Chapter 10

"Lizzie."

I stirred, shifting in the car seat and pulling Alessandro's jacket up to my neck. It smelled just like him. I felt the gentle stroke of his finger on my cheek and my eyes fluttered open to glance up into two pools of blue. There was tenderness in his gaze as he regarded me with a gentle smile.

"Bella, just one more place. I promise."

I offered him a lazy smile and stretched, feeling the tug of the seatbelt as I tried to sit up. "What time is it?"

"About 10pm," he rasped. "Bring my jacket, you may need it. It's a little chilly up here."

Up here was back in the mountains, only one street over from where my flat resided. Echo point. This time of the night the Blue Mountains' most famous lookout was ghostly quiet. Gone were the busses and the tourists, the snapping of cameras and the bustling of people fighting at the rail to get a look at the view. It was just me and Alessandro. He took my hand as we wandered down the winding walkway toward the Three Sisters viewing platform. We were surrounded by darkness on this moonless night but the sisters themselves were lit up by spotlights, drawing our eyes to the tall rocky pillars that resembled three women frozen in time. Meehni, Wimlah and Gunnedoo. Then beyond them a black valley that seemed as endless and vast as the dark sky above us. Somewhere on the horizon loomed the deep shadow of Mount Solitary. A thunder cloud rolled over top of it spitting lightning bolts like someone had angered the mountain gods. Too far away for us to hear the thunder with the exception of the occasional faint rumble, we were made privy to the pretty, impromptu lightshow without running the risk of getting caught up in it. This time of the year, as the weather was changing from cold to hot, thunderstorms were a common occurrence especially in the afternoons and evenings. They would roll in over the mountain tops and more often than not, disintegrate before hitting Katoomba. This storm would possibly prove to be no exception.

"I'm impressed." I smiled up at Alessandro after we had been gazing at the storm a while. "You even have the power to summon lightning. Maybe I should be calling you Jupiter."

He smirked. He stood so close that we were virtually touching. "Only if I can call you Juno."

Smooth.

"You do realise they were brother and sister right?" I said with a wink. "As well as lovers."

Alessandro went to speak but then his mouth snapped shut, stumped. A frown crossed his brow as he pondered on this. "Incest was popular among Roman gods."

"Yeah." I cringed. "I guess gods can get away with that sort of thing unlike we mortals."

"Well I, for one, am glad that you are not my sister." His grin turned almost devilish as he leaned against the lookout rail, his body pivoting to face me instead of the view. "It makes kissing you a lot less awkward."

How in the world could one sentence make my pulse race? Or was it more the way he was looking at me? I swallowed down that familiar pit of need churning in my stomach and other places, and shrunk a little in his jacket as though it would somehow protect me from what we both knew was coming next. We'd been aware of it all day – this undercurrent that buzzed in the air between us. Accidental (and not so accidental) touches, lingering glances, the way we always seemed to just hover in each other's orbit.

"And Jupiter and Juno were married. Not just lovers. But I suspect you already know that," he said, his mouth lifting into a sensual smile, eyes roving about my face before eventually landing on my lips. His hands reached for my hip and he gave me a gentle tug, drawing me closer so that the only view I could see was him. His body heat thrummed through his fingers that gripped my jeans, only adding fuel to the fire that was already burning in my belly.

"Curse you Alessandro and your darn Italian charm." My voice caught in my throat, I could only manage a whisper.

He smirked, not in the least bit interested in denying it. "I can't help it. It's in my blood."

The first of several raindrops hit me right in the eye.

"Ow!" I recoiled. It didn't exactly hurt, per se, it was just a shock.

Thunder suddenly boomed overhead as more fat drops of rain spattered across the ground around us, showing no mercy for we who found ourselves caught up in it. I gave a shriek and Alessandro lifted his head and barked an ironic laugh into the storm. A snap of lightning streaked across the sky above our heads and it seemed the mountain god's were turning their anger on us. Alessandro grabbed my hand and we made a bolt for the car, laughing and squealing at the icy rain that drenched us and froze us to the core.

"My flat!" I yelled at him through another thunderclap just as he reached for the keys. "If we get in the car like this we'll ruin it! My flat is only over there. I left a few essentials like towels in the kitchen. Come on!" I tugged at his hand, not giving him the chance to object.

