Page 16 of Her Dirty Secret
It’s how Alessandro finds me minutes later, though it’s almost gone, and I’m covered in chocolate glaze.
“You look like a chipmunk,” he teases me, setting down two cups of coffee.
I chew quickly and swallow, grabbing at the cup nearest me and drinking greedily.
“Thank you,” I reply earnestly.
“For calling you a chipmunk?” he asks with a confused look.
I roll my eyes. “For the coffee, dummy.”
“Oh, I’m a dummy now, am I?” he asks.
I give him a stern look. “If I’m a chipmunk, you’re definitely a dummy.”
He shakes his head and laughs. “Fair enough,” he agrees. “But finish quickly. We’re leaving soon.”
“Ooh, where to?” I ask eagerly.
“Driving a bit up the coast to spend the day at a different beach. But same plan. Lounging. Eating. Trying to sneak away to make love to you in the ocean,” he says nonchalantly.
I wrinkle my nose at him. “We didn’t do that last one yesterday.”
He finishes his coffee, rises, and leans in to kiss me on the cheek. “Then we have some catching up to do,” he murmurs into my ear.
Shivers shoot down my spine. I bolt down the rest of my food and follow him as fast as I can. Screw looking too eager. It’s going to be a damn good day.
* * *
It turns out to be an understatement. The drive is so ridiculously beautiful, I’m practically crying by the time we get to our destination. And we spend the rest of the morning and into the afternoon lounging by the shore, playing in the water, and generally just enjoying the crap out of ourselves. After lunch, we return to the beach, where we vie for spots under umbrellas or in the shade to nap off the food coma. But it was totally worth it.
Alas, before I can drift off, Alessandro is tugging at my hand.
“Come,” he urges quietly. I let him pull me up, and we walk quietly, hand in hand, down to the water’s edge and along the shore.
Before long we pass a group of rocks. Alessandro pulls me between them, and we nestle into the soft sand, him leaning against a smooth rock, me leaning against his chest.
“If you brought me here to have sex, you’re going to be very disappointed,” I say softly. “I don’t fancy getting sand in my private parts.”
He laughs lowly. “No, Cara Mia. I just wanted you to myself for a while.”
I turn my head to look up at him, and he lightly skims my lips with his.
“Tell me about your music,” he prompts.
I huff a small laugh. “That’s a pretty broad question,” I hedge.
He shrugs, running his hands up and down my arms soothingly. “Okay,” he allows. “What was the first instrument you learned to play?”
The memory so forcefully pops into my head, I can’t help but smile. “Piano. My dad started teaching me when I was six.” A pang of longing shoots through me.
“You miss him,” Alessandro murmurs. I turn and look at him in shock. He squeezes my shoulders. “I could feel it. Here. And I can hear it in your voice.”
“I do,” I admit. “I try not to think about it much. He and I were so much alike.” I shake my head.
“Was that a bad thing?” he asks.
I tuck my legs under me, playing with the hem of his board shorts. “Sometimes. But most of the time we just had a lot of fun together. Mom and Bryce are the serious ones. They thought we were nuts.”