Chapter Fourteen

"I hope you are hungry," Eduardo said as he drove past Ciao!

"Always." I really was. Sitting in the cold had increased my appetite. "There's a parking spot there…oh, you missed it."

"No, my precious car needs a more special place." He took a left. "The restaurant has a few spaces at the back, Benita lets me use it."

"I get the feeling she really spoils you."

"I am a good customer."

"Why? Because you bring so many dates here?"

He pressed his hand to his chest. "How can you think that? I save this place for special ladies, like you."

"Ah, I see."

He pulled to a halt beside a tall-bricked wall that was shaded by a tree. "Wait there."

He got out, and like before, he nipped around the back of the car to open my door for me. " Mademoiselle ." He rolled his hand and half bowed.

I giggled and got out into the heat of midday. I dropped my shades and straightened my t-shirt.

After he'd shut the car door and locked it, he offered me the crook of his elbow, and we walked back toward the front of the restaurant. "The truffle arancini are wonderful, and the seafood risotto to die for."

I pressed my hand to my rumbling stomach. "I could go for arancini as a starter."

"Then you shall have it. Last week I had a salmon carbonara main course, and it was divine." He licked his lips. "Ah, but Benita's chunky beef bolognaise is famous. A sun-dried tomato and olive focaccia to go with it…delicious."

"Quite honestly, I could eat it all."

He laughed. "Then let's get you sat down."

Within a few moments, a smartly dressed waiter had seated us at the back of the small restaurant that was rammed with tables and chairs, most of them occupied. It was twee, not quite someone's living room but not far off. There were photographs around—plenty of Viper players—mismatched vases of fresh flowers, and a string of Italian flags. Candles were lit despite it being midday, and the air was thick with herby scents, garlic, and tomato.

"Eduardo, Stavros said you were here." A short woman with a gray bun appeared beside the table. She wore bright-pink lipstick and an apron that read Italians Do It Better .

"Benita." Eduardo stood again and kissed her on both cheeks. "How are you?"

"Oh, it is a busy day." She wiped the back of her hand over her brow. "And the kitchen is hot."

"Can I help?" Eduardo asked, not sitting down again. "Wash pots or—"

She laughed and batted his shoulder. "Do not be silly. You are here to eat, that is help enough, and you have brought a beautiful lady." She turned to me and downturned her mouth. "But you do not eat enough."

Anyone else would have got the sharp edge of my tongue for a comment like that, but the twinkle in her eyes and her kindly face told me there was no malice behind it.

"I have not eaten enough today, that is true," I said. "So I am very much looking forward to my lunch. Eduardo has been making recommendations."

"Ah, he has tried everything on the menu and all the specials, too." She laughed. "I can take credit for him being big and strong." She squeezed the hard ball of his shoulder. "He is fueled with my cooking."

"And what are the specials?" Eduardo asked.

"They are there, on the board." She glanced at the kitchen. "I must go…I have sauce…I will be back…"

She disappeared.

Eduardo grinned at me. "Sorry, she says what she thinks."

"She's adorable. I like this place already." I glanced at the chalkboard that was covered in sumptuous-sounding dishes.

"Will you have a glass of wine?" he asked.

"Yes, that would be nice."

He called a waiter and ordered us each a Pinot Grigio. When the waiter brought the two chilled glasses, we placed our orders. Arancini to start, bolognese for Eduardo, and chicken scarpariello for me.

"So," Eduardo said, taking a sip of his wine. "Tell me about your parents. I've told you about mine."

My throat tightened, and I, too, took a drink, hoping to relieve the feeling that always came when I was asked this question.

His eyebrows drew together. "I am sorry. I don't mean to pry."

"No, no, it's fine."

"I just want to get to know you better." He rested his hand over mine.

"You didn't Google me."

"No." He shook his head. "And I won't."

I smiled, just a little. "There's no scandal, but…but I lost my parents when I was seventeen. A car crash on the M1. They were killed instantly, which I take as a comfort. I hate the thought of them suffering."

"Oh, ma choue , I never would have asked if I had known."

"It's okay, it happened, I guess it's part of me now."

"But only seventeen, when you still need your mama and papa so much."

