after taking a bite of his
prawn. The crisp sound shocked me; it was as though he bite into an apple.
“Wow, I’ve never eaten a prawn before, but I have to tell
you I didn’t expect it to sound like that!”
“It’s like an apple right?” he asked, naming exactly what
I’d thought.
“Exactly so,” I said biting into mine and swallowing it
before I spoke, “Oh these are so delicious,” I said closing my eyes.
“That they are.”
“Where did you get this?”
“My friend owns a shop in town. I helped fund his business
for him, so in exchange, I get all the seafood I want; no charge.”
“Well, that’s nice! He has quite the selection. So you own a
house here, you have friends who live here, and you have your own car here.”
“Yes ma’am.”
“So what made you decide to settle in Italy?”
“I love the culture, and this place was a major steal,” he
said while cracking open a lobster claw.
“It’s a wonder you don’t live here full-time,” I said prying
open a clam.
“This place is beautiful, and yes I have connections and
friends here, but I get lonely out here,” he said sincerely.
“I can understand that.”
“If you think about it, this place wasn’t meant for just one
bachelor; this house was built for a family.”
“If I had someone to live with, I would never leave this
place,” his eyes were locked with mine as he said it.
“That makes sense,” I answered. I didn’t know what to do at
that point. His eyes were so intense that I felt a little uneasy. I felt
nervous as though I were put on the spot.
“Don’t worry, Jaida, I’m not asking for an answer from you.
But I am not going to kept it a secret; I want you, and I want you for as long
as I can have you.”
I didn’t respond to him, and I knew he didn’t expect me to
either. He only felt the need to state how he felt, the rest was up to me. I
smiled slightly before picking up my glass of wine and toasting with Axel.
Taking a few sips of wine, I placed the glass back on the table. This would be an
exciting ride.
Chapter Seven
I woke up to the soft warm breeze as it floated
through the window to kiss my skin. My right leg and arm were draped over a
body pillow while a sheet was the only thing covering my nakedness. Axel was
not next to me, I only knew this by the sound of brushing against teeth.
Stretching, I sat up on the bed, and rubbed the sleep from my eyes. The weather
was absolutely perfect. I couldn’t have imagined it better myself.
We’d opened it the night before, lit some candles, and
played smooth jazz while I gave Axel a massage. My mind went straight back the
sight of those muscles drenched in warm oil. I remembered how beautiful I
thought he was. He laid there calmly as I worked on him, moaning every once in
a while when I applied pressure to the right spot.
He said that he was a little tense from all the plane trips
and not enough exercise to combat the cramps. It made total sense but,
surprisingly, I was fine. It was probably from all the sleep that I got during
our vacation. I asked him about his sleep.
“Did you get any?”
“Well, every now and then I have trouble sleeping. It’s
something that developed when I was younger.”
“Is it insomnia?” I asked as I pressed against his deltoid.
“Not quite, and if it is it’s so infrequent. I just brush it
off as having too much on my mind,” he answered.
“Well, what are you thinking about?” I asked before rubbing
some more oil onto his well-defined back.
“The company, and of course you.”
“Aww, honey,” I said bashfully.
“I’m serious. I can’t keep my mind off of you. I always
imagine the future with us, especially now that we’re here. You know, I’ve
never brought another woman here,” he said sincerely.
“Really? Not even once?”
“No, not even my mother has been here.”
“What? How did you manage that?” I asked thinking about my mother.
She was in my apartment before I’d even seen it. She was so