Chapter 39
SAMMIE
Even if a hundred people armed with Brillo pads scrubbed my face they wouldn’t be able to wipe away my massive smile.
I was so bloody happy.
As I sat out in the sunshine on the patio of my luxury villa, eating my favourite pasticciotto pastry and sipping a freshly prepared cappuccino, whilst gazing up into the clear blue sky, butterflies flooded my stomach.
A week ago, I was feeling like shit and wondering if I’d have to go back to London because my match had disappeared. Now it was a completely different story. Forget being on cloud nine. I was floating on cloud nine billion.
And it was all thanks to Romeo.
Honestly, that man.
When it came to describing how thoroughly amazing he was, I didn’t even know where to start.
First there was his kindness.
As soon as we docked the boat last night, he asked me what I wanted to eat. When I said I felt like pizza, he drove miles just to take me to a place that he loved that did panzarotti which was a pizza that has been folded over and fried, so all the cheese, tomato and other toppings were inside.
Once our order was ready, Romeo took me to sit on a bench opposite the sea, where we’d watched the stars whilst we devoured the panzarotti , which was bloody delicious.
Then he dropped me back at the hotel (away from the entrance so no one would see us) and waited in his car until I’d texted to say I was safely back in the villa.
And if that wasn’t enough, this morning he sent me a message asking me to text him when I was awake and he would ask a Cuisine Champion to bring my favourite pastries and a cappuccino to my villa.
Talk about thoughtful.
Don’t even get me started on how kind he had been taking me around all of these different places and looking after me after Edward screwed me over.
Or how sweet he was to his mum. And Biscotti.
And when he said that I was beautiful exactly how I was , I felt like I was going to dissolve faster than ice cream on a warm chocolate brownie.
No one had ever said that to me before.
Every man I’d ever been with had either criticised the size of my boobs (too small), my arse and belly (too big) or thighs (too wobbly). But not Romeo. He worshipped my body like an evangelist praised the Lord every Sunday.
With him I felt seen, heard, appreciated.
And of course there was the sex.
Holy macaroni .
Romeo had given me more top-tier orgasms in a few days than I’d had in my whole life.
Yep. He was the total package. Romeo had more green flags than a St Patrick’s Day parade.
But he lived in Italy.
Life was so unfair.
I’d been telling myself that it was just sex and I wouldn’t catch feelings, but it was too late. Feelings had been caught, big time .
I had no idea what to do about that, but it was now Wednesday and I wasn’t leaving until Saturday so I didn’t have to think about that now.
In forty minutes I’d be meeting Romeo again. He had a day off and wanted to take me to another beach.
I popped the last bit of pastry into my mouth, downed my cappuccino then went to shower.
Half an hour later, I was locking up the villa to meet Romeo. I headed out of the hotel grounds, then walked the short distance to where he had dropped me off last night.
As I approached Romeo’s car and he spotted me, his face broke into a smile and my stomach flipped. Just like it had when I’d first met him. I should’ve realised then that he was the one I was supposed to be with, but it didn’t matter now.
‘Hey, you,’ I smiled as I slid into the passenger seat.
Romeo leant forward, wrapped his arms around me and gave me a long, slow kiss.
I’d noticed yesterday when we were kissing on the sofa below deck that something had shifted. And I felt the same today. This wasn’t a frantic, ‘I need to fuck you immediately’ snog like it was the first few times. Somehow the connection felt deeper.
We continued kissing for ages, neither of us wanting to pull away. But then the sound of a fire engine siren snapped us out of our hypnotic snog sesh.
When I looked into his eyes, Romeo was staring at me like I’d just told him I could give him a lifetime supply of his favourite pizza.
He looked at me with awe and amazement. If I could bottle this feeling and commit his expression to my memory forever, I’d be the happiest woman alive.
‘We should go,’ Romeo said. ‘Otherwise I will end up kissing you for hours.’
‘Yeah, or someone will drive by from the hotel and see us.’
Romeo started the engine and then set off.
‘How was your breakfast?’ he asked.
‘Delicious as always. Honestly, I don’t know how I’m going to go back to eating toast or muesli after the food I’ve had at this place. I’ve been totally spoilt.’ Thinking about going home made my stomach twist, so I quickly changed the subject. ‘Will it take long to get to the beach?’
