Turn Towards the Sun (32 page)

“No. Someday I’m going to call you Mrs. Milano. I hope.”

My eyes widen.

He holds
a dress in his hands
and strokes
the fabric. I walk up to him and lay my head on his chest. We are silent
,
letting his words hang in the air.

“I never tho
ught this could happen to me
. That I could feel so much for a woman. I thought I was in love
once,
but now I know I’ve never been in love until now, with you.” He
strokes
my hair.

I push up to my toes and kiss his neck, once then twice.

“Are you seducing me Ava?”

“Me?” I bat my eyelashes.

I start to unbutton his
shirt,
keeping my eyes locked on his. I strip it off of him and inhale his scent. He moves his hands to touch
me,
but I push them back down.

“I’m going to blow your mind.” I whisper. I’m going to blow something anyway.

Enzo
looks
at me with his lips slightly parted. I unbuckle his belt and pull it slowly from the loops
,
following it around his body. His breathing is shallow as he tries to keep his eyes on me. I push him down on the plush chair in my room and unzip his pants to remove them.

“Take off your clothes Ava.”

“In good time my prince.”

I slide his boxer briefs off his hips
to free
his glorious cock. I stand and lean over him and kiss his neck, then his nose, then his mouth. I drag my tongue down his chest onto his stomach and glide back up his body into standing position. I try my best at a strip tease and slowly remove my clothing. I shimmy back down to my knees and press his erection between my breasts
,
moving up and down. I lower my mouth down his entire l
ength to make the glide easier.
Then
I run my tongue around the tip and up and down the length
,
occasionally plungi
ng him deep into my throat. He moans
loudly.

I climb on his lap and slowly lower myself onto him. His eyes open wide. I move my hips back and forth and keep my balance by grasping his arms.
He fills my
insides,
and I want nothing more in this moment than to bring us both to pleasure.
I grab my breasts
,
pulling and kneading.

“Oh yea Ava, keep doing that.” I throw my head back and rock wildly. I reach down and start rubbing myself
,
hoping I can get there close to him.

“Fuck.” He arches and pours into me. I keep rubbing and moving until I finally feel my own climax. We are sweating and heaving and fall into laughter. He pulls me down onto him
and kisses my
mouth.

“I knew it would be like this with you.” He whispers into my mouth. I reply with a kiss.

“We need to get dressed. We are meeting Checca at Girasole at one so you can start your training.” He lifts me off of him and pulls my hand into the bathroom.

We shower quickly. Enzo shaves while I look for something sophisticated to wear. I decide on a bright turquoise
, strapless dress.
It has a black belt around the waist and an A line shape. I add black flat sandals and silver earrings. I still have my diamond necklace
on,
and it looks great with the dress. I pull my hair into a low side ponytail, sweeping my bangs across my face. I walk back into the bathroom for eye cream and lip gloss. Enzo looks up and stops. He just stares.

“What Enzo? You’re always staring at me.”

“Because I can’t take my eyes off of you. I can’t get enough of your beauty.”

“Beauty fades Enzo.”

“Not your beauty Ava. Your beauty is much more than just what is on the outside. Fifty years from now I’ll look into your caramel colored eyes and see the same stunning woman standing in front of me right now.”

“Enzo, you astound me. There can’t possibly be a more eloquent, romantic man on the planet than you.”

“You’ll never find out
.”

We both
stare
at each other. I want to strip everything off and climb right back in bed with
him,
but his sister is waiting. I break the silence.

“We should go right?”

“Right.” He leaves the bathroom to finish getting ready
.
He
puts on a pair of jeans and a button down light blue shirt. He should always wear blue, his eyes shine even more than usual.

I watch him as he puts on his shoes. I want to give him the stationery I
ordered,
but I just can’t seem to find the perfect time. Maybe now is good, before we go meet Francesca.

“Enzo, I have something for you.”

“You have something for me?”

I nod and hand him the beautifully wrapped package that was delivered yesterday.

He
rubs
the packaging, clearly touched.

“Open it.” I’m nervous. Do men even like stationery? I have no idea. I watch him unwrap it and open the wood box containing the stationery. He removes one of the cards off the stack studying it. I wait
for some kind of reaction.

“Ava…
I love them
.”
He looks up and his eyes light up with pure joy.

“Do you really?”

He nods. “I use card stock all the time to send notes to my team for special accomplishments. It’s very thoughtful of you. I like it even more that you added your initial to it.”

He noticed.
And he likes it.

“I was afraid you would think it was… presumptuous of me to add my initial to it.” Shit. Why did I say that out loud?

“Presumptuous? I would have been disappointed otherwise.” He kisses me on the mouth.

“Ava, I love them
really. Just like I love you. Okay?”

“Okay.”

“Now, in the car with you.” He smacks my butt as we head out.

“Don’t be nervous Ava and just tell her what you think. That is what she
expects,
and it is how you will learn.”

How does he know I’m nervous? Could be the constant fidgeting.
Hmm,
yes maybe.

“I’ll try Enzo. This is very new for me.”

“
M
eeting you was new for me and look how well it’s turned out.” Good point.

