I rolled the window down, and for the first time in hours, felt the cool rush of sea air against my skin, and the smell of autumn. The children’s laughter seemed to drift in, adding to the scenery. I noticed a few girls, but mostly boys.
One little raven-haired girl chased a fair-haired boy with a rose, brandishing it like a weapon. The other kids were giggling at the scene.
“Cousins?” I asked.
“Probably so.”
Brando slowed the car to a crawl, following Rocco and Rosaria ahead of us, and then came to a stop when we parked before the villa. Rocco and Rosaria stepped out first, both stretching in the glow of the Sicilian sun. Then Romeo, Guido, and Mastino appeared from the rear. Mastino sniffed around, occasionally glancing at the estate with such a regal profile that he seemed bred to live there.
I started when Brando opened my door. I hadn’t even realized that he had gotten out, but settled back and stared when he stretched and his black thermal inched up, revealing a perfect set of abdominal muscles that seemed to ripple when he moved.
“Scarlett.”
“Hah?” I licked my lips, taking one more look at the true raven hair that made a dusting trail from his lower stomach all the way down to his—
He knelt down so that we were eye to eye. I blinked at him a few times. All views were equal in beauty, so I didn’t feel like I had lost anything when one gorgeous angle replaced another.
“Do you not want to touch me, my wife,” he whispered in Italian, lifting one dark eyebrow. Again, it wasn’t really a question. Usually when he took that tone, it was more of a trap.
“What? No. Why—”
“Are you afraid to get out?”
“No again.”
“I had my hand out to you and you didn’t take it.” His eyes lowered. “Tell me.”
“I—” I looked down at my jeans and picked at a piece of fabric on the knee. “Ti voglio.”
His hand came underneath my chin, forcing me to look at him. “You want me.”
“Yes.”
“Tell me how.”
I grinned, but my cheeks burned against the cool air. Leaning forward, I put my lips to his ear, and then whispered in Italian how I wanted him and how much. A tremble ran through him at my words.
In the next instant, my back was pressed against the console—rather uncomfortable, but at that moment, I wasn’t going to complain. One of Brando’s hands was set against the dash, the other behind my head, hands in my hair, and his mouth was on mine, fervent and demanding. The cologne and the shampoo he had used the day before drifted in the air, swept up by a passing breeze that floated through the interior. It made me feel high and wanting, and I clawed at his shirt to remove it.
We were both frantic, close to undressing in the car. My long-sleeved shirt had a scoop neck, and my bra and shirt were pushed under one breast, to give his mouth access. His breath was warm against my skin, the weather the exact opposite—the contrast made me tremble.
I froze when I heard the giggles.
“Don’t worry,” Brando said, quickly fixing my shirt. He straightened the cross around my neck so it wasn’t pooling in the dip in my neck where my throat was, right where the clavicle winged out. “I can see them from here, and they’re not close, but they’re gaining. They probably think we’re kissing.”
I ran a hand through his hair, fixing the two strands that had come loose and fell in his face. He slowly lifted from the car, giving me a hand after he righted himself.
Neither of us had realized that Mastino caused a crowd to form around him. Wherever he went, so did the gang of excited kids. Leading them, the horse of a dog was coming for us. Romeo and Guido strode up behind, smug, knowing looks on their faces.
My flushed cheeks were like a neon sign blinking—guilty!
“Yeah,” Brando whispered, grinning to himself, answering the unspoken thoughts in my mind. “You did that the first time we almost got caught at Maggie Beautiful’s house.”
“Blush?”
He nodded, his smile growing wider. “Caught fire is more like it. That was the first night you stuck your cold hand down my pants.”
My smile grew, along with my blush. “I did, and I regretnothing!”
