Finding Beauty in the Darkness

by Ash, Nikki

“I do. I told you I want to travel there one day.”

  “You did,”

  “What is this?” I ask, and Gio’s hand stills.

  “This is you quitting your job.”

  I roll my eyes. “I’m serious.”

  “So am I.” His fingers go back to trailing a line of goose bumps up my spine. After a few minutes, he lets out a soft sigh, his chest rising and falling under me. “I’m going to suck at this, Aria. I’m going to fuck it up at every damn turn. You’re going to be in danger every day we are together.”

  “We can take things slow.”

  “I can’t promise you anything.”

  “Okay.” A lot of people would be upset at what he says, but when you’ve lived a life like mine, having had shit kept from me and have been lied to most of my life, I respect his raw honesty. I may not like his truth, but I still appreciate it.

  “I’m leaving next week to go to the Bahamas. Come with me.” A little balloon inside me inflates at the thought of spending some time on the beach with Gio and at the fact he wants to spend time with me, too. Until he adds, “My family will be there, but we’ll have plenty of alone time.”

  And just like that, my balloon pops. “Your family hates me.”

  “Nico mentioned bringing Amber. Her finals are over and he wants her to go. Apparently, they’re getting serious.” It doesn’t go over my head that he doesn’t argue about his family hating me, but I focus on the part about Amber’s finals almost being over.

  “What’s the date?”

  “May fifteenth, why?”

  A huge ball of emotion clogs my throat. “My mom died today. How could I forget?”

  “Baby,” Gio says softly, his strong, comforting arms caging me in. “You have a lot going on. You’ve been through some crazy shit this year. Did she have a burial?”

  “No, asshole Weston said she wanted to be cremated. I know he just didn’t want to spend the money on a funeral. He wouldn’t even give me her ashes.”

  “I’ll have Johnny find them for you. If they’re in that house, we’ll get them. I promise you.”

  We lie in silence for a few minutes before I remember what we were talking about.

  “Why do they hate me, Gio?”

  He frowns then kisses my forehead. “Who?”

  “Your parents.”

  “They want Cecilia and I to marry,” he says on a sigh. “I’m the oldest and one day I’ll take over the organization. Stefan and my dad are best friends, practically brothers. If we marry, it would make us family by marriage, and if we had children, we would become family by blood.”

  “Will she be there?”

  “I can try to get her to stay here, but she usually goes. Whether she goes or not won’t matter, though. My time will be spent with you.”

  I give him a kiss on his chest. “Okay, I’ll go.”

  Gio and I fall asleep together, but when I wake up, he’s gone. I go back to my room, shower and get dressed. Then I go downstairs to let Cecilia know I won’t be working here anymore, but when I approach her, her attitude and brush off tells me she’s already been informed.

  “Can you at least stay on for another couple weeks? Gio and I are going on vacation to the Bahamas and I’ll need to look for your replacement once I return.”

  “I would, except I’ll also be on that vacation with Gio.” I shrug my shoulders in nonchalance and walk away, leaving her with her jaw halfway to the ground.

  I grab my camera and ask Rome if he’ll take me to the strip to take some pictures. Natalie overhears and insists on coming. “We can do some shopping while we’re there!”

  Normally I would say no because I’m usually broke, but after the attorney left the other day, Gio informed me the sale of the shares went through and I’m several million dollars richer. He gave me my credit card and account info and with a laugh, told me not to spend it all in one place.

  Not having heard from Amber the last few days, I give her a call. She screams through the phone how excited she is to be going to the Bahamas with Nico, and even more excited to know I’m going as well. Then agrees to join us on our little outing.

  Holly and Sienna are both working, so it’s just Natalie, Amber, and me walking from shop to shop. They’re spending money and I’m snapping pictures of the crazy tourists and attractions. My mom never let me come down here growing up, so it’s cool to finally experience the city I’ve lived in most of my life.

  “Hey! Isn’t this the guys’ hotel?” Amber points to the exquisite hotel in front of us. I recognize it from the day Johnny dropped off Gio for a business meeting.

  “It is.”

  “Let’s go in and see if the guys are here!” She grabs my hand, pulling me inside before I can protest. Natalie just shrugs and follows behind. The gentleman at the door asks for our identification to confirm we’re all over twenty-one since there’s a casino here.

