LOVE on The Horizon (Breaking The Rules #1) (14 page)

“Has he lost his mind?” I asked with apprehension lacing every word.

I was a bit overwhelmed by the turn in conversation. Ricky tended to have huge aspirations and dreams, but the look on Marco’s face showed just as much optimism as our friend’s voice had over the phone line.

“Yes and no.” Marco shifted on the silk settee until he faced me. “It’s crazy, but all of this may have happened for a reason. Maybe, this is the kick in the ass we need to finally stop talking about it. Yes, it’s an ambitious idea, but this may be the universe’s way of saying, ‘Go for it.’”

The problem was this was their dream, and I wasn’t kidding when I said I had absolutely nothing to contribute. Marco lifted my chin with his fingers and stared into my eyes.

“You’re worried. Talk to me.”

“This is
your
dream.”

He shook his head, “
You’re
my dream.”

The way he was looking at me made my heart skip a beat. How could I be pragmatic when he looked at me that way? I couldn’t have this perfect man take on all my financial issues. I needed to be honest with him and let him know exactly how much debt I had. But how was I supposed to start that conversation? I was there on Ricky’s dime, with enough money in my possession to probably get me a few nights’ stay at this luxury hotel. Actually, as I glanced at the opulence that surrounded us, I deduced I probably couldn’t even afford one night.

I attempted a genuine smile, but the way I gulped down a very audible swallow tipped him off. He continued to hold my chin in his grasp while searching my eyes. Obviously, I wasn’t fooling him. I’d just gotten back to him, and already my concerns were putting a damper on our time together.

“
Bella
?” he prompted with a raised brow.

“I have nothing to contribute, Marco.”

“Contribute?”

“Money, moolah,
dinero,
as you Italians say.”

He laughed and quipped, “That’s Spanish, my love.”

With a sigh, I rolled my eyes. “You know what I mean.”

“And that’s what’s worrying you?”

“Well, yeah.” I stood and took a few steps toward the French doors that led to a palatial marble balcony. Crap, how much was this suite costing him? Fueled by how different our financial realities were, I turned to face him and shrugged. “Look at this place. I probably can’t even afford one night’s stay here. I have a huge student loan and enough in my bank account to buy a used car.”

“I’ll pay it off for you.”

“Have you lost your mind?”

“No.” He closed the distance between us and took me in his arms. “It’s just money. It means nothing to me. All that matters is that we’re together.” When I looked away, he moved his hand to gently palm my cheek. “
Bella
, let me take care of you.”

“But…”

Shaking his head, he leaned forward to kiss my lips gently. “No buts. We went through too much to worry about ‘buts.’” By placing his hands on my face and forcing me to stare back at him, he made it impossible for me to hide. He placed another sweet kiss on my lips before pulling away to add, “It’s you and me, okay?”

“Okay.”

With a warm smile, he circled my waist with his arms while his lips found my lobe. Suddenly, I forgot what my worries were.

“Are you hungry,
bella
?” he asked directly into my ear. I shook my head, releasing a pathetic moan because of what his lips were now doing to my neck. “Thirsty?” he asked next before moving to my shoulder. Using his chin, he pushed away the fabric of my T-shirt as his lips continued on their journey toward the hollow of my neck.

“No.”

“Tired?” he murmured against my skin.

“Nope.”

Straightening, he looked down at me with his devastatingly handsome smile in place. His deep chocolate eyes bore a heated gaze that traveled right through me and settled dead center in my core.

Without a word, he carried me to the bed. “It’s time to properly welcome you to
Italia
.”

“Is that so, Mr. Puglia? Tell me how that welcome would go?”

“I’d rather show you.”

My heart skipped a beat at what was coming. It’d been a while since we were last together, and every fiber of my being needed him. But, he didn’t move. He just continued to stare at me with his penetrating gaze.

“What’s wrong?” I asked, wondering what thoughts suddenly had him elsewhere.

“Nothing. You are so beautiful.” Each breathy syllable he uttered was laced with raw emotion as he skimmed his palm down my cheek before running it to the back of my neck. His touch was featherlight, almost like he was afraid I’d break. “I want to enjoy you, take my time, make up for lost time,” he further explained. “I want…”

“You want what?”

“I want everything with you.”

When I released a tiny sigh, his eyes focused on my lips. “I love you,
bella
,” he said before closing the distance between us. His lips pressed firmly against mine, which was a contradiction to the gentle touch of his hands as they moved over my shoulders, down my arms, until he linked our fingers together. For several very long minutes, all he did was continue kissing me as he held my hands in his.

Americans had lost the art of kissing, touching, truly making love to someone. The romance often was replaced with frantic groping and the insatiable need to get to the end result. Not until I met Marco had I ever felt cherished by a man before. Not until Marco had I ever made love before.

Since we became lovers, I was usually the one who tried to rush things along. At times, it was necessary based on our sneaking around and juggling our schedules to do so. It was clear by the painstakingly slow way he removed our clothing that he was not in a rush.

I looked forward to slowing down a bit, or as Marco often said, “to stop and smell the flowers.” I was in Italy, with arguably the most handsome man on earth, and I intended to enjoy every delicious minute of it.

