“We’ve got about ten minutes or so before it’s ready. Why’s that?”
“Perfect!”
“Perfect?”
“Yep, perfect. Just enough time for you to give me the grand tour of this amazing house.”
“I guess you’re right.”
After checking the oven, I took her hand and started showing her around. She oohed and aahed over the pool, gave me shit about one of the spare bedrooms being painted purple with a unicorn night light on the bedside table and glow-in-the-dark comforter, and threw herself recklessly onto the couch, letting out a moan that had my pants feeling a little tighter.
As we made our way back to the kitchen, I worked up the courage to ask, “Well, what do you think?”
“What do I think about what?” she replied, looking up at me from under long lashes.
“The house. Does it meet your expectations?”
“It’s a beautiful house, Luca, it really is.”
“Why do I feel like there’s a but coming?”
“Because there is…” Elise shrugged and took her place back on the stool and drained her glass.
Snagging the pot holders, I pulled the casserole out of the oven and set it on the bench copping a face full of steam for my efforts. It looked perfect. Golden brown cheese on the top had my stomach clenching with hunger.
“Luca, how long have you lived here?”
“Couple of years. Why?”
“Don’t you think it’s weird that most of your rooms, except for your bedroom and gym, aren’t finished?” Looking around, I saw a picture leaning against the wall waiting to be hung. “You still have stuff in boxes.”
“Yeah…”
While I replayed Elise’s questions over and over, I filled two plates before slicing the bread. Staying silent, I grabbed everything I’d prepared earlier and set it out on the counter. My original plan had been to eat in the dining room, but now we were eating at the bench. The dining room was as bare as all the others, and right now I couldn’t face going in there and seeing how depressing it was. Seeing things through Elise’s eyes definitely offered a different perspective.
“Are you not planning to stay?”
That felt like an odd question. “Nah, I’m staying, I guess I just haven’t gotten around to making it a home yet.” Pushing Elise’s plate in front of her, I refilled her wine and set a bottle of water out for me before sitting down to enjoy our dinner.
Half an hour later, we were sitting out by the pool, relaxing on the loungers. The lights lighting up the water made it look magical while we argued over why I wouldn’t let Elise clean up. She wasn’t really accepting that she was my guest, and I wasn’t about to let her scrub pots and pans.
“Do you spend much time out here?” she asked, her eyes not leaving the mirrored surface of the pool.
“Not really.”
After a minute, Elise turned to face me. “Don’t take this the wrong way, Luca…”
“Sounds ominous,” I teased, trying to make light of the situation. Internally, I was freaking out, steeling myself for whatever was about to come.
“Why do you have this big, beautiful house if you don’t use it and you don’t enjoy it? I mean, you could easily fit your bedroom and the gym in a two-bedroom apartment like mine and not have to worry.”
Her reasoning was sound. It was a conversation I’d had with myself, with my mother and my sisters over and over again. One I still didn’t have an answer for. Not a good one anyway.
“I really don’t know,” I offered honestly. “I wanted space for…for my family, and I guess it had everything I thought I wanted.”
Elise’s silence had me worried. I’d said too much. Trying not to stare, I watched her out of the corner of my eye. When she shivered, I knew it was time to call it a night.
“I should probably get you home?” I offered, wanting to do the exact opposite.
“Oh. Okay. No worries. Mind if I use the bathroom before we go?”
She was on her feet and pushing open the heavy sliding door before I could say anything more. “Shit!” I was so bad at this.
Collecting the rest of our stuff, I followed her inside, turning the lights off and locking up. Inside, alone, it was too quiet. Like the walls were closing in on me. Flicking on the TV, I didn’t even care what was on as long as it broke the deflating silence.
Chapter Ten – Elise
Tonight, was a perfect example of why I didn’t date.
Why I shouldn’t date.
I was absolutely shit at it.
Jax would probably piss himself laughing when I told him how badly I’d screwed this up.
