Chapter 30
Chapter Thirty
Flora
Waking I noticed that the space next to me in Maurizio’s bed was empty and only the tiniest amount of warmth resonated meaning he hadn’t been there for a while. I checked the time and saw it was a little after seven. Not late, but still something of a lie in for me on a weekday.
Looking around, I wondered what I should do.
Was this going to be awkward? It hadn’t been last night, but that was then .
. . and this is now. There was a severe lack of my clothing in this room, however, there was a t-shirt of Maurizio’s, but could that be the catalyst for awkwardness to descend, me strolling into the kitchen wearing his t-shirt, reminding us both that last night had really happened.
Moreover, would it force our hands in addressing what happened in the cold light of day and whether either of us regretted it?
As I considered all of these questions and possible answers, I realised that no matter how amazing the sex between us had been, and it had been absolutely phenomenal, it could be our undoing once reality struck.
What had I been thinking when I had all but begged Maurizio to fuck me?
I hadn’t been thinking, not with my mind anyway.
I needed the bathroom and then I should get dressed, fully.
Leaping from the bed, I made the short dash to Maurizio’s bathroom where I was startled to find my face reflected back in the mirror.
My hair was all over the place, my eyes looked wide and sparkly .
. . jeez, I looked stoned, not that I had a point of reference for that, and my lips looked a deeper shade of pink and swollen.
I’d never really thought lips could become kiss swollen but they really were.
Sitting down on the toilet, I let out a cry as my inner thighs tightened and throbbed.
“Shit! He’s broken me.” I laughed at myself thinking that if I had to be broken, there was no better way for it to happen.
Coming face to face with my reflection once more, as I washed and dried my hands, I looked at my naked body that carried some finger marks where Maurizio had gripped and held me. I needed to get dressed and stop reliving the feel of his touch and kiss.
Re-entering the bedroom, the doubts and possible fall out of sleeping with my boss began to infiltrate my mind again.
There was no reason why I couldn’t go back to my own bedroom where all of my clothes were and then I’d go downstairs like I did every other morning, but in the meantime, I needed not to be caught wandering around the house naked.
Grabbing Maurizio’s t-shirt, I threw it on from my position now sat on the edge of the bed.
I prepared for the walk of shame, albeit from one end of the house to the other when I almost leapt from the bed at the site of Maurizio opening the door, looking like he should be on the cover of a magazine wearing just a pair of grey joggers and carrying two cups of something steaming.
“Oh, you’re up.” He sounded disappointed.
“I was going to get dressed.” I heard the nervousness in my voice.
“I thought we could spend a little time together . . . I made tea.”
He offered me a cup before rounding the bed and climbing in.
Following his lead, I moved until I was sitting up in bed next to him. I sipped my tea and felt stifled by the awkwardness I’d feared might descend.
“I called Bea and gave her the day off.”
“Oh.” I hadn’t considered Bea arriving for work, not even when I thought about going downstairs in Maurizio’s t-shirt.
This really had the potential to implode.
Bea may not be here today, but when I did see her, how the hell was I going to face her?
No, that wasn’t it. it was more that I feared she’d take one look at me and know that I’d slept with our boss.
“Well, the children won’t be back until this evening so there seems no point in her being here, plus, as I said, I was hoping we could spend some time together.”
I turned to face him, wanting to give him a get out from this . . . whatever this was, but when I saw his handsome features, I wanted to simply lean in and kiss him, pull him to me, feel his skin against mine before getting lost in his touch.
“Flora.” My name was a gentle whisper on his lips. “Are you okay? About last night . . . do you regret it? Want to forget it, or at least pretend it didn’t happen?”
I opened my mouth, desperate to assure him that I had no regrets, but before the first word left my mouth, he spoke again.
“I don’t. I certainly could never forget it. I don’t know that I can pretend it didn’t happen either . . .” His voice trailed off.
Placing my cup down, and turning so we were looking at each other, eye to eye, I considered my words. “I don’t want to forget it. It was more than I imagined it might be, but I don’t want it to be awkward, for either of us, nor the children and Bea.”
He nodded. “Neither do I, but I don’t want it to stop.”
I stared at his expression, wondering what he meant by it.
“No! I don’t mean sex! I mean I do, but not just sex. I’d like us to get to know each other better, but the children need consistency. Sorry—”
I cut him off. “I know, and they have to come first. Can we agree to be discreet then? I have no desire to be seen as someone on the make or to become the stereotype of ‘the nanny who falls for the handsome single dad’.”
His grin was unmissable. “As you’re the nanny, that would make me the handsome single dad.”
I laughed. “I suppose it would.”
“And you’re the beautiful nanny, not just the nanny. So, we’re going to do this, us?”
I nodded.
“With discretion, on both our parts?”
I nodded again.
“Then let’s seal the deal . . .” Maurizio leaned in, one hand cupping my chin, drawing me closer until our lips met, “. . . with a kiss.”
From that kiss to seal the deal, we had ended up making love before showering and dressing and now we were driving in Maurizio’s car, heading into town.
“Don’t you have work?”
He frowned. “A little, but there was something I needed to do first.”
“With me?”
His responding nod caused me to flush as I wondered if him doing me was in fact the thing he’d needed to do.
A short laugh followed. “Flora, I needed my fill of you this morning, I can’t deny that, and seeing my finger marks on your skin, only made me want you more, as did your begging to be filled by me, but that wasn’t the actual thing I was referring to.”
“Oh. Well, that’s not at all awkward, is it?”
He smiled across at me and reached over to give my knee a gentle squeeze. “Let’s grab some food and then I’ll tell you why we’re out and about this morning.”