VITTORIO'S LOVER (Vittorio Series) (30 page)

Raffaele
placed his hand over hers and pressed it closer to his chest so she could feel the heavy thump of his heart. “You said I couldn’t think my way through this, but you were wrong about that,
cara mia
. You see, in order to put a name to what I feel for you, I first needed to understand
why
I felt it. What made you different from any of the other women I’ve been with? I thought I could pin it down to something specific; your enticingly lush body, the color of your eyes, the taste of your kisses, your intelligence and wit. It wasn’t until you said you loved me that I finally pieced it together.”

Jenesa looked up him with tears in her eyes. “We aren’t so very different, Raffaele,” she said softly. “
I asked myself the same questions; was it your sinfully sexy body, the sound of your voice, the scent of your skin? Or was it something less physical, like how easy it was to talk to you or your wicked sense of humor. I thought about it so hard my head was spinning and I was more confused than ever.”

“
So was I,” he grinned. “I think I tripped a fuse and shorted out my brain. It is fortunate a man’s heart is capable of functioning independently because it cleverly concluded that I was never going to hone it down to one exclusively unique quality. I love you for a million different reasons, Jenesa,” his voice grew thick. “I love every facet of your personality, every inch of your delectable body, all the little things that make you who you are, but most of all…I love you for the man I become when I am with you.”

Tears streaked down Jenesa’s
cheeks but the smile she gave him was a happy one. “You
do
love me,” she choked out.

Raffaele gathered her in his arms. “Of course I do, you silly woman.  And as soon as you stop all this foolish crying, I’m going to carry you upstairs and prove just how much
I love you.”

“Typical male,” she sniffed.  “You think sex is a cure for everything.”

“Not everything,” Raffaele laughed as he scooped Jenesa off her feet and headed for the stairs, “but it
will
cure a very immediate problem that seems to have taken on a life of its own.”

“Mmmm,” Jenesa mumbled as she trailed kisses along his neck, “sounds serious.
Do you think this is a chronic condition?”

Raffaele groaned when her moist tongue curled around his earlobe, creating a strain on his zipper that was becoming increasingly painful.
“Most definitely. Extremely persistent with a tendency to…flare up frequently whenever I’m with you.” At the bedroom door, he stopped to kiss her soundly on the lips before proceeding to the bed where he dumped unceremoniously onto the soft mattress.  “As my wife,” he shrugged his jacket off and began unbuttoning his shirt, “I shall expect you to attend to my needs on a regular basis.”

A solar blast couldn’t have generated the kind of blistering heat reflected in
Jenesa’s seductive eyes. Rising up her knees, she pushed his hands aside and shocked him by ripping his shirt open, sending buttons flying in all directions. Raffaele groaned again and sent up a quick prayer for mercy when her fingernails lightly raked over his bare chest.

“
Don’t worry,” she purred. “As your wife, I promise to fulfill all your needs. And, as your
lover
,” her hands migrated south and slowly tugged his zipper down, “I solemnly swear to attack the problem with passion and diligence.”

Raffaele
could not have been more pleased when his prayer for mercy went unanswered.