The Perfect Someday (A standalone novel ~ Book three in The Mathews Family) (31 page)

Tracy and Vincent did a quick recap of their recent discovery.
Sorrowful glimpses tosses between them, each apologizing to the other, while rehashing the story. JC’s squeals of delight mixed with awe, sounding as if she were picking out an adorable puppy or holding a brand new baby.

“I’m so happy for you guys! Hey, can I call everyone and tell them the good news?
Please? I’ll even tell them not to call and bother you. Holy shit, Momma is gonna be so happy. Lisa is gonna freak out!”

Tracy and Vincent each gave a small shrug and nod of approval. “S
ure, that would be great. Give Momma a big hug for me too.”

“
How’s the job going? And when are you coming home?” JC questioned enthusiastically, “Maybe you can stop in Malibu for a few days.”

Her question
s hit Tracy hard, nearly dropping her to the floor. Vincent’s head recoiled at the deplorable suggestion. His brows knit together and a grimacing scowl wore deeply into each fine line, contorting his face. Tracy met his eyes. She swallowed hard, pushing down the upsurge of angst growing inside. She opened her mouth, but nothing came out except a soft whoosh of air.

“Hello?”
JC said. “Are you guys still there?”

His gaze darkened
. Vincent shook his head once before crushing his mouth to hers. Tracy’s fingers gouged into his silky layers of hair, holding him to her lips. Something instinctual flourished between, an unspoken agreement. He broke the kiss, both gasping for oxygen. Heavy pants filled the razor thin space between them as he rested his forehead to hers. She nudged her nose to his.

“
Hello? Are you guys seriously making out while I’m on speaker phone?”

“Sorry,
sis.” Tracy replied, her voice breathy beneath his lips. “I don’t know when I’m coming back.”

“
Umm, that mental image is a bit too much for me right now, so I’m hanging up.” JC made a gagging sound followed by a snicker. “Call me when you come up for air. Love you.”

Vincent cupped her jaw, the tips of his fingers playing softly across the thin skin. Their eyes met and he shook his head again. “I am not letting you go this time.”

****

The following days were spent sprawled out in bed, taking long walks through the vineyard, and stealing away to the castle on the hill which they dubbed Their spot. Mesmerized by its grandeur, they wandered through the vacant property, indulging in his finest wine and each other.

She loved everything about him.
Vincent’s confidence was immeasurable, capsulated in a casual package of rational persona that Tracy could only describe as the seamless balance of perfection meant for her. She found him to be intelligent, amusing, and caring, mixed with dashes of stubbornness and determination. And on top of all his masculine sex appeal, the man was kind of old fashioned, always putting her first, in and out of bed.

Stretched out on a blanket beneath the
giant oak, tiny buds nestled against the twigs preparing for spring, they shared stories of their lives. Each of them grew up in a comfortable lifestyle, with hard work and respect acting as the backbone of their values. Like any good Italian, Vincent spoke respectfully of his mamma, praising her natural ease of engaging people. He stated that if she truly adored visitors, she would invite them for dinner and spoil them with an authentic Italian meal.

Tracy came to the realization that he and Antonio grew up very close.
Though they disagreed on many things, they were close. Vincent mentioned his father, but there was something he held back. Something disconcerting, a disappointment that lurked in his tone.

All her life, Tracy was
constantly compared to her mother. Out of mere curiosity, she asked Vincent if he took after his papa. His abrupt denial startled her.

Seeing the look of surprise plastered on her face, he explained that Antonio inherited more of their papa’s genes.

“Oh.” Understanding began to sink in. “Oh.”

“I hold much respect for my papa, as a father and for his work…”

“But?” She rubbed the tension from the blades of his shoulders.

“I
know my mamma loved him, she treasured him, but he had many mistresses over the years. It wasn’t right.”

“
Did she know?”

“
I suspect she knows, though she would never speak badly of him.”

He went on to explain that his papa used to take him to town when he was a young boy, using
Antonio and Vincent as an excuse, to see his girlfriends. Sadness sunk into her bones, sensing his pain and distress. Tracy’s parents were married twenty-five years before her daddy died and they prided their relationship, their lives, on trust and loyalty. She couldn’t imagine how hurtful and confusing it would be to be put in Vincent’s position. He continued, divulging that his papa’s weakness was the biggest thing that separated him from Antonio.

“I can accept the differences between me and Antonio. We are brothers, we argue, we disagree, we laugh.” A chiding lopsided grin formed at the edge of his mouth. “We got into a lot of mischief together when we were young.”

Tracy smiled warmly
at the images of two dark-haired boys, young and running wild, playing havoc through the vineyard.

“
Even now. The strongest bond we have ever known, our legacy, now stands as a huge wedge between us.” His smile sobered. “The biggest disagreement we’ve ever had has been about the future of the winery. No matter how it turns out, one of us is going to be wrong. Neither of us enjoy losing, especially to the other. It will take time, but we will both come to terms with the outcome. However his lack of respect for women is something I will never condone. I have to distance myself from him on a personal level. I don’t want to know about his personal life.”

The sound of his voice
thinned into a quiet warbled tone, dissipating behind the throbbing in her ears. The wheels in her brain quit functioning after he said now stands as a huge wedge between us. All the research she’d done thus far, all the figures, all the graphs, led the vineyard in one direction. A new road. A new start. He’s going to be very upset with me in a few days. Then what? Will he distance himself from me too?

“Did I say something wrong?” He loo
ped a lock of her hair around his finger. One brow bent in confusion.

She shook her head warily. “No.”

“Why do you have a sad look in your eyes?”

Tracy reached for the lobe of her ear
, rubbing it between her fingers. His eyes tracked the movement and his head tilted in question.

