teeth when he buried himself inside me again. I hissed when he pulled out, every nerve ending in my body vibrating like a gong. He picked up tempo, fucking me deep and hard while circling my puckered anus with his finger. The muscles there relaxed and opened like a flower as he continued to tease and torment me. When he slipped a finger inside my tight hole, matching thrusts with his cock, I came undone.

  “Oh God, Cesar! Yes, yes!” I convulsed, tightening around him like two pulsating fists. I had no idea where the anal orgasm began or ended as it collided with the other orgasm deep in my core.

  He continued to tease and prod my anus and another equally powerful orgasm burst through me like a blinding explosion. I slumped on the mattress as pleasure consumed me, but Cesar wasn’t finished with me yet. He hauled me back up, fucking me hard and deep.

  “Oh, please, Cesar,” I begged, though I had no idea what I wanted, for the pleasure was driving me to madness.

  “Fuck, Savannah, fuck!” he swore, then grunted, pushing deep inside, his head exploding in bursts as warmth flooded me.

  His orgasm was like a tsunami, triggering another quake deep within me. I pushed against him. “Please don’t stop,” I begged.

  He went faster, fucking me so damn hard, the pleasure bordered on unbearable pain. But then the orgasm hit me like a brick wall, smashing through me and making me scream his name.

  I toppled to the bed a second time, and he fell with me, rolling me onto my back and showering my pebbled breasts with kisses.

  “Keep that up, and I’ll make you go again,” I mumbled, my eyelids heavy with exhaustion.

  “Should I break out the swing?” Cesar chuckled.

  “What?” My eyes flew open. “No! The cuffs were enough.” I rattled my chains. “By the way, could you take them off?”

  He grabbed a key off the dresser and released me. I winced, rubbing my sore wrists as memories of the day the cops mistook me for my felon sister flooded back.

  “Okay.” He spread open my legs, wiping me with a towel. “I’ll save the swing for next time.”

  I shook my head. “You’re too much, Cesar Cruz.”

  He frowned at the red marks on my wrists before kissing them. “I’m sorry.”

  “It doesn’t hurt, but you’re so thoughtful.” My eyes fell shut again. For some reason, I was damned tired. “That’s why I love you,” I mumbled, then I froze, a jolt of electricity coursing through me as I deliberately kept my eyes shut.

  Oh, dear God. I just told Cesar I loved him. Did I mean to say that? Do I really love him? Yes, yes I do. Fuck.

  I laid there for several interminable heartbeats, pretending I was asleep for fear I’d open my eyes and see him gaping down at me. I knew Cesar cared about me, but what if he didn’t love me, too?

  I felt his body heat as he leaned over me, his lips lingering on my forehead. “I love you, too, bella.”

  He scooped me into his arms, and I sighed in his embrace, resting my hand against his heart while I nuzzled his chest. I was still too afraid to look at him. It was just too awkward. Besides, I was so tired, I felt as if I’d run a marathon.

  The day might have started out as a disaster, but I couldn’t have dreamed up a more perfect ending.

  It was official. Cesar and I were in love.

  I fell asleep to the sound of his steadily beating heart, taking comfort in the fact that it beat for me.

  Chapter Five

  The alarm on Cesar’s phone woke me the next morning. The new house came with his and her bathrooms, which was nice, but I missed the bathroom ritual we’d shared at his condo, brushing our teeth together while flirting and “accidentally” bumping up against each other. Then showering while teasing and toying with each other, maybe even stealing a quickie before breakfast.

  I thought about surprising Cesar by joining him in the shower, but I felt too awkward facing him after last night’s admission. I’d been half asleep when I told Cesar I loved him, and even though I’d meant it, it still felt weird. What did this mean for our relationship? Were we at the next level?

  When he’d kissed me and told me he loved me, had he meant it, or did he only do it because I’d said it first? Looking in the mirror, I plucked my eyebrows, thinking more and more about going into Cesar’s bathroom. I was wearing nothing but my lacy red bra and undies. What would he say if he saw me dressed like this?

  Cesar startled me when he came into the bathroom. I dropped my tweezers and smiled at his reflection in the mirror, loving how his jaw dropped as his gaze roamed the length of my body.

  “I have to go in a little early.” He wrapped an arm around me, pulled my hair to the side, and kissed my neck.

  A chill coursed through me, and I practically melted in his arms in a puddle of lust. His musky heat enveloped me like a hormonally-induced embrace. He knew exactly what made my heart go thumpity-thump.

  I giggled as he trailed kisses down to my collarbone. “You don’t want breakfast?”

  “I’ll pick something up on the way.” He grabbed my breast, tweaking my nipple. “You still need me home early to watch Jake?”

  “Uhhh,” I moaned, letting my head fall back against him. He was making it increasingly hard to think. “Yeah, I need to leave by five thirty. My yoga class
is at six.”

  He teased my other breast. “Okay, I’ll be home by five.”

  I arched against him. “You sure you have to go in early?”

  “Yes, bella.” He slipped a hand down the front of my underwear, sliding a finger across my wet folds. “Sorry.”

  My eyes flew open. I glared at his reflection as he smirked at me. Oh, he so wasn’t sorry.

  “You ass—”

  He silenced me with a kiss so passionate, and so deep, I turned to jelly in his arms. After he left me in a fog of lust, my knees were so wobbly, I had to lean against the counter for support. Damn. I was so going to pay him back tonight.

  A thought hit me. Not once had he mentioned the “love” word. It was as if last night had never happened. Was that why he’d toyed with me? To get me to forget about last night?

  * * *

  Cesar

  I sat on the edge of the bed and pulled off my boots, going over the week’s inventory in my head. After a long day at work, I was looking forward to unwinding with a cold brew and tossing the football with Jake. The kid had a good eye and a good arm, and was a fast runner. All he needed to do was bulk up a bit, and he’d make a hell of a quarterback. It’s not like Savannah didn’t feed him. She was always fretting that he was too bony, but he burned off the calories as fast as he ate them. The kid was usually swimming, chasing the dogs, hitting my punching bag, or playing football.

  I found a T-shirt and shorts in my walk-in closet. I still couldn’t get used to having such a big space. It was about a quarter full, and I doubted I’d ever fill it. It was made for men who wore suits. It even had a fancy tie rack. I had one tie; I’d left it at the condo. Still, I couldn’t complain. The four-car garage and home theater were nice, and so were the pool and Jacuzzi.

  Savannah had done good by moving here. She told me she’d made the move with Jake in mind. She took care of Jake as if he was her own child. The kid was lucky to have such a loving aunt. I was lucky to have her, too. Very lucky. I still couldn’t believe she loved me, despite my loco family doing their best to drive her away. Papi had stayed true to his word and kept Mami back in Austin, but how long would that last? They’d been begging me to bring Savannah and Jake to the ranch, but after the last meeting between Savannah, Mom, and cousin Marie, I thought it best to keep my girlfriend as far away from them as possible. Then I had stupidly agreed to invite Santiago and Esteban over. Thank God for Andrés and Christina, the only two sane family members. Hopefully, they’d make up for the others.