EPILOGUE Gianna It was late April and today was the first hot day of the year . The temperature had finally risen above 70F.
The ocean was still too cold to swim in, but I didn’t care.
I wasn’t sure what it was about the beach and the ocean breeze that made me feel free. I rushed along the vast lawn of the Vitiello mansion toward the bay. Matteo was next to me and was catching up judging by his footsteps. I accelerated even more, not daring to cast a glance over my shoulder to check.
My feet touched the sand. It wasn’t exactly warm; the water would have been worse, but I didn’t slow down. I rushed toward the soft waves. The moment my calves touched the water, my breath caught in my throat and I stumbled to a stop.
Sure enough, it was still too cold to swim. I almost fell forward because of my momentum. With shattered teeth, I was about to back away again when warm hands grabbed my waist and lifted me up.
“NO! Don’t you dare!” I shouted.
Matthew chuckled and then I was thrown into the air and landed with a thud in the icy water. My muscles froze for a moment, then I burst to the surface and gasped for breath. I cast a frown at Matthew, who was smiling at me. He was in water up to his stomach and didn’t seem to be suffering from the cold. “You bastard,” I said through clenched teeth.
My whole body began to shake. I wrapped my arms around my chest to make a show of my frostbite.
Matteo’s eyebrows came together and he came toward me, looking genuinely worried. The moment he was within reach, I attacked. I lunged toward him, grabbing him by the shoulders and trying to submerge him underwater.
I should have considered how used to physical confrontations Matthew was. He used my momentum to catapult me up and over his shoulder. “HEY!” I shouted in protest , but he merely patted my butt and started carrying me out of the ocean. “Where are you taking me?”
“We need to warm you up,” he said mischievously.
Excitement swept over me, but I pretended to kick my legs and hammer my fists against his back.
He led me to the right, to a corner of the lawn protected from the villa by bushes. A blanket had been set up . He had planned it!
He laid me down on the blanket and hovered above me.
My body was covered with goose bumps, and not just from the cold.
“How about licking every drop of water off your skin?”
murmured Matthew, bending down and licking a warm trail from my navel to my collarbone.
“What if Aria or Luca came down here?” I whispered as he lowered my bikini top, exposing my breasts to the cold. My nipples hardened even more, and then Matthew’s warm mouth closed around one. I cared less and less that someone would catch us.
“They won’t,” he whispered against my skin. And that was the last time we spoke in a long time. His lips and hands found every place on my body, chasing away the cold and leaving only warmth and desire. When he finally entered me, our bodies pressed together, everything seemed to be falling into place.
Even without the breeze and the blue sky I would have felt free. It had taken a long time but I realized that I could feel free, be free, even when I was bound to Matthew.
*** In the evening Matteo and Luca set up a barbecue on the patio. The weather held and we were able to eat outside. Aria came in to get the salad she had prepared while Matteo headed to the basement for a drink. This left me alone with Luca running the barbecue. I set the table, pretending he wasn’t there.
Things between Luca and me were tense; they had never been tense, but they had gotten worse since I had accepted his offer months earlier.
I took a deep breath. This had to stop. Luca was not only Matteo’s brother; he was also Aria’s husband.
At some point we had to make a truce. I put down the last plate, dried my hands and then approached Luca who was turning the marinated lamb chops on the grill. As if he could sense my attention, he looked up. It was useless to try to read his expression. I bridged the remaining distance between us. Most of our interactions had not exactly been civil. My preferred response was usually sarcastic, but I was doing my best to keep my expression open and as friendly as possible.
Luca raised a dark eyebrow when I stopped beside him.
Suddenly I felt ridiculously nervous. “I know you don’t like me,” I began. “But I think we should try to get along better for Aria and Matthew.”
I managed not to flinch when he peered at me.
What was he thinking?
“I didn’t like you because I hated how you treated Matteo.”
“All right,” I said slowly, not knowing where to go from there.
“But I’m starting to change my mind.”
“Fairies?”
He turned over another lamb chop. “I’m starting to think that maybe Matthew was right and you two aren’t the worst couple.”
“Thank you?” I said, unsure if it was meant in a positive sense. “You’re really bad with compliments.”
“I’m not in the habit of handing them out. And don’t tell my brother that I said he was right. He’s quite arrogant.” His eyes landed on something behind me, and I turned and saw Matthew heading in our direction, his arms laden with several bottles of wine.
“It is,” I agreed with a smile. Luke turned what could be considered his version of a smile to me, and a kind of silent understanding passed between us.
Matthew set the wine bottles down on the table before joining us and wrapping his arm around my waist. “What are you two gossiping about?”
“You,” Luca and I said together.
“Is that so?” Matteo raised an eyebrow.
Aria came back from the kitchen, her eyes darting between us. She clutched Luca with a confused look. “What’s going on?”
“Your husband and my wife are discussing my many wonderful features,” Matteo said.
I nudged him. “You are too arrogant.”
Matteo kissed my ear. “Admit it, you love my cockiness.”
“Done.”
“Your declarations of love still make my knees shake,” he joked.
I stood up on tiptoe. “Your cockiness is not the only thing I love about you.” I let my eyes roam the length of him.
“I need a damn lamb to erase this disgusting display of sweetness,” Luca murmured, but I didn’t miss the tender look he gave Aria when he thought no one was paying attention.
Matteo took me in his arms and kissed me. Luca mumbled something else but I didn’t listen. The only thing that mattered was Matteo.