“Get it together, loser,” I told the mess of a woman staring back at me in the mirror. Luca had obviously put a great deal of thought and effort into tonight and I’d ruined it. I cried on his shoulder for God’s sake. It was no wonder he wanted to take me home. I’d made a fool of myself.
Splashing some water on my face, I dug my hand into the front of my shirt and adjusted my bra. Jaxson may have thought it looked pretty, but it wasn’t comfortable. Or practical. The wire dug into my underarm and the lace itched. Double-checking my undies were tucked in, I padded out softly to find Luca sitting on the arm of the couch, looking like every girl’s book boyfriend I’d ever read about. How he hadn’t already filled this amazing house with a wife and his own soccer team of kids was beyond me.
“Look, I can call an Uber. Saves you going back out,” I offered awkwardly.
“Did I do something wrong?” Luca blurted out.
“No. Why?”
“Well, you seem like you’re in a hurry to get away from me all of a sudden.”
Getting away from him was the absolute last thing I wanted to do. “No, not at all. It’s just…”
“Just?”
“Come on, Luca. We’re both adult enough to admit that tonight was a disaster.”
“I wouldn’t call it a disaster exactly…”
“I cried on you.”
“Yeah.”
“I insulted your home.”
“I wouldn’t call it a home, not really anyway.”
“I’m a mess. This is why I don’t date!” I huffed, folding my arms over my chest.
“Elise, come sit down.”
That was one invitation I wasn’t about to turn down. My feet were aching. Jax may have picked out a pair of flats but they were ones that spent most of their time stuffed in the back of the cupboard for a reason. I’d forgotten why until about an hour ago when they were pinching my toes.
Flopping down into the lounge, I sank amongst the cushions. I was moving in. Luca mightn’t know it and he’d probably think I was completely crazy, but this couch alone had me contemplating constructing a blanket fort and never leaving. It was wide and soft, warm and inviting, and I was now one with it.
“Elise. Elise. Come on, pretty girl. Wake up,” a whispered voice cooed in my ear as I came to.
Blinking hard, I cracked my eyes open to see a bleary-eyed Luca hovering over me. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to… What time is it anyway?”
I sat up and looked around. Other than the light in the kitchen, the rest of the house was dark. “Just after three,” Luca answered, his voice thick with sleep.
“Why’d you let me sleep?” Suddenly I was wide awake. Scrambling, I started looking for my shoes, flipping cushions and tossing the blanket off. As I got myself worked up, Luca’s hand snuck out and wrapped around my wrist, halting me where I stood.
“Elise. Breathe. It’s three in the morning. We’re going into my room and going back to sleep. I’ll take you home in the morning.”
“It is morning,” I argued.
“Elise!” he scolded as he bent down and swung me up into his arms, causing my shoes to fall from my fingers and clatter on the floor. Clinging to him, afraid he’d drop me, at least that was the excuse I was sticking to, I burrowed my face against the crook of his neck, breathing in his warm scent. When he set me down, we were beside his bed, the b
lankets already pulled back. “Get into bed, Elise.”
“I can’t sleep in here, Luca,” I protested weakly through a yawn.
With his back to me, he dug through the chest of drawers. When he finally turned back to face me, he handed me a grey t-shirt and a pair of navy boxers.
Yawning, Luca started popping buttons on his shirt. “Elise, it’s late. Bathroom’s through there. Get changed and let’s get some sleep.”
***
Waking up was a bit of a shock, when I pried my eyes open on a Sunday morning. For starters, it wasn’t my bedroom I was waking up in. Perhaps even more startling though was the fact I wasn’t alone. Wrapped around my waist was a long muscular arm, and my legs were tangled with his. But it was the impressive and, frankly intimidating, bulge poking into my butt that had me holding my breath while I contemplated how I could sneak out without waking him.
My plans were shot to shit when he tugged me closer towards him and nuzzled his stubble-covered chin against my neck. A move I felt between my legs.
“Morning,” he rumbled.
