CHAPTER 68

“Luca”

“Sharon, I can't help you if I don't know what's wrong”

“It's— complicated”

A tear slipped down Sharon's cheek, and she quickly wiped it away.

“Screw it then”

“What?”

“Whenever you're ready to talk about it, I'll be ready to listen

For now, I really don't want to see you sad”

“Um well, thanks for understanding”

Sharon found it difficult to comprehend how quickly he went from cold and unapproachable to warm and romantic

“Get on my back”

“What?”

“Do you need me to repeat myself?”

I don't understand, it's such a cringe thing to do, I'm not a baby

“No, you're my baby”

Luca moved closer to whisper in her ear, his lips slowly brushed her as he spoke

“And right now, I need you to do exactly as I say”

Sharon felt goosebumps on her skin. He sounded so authoritative, yet he was sweet. It scared her, Sharon wanted to follow all his orders on impulse, like it was embedded in her DNA

Luca turned his back to her, and lowered himself slightly. She hopped on him with ease, and he secured her feet at his sides with his arms

“We're going on an little hike up that hill”

“Okay”

“I want us to have an open and honest conversation on the way—”

“You sound so bossy”

Sharon whispered

“But what if I decide not to play along?”

Sharon felt Luca's palm make contact with her lower back

“That happens”

“Ugh, you're insufferable”

Luca paused for a moment, and his tone grew serious

“If you get uncomfortable, just yell ‘red’”

“I don't understand”

Think of it as a safe word, so I know when to stop—

It was like he knew her enough to understand that he needed to be patient with her

“Okay”

“Are you scared of me Sharon?”

“Yes”

She muttered almost inaudibly

“Why?”

“Well for starters you're 6’5, plus you seem to intimidate me without even trying. Sometimes you're sweet, and sometimes I don't know you. So it's really difficult to trust you—”

“Is that so?”

“Don't take it the wrong way, I'm sorry if—”

“Ugh!”

“Luca! You can't just spank me at will, it's weird “

“You're not going to apologize for being honest”

Fine, whatever

“About that night—”

“I'm sorry”

They said at the same time

“I've lost count of how many times we've ended up in the same bed, so I guess it's normal now”

Sharon said sheepishly

“I wasn't talking about last night Sharon”

He came to a stop

“I was talking about the night we met”

****************

“We haven't talked about it”

“Listen we were drunk Luca, we had no idea what we were doing”

He lowered her feet on the grass slowly, and turned around so he could face her

“Was that your first time?”

“I’d rather not answer that”

“We agreed we would have an honest conversation”

“Red!”

You said that was my safe word, that I could call it whenever I got uncomfortable.

She turned around, and wrapped her arms around herself

“I'm uncomfortable”

The wind blew, and once again she was cold.

Luca was supposed to leave her be, respect her boundaries—

But he had been doing that, and they weren't making progress

“Let me go Luca”

Sharon protested as he encircled his arms around her. His grip was firm, and she wasn't getting out until he decided release her.

She pushed him, kicked, screamed like a little girl—

But Luca didn't let her go

Sharon eventually fell silent, and the only thing that could be heard, was the sound of her laboured breaths

“Lay with me on the grass”

Luca didn't wait for her to comply, or defy him. He dragged her down with himself, so she lay face down on his body.

He placed his left hand on her back, to secure her in case she attempted an escape

With his right hand, he arranged the loose strands of hair that covered her face

“You're cute when you misbehave”

A small smile played on his face

“You avoid every difficult question, you cry when you don't get what you want, you try to run away when you're scared—

“You're making it extremely difficult for me to spoil you the way I want to”

He used his index finger to stroke her chin

“Yes”

Sharon said

“It was my first time”

Luca's expression grew dark.

“I'm sorry Sharon”

“For what?”

“For everything”

“You don't have to be, I mean I regretted it but—

Now that I think about it, I'm glad it wasn't some weirdo. It's not everyday you get to meet Luca Pavilochenki”

“Still, if I held you like this that morning, maybe things could've ended differently—”

“That's why we're in Italy right? To change all of that”

“I guess”

“Are you going to kiss me now, or are we going to pretend like kids who—

Luca's lips covered hers possessively. His tongue teased the opening of her lips, till she gave him entry, his grip on her back tightened

Sharon fisted his hair with both hands, as she tried to gain momentum

She felt her back hit the grass, Luca's figure hovered over hers, and she felt him slowly lower himself until her while supporting his weight with his elbow.

He trailed kisses on her neck, giving her ample time to catch her breath. A moan escaped her lips. He fisted the fabric of her skirt, and slowly ran his hand up her thigh , as his tongue caressed her clavicle

His eyes darted towards her face, and he searched in her eyes for traces of discomfort, or uncertainty

“Red?”

Sharon breathed hard and fast, and her slight hesitation at answering him was all he needed—

To let go of her

He placed a light kiss on her lips, and slowly lifted her from the grass. He smoothed out her clothes and fixed her hair

“It's getting late, we better get going”

Sharon tried her best to hide her dissatisfaction, but she knew within herself, that she didn't want him to stop

“Can I hop on your back again?”

“Gosh, I thought you'd never ask—”