Serafina wiped her eyes and turned back toward the house. “Please don’t say anything to my mother about my doubts. She’s in there right now with a handful of women who are up in arms over the news of that house being torn down. I swear they’ve called every woman they know. My mother really believes in these things.” She turned her attention back to Emily, and the look of surrender in her eyes made Emily’s stomach take a nosedive.
“I swear they’re plotting a way to seize the villa.” Serafina’s voice and eyes filled with determination. “All I want is my husband back. I want Luca to know his father. But all the wishes in the world aren’t going to bring him back. It’s been too long. We’ve wished and prayed. I’ve offered my own life up for Dante’s safe return, but…but I know better.”
Emily didn’t think as she drew Serafina into her arms, her own eyes brimming with tears, and despite her doubts, the next words flowed with sincerity and her own burgeoning hope that Serafina would get lucky and her husband would return. “You have to have faith, Serafina. They haven’t found his body, so you can’t give up hope.” She felt Dae’s hand stroke her back.
Serafina pulled away, tears streaming down her cheeks. She inhaled an uneven breath. “It’s just too hard. Every morning and every night she drags me to that house. And every time…Every time without fail, I come away hopeful. So damn hopeful that I allow myself to believe that the next day will be different. That God will hear our prayers and bring my Dante home. And then hours pass, and the terrible days turn into heartbreaking nights, and—” Sobs burst from her chest. “And…then it starts all over again.”
Emily opened her arms again, and Serafina fell into them. She felt Dae’s arms surrounding them both, and for the first time since she heard about the myth, she saw the harmful effects the myth could have—and she had to wonder if it was a fair thing to hold out hope when Serafina clearly needed closure.
She’d never been more thankful for Dae’s strong arms than right at that moment. Serafina needed all of the strength she could muster to get through each day and to take care of little Luca. Dae allowed them both to suck up as much of his strength as they needed as he held them, silently offering his support. He always knew just what she needed, and once again she saw that his thoughtfulness extended beyond the woman he loved, to whomever needed it at the moment.
That realization made her love him even more.
THE AFTERNOON PASSED too fast. Dae wanted to remember every second with Emily. Every passionate kiss, every sweet glance, the way her hand felt in his, and the feel of her body tucked beneath his arm. He stepped from the shower into the steamy bathroom and tied a towel around his waist, thinking of how badly he’d wanted to shower with Emily. It had taken all of his willpower to leave her alone in her room, but after the night she’d had, he didn’t want to smother her, and then Daisy had called, and he’d given her privacy with the promise to return after his shower.
As he wiped the steam from the mirror, he wondered briefly why she hadn’t invited him to be her date for Daisy and Luke’s wedding. Then again, he hadn’t attended very many weddings and he had no idea about the proper etiquette for a maid of honor. Maybe she should be solely focused on Daisy and she shouldn’t bring a date. Another thought crept in and he didn’t like the streak of jealousy that accompanied it. Was she hesitant to introduce him to her family because she was still unsure about him despite what she’d said to him? Despite how she’d given herself to him so wholly last night and the days before? She had talked about staying out of the gossip in her hometown. Maybe that had something to do with it.
The whole thing made him a little uneasy.
A knock at the door pulled him from his thoughts. He answered the door, and his pulse roared at the sight of Emily wearing a skimpy blue halter dress so short it barely covered her panties. Her breasts pressed against the flimsy material, the points of her nipples clearly outlined. Her hair tumbled over her shoulders, and her eyes were seductively heavy. She bit her lower lip as she stepped into his room before he could manage a word. She slid her fingers beneath the edge of the towel and closed the door behind her.
“I missed you.” She pressed her lips to his bare chest, and there was no hiding his arousal as her fingers played across his chest.
Her mouth found his nipple. She licked and sucked, driving him out of his mind and making him hard as steel.
“Emily,” he whispered.
