Prosecco & Paparazzi (The Passport Series Book 1)

by Celia Kennedy

  “She’s mine!” Liam said good-naturedly. He pointed to Tiziana. “That one’s yours!”

  She beamed a smile that dazzled Ted. He gripped his chest and staggered to her side. “Kiss me!” he demanded.

  After they shared a kiss, he turned to the assembled group and raised his glass. “To the ladies! We men endeavor to deserve you. To the men! It’s my hope that you’re as happy as I am.” We all raised our glasses cheerfully, and the evening celebration was underway.

  We watched the sun descend into the Mediterranean, looking for the last flash of color on the calm sea’s surface. For a brief moment, we stood silent in our appreciation. Once the last flash of light was gone, the burst of a thousand twinkly lights lit the boat up. We all “oooed” our appreciation and the chatter became lively once more.

  It wasn’t until after dinner and we had returned to the deck that my mind wandered back to what Gemma had said earlier.

  I stood at the rail, wondering what to do, wishing I had talked to Liam about this instead of falling asleep. I felt a presence beside me and looked to my left to see Des leaning on the railing, cocktail in hand, staring out at the water. My heart did a flip, and my mouth went dry. Too late to talk to Liam now, I thought.

  The silence between us was like a third person. My mind raced through the many things I had wanted to say, but no coherent thought made its way to my tongue. He leaned his left elbow on the rail, swiveling his body toward me. Oddly, my brain registered that he had a healthy glow from the sun. He tried to break the silence, starting and stopping a few times, a frown across his face.

  “Charlotte, or perhaps I should say Ms. Young, although that seems frightfully formal given the party atmosphere.” He looked at me through his eyelashes. “Well, then, I know this is awkward for us all, but I think it best for Ted and Tiziana if we manage to get through this.” He let out a deep breath and ran his hands through his hair. “Look, I want to say, you know, bygones should be bygones and all that.” Then he held his hand out, as if a handshake would make everything better.

  My mind reeled in confusion as I stared at his hand. The opportunity I had been waiting for had presented itself, yet I felt more confused than angry. I didn’t know what I wanted to say. A quick thought flittered through; perhaps not everything needed to be said that night. In the midst of my confusion, I did figure out that, while I didn’t know where to start, complete absolution in the form of a handshake wasn’t happening.

  Suddenly Frank Sinatra flooded the airwaves, and Liam appeared out of the darkness. “Charlotte, I need to dance with you!”

  He then registered Des’s proffered hand and looked at me. The two men studied each other. I looked back at Des, waiting to see if there was more explanation to come. A heartbeat or two passed before my brain accepted there wasn’t. I took Liam’s hand and let myself be led away, calmed by the crooning of “Fly Me to the Moon.”

  As the melody clung to the dark, Liam asked, “What was that all about?”

  I relaxed and leaned into his body. Taking a deep breath of his scent, I looked up at him. “The hell if I know!”

  We twirled around the deck of the ship to “Something Stupid.” By the end, we were singing together, “Then I go and spoil it all by saying something stupid like I love you!”

  “Hey, you two! Men are in short supply. Pass them along!” Marian called from a few feet away. I laughed and relinquished Liam to her. He gave me a frightened look as she dragged him away.

  “Be gentle with him!” She stuck her tongue out at me and then led him further away, dancing an exaggerated version of the cha-ha-cha to “Girl from Ipanema.”

  I found safety at the bar and perched myself on a stool. I watched Ted dance with Kathleen. Somehow Des had managed to get Hillary on her feet. Tiziana settled down next to me, breathless.

  Finally, she purred, “What a perfect night! I wonder if I can get a few of the crew to come and dance! Tomorrow will be better when the rest of the guests have arrived.”

  “Well, I’m sure Hillary would just love to foxtrot with the fellow who’s cleaning the toilets,” I replied dryly.

  “Have you seen him? He’s rather gorgeous.” She giggled.

  When the next song began, Ted exchanged Kathleen for Tiziana. She and her laughter disappeared into the twinkling darkness as they danced to “Summer Wind.”

