by Kat Walters
That was all. She didn't come any closer. Her expression didn't soften. She didn't smile. Alessandro felt as if someone had tied a band around his chest and was pulling on it tighter and tighter, squeezing all the air out of his lungs. He waited. I love you, Alessandro, but…
Nothing followed. But? Alessandro was still waiting for her to go on. He didn't understand what she was trying to tell him. The tension was unlike anything he had ever experienced before, in any business meeting or high-stake negotiation. His whole body hurt from holding himself back. All he wanted to do was touch her, but he couldn't. What was she trying to tell him? Alessandro studied her, his eyes moving over every inch of her face looking for some sign, for something. He watched her eyes cloud in confusion, and suddenly she looked uncertain, nervous even.
"Alessandro?"
Had she got it all wrong? Maybe Alessandro didn't love her, didn't want to hear that she loved him. He had called her his love, but what if they were just pretty words, words that he had whispered to countless lovers?
"Yes?" His voice was tight as though the word had been dragged from his throat. The planes of his face were jagged with dark shadows under his eyes. Shadows that indicated a long sleepless night. Alessandro had stayed awake all night, knowing she was going to leave. Waiting for her to betray him just as his mother had betrayed him.
Isabella ached for him, for the pain she saw in his eyes, and her own eyes filled with tears. Earlier she had cried for herself, but now her tears were for him, for the boy he had been.
"I love you," she repeated, still not moving any closer. She couldn't. Not until Alessandro understood how much she loved him. Not until he'd forgiven her for hurting him.
Alessandro's hard stare softened, but there was still a wariness to his expression, his body coiled tight with tension as though he was waiting for something. "And?"
"And what? That's it." Her own tension made her voice more impatient than she meant it to be. What else could she say? How else could she tell Alessandro that she loved him?
An expression she didn't recognize flashed across his face, and he took a sudden jerky step towards her. Hope flared to life inside Isabella; her breath hitched, but then he stopped, and her heart fell. Alessandro couldn't forgive her.
"Isabella?" There was such agony in the way Alessandro said her name, a question, a desperate appeal. The pain in his eyes was too much for Isabella, the tension between them too heavy, suffocating.
"Alessandro! What do you want me to say?" Her eyes fired to a deep emerald green; her voice turned fierce. "I'm sorry for creeping out of here in the middle of the night. I'm sorry I didn't believe you. I'm sorry I'm such a coward. You're the bravest man I know, and I love you."
Alessandro had her in his arms before she even finished speaking. His arms held her so tight she could barely move, but she didn't want to. His hold gentled, and he burrowed his hand into her hair and cradled her head, holding it to his chest. Isabella sighed, and when she wrapped her arms around his chest, Alessandro exhaled a shuddering breath. His arms tightened, and he angled her head up, claiming her mouth in a deep kiss, an intensely possessive act that left Isabella trembling in his arms.
When he finally released her, Isabella pulled back and managed to glare at him despite the happiness filling her. "I'm taking back part of that apology. I'm not sorry for creeping out of bed in the middle of the night. Three times you've done that to me. If you ever do that again –" Alessandro smothered her threat with his mouth, kissing her so fiercely she had her answer right there.
Isabella melted into him.
"Isabella, I am never leaving your side again," Alessandro whispered fiercely, brushing his lips over hers. She couldn't help the smile quivering on her lips at that.
"Fine by me," she murmured, kissing him, snaking her arms around his neck. "I need another male dancer in the company, and I'd love to see you in a leotard." Isabella felt Alessandro's mouth twitching beneath her own, the sound of laughter in his voice making her heart soar.
"For you, anything." He murmured, lifting her up so she could wrap her legs around his waist while he carried her up the stairs and back to bed. Their bed.
About The Author
Kat Walters
Kat Walters loves nothing more than curling up with a good book. While reading is her first love, writing came out of necessity. When she was still in her teens Kat read so much that she eventually ran out of books to read and, in an act of self-preservation mostly, she started writing to keep herself entertained. She has been writing ever since.
Kat lives with her husband and two children in County Cork in Ireland.
Books In This Series
Loving The Enemy
Three brooding Italian heroes and the women who love them.
His For The Taking
Up In Flames
Love At Midnight