“Hi,” I replied, my throat dry and scratchy.
Reaching up, I wiped my mouth, only to find drool crusted on the corner of my lips. I shouldn’t be let out of the house. As I tried to wriggle out of his grasp, Luca locked his arms around me and hauled me across his chest until I was lying on top of him. Face to face.
“Where you running off to?” he asked, tucking a strand of hair behind my ear.
“I wasn’t running anywhere,” I defended, lying through my furry teeth.
“Sure you’re not.” The smile on his face was infectious, and a minute later I was giggling at absolutely nothing.
I couldn’t help it. Leaning down, I kissed his cheek, breathing him in. Without warning, Luca flipped us so I was flat on my back, his weight and his morning wood pressing into me. The moan that escaped caught me off guard, and I felt my cheeks burn with embarrassment.
“Elise, if you’re going to give me a morning kiss, make it one that counts,” he growled, his voice thick with sleep.
“What about morning breath?”
He didn’t even bother answering before taking control and kissing the hell out of me. If I hadn’t been turned on before, I was now.
Squirming like the hussy I was, I rubbed myself against him. There was a niggling feeling in the back of my brain reminding me I should be embarrassed, but it was buried deep, deep down under the thick layer of hormones that were taking control of my body.
By the time Luca pulled back, we were both panting. I thought Luca was going to put a stop to it, but instead he latched onto my neck and licked that spot just below my ear. “Luca.” His name fell from my lips, sounding like a plea.
“Want me to stop?” he asked, nibbling at my ear.
“Fuck no!”
Guess that was the right answer.. His huge hands palmed my tits through his shirt I was wearing but even that wasn’t enough. Climbing off me, he peeled it over my head, leaving me wearing nothing more than the lace butt floss Jax had insisted I wore, something I’d thank him for later.
“Wow!” he growled, rocking back on his knees staring at me.
Not used to this sort of attention, I tried to cover myself, but Luca’s hands grabbed my wrists. “Don’t hide from me.”
“But…”
There was something about Luca that was completely overpowering my common sense. Maybe it was the way he was devouring me with his eyes or the way he licked his lips. I guess it didn’t really matter.
“You’re stunning,” he growled before diving forward, wrapping his lips around a hard, desperate nipple.
Arching my back, I pushed my chest against his mouth as he lavished attention on my needy body. By the time he let go with a pop, I was a withering mess on the verge of exploding. I could barely remember the last time I’d had an orgasm that wasn’t battery powered. And in the pit of my stomach, I knew Luca was the type of man who’d know exactly which buttons to press to make my body sing.
Almost as if he could read my mind, while he massaged a boob with each hand, he trailed his tongue down my stomach, circling my navel, taunting me. When his fingers found the sides of my butt floss, he lifted his head, looking up at me mischievously. “How fond of these are you?”
“Not at all,” I panted.
“Best news I’ve had all day,” he confirmed as he pushed his thumbs through the sides, destroying them.
“Best news?” I teased.
“Well, the day’s just getting started. And so am I,” Luca confirmed with a wink before pushing my knees apart, baring me to him.
Twenty minutes later, I was sweaty and sated. After the third orgasm or maybe it was the fourth, I’d seen stars.
“That’s a really pretty smile, Elise.”
“You put that smile there.”
“I did, didn’t I?”
“Happy with yourself, are you?” I snuggled into Luca’s side, feeling completely safe and comfortable there.
“Fuck yeah!”
Chapter Eleven – Luca
“Sleeping Beauty’s awake.”
Elise emerged from my bedroom looking more beautiful than I could ever imagine. Her hair was mussed up, her eyes were narrowed, and she was wearing another one of my shirts and a pair of my shorts I didn’t even remember owning.
“Tell me you have coffee?”
Grabbing a mug from the cupboard, I poured her a cup before sliding the milk and sugar across the bench. “Help yourself.”
“Thanks,” she answered as she added so much milk that it was almost white.
