by Patricia Mar
“Did you really think you could get rid of me so easily?”
Sara glanced at him curiously. “What were you planning?”
Daniel smiled ambiguously. “One last drink. I had to share you with too many people today – is it strange that I want to spend some time alone with you?”
They stopped outside room number 77 and Sara looked at him.
“I was hoping you wanted it as much as I did.” Daniel lifted Sara’s chin with a finger. “Open the door,” he said in a low voice, rich with promise.
It turned Sara’s legs into jelly, as usual. Her heart thumping violently in her chest, she used her electronic key to open the door, turned the lights on and took off her jacket and the funny woollen hat she had put on when the temperature dropped. Daniel had taken off his padded jacket too and was now wearing black trousers and a white wool polo neck pullover. He looked gorgeous.
“Look – it’s bigger than my apartment!” exclaimed Sara, spreading her arms. “Can I offer you something?” she asked, grabbing a tonic water for herself.
Daniel hesitated for a moment and said, “A tonic water for me too.” But he was clearly lost in other thoughts.
Sara took two glasses and sat down, giving him an eloquent look of invitation to join her. Daniel didn’t need to be asked twice. He sat by her and their legs touched lightly. The chemistry between them was incredible – it was almost tangible. She lifted her glass.
“Should we toast something?”
“To us – together, in Chamonix.”
“To us, together, in Chamonix.”
Their glasses clinked and their eyes met and remained locked.
Without saying anything else, Daniel grabbed their glasses and put them on the table. “Sara, I’m about to kiss you.”
“Are you scared I might stop you?”
“I wouldn’t let you, I’ve been waiting for too long.”
“You have actually already kissed me, in the lift.”
“Call that a kiss?”
“So what would a real kiss be?”
“This.”
He pulled her towards him as his lips searched for hers, until he could seal their meeting. Skin on skin, breath against breath. They dissolved into each other, a union made up of suppressed passion and a desire to know and explore. Daniel’s tongue grew braver and started savouring Sara, who reacted with the same playful resolve. Their hands found one another while their bodies grew dangerously close, creating a single, tangled whole. Their breathing became heavier and their whispers turned into whimpers. It would have been easy for Sara to let herself go – in that moment there was nothing she wanted more than Daniel’s lips on hers, on her, on every centimetre of her body. She was on fire. She wanted to get rid of the barrier of her clothes and her fears and let that splendid man embrace her. He might only be hers for one night, or one week, or maybe only for the blink of an eye, but she didn’t care.
That kiss was destroying her will power. She was lost in him and in the tongue that was moving around her mouth, so expert and confident, destroying her final defences. Daniel was a master of action and of strategy; he was undoing all her knots, and turning her into an instinctive, vital woman. They slid down onto the sofa, which seemed to have been made specifically for two entangled bodies.
“I want you, I want you with all of my being,” he whispered, in a hoarse, passionate voice. His words sounded like poetry, like a sonnet… like a terrible alarm bell. Somewhere in Sara’s brain the notorious Liberty Bell rang, like it did every time she was in danger. Danger, danger! Houston, we have a problem. Sara opened her eyes wide, and saw Daniel above her, kissing her with enough passion to bring the dying back to life. That kiss was unique, an exchange of pleasure that was on the verge of becoming two naked bodies encountering one another. Nothing sounded more appealing, but she was who she was, and she couldn’t change. She couldn’t give in just because her mother had suggested she sleep with a handsome guy to blow the cobwebs away.
She couldn’t just have sex with Daniel without talking about her feelings first, it was important for her. She wasn’t expecting love, that couldn’t have come after only a few dates, but she just wasn’t a one night stand type. And who could guarantee that Daniel would still be there the next morning? That he would still want her at his side? What if she was just another Tatiana, Svetlana – or Fiorella? Fiorella… What was it that was bothering her now? It was jealousy. Sara pushed Daniel a few centimetres away, holding her arms straight out against his chest. He looked at her in surprise, seemingly wondering what he had done wrong this time.
