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Anastasia Lenkov wants to live a normal life as a nurse after escaping her old, brutal life. But her past keeps catching up with her. She is on the run from the Russian mafia, because her father, the boss, will n...
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The soothing sensation of a large hand stroking through my hair woke me from a deep sleep. I could hear the chirping of birds. Bright light shone against my still-closed eyelids, but I couldn't bring myself to open my eyes.
"Good morning, bellezza." [translation: beauty]
Antonio's grumpy morning voice reached my ear. He spoke softly, empathetically, and with a raspy pitch to his voice. However, a small grin could practically be heard in the syllables of the words.
I hummed softly and stretched my legs out a bit, only to lean deeper into one of the fluffy pillows my head was resting on.
His warm hand moved small strands of hair behind my ear. Next, I noticed how his cold rings made of platinum or silver left goosebumps all over my neck. In contrast to his warm rough hand, they felt cold, yet somehow refreshing.
He brushed the curls from my face and combed them with his hands so that they fell over my shoulders. A single, gentle and almost imperceptible kiss made its way onto my forehead. Right next to my head wound.
Before a blink of an eye could even pass, his lips were already moving away from my skin. As he did so, his hand moved over my neck, then to my jawline, which he gently held, stroking my cheek with his thumb.
My eyes fluttered open tiredly as his thumb stroked my lower lip and I looked into a gray storm - into a cloudy rainy weather. Into his gray eyes. He was sitting in the chair next to the bed, where he had probably also slept.
My heart pounded in my ears as his hand stiffened around my jaw, as well as his thumb on my lip. He was already wearing black suit pants and a white dress shirt. Apparently, he had been getting ready while I was still asleep.
I blinked slightly as the early morning light shone through the window directly into my eyes. I could feel each ring on his left hand, which was still clasped tightly around my jaw.
"Hey." I whispered, which snapped him and me out of our trance.
"Feeling better?" he asked in a concerned tone. I hummed slightly in response.
I felt his gaze on my skin. A tickling and warm sensation was left behind. He took a breath and shook his head slightly, as if to himself. A boyish mischievous smile was sketched across his lips.
The tall Italian took a slight breath, which caused his chest to rise and fall. Outlines of his muscles could be seen through the chemise.
"Where did you get that suit?" I whispered, my throat kind of raspy.
He watched his thumb and how it traced the outline of my lower lip. "I've been up for a while." Was the only thing he said in response. Oh okay.
His black curly hair was fluffy and tousled all over his head. I wanted to run my fingers through it. In contrast, his eyes looked so bright it was downright frightening. They looked like clouds passing over you during a storm.
