I stopped trying to get away from her. This was only temporary. One day it would be no more. Why shouldn’t I enjoy it. There was so little happiness in my life. Until she had come it had been completely barren. All I had was money and power, but my soul was broken and crying out. I would never trust a woman again, but for now, she was here and so was I.
The warm water crashed down on us until she reluctantly unhooked her limbs and tried to stand on her own. We both avoided the other’s gaze, but neither of us were willing to let go. She turned slightly and reached for the shower gel.
Then she caught my hand and turned it over and squirted some of the blue liquid onto my palm. The message was clear. She didn't want me going anywhere just yet. She was not done. Neither was I.
Rubbing both of my hands together till soft soap suds grew between them, I pulled her slightly away from the cascade once again and covered her beautiful breasts.
She gasped softly.
Chapter 36
Skye
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LBMXephwd6w
-When You Came Into My Life-
First he ate me out in the shower, then he carried me back to bed, dried my hair, and afterwards he worshipped my body. He kissed, sucked, and licked every inch of me. He even sucked my toes. One by one, as if they were the most delicious things in the world. Then he turned me over and even parted my ass cheeks and licked me there while he played with my clit. I was shocked, but at the same time my whole body began to feel as if it was vibrating with some kind of electricity.
When I climaxed, it was so intense, it actually felt as if I’d died and gone to heaven.
Afterwards, when I came back to earth, he turned me around and made love to me. His cock moved deeply into me. I knew small cracks were gradually forming in my heart. Not out of hurt, but out of… longing. I wanted him now, more than ever, and much more than I could have believed would ever be possible.
With a shuddering breath, I clenched my eyelids tightly shut as he sank further into me. When he came inside me I pulled him even closer and I held my grief at bay at what couldn’t be. I fell asleep with him still inside me.
The next time I came awake he was gone. I sat up and looked around the empty room. Last night seemed like some dream I’d made up. But when I turned around to look at the rumpled pillow next to me I knew it was not. I threw my face into the pillow and breathed him in.
Oh, Luca, Luca, Luca. What will I do when you throw me away?
After a while, I got out of bed and began to dress. The dark soil and the little seeds that held the promise of blooms would heal me. I went to the kitchen. I thought it would be too early for Madam to be there, but she was at her usual chair drinking from her cup. The two boxes of treats were also already prepared.
“Thank you, Madam. You are very kind,” I said walking towards the boxes.
“Not at all. It is nothing.”
“No, it’s something. John really appreciates it. I see how much he enjoys the cakes and cookies when he stops for his breaks. You always know exactly what he likes. He eats one box for his coffee break and saves the other for his tea break.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. You’ve really made his day.”
“No, it is not I who did that. It is you. It was your idea. I only wrapped the sweets.” Then she allowed a smile to touch her thin lips. It was only small, but it was the first smile I’d seen on her face, and it made her quite pretty.
I beamed back at her. “Have a nice day, Madam.”
She nodded. “You too.” Then she went back to studying her notebook.
It was still dark when I left the house and began to walk towards the greenhouse. When I got closer I could see the lights were already on. John must already be there. As I walked through the entrance he came out from behind some plants and stood peering at me anxiously.
“Good morning,” I greeted brightly.
“How are you feeling today?” he asked.
“Great. I’m ready to do a full day’s work.”
“Hmmm,” he said doubtfully.
“Really, I am,” I said with a grin.
“Well, I went into town yesterday afternoon and got you some flower seeds.” His voice was gruff.
My eyes went wide. “You did?”
“I see that you’ve prepared the soil in the pots, and the moon is waxing, so it would be a good day to plant today.”
“Why does the moon waxing matter?” I asked curiously, as I walked towards him.
We walked together towards my section of the greenhouse. “Don’t ask me why but the moon affects the way plants grow. Always plant when the moon is growing and prune back when the moon is waning.”
“I see. I never knew that. Maybe that was why all the plants I ever tried to grow died on me. Every single one,” I admitted gloomily.
“That’s strange. The moon can make your plants healthier or make the harvest more bountiful, but it doesn’t kill the plants. Maybe your soil was wrong.”
“I don’t think so. They would be growing fine, then one day they would simply shrivel up and die. All of them at the same time. And it happened every time no matter what I tried to grow.”
He stopped and scratched his chin. “Hmmm… that’s strange. The only explanation I can think of is sabotage. It happened once to me while I was growing the biggest turnip ever recorded. One of my competitors came to visit, and after that my turnip plant started to die off. I was suspicious so I sent off samples of the turnip and soil to a lab and the results came back that the samples were poisoned.”
The first thought in my head was so unworthy and so unkind I immediately kicked it away and refused to even consider it any more.
The rest of the morning was spent helping John. I actually loved working for him. He knew so much and it felt wonderful to work with someone so knowledgeable. Plus, I got the feeling he enjoyed having me around since I was quite happy to clean up after him.
