The Italian’s Passionate Return
By Elizabeth Lennox
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Copyright 2014
ISBN13: 9781940134758
All rights reserved
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental. Any duplication of this material, either electronic or any other format, either currently in use or a future invention, is strictly prohibited unless you have the direct consent of the author.
If you download this material in any format, either electronic or other, on a non-sanctioned site, please be warned that you and the website are in violation of copyright infringement. Financial and punitive damages may be pursued in whichever legal venue is appropriate.
“You’re not supposed to be here,” a small voice stated firmly.
Damien Alfieri looked around, seeing only the momma dog and a stall filled with what looked like a hundred puppies. Of course, it was probably only five or six fur-balls, but they were wiggling continuously and looked like a lot more.
When he spotted the black haired boy with brown eyes staring back at him, Damien was startled. There was something about the boy that caught and held his gaze, but he couldn’t quite figure out what was so…interesting about the boy.
“I apologize if I’m intruding on your solitude, young man,” he said, bowing formally but with humor in his eyes. The boy was holding – or trying to hold – two additional puppies. They were both licking the boy’s face, but they were wagging their little tails so hard they were about to fall out of his arms.
“What’s solitude?” the boy asked, his eyes changing from suspicious to curious as his mind tried to process the new word. Then he realized what he was doing and shook his head. “Doesn’t matter. You’re not supposed to be in here.” He looked behind Damien worriedly.
Damien instantly knew what was going through the boy’s mind. “Do your parents know that you’re out here?” he asked gently, but with an unspoken reprimand in his tone. He didn’t understand why he had included the scolding – he usually left children to their governesses or parents. He rarely had time to interact with children, especially one this young. He appeared to be six or seven, possibly eight years old with intelligent eyes and black, curly hair that was in desperate need of a trim.
“Dylan!” a feminine voice called from outside the barn. “Time for breakfast.”
The boy gripped one of the puppies closer, obviously not wanting to relinquish his treasure but unable to ignore the summons. “I gotta go,” he said with resignation and put the puppy down gently near his momma. “So do you,” he said and raced to the stall’s doors, slipping underneath. When he was standing outside the doorway, he looked up at the extremely tall stranger, his eyebrows pulled down into a frown. “You gotta go too. My momma doesn’t want strangers in her barn. She says it isn’t good.”
With that, the little boy sprinted out the barn door, straight for the small house that sat at the end of the driveway.
Damien chuckled, liking the little fellow instantly. There was a bark and Damien turned around, remembering the puppies and the whole reason he’d come out to this small farm. A puppy. With a sigh, he looked down at the puppies, his eyes trying to determine which his niece would like the most. Probably the cutest, but Damien was more inclined to choose the least wiggly of the bunch.
“A phone call, sir,” his driver said. Damien looked up from the puppies, irritated that business couldn’t wait for another ten minutes while he selected a puppy from the brood. But business rarely waited. It was normally what he liked about his work, but today, he wanted some time. He’d never slowed down before, preferring to move quickly and efficiently as he did his business around the world. But being here in the soft, rolling hills of central Virginia, he could see the attraction of a slower, easier lifestyle.
Inside the house, Dylan climbed up onto his stool and grabbed his spoon before taking a big bite of his oatmeal. “Guy in the barn,” he said. “Oh, and Andy’s birthday party is this weekend. I can go, right?”
Jemma put the last dish in the drying rack and sighed, wondering how she could scrape up enough money for a birthday present. If only Dylan weren’t so popular! The kid was charming and funny as well as frighteningly intelligent. But couldn’t he skip just a few of the birthday parties he was invited to? This would be the third one this month! There were only twenty-five kids in his class. How many of them knew her son well enough to really want him at their birthday party?
And then his first comment struck her. “A guy in the barn?” she asked, trying to clarify. “What do you mean?”
Dylan swallowed around the scoop of oatmeal, knowing he wasn’t allowed to talk with his mouth full. His mom was weird about things like that. “Yeah. Some guy. I think he wants one of the puppies.”
Jemma perked up at that news. Selling one of the puppies would be wonderful! They were pure-bred yellow labs. The proceeds from just one would allow her to buy groceries for the whole month.
