Page 23 of Duty and Desire

Chapter Twenty-One

Gio

I loved waking to find that although we’d fallen asleep separated, Nick was in my arms, as though he’d sought me in sleep. I closed my eyes, relishing the feel of his warm skin pressed to mine, his tousled fragrant hair occasionally tickling my nose, the smell of him filling my senses.

A moment later, it hit me.

Giovanni Francesco Colonna, you are happy.

There was no getting away from it, not that I wanted to.

Nick stirred, moving against me. And then of course something else stirred, the way it always did every morning. He rolled over to face me, his lips on my neck, and I shivered.

“Good morning. Is it time for breakfast yet?” he murmured.

I chuckled. “Still too early for that.”

Bright eyes focused on me, more alert. “Good.”

And before I could get another word out, he disappeared beneath the white sheet .

I threw it off, smiling. “Oh no you don’t. Watching is half the fun.”

Whatever else I’d intended saying was forgotten a heartbeat later.

I moaned. “ Someone ’s hungry this morning.”

The sight of his face between my thighs never failed to send heat rushing through me. Nick grinned. “You could always join me. Aren’t two mouths better than one?”

I shuffled down the bed. “Remind me to write that down.”

Nick

By the time I’d set up the second pot of coffee, Aulani arrived. I greeted her with a smile.

She beamed. “Good morning, handsome.” She glanced at the kitchen, then the living room. “You know, you make a real difference around here.”

I chuckled. “Gio says I keep his inner slob in check.” I’d always been a neat person. It had begun in my childhood when I discovered tidying my bedroom kept me out of people’s way—and provided one thing my father couldn’t find fault with.

Except that hadn’t worked. He’d frowned upon it, complaining that he employed servants to do those kind of tasks, and that I had better ways of occupying my time.

It didn’t matter what I did. I don’t think I found myself in his good books once.

Aulani snorted. “The problem was it didn’t stay inner.” She nodded toward the veranda where Gio was working, his back to us. “How is the writing going?”

I smiled. “It’s going well. I think he wrote seven thousand words yesterday.”

Her eyes widened. “That sounds like a lot. Not if he’s writing the same word seven thousand times, of course. ”

“Or if he’s writing the same phrase over and over, like in that movie, The Shining .” I gave an exaggerated shiver. “All work and no play makes Gio a dull boy.”

Aulani let out a very unladylike snort, then blushed. “I wouldn’t know about that. I think you two get all your playing done before I arrive.”

I knew my blush matched hers—my cheeks felt as if they were on fire.

She cocked her head to one side. “Is Gio happy with his writing?”

“He thinks it’s going to be amazing.” The coffee pot beeped, and I grabbed two cups. “Would you like one?”

Her face lit up. “That would be lovely.” She let out a contented sigh. “This is my favorite job—and not because you don’t make a lot of mess. It’s because I get to be around you two.”

I chuckled as I filled the cups. “Are we so entertaining?”

Aulani studied me for a moment, then reached into the enormous canvas bag that was always with her. She drew out her phone, and scrolled. Then she held it up for me to see.

I was looking at a photo of two women, one with a little girl on her knee, the other holding a baby wrapped in a pale blue blanket.

“This is my daughter Manutea and her wife Teva. I took this when my grandson Tamahere was born.”

I couldn’t help beaming at her. I gave Aulani a tight hug, and she patted my back.

“I thought you said you were making coffee,” Gio called out. “And I’m hungry,” he added with a cute whine.

“You’re always hungry when you’re writing.

I’ll bring you something. And the coffee’s coming.

” I met Aulani’s amused gaze and rolled my eyes before taking Gio his cup.

I placed it on the table at a safe distance from his laptop—something I’d learned early on—then bent down to wrap my arms around him, my chin resting on his shoulder.

Gio turned his face toward mine, and we kissed, a warm, fleeting connection. “Do you know what today is?”

“Saturday.”

He laughed. “Apart from being a Saturday. We met six weeks ago today.”

I was shocked into silence. Only six weeks? It felt like months had passed.

How little time one needs to fall in love.

A loud cough snapped me out of my musing.

“I’m going to leave you to it.” Aulani waved her cup. “I’ve washed it. See you on Monday.”

We waved at her, and as soon as the gate clicked shut, Gio bounced to his feet, picked me up in his arms, and carried me into the bungalow.

“Do you want to share your plan?” I teased.

He kissed my neck. “I’ve just finished a chapter, and I’ve decided to take a break.”

I wrapped my legs around him, hooking my ankles, my arms locked around his nape. “So I’m taking a break too?”

“Any objections?” Gio pushed the bedroom door open. “Or would you rather I carried out my wicked plan on the veranda table?”

“That wouldn’t be my first choice.” And then all the air whooshed from my lungs when Gio dropped me onto the bed. I laughed, but a heartbeat later I moaned when feverish fingers removed my shorts. I stared at him, my pulse racing.

“I’m all yours.”

And I was—heart, body, and soul.

Gio

The ceiling fan’s soft whirring was a comforting sound as we lay in bed, Nick’s head on my chest, a habit of his I’d grown to love. He pressed his ear to my chest, as though he was listening to the beat of my heart .

