All I Want is You

by Patricia Mar

  Sara’s naked back was against Daniel’s chest and his arm was around her waist. His hand drew small imaginary circles on her belly. “I’m so happy that you’re here with me, Sara. I’ve never been so happy in my life.”

  “I can’t wait to marry you, my dear model. I am going to make an honest man out of you.”

  Daniel nibbled her shoulder gently.

  “Hey,” Sara turned to look at him, although Daniel was holding her very close.

  “Just to be sure, I’ve marked your flesh too, so I can claim your body whenever I want.”

  “You already claimed it for the whole night… I have clear memories of it.”

  Daniel lifted his eyebrows up. “This is just a break, I’m not done with you yet.”

  Sara noticed the gleam in his eyes, “You’re scaring me.”

  “Well, you have to learn who wears the trousers here.”

  Sara opened her eyes wide and sat on the bed, covering herself with the blanket. “I won’t let you walk all over me!”

  “I’ll be happy just to touch you all over.”

  Sara pretended to be scandalised, but was actually wondering how come Daniel wasn’t touching her already…

  “Would you like to start looking for a new house for the two of us?” he asked.

  “We can stay here in the attic, if you want. You know I love this place.”

  “Don’t worry, I’m not planning to sell it, and we’ll be able to come here whenever we want. I was thinking, though, that we could look for somewhere more intimate, somewhere far from the city, where we could escape to when we’re tired of the spotlights.”

  Sara caressed his face in a thoughtful expression. “That’s actually not a bad idea…”

  “I thought,” he said enthusiastically, “that we could maybe buy a farmhouse in the countryside, or in a small town somewhere.”

  “That would be fantastic. So fantastic that I might even be able to ignore my hurt pride when you have to pay it all by yourself… But I’ll pay you back – when you start paying my salary!” she said and burst out laughing.

  He grabbed her and pulled her on top of him. They both observed their shadows on the wall.

  “I almost forgot: I called Marc and told him not to accept the proposal for that film.”

  “Why did you do it?”

  “Because I realised that I don’t want to be an actor. Acting is just something I have no interest in. I’m quite happy being a model for the time being, and I have a few ideas in mind that I need to think about. Things connected to fashion… I know the market and I have a pretty good network, so I reckon I could start my own business, maybe create a new male fashion line. I could invest some of my money in it and become an entrepreneur,” he said, as he resumed caressing her arm with slow and calculated movements. “It’s quite an exciting idea.”

  Sara’s skin reacted immediately. “I can already tell how excited you are about it, Daniel,” chuckled Sara, as she felt something hot pressing against her.

  “You’re right, but that has nothing to do with my brilliant business ideas… It’s your fault, and now I’m thinking about something else…”

  “What is it?”

  He moved over her. “I want to be inside you again. I want to push harder and hear you scream my name when you orgasm. I want to give you all of myself until I overdose on you and your moans of pleasure. The idea of being the only man who will ever give you such emotions makes me feel powerful.”

  “I love your poetic side… But joking aside, I’m crazy about you.”

  “We belong to each other, and that is the only thing that really counts for me. Nothing else.”

  They carried on caressing and kissing and making love for the whole night. They were still talking about their love and making a million promises to each other when daybreak came.

  26

  Full Circle

  The scene before her was so strangely familiar that it felt as though she were having a particularly unnerving bout of déjà-vu. There she was, back once again at the scene of the crime. This time, though, Sara De Michele wasn’t late and didn’t need to beg anyone to let her attend her appointment. This time she didn’t feel like some insignificant insect ready to get squashed under somebody’s shoe or end up on a lab slide.

  Sara reached the seventh floor of the building smiling triumphantly. She wasn’t wearing a too tight dress this time but a pair of jeans decorated with small pearls, a black open jacket and an oversized orange scarf. Her hair was loose and floaty and she wasn’t wearing high heels, because this time she felt she didn’t need to.

  She was in the offices of Inside Look magazine and was about to participate in the first photoshoot of her life. In spite of that, she felt completely at her ease as she walked, head held high and with a bold expression and no make-up on her face. Nobody could stop her.

  The transparent sliding doors opened at her passage. She hoped she wasn’t going to stumble just now… She was optimistic that for once she might be able to manage something like an impressive entrance, and that it might compensate for some of the times she had made clumsy, stupid ones.

  She was back at Inside Look magazine, and she was proud of it.

  The three harpies at the reception desk, each fitted with Bluetooth earpieces, raised their faces in perfect synchronicity and stared at her. Girl number three looked at her with something like recognition. Her perfectly styled hair was black, and her make-up was flawless; she was probably wearing Rouge Dior lipstick.

  Sara was delighted at the idea that she remembered her…

  “Your name, please?”

  “Sara De Michele!”

  Girl number three looked startled and bent to examine her electronic agenda, then she stared at Sara again, as if she’d seen an alien. Sara started whistling the X-Files theme in a very low tone. She was having a lot of fun. She’d been imagining this scene since the moment she had first found out about the photoshoot – but the reality was better than any daydream.

