34. Esmé
34
ESMé
I turned slow circles in his suite, my tired feet sinking into the thick carpet. “You created this? From scratch?”
Matteo shrugged, leaning against the exposed wooden door frame like we weren’t in the middle of a winter wonderland straight from the pages of Vogue Living .
“I had a little help, but the eventual choice of beds—particularly the mattresses—was all me. Did you want to do a bit of quality control?”
I drew my eyes over him. He looked so damn sexy right now, dripping confidence and wearing a plush bath towel around his hips. I smiled. Blue really was his colour. “How about the antlers?” I asked, running my hand along one of the sets mounted on the bed’s headboard. Do they have a special purpose? Back scratchers?”
He grinned. “No. That’s how I’ll keep you here. I’ll probably tether you up to a set later. You’ll be at my mercy while I keep you alive on a steady diet of chocolate, wine, and Dono di Dio .”
I pulled my brows together as he sauntered my way. “Dono di what?”
He ran his fingers over the back of my neck, pulling the snap buttons of my thermal under top free and sending shivers over my shoulder blades. “You’ll see.”
We moved to the window, and he stood behind me, circling his arms around my waist, his hardness pressing at the base of my spine.
The snow-laden trees protecting the lodge from avalanches complemented the view down the valley. I sighed. “This place is incredible.”
While Matteo showered, I’d warmed up in the kitchen in front of the fire, then explored the lodge. Six bedrooms, a sumptuous lounge and dining room, and even a gym and outdoor sauna later, I’d seen enough to convince me he had impeccable taste.
Every bedroom had its own open fire, stunning hand-crafted wooden furniture, and every bed was draped with thick furs—fake of course—and enough pillows to sink a yeti.
“I think I’m going to enjoy coming here,” I whispered.
He exhaled against my neck, his lips brushing my skin. “Oh, I know you will. As many times as I can make you. But first—a shower.”
I giggled. On a practical note, skiing was a sweaty business, and I didn’t want to mess up his new sheets in the name of spontaneity. “Does that interrupt your hot tub plans?” I asked, curling my lips into a smile.
He sucked in a breath, turning me around in his arms. “Definitely not, but I want you naked before then.”
Who was I to argue?
He walked me backwards to the bathroom and opened the door. “You’ll find everything you need in here, but I’ll fetch you a warm towel.” With one last grin, he kissed the end of my nose and shut the door.
“But I don’t have any clothes to change into,” I called through the door .
“You won’t need them,” he shouted, his voice distant, like he’d moved to the other side of the room.
With a smile, I slowly shook my head and reversed into the room. I let out a long whistle. If this palatial—but tastefully rustic—bathroom was alpine living, order me some lederhosen and an Alphorn.
I hopped to the shower, pulling one of my thick socks off, before removing the other and slipping out of my thermals. Removing them before Matteo put me in his hot tub was probably a good idea. There was nothing like a high-necked merino vest to kill a man’s ardour.
I turned on the water and waited for the resulting cloud of thick steam to fill the room. When I could hardly see my hand in front of me, I stepped in.
As the hot water cascaded over my body, my aches and pains eased, and I dreamed of what life might be like if we got snowed in here forever. I was sure Maurice could hold the fort at the gallery for a couple of years until someone could dig us out.
I chuckled, tilting my face into the shower jet, when a smooth, velvety voice curled through the mist and the rush of water.
“Anybody home?” Matteo opened the glass door and leaned against the tiles, a devilish grin on his lips. “Delivery,” he said. “I brought your towel.”
I glanced down at the one currently slung around his hips, noting the large bulge. “And I see that’s not all you brought me.”
His eyes sparkled. “Do you want me to scrub your back?”
I faced him, knowing exactly what would happen. As expected, his gaze raked over me, eyes blazing with heat.
“Only if you have the time,” I said. “I don’t want to distract you from your work.”
He shook his head slowly, straightening. “Oh, I’m happy with any distraction you can offer.” With a grin, he dropped his towel, stepping into the shower. “Besides, my to-do list is very long,” he said, tilting his chin lower, indicating the substantial “to-do list” between his legs.
