Chapter 21 - Stefano
“What do you have planned for your birthday?” Darya asks as she slides onto my lap.
I run my hand from her hip to her thigh. “I wanted to ask you to join me on a little outing. But also, I didn’t tell you it was my birthday. How did you find out?” I ask with a chuckle, remembering that I almost missed hers.
“Brains and beauty,” she laughs. “I saw your birthday on our marriage certificate.”
“That is smart of you. And you are definitely beautiful.” Her body feels so good against mine. I pull her closer and turn her face to me.
She looks up at me with those beautiful bright blue eyes of hers and I remember a time when all I could do was long to be near her.
I press my lips into hers and kiss her slowly.
I still can’t get over how perfect she is.
“So,” she says, leaning back. “Where are we going for this little outing?”
“You know how I like to keep it a surprise when I take you out. We can get up early tomorrow morning, go for breakfast, and then you will just have to wait and see,” I grin.
She smiles back at me, and I can’t take my eyes off her luscious lips.
“I will just have to wait and see, then.”
***
On the morning of my birthday, we are sitting at a gorgeous cafe overlooking a botanical garden. Both of us push aside our finished breakfast plates and Darya picks up her coffee, holding it in her long, elegant fingers.
I want to show her that her marriage to me can be a really good one. I know she comes from an incredibly wealthy family, where she probably had everything her heart desired in the blink of an eye.
I have not been as lucky, and I have worked damn hard for what I have. My family was wealthy but nowhere close to hers.
When my parents passed away, I was left with a number of properties, and on top of that I have worked hard to buy many more.
I want to take her on a tour of my most beautiful properties to show her that I am capable of giving her the life she deserves and is used to. I want to show her the wealth in them and let her know that financially she will be taken care of in every way.
I can afford to keep a Dubrov as my wife, and I plan to make it clear to her.
“Are you ready?” I ask when she finishes her coffee.
“I am excited to find out where we are going,” she smiles with a sparkle in her eyes.
I stand up and hold my hand out towards her. “Then I won’t keep you waiting.”
***
We arrive at my first property, and she climbs out of the car with wide eyes.
“Oh, it’s beautiful,” she exclaims as I lead her towards the entrance.
I want her to see the wealth.
“This one was one of them that I inherited.”
I lead her into the mansion, and she roams around, running her fingers along the old hand-carved stone fireplace. She takes her time admiring the details I did not expect her to even notice.
“Who designed this house?” she asks.
“My great-great-grandfather had it designed and built for his wife. It was their first home, and he wanted to impress her.”
“I bet she loved it. Was this stone piece custom-made for them? I have never seen anything more beautiful.”
“It actually was. On a trip to Italy, they met with my great-great-grandfather's family and his wife learned that one of his brothers was a stone smith. She asked that he be flown in to make this piece for her because she wanted it to have meaning behind it.”
“That is so incredibly special.” She smiles this beautiful warm smile.
At the next house, Darya seems fascinated by the artwork on display.
“Whose collection was it? Whoever it belonged to, they must have had a rather big passion for it. They have chosen the most gorgeous pieces.”
“It was my father’s, actually. My real father. He loved art. When my mother married him, he built an art studio for her because she loved to paint. Some of these pieces were done by my mother, especially for him.”
“Oh my word, that is so romantic.”
I am so surprised to have her asking me more about the history of each house rather than anything else. She cares about who lived here, if they had children, were they married, what did they love doing—she has brought up memories in me about my family that I didn’t even know were still floating around in my head. This day was meant to be my way of trying to show her that I can provide for her, but instead she is learning all about my family and where I come from. She is loving it. She hasn’t stopped smiling and keeps asking more and more questions.
“I think your grandmother and my grandfather would have gotten on really well. My grandmother had a passion for sculptures as well. Especially bronze. I mean, they were a nightmare to move because they weighed a ton, but she was obsessed with collecting them. The entire house was filled with them. When we were little, we used to play hide and seek in between all of the strong and unusual figures.” She laughs.
“My grandfather would have killed me if I ran around his sculptures. He used to chase me out with one of his old swords and terrify the living daylights out of me. He thought it was hilarious, I thought I was going to get a good ass whooping.” I chuckle, remembering my childhood.
