Chapter 11
Chapter Eleven
Valentina
T here was too much to do to take a sick day.
After Luca dropped me off, I forced myself to get ready for work, nibbling on crackers and sipping ginger ale the entire time. Of course I looked up what “fiore mio” meant as soon as I got home. It translated to my flower , an endearment in Italian.
My flower.
It was both beautiful and sweet and totally disconcerting. We weren’t really at the endearment stage, were we? He must be humoring me. Maybe “flower” in Italian meant a foolish girl who drank too much and vomited on you?
“Wow, you look . . . ” Roberto pressed his lips together as I walked into the trattoria around one o’clock.
“I know,” I said. “I look like shit.”
“I was going to say ill.”
Giovanni’s brow creased as he examined me. I had learned he wasn’t overly talkative, despite my efforts to engage him in conversation. “Too much wine,” my new chef said. “I will make you something.”
“I couldn’t possibly trouble you for that.” I placed a hand on my stomach. “Besides, I’m not sure I can keep it down.”
“Nonsense. Food is the remedy for most of life’s ailments.” He was already heating a sauté pan, his heavily-tattooed arms moving rapidly. “Sit, signorina.”
“Yes, sit. Per favore, Val,” Roberto said, pulling over a stool for me. “We will talk while we wait.”
I tossed my bag onto the clean prep station, then lowered myself onto the stool and crossed my legs. “I’m sorry I drank so much last night and left you to lock up,” I told Roberto. “Book club got a little out of hand.”
“Ma dai,” Roberto said, his brown eyes kind as they studied me. “That is what young women do. You deserve a little fun. Allora, I thought you would be mad at me for calling Signore DiMarco.”
I remembered Luca coming into the restaurant, eyes wild until he spotted me. Then he circulated the bar area, speaking with each of the men there, and somehow convinced them all to leave. He hadn’t raised his voice or caused a scene. Instead, he remained quiet and in control, yet forceful enough to clear the room. Normally, I had to threaten and yell to clear the bar on a book club night.
“I’m not mad at you,” I said. “But I don’t understand why you called him. Did something happen?”
Roberto shook his head. “Signorina, it was what could have happened. Those men in the bar were waiting, circling like hyenas. Young women who drink too much are at risk in such situations.”
“But that’s what we do every month. No one gets hurt and the bar makes a lot of money.” Something occurred to me and my memory was too fuzzy. “Oh, shit—did the men pay their bar tabs?”
“Signore DiMarco paid the tab.”
“For all of them?” Surprised, I swayed on the stool and had to put a hand on the stainless steel to steady myself. “That had to be more than a thousand dollars. ”
“Twelve hundred. And he gave Chase a gratuity, as well.”
I shouldn’t have been surprised, not after Luca gave each of my tables a hundred dollars the other night. He must always carry a lot of cash around. “I vomited on him last night,” I blurted, needing to share my shame for some crazy reason.
A bark of laughter came from the direction of the stove, while Roberto glanced away, eyes dancing with laughter. “Go ahead,” I told him. “I can tell you want to laugh at me, too.”
“I am not laughing at you, signorina,” he said kindly. “More at the idea of Signore DiMarco being vomited on.”
“Hello?” a voice called from the kitchen entrance.
I glanced over my shoulder and saw Bev stepping through the back door. In her hand was a frozen coffee with chocolate swirled on top. Dear Lord, please let that be for me.
“Hi,” I said. “What are you doing here? It’s not even one o’clock.” Her café stayed open until three.
“I came to check on you.” She slid her sunglasses up into her short gray hair. “And bring you a treat since you didn’t stop by this morning.”
“Oh, god. I love you.” I reached for the cup eagerly.
“Are you sure that won’t make you feel worse?” Roberto muttered, his lip curled in distaste.
“It’s oak milk,” Bev explained.
I took a sip and the cold sweetness was pure heaven. “That is so good.”
“Where is my treat, signorina?” Roberto asked Bev, a small smile playing at the edge of his mouth.
“Your espresso, you mean?” Bev’s cheeks were slightly red as she turned to me. “I’ve never seen a human being gulp a hot drink so quickly. You’d think the café was on fire every morning.”
Wait, was something happening between these two? Their reactions to one another was very telling, and Roberto was obviously spending a lot of time at Bev’s cafe. “Every morning?” I asked him, lifting my eyebrow meaningfully .
He tilted his head in the direction of the dining room. “Just until the men install the new espresso machine.”
“Speaking of, how are the renovations going?” Bev asked, regaining my attention.
I hesitated. With Mayor Lombardi threatening to drown me in paperwork, I had no idea how long this could take. No one from the Buildings Department had shown up yet, but the possibility was still there. I needed to deal with him soon—and the thought caused my stomach to turn over.