“Have you slept with Fiorella?”
She couldn’t really have said that out loud! But she had. Daniel’s eyes froze and an astonished look appeared on his face. He moved away and sat back, running his hand through his hair nervously in the same spot where Sara’s fingers had been a few moments before.
“I can’t believe it.”
Sara hadn’t expected an answer like that. She would have preferred a straightforward ‘no’, just to get that stupid moment over with and possibly resume kissing.
“We’re kissing and you ask me about Fiorella?”
“Yes, I’m asking about Fiorella,” she admitted, since Daniel’s reluctance had given her fresh suspicions.
“Yes, we had a brief relationship about a year ago, nothing serious.”
He looked embarrassed.
Sara sat upright up and played for time. There, she knew it. What now? Did that news change things?
“Does it bother you?”
“If I said no, would you believe me?”
“No…”
“You invited me here even though she was here too.”
“Sara, I wanted you to come with me. I don’t care about Fiorella.”
“Of course, obviously.”
Sara stood up. What was the matter with her now? Was she really planning on making a jealous scene? On what basis? Did she have the right to behave like this? He didn’t care about Fiorella – was that what was going to happen to Sara De Michele too?
“What’s wrong? I thought you wanted it too, I thought you wanted us to—”
“Daniel, you confuse me. A lot.”
“Explain.”
He stood up from the sofa in frustration.
“You invited me to come here knowing that your ex would be here too. You introduce me as your girlfriend. Then you kiss me like that and I forget about everything else. I completely lose control.”
“What’s the matter, Sara? Don’t you like me enough?”
He looked shocked. He mustn’t be used to rejection. This pissed her off even more. Maybe going to the mountains had been a huge mistake. Maybe she shouldn’t have agreed to play along, maybe she’d made things too easy for him.
“The problem is that I like you a lot. But like I already told you once, I am not a one night stand type of girl. Maybe by coming here I gave you the wrong impression.”
“What’s your point? I’m really not following you. Is Fiorella the problem or is it you?”
“Maybe it’s you and the fact that I don’t know what you want from me.”
Daniel went over to her.
“You already know what I want from you. I want to get to know you better. I want to spend some time with you.”
“And I want to understand what’s happening between us. You hold my hand, make me feel important. You kiss me like there was no tomorrow. But I need to know that there is a tomorrow. I need to know if I’m just another Fiorella for you. I’m not asking for a lifetime commitment, don’t worry, but I don’t just want to be some filler between a Tatiana and a Svetlana.”
There. She had given a good speech. But as soon as she finished, she felt like an idiot – like a little girl in need of reassurance.
Damn it, why did he make her feel so insecure? Daniel stood there in silence, apparently searching for the right words, which to Sara looked like a very bad sign. It was all her fault, she could only blame herself. She was giving up an epic shag for s
ome stupid old maid’s whim.
No, that wasn’t true. She was giving it up out of respect for herself.
“Maybe it was a mistake coming here to Chamonix. Maybe I should leave. I feel very awkward.”
Daniel moved closer to her.
“I scared you, I get it. But I do really like you.”
“I like you a lot too. So much so that I was about to do something that wasn’t really me. But I’m not looking for an adventure, I want a serious relationship. I’ve had so many first dates over the last year. I’ve become a pain, I know, but I went through a really bad time and after that I decided that I deserve some happiness. I was with Carlo for three years. I thought he was the perfect guy, I thought he was in love with me and that we had a future together. But something happened that opened my eyes, and they’re still wide open.”
Daniel shook his head. He hadn’t been expecting that confession. Now he wanted to know everything. He almost looked angry.
“What happened?”
“He cheated on me with a friend of mine. I trusted him, but he was sleeping with Greta. Don’t worry, it didn’t break me. I didn’t want to give him the satisfaction, so I didn’t give up on other men – but I did become more demanding, I can’t hide it. I want to find the right man for me, one who’s willing to be with me even if I am impossibly moody. I want him to be completely honest. That’s what I want, I don’t care about having a saucy weekend with the sexiest, most intriguing man on the planet. It’s not enough.”