“Did you ever get lonely growing up without more siblings? I know you have Chiara, but that was only later in life.”
“Yes, and no. I was a loner, even back then. I used to live a lot in my head. I don’t know—maybe I wouldn’t have been if I had some brothers to roughhouse with.”
“Ugh, don’t even get me started on brothers roughhousing. I have too many brothers, and they used to taunt me and tease me all the time. Of course if anyone else teased me, they would stand up for me—because only they had the right to give me shit. I wouldn’t trade it for anything, though. They all mean the world to me.”
“I am only just starting to learn the value of having someone who is there for you. After always having to fend for myself, maybe I started putting walls up to make sure I protected myself. Anyways. Life is full of lessons.”
She looks over at me with a softness in her eyes that pulls me towards her.
I honestly did not expect my day to go like this.
I thought I would be proving my worth to her, but instead, we shared stories about our childhoods and our lives. She was far more interested in the history of each property than she was the value of it. She is down to earth, beautiful and kind.
I reach out and brush my fingers over her face.
“What do you want to do for dinner, baby girl?”
“It’s your birthday, I think you should decide.”
“I was never too big on celebrating my birthday—I guess I didn’t have that big family you had, so it wasn’t really a big deal.”
“Fine. I will decide. And for the record, from now on your birthday will be a big deal. It’s a celebration of the day you were born, and I, for one, am pretty happy that you were.” She giggles and takes my hand, leading me out of the house towards the car.
“Give me the keys,” she says.
I freeze in horror. “I don’t think—"
“Stef—give me the keys.”
I hesitate, with a million thoughts, worries and fears running through my mind before I eventually hand her my car keys.
She throws me a look that says how rude. But she is grinning.
I climb into the car and sit uncomfortably in the passenger seat. I don’t think I can remember a time when I let any women drive me around before this.
She pulls out into the road, getting used to the breaks and where the car takes. My shoulders are so tense, I feel rigid in my seat, and I can’t help but grip the door handle to the point my knuckles turn white. She glances over at me and laughs loudly.
“Will you calm down? I have been driving for years.”
“Mmhmm.” I breathe, trying to calm myself down.
But within fifteen minutes, I can see she actually handles herself really well behind the wheel. In fact, I might even say I am impressed, as she drives better than some of the drivers I have hired in the past.
I am visibly more relaxed when she glances over at me again.
“Don’t look so shocked. Remember, I grew up with brothers—all of them taught me how to drive.”
I nod, laughing now, too. “I should have known. So where are you taking me?”
“I think it’s my turn to keep secrets until we get there.”
I don’t have to wait too long before I find out.
First Darya stops at the drive through and orders us each a burger and fries. She chooses the mint milkshake and I opt for a chocolate one. Then she heads way up the side of the mountain and finds the most beautiful lookout point, so that we can eat dinner and watch the sunset from the best viewpoint in the city.
I thought she was going to take me to some overpriced, overrated restaurant, but this—this is the best thing she could have done for me.
I scoot closer to her on the bench where we are sitting, wrapping my arm around her waist and pulling her against me.
“I think I had the perfect birthday,” I say, staring into her eyes, wondering what else I am going to learn about her beautiful soul as I get to know her.
“You think?” she tilts her head and smiles mischievously.
“Yes, I think I did.” I laugh.
“Well, I was thinking that there is no one around here, and maybe there is one more thing we should do before we head home?”
She turns herself and climbs into my lap, pulling her dress over her hips.
“How can I ever say no to you?” I growl, pulling her hips forward and pressing my cock against her.
“I’m your wife. I think you would be breaking the unwritten code of being a husband if you were to say no to me,” she whispers.
“Well, I wouldn’t want to be in trouble, so I guess I have to do what you say then.”
I press my lips against hers while her hands roam around my body.
She pulls my pants open, raising her hips, and then lowers herself back down with my cock gliding into her.
A low rumbling sound escapes my throat as I tilt my head back, feeling her pussy lock over me.
I love her spontaneous nature, and this naughty side of hers.
I haven’t actually found anything I don’t like about her.