by Anne, Melody
Why couldn’t she have figured this out sooner? Why must they have an audience when all she wanted to do was please him, love him, show him that he could count on her?
“Um, Ms. Palazzo, we need to be leaving.”
Lia wasn’t happy about the interruption, but she reluctantly released Shane and turned to the pilot.
“Of course,” she said, holding tight to Shane’s hand as he assisted her inside.
She sat beside Shane and looked out the window as their piece of paradise disappeared. Neither of them said a word as the island became nothing but a dot on the horizon. Shane had lost his yacht, and they’d been stranded for five nights, but it hadn’t felt as if they were. It had felt like a vacation, the best one she’d ever been on.
“This is only the beginning, Lia,” Shane said as she leaned her head against his shoulder and fought the overwhelming emotions vying for a foothold inside of her.
Hope rose in her chest. Maybe he was right. Maybe it was a first step, just the beginning of a brand new chapter in their lives.
Chapter Thirty-One
Rafe
Rafe rushed forward as Lia and Shane stepped off the helicopter. He might have appeared confident when he’d spoken to Ari, but he’d been terrified. When he’d climbed into the small bed and held her, it had been as much for himself as for her.
His sisters meant everything to him, and he couldn’t imagine what the world would be like without them in it. It would be an unforgivable sin for life to go on as normal if something were to happen to either of them.
“Don’t you ever do that to me again,” he said as he pulled Lia into his arms and squeezed her tight.
“I’m just fine, Rafe. Thank you for finding us,” she said, looking up with shining eyes. He was too relieved at having her safe to realize how off her reaction to being rescued was.
Rafe finally released her, then grabbed Shane and gave him a bear hug, surprising both himself and Shane. They weren’t normally the type of guys to hug, but Rafe had been truly worried about his friend. Losing him was something else that was not to be borne.
“I thought I was never going to see you again!” Shane was barely able to brace himself for impact as Rachel came flying toward them, knocking him out of her way as she grabbed hold of Lia and held on so tight, he was sure Lia couldn’t breathe.
Though the two got into their fights, and they might have wanted to rip each other apart on occasion, they truly did love one another. Rafe felt terrible that it had taken him so long to get to Italy, leaving Rachel all alone in her panic over her missing sister. He’d never once considered that Lia or Shane could be dead — well, maybe once — but he was afraid of how long it might take to locate them.
“I’m fine, Rachel. I promise.”
“Don’t ever do that again. Do you hear me?” Rachel gasped as she let Lia go, then turned toward Shane and wrapped her arms around him. “You either, Shane!”
“It wasn’t like we had a lot of choice in the matter,” Lia said with a laugh.
“How can you laugh about this? Are you crazy? Did you get hurt out there? Did you have anything to eat? Could you find clean water? Were there snakes? Poisonous berries? Wild animals? Rafe, we need to take them right to the hospital,” Rachel insisted, not giving either Lia or Shane time to answer her rapidly fired questions.
“We’re fine, Rachel. We had plenty to eat and drink,” Lia said. “None of it fatal, as you can see.”
“No. Rachel is right. I want you to be looked over,” Shane interrupted, finally able to say something over the frantic voices of the two sisters.
“I’m fine. I don’t need a doctor,” Lia insisted, shooting a warning look Shane’s way. Of course, he ignored it.
“You hit your head twice, Lia. I want you to go to the hospital.”
All eyes turned toward Lia as if they were expecting to see blood shooting from her scalp at Shane’s declaration. Her vicious glare let him know he was in major trouble for spilling those beans. Logically, she knew it couldn’t hurt to get looked at, but she just wanted to lie down in a real bed — with Shane next to her.
She grumbled beneath her breath, but she knew she’d lost. If she refused to go to the doctor, they’d pester her to the point that she’d need a psychiatrist.
“Fine. But, let’s get it over with. Are Mom and Dad coming?”