She pressed her hips to his arousal. “I don’t want to think about you leaving, or about the House of Wishes, or the women who are downstairs figuring out how to save it.” Her words were breathy as she dropped his towel to the floor. “I want to spend every second drenched in us.”
He sealed his lips over hers and lifted her into his arms. Her legs circled his waist as her back met the door, and the tip of his arousal met her hot, wet center.
“Emily,” he breathed against her lips. His heart thundered in his chest. Condom. He needed one.
“Just the thought of you standing outside my door without any panties on makes me want to come.”
He took her in a greedy kiss. Her mouth was like sweet heaven. His muscles strained with the need to be inside her. She was open, ready, willing, and trying her damnedest to slip from his grip and take him inside her.
“Condom,” he finally managed.
“I know. I just…” She pushed against his straining biceps and sank onto the tip of his arousal. “A little.”
He groaned loudly through his teeth. “You’re killing me.”
Their lips crashed together in a deep, hard kiss. He fought the urge to plunge into her, barely able to restrain himself from thrusting his hips forward. He held her by the hips against the door, more to restrain himself than her. Her hands traveled down his bare back, then back up, fisting in his hair as she tightened her thighs around his waist and nearly drew the come right out of him. She untied the top of her halter and freed her breasts, pressing them against him, swirling her hips until he was on the verge of release, moving slow and purposeful. Bringing his raging need to the precipice of exploding, until he couldn’t take it another second, could barely breathe, as he spun around and lowered her to the bed. He tore open the drawer of the bedside table and it fell from the track and clanked to the floor.
“Fuck.” He scrambled off the bed and grabbed a handful of condoms, tossed all but one to the bed.
Emily lay with her dress pushed up to her hips, bare from the waist down, her cheeks flushed, her lips swollen and red from their passionate kisses. The scent of her shower was fresh on her warm skin. He was sure his heart would seep out his pores just to be closer to her. He tore open the packet and rolled on the condom.
“I need to feel you, Em. All of you.” He slid her dress from her amazing body and tossed it to the floor. “I can’t wait. I need to be inside you.”
Her thighs skimmed his hips as he lowered his chest to hers and their bodies joined together. Buried deep inside her, he stilled, overwhelmed by the love consuming him, pulling him under. His head bowed and he closed his eyes, soaking in the feel of her hips pressed to his, the perfect pillows of her breasts against him, and her heart beating in time to his own erratic heartbeat.
“God, I love you.” The truth of his words and the depth of his feelings nearly strangled him. Even buried deep inside her, his body strained to be closer.
She grazed her fingers through his hair.
“Open your eyes,” she whispered.
He did, half blind with emotions, muscles quivering with desire. The look in her eyes nearly did him in.
“You’re no longer possibly mine. You’re not even my sure thing,” she whispered. “You’re my everything.”
He lowered his lips to hers and their bodies moved with familiarity. Her words shook him to his core, and coupled with the love he felt for her, his carnal needs took over. They pawed and stroked, fondled and thrust, devouring each other as if this time was all they had. Their bodies glistened with sweat, and the heady scent of t
heir lovemaking hung in the air as hums of pleasure coursed through them. He nearly died at the feel of her lips on his neck and the sharp tear of her teeth grazing his skin. He was lost in the softness of her fingers on his hips. The piercing of her nails as she urged him deeper. His hands slid down her curves, squeezing, wanting, finally clutching her hips, then her lean, supple thighs. He reveled in the shape and feel of her, how perfectly their bodies melded together.
“Yes, Dae,” she cried.
He hissed out a breath and couldn’t hold back another second. With one final thrust, they both spiraled over the edge.
AFTERNOON ROLLED INTO evening, spilling moonlight across the floor. The comforter lay in a heap on the floor. They’d made love, they’d dozed, they’d laughed, and they’d made love again…and again. Emily lay across Dae’s chest, her cheek pressed to his skin as she traced the line of his collarbone with her index finger. He brought her fingers to his lips and kissed them, thinking of how he knew he’d never tire of loving her.
