Total pages in book: 55
Estimated words: 51166 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 256(@200wpm)___ 205(@250wpm)___ 171(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 51166 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 256(@200wpm)___ 205(@250wpm)___ 171(@300wpm)
“They are. Yes. That’s true.” It explains everything, and nothing. “But you never gave me even the slightest sign.”
His hand squeezes mine. “I have had to work very hard at hiding my feelings, Dani. This semester, I had hoped … but then you took another class with me.”
“Well, shit.” I blurt it out without thinking, and don’t have time to apologize before Matteo throws his head back and laughs, a deep, vibrant sound that I feel down to my toes.
My perceptions of him are rapidly evolving. He sure doesn’t seem very repressed right now. Did I only get that impression because he was fighting an attraction to me?
“I noticed you immediately when you first took my class, but I knew it was against the rules for me to express my interest. When you invited me to your friend’s home on Thanksgiving I knew that I wanted to date you … once our circumstances changed.”
With another squeeze of my hand, he says, “So you can understand that I was not best pleased to find you in an intimate embrace with my brother.”
I wince. “Shit. I’m sorry.”
“You have nothing to apologize for. As my brother has made certain to point out, the fault is mine for not making my intentions clear. And now I must compete for your attention.”
I gape at him. “You ... what?”
“Neither of us is willing to concede to the other. We both want you. If you want both of us, until such time as you choose one of us over the other, we would both like to date you.”
I’m too stunned to reply. He gives me his usual faint smile, but today I see something more in it, as if there are untold depths of wickedness hiding behind his mild-mannered exterior.
Finally, I find some words. “I, um. You … don’t mind? Either of you?”
His shrug feels somehow very Italian. “You are a modern woman; we are at least somewhat civilized men.” His smile widens just a bit, and the banked heat smoldering in his gaze is now very clear. “We do not mind a little friendly competition for such an exquisite prize.”
For my part, I’m more than a little dazed. Not only have I not ruined things forever with the two hottest men in the universe, but both of them want to date me? Maybe I’ve been jolted into an alternate timeline. Things like this don’t happen to me.
Matteo’s thumb brushes the skin on the back of my hand, and I melt under his touch.
“It hasn’t been easy, Daniela.” He leans in close, his breath warm on my cheek. “Seeing you in class, wanting you for so long.”
I don’t move for fear that I’ll wake from this dream. Matteo brushes his lips against my cheek, then he turns my head to his and suddenly he’s kissing me, his soft lips pressing gently to mine. His movements are tentative at first, until I start to respond, and he deepens the kiss.
“You taste as sweet as I always imagined.” I can hear the smile in his voice as his lips curve against mine.
As for him, he tastes delicious. Similar somehow to Fiero, but different, like two varieties of fine red wine. How is it real life that I’ve kissed these two beautiful men in the same day? And that they both intend to date me, with the plan that I will eventually choose one of them?
I don’t think too long about the surreality of it all because Matteo is kissing me again, bending over me, pressing me into the cushion behind me as he consumes my senses. The weight of his body, the heat of his skin beneath his thin sweater, the hungry dance of his mouth on mine – it’s all more than I ever imagined.
I’ve forgotten that anything else exists beyond my couch when he pulls back, his breathing verging on ragged. “I need to stop … while I can.”
Dating Matteo means breaking the rules. He’s my teacher and I’m his student. I’ve always been a good girl, but right now, I’m wanting him to teach me so much more than how to conjugate Italian verbs. Thank goodness one of us has willpower. If I had my way, I’d drag him into my bedroom and never let him leave.
Maybe he’s also holding back because of Fiero. I don’t know what exactly the two of them discussed or how this dating arrangement is going to work. I want to question him about it, but I can barely think straight with Matteo so near.
Again, as if he understands my inner turmoil, he stands. “I should go.”
Overwhelmed in so many ways, it takes a moment before I can stand up to retrieve his coat. He’s leaving too soon, and I want to protest, but his eyes tell me that there will be more intimate moments in our future.