Chapter Eleven
Those three little words . . .
Marcello said good night to his last guest and waited until she got into her car. After closing the front door, he set out to find Rachel. He hadn’t seen her since he’d pointed her in the direction of the kitchen. He was starving too, but for more than just food. For her.
He loosened his bow tie as he searched the downstairs. He was just about to look upstairs when he caught a glimpse of her out on the patio. He smiled as he changed direction to join her.
She stood facing the ocean, her hands spread wide on the railing, looking beautiful in the elegant gold dress. Her heels made her legs look a mile long, and with her hair up in a pretty twist, her long, kissable neck was exposed for him to feast on. All afternoon, he’d looked forward to making love to her and planned to seduce her properly.
He slipped his hands around her waist and laid a kiss just under her ear. Soft music still played from the speakers above. “Do you realize that we have never danced?”
She nodded as she stared at the ocean. “And we still haven’t gone to the movies—although that was my fault because of the pepper spray—or to a play, or to the beach.” She turned and faced him. “We haven’t gotten ice-cream cones on a warm day, held hands while we walked on a pier, gone hiking, or to a baseball game. None of the things a normal couple would do while dating.”
Her tone was grim, and she wouldn’t look him in the eye. Something was very wrong. “But now we can do all those things, bella. We’ll just have to plan things in advance, take security along, and we will. I promise.”
Rachel’s eyes had grown misty before she dropped her gaze to her shoes. “Why didn’t you tell Lance or Stella about me until now? Or Ally and Judy? They’re all like family to you.”
“They are, yes.” He pulled her closer. “What’s wrong, Rachel? Did something happen at the party?”
She closed her eyes. “I just need for you to answer my question. Why did you keep me a secret?”
“Because so little in my life is private. The moment I saw you in Avery’s office, I wanted to know more about you. And after months of asking and you finally agreed to have dinner with me, I learned that my instincts were right. That you were like no one else, and I wanted you all to myself when we were together.”
She blinked her eyes open and frowned. “If I were so special, why didn’t you want to introduce me to the people you love?”
“Because Ally would have insisted on doing a full background check, and Judy would’ve asked me a million questions. Stella would want to capitalize on the publicity somehow, and Lance has always told me it isn’t good for my image to have a serious girlfriend.”
She winced. “It isn’t good for your career to have a serious girlfriend, is it? Much less a wife and kids. That’s why you decided we shouldn’t see each other anymore after I told you about the babies, wasn’t it? But then your conscience bothered you, so you came back to do the right thing?”
Where is all this coming from?
“No. The right thing has nothing to do with it.” He laid his hands on the sides of her face and tilted it up. “Rachel, I don’t care what Lance thinks, and I didn’t want Stella to make you a press release. If I’d told them about you, I would’ve never had the chance to really get to know you.”
She blinked back tears. “So after you got to know me, why did we still have to hide? Lance told me earlier that you never keep secrets from him. That if you really loved me, he and Stella would have known about me.”
“Merda! He and I are going to have a very serious conversation in the morning.” But now he needed to find the right words to convince Rachel of the truth. “Lance is upset that I didn’t tell him about you and the children until now. He said he felt betrayed.”
Rachel stepped back and crossed her arms. “Lance also said some ugly things about you having no choice but to be a bad father and that we’d ruin your career. I won’t do that, Marcello.”
A bad father? His father was a bad father, but he’d never be one. Rage reared its ugly head for the second time that day. Lance needed to mind his own damn business!
He drew a deep, calming breath before his anger got the better of him. “If it were up to Lance, I’d work every single day. And he doesn’t know what kind of father I’ll be or what having a wife and kids will do to my career. He’s guessing. But I don’t care what it’ll do. You and the kids make me happy, Rachel. That’s all that matters to me.”
“For now, maybe.” She turned her face toward the ocean again. “But if you can’t get parts, can’t take care of your mother, and all the rest, wouldn’t you end up resenting me and the kids for it?”
