That's Amore (14 page)

He missed the hottie shirt and shorts she’d been wearing the day before, but this was more Paige. The trim little suit with one button on the jacket. The well-pressed white blouse underneath.

He undid the button, wanting to see her glorious chest through the thin blouse. He pushed the jacket back and gripped her breast, nothing but the shirt and the scrap of lace underneath between her and his touch. A low moan pulsed from her.

She took the words right out of his mouth.

He was so relieved that she was okay, that they were both okay. Johnny Romano didn’t exactly strike him as dangerous, despite the gun, but he didn’t want to take any chances with Paige.

It made him plunge on, reckless and urgent, pulling her up so she was pressed against every inch of him with her fabulous curves.

Touch her, feel her, confirm she was safe and sound, and celebrate the fact that they were alive and together.

He would deal with the messy details later.

“You’re safe now,” he whispered in her ear. “I’ll always protect you, Paige.”

Her eyelids were heavy and half closed. “I know.”

Jeff wanted to make love to Paige in the worst way. Right there in the kitchen of Uncle Leo’s bakery, with the smell of bread and butter in the air. No one was there.

If he was quick…

He gave himself a mental shake. He couldn’t do that. Paige deserved better than a quickie leaning against a stainless steel counter.

Eyeing the counter, he realized it was also covered in flour and bits and pieces of dough. He had a sudden erotic image of rolling Paige in buttery flour. Then licking it off.

All the blood in his body rushed below his waist.

He needed to get the hell out of here.

Paige must have seen him looking at the counter.

She cocked her head and said with a wicked grin, “Want to try it?”

“Paige!” He was shocked. And not for the first time. Paige had something of a wild side to her, he’d noticed.

“What?” Fingers stroked his chest, the nails raking across his shirt. “Don’t tell me you don’t want to.”

No, he wasn’t about to say that. But it wasn’t right. Was it?

“You’re doing it again,” she accused him, pulling back.

“What?” He immediately missed the heat from her body.

“Treating me like a glass figurine. Like little Paige, Gina’s best friend.”

Then she reached out and stroked him. There. Oh, hell. He couldn’t breathe. He closed his eyes and gritted his teeth as she leaned forward and bit his lip.

Bit his lip. That’s right. Paige was biting his lip.

Jeff groaned.

“Treat me like a woman. I can take it, I promise.”

He could do that. Treat her like a woman. Oh, yeah, he could definitely do that. Starting with ripping that jacket off her shoulders and sending it to the floor.

When he saw her eyes widen in satisfaction, he didn’t see Gina’s best friend. He only saw Paige, the woman.

The woman he loved.

AIGE’S HEART BEAT FASTER in triumph. Jeff had just about torn her jacket getting it off. He had never been so out of control with her, and she loved it.

Loved the way he was dragging her skirt up past her hips with rough and eager hands. Loved the way he turned and slammed her against the counter, reversing their positions.

The cool steel shocked her legs as he disposed of her pantyhose. Who had invented those stupid things anyway?

“Damn.”

“What?” Paige arched her head back.

“I put a hole in your… things, whatever the hell they’re called.” Jeff muttered as he nipped her ear lobe, his wet tongue darting in briefly.

“I don’t care.” He could throw bleach on her clothes and set them on fire for all she cared.

Especially now that he was unbuttoning her blouse and dipping his tongue between her breasts. She gripped the counter and her fingers pushed into sticky dough scraps. The room was small and warm and Paige was near to boiling.

“Jeff…” she groaned.

His answer was to pull back and drop his rough hands on her waist, gripping her hips tightly. Those black eyes were blazing. She panted in anticipation.

Then he lifted her up onto the counter, her behind scraping as she landed hard.

Whoa.

He appeared to have gotten over the glass figurine imagery.

Good.

She smiled to show him she approved.

He stood there, legs braced wide and unzipped his pants. Then dug into his pocket and pulled out the controversial condoms.

His eyebrows went up and down suggestively. “See? Good thing I had them in there.”

She laughed, and her heart did a weird sort of spasm that reminded her of when she ate too much garlic bread. But somehow she didn’t think an antacid was going to fix this.

Jeff, who had made quick work with the condom, slid inside her and she promptly forget to think. Or breathe.

A deep and probing kiss resuscitated her and Paige felt a groan starting from her toes and carrying up and out of her mouth.

Then he moved.

And she grabbed onto his shoulders and matched his rhythm.

Several delicious minutes later, Jeff leaned his forehead against hers and said, panting, “You have the best ideas.”

Paige relaxed her shoulders and sighed in contentment. “I’m glad you’re finally listening.”

“Got any more?” He pulled back and gave her a wolfish grin.

Oh, she was so in love, it was sickening. All he had to do was just
exist
and she was in awe.

“Yeah. Get me off this cold, hard counter.”

She grinned when he looked disappointed. But he complied and for several seconds they were both zipping, buttoning and adjusting clothing back into place.

Paige looked at the softball sized hole in her hose just above the knee ruefully. He hadn’t been kidding when he’d said ripped. And these were an expensive pair too.

It was some kind of pantyhose law of nature. Only the good pairs rip. The pilly three dollar pair from the drugstore hung on until she just gave up and pitched them.

But why was she thinking about pantyhose?

As the moment of wild euphoria from their lovemaking slowed down, she realized Jeff was watching her.

His ran his hands down her arms, and gave her a tender kiss. “We need to talk.”

“You keep saying that.” Her heart started to pound again, only this wasn’t a good feeling. She was terrified of what he would say.

Jeff claimed that he hadn’t pursued her three years ago because he’d thought she was too good for him. But he had slept with her anyway. As he had now. Did that mean he thought she was too good to marry, but just fine for an affair?

That made no sense. And even allowing for the unexplainable nature of men’s logic, she still couldn’t swallow that one.

