Page 216 of Valentino

He grabs me roughly and pulls me under the water with him. “I’ll give you fucking cheese.” His lips take mine again.

“Mr. Leone.” I giggle against him. “I know what kind of cheese you give you out.”

“Be careful or you’re going to get it again.” He wraps me in his arms, kisses my temple and I lean up against his big broad chest as we fall into a comfortable silence.

Under the water, and in amongst the steam I feel something shift inside of me.

A tectonic plate, a tsunami of emotion, or maybe it’s just my sixth sense telling me that now that we’ve had our moment in time, to get the hell away from this man as soon as possible. Our past cannot be erased by good sex.

Stop it.

Don’t turn this into a bigger deal than it is.

“Turn around, I’ll wash your back.” I turn him away from me and soap up my hands.

He puts his two hands onto the glass and my eyes roam over the perfect specimen. Muscular back, tight ass with shoulders to die for.

Damn. This man is fine.

“Whose wedding?” I ask as my hands begin to roam over every inch of his back.

“Davide and Amina.”

“Do I know them?”

Ding….

Ding….

“Davide is my cousin.”

“What?” I stammer, outraged. “You are at a family wedding, and you just vanished?”

“Possibly.” He turns toward me and runs his hands down to grip my behind as he softly bites my neck. “Totally worth it though.”

“I cannot believe you.”

“You’re a bad influence.” His hips brush forward to let me feel he’s nearly ready again. “All fuckable like that, I couldn’t stop myself even if I tried.”

I smile up at him, that makes two of us…but there’s an elephant in the room and I have to address it. “You owe me an apology.”

“I already apologized at Francesca’s party.” He concentrates on washing me as if to avoid looking me in the eye.

“No. You didn’t. You told me that you were jealous and fucked up.”

He keeps washing me, remaining silent.

“But you never addressed or acknowledged how much you hurt my feelings.”

His hands keep roaming over my skin.

“Val…look at me.” I grab his face with my hands and bring it to meet mine. “For me to move past this, I need to hear the words. I know we just had sex, and I probably should have had this conversation beforehand.” I roll my eyes. “It’s probably too late now…but whatever.”

A frown flashes across his face, and he nods as if making an internal decision. “You’re right.”

“About what?”

“I’ve never regretted anything more.” His hands glide over my skin. “I’ve played it over in my head a million times and each time I come away more disgusted than the last.” His eyes search mine. “I’m sorry, Anna. I’m sorry that I let my jealousy get the better of me. I should have given you a chance to explain. You deserved better.”