I tore a little bread. "It was the worst thing that has ever happened to me, and is still happening to me; they're not here." I paused and studied his kind eyes. "But perhaps that's why I'm handling my breakup with Steven and Cheryl's deceit so well. That's not the worst thing I've experienced, the worst thing happened, and I survived."

"But it must have been so hard."

"Yes, impossibly hard at times, but my Aunt Mary stepped in and has always been a soft place for me to land. She instantly created room in her house and her life for me. I love her dearly, she's a rock."

"And you have spoken to her, right? Since you arrived in USA?"

"Yes, I'm in contact with her most days and I spoke to her last night, before I went to bed. It was her afternoon."

He nodded. "It is good that you have her."

"And I have Trevor."

"Who is Trevor?" A slight line appeared between his eyebrows.

"He is my agent, has been since I was fifteen, so fourteen years now. I adore him. He's very protective, not just of my jobs but of me. Did you see the bruise on Steven's chin?"

He nodded.

"That was Trevor, he swung a punch right there on the aisle."

Eduardo huffed. "I can see how he felt the need to do that."

Our arancini was set down. The truffle scent rising up was rich and fragrant.

"This is amazing," I said, picking up my knife and fork. I took a bite, and it practically melted in my mouth. "Mmm."

Eduardo was studying me. "Good?"

"Very."

He dug into his own food.

"I have to give Trevor a lot of the credit for my career," I went on, "it's been his knowledge of the industry and experience that's steered me to the right jobs and avoided the bad. And as I was a minor when I first started working, traveling abroad for jobs, he had guardianship of me. That meant he was responsible for my wellbeing. My parents had entrusted him with that, and they were always a good judge of character."

"Sounds like more than a job, what Trevor was doing."

"Maybe that's how he saw it, I'm not sure, but he's like an older brother now, and I'm lean on family so happy to take him, and his husband, William, he's great, too."

"I like that. So what's he doing now? You're supposed to be on honeymoon so he's also taking time off."

"I'm not his only model, just his big buck one." I laughed and finished up my starter. "Mae has offered me an interesting opportunity that I'll have to swing by him."

"Really?"

"Yes." I set about telling him about the upcoming launch of her clothing line. Our main courses arrived and were just as delicious as the starter.

Benita came out and fussed over us, making sure we had everything we needed, then bustled back into the kitchen.

Eduardo told me about a trip he'd taken to Cape Town in South Africa, and his tales of whale watching, hiking Table Mountain, and seeing the penguins on Boulders Beach had me longing to take another trip to one of my favorite cities in the world.

Before I knew it, nearly two hours had passed. I was pleasantly full, and the restaurant was clearing out, the lunchtime rush having slipped by.

"Shall we go?" Eduardo asked after he'd paid the bill.

"Yes, I might need to lie down after all that food." I stood and set aside my napkin. "And thank you, it really was delicious."

"Goodbye, arrivederci , take care and come back soon," Benita called from the kitchen door.

" Arrivederci ." Eduardo blew her a kiss.

"You're such a charmer, you know that?"

"Have I charmed you?" He opened the door, and we stepped out onto the sidewalk.

"Were you trying to?"

"Hell yeah." He caught my wrist and tugged me around the shadowed corner, out of the view of the traffic. "I was trying my damn hardest."

He came up close, real close, his big body backing me up until my shoulders hit the gritty brick wall of the restaurant.

I set my hands on his hard pectorals and looked into his handsome face.

Desire seared in his eyes, and he lowered his face to mine.

"What are you…?" I managed.

"I'm going to finish a perfect date with a kiss," he said in a low, seductive voice. "If you'll allow me."

"It was a date?" I ran my hands upward to the sloping muscles between his shoulders and neck.

" Oui ," he murmured. "It was a date."

I felt pliant and satisfied, and the wine still swirled in my head, so when his lips found mine, I sighed and pulled him closer.

He moaned softly, and his tongue found mine.

I closed my eyes and clung to him, lost in his taste and smell and the sensation of being hemmed in by so much muscle and power. Eduardo made me feel safe and protected as well as desired.

And, oh yes, he desired me, the long wedge of flesh now pressing up against my pubic bone told me that.

"Fuck," he murmured, sliding one hand to the small of my back and drawing me closer onto him. "I am so turned on by you."

