“Oh really?” Maria yelled just before she slammed something down on the table in front of Kerry. Kerry flinched at the sound but didn’t touch them. I saw the hurt in her eyes when she looked down at the papers. I went over and saw that they were photos of Maria and I, and the one on top was from yesterday morning outside my office. You can clearly see my name on the office door but my face is turned away. Maria, in her orange dress is reaching around me to hold me close with a pasted smile across her face. If any one who hadn’t known what was going on would have seen this, they would have thought we were close friends and at worst, new lovers. The most horrific part was that the photo was time stamped with today’s date and the time it was taken. “Not for months, huh Luca? Now your slut has caught you in a lie.”
My voice lowered dangerously as I struggled to compose myself. The adrenaline was pumping now and I was beginning to fear what I might do. “You ambushed me in front of my office,” I told her carefully, stepping closer into her space. “Who was taking pictures, Maria? What is this even about? Are you trying to blackmail me? If so, it won’t work.”
Her lips quivered but she steeled her back and pointed a finger at Kerry. “I wanted this whore to know the truth. I knew you were cheating on me!” I felt like my head would explode. Kerry was still sitting passively, observing the soap opera unraveling in front of her but in my heart I knew this was painful for her to watch.
“I can’t “cheat” on you if we’re not in a relationship. You’ve lost your mind, Maria. Now, get the fuck out of my apartment.”
She was even a better actress than I ever suspected. Tears welled up in the corners of her eyes and she dabbed at them with her fingers. “I thought you loved me!” she said.
“I never gave you any indication that I loved you…ever. Now get out!”
“Stay away from my man, whore!” Maria screamed at Kerry. Kerry didn’t as much as blink. I wish I had her patience.
“That’s it! Enough! You won’t talk to her that way. You’re not fit to wipe her shoes. Get out of here Maria and go try and sell your delusions somewhere else! We’re done. We’vebeendone.”
“You will be sorry you’re fucking around with whores when you already have all this,” she said gesturing to her body.
“Get out!” I made sure that time she understood me clearly by stepping in between her and Kerry. She glared at me and I swear I could see murder in her eyes. I wondered for a second if maybe she was going to stab me. I didn’t back down and after several long seconds she turned on her heel and stormed out. I followed her and slammed the door behind her.
When I turned back towards Kerry to apologize, she was gone. I found her in the bedroom, gathering her things. “Where are you going? Kerry? You don’t have to go! Please don’t go baby. She’s crazy. None of what she said is true. She’s delusional.”
“I don’t want this life Luca. This is your life. You’ve told me how you want to simplify things and have a family someday…You said you wanted to be the man that I need, the one that I want. It doesn’t look like you’re ready to back that up. These women…the parties…the galas and riches… that’s not for me. It’s not what I want.”
I felt like someone had just knocked the wind out of me. I could barely get enough air to say, “Everything I told you is true. I am that man…this isn’t how I want my life to be.”
“I won’t be a part of any of that. I won’t be anyone’s fool again.”
“Please baby! Please don’t go! She’s lying.”
“I don’t believe you were cheating on her with me…but just the fact that women like that are showing up on your doorstep is more drama than I want to be a part of.”
“I can get rid of all of the drama for you, baby. I promise you! Please. Let me show you….” I’ve never begged a woman to stay with me before, but if I thought it would help, I’d drop to my knees right now. She had her dress on and her purse on her arm. I felt sick to my stomach and afraid that I’d never see her again.
“I’ve waited once before in my life too Luca…and hoped…and expected…I won’t do it again. I know what I want, Luca and that is not it.”
KERRY
Three days Luca has been calling me…and three days I have been rejecting his calls. I want to answer it and hear his voice…but I know that would be setting myself up for failure and I’m not going to do that again. Never again.
“Miss Kerry!”
“Yes Mia?”
“The bell rang.”
“Oh my goodness, it surely did.” I smiled at the anxious little ones who were doing such a good job sitting and patiently waiting for me. “You may go. I will see you all tomorrow have a wonderful evening!”