“Never, amore. You still don’t understand. When I met you, my heart, it, ah, how you say? Like a flower.” He spread his hands apart.
“Bloomed?”
“Sì! And you made my eyes open too. I felt worthy of love for the very first time in my life, Rachel. There’s no movie contract or endorsement deal that will ever replace that feeling.”
She shook her head. “And yet, you still left me after I told you I was pregnant.”
“Out of fear. Fear that maybe Lance was right, fear that my secrets would come out and embarrass you and the kids, fear that I could go to jail for a very long time and you would forget me. Or worse, that you’d put your life on hold and wait for me. Fear that I had my father’s temper and I’d hurt you or the kids—”
“Stop, Marcello. You’d never act like your father.”
He had that very morning, but he’d been able to contain it when he’d needed to. He’d finally proven to himself that he had control of his anger. “I now know I won’t allow myself to act like my father. But by leaving you, I learned how much I need you and my children in my life. I want to be happy again.”
She took a step forward. “So, you’re really willing to risk everything just to be with me and the kids?”
“Happily.”
“Even if it means—”
“I know exactly what it means. It’s my decision, and I didn’t come by it easy. That’s what took me so long to come back to you.” He gathered her up in his arms. “You made big changes in your life for me. Please let me do the same for you.”
She laid her head on his shoulder and hugged him, giving him hope that she finally understood. “I made changes in my life because I found out I was pregnant with the twins.”
“That’s not quite the way I recall it. I remember a morning in France, long before we found out you were pregnant. You snuggled next to me in bed and said you wished you could skip your meeting later and spend the whole day with me. That you should quit your job and start your own online company so we could be together always, no matter where my next shoot was. You said always, Rachel.”
“We’d just had mind-blowing sex.” She leaned back and grinned. “Those were my overstimulated hormones talking.”
He shook his head. “I think it was your heart talking. It was your way of telling me that you love me, and that you wanted to be with me, without risking using the one word you avoid. You figured out you loved me when we were in France, didn’t you?”
He’d felt the change in her that trip. She’d finally opened up to him and shared so many things she’d never shared with anyone before. And the love had been there ever since. Was he doing the right thing by making her admit it? Or was he pushing her too far?
Panic filled her as she stared into Marcello’s eyes. A joke about taking her to bed first to see if her hormones would speak again was on the tip of her tongue. But the look in his eyes, the obvious apprehension that she’d tell him he was wrong, changed her mind.
“It was on that trip to France that I realized there was so much more to life than work. Because of you. And that I had started counting the minutes until we’d be together again like I was in high school. It made me feel . . . ” She lifted her hands, searching for the right words.
“Esposto?”
“Yes. Exposed. I was supposed to be a strong, independent woman, not someone dependent on a man to make me happy. But you do make me happy. I tried not to think about it in those terms and just enjoyed being with you. Do you know when I absolutely knew for sure, though?”
He smiled and shook his head.
“Tonight. When Lance said I would ruin your career. My first reaction was to go back home, move on with my life, and figure out how to live with heartache again. I didn’t need that six-step plan anymore to know I’d endure a broken heart before I’d ever hurt you. I went upstairs and packed my things, because as much as I’ve looked forward to making love with you all day, my heart would’ve been breaking the whole time knowing it’d be the last.”
“It won’t be.” He scooped her legs out from under her and cradled her against his chest, heading for the living room. “Thank you for discussing this with me, rather than sneaking off into the night. But you still haven’t said it, Rachel.”
“Said what?” she teased, as she buried her face in the crook of his neck and inhaled his unique scent. Spice, heat, and pure testosterone. Mmmmm.
“That’s it.” He turned around and headed for the backyard again. “No more games. You know exactly what.”
Of course she did, but he was getting worked up, and it made her want him even more. “Did you know that English is the only language with only one word for that?”
“Say it in English, or you’re going in.” He stopped at the edge of the pool.
Marcello wouldn’t do it. Stella told her the shoes alone were worth three grand, and her dress was a designer original.