"I can tell." I set my hand on his cheek. "So what are you going to do about it?"

He ground his hips, a ridiculously sexy action that had my pussy quivering.

"I'd like to make love to you, right here, have your legs wrapped around my waist, have your hands in my hair, your cries of ecstasy ringing in my ears, but…"

I raised one eyebrow.

"But we are both people who are fodder for the gossip columns, so that can't happen."

He closed his eyes and breathed deep, his chest rubbing up against mine.

I glanced to the right, at the road and the passing traffic. A few pedestrians were wandering around. One was definitely peering our way—a man with a white cap and shades.

Eduardo was right, this was way too risky.

"Someone will recognize us, if they haven't already." I pushed at him.

Immediately, he stepped back, away from me, but he did take my hand. "Come."

I followed him, and we made our way behind the restaurant and to his car. It was in full shade now and cloaked in darkness. There was no one else around. I glanced over my shoulder. We had not been followed.

Good.

The moment he got into the driver's seat he reached for me again. "You drive me crazy with longing," he said. "You are the most intriguing, strongest, sexiest woman I have ever met. I want to get closer to you, so close."

As we kissed across the seats, I felt cocooned in our own dark world.

He tilted his head to deepen the kiss. I brushed my knuckles over his groin, and he groaned with longing.

"You know I could have made you forget, the way Dylan did."

"I know." I cupped his cock. "But I was in the moment…a bit like now."

"Fuck, you're so sweet. J'ai tellement envie de toi ."

I didn't know what he'd said, but his accent was like music, and I pressed closer.

His hands roamed my body, up my arms, across my chest, stroking my breasts each in turn.

My nipples hardened, and the sensation of his touch spread down to between my legs. I squirmed on the seat, my skin alive, longing setting in.

"Let me…" he murmured onto my lips as his fingers trailed downward. "Let me touch you."

I didn't stop him when he undid my jeans and slid his hand into the material of my knickers. My body was craving stimulation, craving his caress.

And he gave it, not a full penetration of his fingers, the denim didn't allow for that, but he found my clit and rubbed over it.

"Oh…Eduardo."

"I will make you forget," he murmured. "Just for a few moments only you and I and pleasure exist."

"Pleasure," I repeated, twitching my hips in time with his movements. "Oh God, can anyone…"

"No." He lifted his head. "There is no one here."

"Fuck…" I dropped my head back, surrendering to his clever fingertips. My pussy was dampening and my heart rate picking up. My climax was a coiled spring waiting to unleash.

"That is it," he said. "Just feel." His kisses spread down my neck, and he leaned right over me, his body heat blasting onto my skin and his scent filling my nostrils.

I was being reckless, I knew that, but lust was a crazy drug and I was high on it.

"Fuck, yes, just there," I managed. I gripped his corded forearm which tensed and flexed as he worked me. "And don't…please don't…"

"I won't stop, not until you find your release, ma choue." He lifted his head and stared me in the eyes. "I am here, with you, all the way."

My vision blurred; the climb to my orgasm had taken control of my senses. I was breathing fast, twitching in time with the fast circles he was dragging over my clit.

"Oh. Oh. Oh." I was so close, so near to ecstasy. A wicked, illicit explosion of bliss was about to unravel me. I opened my mouth, but no sound came out.

Excitement flashed in his eyes, and he bit on his bottom lip and watched me come.

I jerked hard against him. The pressure released in a series of powerful spasms that burst from my clit and spread waves of melting pleasure around my body.

" Oui, oui ," he said. "Like that."

"Fuck, yes. Keep…going." My orgasm extended, spiraling me into breathless convulsions. I clung to him, my hips rising from the car seat.

Eduardo stayed with me, pushing me through it. The satisfaction was wonderful. Maybe it was the risk, maybe the fact he was so damn talented with his fingers. Either way, it was incredible.

"Yes, yes, that's it…thank you." I squirmed, needing the stimulation to stop. My clit was so swollen and tender now.

"It is I who thanks you. To touch you is incredible. You are so responsive." He stroked my chin, his fingers damp. "I hope I can do it again sometime."

I kissed him, a deep, urgent kiss that I hoped told him just how much I'd enjoyed myself.