His Expectant Lover (4 page)

When he lifted his head again, his eyes showed her that he felt the same way. “I respect your decision, but we’re both going to have a rough night,” he told her with a husky voice as his finger slid down her cheek. “Good night, Andie,” he said. A moment later, he was gone.

Later that night, Andie stared up at the ceiling of the beautiful hotel room, feeling a huge sense of happiness swell up inside of her. Antonio was one of the good guys, she thought. He was sweet and attentive and wow! He can kiss! She still felt all tingly inside just from his goodnight kiss.

Rolling over, she hugged the pillow, wondering what it would be like to be curling up with him at night. She blushed in the darkness, feeling silly for even thinking such a thought. Goodness, he was really wonderful.

Alas, it would be time to head back to reality tomorrow. As she drifted off to a fitful sleep, she wondered if Antonio ever visited the United States.

The following morning, the phone ringing woke her up. She glared at the jarring sound. It was way too early to have to catch her flight and she didn’t know anyone else here, so there was no reason someone would be calling her this early in the morning. Unless it was her agent. But Joanne didn’t know where Andie was staying.

“Good morning,” she said, still more asleep than awake. Jet lag and a poor night’s sleep were not easy to overcome.

“Good morning, beautiful lady. Are you ready for a day of exploring?” Antonio’s deep voice said through the phone, fully waking her up now.

Andie sat up and looked around, unaware that she was hiding her chest with the sheet. She hadn’t come with a change of clothes so she’d slept in the nude last night. Her underwear was hanging in the bathroom, hopefully dry by now.

“Um…good morning, Antonio. What are you doing up so early in the morning?” she asked, looking around, wishing she had a robe or something. It wasn’t like he could see her, but still, it was awkward to talk to a man as gorgeous and sexually hot as
Antonio without clothes on.

“I’m calling you because you said you would spend the day with me. I’m now holding you to your promise.”

She peered into the bathroom and saw that her underwear looked dry enough, but she wasn’t exactly sure. “What time is it anyway?”

Antonio chuckled. “It is seven-thirty. I apologize for waking you up so early, but I wanted to catch you before you started your day. Come downstairs and have breakfast with me in a half hour.”

She smiled at the idea. “That would be lovely,” she said. But brutal reality crept into her head. “I just need to make a few phone calls. I need to see what seats are available for flights back to New York. Can you give me an hour?” she asked, thinking about taking a shower and maybe drying her clothes a bit, if they were still damp.

“I can fix that for you. Just say you’ll come with me today and I’ll make sure that you get home.”

She bit her lip. It was Saturday, wasn’t it? That meant she wouldn’t have any photo shoots to deal with, so she wouldn’t be missing work. So why not? She was here, why not live it up in Italy? “Um…” she waited, still wishing she could figure out if her underwear was dry. “Okay,” she finally said, suddenly unconcerned about anything other than just spending time with this man.

“Great. Don’t dress up. The day will be completely casual but I’ll show you more of Italy. We’ll get out of the city so you can see the countryside. Good enough?” he asked.

Andie knew what she wanted to do. And for a second time in less than twenty-four hours, she was going to ignore caution. If she had to, she’d be able to pay for a plane ticket home. She had enough saved up in her bank account for that at least. “Deal. I’ll be ready,” she assured him.

“Good. See you in thirty minutes.”

She hung up and sprang out of bed, jumping in the shower quickly. Her underwear was only slightly damp so while she dried her hair, she used the hotel’s hair dryer on those as well. By the time he knocked on her door, she was dressed once again and smiling. Thankfully, she’d put enough makeup in her purse so her face wasn’t completely “naked”.

Antonio looked her up and down, noticing that she was wearing the same clothes from the previous night. He peered into the hotel room behind her and saw that the bed was already made and there were no other clothes scattered around the room. “You don’t have luggage?” he asked.

She shrugged self-consciously. “I was only supposed to be here for one day. They flew me in overnight and I was supposed to fly back last night.”