We bolted back up the hill, toward the start of Katoomba street where my building sat tucked away in darkness. Then fumbling with the front door, we exploded inside breathless and panting. The smell of fresh paint assaulted our nostrils, wet shoes skidding across freshly laid kitchen lino. I didn't even get the chance to reach for the light before Alessandro's hands were back around my waist, this time yanking me into him with the desperation of a man starved. Body slammed into body and he captured my face with his hands before he crashed a kiss into my mouth with such force that stars exploded across my vision. I returned the kiss with equal vigour, hungry. Frantic. The low moan rolled its way up from his chest but was cut off as I pushed my tongue into his mouth. My fingers clawed at his shirt, desperate to get this drenched vice off of him so I could touch him. So I could run my hands across his chest and shoulders. Feel his masculinity. I didn't even realise that we were moving across the room until my back slammed into the empty wall where my fridge used to be. Was the paint still wet? I had no idea. Nor did I care. There was only one thing on my mind right then. I was desperate to get naked.

Jacket discarded, Alessandro was already tugging at my wet peplum, stopping the kiss only to yank it over my head and discard it to the floor behind him. He plunged his tongue back into my mouth so deep it sent a jolt of heat straight to my groin. Seconds later and my bra had gone the way of the peplum. I suppressed the gasp as his hand found my breast; my nipples were so hard it hurt. Then before I knew it, his hands were gone. Instead they were on my butt, pressing my body into his erection and spinning us around so that we faced the kitchen again. I hit the counter and in one smooth motion he hoisted me off my feet and lifted me onto the empty bench. I wrapped my legs around his hips, groin rubbing on rock hard groin, evoking a moan so loud from my lover it rivalled the thunder outside. His mouth found my nipple and my head flung back at the sensation of his tongue that ran circles around it. My fingers clawed through his thick, drenched hair, the mixed scent of him and the rain sending my head spinning into this foggy delirium.

"Alessandro." A moan rolled its way up my throat. "Oh god, I need you."

His head came up to meet me, eyes searching my face in this darkness. His hand wrapped around the back of my head and he pulled me in for another kiss.

"Lizzie," he rasped. I sensed the pain in his voice. "I... hadn't planned for this. I don't have protection."

A groan this time. Whyyyy? My head fell back into his hand that still gripped it. I swallowed. "What are the chances..?"

"As badly as I want you right now," he said. "I'm just not willing to take that risk."

Of course not. Why did he still have to have his head about him? Why did he have to be the one still in control? Because he had a billion dollar empire to protect, that's why.

Someone whimpered. I think it was me. "Oh god, Alessandro, what are you doing to me?"

His breath was so haggard on my face, fingers touching me that twitched with burning need left unfulfilled. He fiddled with the buttons to my jeans and before I knew it he'd popped them open and slipped his hand inside. I gasped as I felt the pressure of his fingers that weaved around my undies and touched me down there. I was so slick that I actually blushed.

"Alessandro, what are you doing?... oh..." My eyes fluttered. I wasn't sure if I wanted to faint or start crying from the rooftops. His fingers... they were amazing.

"I can't leave my lady unfulfilled," his whisper was coarse against my ear, sending more heat pulsing down there until I was a molten volcano ready to explode.

"What about you?" I rasped.

He grunted at this. "Let me worry about me."

The urge to grind on him was so strong that I couldn't resist it. My hips started to move as best they could in my spot on the counter.

But then I stopped.

"No," I said. "Alessandro, no." God, it took every ounce of my strength to say that stupid word. Especially as every part of my being was screaming Yes! Yes! Yes!

Alessandro stilled. "Am I hurt..."

"No," I said. "You're not hurting me."

I reached for his wrist and gently pulled his hand out of my pants. "I want you more than I've wanted anyone ever before. But..." I exhaled, willing my body temperature down and the pulsing in my groin to stop. "Not like this. I respect you too much for this. I can't degrade our friendship with a quick fingering in the dark."

"What makes you think it's degrading?" He asked. There was genuine curiosity in his voice. He toyed with a strand of my hair (using the hand that hadn't just been imbedded in my vagina). "What makes you think it's just a friendship I'm striving for?"

I smirked. It was still pitch black and I had no idea of the expression on his face. "Alessandro..."

He stopped me with a kiss. "Lizzie, listen. While I don't fully understand what this is between us, what I can tell you is that we can't seem to be able to keep our hands off each other. No matter how hard we try. And I have tried. You must believe me."

"I believe you," I said, then chuckled. "You ran all the way to London just to get away from me."

Alessandro copied my chuckle. "That I did. And yet here we are."

"So what now?"

"Now?" Alessandro exhaled, his voice moved about the kitchen, indicating that he had turned his head away. "Well the storm has passed by the sounds of it. I'm guessing it's almost midnight and tomorrow is Monday. How about we call it a night and reassess tomorrow when we're not half naked in each other's arms?"

I nodded though he wouldn't have seen it anyway. "Sounds like a plan."

This didn't change the fact that I was still going to be a hot mess for the rest of the night. Alessandro pulled away from the bench and reached for our clothes on the floor.

"I'll bring the car around while you get yourself organised. Meet me at the front of your building."