  “We’re here to see Giovanni or Nico Valentino,” I tell the concierge, who in return frowns at me, just as the gentleman from the night at the charity ball walks up to me, a devious smirk plastering on his face. Something about this man rubs me the wrong way. “Miss…”

  “Aria,” I say, still refusing to give him my last name.

  “Aria, I was just about to go up and see Mr. Valentino. Why don’t you join me?” He ignores Amber and Natalie, taking my arm in his. I look behind me to make sure the girls are following. They both give me a what the fuck look, but none of us say anything.

  When we get to the elevator, Mr. Lorenzo—I can’t, for the life of me, remember his first name—tells the guard we’re going up to see Mr. Valentino. The guard scans his license before patting each of us down. I’m still not sure which brother we’re going to see, but I keep my mouth shut.

  When the elevator dings on the top floor, the four of us get out. Johnny’s standing there and when he sees me, his eyes visibly widen for a half a second. “Mr. Lorenzo, Giovanni and Nico are waiting for you, but I don’t believe they were expecting guests.”

  Mr. Lorenzo laughs and glances around him. “I was on my way up and found these beautiful women looking for Mr. Valentino. I thought I would do him the favor and bring them on up.”

  “I’ll let them know you’re here.” Johnny walks to the desk behind him and picks up the phone. He speaks in a hushed toned for a few seconds before setting the phone back down. “Giovanni is on his way.” Not even thirty seconds later, Gio comes barreling down the hallway. If it were possible, smoke would be steaming from his ears. His body is visibly tense and his jaw is ticking. His eyes are trained right on me and Mr. Lorenzo, where our arms are entwined. Shit!

  “Sebastian, I suggest you get your hands off her if you want to keep your limbs intact.” That’s his name! Sebastian!

  Sebastian removes his arm from mine and puts his hands up in a placating motion, his body shaking with laughter. “No need to make such violent threats, Giovanni.”

  “Johnny, take Sebastian back to the conference room while I speak to Aria.” As he says this, Nico comes down another hallway, and once he takes in the scene in front of him, curses under his breath.

  “This way,” Johnny commands, but before Sebastian lets him guide him down the hallway, he turns to me, and taking my hand in his, lays a wet kiss on the top of my knuckles.

  “Until we meet again.” He gives me a smarmy wink and a shutter rips through my body. When he turns to follow Johnny, I wipe my hand down my jeans, trying to get his grossness off me.

  “What the fuck were you thinking coming here?” Gio barks as he stalks over to me, getting in my face.

  My defenses go up, ready for a fight. “Whoa there, buddy. Back the hell up.” My hands come out and I push him slightly back. “We came to say hello. I didn’t know your hotel was off limits.” I spent months being treated like garbage and I’ll never allow that to happen again.

  Thankfully, he visibly calms before he speaks his next words. “You can’t be doing shit like this.”

  “What my brother is tr
ying to say,” Nico takes over, “is that as much as we love seeing you pretty ladies here, this is business only. It’s not safe to be seen around here.” Nico wraps Amber up in his arms and gives her a kiss, and she melts into his arms, smiling up at him. “Next time, call me first. Okay, babe?” Amber nods and kisses him back.

  Natalie rolls her eyes. “I’m just along for the ride. I didn’t even want to see either of you.”

  “I’m sorry, Gio. We’ll go.” I turn to leave, the feeling of rejection hitting deep, but he grabs my hand and pulls me toward him, until my back is flush against his front. Natalie smirks as I screech at his assault.

  “I need to keep you safe, cuore mio. I’m sorry for yelling.” His cool breath hits my ear, sending a completely different kind of shiver down my spine than the one Sebastian sent. “I’ll see you at home tonight…” His lips press against the sensitive skin behind my ear. “I want you back in our room.” My lips part in protest, but he murmurs, “Don’t argue. Second floor is for employees. I want you in our bed.”

  I nod in agreement, and tilting my head to the side, Gio gives me a soft kiss on my lips, his tongue sliding in quickly before he lets me go. “I’ll call you guys a car.”

  “We’re shopping on the strip.”