Setting my coffee drink on the pass, I said, “There may be some issue with permits.”
Roberto made a dismissive sound. “There will be no issue, signorina.”
The confidence in his tone gave me pause. “How do you know? Did the mayor say something to you?”
“Of course not.” He waved his hand. “Ignore me.”
How could I, when it seemed as if he knew more than I did? “What aren’t you telling me?”
“Nothing! But I know how these men full of self-importance are, signorina. They are bullies. He will back down, te lo prometto .”
Roberto’s gaze was shifty, evasive. I was about to press him for information when Bev said, “Well, the mayor won’t be bothering you today. I hear he called in a security company from Albany this morning to come down and replace his current alarm system. There are four or five vans outside his house.”
“I wonder why?” I reached for my coffee drink. “It’s not like anyone would dare to break into the mayor’s house.”
“I couldn’t say.” Bev shrugged. “But you can bet I’ll find out.”
I didn’t doubt it. No one was better connected in town. Bev knew all the good gossip. “Let me know what you learn.” The aroma from whatever Giovanni was cooking filled the kitchen and my stomach rumbled. “That smells amazing,” I called over to him.
“I know,” he said simply. “It will be the best asparagus risotto you have ever tasted. ”
I didn’t doubt it. I felt very spoiled lately, from Luca making me pasta and looking after me last night, to Roberto and Giovanni assisting me in the restaurant. What had I done to deserve any of this?
There is no shame in accepting help from others when you need it.
Yes, but there had to be limits. I needed to rely on myself. My father never bothered to stick around, and cancer stole my mother from me. Becoming dependent on others led to heartbreak and failure.
“I should get back to the café,” Bev said, reaching over to pat my hand. “I’ll see you later, Val.”
“Thanks again. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
She turned to go, then paused. “Incidentally, I heard about what happened at book club. I think it sounds romantic. Just like An Officer and A Gentleman .”
“Ugh,” I said, dropping my head onto the stainless counter. “Great.”
“A classic movie,” Roberto added unhelpfully. “And I can see the comparison.”
“There’s no romance between me and Luca. And I don’t want to hear anything else about it.” The two of them exchanged a quick look that scraped across my nerves. “What? What was that look about?”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Bev replied, now hurrying toward the back door. “See you later!”
“Ciao!” Roberto called after her and I shifted to glare at him. The man had the audacity to wink at me.
“I can still fire you,” I said grumpily, even though we both knew I wouldn’t.
“True, but you need my help to reopen next week. Incidentally, we still must hire two bartenders.”
“What happened to the guy we interviewed yesterday?”
“Failed his background check.”
Background check? “I didn’t realize we were running background checks on every employee. What is the cost of that? ”
“It’s not a formal process, signorina.” He shifted on his feet and slipped his hands into his trouser pockets. “It’s through a friend of mine.”
Roberto’s response was cagey—and telling. I spoke very clearly, saying, “Is this friend Luca?”
“Not exactly.”
“Hmm.” I didn’t love it. The sign, covering bar tabs. Background checks. Not to mention whatever happened with Mayor Lombardi. I made a mental note to take all of this up with Luca at my first opportunity.
Except it would need to wait because Giovanni set the risotto in front of me. I scooped up a bite and blew on it to cool it down. When I put it in my mouth, I almost died. “Oh, my god. This is the best thing I’ve ever eaten. Thank you, Giovanni.”
“Better than chicken parm,” I heard him mutter under his breath.
“Except for chicken parm,” I shot back.
He shook his head, but he was smiling as he returned to the stove.
Roberto stuck around as I ate, so I figured it was a good time to catch up. “Have we seen an invoice from the construction guys yet?” I needed to work on finances today. My mother’s life insurance was covering these renovations, but I had to be careful. I didn’t have much left. We needed to open soon.
“No,” Roberto said. “I haven’t received one.”
“Is John out there?” I asked, referring to the head of the construction company. “I’ll just go ask him.” I put down my spoon and rose.
“Wait, signorina—” Roberto said, but I was already through the door. The workers were replacing light fixtures when I went into the dining room. “Hey! Is John around?”
They pointed to the bar. I peered over the top and saw John working on installing a new water line. “Hi, John. Have a minute?”
“Sure, Val.” He screwed in some plumbing pieces, then dried off his hands. “What’s up?”
“I’m wondering if you have an invoice ready for me. I’d like to pay some of what I owe now, rather than waiting until the end. ”
“I don’t have one drawn up yet, but I think you owe five hundred.”
“Five hundred ? That doesn’t make sense.” The estimate was eight thousand dollars. Why was it so cheap?
“Uh, the prices went down.”
