Arrhythmia (24 page)

Enough was enough. This plastic bitch needed to learn once and for all that this man was not available.

Because he belonged to me!

Without giving it another thought, I walked over to Desiderio and tenderly placed my hand between his shoulder blades. He looked at me in surprise. That meant he hadn’t noticed me behind him. Knowing this encouraged me even more.

“Hey, I just wanted to say bye. Oh hi, Steffi,” I said in a cheerful, mellifluous voice. I stroked Desiderio’s back in an intimate way and gave him a loving look. “All right
,
then, darling, see you later, OK? I’m looking forward to it.” As a finishing touch, I got on my tiptoes and gave him a kiss on the mouth.

All he was able to utter was, “Yes, see you later,” before I walked down the hall and turned the corner.

Sandra was so shocked that she forgot to follow me. She was most likely still standing in the hallway with her mouth gaping open. Just like Reinmann. And most of all, Steffi.

I giggled to myself as I danced across the parking lot.

Yes, if you were rich, you could live like a king. But the horrified look on Steffi’s face was simply priceless.

Chapter 28

I nervously strode across Desiderio’s front lawn toward his house. Now, after the initial euphoria had subsided, my actions seemed rash and foolish. I had basically reacted on impulse without considering the consequences. And then I had left the poor guy to his fate, which included Sandra and Reinmann in addition to the bimbo. I was sure that those two, once they’d recovered from their shock, had descended on him like vultures for whatever scraps of information that they could get.

I wasn’t sure how Desiderio would have handled the situation.

Just a few hours earlier, I’d made it clear to him that I didn’t wish to publicize our relationship, so he must have been caught completely off guard. Surprise had been written all over his face.

But was it positive or negative surprise?

I had been asking myself this question all afternoon. I had expected an angry call or text message asking me what in the world I’d been thinking. But my phone had stayed silent, and I did not want to be the one to call, because I was, well, chicken.

But if he really was angry, he would have called, right?

I would have. Or I imagined I would.

I felt full of unease when I rang the bell and spent what seemed like an eternity waiting to be buzzed in.

Was it taking such a long time because he wasn’t sure he wanted to see me?

I was beginning to despair when I heard the longed-for buzz. Relieved, I opened the door and slipped into the house.

“Lena?” I heard him call from the kitchen.

“Yes?” I called back.

Desiderio’s head peered into the hallway. “You’re early,” he complained.

“Huh, my watch says exactly six,” I replied with a frown.

“Oh man, that means I’m too slow,” he groaned. When I started to walk toward him, he shouted, “No! Don’t budge!”

His head disappeared again. I listened in astonishment and stayed put. Frantic clattering sounds were coming from the kitchen.

Is that sautéed onions I smell?

I scratched my nose.

Yes, definitely the smell of onions being browned. That could only mean someone was cooking.

He was cooking for me!
Oh my God, how sweet . . .

There was a clanking sound and then a heartfelt Italian curse.

“Everything OK?” I inquired.

“Yes!” he warbled. “Almost done!”

“Take your time!”

I leaned against the wall with a smile. Judging by the sounds, Desiderio wasn’t exactly an experienced cook, which made it even more endearing. This also meant that he wasn’t upset with me, which was a profound relief.

The door to the dining room swung open and Desiderio appeared, beaming.

“Welcome, madam,” he said with a charming bow. “If you please?”

Like a small child at Christmas, I stepped toward him. He took my hand with a smile and kissed it lightly. “I apologize for making you wait so long.”

“Not a problem,” I assured him with flushed cheeks.

After all, I’ve been waiting my whole life for you,
I added silently, scaring myself.

Desiderio led me into the dining room. I was speechless.

The light was dimmed. The table was set festively with white tableware and silver cutlery. A massive candlestick stood in the center of the table and cast a warm light over the china. There was soft classical music in the background. A fire was crackling in the fireplace to round out the atmosphere.

It was nothing if not perfect.

Just like the man gallantly pulling out a chair for me so that I could take a seat.

“Red wine?” asked Desiderio.

I only nodded, still speechless. He filled the big glasses while still standing and then silently disappeared into the kitchen, only to return a few seconds later with a steaming china bowl.

“Recommendation of the house,” he said and placed the food between our plates. “Spaghetti al salmone—my nonna’s recipe.”