She could get past the little bit about the phone call from Gina last night and the condoms. But while her body kept saying yes to a purely physical relationship with Jeff, her heart knew she couldn’t handle it.

Jeff still held her arms, his look serious. “And we still haven’t talked.”

A noise to their right sent Paige leaping away from Jeff. The door to the bakery’s front shop area had swung open and a middle-aged woman stood there.

“Aunt Marie,” Jeff croaked out, stuffing his hands in his pockets and looking guilty.

Paige blushed. Five minutes earlier and… her mother would have been dead of a heart attack. The phone call informing Louise Lombardi that her daughter had been caught doing the dirty on a kitchen countertop would have been the end, plain and simple.

Her daughter caught on a countertop with a Benedetto boy, of all people.

“Jeff. What are you doing here?” The woman wiped her hands on her red apron and shifted her gaze back and forth between the two of them.

“I had to use the bathroom, so I thought I’d see if you and Uncle Leo were around.” Jeff threw a thumb behind him. “Do you know the back door was open? You shouldn’t do that Aunt Marie.”

Paige was amazed at how casual Jeff sounded as he changed the subject smoothly. But then, she’d always been a good girl as a kid, and had never needed to lie. That’s what the fear of God and her mother had been able to accomplish.

On the flip side, the Benedetto kids, Gina included, had become experts at evading their mother’s suspicions.

His aunt waved her hand in dismissal. “I always leave that door open. If someone comes in here, what are they going to steal? Yeast?”

Paige liked his aunt already. Until she reached out and swatted at Paige’s skirt.

“You’ve got flour all over your skirt. What did you do? Roll around on the counter?”

Not exactly…

Before either of them could reply, his aunt smoothed her fluffy black hair down and said, “What’s this I hear about the two of you getting married?”

Well, that was the least embarrassing of the rumors running around anyway and at least it kept Aunt Marie from asking probing flour questions.

“Uh…”

His aunt interrupted Jeff. “Oh, before I forget, I just ran into Johnny Romano outside the store. He was looking for you.”

His aunt reached around Paige, her tank top straining to contain her as she leaned. “Excuse me, hon. I need some more wax paper.”

Paige shifted out of her way.

Jeff’s aunt continued talking as she reached up onto the shelf. “Johnny said when he finds you, you’re going to die.”

Paige blinked. Aunt Marie sounded completely unperturbed, but she felt a little sick, and it wasn’t from skipping breakfast.

Though he had stiffened, Jeff moved closer to her and squeezed her hand in reassurance. “When did you see him, Aunt Marie?”

“Just two minutes ago, right out front.”

Then a shadow fell over the door and there he stood. Johnny Romano himself, looking hot and angry. He was wearing a blue shirt this time, and he was hitching his dress pants up.

A thick meaty finger came out and shook at them. “Hey, Benedetto, I’ve been looking for you.”

Paige froze. But Jeff grabbed her hand and ran, dragging her back out the door they had come in.

“Hey!” Johnny yelled after them. “Get back here!”

Paige huffed and puffed, struggling to keep up with Jeff. “Maybe… maybe,” she gasped for breath. “Maybe we should talk to him.”

“And have him put a bullet in you? I don’t think so.” Jeff scoffed and kept jogging down the alley.

Paige winced as she twisted her ankle in a pothole. The hot sun and the smell of fried foods was not helping her upset stomach. “This is just getting a little ridiculous, don’t you think?”

“It’s been ridiculous right from the beginning.”

Well, that was a good point.

Paige followed Jeff into the back parking lot of Holy Rosary Church. “Where are we going?”

“Inside the church.”

She stopped running. “I don’t know if that’s such a good idea.”

Then she heard a curse from behind her as Johnny Romano tripped over a parking spot block and went down with enough force to crack the pavement.

“Never mind,” she said, picturing the look on Johnny’s face when he peeled his hefty frame up off the ground.

They went in through the side door, and Paige blinked in the soft lighting after the harsh mid-day sun outside. It was cool and quiet and Paige dropped her voice to a whisper automatically.

“Where should we hide?” It was a small church, and not given to nooks and crannies.

“In a confessional?” Jeff pondered, looking around the church.

Paige felt all the blood leave her face. The hairs on the back of her neck raised in fear. “No way! I’m not going into a confessional, not if I don’t have to.”

Jeff grinned at her. “Too many sins, Paige?”

“All involving you,” she told him with a swat on his arm as he reached for her.

“Okay, then, over here. You can’t see this from the parking lot door.” Jeff went and stepped behind the kneeler placed in front of the statue of Mary.

“You sit down here and hide and I’m going to have a little chat outside with Johnny.”

The look on his face wasn’t what she wanted to see. Jeff’s jaw was clenched and his hands fisted. He looked ready to launch himself on Johnny and do that guy thing where they roll around on the ground and try to land punches.

While it was sweet he was willing to do that for her, she was bothered by one little fact. Johnny had a gun.

“No! I don’t want you going out there.”

“Paige.”

“No, I’m serious. I’m not hiding unless you do. And can’t you find a better spot than that?”

Paige had visions of the priest coming in and catching them hiding underneath Mary. She’d rather redo the sidewalk condom confrontation with Grandma Benedetto than face a priest right now.

He looked set to argue, his eyes going to the door in longing. But he said, “Fine. Just come here and I’ll stay with you.”

Tentatively, she walked towards him, wincing at the loud echo her heels made on the floor. Jeff dropped to the ground. He patted the spot next to him and she sank onto the hard cold floor.

“So how long do we stay here?” she whispered.

“Just ten minutes or so.” Jeff shrugged, but he looked angry. “Then I’ll take you home and get my brothers and
then
I’ll have that little chat with Johnny Romano.”