Claire #2
My head whipped back toward him as I scanned his expression. “Tomorrow?” I questioned as I spooned the cold gelato onto my tongue with the tiny white spoon—it was like a more decadent chocolate chip.
“Oh, do you have plans I do not know about?” He laughed, amused by my confusion.
“Well…no,” I mumbled as our hands exchanged the gelatos.
His brow raised as he whispered back, “And remember…we have a deal. You are mine for the weekend.”
I laughed, my tone filled with amusement. “Ah. See…I knew you were going to hold that over my head. I just didn’t realize it would be this soon.”
I felt his body shrug against my back as he responded, “A deal is a deal, Claire.”
He pressed a firm kiss against the back of my head. “Wait,” he said as he grabbed the small spoon from the Tartufo di Pizzo that was resting on the stone beside me. He then scooped the gelato into a small mound.
“This one is delicious. Open up.”
His lips parted as his head tilted back slightly, instructing me to do the same. Arik pressed the spoon to my lips until they cracked into a smile as I laughed. The rich flavors of chocolate and hazelnut melted onto my tongue as he licked his lips in enjoyment at the sight.
“Wow. No wonder that one is your favorite.” I swooned as my eyes closed, taking in every bit of the new flavor.
I felt his mouth press against mine—his soft tongue parting my lips gently, as a slow moan escaped from his lips.
I opened my eyes just as he pulled back, a smirk plastered across his face as he looked satisfied with himself.
My face was hot, and my jaw slacked as I stared at him, only for him to give me a wink before stabbing the spoon into the remaining dessert.
My mind wandered as I tried to calm myself. I spoke softly, cutting the tension that hung in the air. “Ya know, there’s a gelato place in my neighborhood back home. It’s called Anita Gelato. It’s like a five-minute walk, tops. The line is always insane, even late at night in the winter.”
He sounded amused as he chuckled. “Oh, really? How does it compare?”
I took another bite of the gelato and pondered, making him wait for my response. “Close second.” I turned my head toward him and smiled.
A look of pride filled his face as a satisfactory tone dripped from his words. “Good.”
We remained there, staring at the blackness of the sea that now expanded in every which way before us. String lights overhead slowly flickered on until yellow light filled the space. In the distance, soft instrumental music played as a sultry female voice singing emerged from among the silence.
I looked down with sadness at my empty dish that only had liquid remnants of the gelato left within it.
Arik grabbed the bowl from my hands, stacking the two together and tossing them into a nearby receptacle before swooping me up once again.
This time, my entire body sat within his arms as he cradled me, looking at my face with amusement as I held my hat tightly against the top of my head.
“Will you put me down?” I laughed.
His brows dropped as he looked down at me and questioned slyly, “Now, why would I do that?”
I lifted the hat from my head and playfully reached up, plopping it on top of his head as I laughed.
He looks adorable. Gorgeous. Silly. But adorable.
“Oh. Do I look dashing, love?” He laughed as he rounded out of the alleyway and proceeded to carry me through the cobblestone streets among the throngs of people.
I looked around at the onlookers staring at us. “Of course. But all these people are going to think you’re kidnapping me.”
“Maybe I am.” He smiled mischievously. “Take you back to my villa and keep you here forever. Keep you up all night. Sleep next to you all day. Fill you with the best food imaginable and the best wine money can buy. Such an awful situation to be kidnapped into.” He stared down at me, his expression radiating sincerity.
I couldn’t tell if he was joking…or telling the truth.
I rolled my eyes before taking the hat off his head and setting it on my torso as my body relaxed into his arms, arms that carried me with such ease.
I watched the stars above twinkle in the night, as smooth, romantic music filled the air.
Minutes later, we were back on the roads above the town where his SUV patiently waited.
The driver rushed from the front seat to open my door, allowing Arik to place me in the seat like a sleeping child. “Fingers and toes, love,” Arik whispered before softly closing the door between us.
Once Arik was seated next to me, the SUV pulled forward, navigating the narrow roads in the darkness until finally reaching the countryside. As I looked out the window, admiring the moonlight’s illumination of the rows upon rows of grape vines, he shifted his body closer to mine.
“What’s next?” I asked, looking up at him as his arm wrapped around my shoulder to pull my back toward his chest.
He brushed the loose waves of hair from my shoulder and pressed his chin into my neck, speaking softly into my ear, “We have a few options, but they vary depending on your answer to my proposal.”
I stammered, “Your what?”
Amusement filled his voice. “As I mentioned earlier, I am taking you to the beach. That is, if you can clear your terribly busy schedule.”
“It’s clear,” I swooned as I placed my hand upon his thigh.
“Good.” His smile beamed with pride and satisfaction. “You’re going to need your rest, so I think we'll have dinner at the hotel, and then we’ll get you to bed.”
I exhaled before nodding in agreement. My attention turned back to the scenery that surrounded us as the winery came into focus in the distance—the moonlight hitting the tall towers and trivets that peeked up from among the olive trees.
Warm lights flowed out from the windows, casting the grounds in a heavenly glow as dots of people moving cut through the light.
I closed my eyes and took in a deep breath of the breeze coming in through the driver’s cracked window, as a smile washed over my face.
I’m a different person than I was when I got here.
And this man is making me fall for him.