  Just like the previous time, the three girls suddenly forgot about her and started staring as if hypnotised at someone behind her. Their slack jaws and the blank looks on their faces were enough to tell her that Daniel must have entered the room. She didn’t even bother to turn round for confirmation.

  She was already foretasting the coup de grâce she was about to give them. Was she being a horrible person? No, she was just in love, and at war – and as everybody knows, all’s fair in love and war.

  Sara waited for Daniel to reach her, as she knew he would put his arm around her waist and hug her before saying anything. And that was exactly what he did.

  “Sorry, honey, I finally found my wallet – it was in the car,” he said, while kissing her cheek. Sara smiled again, while the receptionists couldn’t stop staring at them in astonishment. Sara thought their little brains might explode before they accepted the reality in front of their eyes: she was their beloved model’s partner while they would never get anything more from him than formal politeness. God, it was satisfying!

  “Shall we go?” Daniel asked her softly, while leading her off towards a long corridor.

  Sara put her arm around his waist too, as though to underline that, no, there had been no misunderstanding: they really were a couple. She even turned to check if the girls were still staring at them: yes, they were. They just couldn’t take their eyes off them.

  Mission accomplished, she thought.

  That would have been enough, but Sara couldn’t resist and so she stuck out her tongue at them.

  *

  Sara was very pleased to be working with the troupe she had met in Chamonix again: Polly, Kim, Selene and Jim were really kind to her and made her feel as comfortable as possible.

  Polly did an amazing job on her make-up, and when she’d finished, Sara could hardly recognise herself in the mirror. “How did you do it?” she asked, completely astounded.

  Daniel approached her from behind and looked at her reflection. “This girl still h
as no idea of how pretty she is!”

  Sara grimaced, and Polly laughed. “Sara, trust us, you have a perfect face and fantastic skin. I would actually like to know what products you use – do you want to get a coffee sometime when you’ve got an hour free so we can have a chat about it?”

  Sara said she’d be happy to, even though there wasn’t actually much to tell her, as she didn’t even own a single jar of cream… She’d always been too lazy for that kind of stuff.

  Selene, the costume designer, chose their clothes, and once they had put them on they were ready to move to the set. Jim had reproduced a flowery terrace, with country style furniture and colourful decorations. There wasn’t going to be any outdoor shooting that day, but the set looked great.

  Once everything was ready, she finally started feeling a touch of stage fright. Daniel noticed, and took her hand to give her some strength.

  “You ready?”

  “Yeah, but let’s get it over and done with before I start trembling like a leaf in the wind.”

  “Thank you for accepting all this. It means a lot to me.”

  Sara blinked repeatedly as she tried to stop herself from crying. Why was she always so emotional? Luckily Polly had used only waterproof make-up.

  “Sharing this moment with you makes me very proud of us. It’s a look at how we’re always going to be, once we get married. Thank you for accepting everything about me and for joining me in my professional life.”

  “Oh shush! Shut up, you stupid model,” said Sara while she fanned herself with a hand. “Another word and I’ll burst into tears, and then Jim will kill you.”

  “I just wanted you to know,” he whispered tenderly.

  “I’m happy to be here, Daniel. It’ll be fun!” She had barely the time to kiss him before Jim called them over and there was no time for chatting any more.

  Taking both posed and candid pictures, they worked for hours, but the mood was so cheerful and friendly that they spent most of the time laughing, and their spontaneity showed in the photographs, just as Jim had thought it would.

  Two months later, when the shots were published, it was one of the best selling issues in Inside Look’s history, officially making them the celebrity couple of the moment, and for a brief period they were even more famous than Brad and Angelina – who probably didn’t mind at all.

  And in Gubbio, of course, it sold out as soon as it hit the news stands.

  27

  And They Lived Happily Ever After

  Four months later, one day in May

  Gubbio Cathedral

  When he saw her walking towards him as gracefully as a goddess, a glowing expression on her face, Daniel Gant lost his breath. He stood immobile, trying to memorise every detail of that wonderful moment. His life was about to become perfect, and he would always remember the day when he had finally felt complete with joy. He had never dreamed that he would be able to experience such happiness, but destiny had been generous with him once again. It had arranged for him to meet the love of his life in the least probable place and in an absolutely terrible moment: while he was trapped in a broken lift having a panic attack. But that awful episode had been the start of the most wonderful adventure.

  The bride was walking towards him, accompanied by her father. She was dressed in a vintage ivory dress that had been a personal present from Dario Gualtieri and she was smiling at him, a smile of infinite tenderness. The groom knew that all the pain and doubts that Sara had endured had finally been forgotten.

  The guests seemed to be as mesmerised by her as he was as she crossed the central nave to reach the altar. Sara gave him her hand. When he took it, he felt like he could breathe again.

  “Treat her properly,” Sara’s father whispered in his ear. “I’m counting on you.”

