Hidden Heart (3 page)

She sighed as she closed
the zipper on her luggage. It didn’t take long for her to pack
since she hadn’t even been there long enough to completely
un
pack. She flipped her
laptop open and looked for possible flights back, found one at
nine-fifteen the next morning and booked her ticket. She called
Isabella and left a voice message for her, then got ready for
bed.

Thirty minutes later, Tessa
still tossed and turned in her bed thinking of Alessandro. When she
encountered him that afternoon in the sky gondola, she had no idea
she’d see him again, let alone dance with him, be kissed by him.
How could a simple kiss keep her awake all night? She pressed a
pillow over her ear, squeezing her eyes shut and willing
Alessandro’s face to leave her head. Impossible.

His kiss. Such an intense,
carnal touch that reminded her she
was
a woman, a woman that chose to
bury herself behind thick binders and work late hours to forget her
physical needs. Such a palpable attraction; all she needed was a
sign—any sign—and she’d be in his arms. Sirens went off in her
head, warning her to not fall prey to his charm, but she dismissed
them as soon as they came. Her nipples erected just thinking how
his hot mouth would feel ravaging her body.

What
if...
She jumped out of bed, swapped her
pajamas for jeans and a shirt and walked out the door.

***

“
Tessa, what’s the matter,
are you okay?” Alessandro said the second he opened the door and
laid his eyes on her.

“
I’m fine, nothing
happened,” she assured him. She squeezed past him, and could tell
she took him by surprise. Her heart hammered with such intensity,
she feared it might explode.

“
I didn’t expect to see you
again tonight; are you sure you are okay?” Alessandro measured her
from head to toe then closed the door behind her.

“
You want me to go?”
Courage drained from her voice as she realized she had acted on
impulse to come and tell him about her leaving.

“
No, no, please
stay.”

Fresh from the shower, he
held a towel in one hand. Water dripped from his hair. Pajama pants
and a t-shirt hugged his trained body. He again looked like a giant
in the small confinement of the hallway.

“
Listen, I…” she put her
hands in her back pockets and rocked on her toes.

Alessandro proceeded to
step back into the room, around her. It was then, when Tessa’s
judgment went out the window, the alarm signals silenced. She
impulsively threw her arms around his neck, stood on her tiptoes,
looked into his eyes, then to his mouth and boldly kissed him. The
taste of cool, mint toothpaste greeted her.

The kiss felt tender and
shy, almost familiar by now, that electrifying spark running
through her body. His hungry mouth sampled hers, sucking and
probing. She hugged his shoulders then stroked his hair and face,
refusing to let go when he made a slight move to free
himself.

“
You can’t do this to
me…I…you…I—”

Tessa pressed a finger on
his lips, forcing him to shut up. She didn’t want to talk. She
didn’t want to think. She closed her eyes and kissed him again. At
first innocent, tension slowly building up; the more intense their
kissing became, the more she wanted. She walked backwards toward
the bed and all she could think of was how aroused she felt and how
much she wanted him.

“
I don’t have time…make
love to me,” Tessa heard herself saying. Bold, loud, clear. Did she
just ask a man to make love to her?

Alessandro looked deep into
her eyes, catching his rugged breath. “You are driving me crazy…you
sure you want to do this?” He untied her ponytail and spread her
hair around her shoulders, massaging her skull at the nape of her
neck.

“
Hush, don’t ask
questions…I don’t want to change my mind…please…” She took hold of
his t-shirt tugging at it. In no time, it disappeared.

She took a lengthy look at
him; each one of the muscles on his arms, shoulders, chest and
stomach were well defined—any of the Greek Gods would have been
proud to have crafted a body as fine as his. She moved her hands up
and down his chest and brushed her thumbs across his nipples. His
indrawn breath filled his lungs. He let it go in a big whoosh, like
a horse ready to race.

Alessandro caught her
wrists then captured her mouth with ravenous urgency and lifted her
shirt. He cupped her breasts in both hands. Her nipples hardened
between his thumbs and index fingers; it was her turn to suck in a
deep breath. He pulled her shirt over her head, dropping it on the
floor. He stroked her breasts and placed her gently on the bed. He
lay propped on one elbow while his other hand traced her full
breasts, then down her abdomen. His exquisite touch sent shivers
down her lower belly, ending deep between her legs with a mad
throbbing. He lifted his hand and played with her hair, traced her
temple, her nose, brushing a finger across her lips. He fought for
his breath as she licked first his fingertip, then took his finger
slowly in her mouth and sucked on it.

He slipped his pants off
and lay next to her. His erection stood in full view; she didn’t
look away. His mouth moved over her abdomen, kissing and licking.
Low, gruff moans formed in her throat as his hot tongue traced her
bellybutton. He gently sucked and squeezed her breasts, nibbling at
her skin; he explored more, freeing her from her jeans, then from
her dainty lace panties. Her most feminine place waited ready for
him, damp and hot and longing for his touch. He kissed and touched
her everywhere, in a way she had never been touched before. He
discovered sensitive places she hadn’t known she had; she felt lost
and wanted nothing but to feel him inside her.

Before he positioned
himself between her thighs, Alessandro looked into her eyes and
whispered, “Are you sure about this?”

“
God, yes,” Tessa moaned,
gripping his shoulders, pushing her pelvis up, inviting him to
quench the smoldering ache inside of her. When he did, she arched
her back.

“
I’m hurting you,” he tried
to pull away, but she pressed her hands firmly on his buttocks,
looping his legs with her own.

“
Don’t…please…just let me
adjust to you,” she yelped. She took him in little by little,
matching his rocking movements.

