My Beloved

Chapter 12

Luca knew it was time for them to go. He interrupted a heavy make out session between Cara Mia and Gianni and knocked on Rachelle's door to rush Pietro. He could feel Ava's eyes on him as the men said their goodbyes and headed to the front door. Rachelle stood in her robe kissing Pietro, while Cara Mia and Gianni stood at the front door staring intently in one another's eyes.

Luca wanted to look at her. He wanted to see those big brown eyes, but he knew they'd be filled with confusion and maybe pain. He grabbed Pietro and walked outside with Gianni. "Don't forget this." Luca finally looked at Ava who had a small smile on her face.

She was holding out a large Tupperware. "I made pasta salad for you and the guys." He smiled down at her. "Thank you, il mio amore." She nodded. "Text us when you get home. We need to know you guys are safe." They all nodded and entered the car.

The drive back to the Petrillo estate was quiet. Each man stuck in their own thoughts. "Why did you have to introduce me to her?" Pietro asked sadly. Luca chuckled. "That's the same thing I asked him about Ava." Gianni shook his head. "We can keep them separate. We can keep them safe." He said trying to convince himself more than them.

Gianni could tell after tonight that his best friend and cousin were just as enamored as he was. They had jobs to do as Petrillo men, but they were also men who wanted love and companionship. And they had found it with women that made them better.

Luca sighed heavily as he made it onto the highway. "I told Ava not to fall for me and she looked at me like I burned her." Luca confided clutching the steering wheel. "I don't know how to deal with these feelings that I have for her. They're so foreign to me. How she makes me feel is foreign." Both Gianni and Pietro could understand his words. They were both struggling with the same foreign feelings.

"I made love for the first time tonight." Pietro smiled sadly. "I've been with countless women and never once did I put their needs before mine. But tonight, I treated Rachelle like she was the most precious thing I've ever owned." Gianni looked at his cousin in shock.

"We have to hold each other accountable, because there's no way I can do this without you two. I already know with a shadow of a doubt that I'm in love with her." Pietro's words should have stunned them, but it didn't.

Love at first sight was real. They were all proof to that testament. But they would stop one another from being reckless. They would keep each other alert and on guard despite their feelings. Their top priorities were the girls and keeping them safe.

They would master keeping their lives separate for the good of everyone. "We will keep them safe. They are the only lights in our lives and nothing will dare come near them and try to snuff them out." Gianni pledged as the two men nodded in agreement.

"So, you're smitten is what you're saying," Cara Mia chuckled. "Guys, I have never and I mean never felt the way I felt with Pietro. I actually made love, you guys. Not fucking. Not hot, sloppy sex. Just passionate, slow and sensual love making that ended in the best orgasm I have ever had." Rachelle was fanning herself as she relived the moment shared with Pietro. "Well, I'm happy for you, Rach." Ava smiled filling her glass of Kool-Aid.

"What about you, missy. Was Gianni's lustful looks throughout the night taken care of?" Rachelle asked wiggling her eyebrows. Cara Mia blushed and nodded. "Guys, his kisses are everything. I want to melt every time he touches me. We kissed for so long and I never got tired. It was like he was telling me something with each kiss. And then his fingers," Cara Mia's eyes rolled back. "He just knew all the right spots to hit. He had me shaking like a leaf." She laughed as she reenacted her shaking. They both laughed at their silly friend.

"What about you? You and Luca seemed weird when we came downstairs." Ava looked down in her cup. "He's just so adamant about this being causal and that we're just hanging out and I call bullshit." Ava huffed causing her best friends to look at one another. "He told me not to fall in love with him. I just feel like how could I not when he looks at me the way he does or touches and kisses me the way he does."