“By seven-thousand and five-hundred dollars?” I looked over at Roberto. “Did you know about this?”
Roberto shook his head. “No, it’s the first I’m hearing of it.”
John rose and shifted on his feet. “Well, you’ve been doing this on your own for a long time, Val, with your mom dying and everything. Sometimes we all need a little help and there’s no shame in accepting it.”
The words . . . they were too close.
And the price drop was too drastic, too convenient. Alarm bells went off inside my head, my heart kicking hard in my chest.
I looked at my contractor. “John, on the life of your little brother, Daniel, who I used to babysit, tell me the truth. Is Mr. DiMarco paying the difference?”
There was a long pause. “Come on, Val. Don’t make me swear on my brother.”
That was enough confirmation for me.
“I’ll be back,” I told Roberto. “I have an errand to run.”
Luca
“She’s at the gate.”
I looked up from my laptop. There was no need to ask who Aldo meant. Roberto called me the second an angry Valentina departed from the restaurant .
“Want me to turn her away?” Aldo asked, then took a bite of the apple in his hand.
“No. I might as well get it over with.”
“Should I bring her in here?”
I considered this. Gabriele was somewhere on the estate and I preferred that my son not run into Valentina. Best to have this conversation in private. “Yes.”
Aldo left and the numbers on my screen blurred in front of me, my concentration fucked. I’d been thinking about her all day, how she pressed up against me in bed last night with those soft and lush curves, her breath warming my skin. It had been a struggle to get up this morning, leaving her to sleep, when all I wanted to do was feed my cock into her pussy.
A knock sounded. “Dai, entra!” I called.
Aldo held open the door and Valentina sailed into the room. She was flushed, hair pulled into a high ponytail, her eyes wild and angry. She wore a dress that looked like a man’s shirt and it pulled across her chest, as well as showed off long, tanned legs. Fuck, she was gorgeous. My heart raced in my chest, pumping like I’d been jogging, while my skin sizzled with awareness.
Aldo shut the door and left us alone. I tried to keep my voice even. “I hadn’t expected to see you again so soon, fiore mio.”
She pointed at me, gaze narrowing. “Do not call me that. I know what it means.”
Now I was confused. “This upsets you, this endearment?”
“We are not at the endearment stage. I barely know you, which is why I’m here.” She folded her arms across her chest, which only brought my attention to her spectacular tits. “Stop meddling with my restaurant.”
“Meddling?”
“Don’t play stupid, Luca. The sign and the background checks? Now I find out that you’re covering the cost of the renovations!” She threw up her hands and let them fall. “This is ridiculous. I barely know you and you’ve taken over what’s supposed to be my restaurant.”
I should be furious with the way she was speaking to me—with so much attitude and disrespect—but I liked her sassy mouth. It made me want to kiss her and bite her until she melted against me. And her perfume? Christ, it was driving me crazy. It was the same scent still on my sheets upstairs.
Do you want to have sex with me, Luca? Please, say yes. I’m tired of wondering what it’s like.
Lust clawed beneath my skin, sharp and demanding, making it hard to breathe. Valentina was a mixture of soft and vulnerable, but also tough as balls. Who else would dare to come here and give me such a scolding? It only made me want her more.
In a flash I made a decision.
I was tired of fighting this, which meant I was planning to fuck her. But I couldn’t fuck her without telling her my real name and what I did for a living. I was a cruel man, but I wouldn’t deceive Valentina about something so basic.
Decision made, I slowly stood and put my hands in my pockets. “Come here.”
She huffed, a sound of outrage and disbelief. “No. I want answers, Luca. You’re overstepping and I want to know why.”
“That isn’t happening. Now, come here.”
“No. You’re going to distract me with all of your . . .” She waved her hand in my general direction. “You-ness.”
I had no idea what that meant, but I wanted her to follow simple directions. “Get your sexy ass over here right now.”
She licked her lips, but didn’t budge. “Why?”
“Because I’m going to kiss you, but I can’t until we talk first. And I want my hands on your body while I do it.”
Her gaze darkened and the skin of her throat turned a dull red. “You’re supposed to ask first,” she said in a breathy voice. “Haven’t you heard about consent?”
Madre di dio, this girl got my dick hard. “Now, fiore mio.”
“Wait.” Shaking her head, she put up her palms. “This is all happening too fast.”
No, it wasn’t. This was taking fucking forever. I usually had the patience of a saint, but this girl was testing all of my limits.
I edged out from behind the desk and stalked toward her. She lifted her shoulders but didn’t move, just watched my approach with hooded eyes that told me all I needed to know. She was nervous but excited. Curious but hesitant. Eager but shy. I vowed right then to make this so good for her.