She moved her mouth next to his ear and whispered, “I will. Later. Let’s go skinny-dipping. We haven’t done that yet either.”
“I’ll be upstairs when you’re ready to confess your love for me properly.” Before she could respond, she was flying through the air toward the deep end.
“Marcell—” She didn’t have time to finish before she hit the frigid water. It stole her breath for a moment before her brain kicked back into action. Since they hadn’t been swimming together before, maybe she’d teach him a lesson for ruining a dress she was supposed to return.
She swam to the surface and sputtered, “I can’t—” and then she took a deep breath and sank under the surface again. She flailed around and started counting. She’d only gotten to three before a set of strong, tuxedo-clad arms grabbed her and pulled her to the surface again.
He sputtered, “Are you okay?”
“Fine, thanks.” She wrapped her legs around his waist and her arms around his neck while he treaded water. “Now that you’ve decided to join me, may I help you out of that tux, sir?” She started working on his top button. He looked so handsome in a tux, but even better naked.
His hand covered hers to stop her. “You’re going to have to beg for it now, Caldwell.” He pushed her head under water and then took off for the side.
Caldwell? She was trying not to laugh—and hold her breath at the same time—as she swam underwater to catch up with him. She reached him just as he was lifting his body out of the pool, so she grabbed a leg and held on.
He reached down and dragged her out of the water along with him. She landed with a thump on her butt while he headed for the pool house, leaving a trail of water behind. Maybe she’d pushed him too far.
“Marcello, wait.” She slipped out of her shoes and jogged after him. “I wanted to tell you when we got upstairs, in private. To make it special. But you ruined it by throwing me in the pool.”
“You deserved it.”
She probably had. “Nice words just roll off your tongue, but not mine.” He kept walking so she caught up and wrapped her hands around his waist to stop him. “I’ve never told a man I love him before. I wanted to do it right. It’s not something I take lightly. And it’s not easy for me to say.”
He stood perfectly still. “If it were easy to say, it wouldn’t mean as much.”
True.
“Could you at least turn around so I can say it to your face?”
He slowly turned and then crossed his arms. Water from his thick hair ran in little rivulets down his chiseled cheekbones. “It’s freezing. Make it quick.”
“Had you been patient, we’d have been warm and dry—”
His right brow arched, stopping her mid-rant. She needed to man up and do it.
“Okay. Fine. I’ll do it here, then.” She threw her shoulders back and cleared her throat. “Marcello, I love you. And I’m sorry I’ve made you wait so long to hear it. I should’ve told you in France.” She blew out a long breath. That hadn’t been as hard as she’d thought it’d be.
He lifted both hands, palms up. “That was the thing you were going to say to make it special?”
“Well . . . Yes.” She hitched her chin. “And I apologized too.”
He shook his head and started walking again. “You’re going to have to come up with something better than that if you want me to sleep with you tonight.” He held the door open to the pool house and impatiently waved her past him.
Once she was inside, she spotted towels folded on a shelf, so she grabbed two. “I just told you I loved you. What more do you need?”
“I need to peel you out of your dress for starters.” He turned the dead bolt on the door and then made his way toward her with only the moonlight shining through the windows to guide him. “And then I want to run my hands all over your incredible, naked body.” He tugged on her zipper.
“Wait.” She blinked at him. Confused. “So, are you mad at me or not?”
“No.” He grinned as her wet dress hit the floor. Then the towels. “We had an audience as of a few minutes ago. Ally, Lance, Stella, and Judy were all watching from the balcony. I wanted them to hear you tell me you love me. So they’d all stop.”
“Oh. But now they all know what we’re going to do in here. Maybe we should—”
He kissed her. Hard. And then his hands were everywhere at once all over her body, removing her bra and panties, cupping her aching bare breasts, then sliding down her torso to give her butt a squeeze. Between his sexy lips and his rough hands, she was fast on her way to O town.
When they came up for air, he whispered, “I need you, Rachel. Here. Now.” He ran his fingers through her hair, sending what pins remained flying. Then he picked her up, carried her a few steps, and dropped her again. This time, she landed on a nice soft bed.