  Gio smirks and turns me around to face him. “Anything for me?” He waggles his eyebrows.

  “What would you want?”

  “Anything you buy for yourself is technically for me. You should pick up a few items for our trip.”

  I give him a quick kiss and Nico shows us out.

  “I’ve never seen Giovanni act like that!” Natalie laughs once we are out of the hotel and walking back down the strip. I look behind me and see Rome following us. He must have been following us earlier, yet he didn’t warn Gio. I turn and give him a soft smile and he nods once. I’m not one hundred percent sure, but if I had to guess I would say he didn’t warn Gio because his job is to protect me, not rat on me.

  “Like what?” I ask, turning my attention back to Natalie.

  “He’s always so serious, but you didn’t even have to do anything and he calmed down and was so…sexy and playful. I should have recorded it to show the other girls. Cecilia would’ve a heart attack. She’s always trying to worm her way into Giovanni’s arms, but he always rejects her.”

  That makes we wonder if Cecilia and Gio have had sex. I know he’s had sex with plenty of women. We all have pasts and it’s ridiculous to expect someone to not have one, but I want to know if her stuck up bitchy self is part of Gio’s past. Instead of asking Natalie, I decide to wait and ask Gio himself.

  Chapter Twenty

  GIOVANNI

  Instead of taking a commercial flight to the Bahamas, my family has decided to charter a private jet. We have to take two flights. One to Fort Lauderdale and then get on the charter plane that will take us to Fowl Cay. Mario, our brother in Italy, flew in last night and is flying over with us. He has brought his girlfriend of five months and they seem to be very cozy. Nico and Amber are sharing a couch and my parents are sitting together with Stefan and Cecilia.

  I tried to stop Cecilia from coming on this trip but she wasn’t having it. She found out Aria was going and lost her shit. I told her Aria and I aren’t her business and she and I are over in every way. I reminded her that I haven’t fucked her since before Aria moved in but that didn’t stop her from trying to convince me she’s the better choice. I shot her down until she finally gave up.

  Aria and I are currently sitting on the couch across from Nico and Amber. Aria’s head is in my lap and she’s snoring softly. Any time this woman is near me, my body is calm. She has this aura that surrounds her and I can’t help but feed off it. I lean down and give her temple a kiss, needing to feel her skin on my lips.

  Nico shoots me a knowing smirk and I shake my head. When I look away from him, my eyes lock with my parents. My mom is frowning, but she looks more curious than upset. My dad on the other hand is glaring. When I told them Aria and I were seeing each other and she would be coming with us, they freaked out. My mom cried that Cecilia wouldn’t be a part of the family and my dad threw out some bullshit about being the first born and having responsibilities. I told them both I’m not going to change my mind and to let it go. Thankfully, they did.

  The last several days, Aria has been sleeping in our room. The night after she came to visit me at the hotel, she asked about Cecilia. I told her the truth, that we’ve fucked for years but it’s not and never will be more than that.

  We’ve spent every night making out and going down on each other, but we haven’t had sex. She begs and pleads and one night threw a fit saying I’m taking her choices away. I threw it back at her saying she’s taking away mine. She glared and I laughed. Any other woman and I’d already be balls deep in her, but Aria is different. She means more. She’s been through more, and fuck if she doesn’t deserve more.

  The pilot announces we’re landing and I gently shake Aria to wake her. She stretches, her perfect tits jutting out, causing my cock to stir.

  “Hey,” she says groggily.

  “Hey,” I answer back as I pull her in for a kiss. I nibble her bottom lip before slanting my mouth to kiss both her lips. Aria deepens the kiss, her tongue plunging into my mouth, and I suck on it for a few seconds before I hear a throat clearing behind us. It’s so easy to get lost in this woman. Reluctantly I let her go, remembering we aren’t alone. “Later,” I mouth, and she grants me the most adorable, shy smile.

  Once we deplane, we make our way to the next flight, which takes about forty minutes, and then take a boat directly to the island and resort. When my mom found out her sons were all bringing women, she was forced to call the resort and make last minute changes. Mario, Nico, and I are staying in one villa with three bedrooms while my mom, dad, Stefan, and Cecilia are staying in another.

