19. Jax
NINETEEN
jax
I sat on the steps of the Duomo watching tourists, and maybe some locals, make their way lazily through the piazza. Unlike last night, when I’d had to fight my way through the crowd to get back to the hotel, this morning’s pace was less frantic. Certainly less crowded. By Italian tourist town standards, it was still early in the morning, even though back home, I’d have been up and working for hours now.
Some meandered into the bakery on my left. Others sat with their cappuccinos at small tables in front of two of the open restaurants that served breakfast. And still others walked up to the counter at the cafe to my right to get their espresso fix.
Italians, Sicilians especially, loved their espresso.
And I loved the fact that Natalie and I weren’t at odds for a change. Just the opposite, in fact. After our changing room escapade, we spent the rest of the night drinking and generally enjoying each other’s company. Agreeing not to talk about the land, after a pair of incredible orgasms, did wonders for our relationship.
Careful with that word, Jax.
The only awkward moment, besides the two hours she ignored me when I arrived, came at the end of the night. Natalie was staying with some of her friends in a rental house on the edge of town, and I’d have loved to ask her back to my hotel. But we were both pretty wasted, and that wasn’t how I wanted our first time together to go down.
Because there was no doubt about the fact that Natalie and I would be together this weekend. That wasn’t wishful thinking on my part, either. When we walked from the beach back into town, before she left with her friends, Natalie leaned into me and whispered, “I cannot wait for you to fuck my brains out, Jaxon Hayes.”
With that, she walked away, turning back once to wink at me. Was she drunk? Yes. Was she also serious? I hoped so.
I looked at my phone. The last message was from an hour ago when Natalie had texted to ask if I had breakfast plans. She was only five minutes late, but it was enough for me to wonder if she’d changed her mind.
But then I spotted her.
Emerging from a side street in the opposite direction from the way I’d come, she wore wide-legged pants, a tank top, and a baseball hat. I’d never seen her in a hat before but liked the look. Hell, Natalie would look good in just about anything she wore.
I stood up as she walked up to me.
“Tell me I’m not the only one with a splitting headache?”
“Water and aspirin before bed. Feeling fine. I take it you’re not?”
“Negative.” She turned to the bakery on the corner. “We’ve gotten pastries from there and brought it back to the house. But I haven’t eaten anywhere else this early.”
“How about that place?” I asked, pointing to unoccupied tables right in the center of the piazza in front of a cafe.
“Looks good to me.”
We sat and ordered two Americano coffees. I added a water for Natalie’s sake.
“Frizzante or naturale?” the waiter asked.
“Naturale, grazie,” she said to him. Then to me, “Good call.”
Neither of us said anything for a few seconds. Natalie sighed. “This is weird.”
“Is it?”
“Yeah.”
“Why?”
“Um, were you in that changing room last night?”
“I can assure you,” I said as the waiter put our coffees down. “I was very much there. Grazie.”
“Prego,” the waiter responded before moving on.
“Not to mention what I said at the end of the night.” She made a face that had me smiling like a fifteen-year-old wet under the ears.
“So you remember that?”
“Oh yeah, distinctly.”
“Good,” I said. “I very much look forward to fucking your brains out, Natalie.”
She nearly spit out her coffee. I, on the other hand, took a sip as if I’d asked her what she thought of the lovely weather that morning.
“Jesus. Talk about blunt.”
“As if we’ve been anything else from the start.”
“True. So now that that’s settled...” She took a sip of coffee. “What the hell do we talk about if we can’t bring up you-know-what?”
“Maybe start with that bad relationship you mentioned. Asshole ex and all of that.”
“Oh boy. We’re really diving in this morning, I guess.”
We dove in deep. Not only did she tell me about the ex, but we talked about our other past relationships. We talked about college, times we were stupid. Things we would do over and aspirations for the future. We ate croissants, drank copious amounts of coffee, and watched as the waiter began to serve slices of pizza and wine in place of pastries and coffees.
I could have stayed there all day sharing stories with her. Without the inlet sale stymieing us, conversation flowed. Until there was an unusual pause between us and our gazes locked. I was pretty sure Natalie was also thinking about last night.
Pretty soon, I’d have to actually stand up, so instead of going down that path, I addressed the first part of the night instead.
“Were you ever planning on talking to me yesterday?”
“No,” she said immediately, making me laugh.
“Not for the entire trip?”
“Maybe. I dunno. Probably not.”
At least she was honest.
“But I can’t say any more without bringing up the topic.”
A part of me wanted to break the rule. To tell Natalie that I’d gotten a purchase agreement from the Trust that morning, though she likely knew that already. To ask her why she was really so resistant to the land purchase, especially if she could keep her rowing program there for the summer. But that would essentially ruin all the headway we’d made, so I kept my mouth shut.
“What do you think about moving a bit? Do you have time?” I asked instead.
“Sounds good,” she replied, looking at her phone. “I have to be back around four to get ready. A bunch of us are meeting for aperitivos before the rehearsal dinner. Want to join us?”
“Sure. What’s the plan?”
Having paid the check already, we got up from our seats and strolled the streets. We talked about plans for the night and the fact that everyone at the wedding was invited to tonight’s rehearsal dinner at a sea-view restaurant on the edge of town.
I waited outside as Natalie ducked into a shop until I heard my name. When I went inside, her baseball hat was replaced by a wide-rimmed sun hat.
“Whatya think?”
“I like it,” I said.
“It’s probably impractical. I can’t imagine wearing it back home ever.” She paused for a minute and then put it back. I immediately picked it back up and took it to the register. Once purchased, I handed it to her. “Doesn’t matter if it’s practical or not. You like it, so enjoy.”
She put it back on, sticking the baseball hat in the bag.