It was torture waiting patiently as Marco kissed, touched, and worshiped every inch of my body. He made it all about me and refused to have it any other way. It took him hours to properly love me. He gave me an orgasm with his mouth, one with his fingers, and then one by slowly sliding inside me as we stared into each other’s eyes.

During our lovemaking, he admitted, “I can’t wait to marry you.” He ran his large hand over my belly. “I can’t wait to see you pregnant with my child and have many babies with you.”

“Many? How many?”

He smiled at my question. “Oh, at least four.”

“Four?”

“Maybe five.”

When I widened my eyes in surprise, he asked, “Is that look because of how many kids I want, or because you’re about to come?”

“Both.”

“Let’s deal with you coming first.”

He quickened his thrusts, reached between us, and skimmed a fingertip over me. Within seconds, my orgasm exploded within me. During it, I decided I’d have a hundred babies with him if it guaranteed feeling this every day for the rest of my life.

“That was definitely the most delicious pasta I’ve ever tasted.” He’d had dinner delivered to the suite, and we ate while sitting on the balcony in bathrobes.

“You like?”

“Yes,” I moaned. His eyes darkened, and he reached for my hand, pulling me onto his lap.

“Wait until you taste this,” he said before dipping a spoon into a large portion of tiramisu.

“Oh my God.”

With a smirk he asked, “
Delizioso
, no?”

“Very.” His eyes focused on my lips, and he leaned closer to suck on my bottom one.

“It tastes even better this way,” he said, going back to then suck on my top lip. I ate most of it, except for what he sampled from my lips or tasted by dragging his tongue over mine.

“I’ll gain ten pounds before we even leave Rome if you continue to feed me this way.”

“I’ll help you work it off,” he said with a wink. He positioned my legs so I straddled him. Our robes opened around us, giving us skin on skin contact. He placed his hands on my hips and rotated his just enough to tease as to what was coming. This man turned everything into a sexual experience that instantly ignited me from the inside out.

The balcony was dark, but my eyes still darted around nervously. A chuckle rumbled through him. “No one is watching,
bella
. They’re too busy engaging in their own balcony sex.”

“Are you sure?”

His response was to slide into me, and mine was somewhere between a groan and an
oh my God
. My eyes fell shut of their own accord from the fullness of having him inside me. I felt his firm lips on mine, but I struggled to open my eyes. With a full belly and a satisfied libido, I felt drowsy with contentment.

Our movements were slow and deliberate, causing the result to be profound. He came first, and I immediately followed.

“Welcome to
Italia
,” he said once I finally opened my eyes.

“Mmm, I like it here.”

While I was still on his lap, he used his robe to pat me dry and then shrugged at the look on my face. I’d done all sorts of sexy things with this man, but that was by far the most intimate.

“Thank you for a wonderful day, Marco.”

“How do you feel?”

“Like I’m in heaven.”

“Me too.” After a long kiss, I stood and adjusted my robe before walking over to the edge of the balcony.

He came up behind me, caging me in between his body and the cool marble balustrade. The crisp night air felt so clean as I dragged deep breaths into my lungs. The way the city lights sparkled in the darkness made it look like a postcard. I leaned into him and sighed, “It’s so beautiful here.”

“It is. I can’t wait to show you more of it.”

I turned until we came face-to-face. “How long are we staying?”

“As long as you want. We have nowhere to rush to.”

The thought of traveling around Italy with Marco was extremely appealing, but guilt continued to nag deep inside me. I linked my hands behind his neck and said, “Marco, I can’t just travel around Italy with you without a care in the world.”

“Why not?”

“Because, it’s…”
Unrealistic and completely irresponsible
, I thought to myself. “Crazy,” was what I came up with.

He released a short puff of air before running a frustrated hand through his hair. “Okay, I’m going to say this once. Then, I hope you’ll finally stop worrying about money.” With a very stern expression on his face, he continued. “I am wealthy,
bella
. Besides my inheritance, which has been sitting untouched since I turned twenty-one, I invested well, made prudent decisions over the years, and saved almost every penny I earned. I knew I’d have someone to share it with one day, and now that I do, no one will stop me, including you. So, please, let me take care of you?” He waited for my confirmation, which I gave him with a small nod. “Thank you. To answer your question, I thought maybe we could stay here in Rome for a few days. Then, I’d like to drive up the coast, and once we hit Pisa, we’ll head east to Florence.”

“That sounds wonderful. How did I get so lucky to have found you?”

“You stepped onto
my
Horizon
,
bella
. Once that happened, it was inevitable.” He kissed me long and hard before wrapping his arms around me. I was so relaxed, and my body felt heavy against his. After a loud, unladylike yawn, he said, “It’s late for you. Let’s get some sleep.”

Although I wanted to stay in his arms all night and maybe even make love again, I was too tired to argue.

Together we got ready for bed, and I couldn’t stop staring at him. It wasn’t long ago that I was working at Hooters while feeling completely depressed over my career situation. How did I end up in a beautiful hotel in Rome with a gorgeous man at my side? Life was so strange, and all I could do was thank God for leading me to Marco.