The Italian

by T L Swan

  Perfection.

  I grab his face in my hands. “Give it to me,” I moan. “Fuck me.”

  He pulls out and slams back in hard. While his eyes are focused on my lips, I watch as his body takes over. Clicking into another gear, a higher level.

  Enrico Ferrara was born to fuck.

  The harder the better.

  Virile and athletic, his body is a well-oiled machine built for female satisfaction.

  I bounce as he holds me up against the tiles, and he hits me hard. The air is knocked from my lungs, and his hips are working at speed. The sound of our skin slapping echoes through the bathroom.

  His eyes are focused on where our bodies meet. “Fuck me, Olivia,” he growls. “Take it all. My cock is yours. It will only ever be yours.”

  Hearing his words tips me over the edge, and my body convulses. I clench and shudder as an orgasm rips through me, making me cry out in pleasure.

  He grips my shoulders for leverage and really lets me have it, slamming my body down onto his with such force, I don’t know how I’m not breaking in two.

  His mouth hangs slack as he lets out a deep guttural moan. His head tips back, and he holds himself deep. I feel the heat as he fills me full of semen.

  He grabs my hair and drags my face to his to kiss me.

  Deep, slow, and tender.

  “I love you,” he whispers.

  My eyes fill with tears, because I really do love him. After the week we have just had, I really needed this connection.

  “Ti amo di più,” I murmur against his lips.

  I put my head down on his shoulder—his body still deep inside mine. His lips are resting against my temple.

  And I know that I’m home.

  It’s 7:30 a.m. when I walk into the gym. I came into to Milan early this morning so that I could come before work. I want to try and make this my new routine. That way, my workout is done and dusted before the day begins. It feels like months since I was last here, and so much has happened since then, but it’s good to be back. I know I could use the gym at home, but I really want to keep my independence as much as I can.

  “Hello,” the girl on reception says as I walk past her.

  “Hi.” I smile.

  I put my things into the locker and make my way over to the treadmill. I start it up and it begins to slowly roll. I walk to warm up, and I glance over as Michael and Rocco arrive and head over to the weight section—close enough to watch me but far enough away that I won’t feel crowded. I hate that I have to have them with me, but then I feel safe that they are here, too.

  It’s a fine line between the two, and I’m not sure which is the lesser evil.

  For ten minutes, I walk as I listen to my Italian audio lesson. I’m determined to master this language. I need to know what the hell is going on around me.

  “Ciao... hello. Goodbye… addio. Good morning… buongiorno. Good night… buonanotte.”

  In my peripheral vision, I see a girl get onto the treadmill beside me. I give her a smile and keep walking. She has light brown hair that’s up in a high ponytail, and olive skin. She doesn’t look Italian. She fluffs around beside me for a while, pushing the wrong buttons.

  I take my earplugs out to help her. “You need to push the workout button,” I say.

  “Oh, thanks.” Her treadmill begins to move. I frown at her accent.

  “You’re Australian?” I ask in surprise. I haven’t met any other Australians yet.

  “Yes.” She smiles. “Just moved here this week. You, too?”

  “Yes.” I smile with excitement.

  “Have you been here long?”

  “About six weeks.”

  “How are you liking it?”

  “I mean, what’s not to love, right?”

  She shrugs. “I’m hoping to get to that stage. I’m so nervous about everything so far. I’ve moved here to be with my boyfriend—he’s Italian. We met when he was travelling in Australia. I don’t know anybody else but him.”

  Sounds familiar. “Really?” I smile. “Mine, too.”

  “I’m Jennifer,” she introduces herself. “Everyone calls me Jen.”

  I lean over and shake her hand. “Hi, Jen. I’m Olivia.”

  “Nice to meet you, Olivia.”

  We walk in comfortable silence for a while.

  “Did you get a program made up?” she asks.

  “No, I like doing my own thing.”

  She looks over to the girl on reception. “I think I will. I need a structured workout or else I just schmooze around. Do you know how much it is?”