‘Not too long,’ Romeo said solemnly and I wondered if he was thinking the same about me going back.
Then again, maybe he didn’t care. I could be just another guest with benefits.
No.
I refused to believe that. Romeo was different. I felt it in my soul.
I’d always rolled my eyes at the quotes on Instagram that said you’d know when you’d met the right man because he’d let you know you were special through his actions. But Romeo had done all of that and more.
This wasn’t just another fling to him. I was sure of it.
Romeo pulled into a car park, we collected our things and headed to the beach.
‘Wow!’ I said, taking in the sight of the pure white sand and turquoise water. ‘I can’t believe that there are so many beautiful beaches here. You’re so lucky to have this all on your doorstep. What’s the water like?’
‘It is amazing.’ Romeo spread out a blanket on the sand, then loaded our bags on top. ‘But do not take my word for it. The best way to know is to try it for yourself.’
‘Last one in the water has to buy lunch!’ I said, whipping off my kaftan, then racing down to the sea.
I thought I was easily going to beat Romeo, but seconds later he shot past me and raced straight into the water.
‘Looks like I am the winner and you are taking me out for a steak dinner at the fanciest restaurant in town.’ He punched his fist in the air triumphantly.
‘Sure! There’s an amazing restaurant at this place called the Love Hotel that does a nice steak. I’ll take you there, shall I?’
Romeo grinned, swam towards me, lifted me out of the water and spun me around before lowering me back into the sea and cupping my face.
‘You can take me anywhere you want.’ He kissed me softly. ‘But not today. Today, I will be taking you for lunch at another one of my favourite restaurants.’
‘Oooh!’ I said, feeling honoured that he’d shared these special places with me.
‘Until then, let us enjoy the water together.’
* * *
I’d had another amazing day with Romeo.
We’d spent hours swimming side by side in the sea, kissing and cuddling in the water, then drying off in the sun on our beach blanket whilst enjoying more kisses and taking selfies together, before going back into the sea for more swimming and snogging.
It was a good thing the beach was pretty deserted so other people didn’t have to keep witnessing our intense public displays of affection.
But something told me that even if the beach was packed, I wouldn’t have cared.
Whenever Romeo’s lips were on mine it was like the rest of the world didn’t exist.
There were a few times that things got very hot and heavy and in all honesty, if Romeo hadn’t raced back down to the sea to cool off, we could’ve ended up banging on the beach.
As much as I wanted to shag his brains out, part of me also liked that today it hadn’t all been about the sex. It was more about just enjoying each other and our shared love for swimming.
Romeo took me to an amazing restaurant for lunch where I had the most delicious seafood and now we’d returned to the beach for a walk.
‘I am glad that you liked the restaurant,’ he said as he took my hand and led me further down so we could walk in the sea.
‘I bloody loved it! It’s crazy how much better everything tastes in Italy. Coming here has really opened my eyes.’
‘To what?’
‘To everything. I didn’t realise until I came on this trip that I’ve been stuck in a major rut.
I’ve been in the same job for years, dated the same types of guys and made the same mistakes, but coming to the Love Hotel, visiting all of these different places, trying new things and meeting you has shown me what’s possible.
How enjoyable life can be. How much I’m missing out on. ’
And what it’s like to be with an amazing man.
‘It is easy to get stuck. Do you think you will change your job?’
‘No. Even though I’ve been doing the same job, I’m hoping to get promoted soon, so I couldn’t leave now. I wouldn’t be able to change my career anyway.’
‘If you could do any job, what would it be?’
‘I don’t know,’ I said, inhaling the salty sea air.
‘What do you like most about your current job?’
‘I enjoy the social part of it. Like chatting to people who come in for meetings or speaking to them on the phone. I like the organisational bits too, like if my boss is travelling and asks me to research places for her to go for lunch or organising the work parties and events. But I don’t get to do that as often as I’d like.
If I’m promoted though, I’ll get to do more of the events stuff, so that’s why it’s worth staying. ’
‘Maybe you could go into event planning or work at a reception for an events company?’