She kinda loved the rare occasions when he’d get all caveman on her. And she’d have liked to have been the one to rip him out of his tux. Unfortunately, he was in a hurry too and had made fast work of it. It was enough just to watch the show. God, he was beautiful.
In a blink of an eye, Marcello was on top of her. “Now, where to start? The top or the bottom?”
It had obviously been a rhetorical question, because his lips joined hers again, and he got to work. She did too and splayed her hands over the hard planes of his back. God, she missed touching him. Being with him.
His weight on top of her felt just right. And his smooth skin over hard muscles twitched under her fingertips as she explored the dips and ridges. She loved that.
His broad shoulders were always a temptation, but instead, her hands wandered lower to his fine ass. No one had a butt like Marcello. When she squeezed, he groaned into her mouth.
He broke their kiss and slid to the bottom of the bed, leaving her skin chilled, already missing his touch. With both hands, he grasped the front of her ankles, slowly sliding upward. “I love your legs, bella. So long and smooth.” He slowly massaged her calves, and then kissed the sensitive backs of her knees, making her back arch. She was so overdue for some relief, it wouldn’t take much. Just staring into his beautiful brown eyes earlier was doing it for her.
When he gently kneaded her thighs, she quivered in anticipation. Just a little bit higher, and he’d hit the bull’s-eye. But then his palms flattened out, and he bypassed the part that ached for his touch. He ran his large hands along the sides of her hips, slowly making his way to her waist.
“Marcello?”
“Hmmmm?” he whispered before his lips joined his exploring hands, giving her a little hope.
“This is payback. Isn’t it?” He was driving her insane, but in the very best way. He had to be as ready as she was to get to the part where they both lost their minds.
“Sì. You take your time telling me you love me, so I take my time loving you.” His lips had moved upward and were doing very nice things to her breasts. When his tongue joined in, she nearly lost it.
Now her toes were curling, she was so close to the edge. “Normally, I’d really enjoy this. But I’d have been happy to do it standing against a wall, it’s been so long.” She hadn’t meant to sound like Marilyn Monroe, all out of breath, but he was stealing hers with his torturously slow touch.
“I know.” He smiled as his mouth slowly trailed south again. His warm breath between her thighs made her belly clench with need. When his fingers joined the exploration party, her hips flew off the bed. Finally, they were getting somewhere.
She closed her eyes as the erotic heat welled up in her that no form of electronic love had ever given her. His gentle torment had put her just on the edge, just another few seconds and—
He stopped. Leaving her panting for more.
She was pretty sure a person could die from that kind of torture. “Okay. You win. Please?”
“Non so cosa vuol dire.” Marcello slowly crawled up her body.
She caught his handsome face between her hands. “You know exactly what I mean.” But she loved it when he spoke Italian when he made love to her. So, she kissed him, slowly stroking her tongue against his, trying to convey how much she wanted him without words.
He must’ve gotten the message because that low groan was one he only made when he was all the way in the zone. And she wanted to hear it again. She loved to please Marcello as much as she loved to be pleased.
“My turn.” She pushed his shoulder, and he quickly flipped to his back.
“I’m all yours, bella.” He crossed his hands under his head, showing off muscled arms that made her knees weak. He had to keep his body in perfect shape for the movies. His fans could all look, but only she was allowed to touch. She wasn’t going to miss a spot.
She grinned as she straddled his legs. “What to do with this much perfection?” She leaned down and kissed him. “You make it hard to know where to start.” She gripped his strong shoulders, then splayed her hands across his hard pecs, slowly gliding lower to wander over his muscled abs. His six-pack was a work of art she always loved to trace with her fingertips. As she moved even lower, he sucked in a deep breath.
She took him in her hand and ran her thumb over the tip, just the way he liked it.
Marcello closed his eyes and groaned out her name. As she stroked him, long and slow, his eyes fluttered open, and the obvious desire in them for her melted her heart. Besides being a major turn-on.
She couldn’t wait any longer.
