Chapter Thirty-Seven Ella
Chapter Thirty-Seven
Ella
Rhia is exactly where I left her this morning, sitting at her desk, reading through documents on her laptop. She glances up when she hears the door close behind me.
“Is it dinnertime already?” She looks surprised, clearly lost in her work. When Rhia gets in the zone, nothing else exists. She becomes unstoppable.
“Have you been sitting in front of that thing all day?”
“Yep. And it’s going well,” she says, her attention already drifting back to the screen. “Let me save this, and then I’m all yours.”
“Cool… I’ll just change into something else. Where do you want to go tonight?”
I wait for her answer, studying her. She looks ruffled, her hair twisted into a messy bun, her lower lip slightly swollen from biting it too much. She always does that when she concentrates too hard.
“You probably never thought you’d hear me say this,” she begins, “but how about we stay in and have dinner on the terrace? It’s the last time I get to see that view, and I want to make the most of it.”
“Perfect. I’ll change into something comfy.”
I’m glad she wants to stay in tonight. I’m too sore and tired to move much.
Slipping into my room, I change into my sleeping shorts and a tank top. When I come back out, she’s already on the phone, ordering what sounds like half the restaurant menu. I raise an eyebrow.
“How many people are you planning on feeding?”
“Just us. I’m starving. I haven’t eaten all day.”
No surprise there.
“Tsk, tsk. I leave you alone for a few hours and you stop looking after yourself. Are you sure I can send you home alone?”
“Ha, ha. You’re hilarious.” She scowls.
We settle onto the balcony, quiet for a moment, listening to the waves crash below and watching the stars scatter across the sky. The moon lights up the surface of the water, turning it into molten silver in the half-light.
Contentment settles over me, and I smile, if only to myself.
“Are you really going to make me ask?” Rhia breaks the silence.
“Ask what?” I pretend I have no idea what she’s talking about, biting my lip to stop myself from smirking. She gives me a stern look, one eyebrow raised, waiting.
“Fine. What do you want to know?”
Rhia rolls her eyes. “Everything.”
“Well… we kissed.”
“Is that all?” She looks genuinely disappointed.
“Don’t knock it. The man can kiss. I completely lose my head.”
“Come on, El. Don’t hold out on me. I had a long day. You’ve got that glow that says a lot more than kissing happened. I want details.”
She stomps her foot, and I’m instantly reminded of the temper tantrums she used to throw as a teenager.
“Hmm, let me think…” I tap my finger against my lips and gaze up at the sky as if I’m seriously considering it. I’m enjoying having her at my mercy.
“Ella! If you don’t spill right this minute, I’ll tickle you until you can’t breathe,” she threatens.
“Okay, okay.” I raise my hands in surrender and grin at her.
“In the entire history of my sex life, I have never had that many orgasms in one day. I’m sore everywhere, and I don’t think I can walk straight,” I say, laughing, which only makes my sore bits more noticeable.
“However, that won’t stop me from doing it all over again tomorrow.”
I beam at her, and she chuckles.
“I knew you had it in you. You just needed the right guy to do it with. Did I not tell you this Italian stud would deliver?” She bounces in her chair, looking far too pleased with herself. “Now come on, give me the juicy details.”
Before I can say anything else, there’s a knock at the door.
“Must be Dr. Agosti. The bruising on my inner thigh is much worse this time,” I say cheekily.
“Very funny.” Rhia sticks out her tongue at me. “That’ll be our food. About time. I’m starving.”
She jumps up and lets in two servers, each pushing a trolley out onto the balcony.
“How much food did you order?” I ask, astonished.
“Lots,” she smirks. “I told you I’m hungry, and I’m sure you must be too after exercising all afternoon.” She blows me a sassy kiss when I roll my eyes at her.
There’s another knock, and a different server walks in carrying an ice bucket and a bottle of champagne.
“We didn’t order that,” Rhia says.
“Compliments of Signor De Marco,” he replies.
Aww. That’s so sweet of him.
But how did he know we were eating in? Maybe he instructed the hotel to leave champagne in our room regardless of whether we were here?
The servers leave, and Rhia lets out a low whistle when she reads the label.
“Wow. It’s the good stuff. You must have delivered,” she teases, then adds, “He’s very thoughtful, isn’t he?”
“That he is. He’s been spoiling me.” I point to the earrings he gave me earlier.
They’re gorgeous. Understated but sophisticated. Exactly how I like my jewelry. And I’m certain the quality is peerless.
“Wow, Ella, they’re beautiful. The color is incredible. Did he give them to you before or after the deed?”
“After. I was about to have a heart attack when he pulled out the little square velvet box. My brain completely misfired.”
We laugh so hard at the thought of Tiero proposing that we both have to cradle our stomachs.
