She threw her hands around my neck.“It’s exactly what I need.What we need.Especially since we never got to go on our honeymoon.I’ve got big plans.”
I stood anchored “Everything I do is for you, my love.”
40
MIA
I dared to hope that perhaps, in Italy, we might uncover truths about ourselves and each other that had long been shrouded in the darkness of duty.
As I clutched the itinerary close, Italy beckoned, its siren call weaving through my senses, stirring the depths of my soul.It promised not just escape, but discovery—a chance to unravel the enigma that was Enrico and, perhaps, to finally confront the truth of what laid between us.
“Are you coming, Mia?”Catrina’s voice pulled me back from the precipice of the past.
“Right behind you.”
We rushed through the hallways of the estate.
“Can you believe it?Venice!”Catrina gushed.“The art, the history...the food!”
I smiled, her own packing more deliberate, each item chosen with care—a scarf that might catch the wind atop a Venetian gondola, sunglasses to shield my eyes from the piercing Amalfi sun, a dress that whispered secrets in silk and lace.
“Enrico will show us everything.He knows Italy like the back of his hand.”
“Maybe he'll show you more than just Italy,” Catrina teased with a knowing wink.
A flush crept up my neck.I turned away, pretending to consider which shoes to pack next.With Enrico, every moment held a gravity, an intensity that pulled me in, deeper and deeper into an abyss I no longer wished to escape.Italy wasn't just a country; it was a canvas waiting for our story to be painted upon it.As I zipped the suitcase closed, the weight of the unknown pressed upon me.But it was a weight I was ready to bear, for the promise of uncovering the depths of a man who was both my protector and enigma.My husband.
The doubts that once clouded my mind, painting me as nothing more than a trophy on his arm, had dissolved.Each piece he'd given me, each guarded glance that lingered too long, they weren't just transactions.They were confessions, silent admissions that perhaps I held territory over the one expanse Enrico had never surrendered—his heart.
A shiver danced down my spine as I turned to the mirror, my gaze locking on the reflection of a woman transformed.Where fear once resided, now a bold curiosity flickered.I smoothed my hands down the curves of my dress, the fabric hugging me.I envisioned him, not as the untouchable but as the man whose eyes betrayed a hunger only I satiated.
The very thought of him ignited something primal within me, a flame fanned by the brush of his lips against my neck in the shadows, the possessive grip of his hands steering me through groups of people who knew better than to look too closely.
Italy was waiting, and so was Enrico.
I made my way through the corridor toward Enrico's office.I paused at the door.My fingers curled around the cool metal handle, and with a gentle push, I stepped inside.The door clicked shut behind me, sealing us in.
“Si, I understand.”
I gawked at him, the sharp cut of his jaw, the way his hand absentmindedly smoothed over the papers before him.There was an elegance to his authority, a seductive grace in his command that had drawn me to him despite the shadows that trailed in his wake.A mischievous smile teased my lips as I leaned back against the door, content to observe him for a moment longer.Enrico, shrouded in his world of unyielding control, was about to discover that some things—some people—could still surprise him.I relished the thought, the power of being the one to unravel him, if only for a stolen sliver of time.
“Everything will be handled,” Enrico assured the voice on the other end, his tone brokering no argument.It was the voice of a man used to being obeyed, a man who commanded legions with a single word.
But tonight, I intended to command him.
His eyes lifted, sensing my presence, and for a fraction of a second, the mask faltered, revealing a flicker of raw hunger before it was quickly reassembled.He tried to speak again, but his gaze lingered on me, betraying him, telling me everything I needed to know.
My gaze remained fixed on him as I reached the edge of his imposing mahogany desk.I descended before him, my fingers working at the buckle of his belt.His breath hitched, the only audible sign of his surprise as the warm press of my palms against his skin.His eyes, previously sharp and commanding, now shimmered with an inferno of desire that threatened to consume his composure.Struggling to maintain the facade of the untouchable, his voice wavered, a subtle crack in his armor as he continued the call.
He wouldn’t dare ask me to stop, especially since he couldn’t take his eyes off of me.He grew harder with every flick of my tongue.Enrico knew exactly what I wanted in the bedroom, but so did I.And right now, my husband deserved this.Whether working or not.
As my movements grew bolder beneath the desk, his chest rose and fell with a heaviness that synced with the pulsing rhythm of my own breaths.His hand wrapped itself in my hair, and Enrico was trying so hard not to breathe heavily.
The muffled murmur of the caller's voice faded.His attempt to respond was futile, words lost to the intoxicating pull of my mouth.I never knew how hot hiding under this desk, taking him like this, could be.
Enrico's breath hitched, his body tensed.The call ended, the phone abandoned like a ship set adrift, but his attention was fiercely anchored to me.
“What do you think you are doing to me?”He pulled me up by my hair, until I was standing.“Not that I’m complaining, but this trip is all about you, my love.So, let me show you just how much you mean to me.”