  I giggle. “Yeah, I get the schmooze thing, and I’ve no idea about the price, sorry.”

  “Do you come in the mornings every day?” she asks.

  “I’m hoping to. I’m trying to get into some kind of routine.”

  “Me, too.” She hits the stop button. “I’m going to go and ask about a program and their pricing structure.” She gives me a friendly smile. “Nice to meet you, Olivia. I might see you tomorrow morning.”

  “For sure,” I say.

  I watch her walk over to the girl on reception. They talk for a while.

  Hmm, she seems nice. I put my earphones back in and continue with my lesson while I walk. “Motorbike… motocicletta.”

  Enrico

  I walk into my office at 9:00 a.m.

  “Good morning,” I say to my two receptionists.

  Greta looks up and smiles. “Good morning, Mr. Ferrara. Mrs. Ferrara is waiting in your office for you.”

  I exhale heavily. My mother is here. Great. Just what I need. “Thank you.” I open the door and find her sitting at my desk.

  “Hello, Mamma.”

  She stands. “Hello, darling.” She smiles and kisses both my cheeks.

  She’s immaculately put together, as always. It’s funny, you know; I didn’t realize that women weren’t always perfect like this. Until I met Olivia, I never knew a woman who was so comfortable in her own skin. So naturally beautiful without all the window dressing.

  “And to what do I owe this pleasure?” I ask as I take a seat opposite her at my desk.

  Mother’s eyes hold mine. She holds her hand out and looks at her manicured red nails. It’s something she always does when she’s uncomfortable. “I’m here to talk about the last few days and the things that have come to light.”

  Her eyes rise to meet mine, and I raise my chin, angered.

  She’s the last person I want to discuss my father’s infidelities with.

  I rearrange the papers on my desk to try and distract myself. “Such as?”

  “Enrico. Stop it.”

  “What do you want me to say, Mamma?” I get out of my chair in a rush and walk to the window to stare out over Milan. “That my father was a great man?”

  “Your father was a great man,” she replies calmly.

  “Who I now have zero respect for.”

  “Stop it!” she snaps, and she stands in a rush. “Don’t you dare disrespect my husband.”

  I look her up and down and give a subtle shake of my head.

  “What’s that look for?”

  I put my hands into my suit pockets. “Just looking at you in your widow wear. Two years is a long time to wear black for a man who treated you with nothing but disrespect.”

  The sharp sting of her hand burns my face, and the slap echoes throughout the room.

  “How dare you?” she whispers. “How dare you judge him… or me? You know nothing about our relationship, and you will never understand. You couldn’t possibly.”

  Adrenaline floods my body. That is the first time in my entire life that my mother has raised her hand to me.

  “Oh, I understand,” I sneer as my anger escalates to a dangerously high level. “I understand that my father has cut both my brothers out of his will completely. That one day, a bastard child of his will lead Ferrara Industries. Tell me mother… when Giuliano is announced as a Ferrara, how are you going to explain this to Francesca?”

  Her e
yes hold mine.

  “How do you explain to a sixteen-year-old girl that her father had two women pregnant within a year of each other?”

  “Stop it,” she whispers angrily. “Stop being vile.”

  My eyebrows rise in surprise. “Vile? You think the truth is vile?” I give her a slow smile. “Funny, because that’s my point.” I walk over with renewed purpose and sit down at my desk. “I’m letting some of the staff go. Ferrara is starting afresh.”

  “You will do nothing of the sort. Your father worked incredibly hard to recruit the staff that you have. Your gripe with him is not their fault.”

  I sit back in my chair. “You see, if you were left in charge, that would be your decision to make… but you weren’t.”

  She squares her shoulders. “Lorenzo has been nothing but loyal to our family. He’s staying.”

  “Oh, Lorenzo,” I scoff in disgust. “Lorenzo is nothing but a fucking liar.”

  “Do not curse in front of me. It’s disrespectful.”