He remembered her saying that she had trouble sleeping normally. He suspected she hadn’t slept much on the flight either. He had to suppress his anger over the way St. Luc had treated her. He supposed that this was how the fashion world worked, but he didn’t have to like it. “Did you sleep well enough last night?” he asked, noticing that her eyes looked even more fresh and lively today.

“It was great,” she laughed. “Much better than a cramped plane seat.”

He chuckled, having to agree with her. “Well, today, I’m taking you on a tour of Milan. There’s so much more to see than the inside of a design studio, the auditorium where the show was held, and my office. We’ll remedy that.”

Andie grinned up into his handsome face. “That sounds wonderful,” she said softly, excited about spending time with this enigmatic man.

He treated her to a hardy breakfast, but she couldn’t really eat as much as she would have liked. She was still too full from the pizza and wine the previous evening and fully conscious of the fact that she’d have to work on Monday. Unlike most models, she wasn’t a stickler about what she ate. She preferred to exercise harder on days when she was going to splurge, but she didn’t have a gym close by. So she had to be extra careful, mostly staying with fruit and herbal tea.

The day really was stunningly beautiful. They drove out of the city and Andie discovered that Northern Italy was much more mountainous than she’d imagined. When she mentioned that to Antonio, he laughed, explaining that most people think of Italy looking like Rome where it is more flat. But the northern part of the country was the start, or end, of the Alps. He drove her an hour and a half north of Milan to a tiny village called Orta San Giulio, where they had delicious sandwiches and talked about nothing important. They walked through the small town and visited the tiny island in the middle of a small bay. There, a convent of nuns maintained a life of silence while the busy world slipped by as quietly as the daily tides.

When he drove her back to the city, she wished there was some way to extend their visit. “Have dinner with me,” he said and Andie happily agreed.

The next day was the same except that it started off with a package arriving at her hotel room, delivered by the manager. It was a beautiful new outfit with crisp, tan slacks and a white shirt – complete with a white cardigan, shoes and the sexiest underwear she’d ever seen in her life. She knew that the outfit had come from Antonio and she smiled as she pulled it on, loving the feel of the garments and grateful that the man had a good eye for her size. That thought slowed her down slightly. The man obviously had been with many other women, so guessing her size correctly was no great challenge.

But as soon as that thought occurred to her, she banished it. Surely he was feeling that special something that had been brewing between them over the past two days, hadn’t he? Was she wishing on stars and being unrealistic? Or had that intense look he’d given her as he’d kissed her last night been real? Was he really as into this romantic weekend as she was? Because Andie knew that she was falling hard for this man. He was everything she wanted and more. He was sweet and kind, compassionate, generous, and thoughtful.

Was she already in love with him? Surely not! She’d been with him for two days! That was definitely too soon to really fall in love with someone. Andie knew that. It was crazy to even think that she could possibly be falling in love.

Was she crazy?

She loved being with him. She loved just talking with him and holding hands. But love?

Yes, she sighed as she smoothed down the new pair of slacks that had been delivered that morning by the manager. She might be in love with the man. As crazy as it seemed, she thought that maybe she loved him.

In the morning, he picked her up himself. No limousine this time – he was driving a beautiful vintage red sports car. It wasn’t brash and showy like modern Italian sports cars; this one was graceful, elegant, and powerful, just like Antonio himself. He drove her to another small village where they discovered a different, slower world with ancient walls and quiet landscapes.

The only difference on Sunday night was that he didn’t ask if she would have dinner with him. He just assumed and she gladly, silently, agreed. The day was absolutely perfect and she smiled blissfully as he drove back to his home – he wasn’t going to share her company with anyone. Her body shivered with excitement over what she hoped was going to happen between them tonight.

She’d been expecting an apartment or perhaps a townhouse. But instead, Antonio drove through an elaborate gate that opened up automatically, then up a gravel driveway with beautifully manicured gardens on both sides. At the end of that driveway was perhaps the most beautiful house she’d ever seen.