When he moved to join me, rivulets of water cascaded over the olive skin of his chest, gathering droplets on the single white gold chain he wore around his neck. His hair was already damp from the steam, and it clung to his cheekbones in lazy curls. My breath stuttered in my throat.
“What’s first on your list?” I asked, knowing that whatever he said, I’d happily join the ride.
“This,” he whispered, leaning in and taking one of my peaked nipples into his mouth, rolling his tongue over my skin. I gasped at the bolt of pure pleasure his lips sent low to my belly.
“Then?” I ground out, my pulse throbbing in my veins.
“My speciality,” he said, bringing a hand to my buttock. With a shaky breath, he gently dug his nails into my skin. I pressed into him—into his hardness—and his eyes sparkled with delight at my reaction to his touch.
He pressed his lips to my neck, his free hand sliding over my hip before claiming the other cheek.
“A little detail, please,” I whispered, wondering when I’d lost the ability to breathe evenly.
His gaze met mine, blazing hot, and the corners of his lips danced. “Don’t worry. I’ll give you all the detail you need.” With those words, he sank to his knees in the shower.
Water streamed over his hair, drenching his face, and the moment he looked up at me, with that same unrelenting intensity, any remaining strength in my legs practically gave out.
His dark eyelashes clung together and when he dragged his fingertips over my skin to grasp the top of my thighs, he looked like some kind of forest god. Like a waterfall fae.
“Is this enough detail?” he asked, his voice thick with desire .
I shook my head. “I don’t think so. I’m going to need some extra clarification.”
“My pleasure,” he ground out.
I swallowed hard. Was my heart thumping from the heat, or his hands on my thighs?
I discovered the answer the instant his lips found my core. In that millisecond, I completely lost my senses. What way was up? What way was down? Did I even care?
The sensations that consumed me—took over my entire body—were all I could focus on.
I tangled my fingers through his hair as his tongue found my centre. Relentlessly, he trailed it across my clit, his breath hot and needy at my thighs.
I looked up at the shower head, up to the heavens, thanking the universe for sending me my very own gift from God. Matteo was all I’d ever dreamed of. All I’d ever wanted. Why the hell had it taken me so long to realise?
“Put your hands above your head,” he growled, his gravelly voice shifting my thoughts. The warmth of his breath against my nerves sent a prickle of heat across my skin.
“Sorry?”
“Hands. Up,” he ground out, his eyes hotter than boiling oil. He lifted an eyebrow, and I swear he smiled. “Please.”
Not needing to be asked again, I threw my arms over my head, the cold sting of the tiles pressing into my back. I held onto the shower bracket, wrapping my fingers around its slim metal.
He stared at me, his eyes an inferno.
I smiled. “You like me like this?”
He didn’t answer, instead he closed his eyes and pulled me closer to his mouth. Closer to heaven. With the shot of pleasure his tongue sent through me, I didn’t care what he liked. I just knew I could happily live the rest of my days following his orders .
Under the mastery his mouth offered, my breath thinned, coming in unsteady pulls … like every inhale was my last … like I’d suffocate without his lips on me. “Matteo,” I moaned, savouring the way his name felt on my tongue, tightening my grip on the pipe above me.
“ Cavolo, sei così bella ,” he groaned, his gaze locking onto mine. I had no idea what his words meant, but the fire in his eyes, and the vibration of his voice against my core, were all it took to tip me over the edge.
I shattered hard against his tongue as the shower washed over us. Water cascaded down our bodies, fusing us in a swirl of heat and sensation, and in that moment, I knew—I never wanted to be anywhere else.
When the waves of my pleasure finally ebbed, I opened my eyes to find Matteo watching me, his gaze wide and fevered.
“Are you okay?” I asked, releasing my grip from the shower bracket above. I cupped his jaw, running my other hand through his hair.
He shook his head, his breath coming hard. “I don’t think I can hold out much longer. I want you so much, I’m going to explode.”
One look down at his body and I understood.I chuckled and pulled him up to join me, his hard muscles flexing under my fingertips.
“Do you want me to …?” I touched his ridiculously hard dick, ready to drop to my knees for him in return. I closed my hand around him, swaying slightly on my feet. I was all about mutual satisfaction, but right now I was practically hyperventilating in the steam.
“Are you okay?” he asked.
I pushed my hair back away from my forehead. “I’m too hot.”
