Blame It on the Shame (Blame It on the Shame: Lou-Lou and Ricardo's Story #1) Read Online Free PDF

found myself falling in love with.
    I could never tell him that, though. He told me time and time again that romance and love were for the weak. If I told him how I felt, he would probably laugh at me and kick me out, it would ruin our relationship forever.
    And even though I knew this man wasn't my knight in shining armor, I couldn't deny that he was my savior either.
     

    “Get in here, Lucianna,” Bruno shouted from across his wing of the mansion.
    Given it was the night of my 18 th birthday, I had no idea what I could have done to make him so mad.
    Maybe this was it . He'd finally had enough of me and wanted me gone.
    It was confusing because he'd given me a great birthday. He even bought me a pink convertible Ferrari. He became mildly annoyed when I inquired the reason behind the purchase, seeing as he never let me leave the confines of his mansion without him, but I recovered and thanked him profusely.
    I glanced over at the clock on my nightstand, it was 2 am in the morning.
    With a sigh, I got up from my bed. I briefly thought about grabbing a robe to put over my nightgown but then he shouted my name again.
    I ran out of the room and tip-toed to the library he frequently spent his nights in.
    No one would ever guess that Bruno was a big reader; I promised him that it would remain a secret between us.
    “Lucianna!” he shouted, his tone sharper. I looked around the library but he was nowhere to be found.
    That meant there was only one other room in this wing he could be beckoning me from.
    His bedroom.
    Which I'd never seen before.
    I swallowed the lump in my throat and rounded the corner to his large mahogany doors.
    I knocked, then thought the better of it since he'd already screamed for me to come in multiple times.
    I took in the large space encompassing his bedroom. Red curtains were elegantly draped along the two large windows matching the blood red color of his bedspread.
    Over in a corner of the room, he sat in an over-sized dark leather chair with his back turned away from me. I could see the smoke from his cigar floating into the air.
    Even though it was a warm July night, I shivered and curled my arms around myself. “I was sleeping, you know, ” I informed him.
    “Bullshit,” was his retort. “We both know you don't sleep during the night.”
    He was right. Bruno knew me well, he knew I never fell asleep until well after the sun came up.
    He knew I was too scared of the dark because of my past, even though he promised me time and time again that no one would ever hurt me while I was here.
    Even still, I never truly felt safe―no matter where I was.
    And with the way Bruno was acting right now, I had a whole different reason to worry tonight.
    I took another step forward but his gritty voice halted me. “I'm going to ask you one question, Lucianna. And I expect the truth.”
    “Of course.”
    He spun around in his chair.
    “Do you love me?”
    I looked around the room, purposely avoiding his gaze. “No, love is for the weak.”
    He nodded but his jaw ticked, indicating that he didn't care for my answer after all.
    “Fine,” I admitted nervously. “I think―I'm not sure.” I took a step back. “Okay, yes . God, I do. But don't worry, Bruno. It will go away. I'll get a handle on it. Please don't kick me out.”
    He exhaled sharply and met my gaze. “I don't want it to go away.” He stood up and walked over to me. “I don't want you to go away.”
    I stared at him in a combination of disbelief and elation. “You mean you―”
    He put a finger over my lips. “Don't, Lucianna,” he warned. “Don't ruin it.”
    My heart grew stronger and weaker as his hands cupped my face and he leaned down. I closed my eyes and tilted my face up.
    “I'm not going to kiss you.”
    My eyes popped open. “Oh, I thought―”
    “I don't kiss and I'm not going to be gentle with you.” He lifted the hem of my nightgown up. “But I know if there's one woman in the world who can handle me, it's