  “You think cursing is disrespectful?”

  She raises her chin in defiance.

  I glare at her. “I’ll tell you what’s disrespectful, Mamma: leaving two sons out of a family business as if they don’t exist. Leaving three sons a letter after your death, but not one for your only daughter.” My voice rises along with my anger. “Lying to your children for their whole fucking life about who you really are.”

  “Enrico,” she whispers. “He had his reasons.”

  I slam my hand onto the desk, causing her to jump. “Do not defend him to me!” I yell.

  She stares at me through her tears. “You fire anyone you want, get rid of the whole damn company, but if you care for me at all, Lorenzo stays. He’s in his sixties now, and after thirty-five years of loyalty to Ferrara, this is how you are going to repay him? He is too old to get another job, Enrico, you know that.”

  “It’s a business decision.” My eyes hold hers. “You’ll have no say.”

  “I’ll never forgive you if you do this. I would mourn the breakdown of our relationship,” she whispers. “Please don’t do this.”

  My eyes hold hers. “Would you wear your widow blacks for me? Or is that a privilege saved for lying bastards?”

  “You’ve gone insane.”

  “No. I’m defending my brothers’ rights. This company is as much theirs as it is mine.”

  “They don’t want it,” she whispers through tears. “Have you lost your mind, Enrico? This isn’t about your brothers, and you know that. This is about the deception, and I promise you, they only did it to protect you at your father’s insistence. I understand why you are angry with him, but for God’s sake, don’t make your staff pay for his mistakes.”

  I glare at her, my anger rising dangerously close to the surface. “Giuliano and Stefano Ferrara are dead. I’m in charge now.”

  We stare at each other in a battle of the wills. For the first time in my life, I’ve seen a fiery side of my mother I didn’t know existed.

  “Why?” I ask. “Why did you stay married to him when you knew he loved another?”

  She wipes away a tear, and guilt fills me. I hate that I’m upsetting her.

  “Because, out of all the men in the world, nobody loved you and your brothers as much as your father did. He would have died in an instant to save your life.”

  This time, it’s my eyes that glaze over.

  “And I know that you feel betrayed, Enrico,” she whispers, “but one day, when you have a son, you will feel the love that he had for you. You will understand that everything he did was only ever to protect you.”

  We stare at each other. So much hurt and regret swirls between us.

  “It’s true, your father and I didn’t have the marriage you thought we did. Our love was unconditional. We adored each other until the day he died. He was, and still is, my best friend. He never lied to me, Enrico. Not once. I knew where he was during every minute of every day. He loved another, yes, but that wasn’t his fault. You can’t choose who you love. But he chose to stand by me—to honor our vows and care for his sons. Our relationship was special because we both knew what he sacrificed to have it.”

  Her silhouette blurs, and I blink to hide my tears. She stands, and with one last, lingering look, she walks quietly from the room.

  I stare at the door to which she has just left through.

  My heart hammers hard in my chest, and I pinch the bridge of my nose. Regret hits me hard. I’ve never been angry with my mother, but how can I not be? She’s lied, covered up the truth, and chosen to protect him over us. We shouldn’t have learned those things from a letter. She should have told us herself. Once again, she put his needs before anyone else’s, including her own.

  I stare straight ahead, and contempt runs through my blood like poison. I can feel its tentacles taking a hold of my soul, purging the last of the good memories from the part of my heart where my father lived for so long.

  I’ve never despised him more than I do at this moment.

  I hate that he’s hurt me so deeply.

  I hope he’s rotting in Hell.

  24

  Enrico

  I stare at the computer screen in front of me. I’ve achieved nothing today.

  My mind keeps going over and over my mother’s words from earlier.

  Don’t you dare judge me.

  Is that what I’ve done? Am I angry with her because she didn’t stand up for herself like Olivia did with me? Does this have anything to do with my mother… or anyone but him? Is my anger being directed at the wrong people?