“I can’t imagine spending hours on the plane tomorrow without you, or going to bed without holding you in my arms.” He shifted her so they were lying side by side. Emily rested her head on her outstretched arm. Her hair spilled over the sheets. He moved closer, so her breaths became his, and slid his thigh over hers. She curled her legs up, and his hand instinctively settled on her hip.
“When I come home Saturday, will you really be at the airport to pick me up? So we’ll only be apart for two nights.”
“After two long, lonely nights, do you think I’d go a minute longer than I have to without you?” He pressed a kiss to her smiling lips. “When do you go back to work?”
“After you leave, I’m going to work my way through my emails. I was thinking that—”
“Baby, baby, baby. Just because I’m leaving doesn’t mean your vacation is over. You work hard all year long. You told me that your life consists of work and your family and then more work. You deserve this break, and your clients can wait a few more days.”
“But—”
He silenced her with a kiss. “But wasn’t that your goal when you came here? To let yourself enjoy the one place you’ve wanted to go forever? Don’t rob yourself of this chance to explore and enjoy.” He felt as though he knew Emily better than she knew herself. He could picture her back in Colorado, moving through her days efficiently from one meeting to the next with to-do lists and sticky-note reminders. He pictured her smiling as she spoke to her family on the phone, meeting them for dinners, teasing and laughing, and he could even envision the adoration in her eyes when she looked at her brothers. He allowed himself to insert his own image into those visions, and it felt good and right.
He listened to Emily sigh over his suggestion of taking time to enjoy herself. He knew in his heart that she was coming to understand that he knew her better than she knew herself.
“But you worked while you were here,” she said halfheartedly.
“I, my love, did not come here for a vacation. Remember? Then I found you, and you become my world. I was committed to work while I was here. You aren’t.” He knew she hated being told what to do, so he tried to soften his suggestion. “All I’m saying is that you deserve more than a fulfilling career, Em. Your heart needs to be fulfilled, too.”
“So does my stomach.” She grinned.
“Hungry?”
“Starved.”
“Let’s shower and go in search of food. What time is it, anyway?”
She rolled onto her back and shifted her eyes to the darkness outside his window. “It’s way-too-close-to-the-time-you-leave o’clock.”
He moved over her, his legs between hers. “We’re not going to count down the minutes. It’s too hard.”
She lifted her hips and narrowed her eyes. “That’s not all that’s hard.”
“True.” He laughed, but he was ready to drive into her and love her until she was no longer hungry. “Food or fun? Your pick.”
He watched as contemplation washed over her face. “Food, then fun.” She pushed at his chest, but her eyes clearly translated, Love me. Now. Hard. Fast.
“Oh, I’ll move all right.” He rubbed his arousal against her center. “But after that tease, you don’t have a chance in hell of leaving this bed.”
Chapter Fifteen
AFTER MAKING LOVE again, because it was way-too-close-to-the-time-you-leave o’clock after all, and showering, they went downstairs in search of food. They found Serafina and Adelina sitting at the kitchen table. Serafina’s eyes were damp and red rimmed. Adelina held her hand between both of hers and spoke Italian in a hushed tone. Emily’s stomach clenched. While she and Dae had been upstairs ravishing each other, getting selfishly lost in their love, Serafina was trying to hold on to her sanity as the shred of hope she’d held on to stretched and frayed. By the looks of the two women, Emily worried that the frail tether Serafina had been holding on to might have snapped.
Emily reached for Dae’s hand. “Maybe we should go out to get something to eat.”
Adelina said something to Serafina in Italian and Serafina nodded.
Adelina rose to her feet. “Stay. I made dinner for you both, but I didn’t want to disturb you.”
“You didn’t have to do that.” Emily felt Dae’s hand slip away, and she watched him crouch beside Serafina.
