by Briggs, Jo
They had managed to snuggle into the cramped single bed, rather than sleep separately for some of the night. Each had struggled to get any proper amount of sleep as they knew they had to get off the train at 6am the next morning in Rome, and changed onto another one for the final leg into Florence arriving at 8.20am.
Finally, in Florence, they grabbed a taxi to the hotel Grey had booked for them all - or at least what his assistant, Sam back in England had booked on Grey’s instruction. Checking in to a nice suite of rooms, they spent the morning unpacking, before catching up on a brief slumber in a massive, queen-sized sleigh bed.
With the hot afternoon sun blazing through the half-drawn curtains into their bedroom, they were woken from their haze of sleep, by the sound of a mobile ringing. Grumbling, Grey rolled over on his back and released Indi from his grasp slightly. “I don’t recognise that ringtone. It must be yours.” His fingers strayed from her stomach, to arouse her exposed nipples to more hardened state as the sheets had worked its way down their bodies during their sleep.
“Mmm, I can’t imagine who would be calling me; they know I’m out of the country for another week.” Sighing she pushed herself off the bed and pulled the offending phone from her handbag. Looking at the screen, she frowned slightly and accepted the call. “Hey, is something wrong?” She asked the person on the other end, moving into the adjoining sitting room.
“I was just checking up on my little sis.” Aimee said casually.
“You had me worried calling like that. I thought it was serious calling me on an international call rate. However, it’s lovely to hear your voice you would love it here. So relaxing and the weather to die for. My tan will put your porcelain complexion to shame!” Indi teased her good-naturedly
“So, have you seen any hot men?”
“Actually, I’m in Florence with one now. It has been a whirlwind. I’ve so much to tell you when I return.” Indi said bursting with excitement, to share some of her news with her closest sister.
“OMG, Florence. I hope you’re being safe.” Aimee cautioned.
“Do not concern yourself, this is nothing like that. Anyway, I must go, I’ll see you when I get back.”
Smiling, Indi closed down her phone, and exited the bathroom, catching a quizzical expression on Grey’s face. “My sister,” She explained.
“Was anything wrong?”
“Oh, no, she was just checking up on me, we’re pretty close, and after all that I went through with the court case. She has been keeping a close eye on me, and wasn’t too keen on me staying here alone.”
“Ahh, did you tell her about me?” He asked, feeling hopeful that she’d. He liked the idea of her feeling confident enough about their time together to share it with one of her sisters.
Indi smirked, moving back to joining him in bed. “Actually I did mention you in passing, when she asked if I had met any hot men.”
“Oh I see, so I’m a hot man, in your opinion,” he teased, pushing her on her back as he slid his hands over her hips and waist, lightly
“Extremely,” she giggled as he began tickling her rib cage while trailing the tip of his tongue from her collarbone, all the way up her neck, to just behind her ear. He pressed his upper torso against her breasts as his mouth trailed across her face to her lips.
One of his hands reached between her legs, flicking across her clit, stroking the wet skin surrounding her entrance with increasing frequency that it made her hips move of their own volition. Indi gasped loudly against his mouth as he continued to devour her mouth while her body shuddered with the rapturous pleasure from his handy fingerwork.
“Mmm, a perfect fit.” He murmured as he slid his rock hard length into her with an eager thrust. He continued to describe all the dirty things he enjoyed doing to her as he punctuated every slow but powerful thrust with a groan of pleasure.
Afterwards, they were enticed from the bed with some room service, followed by a tour of Uffizi gallery with their own tour guide as Indi has expressed an interest in seeing some art museums.
They spent the next couple of hours viewing one of the largest collections of Italian Renaissance paintings in the world, including Botticelli’s Birth of Venus, Leonardo’s Annunciation, Michelangelo’s Holy Family, and Titian’s Venus of Urbino.
“Thank you for arranging to go there, Grey. It was a fantastic buzz to be surrounded by all that history.” Indi wore a big wide smile as they walked back to the hotel.
“I’ve more planned tomorrow, that is why I suggested the comfortable shoes.” He pointed to her spiked heels and shook his head in mock horror.
“Okay, I’ll wear more sensible shoes tomorrow, just to please you.”
Over the next three days, they visited the Accademia Gallery, Bargello Museum, and the Palazzo Vecchio, one on each afternoon, after lazing around in bed all morning and talking.
Each evening they travelled with Adam and Hayden to see different musical events being held in Scandicci, which was located just 10 kilometres outside of Florence.
They had enjoyed anonymity for the first two evenings, but news of Grey’s presence in Florence had been announced via social media by one eagle eye fan on their final day. This caused widespread chaos around their hotel as a large crowd of fans had been building since the waited for a glimpse of him.
“I think it might be best if you forget about your plans for tonight and we just head to the train station in the morning. The crowd out there has swelled dramatically.” Adam cautioned as he glanced out of the window that overlooked where the crowd was congregating.
“No, I am determined not to have our plans ruined.”
They were supposed to be exploring the centre of Florence from Repubblica square to Strozzi palace on a specially organised night tour.