“No sugar?”
“I’m sweet enough,” she replied sassily.
Two could play at that game. “Oh, I know.”
Coughing, she set the mug back on the counter and coughed and spluttered until her eyes watered. Rounding the bench, I rubbed my hand up and down her back. “Shit, Elise. Are you okay?”
Wiping her eyes, Elise battled to get her breathing under control. She attempted to reassure me. “Fine.”
“Want some lunch?” I offered, cracking open the fridge.
“Lunch?”
“Well yeah. It’s almost two. You must be starving.”
“Almost two?” she shrieked, like it was the most insane thing she’d ever heard. “Where did the morning go?”
“If you can’t remember then I’m obviously not doing my job properly, but I’d be happy to give you a reminder,” I offered generously. Tasting her, seeing her come apart like that, was definitely no hardship on my part.
When Elise clenched her thighs together, I knew she hadn’t forgotten. Her body betrayed her. Before she could say anything, her stomach grumbled loudly. “First though, food.”
“You don’t have to feed me. I’ll eat when I get home. I’ve gotta get going anyway. I can’t believe I stayed so long. I’m sure I’m in your way. Let me get my shit together and I’ll get out of your hair.” Elise was babbling. It was freaking adorable.
She was so cute when she was flustered. Slipping from the chair, she scampered down the hallway and disappeared into my bedroom. Giving her a minute to herself, I forced myself to count to ten before following her. By the time I got there, she was stuffing her feet back into her shoes.
Leaning on the door frame, I watched her freak out. If I didn’t need to stop it, I would’ve stood there and watched her argue with herself all day. She was sexy as hell, but the last thing in the world I wanted was her second-guessing this. Or worse, regretting it.
“Breathe, Elise.”
“Shit!” she exclaimed as she clutched at her chest.
Moving towards her, I squatted in front of her and held her hands steady. Looking up into her face, I could see she was different from the girl I’d cooked dinner for last night. With the makeup washed off, she was more beautiful than ever.
“You most certainly are not in my way. Stay as long as you like. I kinda like having you around.” I surprised us both with that confession.
�
�I…I like being here too,” she replied.
“Well then, since we’re both happy with you being here, why don’t we go find some food, and then I’ll drop you home?”
“You sure I’m not in the way?”
“Elise, you could never be in my way.”
By the time I pulled up outside her apartment, I knew I wasn’t ready to let her go. After she’d calmed down from her mini freak-out, we’d eaten lunch by the pool and laughed until my stomach hurt. When she wasn’t freaking out, Elise was a hell of a lot of fun. Even if most of her jokes were at my expense.
Desperate for this not to end, I blurted out that I wanted to see her again. For ten minutes we sat in the car, ignoring the looks from passers-by, as we tried to find room in our schedules. Playing away had never bothered me before, but then again, I guess I never really had anyone I wanted waiting for me at home before either. Being a nomad had never been an issue. My family were happy with the occasional phone call and a few texts or emails and it was enough. I barely even knew this girl, but I already knew that it’d never be enough. Elise was something different. Something special.
“Wednesday night,” I blurted out.
“Wednesday?”
“You said you had things on Monday and Tuesday. I have training Thursday and fly out Friday morning. I’m not back until Sunday afternoon.”
“What’s wrong with Sunday night then?”
“It’s too far away.”
“Someone’s keen,” Elise taunted, a sly smile dancing on her lips.
“Hopefully I’m not the only one.”
It took a minute before she caved and put me out of my misery. “You’re not. Wednesday it is.”
“Great! I’ll pick you up at seven.”
“I guess you’re not going to tell me where we’re going?” she probed.
“Nice try. But no.” Leaning over, I kissed her chastely. “See you Wednesday.”
Elise unclicked her seatbelt and pushed open the door. “Yeah. Wednesday.”
I waited where I was until she disappeared through the door before turning around and heading home for a very cold shower.
Overtime (Playing The Field Book 1) Page 6