“You stay and eat your breakfast,” she told him sternly, wiping her hands on the threadbare dishtowel. “I’ll go see what this guy wants.”
Dylan almost rolled his eyes, but he was too hungry to put much effort into the expression. “I told you, he wants to buy one of Momma Dog’s puppies.” He looked up at her when she had one hand on the doorknob. “You’re not going to, are you?” he asked, his eyes instantly displaying concern.
Jemma sighed, the weight of her son’s worry on her shoulders. “We talked about this, remember? I know you love Momma Dog’s puppies, but they need to find their own homes.”
Dylan’s food was forgotten as his worry over losing one of his playmates surfaced. “Yeah, but that was last week. No one came to buy a puppy, so I thought…”
Jemma’s heart ached for her young son. “Dylan, just because no one has come to buy them yet, doesn’t mean they all don’t need a good home. You can’t take care of six puppies plus Momma Dog and all of your other chores.”
His face took on a disgruntled expression as he thought through the options. “I could forget some of my other chores!” he exclaimed. “That would give me more time to take care of the puppies.”
Jemma almost laughed out loud at his excited expression. But she somehow found the strength to hold back. “I don’t think so, young man. Eat your breakfast,” she told him and opened the door. “I’ll be back in a moment.”
Jemma walked out of the house and headed towards the barn. She looked towards the front and saw the long, black limousine. Nervous, she hurried her pace. It wasn’t the luxury of the vehicle that caused her heart to start beating frantically. Her reputation as a horse and dog breeder had people from Washington, D.C., Richmond, and as far away as North Carolina and Ohio coming to her farm to buy horses or puppies. The animals loved her farm, enjoying the freedom of the outdoors and the wide, open spaces where they could run around and bark to their heart’s content. But there was something about this limousine that hurried her footsteps towards the barn, she looked back at the house to ensure that Dylan was out of sight.
She tried to compose herself before entering the barn. Her thoughts were crazy. There was no way the man waiting for her was….
Jemma stepped into the darker barn area and stopped cold. The tall, dangerous looking man standing there in front of the stall filled with Momma Dog and her puppies once again took her breath away. She couldn’t believe he was here, standing in her barn and looking….well, more dangerous! How had he found her? Why was he here? Goodness, he looked marvelous! She tried breathing, tried taking deep breaths to regain her equilibrium, but it was hard. Memories of that one night came back to her, haunting her, causing her whole body to tense with anticipation of what he could do to her, what he could make her body feel. It wasn’t possible, she told herself. There was no way this man, this one man who had so completely turned her world around, could be here, standing in her barn not ten feet from her.
And then he turned around. As soon as her gaze collided with his, her knees went weak and her pulse raced. It wasn’t possible! Not this man! Not here! Not after all these years! No!
“Go away!” she almost yelled and spun on her heel, racing out the door again. She was torn between many emotions – fighting both tears and the urge to race towards him with her fingernails bared. She wanted to claw at his face, to hurt him so deeply, just as he’d done to her. But there was a part of her that wanted to throw herself into his arms, to feel that incredible strength surround her. To have him create that shocking, mind-blowing magic when he touched her, when he kissed her. And damn him! She also wanted him to do all those crazy, sensuous, pleasure-inducing things to her that they’d done together that one night.
No man, either before or after him, had possessed the power to drive her so out of control. No man had brought her to the brink of heaven, only to carry her over into screaming, passionate climax and then coax her to gently float down into blissful pleasure like he had. She resented him for that. Because ever since that night, she’d never found another man with whom she could experience such incredible bliss. He’d both spoiled her for other men and scared her to even try looking.
Because that one night had resulted in Dylan’s conception. And although she’d never regret having that precious boy in her life, this man had changed the course of her destiny. Even as she looked at him how, she instinctively knew that he could do it again.
She’d almost made it through the doorway when a grip like a steel band wrapped around her arm, hauling her back. “Jemma?” he asked, taking her other arm, effortlessly holding her in place even as she struggled to get away from him. “Is it really you?”