“Yes, I was able to get ahold of them, and they’re on their way in now,” Rafe answered.
Lia sighed with relief. Even as an adult, she found it nice to have a mom and dad when things went terribly wrong. No matter how strong she wanted them to all believe she was, she’d gone through quite an ordeal.
Rafe turned when he realized that Ari hadn’t said a word. He found her standing back, a sweet smile on her face, but also appearing uncomfortable. He took a step toward her, wondering what was wrong, why she wasn’t by his side. Before he had a chance, Lia yelled.
“Ari! I didn’t know you were here!” Wasting no time, Lia rushed over to her friend.
“I didn’t want to interrupt. You’re with your family,” Ari replied, as she put her arms around Lia, Ari’s relief was obvious. Rafe saw the tears she was managing to blink back.
“You are family, Ari. You know that Rachel and I have claimed you for our sister,” she said, her tone serious.
“And I have claimed you, but still…”
Rafe hated the longing in Ari’s voice, hated that she had been lonely for many years. He’d so often taken his large family for granted, and Ari only had her mother.
Ari didn’t know it, but Rafe had kept an eye out for Sandra these past couple of years. He’d genuinely liked her mother, and he hadn’t been able to walk away pretending he’d never met her, known her, and grown to care for her. He hadn’t bothered her…much, but he’d worried ever since she’d gone through her two major health scares.
Sandra was doing amazingly well now; she’d been dating the same man for more than two years, a man who treated her like a queen, and her floral business was thriving. Rafe had switched all his business orders over to her. He would have switched his personal ones, too, but he hadn’t had anyone to order flowers for.
He would have to have a large bouquet delivered to Ari’s apartment this week.
“I’m sitting with you, where I’ll be safest,” Lia said, wrapping one arm through Ari’s, then the other arm through Rachel’s. Rafe stood next to Shane as the three women made their way toward the awaiting limo.
“Are you really OK, Shane?”
Shane hesitated as he looked across the lot as the girls laughed together, their voices easily carrying back to the two men.
“Yeah, I’m good, Rafe. I lost my yacht, but it was worth it. Lia had no choice but to hear me out, and I think we’re going to make it through all of this. I would have preferred for us not to get stranded on an island in the middle of nowhere, but it ended up being…well, not to sound too corny, but kind of magical.”
“Magical? Really?” Rafe asked with a raised eyebrow. His lip twitched, but he restrained his snort.
“Yeah, whatever. You can shut up at any time,” Shane said, his cheeks heating with embarrassment.
“You know I’m just razzing you,” Rafe told him.
“Yeah, well, at least I did get Lia to myself. That’s worth any razzing you can dish out,” Shane said smugly.
“You didn’t do this on purpose, did you?” Rafe gasped as his expression changed and he looked at his best friend with worry. Rafe knew he’d go pretty far himself to win Ari, but not risk her life. He didn’t think Shane would either.
“No! You should know better than to even ask that, Rafe,” said Shane, glossing over the truth of the matter only a little. “I wasn’t paying attention to the weather and things got out of hand quickly. I’m just saying that being stranded on a deserted island with Lia for several days turned out to be pretty spectacular.”
“I don’t need details,” Rafe said, deciding it was time to change the subject. “I am happy for
you, though,” he added.
“What about you and Ari? I notice she’s here. That’s a great sign.”
“Yeah. She’s here because of Lia, not me. However, I’m a little closer than I was a week ago. She’s beginning to thaw.”
Just then, the girls turned around and looked at them questioningly, wondering what they were discussing.
“She doesn’t look like she’s thawed all that much,” Shane goaded him.
“Yeah, what do you know? You can’t even keep a boat afloat,” Rafe replied.
“That was low, man, really low,” Shane said, holding his hand up to his chest as if he were mortally wounded.
“We’d better hurry. They might just decide to leave us here,” Rafe said as the women started climbing into the vehicle.