“I did a little calculation this morning,” I murmured. “I have just over ten weeks left until I have to leave.”

Nick craned his neck to peer at me. “Could you finish the book in that time?”

“The first draft, maybe.”

“Then what happens?”

“Usually, I put it aside for a while, then come back to it. I re-read it, I hone it, polish it, delete bits, add bits…” My sigh stirred his hair. “But the last time didn’t work out that way.”

Nick sat up. “Why? What happened?”

I pointed to the bedroom door. “It’s still sitting in a folder on my laptop. I haven’t so much as glanced at it since the day I finished it. And to be honest, I’m not sure it is finished. I think I simply ran out of steam.”

He said nothing for a moment, his brow lined with a faint furrow.

“What’s on your mind?” I stroked his thighs, reaching higher to rub his stomach.

“Could I read it?”

I stared at him. “You don’t understand. No one has seen it, not even my publisher.”

Nick resumed his original position, snuggling up to me. “Then forget I asked.”

The soft whirr of the ceiling fan became the only noise in the room, but outside I caught the hum of boats out on the lagoon, and the faint drone of a plane, the gentle lapping of water around the stilts the bungalow sat on.

There was another noise, the low voice in my head that became more and more insistent.

You say he’s your muse. Why shouldn’t he read it? Don’t you want to know if it’s salvageable? Publishable?

Damn it, I did.

I threw back the sheets. “I think I’d better make us something for dinner.

My ‘break’ lasted a whole lot longer than I planned.

” I strolled naked into the living room, then when I was sure no one was in sight, I went outside to grab my laptop.

I brought it to the dining table, picked up my messenger bag, and rooted around in it until I found what I was looking for.

By the time Nick walked out of the bedroom, equally naked, I handed him my iPad. “Here.”

He frowned as if he didn’t recognize it.

“I’ve copied the first draft onto it.” His lips parted, and that catch in his breathing was delightful. I smiled. “It’s okay. I want you to read it. But do you think you can wait until after dinner?”

He took it from me, his eyes filled with light, his radiant smile sending warmth coursing through me. “Thank you.” He grinned. “How about you let me deal with dinner? While you write a little, to make up for some of the time you spent with me?”

I enveloped him in my arms. “Any time I spend with you? That’s time well-spent.

” I kissed the tip of his nose, and he pressed his body to mine, rolling his hips, a gentle undulation that conjured up all sorts of delicious ideas.

All of a sudden my nostrils were filled with his warm scent, and writing was the last thing on my mind.

I gave a low growl. “You are temptation incarnate, do you know that?”

He grinned. “I do my best.” And with that, he turned and headed to the kitchen, hips swaying.

Poetry in motion . Words from long ago that nailed the sight.

I picked up the laptop and headed out onto the veranda.

Another fantastic day, and there were so many more to come.

Then I reminded myself that my happiness had an expiry date. Ten more weeks, and this idyllic existence would come to an end.

And what then?

I couldn’t contemplate that, not when my head was full of my work in progress.

There’s time enough to think about such things.

I didn’t know what had awoken me. Beyond the patio doors was nothing but inky blackness.

And beside me was a cool spot where Nick had lain.

I got out of bed and went into the living room. Nick sat in the dark under a blanket on the couch, his face glowing ghostly white, reflecting the iPad’s lit screen.

I reached over to switch the lamp on, bathing the room in a warm amber light. “Hey.”

Nick jumped a little. “I didn’t hear you, I was so engrossed.” He held up the iPad. “You need to finish this. Hone it. Polish it. All those things you usually do.”

My heart indulged in a happy dance. “You like it?”

Nick regarded me with such a serious expression that my stomach roiled. “No, I don’t like it—I love it. I love what you do with words. I’m not even at the end and it’s captivated me.”

“So you’re saying it’s perfect?”

I was torn between loving his reaction and knowing this wasn’t what I wanted to hear. I didn’t want my ego massaged.

I wanted to know what I could do to make it better.

Nick arched his eyebrows. “Did I say that? I did not. There are areas that need work, even I can see that, and you really need to do something with Kate, because I want to smack her so hard.”

I laughed. “She’s supposed to be annoying.”

“Okay, but not to the point that I want to kill her. And she detracts attention away from the main character.”

I stared at him. “Would you make notes for me?”

“If that’s what you want, then of course.” He reached toward the coffee table to where my pen lay next to my notebook.

I laughed and grabbed his hand. “Not now. Right now is the time for cuddling and kissing, and falling asleep.”

Nick switched off the iPad with a dramatic sigh. “If you say so.”

“It will still be there in the morning.” Another day of writing.

Except I didn’t want my days to get into a routine. It had been weeks since Nick had taken me out to gaze at the stars .

It was my turn to come up with something equally romantic.

We walked back into the bedroom and climbed between the sheets. I spooned around him, kissing his neck and smooth shoulder, loving the murmurs of appreciation that fell from his lips as he slipped away from me, his breathing becoming more even.

I didn’t fall asleep, but lay there, considering my options.

It was high time I took Nick on a date, and I knew the perfect location.