It was nearly lunchtime when I flopped onto the tiled floor and laid flat on it. I felt exhausted, but in a good way. Then my gaze settled over to that place Luca and I had had sex and a sharp pang of arousal struck my core at the very vivid reminder. I shut my eyes and pulled my thoughts away from him. It was time to go back to the house, take a shower, and go visit my dad. I heard footsteps on the tiles and quickly opened my eyes.
“Refreshment for you,” Mary Jane said with a smile.
“Thank you,” I replied gratefully and rose to my feet.
I drained the tall glass of ice tea she had brought me and when I was done, relished the chill as it seeped into my bones. She’d already gone off to look at my rows of hard work, her words filled with compliments.
“You did all this,” she asked admiringly.
“Well, it’s all still soil” I laughed. “Nothing has germinated yet.”
“But the seeds are already planted right.”
“Yeah they are.”
She nodded, but her eyebrows furrowed at an unspoken thought.
“Can I ask you a question?” she asked, chewing her bottom lip.
“Sure.”
“I’m not trying to be smart or anything, but why are you planting these when you’re only staying for a month? I mean, are you taking them with you, or are you staying for longer?”
Just a few days earlier, hearing that last part of her question would have made me shrug and tell her I was planting because I loved the feeling of soil between my fingers, but now I felt a great sadness at the reminder of my impermanence in Torrington Hall.
I loved that greenhouse, I loved working with John, I loved walking the cold landscape, and more than that I was falling for the owner of the estate. Even while I was working on the plants I missed him. He remained in my mind, his voice in my ears and his scent so poignant around me that I wondered if it had clung to me or if it was just the very deep recollection of it in my memory.
Either way, it brought a restlessness to my soul that made me feel sad and lost. And I hated it
.
I looked at Mary Jane. “I know I will not be here to see them bloom, but I have loved planting flowers all my life and the joy for me is to grow something here on this fabulous estate that will go on flowering for long after I am gone, and hopefully John will find the same joy in them.”
Chapter 37
Skye
I went with Mary Jane to the house and ate my lunch. I was hungry and as ever it was absolutely delicious and I cleaned the plates of every last bit of food.
Afterwards I went up to my room to get ready to go visit my father, but while I was coming out of the shower Laura phoned to tell me not to come that day because her sister was coming to take them for a day out at the park. She asked me to postpone my visit until the next day. Then she passed the phone to my dad. He was in a grumpy mood. He hated Laura’s sister. I laughed and told him not to be so horrible. He grumbled some more then I blew him a kiss and laughingly told him I would see him the next day.
But once the call was over I stood in my towel in the middle of that beautiful room and felt sad all over again. I pulled on a warm jacket and went for a long walk. I ended my walk at the greenhouse. John was in his little office/storage room. He had a two-bar heater on and his feet were up on his desk. When he saw me through the glass he waved me over. He made tea and we had it together with one of Madam’s cakes in his warm cozy office. We talked about plants, and then he told me about his home country. He was born in Scotland and had come to the States when he was five. He was a good man. An honest and simple man. It felt good to talk to him. I would miss him. A lot.
Afterwards, I helped wash out the mugs we had used and while I was there I cleaned his dusty desk.
“You’re a kind lass,” he said to me unexpectedly.
I smiled at him.
“You remind me of my daughter. She looked nothing like you, of course, but she had a heart of gold. Like you.”
I went up to him and lightly kissed his weathered cheek.
“Are you really leaving in a month?”
“There is less than a month left, John.” I could hear the sadness in my own voice.
“Oh,” he said, and scratched his head in confusion.
“I should be going. See you tomorrow.”
It was already starting to get dark as I trudged back in the snow. My heart felt heavy and when I went back to the house I couldn’t concentrate on my gardening book. I kept listening out for Luca to arrive. He did not. I had a solitary dinner in the big dining room. I carried my sweet dessert wine into the living room with the big log fire and waited for him.
But he did not come back. Knowing now there were guards prowling and always watching, I was forced to return to my room to sleep, but I couldn’t sleep. I waited for him throughout the night and only fell asleep sometime after two in the morning.
I woke with a jerk at dawn and hurried to the kitchen to pick up John’s cakes. As usual Madam was ready with the boxes and I took them and walked in the snow to the greenhouse. John was waiting for me and we worked together. I never let myself think of Luca. Where he was or where he had spent the night. I couldn’t let myself think of him wrapped around another woman’s body. The thought burned me like acid.
After lunch I went to see my father. He was asleep when I went through the door, but Laura seemed excited and flustered as she showed me the first-class plane tickets, and told me my father and her were going to be flown to a special hospital in Switzerland so that my father could have mineral and vitamins given to him intravenously to build back his immunity, and have a course of blood transfusions from young people. Apparently, it was a new way of regenerating a sick or old body that was all the rage with the rich and famous.
With tears in her eyes she hugged me tightly.
“One day,” she sniffed. “One day, you will be rewarded for being such a good daughter to your father. I love my daughter and I would die for her, but I can see that you are the daughter every parent dreams of.”
Then she wiped her eyes and took me to see Dad. I thought he looked slightly better than the last time I had seen him but I couldn’t tell for sure.