We arrive at Girasole and walk to a small building to the left of the main hotel. Enzo opens the
door,
and I see Francesca sitting at a large wood table with paper and fabric samples everywhere. Windows surround the room with plush chairs lining the walls. Two massive wooden bookcases flank one of the walls, packed with design books.

“This is where I work when I’m in Phoenix.” Enzo
explains
. Francesca turns and waves at us. We walk towards the table. She has various sunflower designs strewn about the table.

“Yes Ava,
I want you to pick the one you like most.” I look through the selection. Some are orange, others multicolored, and some have yellow or brown centers. I like the classic sunflower the most. So I push one to the side. But then I wonder what it’s for. I think the one you choose should be based on its usage.

“What will it be used for?”

Enzo grins. Francesca
’s face
lights up.

“Brava Ava. Very good.” She praises. “You must consider first, the purpose
,
no? Yes, I want three different flowers, for the men, for the women, for the linens.” 

“Well then
,
I would choose this one for the women.” I hand her my previous selection. I look over the other choices.

“This one for the men.” I choose one with a yellow center and smaller petals. “And this one for the linens.” I select a final picture with rounded petals and a brown center.

Francesca’s mouth opens in shock. Shit
,
I messed up already?

“Perfetto. It is exactly what I chose.” She shows me a drawing she created before we arrived. “Yes
,
we will work
well
together, no?”

“Yes.”

Enzo
sits behind a large wood desk
and
set
s
the stationery on it. He opens a folder and starts signing documents.

“What are those Enzo?”

“The bills.”
He winks.

“Ava, come here. I have this design, you like?” I look at a drawing of an oversized sunflower in what appears to be the lobby of Girasole. The center of the flower takes up a
five-foot
diameter of the ceiling and each petal spans seven feet. It’s beautiful.

“I found a local artist who can do this. Is this what you meant?”

“
E
xactly.” I walk it over to
Enzo.

“I love it.”
He smiles.

“Yes Ava, while we are in Italy, I will take you to so many buildings and museums, we will study design, no?” She claps her hands and laughs. She is delightful.

“Time to get up.”

I open my eyes and see stunning male beauty.
Enzo is sitting on the edge of the bed stroking my hair. I know it’s much earlier than
necessary,
but I get up anyway. I pad into the kitchen and sit down to drink my already prepared coffee. Enzo makes a cup of espresso for himself.

“Are you excited bella?”

I nod enthusiastically.

“Do you want to eat?”

“I’ll wait. I’m too excited.”

“I’m going to fatten you up while we’re in Italy.” He laughs.

“Not too much. I spent a fortune on clothes.” I reply, laughing
too
. I go to shower and get dressed.
I’ve chosen a pair of black capris that are guaranteed not to wrinkle.
I have a sleeveless turquoise shirt that wraps around the waist and ties on the side and a black cashmere wrap in case the plane is cold. I’ve chosen comfortable canvas flats to wear.

I brush the front of my hair back and clip it, and place tiny silver hoop earrings in my ears. I decided to leave my birthday necklace safe at
home,
and Enzo took it to Girasole and locked it in a safe.

I leave my face plain like Enzo likes, except for a smear of gloss. I finish packing my makeup bag and walk out to the li
ving room to put it in my carry
on.

Gabby waves at
me. “Hi!” She’s perky this morning. She’s wearing tan slacks and a brown shirt. Her hair is pinned on top of her head. She looks very European.

“You look great Ava.”

“So do you.”

Enzo walks over and smiles.

“I’m glad you could join us Gabriella.” He added an ‘a’ to the end of her
name,
and it rolls off his tongue like butter. I swear I just saw Gabby blush.

“Calvin should be here in a few
minutes,
and Grayson will drive.”

“Who is Calvin?” I’ve heard his name only once before.

“Calvin is my international advisor.”

“He’s a lawyer?” I ask.

“No. He’s an international real estate expert.”

“Is Francesca coming with us?”

“No, she’ll be along in a few days.” The front door is partially open when I hear a friendly hello call out. We all turn to see Calvin enter the apartment. Calvin is tall and lean and has the loveliest light caramel
complexion. Light blue-green eyes
seem to pop off his face. His slightly wavy hair is cut short to his crown. He’s wearing a casual black polo shirt and jeans that hang nicely on his lean frame. His feet are in black and white checkered Vans.

He’s an international real estate expert? He looks more like an Abercrombie and Fitch model. Enzo greets him and welcomes him in, introducing him to me and Gabby. I can tell she is immediately smitten, smiling and blushing like a schoolgirl.

Grayson appears in the doorway. “Ready sir?”

Enzo nods. Grayson and the men begin loading luggage into a large SUV. Both men have one suitcase while Gabby a
nd I each have two plus a carry
on.

“It’s good
to be prepared.” Calvin teases and looks
at Gabby.
His
voice is smooth and casual, just like his appearance.

She looks away briefly then locks eyes with him. She’s flirting! Enzo picks up on the
scene,
and I swear I hear him snicker under his breath.

“Hey Grayson.” He glances at me in the mirror. “Are you coming with us?”