He grinned, “Yes, you are, and that's the problem. ”
I shrugged, then ran my fingers over his chest. “I’m happy to melt for you.”
Matteo bit into his lip. “No, let's cool you down. Then we can move on to that quality control.”
I nodded, threading my arms around his neck, our skin gliding together. “How are you going to cool me down? Roll me in the snow?”
“Nothing so brutal. You forget, the window in our room is wide open. I think the altitude might have taken care of the temperature for us.”
With that, he picked me up and slung me over his shoulder like a caveman. I giggled, pummelling his solid back with playful punches. “Put me down.”
We bundled into the bedroom, me squealing and him laughing hard at my hip.
“Only if you ask nicely.”
“No chance. You know I’m scared of heights. I’m surprised you’d be so cruel.”
He dropped me onto the bed, the mattress sinking under me like a marshmallow. He raked his eyes over my body. “I think I know how to cure you of your fear.”
I raised an eyebrow. “Tell me?”
“You forget … Dono di Dio . I told you before, I’m a gift from God. That means I have the power to bring about miracles.”
I curled my lips, winding a strand of hair around my fingers. “Like what? Water into wine? Raising the dead?”
Matteo reached over to the side table, found his wallet, and pulled out a condom wrapper.
“Raising heart rates is my speciality. Let me remind you, if I may?”
Damn him and his good manners. “Considering you asked so nicely. Who am I to stand in the way of divine intervention?”
“Good girl,” he said, bringing the condom wrapper to his mouth and tearing the corner with his teeth .
I watched him roll on the rubber, the muscles in his arms and chest contracting as he moved. By the time he finished, Matteo wasn’t the only one who was ready to explode.
He stood over me, eyes on mine, the side of his lip gripped between his teeth. “Are you ready for the second coming?”
I giggled. “Matteo, if past experience is anything to go on, we’ve only just started.”
Three earth shattering miracles later, we lay in bed wrapped in fur as our breath made tiny plumes in the air. The fire had all but died, and neither of us had the energy to get up and close the window.
My stomach rumbled. After our adventures, I was ravenous. I hadn’t eaten on the plane—my stomach had rolled at the thought of flying and food combined.
I laid back, stretching my arms over my head. “What’s the number for room service? Please don’t tell me I have to ski back down to civilization to eat. I doubt I’d have the strength.”
Matteo crawled up my body, stopping level with my hips. He pressed a slow kiss to my belly. “I hate to break it to you, but nobody’s coming to save us.”
I frowned. “What do you mean?”
He grinned. “I left strict instructions and a threat of instant dismissal if anyone disturbs us in the next twenty-four hours. Even if we were attacked by bears, no one would come to our rescue.”
I leaned up on my elbows. “There are bears here?”
Matteo joined me on the pillow, his body warm and all too delicious. “It’s unlikely, but I have a pot of honey on the bedside, just in case. I’d throw it out the window to lure them away.” He paused, one eyebrow raised, and a blistering smile on his face. “You could eat that! No need for room service, then. ”
I batted his chest as he lay next to me. “Speaking of wild beasts, Claudette will be happy to see you again.”
His eyes glowed, but then his face dropped. “Claudette! Who’s looking after her? Does she have enough blankets? Enough kibble?”
My heart pulsed. I loved that he cared so much. “Relax, Iris is still in town. She and Luc agreed to drop in and feed her.”
He took my hand, bringing my knuckles to his lips. “Is she okay, though? I kind of miss her little face.”
Again, my heart surged. It was time to consider my adoption of Claudette as a co-parenting situation.
“Don’t panic. Iris is a cat person, too, and a responsible adult.”
As twilight crept through the open window, Matteo fell quiet. His chest rising and falling a little faster than before. “Es, can I ask you something?”
"Mhmm."
“Does it really bother you that I’m younger? I know it’s not by much, but back in Paris, you gave me the distinct impression you might be a little … embarrassed.”
I pulled him closer, intertwining my fingers through his. “You could never embarrass me. Me and my tiny shorts are the ones with that track record. I just need to get over my ridiculous obsession with what other people think.”
I laid a kiss against his chest. “Who cares if I’m sleeping with an incredibly handsome and ridiculously hot younger man? You might just be what I need to keep the wrinkles away. Better than Botox.”