He gripped my hand tightly. “You’ve done so much for me.”
I shook my head. “I’ve done what any daughter would.”
“Don’t Skye,” he whispered fiercely. “You’ve sacrificed for me. I know you have. You’re one in a billion, Skye. One in a billion. And I love you, Skye. I love you.”
Tears filled my eyes. At that moment, I knew it had all been worth it. All the times I had let Salvatore into my body. All the times I had taken him in my mouth. It was all worth it. Even knowing everything I knew now I would do it all again… without a second thought.
“I love you too, Daddy.”
Laura said she had something to do and went out of the room then, but I think she just wanted to give us some privacy. When they first got together she used to be jealous of the relationship Dad and I had, but after a while she put it aside and learned to love us both. She knew I was no threat to her.
I put my hand into my coat and pulled out the chocolate truffle the Chef had made and served me with last night. It was so delicious I had wrapped it in tissue paper and saved it for Dad. I unwrapped it and placed it into his mouth.
“I know sugar is no good for you, but just a little bit won’t hurt.”
He rolled it around his tongue, and his eyes widened. Poor thing. His food was deliberately bland and without spices or sugar. It was a long time since he had eaten anything truly delicious. I watched him slowly suck at the chocolate, his eyes misting over with love. I laid my cheek in his lap and cried then. For him. For me. For the way life was always so unjust. Everything I wanted was always taken away from me.
He stroked my hair gently. “Don’t cry, my little angel. Everything will be alright.”
“When you come back, I’m taking you and Laura out to a nice restaurant.”
He chuckled. “Do we have to take the old witch?”
“Dad,” I admonished, lifting my head.
He pretended to sigh. “Fine, we’ll take her along.”
Laura came back into the room and started making tea. We sat around talking, drinking tea and eating biscuits from a tin. Afterwards, I went back to the car and got in. Silently, the driver put the car into motion.
Chapter 38
Skye
As soon as we arrived back at Torrington Hall I ran up to my room. Sitting on my bed, I pulled out my phone and dialed his number. My heart was beating so fast, my chest felt fluttery and strange. What if he was with a woman? What if she picked up the phone? What if he told me fuck off? I was gripping my phone so hard my hand hurt.
“Skye,” Luca’s deep, smooth voice said into my ear.
I launched into my prepared message. “I’m just calling to say thank you so much for what you are doing for my father. I am truly grateful.”
In the silence that followed I wasn’t sure if the line had dropped. Then he spoke. “No need to thank me. I’m just keeping my side of the bargain.”
“Sending my father on a first-class flight to Switzerland to regenerate himself is not part of the bargain.”
“I have a ball, a charity event for the Charington General Hospital that I have to attend today. You’ll come with me.”
“What time?” I whispered.
“You will be picked up at 7pm.”
“Okay.”
“Right. See you later.”
The line went dead and I rose to my feet and went into my new closet. I went through the row of dresses. They ranged from vibrant reds, greens, pinks to the more neutral shades of grey and beige. Some were sexy and some were cute, but a dress wasn’t really what I was in the mood for. I knew the party would be filled with socialite women like Sienna, and I wanted to look sophisticated and confident. I wanted to show them that I didn’t need anybody’s approval. I wanted to wear something nobody else would be wearing.
I turned towards the sets of pantsuits that hung from the rack.
> My eyes were immediately drawn to a tailored white number with a soft blazer. It came with an incredibly beautiful, lacy high-necked blouse. I ran my finger along the delicate material. Never in my life had I imagined I’d own or worn something so beautiful. I did not try it that day when Anna had brought it. It was so similar to another black one I had tried that Anna said, it should fit in exactly the same way. I took it down and changed into it.
It was a perfect fit, of course, but it turned out to be nothing like the black one.
The black one was flawlessly grown-up and professional looking. This one. This one clung to every curve and dip of my body. I could only be awed by the clever tailoring and the way the gorgeous lace made scallop like shapes around my neck.
I took the outfit off and went to have a quick shower and wash my hair. Once my hair was dried I put it into a ponytail high on my head. Then I dressed in the pantsuit and stood in front of the mirror. Something was missing.
I opened the accessories drawer and decided on a plain string of pearls with a gold clasp. The beads were lustrous and luxurious and it was the perfect accompaniment to the outfit. I sat in front of the vanity mirror and painted my lips a stark blood red, and finished off the attire with bright red Louboutin stilettos.
When I stood in front of the mirror, I could hardly recognize myself. I looked like a stranger. A glamorous, confident stranger. Would Luca be proud to have me on his arm?
Maybe. I hoped so.
I checked the time, happy that I was about twenty minutes early. I felt nervous so I thought I would go down to the Blue Room and get myself a drink. I slung my coat loosely over my shoulder and went out. As I was halfway down the stairs my phone rang. I didn’t recognize the caller. When I answered it, I found it was one of the guards at the front gate at the other end.
Beauty and the beast: A Modern Day Fairytale Billionaire Mafia Romance Page 17