Still Falling (5 page)

The harder he
tried the more he seemed to push her away.
 
Properly awake now, he bounded down the stairs and caught up with her.

“Serena I’m
sorry. I didn’t mean to....I was half asleep, please.....”

“I’ll not be one of your playthings Marco!”
 

“That’s not the impression you gave me in your sleep last night.” He
grinned now, trying to rid the situation of a bit of tension.
 

Her nostrils flared in anger and she lashed out with her hand.
  
He caught it easily and turned it over to
gently stroke the inside of her wrist.
 
Her body seamed to sway just a little towards him and her eyes stared at
his caressing finger, lips slightly apart.
 
The soft skin of her neck pulsed as if beckoning him to kiss it.
 
He slowly raised the upturned wrist to his
lips and as stubble grazed her skin, she snapped out of the trance and curled
her finger tips up to drag her nails into his cheek.
 

Now she wished she was able to wear the long squared off nails, some of
the models sported.
 
Her short neatly
clipped nails still managed to rake his skin and redden the skin, but she
sorely wished she could have done more damage.
 

“Shit!”
 
He gasped, letting her go.
 
Marco brought his hand up to his cheek then
inspected his palm for signs of blood.

“I’m sorry.
 
I suppose somehow I
deserved that.
 
Your clothes are in the
drier and the storm has passed.
 
I’m sure
you can find your own way home.”
 
With
that he left the room.

Serena stood there relieved to be alone with her thoughts and gathered
her wits about her.
 
The room felt cold
and empty now and she couldn’t shake the feeling that something was missing now
that he had left.
 
Serena found her
clothes and changed quickly in the laundry before making her way home.
 
She needed to get as far away from Marco as
possible and quickly.
 

After a short breakfast and fending off her mothers’ grilling, Serena
sank into a deep hot bath, sprinkling Lemon Verbena Leaves on top of the
water.
 
She closed her eyes and let the
gentle smell of the leaves sooth her mind while the hot water soothed her
muscles.
 
Her abdomen and ribs ached from
the constant retching and her throat felt raw.
 
As she lay there she wondered what she had said or done in her sleep
last night to justify Marco’s claims.
 
No
way!
 
Serena had never, to her knowledge,
talked or walked in her sleep.
 
Her
mother, flat mates or past boyfriends would have told her.
 
Marco was playing a cruel game she thought
miserably.
 

Lathering up the soap, she ran her hands down from her neck to her
breasts, pausing to give each nipple a gentle tug.
 
Just like he had done that
morning in the Sun Room.
 
She felt
her muscles clench deep in her core.
 
She
remembered how, with a quiet smile and questioning eyes, his hands had
travelled down her belly, his skilled lips following close behind.
 
He stopped then.
 

Noooo don’t stop!
 
What are you doing?

“Serena, this is a big step.
 
I
hope and pray at this moment that you will say yes, but I have to know.
 
Are you sure?
 
Are you ready for this?
 
I will be
gentle.
 
I want you to trust me.”
 

Shy again, Serena slowly nodded her head, biting her bottom lip.
 
With fresh lather on her hands, she followed
the path he had made with his hands and lips after he had removed her jeans and
panties.

She closed her eyes and pressed her legs tightly together just as he had
held them tightly together, bent at the knees.
 
Her fingers traced the movements his lips and tongue had made as they
followed the seam where her thighs met.
 
A slow, delicious path from her knees to the junction with her
hips.
 
Reaching through her soft
spread of hair, her fingers probed where his tongue had tried to reach, but
couldn’t quite.
 

When it looked like she would combust at any moment from frustration, he
had lifted her legs, straight up and still together, repeated the process from
the back of her knees down to a now very moist junction.
  
Serena remembered groaning in frustration.
 
She squeezed her legs harder together at the
memory.
 

Marco had then spread her legs and climbed through to kiss her.
 
His body had barely touched her as his lips
found hers, his tongue weaving a wicked web around her heart.
 
When his fingers had finally found her and
danced a sinful waltz around her tiny private button, she thought she would
expire right there.

Mmmmmm.
 
Nice
but not like his fingers.

His fingers had slowly danced their way south until one inquisitive
finger found its way inside her continuing its sultry moves.
 
Serena was completely lost by the time the
second finger joined in.

“Serena.
 
Look at me baby.”
 
She opened her eyes reluctantly, realising
for the first time that he had somehow undressed and more disappointingly that
his fingers had stopped moving.

“Serena, I’m going to enter you now.
 
This may hurt, but only a little and very quickly.
 
I want you to trust me.
 
Can you do that?”

“Yes.” She remembered whispering back.

“Anytime, you can tell me to stop.
 
Do you understand?”

Arrrrggg, stop
talking.

He had entered
her fast and hard with one thrust and then stopped and held it there.
 
She’d felt a sharp pinch and every muscle in
her body had contracted heavenly.

“Serena, open your eyes.”

She had looked into his eyes.
 
Concern, awe, love....she’d imagined she could see it all there.
 
All for her.
 