“But I don’t just want a weekend with you either, Sara. I want more too. I want to try and make things between us work. This is just the beginning, but I don’t just want to sleep with you. I do like sex, I’ll admit it – I’d be a liar and a fool if I said I didn’t. But that’s not the only thing I want from you.”
Was he being sincere?
“I see you’re doubtful, you don’t trust me.”
He looked disappointed.
“Fiorella is here…” Fiorella was turning into Sara’s lifejacket – helping her not to drown and to maintain her objectivity.
“Fiorella is nothing to me, just like I’m nothing to her. I never thought of building anything with her. It was just a fling for both of us. Nobody got hurt.”
“I don’t have any right to ask you questions, I realise that.”
“You’re wrong. If I’m going round introducing you as my girlfriend it’s because that’s what you are to me. I want you to be my girlfriend, and I hope you’ll want to consider me your boyfriend too. Sometimes I wish you could forget that I’m a model, that I’m famous. I’m worried that it’s complicating things between us. It seems you trust me less because of that, and that makes me sad.”
“Daniel…”
She was so taken aback by his words that she was speechless.
“I’m not going to rush things, I’ll show you I can wait for you,” he smiled at her sweetly. He stretched his face towards her and placed his lips upon her neck. “You’re not a challenge I want to win, you’re a prize I have to deserve.”
Sara opened her mouth in astonishment, and he took advantage of the fact. He pulled her close and stole a kiss that was as delicate as it was passionate.
A new awareness in her heart, Sara gave herself up to it. He was sincere, she was sure of it. He was totally honest. She kissed him back with amazed intensity, until Daniel broke away from her, picked up the jacket he had thrown over a chair and went towards the door.
“Are you leaving?” she asked, confused and disappointed.
“I am for tonight. I want you to see that I’m not in a rush, and that I’ll still be here tomorrow.”
“I want you to be here tomorrow. I really want you to.”
Daniel smiled tenderly.
“In that case, you’ll find me here waiting for you. Goodnight, Sara.”
He looked at her for a moment, then departed, leaving her all alone.
Chapter 16
Cream and Bath Towels
When the morning came, her decisions, reactions and thoughts sounded stupid and naive. She had acted like a child – but everybody knows that at night your worries turn into demons and that you have to fight to defend yourself from them. When the day comes, though, all that vanishes, and you realise that you let your mind’s fears condition you. She could have been hugging Daniel’s body, basking in his warmth and enjoying his attention and sweetness. Instead she was alone in a huge bed, wrapped in a warm quilt, without Daniel’s smile to gladden her awakening and feeling like she had a massive hangover without having even having been drunk the night before. How would she face Daniel after turning him down like that? She sat on the bed and rubbed her eyes, while the sunlight from behind the curtains lit the room as though to banish all her childish fears. She had to give Daniel a chance – had to allow him to be himself around her.
And she had to stop over thinking things. Your brain can’t tell your feelings what to do, and the heart doesn’t need to be running an obstacle race all the time. Sara was an adult and she had to act like one. She took a deep breath and headed towards the bathroom, hoping a good shower would wash away her last doubts and uncertainties. She was planning to talk to Daniel that morning and maybe organise a romantic evening for just the two of them. The rest would come naturally. Feeling more confident, Sara put on her olive green trousers and a charcoal grey pullover and opened the door. She found a note on the floor, which she picked up with curiosity. It was from Daniel.
Didn’t want to wake you. We’ve already had breakfast. You can join us if you like – we’ll be shooting in the spa. I’d like you to come and see how I work. I’ll be waiting for you, Daniel.
She squeezed the note to her chest romantically and sighed, then shut the door behind her, skipped breakfast and went directly to the reception, where she asked how to get to the spa. The concierge told her that the spa was closed to the public that day until two in the afternoon.