  My mom checks us all in and we’re given our keys. Nico announces he and Amber are going to the pool. Mario says he’s starving and he’s taking his girlfriend, Rachel, to eat. Realizing Aria and I will have the place to ourselves, we head straight to the villa.

  “Gio! This place is gorgeous!” Aria is staring out the back slider at the ocean. “Can we go swimming?”

  I come up behind her and, without wasting any time, my hands go down into her shorts, landing on her mound. “We can…but I was thinking we could get a little dirty first, then wash off in the water.”

  She giggles and nods. Pulling my hands out of her shorts, I lift her shirt up then unlatch her bra, both items hitting the floor. She stays facing the slider as I place small kisses along her shoulders. Her hair is up, giving me access to the back of her sexy, slim neck. I trail more kisses down her spine until I get to the small of her back. She has two indents just above her ass and I kiss them both.

  “Put your hands on the slider,” I command. When I hear her hands hit the glass, I remove her shorts and underwear, helping her step out of them.

  I continue kissing where I left off, right above her ass, and when I get to her ass cheeks, I give each one a hard bite. Aria playfully wiggles her hips and I slap her cheek, eliciting a moan from her.

  “Spread your legs, baby.” She obliges, parting her thighs. “More.” She moves them apart until they’re spread enough that my hand can slide easily between her legs. I insert one digit into her and find she’s already slick with want. I insert another and another until her pussy is filled with my fingers. I give her another kiss on her ass cheek as I fingerfuck her wet cunt.

  Her legs spread a little wider, welcoming my touch and I hear her forehead hit the glass as she moans out in pleasure. “Fuck, fuck, fuck!” she cries out, her body pulsing in pleasure. Her mantra continues as my fingers go deeper and harder, working her into a frenzy. Her breathing becomes erratic as my fingers hit her G-spot. Her legs go tense, and I give the back of her thighs soft kisses. Her pussy clenches around my fingers, but I keep going, hitting the spot repeatedly. I can feel when her body has had enough and finally lets go. Her b
ody shakes uncontrollably, her juices dripping down my fingers and hand as she screams out her orgasm.

  I pull my pants and briefs down just enough so my cock springs out, then turn Aria around and lift her up. Her back hits the glass as my cock enters her tight cunt. Her hands grab ahold of my hair while mine grip her ass, and I fuck her like a goddamned animal up against the slider.

  Her head goes back in pleasure as she chants my name, along with praises to God. Her tits bounce up and down, begging for me to take one in my mouth. I grip her ass tighter to make sure I won’t drop her, causing her back to hit the glass harder as my lips wrap around and pull on her perfect pink nipple.

  “Fuck! Gio! Fuck me harder.” Letting go of her nipple from my mouth, I nestle my face into the crook of her neck as she wraps her arms around mine. I thrust in and out of her. Harder. Deeper. The sweat from our bodies making a slapping sound. I fuck her with everything in me until my balls feel like they’re going to explode.

  “Oh my God, I’m going to come again. Right fucking there!” she shouts. I keep hitting the spot over and over again, trying to ignore the ache in my balls begging me to release.

  Aria lets out a loud, “Fuuuuuckkkk,” and I take that as my cue to release my seed into her. Her body goes limp as she gives me a satiated look. Even though I don’t want to, I pull out of her and her feet fall to the floor.

  “Best. Vacation. Ever.” She giggles as she walks past me toward the bathroom, her naked ass swaying from side to side. But before she makes it out of my reach, I swat her ass. She squeals and runs quicker to the bathroom, grabbing her bathing suit along the way.

  “The vacation hasn’t even started yet!” I yell out to her. Her head pops out of the bathroom door and she gives me a playful wink. “Well, if that’s just the beginning, I can’t wait to experience the rest.” Then she slams the door shut.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  ARIA

  For the most part, our time in the Bahamas has been nothing short of amazing. We’ve spent our days lounging by the beach and pool, our nights going to dinner, and in between we’ve had spa days and couples massages. Gio’s mom hasn’t welcomed me into the family yet, but I think she’s starting to warm up to me. Cecilia has pretty much been doing her own thing and only joins us all for family dinners, during which time she spends the entire meal glaring at me.