  “That’s all I want to do.”

  They nodded at each other, and then Leo De Michele went to sit by his wife in the first row. Sara’s mother was wearing a flame red dress, and looked at her daughter with an expression that was both happy and moved.

  Sara had heard what her father and her future husband had said to each other, and she grasped Daniel’s hand even more firmly. She felt as though she had never been more ready to marry him.

  Daniel looked incredibly handsome. He was wearing an elegant black suit and had combed his hair back to tame his curls. His face was perfectly shaved and glowing, and as she looked at him she felt euphoric, as though she had already had a couple of mojitos.

  They looked at each other again, smiled, and then they both took a deep breath and turned to look at the priest, who was ready to start the ceremony.

  They had kept their wedding date secret for as long as they could, but nevertheless, all their closest friends and family had managed to come. Daniel had arranged the event with Marc, and had tried very hard to keep it simple and intimate. He didn’t want it to be a media event but rather a happy day for Sara, himself and the people who really cared about them. They had been at the centre of media attention since the official announcement of their engagement, especially after Sara had quit her job and had started appearing with him at runway shows and events all over the world. She was also his personal assistant now, which meant they were always together, day and night, and he couldn’t have been happier about it. Sara had always hated being the centre of the attention, but she was starting to learn how to live with it – and it was a good job that she was, because her name and her face were getting quite well known. Everybody was aware that she was Daniel Gant’s Italian girlfriend, and she had accepted her public role. Having the man she loved always by her side gave her the strength she needed to overcome all that stress and accept the changes she was going through. Their wedding ceremony, though, had to be kept private. That famous English model had worked hard to keep it that way, and was now being compensated for all his efforts by getting to marry his true soulmate.

  The ceremony went very smoothly. Some people sighed and others cried, but everybody was very happy. And anyway, Sara and Daniel were completely unaware of what was happening behind them – they were concentrating far too hard on living their dream.

  The moment came when they were asked if they wanted to be each other’s wife and husband. They both answered ‘Yes’, only just managing to hold back their tears.

  The final part of the event was accompanied by the melodious voice of a soprano, who had selected a few romantic songs just for them.

  Virginia was also wearing a dress by Gualtieri, hers was made of light blue satin. She stared at her sister with a dreamy expression, and couldn’t help checking out the best man from time to time. Alessandro knew that she was looking at him, and felt both annoyed and oddly gratified that she was so blatantly interested in him.

  The ceremony ended with all present applauding enthusiastically as the newlyweds exchanged a chaste kiss. Later that evening they would have a proper, and much more intimate, celebration. Their relatives and friends crowded around them, and Grandma Glicine was the first to hug her little Sara.

  “You look so pretty, love,” she said through her tears of joy.

  And Sara actually did feel pretty, for once. She liked her hairdo, the simple chignon behind the nape of her neck which had been decorated with flowers. She didn’t have a veil. Her dress was made of lace, and had a full skirt with a long train and a beautiful bodice with a generous neckline. It suited her perfectly – it made her look taller and gave her a romantic, retro look. After seeing her grandma’s tears, Sara couldn’t help crying herself… Luckily, Polly had used her famous waterproof make-up again.

  Sara’s and Daniel’s families wished them all the best, but then decided to give the couple a little space to let what they had just experienced sink in. The photographer, though, didn’t want to waste any time, and immediately set to work taking pictures. They both radiated joy and happiness, so taking lovely, natural shots of them was a piece of cake. Even the priest said that he had never seen a more glowing couple.

  The central nave had b
een embellished with different types of white lilies, and, hand in hand and feeling somewhat overwhelmed by all the people offering them their good wishes, the now Mr and Mrs Gant crossed it as they went towards the main door of the church.

  “They’re going to throw rice at us – are you ready for it?”

  “Yes, but I wouldn’t mind you playing human shield.”

  Daniel laughed and kissed her. “I’ll do my best.”

  “I’m counting on it – and not only for today.”

  “Forever, my love.”

  As soon as they were outside, cameras began snapping away and people starting throwing handfuls of rice at them, just as Daniel had predicted.

  And in every single photo that was taken that day, you could see just how happy and in love the two of them were.

  Epilogue

  From Virginia’s diary

  I’ve never seen my sister looking so glowing. The light she radiated made her look just enchanting. I’d never seen her like that before. I was moved every time she looked at me, it felt like her happiness was mine too. I’d always hoped that she would find her emotional peace with someone who would protect and shelter her, and I have to admit that Daniel really is all that: he’s her soulmate!

  It’s hard for me to remember what my sister was like before she met Daniel. Or maybe it’s that I don’t want to remember! She was so uptight, she’d turned being stubborn into an art form. Everything had to be either black or white for her, and she always took a clear position on every single thing. As far as I was concerned she was often pretty annoying and completely incapable of living for the moment. She never did anything without a good reason – she always thought about everything so much that she ended up not enjoying anything.