“Please tell me that you don’t live here,” she whispered as she stared out through the windshield of his powerful car.

“I do. Is that a problem?” he asked.

Andie kept her mouth closed, not wanting to sound silly. But yes, his house was a problem. It was enormous and lavish and a statement of his massive wealth. It put him out of her league, out of her reach. It made her feel…strange.

As he opened the door to her car and she stepped out, her heart was heavy and everything inside of her wanted to cry. Which was silly because she never cried! She was tough and strong, but seeing this…palace…it told her that Antonio was in a stratosphere that she couldn’t possibly compete with. She was a lowly catalog model and even if she were to finally get her precious manuscript published, she still would never be able to afford a house like this. It was three stories high with turrets and balconies in various directions. At one point it might have been a castle, but through renovations, it had become even more glorious.

“Don’t you like it?” he asked.

She breathed deeply as she stared up at the glowing house as the sun set over the hill behind it. “It’s amazing,” she replied honestly.

“Come on inside,” he told her. Antonio had sensed a change in her mood but he didn’t understand it. Or perhaps he was too intent on getting her into his bed. She was such a timid little thing that he wasn’t sure how to handle her most of the time. For the past two nights, he’d promised himself that he would end this thing with her. The hours spent in her company were different and he didn’t like different. He preferred his female companionship to be uncomplicated, but there was nothing simple about Andie. The only thing simple was his inability to stay away from her.

When he drove her to her hotel the previous two nights, he promised himself that he would not kiss her. And after failing to maintain his distance from her soft beauty, he swore to himself that he would not call her the next day. But every morning since the show, his first thought when he opened his eyes was to find her, to spend time with her. His second thought was to try and figure out how to control his body while spending time with her because it was becoming harder to deal with the aching need to possess her.

Years ago, he swore that he would never let another woman get under his skin, but there was just something about Andie. She had a kind, gentle nature, an eagerness to experience life and see the sights with him, and of course she possessed slender curves that made his body yearn to possess and excite.

So tonight, he was going to bed her. He would keep his mental distance and simply enjoy her body, get her out of his system and move on. He would not contact her after today. She was a danger that he refused to let into his life. Instinctively, he knew that she could be important. Every moment with her reinforced that sentiment, and he refused to let a woman be important to him. Never again.

So here he was, bringing her into his house, ignoring every instinct inside of him to keep his distance. “Come,” he said, extending his hand to her. He saw her hesitation and clenched his teeth. He didn’t want her worried, and damn, he didn’t want to hurt her, but he needed her. She was like a drug and he had to work her out of his system.

When she placed her small hand in his, he closed his fingers around her softness, pulling her along the stone pathway. He’d instructed his housekeeper to cook a dinner for tonight and, as they stepped onto the patio looking out to the hills beyond, he realized that she’d done an outstanding job, judging from the sharp intake of breath from Andie.

“This is very sweet,” she whispered, taking in the lovely table with pink roses in the center.

Andie thought that the meal was perfect. The night was perfect. In fact, the whole weekend had been perfect. She had no idea what she ate, or even how the wine tasted. All she knew was that this tall, gorgeous man was sitting across from her, making her laugh, and she was happy. Just a simple touch from his hand, a casual brush from his arm sent tingles throughout her whole body. And when he kissed her…oh goodness, she loved it when he kissed her. It was like heaven was shining down and warming her from the inside out.

So when he took her hand in his and led her up to his bedroom, it felt like the most natural action. Andie wanted this. She wanted Antonio. Gone were all of her doubts about the disparity in their economic status. He was just a man and she wanted him to touch her, to make love to her and show her what she’d been missing for so long. He was marvelous and handsome and so wonderful! She couldn’t believe how he made her feel. When he kissed her lips, she felt everything inside of her melt. Her hands reached up around his neck, keeping him close to her. In fact, she couldn’t get close enough to Antonio. She wanted all of him pressed against her.