  Kathleen buzzed in my ear, “What was going on with you and Des? I saw him talking to you. I couldn’t tell if you were going to punch him in the nose, or what. I was glad when Liam headed over there.” She sipped a fruity pink cocktail from a martini glass while waiting for my answer.

  Before I could speak, we were joined by Gemma, who had been a short distance away, speaking on a cell phone. “Sorry, ladies! That was my husband. He’ll be meeting us in Saint-Tropez in time for tomorrow afternoon’s fun and games. So, what are we talking about?”

  I poked a finger to the dance floor. “Figuring out which one to rescue.”

  Gemma smirked. “I say we let them fend for themselves. We rescue them too often and ruin their chance to become men.”

  We stayed at the sidelines and talked about the wedding plans. Gemma, having recently survived two nuptial ceremonies, was the expert in the group. “Well, I loved each ceremony for different reasons, but at the end of the day, I would have been just as happy to fly to Las Vegas.”

  We continued to keep track of who was dancing with whom. Finally, the men grew tired and decided to rescue themselves. “You see, one more step toward manhood,” Gemma whispered into my ear as they extracted themselves from the dance floor and moved toward the bar.

  Everyone settled into the chairs scattered about the deck. I was flanked by Marian and Liam. Somehow Des ended up farthest away, leaving me more than a bit relieved because we could only avoid each other so long.

  Tiziana and Ted kept us entertained with stories of her exuberant mother’s demands regarding the wedding. “I keep telling her, ‘Mama, please, no more,’ but you know my mama! The only thing we’re missing is the log.” We all looked at each other for an explanation, Ted the most perplexed.

  “What? Did I forget to mention the log? You’ve never heard of the log? Okay, okay, let me explain! It’s a very old tradition, and maybe some people still do it. It’s when a couple getting married use a sega a mano to cut the log.” While she explained, her arm moved back and forth. Seeing our continued confusion, she added, “You know, the thing you cut wood with, with the little sharp points?”

  “A handsaw!” Kathleen called out excitedly.

  “Yes, yes, a saw! So the bride and groom saw the log to represent partnership. I told her, ‘No, Mama! The only log I want to get near is of another nature!’” She gave Ted a loaded look.

  Marian and the men sang a rousing chorus of, “I’m a lumber jack and I’m okay” by Monty Python.

  Liam moved his arm from the back of my chair, took my hand in his, and brushed it discreetly across his lap. I felt his arousal. Heat radiated off him.

  “Let’s go before I leave a wet spot,” I said into his ear.

  Quickly standing up, with me in front, I gave the girls a kiss goodnight and waved to the men. Liam and I made our way to our room, him carrying the shoes that I had kicked off earlier.

  Once the door closed, he pushed me up against the wall and said, “Do me a favor?”

  “Anything,” I answered, breathless as a result of his one hand sliding up my thigh and the other kneading my breast.

  “Fuck me,” he said with his lips pressed against my mouth.

  “Oh, so the dirty talk commences?” I stroked the length of him through his trousers.

  ***

  Later, when he had some strength back, he held his weight on his forearms. Through his heavy breathing, I heard, “Well, I think we’ve taken this to a new level.”

  “What level is that?” While gasping for breath, I was a bit embarrassed at having proven myself naturally gifted in the saucier art of talking dirty.

  He gr
inned at me lewdly. “Well, we’ve made love, had phone sex, and now we’re having dirty sex.”

  I tucked my face into his neck. “That was all with me! For such a delinquent youth, you must have talked dirtier to a woman than that.”

  Prying my face out of the crook of his shoulder, he wore a broad grin. “True, but never to someone I’ve loved. It didn’t seem right. But I’m sensing there’s a lot of potential here.”

  “I draw the line at bondage, three-ways, and toys that induce pain. However, I’m willing to negotiate on a few of those.”

  He put on his thickest Irish brogue. “You’re a wee little pervert, aren’t you?”

  “Yes, I am.”

  He looked very pleased, maybe because of his newfound potential or the increased signs of life in his nether region.

  After an hour of exploring new territory, I was lying on the floor, rubbing my shoulders. Liam threw himself on the bed, looking very satisfied.

  “How am I going to hide the carpet burns?” I asked with a grimace.

  “Tell them it’s sunburn.” He hopped into the bathroom and returned with a bottle of aloe, gently massaging it onto my damaged skin.