For a few moments it was chaos as they all scrambled to gather their things and get out the door. They bubble with excitement and usually I feed off of it…but today I couldn’t get my mind off of Luca. Does it make sense that I miss him? If you know that it’s best not to be with someone, shouldn’t that make it hurt less?
I watched the last child race out the door and I stood to gather my own things. I love my kids and this job…but today I would be glad to go home and put on some comfy clothes and relax. I’ve barely slept in three days. I’m up arguing with myself about calling Luca until all hours of the night. Ridiculous! I know for certain that life is not what I want.
I heard the door open behind me and thought one of the children must have forgotten something. I turned with a smile on my face that fell off as soon as I saw who it was. I felt breathless and struck as I took in the sight of my ex-husband. “David. What are you doing here?”
“Hi Kerry,” he said like he’d just run into me on vacation. But his eyes looked bloodshot and tired. Were those gray hairs? Regardless of how he tried to act with me, I knew him. And this was a David who had failed.
“Answer me. What are you doing in Italy?”
“We need to talk.”
“We’ve said plenty to each other. I have nothing left to say.” I turned to my desk, gather up the papers into a bunch. I hope he hadn’t seen how my hands shook.
“Then just hear me out…please.” He was being polite and he sounded desperate. Sometimes I wish I could be a little tougher. I took a deep sigh and crossed my arms to face him.
“You have five minutes, David. What is it?”
“I miss you…”
“David…” I shook my head at him. He sounded ridiculous.
“Please listen Kerry. I have no idea what happened to me. I was temporarily insane to cheat on you. I love you so much and I miss you so badly. I wish you could forgive me. I’m carrying around so much guilt. I’ll do anything to make it up to you. Please come home, Kerry. We can make this work! I know we can!”
He had real tears in his eyes. Jesus, I actually felt sorry for him. What is wrong with me? I had come so far. How many times had I rehearsed this speech? But the words I spoke were fresh and unrecited.
“David, I have gotten past it, okay? I can forgive you…but unfortunately, things like that are not as easily forgotten. Besides, the truth is that we both want different things in life. I’m happy here. This is what I want now, and I want you to be happy too. But it won’t be with me. Now please go.” I started to turn away from him when I heard a scoff.
David’s eyes darkened as he stepped into my personal space. I tried to step back but my desk was in the way and I stumbled slightly. With lighting speed, David caught me up and propped me into the blackboard. I could tell he was going to kiss me. “David, stop!” He leaned in anyways and pushed his body up against mine. David is a big guy…I couldn’t move. “Let me go! Get off of me, I can’t breathe!” He didn’t listen. He was bringing his mouth in for a kiss when I heard a deep stern voice from the door.
“I believe the lady said no.” David turned quickly his eyes panicked for a moment. I peered over him to confirm what I already knew.Luca. I didn’t even hear the door reopen. I could see half of David’s face. He was sizing Luca up and Luca was coming up the bigge
r and possibly more dangerous of the two. David let me go and stepped aside, eyeing the two of us. He reached behind him and Luca took two steps towards him. The air was thick with tension.
Slowly, David pulled a manila envelope that was folded in half in his back pocket and slammed it down at my feet.
“There are your divorce papers…have a nice life!” He glared at me and then Luca. Luca glared back. David scurried out with his tail between his legs, making sure to made a wide swing to avoid Luca while exiting. I let out a breath I did not know I had been holding.
“Are you okay Kerry?”
I nodded. I was rattled from seeing David.
“That guy is a piece of work.”
“Yeah, he is. He’s a small man and that includes his brain.” I laughed, nervously.
“Come here…”
We held eyes for a moment before I stepped into his embrace. His body was warm. I had missed his masculine scent, so seductive and clean. He brushed his thumb against my shoulder and tickled my forehead with his cheek. I swayed with need in his arms. I never wanted to leave here.
“I was coming to apologize, since you won’t pick up your phone,” he murmured into my ear, his big chest rumbling with the sound.