I could not stop marveling at everything. Spaghetti with salmon cream sauce, typically Italian and prepared according to his grandmother’s recipe. Wow.

Desiderio sat across from me and raised his glass.

“To a beautiful evening,” he toasted with glistening eyes.

When our glasses made a quiet ping as they touched, I finally found my tongue.

“Desiderio, I’m really impressed. This is all . . . awesome,” I gushed, less than creatively. He seemed pleased anyway.

“I hope you like it. Because I’m not exactly an experienced cook.”

“Something that smells this good has to taste good too,” I opined profoundly while he was heaping pasta on my plate. “Oh, this looks fantastic.”

He grinned proudly. I reached for my fork but stopped for a moment.

“I’m really happy about the candlelit dinner,” I began cautiously, “because I really didn’t know how you would react to my performance this afternoon. I don’t quite know myself what got into me, and I didn’t mean to . . .”

“Blindside me?” He tried to help me.

“Uh, well, yes. Exactly. I didn’t mean to blindside you with . . . with this thing? Yeah, with this thing.”

“And what thing are you talking about exactly?”

No idea! How am I supposed to know?

I looked around the room helplessly, as though I might find inspiration there. Too bad there was none to be found.

Finally, Desiderio delivered me from my misery by saying, “Granted, you did catch me a little off guard, but I think it’s terrific that you made our relationship public like that.”

Right there! There it was, the R word! And it clearly came from his lips!

So why was I going straight into a minor panic?

Because you are a hopeless sissy!

True. But what was I afraid of?

Well, that’s the question, isn’t it?

Stupid inner voice. I couldn’t rely even on that.

Thank goodness, Desiderio did not have any inkling of the momentary chaos in my head. He merrily went on, “I can only tell you again what I told you this morning, and that is, as far as I’m concerned, the whole world can know about it. After all, I haven’t fought for you for so long only to conceal my victory now.” He winked at me mischievously, and I was only moderately indignant. “Although it has to be said that it was a little wicked of you to leave me at the mercy of Sandra and Reinmann.”

“Yeah, that wasn’t nice.” I wrinkled my nose.

“You have no idea! Those two are more sensationalist than a whole horde of journalists. But since I made it out alive, I’ll forgive you. And now let’s eat before the food gets cold, or I’ll have burned my hand cooking in vain.”

I laughed with relief and quickly tasted his creation.

“Mmmm, this is heaven!” I sighed ecstatically.

And I wasn’t just talking about the pasta.

After our meal, I sat on my chair, placid and well sated.

“Oh my God, I think I’m going to burst,” I complained and demonstratively held my stomach.

“I do have to say that you can eat like a real Italian.” He smiled. “That’s a good thing, because there is nothing more insulting to an Italian cook than not finishing your meal.”

“Oh yes, I remember.” I thought for a moment and then said, “
Il cibo era fantastico. Grazie per questo
.”

“Solo per te, mia cara,”
he answered happily.

I emptied my wineglass and started to stack the dishes.

“No, no, let me.” He jumped to his feet, piled the china precariously, and went to the kitchen.

Feeling a little lost, I grabbed the two wineglasses and followed him anyway.

As soon as I entered the kitchen, I almost fell over. “Gee whiz, what happened here?”

Desiderio stood in the midst of the chaos of dirty pots and pans. The number of dirty utensils could easily have been used to cook five meals.

“Well, now, I did tell you that I was no pro,” he tried by way of explanation.

I sighed and stepped over to the dishwasher. “All right, we’ll start here.”

“No!” he shouted quickly. Then, a little calmer, he added, “I don’t want to spend our beautiful evening washing dishes.” He came over to me, placed his arm around my waist, and whispered into my neck, “I’ll take care of this tomorrow.”

“Oh, come now,” I protested. “We’ll have this done in no time. In any case, it’ll take half the time if we both do it. And I need to move a little bit, as full as I am.”

He tenderly stroked my stomach. “That’s good because I have this idea . . .”

“And what might that be?” I asked, allowing my head to sink backward into his shoulder.

“What would you think of going for a little swim?”

“Now? Isn’t it a little cold?”

“Heated, remember?”

“Oh. But I have no—” I stopped as I realized that he knew full well that I had no bathing suit with me. “Ah, aha!”

“But only if you want to.”

I pretended to be thinking about it, although my mind was firmly made up. Finally, I acquiesced. “OK.”