  The combination of a long day of travel, sun, and strenuous hanky-panky suddenly washed over me, and I could feel myself collapsing into his massage.

  Kissing the top of my head, he rolled me onto my back and lifted me onto the big bed. While we were snuggling, he whispered, “So, do you think he comes in peace?”

  “I’ve no idea. I guess. He just said something about ‘bygones should be bygones’ and stuck out his hand like a handshake could fix everything.”

  “I’ve got a joke for you,” Liam said suddenly, changing the topic.

  “I don’t want to hear it if it rhymes with body parts.”

  “A young couple gets married and they have sex in every room in the house. Time passes, they have kids, and then the only sex they have is bedroom sex. More time passes, and then all they have is hallway sex.” The images flitted through my head as he told me the joke.

  “Hallway sex?” I asked, not getting it.

  He chuckled. “When they pass each other in the hallway, they say, ‘Fuck you.’”

  “That’s terrible! Funny, but terrible.”

  Pulling me against him, he tucked the crisp white sheet up around my shoulders and wrapped an arm firmly around me. “I love to hear you laugh. I’m absolutely exhausted; I need sleep. Goodnight.” He kissed my abused shoulders.

  “Goodnight.” As I stared at the moon over the water, I drifted into the deepest, dreamless sleep I could remember.

  ***

  The next day was planned to the fullest. We were to be in Saint-Tropez at Capitainerie du Port just after breakfast to pick up a few more guests.

  “Who?” Marian grilled Tiziana with determination, while tearing into a large, flaky croissant, her coffee steaming away on the table.

  Coyly, Tiziana looked around the table and said, “My brothers, Alessandro and Paolo, and Gemma’s husband Colin, as well as a lovely gentleman by the name of Michael Molloy.”

  Hillary placed her silverware down with a clatter, glancing quickly at me and Liam. I shrugged my shoulders to let her know I hadn’t a clue. She looked a little nervous, a little excited.

  Tiziana jumped up to give Hillary a quick kiss on the cheek. “So you see, we’ll all have someone to dance with tonight!”

  Liam, clearly happy to have his brother included, rose to give Tiziana a kiss. “I love these people.” She giggled and hugged him back.

  “Well, if that’s all it takes, I love these people!” Marian joined in, grabbing Des’s face and planted one on his lips. It was his turn to drop his silverware with a clatter.

  “Blimey,” was his reply when Marian let him go. Inwardly I cringed, wondering what lawsuit she’d be saddled with.

  Liam plopped back down into his chair with a very satisfied smile. He threw his arm across my shoulders and gave one a squeeze.

  “Ouch!” I yelped.

  “Sorry!” His smile quickly turned to one of concern. “I forgot.”

  Tiziana asked, “Bella, what’s wrong?”

  “Sunburn…” I mumbled into my coffee cup, feeling a healthy blush rise from the tips of my toes to the top of my head. I was inundated with remedies when the only one I needed was to be left alone to suffer my embarrassment in peace.

  It was a very jubilant group that glided into the harbor. Having quickly become accustomed to the luxury yacht, it wasn’t until we reached the dock’s edge and saw all the staring faces that we remembered the glamorous life we were living.

  Kathleen was one of the first off the ship. Dressed in a white cutout bathing suit and bright yellow sarong, she said with a smile, “I’m going to take a look at the other dinghies.”

  “She’s off to find Prince Charming or Prince Harry, or Prince, for that matter,” Marian said as we watched her long, willowy body flutter down the ramp and disappear among the yachts.

  “Yup! Has she met Tiziana’s brothers before?” I asked.

  “I don’t know. Why?” Marian asked, her voice curious.

  “Oh, you’ll see.”

  In a repeat of the day before, two limousines arrived and out of each stepped two elegant men. Gemma had walked down to meet one, giving her attention to a tall, dark, and handsome man known to all for his place in cinematic history. Hillary stood beside me at the rail and gazed at the other tall, dark, and handsome man who was looking about, a bit overwhelmed.

  “Go rescue him,” I whispered to her. Somehow, Hillary managed to sedately bolt down the ramp.