No matter how hard she yanked against his hands, she couldn’t break his hold. He was too strong and too dangerous. She was shivering when she finally stopped. She wouldn’t look up at him though. She simply stood there with his hands still gripping her upper arms, furious with him and scared at the same time.
“It
is
you!” Damien looked down at the woman who had haunted his dreams for years. Even now, he occasionally thought about her, dreamed about her. He’d gotten his security team to try and find her, but since he hadn’t gotten her last name, they hadn’t had much to go on. But he’d never forgotten her.
They’d met at a night club, their eyes drawn to each other. She’d been twenty years old and one of the most beautiful women he’d ever seen. He’d been twenty-eight and reckless, wanting to live life hard and fast, both personally and professionally. On the personal side, he was a frequent member of the club scene. On the professional side, he was buying up every company that would fit within his mad scheme to build an empire for himself.
In a remarkably short time, the empire had come through hard work, merciless hours and what some called dangerous risks but what he knew were all calculated maneuvers. His one regret was not getting this woman’s last name that night.
“Where have you been all these years?” he demanded, moving closer to her. He loved the smell of her, the way she moved. She was like music when she walked and a symphony when she danced. Of course, he’d only had those few dances with her, but he didn’t care. He’d compared every lover since against this one woman and they’d all come up lacking.
“It doesn’t matter where I’ve been,” she almost growled. “Let go of me and get off my farm!” She yanked again, glaring up at him but she couldn’t hide the shivering at his touch. She was furious with herself for feeling anything other than anger towards this man. Oh, the anger was definitely there. Hurt, anger, betrayal….and desire.
No! She did not feel lust! She didn’t feel anything but anger. Focusing on that emotion, she kicked his shin, hoping that would get her release.
Unfortunately, he was much more agile than she realized. He laughed softly down at her as he avoided her attempts to wound him, his eyes firing with that strange light she’d dreamed about over and over again. “I don’t remember you being this feisty,” he said, his voice deepening to a husky chuckle. “I think I like it.”
Damien moved closer, pinning her against the rough wood of the barn wall. As he held her hands, he caught the surprise in her eyes and almost laughed out loud with delight. “It’s still there, isn’t it?” he asked softly, releasing her wrists, letting his hands run up her arms and smiling when she shivered again. “It hasn’t abated at all, has it?”
Jemma tried to turn her head away so he couldn’t see the desire in her eyes. “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she said through gritted teeth. She tried not to let him heat up her body with his, pretending that she wasn’t affected by the way his hard, muscular body pressed against her softness. “I don’t want you. I don’t even like you,” which was the truth. Unfortunately, she was discovering that her mind didn’t need to like or respect a man to desire him.
“I need you to leave. I have responsibilities.” With those words, she remembered that Dylan needed to get to the bus stop. “I have to go,” she gasped and pushed against him with all her strength.
She suspected that it was more just surprise that caused him to step backwards, but she didn’t care. Jemma rushed out of the barn, heading for Dylan. She needed to put as much distance between Dylan and this man as she could. She didn’t know Damien well. Okay, so she knew him intimately but she didn’t know his character. Six years ago, she hadn’t had the chance to catch her breath after meeting him. He’d literally swept her off of her feet. They’d spotted each other across the room at a club. And as soon as their eyes connected, she had been lost in the magnetic pull of his eyes and his body. As soon as they were close enough, he’d pulled her out onto the dance floor. They hadn’t even remembered to exchange names until after he’d kissed her.
She shook her head, pushing memories of Damien out of her mind. She’d been twenty years old and stupid, gullible and a virgin. He’d been twenty-eight, a man of the world and more experienced than she could handle. Their one night of passion had left her shaking from aftershocks.
And two weeks later, she realized that she was pregnant with no way to contact him.
Okay, so to be fair, not being able to contact him hadn’t been his fault. She’d left the following morning, walking out of his beautiful penthouse before he woke. She’d caught a cab and went home, shamed to her core that she’d done something so careless.
When she’d discovered her pregnancy, she hadn’t been able to find her way back to the man’s building. All of them looked the same! Concrete and glass buildings were common in the city, and she’d been so upset that morning, she hadn’t noticed any of the exterior details. Only the size and luxuriousness of the inside of his penthouse had left an impression.