Sweat covered their bodies.
She dug her fingernails into his finely toned back muscles. With
each thrust she cried for more, fighting for oxygen to reach her
starved lungs. She rocked beneath him with a pulsating, vibrating
need. Within minutes, her climax came with soul-shattering force,
followed by his convulsive release.

Tessa slept dreamlessly and
when she woke early in the morning, she had no idea where she was.
It hit her quickly as she felt his warm body against hers, and the
whole night’s escapade overcame her. She got up without making any
noise, dressed and left.

She went back to her room,
took a shower and twenty minutes later she asked the receptionist
to get her a cab for the airport. As she took her seat on the
plane, she replayed the whole episode in her head. She could still
feel Alessandro’s touch all over her body, a rush of adrenaline
from head to toe. She shifted nervously in her seat.
What have I done?
Tessa
questioned herself with the hollow sensation of a sinner dodging
confession. After the scene played out once again in her head,
Tessa smiled.
What have I done?
She giggled like a naughty schoolgirl.

Chapter 1 – Six months
later

Tessa
sat engulfed in her thoughts in the back seat of the cab.
Bucharest in winter looked depressing; tall, gray buildings that
haven’t had a fresh coat of paint in twenty years, all looking
identical as if designed by the same architect. Poorly paved
streets sported huge crater-sized holes. Stray, hungry dogs barked
and chased people for food. The first snow started two days ago and
it didn’t seem there would be relief any time soon.

Dark heavy clouds hung low
in the sky and the icy cold air stung the skin. Half a meter of
snow paralyzed the city, schools closed down and traffic became a
nightmare. To make things even worse, it rained briefly and the
snow melted only to be replaced by ice. People wobbled through
snowdrifts and cars swiveled and slid in a laudable attempt to
maintain direction. The air vibrated with honks as irritated
drivers yelled profanities.

The meeting with the City
Council lasted all morning and aggravated her even more than
navigating through the miserable streets and weather. But at least,
after months of negotiations, the City Council approved the
exchange.
Titan Project
Development
—the German Company Tessa had
worked with for the last ten years—would be allowed to purchase
fifty hectares of agricultural land near the International Airport
Otopeni, north of Bucharest, about sixteen kilometers from
downtown. The location was crucial for future developments of
office buildings, commercial property and residential parks. In
exchange, the German company agreed to repair and enlarge DN1, the
only road that connected Bucharest with the airport and the
northwestern region of the country.

“
Is anyone going to do
their job and clean the streets?” Tessa said as she stomped her
boots upon entering the reception area. She marched into her
office, took off her heavy winter coat and scarf, and rubbed her
hands vigorously to warm her fingers.

“
Well, you should’ve seen
the accident in downtown Bucharest last night. A truck driver lost
control, hit a tramcar that derailed and hit another car on the
right side and so on, like the domino effect,” Eva, her assistant
came in with an armful of mail. “When they interviewed the mayor he
said, ‘We didn’t expect winter to come so quickly.’ Are you kidding
me? It’s December, you idiot,” she continued while pouring a hot
cup of green tea and handed it to Tessa. They’d worked together for
several years and Tessa couldn’t imagine anyone else as her
assistant.

“
It amazes me how useless
those people are! And we keep voting for them. No wonder nothing
works in this country,” Tessa said, shaking her head. She took a
sip and burned her lips. “Ouch!” Instantly the hot liquid coated
her throat as she felt the burn all the way down in her stomach.
Something warm for the first time that afternoon.

“
Victor’s waiting for you
in his office,” Eva said and ran to answer a phone call.

“
Tell him I can’t. If he
needs me, he has to come here!” and then to herself, “Mountain
doesn’t come to Mohammad, Mohammad comes to the
Mountain.”

Ten minutes later, she
heard heavy steps down the hall and Victor showed up in her office,
breathing hard.

“
Would’ve killed you to
come to my office?” He sat and loosened his tie, a cup of coffee in
one hand, a binder in the other.

“
No. But I care for your
health and you don’t exercise enough,” Tessa smiled, continuing to
sort through mail.

“
That’s such
caca
, you know it and I
know it. And in case you
choose
to forget I already have a nagging wife at home.
Don’t need another one at work,” Victor snarled.

“
So, I’ve landed you a
multi-million dollar sale, I care for your health and in return
that’s what I get—no gratitude? Where’s the champagne?” Tessa
asked, hands on her hips.

“
I have it ready in my
office, wanted to celebrate and tell you how honored and proud of
you I am, but hey, apparently I don’t exercise enough.” He stood,
walked the few steps between them and placed his palms on her
shoulders. “Come here, kiddo, I am so proud of you!” His bear hug
left her breathless; she had to push him away.

She inhaled deeply and
grimaced. “If thanking me means killing me, then skip your
appreciation.” She lifted her hands up, as in surrender and put
space between them. “Come on, let’s go to your office and
celebrate. I’m in a hurry, we need to do it fast.”

They left her office and
walked down the hall.

“
Where are you
going?”

“
It’s late, Victor. I leave
tomorrow for the conference in Berlin. You forgot
already?”

“
Well—not sure it will
happen.” He paused and scratched the back of his head. “You can’t
go. At least not to this conference.”

Tessa stopped, looked at
him and realized he was dead serious. She’d known him for too long
not to recognize those gray furry eyebrows bridged over his
aquiline nose, lips forming a thin line.

“
You’re kidding me, right?
You know I’m on the panel. I need to go.”

He cleared his throat, took
her elbow and walked again.

“
We need to begin immediate
price negotiations and write contracts for each one of the farmers
selling us their land. Find a good notary to legalize all
contracts. By the time the paperwork is ready, hopefully our
headquarters will have the money to pay cash to each one of the
farmers.”

Tessa looked at him,
crossing her arms over her chest and trying to remain calm. “Why do
you need me for that? I write proposals, not sales
contracts.”