  I exhale heavily and click into the spreadsheet that I’m supposed to be working on. My head is anywhere but here. Like my heart, it’s scrambled.

  I’m full of emotion, anger, hate, and sadness. But the biggest, is regret. A man I hero worshipped isn’t who I thought he was… and now he’s gone. I feel like I need to get to know him all over again but I can’t. It’s too late.

  He’s dead.

  It’s 1:00 p.m. when my intercom sounds. “Miss Reynolds is here to see you, Mr. Ferrara.”

  My heart somersaults at the sound of her name. This woman brings me so much happiness. “Send her in.”

  The door opens, and my love comes into view. Her beautiful face and high ponytail bring an instant smile to my face.

  I stand. “Hello, bella.” I take her into my arms and kiss her lips softly as I study her face. Big blue eyes smile up at me, filled with such love.

  “I thought I would come and check on my man during my lunch break.”

  “Who brought you here?” I ask as I lead her over to my chair. I sit down and pull her onto my lap.

  “Maso. Have you eaten?” she asks, concerned.

  “I’m not hungry.”

  She pushes my hair back from my face. “You need to eat.”

  I bite her nipple through her blouse. “I’ll eat you tonight.”

  She smiles as she wiggles away from me. Her eyes hold mine. “I’ve been thinking, and I’ve had an idea.”

  I chuckle. “Ah, the real reason you’re here.” I kiss her shoulder. “You didn’t come to see if I’d eaten. Do tell.”

  “You know how we haven’t had a very good week?”

  “I think that’s an understatement.” Since the day after she moved in, I’ve been in Hell. My entire life seemed to fall apart with news of Angelina.

  “Well, the thing is, I don’t really like everyone around us when you’re going through stuff. I think we need privacy.”

  I frown. “What do you mean?”

  “There are too many people at Lake Como, and it’s all the time. They walk in and out of the house. They gather out the front, they gather out the back, and it feels more like an airport than our home.”

  “It bothers you?”

  She begins to fiddle with my tie. “More so now that you have things you are dealing with. I want us to have some time alone. We’re just starting our lives together. I don’t want us to have to share ourselves with anyo
ne.”

  I watch her as I listen.

  “Can I get a small apartment in Milan for the week?”

  “What?”

  “I want to get a place for us. Something… different.”

  I frown in confusion. “If you want to stay in Milan, we have an apartment here. In fact, we have, like, twenty.”

  She shakes her head. “No, I want a place without things.”

  “Huh?”

  “I don’t want fancy. I want to bring us back to basics, just you, me, and the clothes on our back. I want to simplify our lives completely.”

  “Olivia.” I roll my eyes. “I am not staying in a dump just to prove a point.”

  “It won’t be a dump.” She kisses me softly and runs her hands up the back of my neck to try and sweeten the deal. “Please?”

  “Olivia,” I sigh. “This is unnecessary.”

  “Baby… please? It’s just one week.”

  “No.”

  She bounces on my lap. “For me?”

  My eyes hold hers. “Why?”

  “I want to show you something, but I can’t do it in a fancy house.”

  “It will be unsafe.”

  “No, I’ll get an apartment, and the guards can stay downstairs. Lorenzo will check it over.” She smiles, as if suddenly relieved. “Thank you.”

  “I didn’t say yes.”

  She bounces off my lap. “Yes, you did.”

  “When did I?”

  “Just now.” She kisses me quickly. “I could see it in your eyes. I’ll organize something and we’ll go there tomorrow after work.”

  “You know, most women would be happy with your house in Lake Como and my property portfolio.”

  She smiles. “I’m not most women.” She kisses me again. “Oh and, Lorenzo is here to see you. I brought him with me. I think you two need to talk.”

  My eyes hold hers.

  “You need to make this right, Enrico.”

  I swing on my chair, and I exhale. “I don’t like it when you call me that.”

  “Why not?”

  “Because you only call me that when you’re angry and scolding me.”

  “I love you, Rici,” she whispers as she runs her fingers through my stubble.