Chapter 134: I Need To Be Inside You Right Now

The flight back to New York felt endless.

Dimitri sat in the leather seat of his private jet, staring out at the darkness, his mind replaying Dr. Armani’s confession on an endless loop.

"Antonio provides it to me monthly. Pre-packaged. Pre-measured."

"It’s addictive. Highly addictive."

"She has no idea she’s being poisoned."

Eight years.

Since Isabella was fifteen.

Antonio had been systematically poisoning Lorenzo Russo’s daughter, making her dependent, making her controllable.

And if he could do that to Isabella...

If he could poison a girl under her father’s protection for nearly a decade without anyone detecting it....

He could do it to Eve.

The thought made Dimitri’s blood run cold.

Eve. His Eve. The woman he loved more than life itself.

His father could decide she was a threat. Could decide to eliminate her. Could poison her slowly, methodically, just like he’d done to Isabella.

And Dimitri might not know until it was too late.

The jet finally touched down at 4:47 AM.

Marco had offered to debrief, to discuss next steps, to plan the medication intercept.

Dimitri had told him it could wait.

Right now, he needed to get home.

Needed to see Eve. Touch her. Confirm she was safe.

***

The drive to the penthouse took twenty minutes.

Dimitri used the elevator and entered quietly.

The apartment was dark and silent.

Nonna was asleep in her room. The security team had checked.

Eve was safe.

Dimitri moved through the apartment to their bedroom, opened the door carefully.

And there she was.

Asleep in their bed, curled on her side, her dark hair spread across the pillow.

Beautiful. Perfect. Alive.

Dimitri stood in the doorway for a long moment, just watching her breathe.

The fear he’d been holding at bay for the past twelve hours crashed over him all at once.

What if Antonio targeted her?

What if he decided Eve was too much of a liability, too much of a distraction, too much of a threat to whatever plans he had?

What if Dimitri lost her the way he’d lost his mother?

The thought was unbearable.

Dimitri moved to the bathroom, closed the door, turned on the shower.

He needed to think. Needed to process. Needed to figure out his next move.

But first, he needed to wash away the last twelve hours.

The interrogation. The revelations. The cold understanding of exactly how ruthless his father was.

Dimitri stripped off his clothes, stepped under the scalding water.

He stood there, letting the heat pour over him, his mind racing.

He had to protect Eve.

Had to keep her away from Antonio. Had to make sure she never...never consumed anything that hadn’t been vetted, tested, confirmed safe.

Had to triple her security. Had to control every variable. Had to eliminate every possible threat.

Even if that threat was his own father.

***

POV: EVE

Eve woke to the sound of running water.

She blinked in the darkness, disoriented, reaching automatically for Dimitri.

His side of the bed was empty.

But the shower was running.

He was home.

Eve smiled, checked the clock on the nightstand.

5:23 AM.

He must have just gotten back.

She slipped out of bed, wearing only one of his t-shirts, and padded to the bathroom.

The door was closed but not locked.

Eve opened it quietly.

Steam filled the room, the mirror completely fogged.

Through the glass shower door, she could see Dimitri’s silhouette, head bowed, hands braced against the tile, water pouring over him.

Something about his posture made her pause.

He looked... tense. Worried. Like he was carrying something heavy.

Eve opened the shower door, stepped inside.

Dimitri’s head snapped up, his eyes meeting hers.

And what she saw there made her breath catch.

Fear.

Raw, undisguised fear.

"Dimitri?" She moved closer, reached for him. "What’s wrong? What happened in Italy?"

He didn’t answer.

Just pulled her against him, hard, his arms wrapping around her like he was afraid she might disappear.

"Dimitri, you’re scaring me. Talk to me. What..."

He kissed her.

Desperate. Consuming. Like he was drowning and she was air.

Eve’s questions dissolved as his mouth claimed hers, his hands sliding into her wet hair, holding her exactly where he wanted her.

When he finally pulled back, his forehead pressed to hers, his breathing ragged.

"I need you," he said, his voice rough. "Right now. I need to be inside you. I need to feel you. I need..."

"Then take me." Eve’s hands slid down his chest, feeling the hard muscles, the rapid heartbeat. "I’m here. I’m yours. Take what you need."

That was all the permission he needed.

Dimitri lifted her effortlessly, pressed her back against the wet tile, his mouth finding her throat.

"Hold on to me," he commanded.

Eve wrapped her legs around his waist, her arms around his neck.

And then he was inside her.

One brutal thrust that filled her completely, that made her cry out, that left no space between them.

"Fuck....Dimitri..."

"Mine." His voice was guttural, possessive. "Say it. Say you’re mine."

"Yours....God....I’m yours...."

Then he began to move, And it was hard, fast and relentless.

Each thrust drove her into the tile, each stroke hitting so deep she couldn’t think, couldn’t breathe, could only feel.

"I love you," Dimitri growled against her throat, his hips snapping forward with devastating force. "I love you so fucking much. You’re everything. Everything. Do you understand?"

"Yes....oh God...yes..."

"No one touches you. No one hurts you. No one takes you from me." His teeth found her shoulder, bit down hard enough to mark. "You’re mine. Forever. Say it."

"Forever....yours forever.....Dimitri please...."

The water poured over them, hot and relentless, as Dimitri fucked her like he was trying to merge their souls.

Like he was trying to prove something.

Like he was terrified and the only thing that could calm him was being buried inside her.

Eve came with a scream, her body clenching around him, the orgasm ripping through her with shocking intensity.

Dimitri didn’t stop.

Kept pounding into her, extending the pleasure, making her sob.

"Again," he commanded. "Come for me again."

"Dimitri i can’t....it’s too much...."

"You can. And you will." His hand slipped between them, found her clit, circled with perfect pressure. "Give me another one, cara mia. Let me feel you fall apart."

The combination of his brutal thrusts and his skilled fingers sent her over the edge again.

Harder this time. Longer.

She screamed his name, her nails digging into his shoulders, her entire body shaking.

Only then did Dimitri let himself follow, spilling inside her with a roar, his body going rigid.

They stayed like that for long moments, both gasping, both trembling.

Then Dimitri carefully lowered her to her feet, turned off the water.

"Bedroom," he said, his voice still rough. "Now."