“
I don’t want to disappoint you.”

“Disappoint me? Nothing you can do—“

“Vincent,” she said in a rush. Her lips pressed into a tight line, wishing and wanting to hold back until she found a better answer. Though it wasn’t her fault, culpability weighed heavily on her shoulders. No matter how long she put it off, the circumstances were not going to look any brighter. Guilt took over making it impossible to contain her ramblings. “I’m not going to be able to give you the solution you are hoping for. I’m so sorry.”

The bronze coloring
leached from his face. His shoulders slumped forward as if all the air in his lungs had been deflated. She thought he stopped breathing until she saw his chest raise and lower in a quick breath.

“I’ve been working hard,
looking at every approach, trying to find another solution.” Riled by nerves, she gulped in a big breath of air, held it, and then let it go in a long puff. “I hoped that I would find a key element, something I was missing, something that would favor your ideas for the winery, but…it’s just not there.”

His eyelids closed
securely. He scrubbed his hands roughly over his eyes, shaking his head in incredulity.

“
I’m sorry, I don’t want to hurt you.”

“I thought you were referring to us.” He bit between sharp breaths.

“No, no, I was referring to the vineyard.
The market is being driven by empire-building mergers and corporate conglomerates. I don’t think it’s possible to continue without crossing the line into exporting. Remaining—”

“The only thing that will cause me pain is l
osing you again.”

As she shook her head
in apology, Vincent captured her mouth in an off-centered kiss. He wasn’t breathing well. He shoved his hands into her hair, fingers shaping to her neck, holding her to his demanding lips. She clutching at his body, crawling over him to get closer.

Wanting
to comfort him, Tracy shoved gently at his shoulders easing him onto his back and straddling his hips. Breaking the kiss, she zeroed in on the clean-shaven slope beneath his lower lip. Tracy drew the delicate curve into her mouth, stroking the spot, gently biting, magnifying the sensation. Each time she sucked, his hips ground beneath her as if an electric current shot between his lip and his groin.

Vincent’s head
dropped back, the smooth skin on his neck glistened with perspiration. She gripped his hands. Twining her fingers through his, she held them to the blanket beside his head. Her wet lips brushed against the butterfly-shaped gland at the center of his throat, lightly toying, testing the urgency in his pulse. She ran the soft flat of her tongue straight up to his Adam’s apple, massaging with circular motions.

Positioned as they were, the sun beat down on her back. Tracy shifted to one side, tugging his shirt upward so the
brightness radiated on his drum-tight abs. Shimmery pixels of dust suspended in the cool air bringing chill bumps to his skin.

H
er hands stole to his jeans, rubbing the palm of her hand over the bulge. Vincent gave a soft grunt. “Umm, Tracy.” He gurgled her name in gratitude as she unzipped his fly releasing him from the denim restrictions.

Desire
rushed through her, flowering over her skin in tingles, wanting to make him feel good. Tracy bent over him, slinking downward, placing strategic licks and kisses to the nerve-rich pleasure trail. She gripped him firmly at the base. Steadying his steely erection skyward, she stroked his skin downward, brushing her parted lips against the head. His hands tangled in her hair, applying no pressure, simply cupping her head. She took the crown into the warm suction of her mouth, learning him, tasting his essence. Heightening the sensation, she released him from the heat of her mouth, rubbing her slick wet lips over his glistening broad tip. She repeated, sinking lower, taking him deeper.

“Amore Mio, your
mouth. Yes. Don’t stop, it feels so good.”

F
ueled by the guttural sounds of appreciation, she worked him with an entirely new feeling of intoxicating satisfaction. Her hands came to his hips, thumbs drawing small circles over the V shaped dip. Vincent watched, his eyes clouded as if immersed in awe.  Tracy gave a few fast flicks with her tongue to the edge of his engorged head, setting off an amazing chain reaction. A tsunami of low moans whooshed from his chest. He lifted his head, eyes wide and warm, hands clasped tight around her head as he thrust upward. There was no force in his grasp, only caressing, giving her control.

Tracy could feel his
urgency rising in his flexing muscles, she relaxed around him, absorbing as much as possible. His hips lunged, offering more. And she took every inch, tasting his release, the essence warm and musky.

He pulled he
r to his chest, whispering soothing endearments. His hands coasted over her, lightly gripping, placing breathy damp kisses to her eyes and nose.

She offered a timid smile
. “Heavenly, absolutely heavenly. That is the name of our new flavor.”

Adoration flickered in his smile, right before
he flipped her on her back. Adjusting his knees between hers, Vincent parted her thighs, spreading until her legs fell wantonly to the blanket. Pushing her black lace panties to the side, his fingers lazily massaging her. She closed her eyes as the warmth of sunshine, beamed, radiating to the one pulsing spot.

“Feel good
, Amore Mio?”  His tone thickened, dipping two fingers inside her, pumping rhythmically with a twist.

She convulsed and squeezed, arching as the light shattered beneath her lids. Hot silk. Tracy
called out for him. The pleasurable cry of contentment echoing though the branches above.

“Absolutely heavenly,” he agreed descending downward, reaping the divine rewards.

****

In the early hours of the morning, hazy grey pushed through the window as Tracy lay in bed wide awake. Sensual incense eddied around her, filling her senses with a warm fuzzy tranquil feeling. Vincent slept soundly beside her, exhausted and content.

Staring at the ceiling, her fingers strummed mindlessly
along her ribcage, having a candid one-way conversation with herself. Tracy was happy, happier than she ever thought imaginable, but questions began to mount, seeping into her head in the quiet of the nighttime. It was obvious that she and Vincent were going to stay together. They were undoubtedly a couple. Nothing had ever felt more right in her life, but what was the next move?