“Cooking is cathartic,” Adelina said. “Every woman should know how to cook. We cook with our hearts as much as our hands. Nothing heals the soul like food rich with love and strength from the hands that made it.”
Maybe she’d learn to cook for Dae. She wanted to give him back all of the comfort and love he gave her so naturally, and cooking was one more way she could do that. She watched him take Serafina’s hand.
“Did you receive news?” Dae asked Serafina.
Emily hadn’t even thought of that. She held her breath until Serafina shook her head.
Dae’s eyes filled with compassion. “The not knowing is a lot to bear. If he’s out there, I’d imagine he’s probably more concerned about you and Luca than himself. If he’s out there, Serafina, he’d want you to be strong for Luca. I don’t know Dante, but I think any man would want his wife to do whatever she needed to do to remain strong.”
Oh no! What are you saying?
Serafina’s breath hitched. Adelina took a step closer but stopped short when Serafina lifted sad eyes to her.
“Right now,” Dae continued, “what matters most is being there for Luca. No matter what happens, I’m sure Dante, like any father, would want you to do what you need to in order to take care of yourself and Luca. Allowing yourself to do that doesn’t mean you’re giving up hope or forgetting your husband. It means you’re raising his son.”
Adelina said something in Italian, and Dae raised his eyes to her. “I’m not telling her to give up hope, Adelina. I’m giving her permission to grieve the absence of her husband—not the death of him. If she allows herself to grieve for his absence, it might make hoping for his return much easier. I think she’s stuck in between. She’s afraid to move forward and afraid to remain where she is.”
Serafina nodded. “I am, Mama. I’m afraid to cry for his absence. Grieving his absence feels like I’ve given up on him, but I’m equally afraid not to. It’s eating me up inside. Dae said it right. I’m stuck in between.”
Adelina’s eyes welled with tears. She opened her arms and Serafina walked into them.
“It’s hard, all this wishing and praying and not knowing. Maybe Dae is right. If I allow the sadness instead of trying to pretend it doesn’t exist, I think…” She drew in a deep breath and took a step back. “Mama, I’m not sure he’s coming home. I love him. I want to believe he’ll be found more than I want to live, but I can’t keep pretending that he hasn’t been gone for almost three months, Mama. Three months. Surviving there for this long seems impossible.”
Tears slipped down Adelina’s cheeks. “You must believe, Serafina. He only has us hoping for his return. If we don’t hope, who will
?”
“I will hope.” Tears came freely now. The tension in Serafina’s forehead eased. “I do hope, Mama. But I also have to accept the possibility of him not returning. And I need you to be okay with that. Without your support, I’m not going to make it.”
Adelina folded her daughter in her arms, murmuring in Italian. She must have agreed, because Serafina smiled despite her tears.
Dae rose to his feet and came to Emily’s side. She couldn’t believe he’d said all those things to a person he barely knew. He was stepping into a family matter in a way that she would never have the guts to. And he’d known what she’d needed to hear.
That’s it. She was definitely going to learn to cook for him. He had so much to give, and what did she have to offer?
“How did you know what she needed to hear?”
He shrugged.
“Because of your birth mom?” Emily saw a shadow of sadness pass over his eyes. She touched his arm and softened her voice. “You had to allow yourself to mourn her absence in order to move on, because you knew she didn’t want to meet you.”
“I don’t know. Maybe.” He met her gaze. “You’re the only person on earth who knows that.” He laced his fingers with hers, and for a moment they just gazed into each other’s eyes, feeling the connection that bound them together.
“Yes, Emily.” He paused, and when he spoke again his voice was more distant. “It started as that, but when I saw Serafina sitting there, I started to wonder what would happen if my plane went down.”
“Dae! Don’t even think that.”
“I did, Em. And then I thought about you, and I knew that as the plane soared toward the earth, I’d be thinking that I wanted you to go on with your life. Grieve for me, then move on. You’re too special not to light up some lucky man’s life.”
Dreaming of Love Page 17