“What are you apologizing for Luca?”
“For Maria, for the drama that surrounds my life. I’ve never had a woman in my life that I cared about the way I care about you. I guess I didn’t realize how chaotic it all was…until now. All I want is for the rest of the world to be quiet so that I can spend all of my time with you.”
“I wish that was realistic, but it’s not. The rest of the world will remain the same. The only changes we can make are within ourselves.”
He pulled away to look at me then. His blue eyes sparked with something deep and soulful.
“I want to change my life…for you.”
“You can’t do it for me, Luca. You’ll resent me. That’s what happened with David…”
“No…that would never happen with us because... I’m ready to change. I wanted to change long before I met you…it just never seemed worth the effort before. I was born in a quiet little village. I watched people in love take walks on the beach holding hands and celebrating their love by giving life to their children. I watched them work side by side and fish and swim and play. That’s all I ever wanted. The parties and the women…those things found me because of the money. I never truly wanted them. I want you Kerry…like I’ve never wanted anyone or anything in my life. I want a life with you. A real life.”
“How would that life look to you, Luca?”
He shifted me in his arms and smile, a glorious soul piercing smile.
“I see us spending time together…quality time that has nothing to do with my money. It’s one of the things I love so much about you. You look at me, Kerry and you see me…not my bank account. That’s not to say that anything you ever wanted wouldn’t be yours, but our life wouldn’t be about any of that. I see me turning the reigns of the company over to Alex and letting him take most of the lead. I see us traveling and you teaching English to children because when you do that, you look so happy. When you’re ready, I see us getting married and having babies…I want to teach our babies how to swim and fish and handle a boat. I want to watch them grow and learn. I want us all to make pancakes on Saturday…”
“Stop, Luca.” He was saying all of the right things. The question was, am I ready to believe he means them? I wish I had met him back when I was still naïve and trusting. The cynicism that David instilled in me will never be completely gone. Our eyes were locked and I knew that I wanted to accept his apology…I want all of the things he said…and the look in his eye was so sincere and determined, I want to believe that he wants them too.
“I want you to be the man for me more than I’ve ever wanted anything…but I’m going to have to take it slow.” He smiled and everything in me believed at that moment that he was that man. If I didn’t give him a chance…what might I be missing out on?
I know that I felt like the piece of my life that had always been missing was there for those couple of weeks we spent getting to know each other and for the past three days I have felt incomplete all over again. I don’t want to feel that way any longer. I want to try. “Besides, you saved me again,” I said with a grin. “I guess I owe you a shot after all of that.”
He laughed, a deep sound so pleasant to my ears. “I wish I would have thought of that sooner. The Chinese might say you owe me your life.”
“Don’t push it,” I told him with a laugh.
“Can I kiss you?” I’ll bet he’s never asked anyone that in his life. This was a side of Luca that even he wasn’t used to exercising. Having to ask and wait.
“Yes, please do,” I said, playfully. He pulled me close and his full lips imprinted on mine. It was loving and truthful, all thoughts of David, Maria and the rest of the world as I knew it were gone. I could hardly remember that a world beyond him existed. He felt so good against me.
When he broke the kiss he whispered against my ear, “I will always be here for you, baby. I mean it. I want you, Kerry…and only you. I want a future with you. I promise you I will never lie. I will never make a fool out of you….” I felt the tight prickle of tears against my eyes and wondered how I could be so lucky to have traveled across the world to find the man for me.
“I want you too.” He looked so relieved that it made my heart pound. I do want him and now it was time to start a new chapter in my life.
LUCA
ONE YEAR LATER
It was a beautiful morning and the boats were scattered across the harbor. Like my beautiful wife and I, people were out enjoying the morning sun and the gentle breeze that would lap at the sails and take us out away from the docks. We were just leaving the harbor and I looked over at my gorgeous wife and smiled as she leaned over the railing and strained to see the sea lion that had just been barking at us off the docks. I love the way the simple things in life make her so happy.