  In her typical fashion, Tiziana descended upon the second limo with gusto, pulling open a door and dragging her brothers out, hugging them close. Liam and I watched with affectionate amusement, listening to the Italian lyricism float its way toward us.

  Marian poked me in the side, pointing to the slips where the boats were moored. Kathleen was drifting back toward Tiziana.

  Laughing, I said to Marian, “I’d go stake my claim if I were you.”

  With no dignity to spare, she raced to Tiziana’s side to beg for introductions.

  “It’s going to be quite an adventure!” Liam observed.

  “Poor boys, they’ll never be the same!”

  “We never are.” Liam patted my bum.

  I gave him a wry glance and said, “Thanks for remembering my shoulders this time. Next time you forget, I’m going to announce what a pervert you are!”

  He gave my bum a much firmer swat and said with a laugh, “You do, and I’ll tell them all about your bondage fantasies.”

  “I specifically said no bondage!” I hoped he’d heard me and was just teasing.

  Liam scoffed. “They’ll never believe you, not with friction burns on your shoulders and bite marks on my chest.” Since the crowd was walking up the gang plank, all I could do was concede this round to him.

  After everyone had climbed aboard, luggage and introductions were sorted out. Gathering on the rear deck, we all toasted the newly arrived guests as the boat quietly maneuvered out of the harbor. Everyone fanned out around the deck, nattering to whoever sat next to them. I did notice that Kathleen and Marian had quartered themselves near Paolo and Alessandro. I sipped my grapefruit juice and smiled.

  Liam’s eyes followed mine. “Poor bastards! Little do they know that in three days’ time they’ll be hiding in the shadows, hands over their worn-out wee bits, praying the rosary.”

  “Probably!” They really did have their work cut out for them.

  Liam surprised me a short while later by handing me a life jacket and leading me to a lower deck where a jet ski bobbed on the water, waiting for us.

  “Do you know how to drive one of these things?” I asked, hopefully disguising my concern.

  Tugging at the straps of my jacket, he made sure it was snug. “Well, one of the lads showed me. How hard can it be?”

  I was flooded with doubt. Before I say so, I heard the sound of Hillary’
s voice and Michael’s laughter. I turned to see them suited up in life jackets, as well.

  “Well, at least we’ll have help if you crash!” I said.

  “Or they can bring our bodies back!” Liam wasn’t going to let me back out, that was clear.

  Michael offered Hillary the same assurance of his driving skills. “I’m not completely convinced, are you?” she asked me after taking a moment to assess the situation.

  “I’m not convinced at all.” But, seeing Liam’s disappointed face, I added enthusiastically, “But what the heck?”

  He stretched his long leg over the seat and got comfortably seated, studying the dials and buttons. “Come on.” He held a hand out to help me climb on.

  “Have I mentioned I’m short?” I could not see how I was supposed to clear the distance from the edge of the boat to the seat of the jet ski.

  The next thing I knew I was dangling in the air as Michael passed me to Liam. “Okay, well, that was humiliating!” I grumbled.

  Michael looked at Hillary, and she said with an absolute lack of humor, “Not on your life.”

  We slowly chugged away, and, with a backwards glance, I saw Hillary much more gracefully climb on behind Michael. We floated at a safe distance, and, once Michael and Hillary were ready, Liam gave Michael a thumbs up, and we burst forward.

  After riding between waves and jumping over the crests of swells for about a half hour, Liam stopped the engine and said over his shoulder, “Want to drive?”

  With trepidation, I agreed to try. Liam jumped into the water, I scooted forward, and he climbed back on. He patiently explained what to do, and I gave it a tentative go. Michael and Hillary watched and laughed when Liam and I puttered along quite slowly at first.

  I quickly accelerated and turned the jet ski in time to spray a wide arch of water on them, leaving both Hillary and Michael gasping.

  “Why, you little daredevil! You didn’t tell me you already knew what to do,” Liam shouted in my ear over the roar of the engine.

  I shouted back, “Well, that will teach you to be presumptuous!”

  Michael and Hillary soon caught up, and we chased each other around for quite some time. I felt Liam motion to Michael, and then told me to follow him. Soon, we were floating in the shallow waters of a quiet bay.