‘I’d love that. But you need proper experience.
That’s the problem. I know I could probably do a job like that, but it’s convincing someone to give me a chance, y’know?
Which is why it’s important for me to stay where I am because at least I’ll get the opportunity to get some experience, so if I want to move on in a few years, my CV will be stronger.
Did you have a lot of experience when you got your job? ’
‘ Sì . I had worked in hospitality and different hotels. But I did not have experience with the matchmaking side of things. But I was able to learn.’
‘Your job must be so much fun! I know you work hard, but it also must be pretty rewarding too.’
‘It is. When a couple comes together and you get messages to say they are happy and in love, it is very satisfying.’
‘Bet you were over the moon when you saw the shitshow with me and Edward unfolding. Sorry to tarnish your perfect record!’ I let out a weak laugh.
‘You have nothing to be sorry for. I knew he was wrong for you as soon as I met him.’
‘Really?’ My eyes popped. ‘Wish you’d given me the heads up!’
‘I told Victoria my concerns, but sometimes it takes time for couples to bond so we needed to be sure. Of course we had no idea that he would do what he did, but as much as I hated to see that you were hurt, I am glad that he left, because it meant that I got to spend more time with you.’
‘Same! When we get married, we can raise a toast to Edward. The devious little fucker who pissed off back to his ex, leaving the path clear for me to get with my amazing Love Alchemist who’s a billion times better.’
Romeo’s mouth lifted into a cheeky grin and I realised what I’d just said: when we get married .
Gah!
I thought I was over my putting my foot in my mouth crap.
‘I didn’t mean… I was just joking.’
‘I know.’ Romeo stroked my cheek.
‘Actually.’ I paused and turned to face him. ‘Seeing as I’ve already put my foot in it, maybe now’s a good time for us to address the elephant in the room…’ My voice trailed off.
‘Wait,’ he frowned. ‘I know that saying. That means to have a difficult conversation, right?’
‘Yep. I don’t want to sound like a needy bitch, but what are we doing?’
I felt bad for asking, seeing as he’d told me before we got together that he wanted to work at the Love Hotel in the US, but I really liked him and I needed to shoot my shot. I wanted to at least know if he felt the same way I did.
‘We are walking on the beach.’ He grinned.
‘You know what I mean.’ I rolled my eyes.
‘Honestly?’ He paused and my heart stuttered as I braced myself for his response.
‘I do not know. I did not plan for this. This situation is complicated. I know I need to keep my job and pursue my dream. But I also know that I cannot stay away from you. I have tried. But you are too hard to resist. How do you feel about everything?’
‘Pretty much the same. I need to keep my job, otherwise the last almost five years will have been for nothing and I’m so close to getting promoted.
And I have a whole life set up in London, but I like spending time with you.
’ That was the understatement of the year.
I was grateful that I hadn’t blurted out that I thought about him all the time. Or that I was falling for him.
‘I also love spending time with you. You make me happy.’
‘You definitely do that too. I swear, your cock has ruined me for life!’ I laughed.
‘So this is all about sex for you?’ His face fell.
‘It isn’t for you?’ I said, trying to play it cool.
‘No.’ His expression hardened. ‘The connection is deeper and you know it. If it was just sex, it would be much easier.’
‘Okay,’ I sighed. ‘You got me. It is more than sex, but you’re here and I’m going back to London. I just don’t know how it can work long-term.’
We both stared at each other in silence for what felt like hours but was only seconds.
‘I wish I had an answer,’ Romeo said. ‘The sensible thing to do would be to stop things now, before we get any deeper.’
‘Been there, done that, worn the T-shirt. Last time we said we’d keep our distance we ended up fucking on your boat.’
‘So we continue?’ he asked.
‘Yeah.’ I shrugged. ‘I’ve only got a few days left here, so we might as well. And after that, well. I guess we have to cross that bridge when we come to it.’
‘ Sì . So until then, we just enjoy every moment of our time together. Agreed?’
‘Agreed.’
I knew it wasn’t the best solution, but right now, it was all that we had.
Romeo had said that we should live in the moment, and as he leant down to kiss me and I melted into him, I knew that was exactly what I intended to do.