Total pages in book: 87
Estimated words: 83881 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 419(@200wpm)___ 336(@250wpm)___ 280(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 83881 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 419(@200wpm)___ 336(@250wpm)___ 280(@300wpm)
“No.”
“Fuck me, I chose the right woman to kidnap,” he muttered, dragging me into his arms and kissing me.
Then he returned the favor.
The memory made me smile. He’d grinned all day. Every time I’d looked up from the cake I was making, he was watching me. His gaze was heated, his eyes liquid gold. When he came to admire the lemon sponge cake I’d made and decorated to look like a daisy, he’d been effusive, then pinned me against the counter.
“I can’t stop thinking about last night,” he murmured. “Your sweet mouth wrapped around my cock.” He stroked my cheek. “Will you say cock, Brianna?”
“Rooster.”
He grinned. “Dick.”
“Richard.”
“Cock. My massive cock.”
I tried not to smile. “I can’t say that. I don’t have one. But you’re right, if I did, it would be massive.”
He laughed until he had tears in his eyes. I loved the fact that he was silly with me. Only me. I rose up on my toes, my lips to his ear. “Take me upstairs and frolic me with your massive Richard Rooster, Dante.”
He tightened his hands on my hips, and he growled low in his chest. It was a seductive sound, and it made me shiver. He swung me up in his arms, heading for the staircase.
“Brace yourself, Little Bee.”
I hugged my knees to my chest, staring at the water that rippled in the distance, the color as blue as the sky. My life had changed so much in a few weeks. I’d gone from exhausted and barely keeping my head above water, to spoiled, cared for, and sitting on a balcony in Italy. Waiting for a stern man who showed me a side no one else saw. One who was as complex as he was simple.
A flutter raced through me as I thought of Dante, and I allowed myself to speak the truth.
“I love him,” I whispered to the air around me. How or when it happened, I wasn’t sure, but it was there. I felt it with every fiber of my being. I hugged my knees tighter as I let the thought of loving Dante settle into my head. It felt strange because I couldn’t recall not loving him now.
How was that possible?
The more pressing question was how he felt about me. I saw the flashes in his eyes, the way he watched me. How he allowed me to see him—the real him. The silly and sweet. The caring and funny. The powerful, sexy man who commanded my body and now my heart.
Did I command his at all, or was I simply a placeholder? An amusing pastime for now…not forever? He had set a timeline, laid out the rules, but he was the one who kept changing them. Our physical connection was intense, and he seemed as swept away as I did by our passion.
But I had no idea if our passion, if I, touched his heart.
Or how to figure out if I did.
Chapter Nineteen
DANTE
Brianna was quiet when I got back to the condo. I found her on the terrace, sitting in the sun, staring at the water. Her legs were pulled to her chest, and she looked contemplative. But she smiled when I bent and kissed her, and she followed me to the kitchen. I tried one of her cookies, closing my eyes at the taste of the chocolate, peanut butter, and toffee. Rich, decadent, and chewy.
I kissed her forehead. “Again, the perfect cookie.” She smiled at my praise, but something was off in her eyes. I saw a glimmer of darker emotion within them. Uncertainty or worry, perhaps. It occurred to me she was nervous being in the city and being left on her own. And perhaps the dinner later. I wanted to alleviate her nerves, but I wasn’t sure how exactly. I decided distraction was the best.
“You ready to go to lunch and do a little sight-seeing?”
“Yes, please.”
We wandered the streets around the condo. I pointed out some little shops she might like, and we had lunch in the bright sunshine. The sun showed off the colors in her hair that she wore loose today. She stirred her latte, looking thoughtful. She was quieter than usual, and although I enjoyed the fact that she didn’t fill the silence with idle chatter, I wanted to hear her voice.
“What’s on your mind, Little Bee? You’re lost in thought.”
“Oh, nothing really. Just adjusting to the noise again.”
“Different noises from Toronto, though.”
“Yes,” she agreed.
I studied her. “You like it better at the villa?”
Her smile was wide and honest. “Yes. It’s so lovely there.”
“Well, we’ll be back in a few days.”
She ate her lunch, and we walked around. I planned an entire day of sight-seeing for her. Today was only around the neighborhood. I pointed to a street. “Don’t go past here when you’re out. This leads into an older part of the city and the streets twist and turn, and you could get lost and end up in a less than desirable area.”