Total pages in book: 101
Estimated words: 95431 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 477(@200wpm)___ 382(@250wpm)___ 318(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 95431 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 477(@200wpm)___ 382(@250wpm)___ 318(@300wpm)
Quickly, I brush my teeth and shower. When I return to the bedroom, Michael is still lying right where I left him. I move into my closet and throw on leggings and a sports bra.
Once I have my trainers on, I head back out to the bedroom. Michael still hasn’t moved.
“Well, come on. You have a gift for me. Let’s go.”
He chuckles and sits up on his elbows. I fold my arms across my chest and glare at him defiantly. He gives me a look I don’t understand, confusing me.
“What is this look, Michael? I don’t understand. You said you wanted me to wake up,” I rant in Italian.
When he does nothing more than purse his lips to stifle his laughter, I continue my rant. Still speaking his mother tongue.
“I have gotten up. Now you sit there with this look. I’m tired and everything aches. Do you know what that woman had to put my body through to get me to hurt like this?
“I will not play these games with you. Nope, not today. You want to be a stupid buttface; you do so by yourself.”
Michael roars with laughter as he stands from the bed and comes over to me. He wraps his arms around my waist and hugs me tightly.
“You are so adorable when you’re angry. We will talk about this bella training, but first I have something to show you. I love you.”
“If you love me, you would have let me rest. I still don’t understand this face you make.”
“I adore you. It is a look of love and adoration. It hit me in that moment that I can’t see my life without you.”
“Oh,” I say.
He pecks my lips and laces his fingers with mine. My face is flaming. I didn’t mean to get so upset.
“Sorry, I’ve never seen you look at me like that.”
“Don’t apologize. I love watching you turn into an Italian grandmother. Mama would be proud.”
“Speaking of your mother, is she still upset with you?”
“We spoke this morning. She’s coming back and would like to spend time with you. I might still have some groveling to do, but she’s had secrets of her own that I have been angry about. We will come to a compromise,” he says and shrugs.
My mother-in-law, Donatella, was not allowed to know about me. When she did find out Michael had been married for sixteen years, she was angry she wasn’t trusted to know about me. She was hurt and, as she expressed to me—wished she had the chance to help.
I love her and wish she had been around more. However, I understand why she couldn’t be. Roberto Zuko would have used me against them all.
“I will be happy to see her. Will Adriano be returning soon?”
“Close your eyes,” he says as we get out of the bedroom.
“What?”
“Close your eyes and turn around, I’m going to blindfold you.”
“Okay.” I turn as excitement fills me.
Once the blindfold is in place, he wraps his arms around my shoulders from behind and holds me tightly, kissing the back of my head. I’m super curious now that I can’t see. We are on the second floor. I hope we don’t have to go down the stairs.
“Trust me,” he whispers in my ear.
I nod and begin to step forward as he gives me a gentle nudge. It doesn’t take long before he brings me to a stop. I fidget with my fingers in front of me as I wonder where he’s taking me.
He releases me, and a few seconds later, there is the sound of a door opening. My heart begins to pound in anticipation. Not able to contain my excitement, I lift onto my toes and lace my fingers together to stretch my arms in front of me and crack my knuckles.
I feel it when Michael steps behind me and places a hand on my hip. He leans in to ghost his face against my neck, his lips slightly brushing my skin. I notice there is an echo around wherever we are.
The blindfold is lifted, and I wait for my eyes to adjust, blinking a few times. Then, my vision comes into focus. I spin around as I take the space in. My mouth falls open. As my brain catches up to what I’m looking at, I fling myself into Michael’s arms and kiss him.
“I don’t understand, how?”
“I had two of the rooms converted into one. We had the room. Uri was okay with it. You now have all the room you want to dance,” Michael says as he smiles back at me.
“But all of this space? Wow, look at the wall of mirrors. It seems to go on for days. The sunlight coming into the space is breathtaking. Look at all the windows. How did you make this happen without me knowing?”
“It took a lot of scheduling and creativity. Val and Uri were a big help, as were Annabella and a few others.”