She had smiled shyly again and tilted her
hips up to take him deeper.
 
And then he
had started to move.

Serena sighed and rinsed the soap off her body.
 
She had other lovers since then, but none
that she trusted or that she felt were as considerate of her feelings and needs
as she had thought Marco had.

The following day was Sunday and Serena had promised her boss and best
friend, Josephine that she would take the trip into Napoli
on the occasional Sunday, if she was feeling well enough, and have lunch with
Josephine and her family.
 
The ferry was
almost empty and rather than sit in the comfort of the lounge, Serena preferred
to stand on the bow of the ship watching for dolphins and enjoying the crisp
sea breeze.
 

As much as Serena loved the warmer weather, coastal Italy and the
island were at their best after the throngs of summer tourists had
dissipated.
 
She watched as the hills of
the coast line grew larger and details of the old city came into focus in front
of the ferry.
 

The drive up through the Napoli hills to
Camadoli was quiet, and Serena was secretly relieved, worried that she might
black out while driving.
 
She would not
be able to forgive herself if she injured anyone.
 
Besides, it would be a shame to dent the old
racing red, 1969 Fiat 850 Spider she had been given as a graduation present by
her mother.
 

Her American father had been involved in the design of the car before he
passed away.
 
This one had been lovingly
renovated and she loved it.
 
She could
well afford to buy a brand new car if she wanted but this one had her soul in
it.
 

Despite the low volumes of traffic she still drove well under the speed
limit.
 
Just in case.
 
She was relieved when she finally reached the
Bistro, realising just how stupid she had been to attempt driving.
 
The thought of relying on someone to drop
everything and drive her around though was about as welcoming as the thought of
not going out at all.

“Well I’m here now.” She told the old car as she locked the door and made
her way inside.

Josephine sat on the far side of the court yard bistro where she could
watch the patrons come and go.
 
The
Bistro Michael belonged to Josephine’s brother Nico who had named it after his
son.
 
Josephine had been looking for an
excuse to visit her nephew and now with Serena living so close, a regular
Sunday trip had been planned into her schedules.
 

Josephine looked up as Serena walked through the courtyard gates.
 
She shook her head slowly in disapproval as
she watched Serena waltz between the tables and rose to greet her friend.
 

“It’s only been a few days and already you’ve lost weight.
 
I’m guessing the chemo’ has been treating you
badly?”

“It could be worse,” said Serena offering a weak but genuine smile.
 
“How have you been coping without me?”

“Well so far we’re good but I’m not sure how long I can hold everyone up,
so you better get yourself back in top form and soon.”

“I’ll see what I can arrange” said Serena, feeling a little better
already.

Serena’s eyes
fell on the morning society pages lying next to Josephine’s coffee cup.
 

Josephine excused herself to go and find her little nephew and arrange a
coffee for Serena.
 
Serena opened the
folded page to look at the picture which had disappeared around the folded edge.
 
She knew it.
 
Even in grainy black and white news ink, those eyes were still
unmistakable.
 
Marco had been
photographed the week before, leaving a charity dinner with French actress
Michelle Gayraud.
 
The couple had been
seen at several functions now over the last eight months and this might be the
end for Italy’s
most eligible bachelor, the newspaper claimed.
  

Serena’s mood sunk.
 
She had no
idea why she cared.
 
Perhaps it because
she had tried so hard not to think about Marco since breakfast and now it was
all she could think about.
 
They had
never formally dated, although she was sure her crush on him had been common
knowledge.
 
She had been so certain that
had all changed when he seduced her, early that morning, four years ago.
 
Marco had not been known for dating either
back then, preferring to concentrate on mastering the running of his father’s
business.
 
Just days before Nightmare on
Inspection room, they had briefly kissed at a charity ball.
 
Marco had won the honour of a dance and a
kiss during an auction and Serena had been ecstatic, but there in the middle of
the dance floor the kiss had been clean and gentle and just barely
lingering.
 
Their lips
never parting.
 
Marco had then
spun her around the dance floor like she was a feather before seeing her back
to their table and then excusing himself.
 
She didn’t see him again that night or the few days following.
 
She got home later wondering if her knight in
shining armour was perhaps gay.
 
Until the morning of the inspection.

It would take Nightmare in Inspection room for her to realise the
truth.
 
She repulsed him!

Seriously....she was so over him.
 
Perhaps
she did not want to see him happy after he had made her so miserable.
 
Yes that had to be it.
 
That was why the picture of him with that
beautiful French woman annoyed her so.
 
There
was no way she could still be attracted to the jerk.

Josephine returned and peeked over Serena’s shoulder before sitting
down.
 

“Are we checking up on the competition, admiring a creature of beauty, or
casting curses on sworn enemies?” she asked with a serious face.

“What do you mean?” asked Serena.

“Well we both know the competition between you and Marco is fierce.
 
That’s why we’ve been so successful.
 
I also happen to know that despite being the
competition, that man is incredibly sexy.
 
I know you think so too, even though you won’t allow yourself to see it.”