“Luca! Put me down.”
“Nah, I didn’t hear an apology.”
“Apology? What am I apologising for?” I asked, clinging onto his arms.
Luca was strong and fit, but I wasn’t a little girl. I wasn’t at all convinced he wouldn’t drop me on my head right now.
“Playing with myself?”
“I don’t need to know about your nighttime activities,” I replied with a squeal as his hand landed on my arse with a loud slap before he slid me down his body. His very hard body.
“Who said it was just night time?” Luca growled before cupping my face in his hands and kissing the sass right out of me.
By the time I came up for air, I couldn’t remember what we were even talking about or even what day it was. Stepping back, I needed to put some space between us before I exploded or did something stupid like throw myself at him. Reaching up with shaky fingers, I touched my lips not surprised to find them swollen.
“Wow.” The word escaped from my lips without warning.
“That’s an understatement,” Luca countered, his voice thick and raspy.
After tugging the tie out of my hair, I pulled it back up into a messy bun and piled it on my head. I didn’t need to adjust my hair, I just needed to find something to do to keep my fingers busy to stop me from grabbing hold of Luca and pushing him down on the grass.
“So, are you going to teach me anything or just show off?”
For the next half an hour, Luca attempted to teach me how to play soccer or at least some of the basic skills. It was yet another chance for him to show off and for me to look silly, but we laughed until our sides hurt. When I slipped on the wet grass, landing with a thud on my arse, I called a time out.
“I need food,” I whined.
“Geez you sound like all the other women in my life. And I must say, hangry is definitely not a good look on you, Elise.”
“Oh, I know that. Just ask Jax. I’m a nightmare, apparently, when I don’t get fed.”
“Well then, let’s go eat.”
We’d made it to the edge of the field and just heading down the race before I froze and asked. “Wait! What other women in your life?”
“You only just thought of that, huh?”
“Shut up! What women?” I sounded like an insecure, spoilt brat, but I wasn’t taking another step if I was only one of many. I’d been there. Done that. Got the commemorative t-shirt. I wasn’t about to go back for seconds. Once was more than enough to realise that I deserved to be the centre of someone’s world and if I couldn’t be, well then, they weren’t the person for me.
“You’re cute when you’re jealous, you know that, right?”
“Says the guy who was freaking out about Jax.”
“Fair call.”
“Luca!”
“Elise, you’ve already met most of the women in my life. My mother, my three annoying sisters, and Princess Phoebe.”
“Oh.”
“Yeah, oh.”
“Don’t make fun of me!” I pouted, feeling like an idiot. Of course there were women in his life. He was surrounded by them. And of course he loved them fiercely. It was who he was. Luca was all about family. Something that just added to his appeal.
“I’m not making fun of you.”
“You are!”