Thankfully, he hadn’t been with anyone else since her, and she was on birth control, so she moved on top of him and let him fill a need she’d had for him for entirely too long. Their hips fell into a familiar pattern that soothed as much as it stoked the embers burning inside.
Marcello reached up and cupped the back of her head, bringing her mouth down to his, positioning it just where he wanted it. Slowly kissing her, he kicked the connection between them to the next level. His other arm snaked around her shoulders, and he pulled her close before he rolled on top of her, still holding her like he’d never let her go.
She let him take over and gave in to the pleasure burning in her core, building by the second, growing ever closer to giving her sweet release.
He whispered in her ear, “Amore mio più profondo del mare.”
His love for her was deeper than the sea? Tears formed in her eyes as he kissed her neck. Then his hips moved faster, in time with her racing heart. She wished she had better words to tell him she loved him more. Instead, she hugged him tighter, never wanting to let him go. “Me too.”
He stared into her eyes again. “How much do you love me, Rachel?”
More than anything, so she said, “Più di tutto.”
When his expression softened, it pushed away any remaining barriers she’d erected around her heart. She closed her eyes and let all the pleasure Marcello gave her flow through her, wash over her, pulling her under his spell. Wanting as much as he could give her, she wrapped her legs around his back to take him in even deeper.
Marcello obviously took that as an invitation to race her to the finish line, because he made love to her with a whole new kind of purpose, but she doubted he’d beat her.
Desire boiled deep inside, slowly electrifying her whole body as anticipation built for what only Marcello had ever given her. And then it hit, sharp as a knife, stealing her breath, and finally, after so very long, sating a need that had burned in her for what had felt like an eternity.
Marcello was right behind and called out her name. Then his whole body turned to a pile of putty on top of her.
He scooted down and tucked his face into the crook of her neck, laying a soft kiss just in front of her ear. She smiled, reveling in a pool of satisfaction, as her fingers drew little circles on the back of his neck.
After a few minutes, when their blood pressure wasn’t at near stroke levels anymore, he whispered, “I can’t move. And I don’t want to.”
“I don’t want you to either.” She hugged him. “Except now I’m really hungry. I only got two bites of my sandwich earlier. Got a frozen pizza in that fancy kitchen of yours?”
His chest rumbled on top of hers. “Isn’t it usually a guy who gets in trouble for thinking of food after sharing such a special moment?”
“I can think about you and pizza too. I pretty much always think about you. I can’t seem to help it.” She ran her hands up and down his muscled back. “I care about you enough that I want to be sure you eat. And not only because we both smell like chlorine, so you’re going to need your strength to make love to me in the shower later.”
He propped his head up on his fist. “What do you think you said to me in Italian earlier?”
“That I love you more than anything. Well, the love part was implied because you asked me how much I loved you. Why?”
He flipped their positions so she lay on top of him. “Just making sure you didn’t think you were ordering a burger for afterward.” He lightly spanked her butt.
She laughed. “I knew exactly what I was saying. And I meant it.” Strangely, it was much easier to say she loved him the second time.
“Good. Then I’ll wait right here and gather my strength to eat whatever you bring me. Because you love me so much and worry about my nutritional needs.”
“Fine. But I’m not putting that wet dress back on. Prancing through the house in a towel won’t cut it either.” She rolled off him, hoping to find a blanket.
“Robes.” He pointed to a closet. “Grab one for me too, please?”
“Sure.” She slipped into a thick terrycloth robe and then handed him one. “I’ll even try to find something healthy so you can keep your body as amazing as it is.”
“I’d rather have pizza if you can find some.”
Good. She would too. “Be right back, then.” She opened the door but stopped. Glancing over her shoulder, she said, “What we just shared was incredibly special to me Marcello. I’m sorry if I made you feel like it wasn’t.”
“I know, bella.” His smile was so sweet, it brought tears to her eyes. “When your heart wants to say things, your smart mouth likes to interrupt.”
Ouch.
But he was right.
She needed to work on that.