“I know Lia would leave me behind. That girl has fire,” Shane said with admiration.
“Yeah, you’re a brave, brave man, Shane. I will give you props,” Rafe said while slapping Shane on the back.
“I need more than props when dealing with your sister, but I’ll take what I can get.”
The two men were still chuckling as they got into the limo and it pulled away from the heliport. What could have been a tragic day had turned to something miraculous and special in the blink of an eye. They would celebrate.
Chapter Thirty-Two
Lia
“We are never leaving again!”
“Mom, you don’t need to be so extreme. Shane and I are just fine. As a matter of fact, we enjoyed ourselves on the island. The food was plentiful and there was even a spectacular cove of water,” Lia said. She sent a wink toward Shane, who actually and unbelievably blushed. She knew exactly what he was thinking about.
Mmm, that was a great cove of water!
“I was so worried about the both of you. Your father and I couldn’t get here fast enough,” her mother said as she clung to Lia and then Shane and then back to Lia again.
“Let’s all just be grateful they are fine and we found them. Now, we need to enjoy our dinner,” Rafe said as he stepped in to try to help his sister. She looked over and mouthed thank you to him.
Their parents finally allowed them all to sit down at the beautifully set table for pre-dinner drinks, and Lia’s shoulders relaxed.
“How have you been, Ari? I’ve been worried about you,” Rosabella said as she focused her attention on Ari, who was quiet as the family spoke in a mixture of English and Italian. She knew a few Italian phrases, but was pretty much lost when they spoke in the other language.
“I’m doing wonderfully, Mrs. Palazzo. Thank you.”
“I guess it has been too long if you are reverting to calling me by my last name again,” Rosabella said with a raised brow.
“I’m sorry,” Ari replied.
“No need to apologize, la mia piccola cara. We’ll just have to go out together — no men, just women — so you are comfortable around me again.”
“That sounds like a great idea, Mom. Let’s do it tomorrow before you all head out again,” said Rachel, obviously excited to have them all there, even though she’d been away from her family for only a couple of weeks.
“Your father and I have decided to stay in America for a while. I’m done with the boat ride,” Rosabella replied.
“It’s not a boat, darling. She is far too beautiful for such a simple title,” Martin said with a smile.
“Yes, dear. But, still, we are done cruising the seas. I like to have my feet on solid ground.”
“I know what you mean, Mama. I think avoiding the water would be a good idea for a while,” Lia said with a laugh.
“I’m so sorry, my sweet daughter. Here I am complaining about being out on the water after all that you just went through,” Rosabella said with a gasp.
“I really am fine, Mom. You need to quit worrying,” Lia assured her.
Shane stood up and held his hand out to Lia. “Dance with me,” he said.
“I would love to,” Lia replied. She was grateful for the soft music coming from the string quartet in the next room. Melting into Shane’s arms was the perfect relief after being grilled repeatedly by her family. She certainly didn’t want to share everything with them about her time on the island with Shane.
That was for her and her alone. Of course, she loved her family, but she’d begun to build something real with Shane and she wanted selfishly to hold it tight against her chest, and not allow anyone else into their bubble. At least not right now.
The two of them moved away from the table, and Lia sighed and fell into Shane’s arms, her stress evaporating in an instant.
“They mean well, you know.”
“Yes, I know, Shane, but after our small slice of paradise, it’s hard to come back to the real world. I want you all to myself, where I can peel off your clothes and have my wicked way with you,” she said as her hand circled his neck, her fingernails lightly grazing his skin.
“If you keep talking like that, I will have to drag you out of here and shock your family,” he warned her.
“Promises, promises,” she answered.
“You are perfect in every way, Lia. There is nothing I don’t adore about you,” he said, his eyes becoming glazed with passion as he leaned down and gently kissed her.
“Even my stubbornness?” she questioned.