With a certain pride, she replied that she was part of the crew, and was in fact the girlfriend of the model from the shoot. A moment later she was walking down a well lit underground corridor that led to a separate wing. Her stomach was rumbling, but she tried to keep it under control because her desire to see Daniel had turned into impatience, and her impatience into a need. She was so curious to see him in his own habitat, to observe him working, that she was practically frantic.
Feeling intimidated, she went through the glass doors and explained again why she was there to the woman at the entrance. The employee gave her a big ‘lucky you’ smile, and let her pass. The place was elegant, the design polished and modern, and the air smelled of patchouli and spices – sweet, pleasant aromas which reminded her of exotic, far off places. It was warm in there, so she decided to take off her pullover, her tight top highlighting her well proportioned curves. She could hear Daniel and the others clearly, so she followed the voices like Gretel following the breadcrumbs.
When she reached the big indoor swimming pool, the water looked so tempting that she felt like diving in with her clothes on. Daniel was there, swimming confidently, and Sara found herself staring at him in religious silence. The water caressed his body, and he looked luminous.
“Sara!” called Polly, as soon as she saw her, and Sara smiled and walked over to her. Daniel swam over to the pool ladder and climbed out of the water. He was a vision, so handsome that Sara could barely breathe. If they’d been alone, she would have run over to hug him, kiss him and lick the water off his perfect body. His muscles were so defined that it hardly seemed possible, and his bronzed skin and the sculpted abs which drew her eyes down to his white swimsuit almost made her lose control in front of her sudden audience. It would have been nice to touch them and…
Wow, was she actually blushing?
Daniel came over and kissed her passionately, ignoring the others present.
“Sorry if I got you wet.”
He ran his hand through his hair.
“It doesn’t matter,” said Sara, in a quiet, compl
icit voice.
“If we were alone…” said Daniel, narrowing his eyes, in which a mischievous light burned. “Bloody work. Are you staying?”
“Sure. I’ll sit over there.”
Daniel kissed her again, turned and winked at Polly, then dived back into the pool splashing them with water.
“Look at him trying to impress you,” laughed Polly, going towards Sara, who was in seventh heaven.
After chatting in English with the make-up artist, Sara sat on a corner and watched what was going on. She had never seen a photo shoot before and thought it was fun. Shooting, lights, make-up corrections, the swimsuit being properly adjusted. A swimsuit which didn’t hide much. She licked her lips, as though she was hungry. Her hunger was not for food, though, but for Daniel. There was something epic about seeing him clad in only that tiny piece of cloth while people took pictures of him in the water, on the sun beds, at the pool ladder or leaning against the windows with the mountains in the background. It was a dream. The minutes passed, but Sara remained there in ecstatic contemplation, every single image engraved upon her mind.
Seeing those images in real life felt totally different from seeing them printed in a magazine. That man could be hers, all hers. It was crazy. From time to time Daniel would glance or smile at her so she wouldn’t feel alone. She felt important, he made her feel important. About an hour after Sara, Fiorella arrived to supervise the shoot. She wandered around Daniel, who treated her with cordial detachment, but she didn’t really seem to accept the distance between them and continued to joke with him, even trying to caress his arm. Sara squinted at her from a distance.
No, she didn’t want to turn into a jealous psychopath like Glenn Close in Fatal Attraction, even though she was ready to jump on her and unleash her fury. She could already picture herself grabbing Fiorella’s hair and… Damn it, when would she take her dirty hands off him? Finally Daniel slipped away from her grasp and Sara’s face went back to its natural colour. She peered at him. Was he annoyed? She couldn’t tell, because he disappeared from view. They were moving to another room full of sunbeds, the heated ones for relaxing your back and muscles. She could have really used one of them – her whole body was a knot of tension and frustration. And here he was again, but instead of the swimsuit he now had a small towel around his waist outlining his legs and flanks, poking out from above which some dark hair was visible. He looked amazingly sexy and was practically naked. Why was she so astonished, if she had already seen him naked in a magazine?