She had a fish for him that she’d gotten out of my freezer downstairs and thawed out. It was silly, but so like her and so damned cute. She’s still an enigma to me. The fact that someone…anyone, could be that sweet and easy going…and tough at the same time, was hard for me to wrap my head around, but I figure I have the rest of my life to figure it out.
I thought back to our wedding a few months ago. We’d gotten married in St. Mark’s Square underneath the big clock. It was important to her because that is her favorite part of Venice. I didn’t care where we got married, as long Kerry was the blushing bride. After our wedding which was small but intimate, we flew off to Jamaica for a honeymoon. We had a tree house on the beach that looked out over a warm, tropical forest and we spent our time walking on the beach or making love.
It had been an eventful year. Maria was arrested a few days after her tantrum at the apartment for the murder of the Count’s son. It turned out that she’d been stealing from him and he must have found out. They found the empty poison tucked in the floorboard of her apartment. During the trial it came out that she’d been playing with and stealing from multiple businessmen in the city. I had to wonder what she’d stolen from me…but the truth was I don’t care. The only thing that precious to me is Kerry…and she’s all mine.
I looked back over at her and realized I didn’t even want to think about anything but her right now. With mischief on my mind I went over and grabbed her around the waist. She giggled and squealed as I pulled her down below deck. When I spun her around, she was the one with the mischievous smile. Kerry’s brown eyes glistened as she nudged me back so I was sitting on the couch.
“Take off those shorts, Mr. Sterling.” Of course I did as she asked…she’s my wife after all. She gazed down at me seductively as she shed herself of the sexy bikini she was wearing. What was underneath was much sexier. She let it drop to the floor and then she straddled my lap. Her kiss was hard and passionate and I couldn’t help but buck up against her. While we kissed, her
hands began to explore. My own hands reached back to cup her ass before sliding up, aching to touch those gorgeous breasts. She took hold of my wrists and put them back down by my sides. She leaned against my lips and murmured in soft whisper. “Don’t make me tie you up.”
I smiled and obeyed as her lips began to follow the trail her fingers had left on my skin. Down she trailed, her hot lips marking me along my neck and shoulders. I fisted my polo behind my neck and pulled it over my shoulder. She pulled off her top and bra and rested her breasts against my chest. It was so sexy I felt myself grow rock hard below her.
Kissing licking and sucking…she lingered over my nipples and as she licked and nibbled, her hand found my already throbbing cock under my shorts and she began to stroke it…agonizingly slowly. Her mouth continued to move downward as she slid off and kneeled between my open thighs. She left her hand there, squeezing lightly at the base every so often as she teased my abs with her lips and tongue. I reached for her hair and heard her mutter… “Uh-uh!” I put my hands back down at my sides…it was torture, but sexy, sweet erotic torture. She sat up to pull my shorts and sandals off of me. I reached around and smacked her on the ass.
“Be a good boy!”
“Yes m’am.” This was our little game. And I loved it.
When she at last took the head of my cock into her mouth I groaned. She started out slow, caressing the underside gently with her tongue and gliding it all around. She lightly swirled her tongue around the head and flicked across it each time causing me to shudder. Then, she wrapped it up in one hand and began to stroke it while she took my balls into her mouth and gently sucked and caressed each one with her tongue. The soft, fresh scent of her skin wafted up to me and the whole thing was intoxicating. I was drunk…on my own wife.
Within minutes, I was moaning and already teetering on the edge, my balls aching to be buried inside her. She knows me so well. She gently but firmly grasped the base of my cock and put pressure on just the right part to keep me from coming yet. We’ve been actively working on making a baby…my gorgeous wife wasn’t one to waste a single chance. I shuddered violently as she let go of my cock and rose up. She’s so fucking beautiful I could just sit here and look at her…or so I thought until she straddled my lap.
BWWM: OFF LIMITS: An Interracial Alpha Billionaire Romance (Urban African American Contemporary Series) Page 279