As I closed the distance between us, the muffled thump of my shoes on the carpet was the only sound in the room. When I reached her I stopped and stared down at her. I could see the pulse throbbing on the side of her neck, my virginal little flower.
I dragged my hand up her arm and felt the tiny shiver that ran through her. I kept going, higher over her shoulder and then her throat, until I cupped her jaw in my palm. My other hand rested on her hip, my body surrounding her. “I want to kiss you. Do you want it, too?”
She nodded and swayed toward me ever so slightly.
I nearly smiled, the victory was so sweet. “You need to say the words. We need to be very clear on what you are consenting to.”
“You’re a dick.” But she was smiling as she rested her hands on my chest. She was tall, but even taller in heels, her forehead reaching my mouth. Madonna, I couldn’t wait to have her beneath me in every way.
“Yes, I am,” I conceded. “But I want to hear you ask me for it.”
She stared up at me and I could see the indecision swirling in her gaze. “I’m still mad at you.”
“I want you mad, bella. I want you to claw and scratch and bite me. Because that makes my dick even harder, capisce?”
“You’re impossible. I can’t win with you, can I?”
“If I kiss you, we both win. Now ask me, Valentina.”
She swallowed. “Please, will you kiss me, Luca?”
Satisfaction flooded me but I didn’t pounce. It’s what a boy half my age would’ve done, slobbered and pawed all over her like an inexperienced puppy. But I wasn’t a puppy and I needed to show her what it would be like between us, slow and satisfying, unlike anything she’d imagined. If it killed me, I would exhaust myself to wring every drop of pleasure from this virgin’s body. I would take my time and do it right, until we were both satisfied.
Lowering my head, I edged closer, my fingertips pressing into her skin, letting her feel me. Then I skimmed my lips over hers in the lightest caress, closing my eyelids to concentrate on every millimeter of her flesh. I moved gently, learning the edges of her lips, mapping the delicate bow at the top. Inhaling her warm breath. So sweet, this girl. I wanted to lick her from head to toe.
Her arms wound around my neck, so I moved my hand to the small of her back. I let my fingers linger near the top of her ass cheeks, brushing her skin through the thin cotton of her dress, imagining all I would do if she were naked. Soon.
A sound of frustration erupted from her throat as I bent to kiss her jaw. “You’re teasing me.”
“I am making you wait for it,” I said into her velvety skin.
“I don’t want to wait for it.”
“That is too bad, because you asked me to kiss you and I am taking my time.” I kissed a line along her throat, her pulse pounding against my tongue. I liked feeling her every reaction to me. I would bet my empire that her pussy was soaking right now.
I licked the tender spot where her neck met her shoulder. “I can’t wait to bite you right here.”
“Oh, god,” she breathed, her fingers sliding into my hair. “Luca, please.”
I didn’t waste another second. Lifting my head, I slammed my mouth down onto hers. Soft and wet lips met mine and she kissed me eagerly, hungrily, as if she’d been dying for it. I didn’t hold back, letting her feel exactly how much I wanted her with every pull and sweep of my mouth. Then I adjusted the angle and flicked my tongue against her lips, and she instantly let me inside. Hot and slick, her tongue met mine and I growled in satisfaction. Cazzo, she was perfect.
I held her face in my hands and let the kiss drag on. I couldn’t remember when I’d kissed a woman for such a long time like this, with my full effort and attention, not intending to do anything more.
I can make her come, though .
Would she let me?
I pulled back, but didn’t let her go. “I want to taste your pussy.” She moaned and tried to kiss me again, but I held her firm. “Valentina. I’m serious.”
She was panting, her big eyes blinking up at me. “Right now?”
“Right now.”
“But . . .” She attempted to shake her head in my grip. “It’s the middle of the day and someone might walk in.”
“No one enters without my permission, and what? You think I can’t give you an orgasm in the daylight?”
“It’s embarrassing.”
I smoothed her hair off her face, pushing the silken strands over her shoulder. “A man like me, on his knees for you, solely focused on your pleasure? How is that embarrassing, fiore mio?”
“I came here to yell at you, not have sex.”
“We are not having sex. You are grinding your clit on my tongue until you come.”
Her eyelids squeezed shut. “My god, the way you talk. You don’t hold anything back.”
Wrong, I definitely did. But before I confessed all of my secrets, I needed her to be relaxed and satisfied. I slapped her ass with my palm. “Do yourself a favor and get on the desk, Valentina.”
She pressed her lips together and cast a suspicious glance at the desk. “If we do this, nothing changes. I still don’t want you involved in my restaurant.”
I slapped her ass again and she let out the softest, most arousing moan. “I make the rules, bella. Now, go lie down and spread your legs for me.”