“Thanks,” she said as we left the small shop. “You know, I had you pegged completely wrong that first day.” As we strolled the cobblestone streets, she continued. “I thought you were a cocky son of a bitch.”
“You don’t think so anymore?” I teased.
“Jury’s out.”
“Hmmm. I see.”
It went much the same for the rest of the day. Between gelato and shopping, Natalie helping me pick out souvenirs for my mom and nieces; we acted very much like a couple. With one glaring exception.
Knowing she’d be leaving to get ready soon, I nodded toward an alleyway that I’d discovered yesterday when finding my bearings. It led, as many paths did here, to the back of a line of buildings that overlooked the sea. We walked toward the railing, and Natalie’s expression as she looked out to the clear blue-green water was one I’d never forget. The woman truly did love nature, and I’d somehow never appreciated how much until that very moment.
There were a few other tourists milling around, but I didn’t care. I’d been wanting to touch her all day, but holding her hand hadn’t felt right. We weren’t a couple. But that didn’t mean my desire to be closer to her was one I felt like ignoring any longer.
Moving next to her, I put my hand on Natalie’s waist.
Peeling her eyes away from the sea, she watched as my head leaned toward her. When our lips touched, it was as different from last night’s kiss as possible. This one was slow and sensual, our tongues touching but not demanding.
It was the most dangerous sort of kiss.
Drunk on the Sicilian sea and Natalie’s lips, I knew this was a kiss that hinted at more than just a romp in the sack. Or, as Natalie put it, fucking each other’s brains out.
“You’re laughing,” she accused, breaking the kiss.
“Maybe a little,” I admitted. My hand remained where it was, on her waist. I had no desire to move it.
“Mind telling me what’s so funny?” she teased.
“I was just thinking of the very articulate way you asked me to take you to your bed last night.”
Her smile widened. “Articulate. That’s me.”
“There’s a wild side to Miss Sunshine that I wouldn’t have guessed at first, isn’t there?”
“Maybe.”
Natalie turned toward me so my hand now sat on her hip.
“I’m trying to decipher that look,” I said as she gazed up at me. A second later, when her hands lay on my chest, the question was moot. “Ahh, never mind. I’m onto you.”
“Yeah?”
“Yeah,” I said, leaning down once again. What started as a kiss like the other quickly escalated, and unless we were willing to put on a very X-rated show right here on the street, a little cold water on this fire between us was in order.
Pulling back, I stated the obvious. “Not talking about the land is good for us.”
“Agreed. But it’s really only delaying the inevitable.”
“Which is?”
Natalie started to say something, but then stopped. “I can’t say without talking about the land.”
“Fair enough.”
If I’d wanted to douse us with cold water, mentioning the elephant in the room had certainly done it. Natalie was still smiling, but her hands dropped from my chest, and some of the lightheartedness that was between us suddenly shifted.
I was such an asshole.
Or maybe I’d done it on purpose. Not only was I becoming less sure about Natalie’s willingness to compromise on the land, but either way, my time in Kitchi Falls was coming to an end. Which was fine, except...
“So serious all of a sudden.”
It’s only going to get worse if you sleep with her.
I wasn’t a fucking moron. And I knew myself well enough to feel the difference between a woman like Natalie and, well, just about anyone else I’d dated. This...something...between us was quickly spiraling out of control. The fact that I wanted to grab her hand as we began to walk back wasn’t a good sign either.
Resisting that particular temptation, I shot Natalie a bit of honesty. “I was just thinking about when we get back.”
Natalie’s lips flattened. Clearly the thought was as distasteful to her as it was to me. “We agreed, no land talk.”
It wasn’t just the land. I was talking about what happened afterward, but Natalie misunderstood. I didn’t clarify.
“Alright, forget I said anything.”
“Isn’t your hotel the other direction?” she asked as we got back to the piazza.
“I’m walking you to your apartment.”
“I appreciate it, but you don’t have to do that. I’m quite safe.”
“I’m aware.”
Her sidelong gaze told me she understood. I wanted to be with her. And by the way Natalie looked at me, I was pretty sure she wanted to be with me for as long as possible too.
“So you’ll meet us for a pre-dinner drink?”
“Sure,” I said as we strolled down the hill, the side street lined with restaurants and shops, a bustling town center and probably one of my favorites in Sicily. Maybe all of Italy, of the places I’d been at least.
“That’s the drink place,” she said, pointing to a place with forward-facing half tables where already people were drinking as they watched passersby like us.
“What time?”
“Six. We’ll probably stay until about seven forty-five and then walk to dinner.”
“Got it.”
“Welp, there I am.” She moved toward a door that led to a rental apartment above.
“Great location,” I said.
“Tell me about it. I only wish we had a view of the sea.”
“My hotel does,” I said, not meaning anything by it. At first. But it only took two and a half seconds for me to throw caution to the wind. We were happening whether it was a good idea or not. “Why don’t you run up now and grab some stuff? That way I can take it back now.”
“Stuff for?”
I cleared my throat.
“Oh. You’re asking me to stay at your place tonight?”
“Unless you’re opposed to waking up to a view. And some Americano coffee on the balcony tomorrow morning?”
I loved the twinkle in her eyes. “Is that all you have to entice me? A sea view?”
I closed the distance between us. “We both know I have a hell of a lot more than that.” I leaned closer so only the two of us could hear and whispered, “Maybe you should bring enough for two nights. I’m pretty sure after tonight your apartment won’t hold as much appeal.”
Her breath coming noticeably more quickly, Natalie swallowed as I stood back straight. “I’m screwed, aren’t I?”
That was too easy of a softball not to hit. “I’m pretty certain you are, sunshine. In more ways than one.”