“Especially your stubbornness. I wouldn’t change a thing about you, Lia. I love how alive you are, how independent, how loving. I honestly can’t imagine my life without you by my side,” he said with reverence.
“Don’t you think this is moving too quickly, Shane?”
Fear clawed her insides. This was too good to be true, so the bubble would have to burst at some point, wouldn’t it? Nothing this amazing could last for all time.
“I would say that wanting you forever but thinking you were off limits and fighting that attraction can be called moving at a snail’s pace,” he countered.
“You could have had me five years ago,” she reminded him.
“The time wasn’t right. You will always be my best friend’s sister. But I now see you also as a woman, a beautiful, talented, kind woman. I see myself as spending the rest of my life with you.”
Lia felt her heart swell. She wanted to grasp his words and clutch them to her heart, but a small part of her felt that it was too soon, rather as if they were still dealing with the honeymoon stage of being stranded together. What if he changed his mind in a week? They needed more time before making any big decisions.
“Is that a marriage proposal, Shane?” she teased.
“Not yet, Lia. I would never show you such disrespect by proposing on the spur of the moment. You are a queen and deserve to be treated like one,” he said, no hint of teasing in his tone.
“I love you, Shane. I wasn’t going to say that, I wasn’t going to let my heart run away with my mouth, but I love you. I have since I was a young teenager, and though it was infatuation then, it has grown into a strong and complete emotion now, and it has overtaken my soul. Thank you for being good to me.”
Shane slowly spun them in a slow circle, never breaking eye contact with her. The smell of his subtle cologne drifted around her, weakening her knees and making her shiver, and certainly surprising her that he still had such an overwhelming effect on her.
“Lia, there is no other woman for me. There is nothing I don’t love about you. I think fate put us together long ago, and though I was a fool for years, I won’t make that mistake any longer. The light in your eyes guides me, the rhythm of your heart keeps mine beating, and the touch of your hand awes me. I love you more than words could ever express, and I would die without you.”
Lia felt as if she couldn’t breathe. While they moved in time to the slow sound of the string band, Shane’s hand gently caressed her back, his fingers moving beneath her camisole top and scorching her skin as he rubbed the sensitive spot that dipped in before her hips flared out.
As he pulled her against him, she felt his clear arousal pushing against her, showin
g her all too clearly that he was turned on, something he always seemed to be when they touched — which made her feel womanly and seductive.
She loved him because he was a wonderful man, but even more so because he made her feel special. He made her feel priceless. Yes, her family loved her and always encouraged her, but there was a difference.
To be loved by a man, truly loved, made a woman feel as if she could burst. Of course, Lia was strong and could face the world on her own, but it involved a deeper strength, she felt, to give yourself to another. To trust someone with your heart was a gift, and it was a gift she wanted to give Shane. It was a gift that he had earned.
Shane twirled Lia again, making her giggle. Instead of letting her complete the turn on the dance floor, he pulled her to him with her back facing his front. His arousal pushed into the soft curve of her behind as his arms wrapped around her middle, holding her tightly against him.
“Ah, Lia, what you do to me…” he whispered in her ear before he kissed her neck, his tongue trailing over her skin. “You smell and taste so good. Who needs food when I have you to taste?”
“We can always leave,” she moaned as his fingers splayed across her stomach. She wanted to turn and devour his mouth, but she also loved exactly where he had her, with all of his hardness pressed into her curves.
“Please don’t tempt me. Your family would kill us, and it’s taking all I have not to drag you from here, caveman style.”
Lia’s mind instantly filled with images of him carrying her away, tossing her to a bed, and ravishing her over and over again. She couldn’t wait to get him alone.
Shane released her, swinging her out wide, making her laugh with delight as her skirt flared. She felt pure enjoyment in their dance.
As he pulled her up tight against his chest and bent down, his eyes searing her with their desire, her laughter evaporated. Pure sexual hunger radiated through her. She pushed into his arousal, taking delight in the anguished gasp escaping his lips.