“Terrific!” He excitedly kissed me on the cheek.

“It’s pretty amazing that you get me to undress every night,” I quipped.

“For real? I hadn’t noticed.”

Sure . . .

He released me from his embrace. “There’s a bathrobe on the bed for you. I’ll see you outside.”

Of course there was a bathrobe for me. Because he’d known very well that I would disrobe for him again.

Really quite presumptuous, this rascal!

I grinned to myself as I went upstairs to his bedroom. As promised, a neatly folded terry-cloth bathrobe was lying on the bed. And that was not all. Next to it were a large towel and a pair of pink flip-flops in just my size.

Fascinating.

I tied my hair in a ponytail, changed, and then went downstairs with mixed feelings. I cautiously stepped on the patio and into the night.

It wasn’t just the fall temperatures that made my entire body shiver. It was more the feverish anticipation of what awaited me.

The sight of the landscaping temporarily distracted me. I walked around marveling at the stone tiles, which were illuminated on both sides with small lamps. The large pool had built-in lights, and its turquoise shimmer looked inviting. The warm water created light wafts of mist that rose above it and gave the scene a mysterious charm. In front of the pool, the stony path grew wider and became an expansive sitting area with two teak loungers. The entire area was surrounded by tall shrubs whose blossoms were still trying to fight the fall chill.

My goodness, I couldn’t wait to spend whole days out here in the summer feeling the sunshine on my stomach.

Though that’s not until next summer . . .

That thought released the all-too-familiar butterflies in my stomach. I noticed a bathrobe on one of the loungers. Desiderio had beaten me out here.

A wide set of steps led into the pool. Directly next to it on the right was a small separate area: the hot tub.

Awesome!

I heard some light splashing and scanned the wonderfully illuminated pool. Desiderio glided through the mist in my direction, his glistening eyes firmly focused on me. My breath instantly became more rapid.

He waded out until the water only reached his navel, lingered a good distance in front of the steps, and watched me expectantly.

I faced the significant problem created by the fact that, although neither of us was wearing a bathing suit, he had the distinct advantage of already being in the water.

One corner of his mouth rose slightly when I firmly returned his gaze and slowly untied the belt of my bathrobe. I confidently allowed the material to slip off my shoulders and calmly stepped toward the pool. I had no problems with my body, but Desiderio had a look in his eyes that threatened to derail me. He looked at me as though I were an invaluable object that he coveted above all else.

I descended the steps into the wonderfully warm water like a queen. The bottom of the pool sloped gently. I silently approached Desiderio without taking my eyes off him. When I had almost reached him, I stopped and waited for his next move.

We looked at each other for a long time without saying a word as soft waves gently whirled around my waist.

“Lena, you are too beautiful to be compared with anything in this world,” he eventually said, piercing the silence and, at the same time, my soul.

“Are you trying to seduce me, Desiderio?” I asked softly, my voice quavering slightly.

“Perhaps,” he replied calmly. “Did it work?”

It took me a moment to answer. “Yes,” I said breathlessly.

He carefully placed his hand near my face as though he were afraid of breaking it. Then he tenderly lifted my chin with his index finger and bent down to kiss me.

I was overwhelmed by an all-consuming desire as his hand caressed my throat, between my breasts, and farther and farther down. He lowered himself under the water and stopped just below my navel as though he didn’t know which way to go from there. I let out a disappointed sigh when his hand moved sideways to my hip and he emerged from the water. His eyes glistened darkly, and his expression told me that he knew how much I wanted him. As his fingertips made their way up my spine, I could no longer control myself.

I fell against him, kissing him like I wanted to devour him. He immediately returned my passion. He pulled me forward until we both lost our footing and were floating in the water, exploring and caressing each other.

He tasted so good, so unique. He was everywhere. My head had lost all reason. My brain was steered only by the thought of feeling him.

Desiderio did his name justice . . .

I greedily explored every single immaculate part of his body. Without shame or embarrassment.

My goodness!
I suddenly thought before I was gripped by pure desire.

I was ready.

I could no longer wait.

“I want you,” I sighed into Desiderio’s ear. “I want you now.”

He looked at me. His eyes were burning with passion.

“Please,” I pleaded as I writhed in his arms.

Finally, he released me from my anguish.

It was indescribable to feel him inside me. We were as close as any man and woman could ever be.