Indi didn’t say anything, as she was still unused to all the attention that Grey’s presence drew.
“Well the local police don’t want us to do anything that encourages the crowd to get any bigger or start up in another area. They have already started sectioning them off so the traffic can start flowing properly again.” Hayden commented as he entered the suite after going down to the foyer to talk with one of the senior officers controlling the scene down there.
“Is there not a back entrance that Adam and Indi can slip out of? Then I go and sign some autographs for fifteen minutes to placate them, with you nearby if it gets too out of hand, then we head back into the hotel through the front and exit out the back as well.”
Adam and Hayden nodded at each other. “Maybe that could work.”
And it did. The more diligent fans getting their photos and autographs and Indi had her tour of the city.
They travelled back on the early morning train but didn’t arrive at the villas until that evening.
As they pulled from the main road into a smaller lane that leads to their villas, they passed another car coming in the opposite direction, which at first they thought were occupants from another villa nearby.
“Fuck.” Adam who was driving uttered, as he pulled the car to an unexpected stop shortly after the other car passed them by. “I could have sworn Caitlin was in the back of that car.” He caught Grey’s eye in the rear-view mirror.
Grey swore under his breath “Okay, well, let’s get back to the villa before she has a chance to get the taxi to turn around, and come back. I don’t want her associating Indi with me unless we have no other choice.”
Indi took in the men’s alarmed expressions and drew the conclusion that this Caitlin was one of the issues Grey had said he needed to sort. “Caitlin?” She wanted answers and fast.
“Indi, please trust me on this. I don’t have time to explain now, but I will fully as soon I can get away.”
Indi glared at him stiffly. “Fine, just to drop me here, and let me walk the last bit myself.” They had had a marvellous time in Florence, and she was determined not to have it tainted by a confrontation at the very end.
“Are you sure?” Grey furrowed his brow. “It m
ight be the easiest way, in case she does come back because if Adam saw her, then it’s likely she recognised him too.”
“Yes, but I do expect a full explanation about who exactly she is.” She responded coolly.
Hayden took the initiative and removed her suitcase from the boot.
“I will.” He leaned in to kiss her, but she shrugged him off quickly before exiting the car.
With a suitcase in hand, she carried herself off down the lane towards the villas, with Grey’s car driving off into the distance, leaving dust clouds wafting in their wake.
She’d just arrived into her own villa, and passed through the gate to the garden out of sight of any passing traffic, when she heard a car pull up. Seconds later, she heard a car door slam and a woman with an awful shrilling voice demanding that the driver help with her luggage then disputing the charge for the journey. She closed her eyes and sighed as an uneasy feeling swept over her.
Had he been playing her along?
It had been three long hours since Indi had arrived home on her own, she’d tried to keep herself busy first by dealing with her removing her washing from her luggage, listening to some music, and answering emails on her laptop, but nothing could help focus her mind away from what might be happening next door.
She couldn’t help but think the worst about who this woman was. She had replayed the moment over and over in her mind from when Adam had sworn some expletive as the other car passed by them to when she had been left to walk down the lane to the villas by herself. She tried to focus on Grey’s body language at the time. He hadn’t seemed happy to see this woman, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t in some kind of meaningful relationship with her. Maybe he just wasn’t happy at being caught out.
She had tried to stop herself from thinking that he might just disappear off with any explanation. She stepped out onto the terrace several times to reassure herself there was still someone next door, each time a sense of relief washed over when she could still hear the murmur of faraway voices.
Finally, at a little after eleven, Indi’s body had given into the fatigue she’d been fighting due to their early rising, and she fell asleep curled up on the sofa.
Bombshell - Grey
It wasn’t until the sun was rising that extremely tired feeling Grey shook Indi’s arm gently to awoke from her slumber on the sofa.
She opened her eyes slowly, her body’s reaction stiff and disoriented at first as he sat at the edge of the sofa beside her looming over curled up body.
“Have you not been to bed at all?” Indi asked, reaching up from her reclined position, and running a hand up over his cheek to touch the day worth of stubble coming through.
He shook his head silently. Grabbing the hand still touching his cheek, he planted a tender kiss on the inside of her palm. “I’m sorry it took this long to get away. I had to wait until she went to bed after our screaming match.” His voice was low and hoarse.
“So who is she?” Indi made a move to stand up from her lying down position, her nerves coming through in her voice.
He had gone over his speech several times so he could sound convincing as he concealed some of the truth. It was something he had never been good at, but he was prepared to say almost anything to keep her from finding the full truth until he could deal with his father and free himself from Caitlin permanently. “There isn’t much to tell. She is the daughter of one of my father’s business associates. I have chaperoned her to a few business events as she also works for my father.”
He watched her walk from the sofa and start to clear up the plate and glass remaining from her evening meal the previous night.
“So has she come here for herself or your father?”