“Give him a few more days,” Rhia says through tears. “By the end of the week, he just might.”
“Don’t even joke about that. I’m fighting a losing battle not to get attached here.”
We fill our plates with pasta and seafood salad but barely make a dent in the abundance Rhia ordered. Between bites, I fill her in on the details, and we swoon together over the hotness that is Gualtiero De Marco.
“You know, casual sex is healthy,” Rhia says without blinking.
Of course she would say that, given her wild past.
“Maybe for someone like your sister. She gets antsy if she goes a few days without it. For me? Not so much.” I shake my head. “It’s the emotional side I’m struggling with. Getting attached. How do I set boundaries?”
I lean forward, genuinely wanting an answer. She’s been there, after all. Before Lex, casual fun was all Rhia was interested in. And now she wants to get married. I never thought I’d see the day.
“You do it like you do everything,” she says calmly, lifting her glass and taking a slow sip. “You gather the facts. You look at the reality, not the fantasy. You consider your expectations and the likely outcomes, so there aren’t any surprises waiting to ambush you.”
I nod slowly.
“Now,” she continues, “I’ve been saying from the start this could be the beginning of a great love story, and I stand by that. There’s something special going on. I feel it in my bones. And if it’s meant to be, it will be.”
My stomach flips at that.
Could there be a future for Gualtiero and me? Is there really more here?
“But just in case it isn’t,” she adds gently, “here are the facts. You’re on vacation. Gualtiero lives in Sicily. You’ll be back in Dublin by the end of the week.”
Shit. I feel something inside my chest splinter, just a little.
“No matter what happens, El, make the most of it. Experience five days of Sicilian perfection with no regrets,” Rhia says softly.
“Let loose. Be wild. Nobody back home needs to know the details. And if you two can’t make it work after this?
Then you both go back to your lives having made memories you’ll carry forever. ”
I let her words sink in, taking a sip of Tiero’s exquisite champagne. Forcing myself to sit back, I try to think logically instead of emotionally.
“I shouldn’t expect anything past this trip,” I say slowly. “What would be the point? It’s unlikely to happen, and I’m just setting myself up for disappointment.”
The words sound sensible. Safe.
“We live completely different lives,” I continue. “They don’t even look compatible on paper. A vacation fling? Sure. That makes sense. But hoping for more than that is just… foolish.”
It could never work.
Even if we had feelings for each other. And at least on my end, that’s already a given.
Rhia opens her mouth to argue, but I lift my hand to stop her.
I don’t need her reminding me that she and Lex started just as casually. Their circumstances were different.
Heartbreak is waiting somewhere ahead of me. I can feel it. And I’m choosing to walk toward it anyway.
So I might as well enjoy the man to the fullest while I have him.
“Given today’s shenanigans, the rest of the week promises to be an adventure,” I say lightly. “I’ll heed your advice and make the most of it. I’m actually curious what other tricks Tiero has in his arsenal.”
“Go for it, El,” Rhia encourages, chewing on her lower lip. “If this turns out to be just sex, so be it. Fuck him out of your system, then go home and add this trip to your memoirs.”
Later, lying in bed, I turn her words over in my mind.
Just sex…
That’s what it was when he took me hard and fast the first time.
But that last time on the boat?
We made love.
It was raw and intimate and hit something wired straight to my heart.
And I know that if I keep going down this path, I will get hurt.
Run. Now.
The instinct flashes through me, sharp and urgent.
But I’m already in too deep.
How would I even explain to him that I suddenly don’t want to see him anymore? He’s not someone who takes no for an answer.
Maybe I should just fly home with Rhia.
End it before it really gets out of hand.
No.
That would feel like losing something before I’ve even let myself have it.
Besides, this is my first real vacation in two years. I won’t let a man, no matter how devastatingly attractive, steal that from me.
I just need stronger walls. Clearer boundaries.
The next morning, Rhia and I get into the car Tiero sent.
I told him I was driving her to the airport, but he insisted I should not be navigating the wrong side of the road alone on the way back.
I argued that I was perfectly capable. He countered that this way I could enjoy my last hour with Rhia properly, not being distracted by traffic.
He’s so thoughtful.
As I hug Rhia goodbye at Palermo airport, we both tear up.
This isn’t how we imagined our trip unfolding.
“You’ll slay this presentation,” I tell her. “Just remember to come up for air once in a while.”
“And you,” she replies, squeezing me tight, “make the most of your time here. Just see where it goes.”
I watch her disappear into the crowd before sliding back into the car.
She’s right.
For the rest of my time here, I’m going to live it up.
If I have to spend the next few days without her, I might as well do the things I would not have done if she had stayed.
Namely, one Gualtiero Leandro De Marco.