He rolled his eyes. “You don’t have wrinkles.”
“But one day I will. Will you care?”
He scoffed, pulling a fur over my shoulders. “You’ve only got four years on me.”
“Almost five,” I whispered .
Matteo leaned in to kiss my forehead. “I don’t care if it's five or twenty-five.”
I giggled. “Steady. I’m not ready to retire quite yet.”
Matteo threaded an arm around me, pulling me close. His lips brushed my hair. “You’re perfect just the way you are. And I love that you’re talking about us having a future.”
He hesitated, his eyelashes closing for the longest beat. “I love you so much. And I understand if you don’t feel the same way, not yet, but I hope one day, I’ll hear you say it back.”
My belly flipped, and I blinked at him, the air leaving my body. Merde ! I hadn’t told him. Under the onslaught of our glacier descent, all the gifts and miracles I could handle, and the distraction of bears and Claudette, I’d forgotten to tell him what’d burned in my heart for days.
“But I do.”
“Do what?”
“I love you. With all my heart. I’ve known for a while, but I guess I didn’t dare say it out loud.”
His smile faltered. “Why?”
I kissed his cheek, willing his dimples to return. “I needed to untangle my thoughts. What if I was just a fling for you? What if you woke up one day and someone younger and far sexier caught your eye? What if … what if people gossiped about us?” I turned away, flopping back on the pillow. “I know it might seem crazy to you, but I’ve always played it safe in life. This … us … it’s scary.”
He seemed to mull over my words, emotions flashing through his eyes. Finally, he tightened his fingers around mine. “You’re not crazy. But before I waste a good pot of honey, I need to know if you’ve come to your senses.”
I let out a giggle, facing him again. I gently ran my finger over his lips. “Oh, definitely. I love being with you. You make me so happy. The two of us are all that matters.”
He kissed the end of my fingertip, the softest glow in his eyes. “And you don’t mind being painted as a scarlet woman for leading a younger man astray?”
I grinned. “Quite the opposite. I may get a new wardrobe—the redder the better.”
Matteo leaned in, his lips brushing mine in a slow, tender kiss. His warm breath sent a sweet ache through my chest, and I wondered how I ever doubted how perfect we were together.
When our kiss ended, I played with the smattering of hair on his chest, running my fingers over his skin. “So, am I officially your girlfriend?”
He gripped his lip with his teeth. “I guess you are.”
My heart swelled. “Do I get a T-shirt? A badge? Something with an M on it, at least. I could get a tattoo!”
He looked at me like I was an annoying child. “No. I like your skin just as it is. But don’t worry, I’ll make sure people know.”
“Fine, but I’ll only agree to come and stay here again if I get my own set of antlers on your headboard. I want to know I’m special.”
He chuckled, the sound sending a pulse way down low in my belly. “You don’t need a pair of antlers to know that. You’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me.”
I curled myself against him like a cat. “I can’t believe we met on a chairlift.”
“And you looked so …”
I cringed at the memory. “Vintage?”
He let out a belly laugh. “I was going to say pink, but I can go with vintage. After today, do you think you’ll ever want to ski with me again?”
I gave a little shrug. “I suppose so, but I still have a few aches and pains that might need some attention. You haven’t shown me the hot tub yet.”
Matteo ran his hand down my hip, cupping my buttock. “I’m only just warming up the water. ”
I grinned. Somebody pass me a floatie.
“And do you think you’ll ever want to come back to the gallery? Help me in Rome?” Baby butterflies stirred in my tummy as I waited for his answer.
“That depends on my working conditions. I’ll require a functional boiler, a new pasta machine, and an endless supply of bubble-wrap to hone my packaging skills. I think it could become a thing with us. A new kink.”
“You can have whatever you want,” I whispered. I took a breath before pressing a kiss to his lips, curling my feet around his.
I smiled against Matteo’s mouth, tracing the soft hair on his chest. I hadn’t expected his wrapping skills, but this amazing man had cocooned my heart in love, promised to protect me from any mishaps “in transit,” and as his breath joined mine, I couldn’t wait to pop his bubbles.
Some packages got lost along the way, but my heart had found its home.
The End