“She came to give me some papers that my father needed signed, but it was a ruse to spend time with me, as well. She has always been hopeful that we would get together especially with both our fathers encouraging the idea. ” Not quite the whole truth but a little white lie here and there to make it sound quite as awful as him engaged to her. He was so close to putting his plan into action he didn’t want to ruin it now by spooking Indi with the full truth when he soon would be free to pursue her properly without the weight of his father deception hanging around his neck. Just a few more hours and the proof that he knew about Caitlin would be hand delivered to his father as stage one of his ousting.
“But you don’t share their viewpoint?”
“God no, she is my worst nightmare. She follows me everywhere. She just won’t take no for an answer.”
Indi furrowed her brow. “If there is nothing going on between you why did you hide me away when we saw her? Wouldn’t she seeing you with me put an end to her aspirations?”
Grey felt a sense of dread rise up his throat from the pit of his stomach. Whole lie or half-truth, which should he utter. He hadn’t lying to the woman standing in front of him, a woman he was falling in love with. “I did it to protect your existence from my father until I can disentangle a few issues he has caused.”
“You keep mentioning these issues but never actually expand on them. Are they really that sensitive that you can’t tell me about them in any detail?”
He fidgeted uncomfortably under her scrutinising gaze. “It is complex. There is a lot of baggage between my father and his children that its best remaining within my family. All I can promise you is that once I get back from Sicily things will be resolved to a satisfactory point so that he won’t be able to interfere with our plans.”
“Can you be sure whatever concerns you have now about keeping me secret from your father will be truly be alleviated. After all I went through with my own father; I can’t live with the constant worry of someone else’s father causing problems in my life as well.” Her voice wavered up and down.
“I understand your apprehension, but it will be okay.”
Indi was silent for a few moments then offered him a weak smile. Inwardly, he sighed in relief, as she seemed to accept his reassurance without any more questions.
“You look dead on his feet. Why don’t you go back to your villa and catch up on some sleep, before she discovers that you’re gone.”
He shook his head stubbornly. “Sleep can wait; I need to hold you close before I’ve to endure that woman again.”
“Come, I have an idea of how to relax and work some of the tension from the last 12 hours away.” He held out his hand to her encouraging her to place her small one within his larger one.
Wordlessly, he opened up the glass doors and led them to the patio that was still draped in the remaining gleaming moonlight before it became outshone by the rising dawn sun. “I thought we could watch the sunrise from the jacuzzi,” He explained as he turned and caught her confused expression. “It is perfectly secluded from the other villa, so you don’t have to worry about being spotted.”
“Am I going to get to see the sunrise this time?” Indi smirked teasingly, remembering how they had missed several previous sunrises because they had become distracted with each other’s bodies instead.
Grey returned her grin, beginning to enjoy himself for the first time since the previous evening’s grim events started. “I didn’t hear you complaining about missing them at the time. In fact, if I remember rightly you were doing another kind of moaning!” Pulling her into a quick embrace, he swatted her bum cheeks lightly with his palm.
“Oww,” She protested, rubbing where his palm had landed.
“Don’t worry baby, I’ll kiss it better.” He said, picking her up and dumping her into the already bubbling water, still clothed. “Now hurry up and get naked.”
It wasn’t long before they were both submerged in the water, naked, Indi sitting on his lap as they kissed any doubts over their future away.
Catching their breath, Grey smiled down at Indi as they moved back to an embracing position not wanting to spoil the moment quite yet. “I guess I should apologise for distracting you from yet another sunrise.”
Laughing, “I rather prefer your distractions. A
nyway, we will share plenty more sunrises in the future.”
“Yes we will.”
They were silent for a while, conscious that this probably would be the last opportunity to see each other before Indi flew back in the morning.
Catching Indi yawning, Grey carried her out of the jacuzzi and off to the bedroom. Intent on making sure she drifted off to sleep before he headed back to his own bed in the other villa. Instead, the enormity of what lied ahead and her tiredness made her quite emotional, and he ended up curling up next to her on the bed trying to soothe her off to sleep.
Exhausted his own sleep got the better of him, luckily, Adam awoke him just an hour later with a call on his mobile warning him that he’d been gone for quite a while.
“Try not to worrying about everything.”
She nodded. “I’ll keep myself busy. Do you think you might be able to come see me again later?”
He shrugged dejectedly. “I’m actually not sure. I’ll try my best, but I don’t want to do anything to heighten her suspicions and says something to my father. If I can’t get away during the daytime, I promise to come to you tonight.”
They had shared one last lingering kiss before he headed out of her room.
Numb- Indi
This time Indi managed to drift off into a more comfortable continuation of her own sleep. She awoke some hours later just after twelve, checking her phone her heart missed a beat when she noticed a flashing message notification indicating her had an unread text message, which she hoped, would be from Grey.
Her heart dropped with a thud when she saw it was from Aimee confirming the final details of picking her from the airport when she landed at Manchester tomorrow.
She tapped in a quick response to Aimee before wrapping her body in a short silk wrap that matched her babydoll nightwear underneath.
She was determined to enjoy her last full day in the villa with or without Grey.
Making a batch of pancakes with a sprinkling of berries over the top, she plated up a portion and took it out onto the terrace to enjoy her breakfast in the morning sun.
