“Tomorrow we’ll try to wean him so he’ll survive on his own. For now I’m going to take him downstairs. He’ll be warm enough down there.” Stefano wanted Lanza’s complete attention and the fox needed to be on his own. “I’ll be right back.”
In a few minutes he’d returned. “I want a rematch of Scopa to repair the dent to my ego.”
This time she made a sound of protest. “You don’t fool me. I bet you let me win.”
“I swear I didn’t! Don’t you trust me?”
Her eyes fused with his. “Of course I do.”
His heart thundered in his chest. “I’m glad. Your turn first.”
They played a long match. “You won, Stefano.”
“It was a hard-fought battle. Now I want to claim my prize.” She’d been lying on her stomach to play. Before giving her any time to think, he lay down next to her and rolled her into him. “I’ve been waiting to do this all night.”
So saying, he lowered his mouth to kiss her the way he’d been dreaming about since that chaste kiss at the altar. She had a mouth to die for and he couldn’t get enough of her. He was feverish with longing, loving the feel of her body and her response that was giving him a heart attack.
“Lanza—” He was breathless with desire. “You have no idea how delightful you are.” In the next breath he tangled his legs with hers and pulled her on top of him. It was heaven to plunge his fingers into her fabulous long hair and kiss the daylights out of her.
“Stefano...” she murmured.
“I’m going too fast, aren’t I, bellissima?” The hardest thing he’d ever had to do was stop making love to her. But she wasn’t quite ready, so he moved her off him gently, allowing her to get to her feet before he did. His wife swayed a little and looked thoroughly kissed.
With her eyes glazed over she said, “Dormi bene, Stefano.”
In a flash, she disappeared from the room, leaving him bereft. Being alone with Lanza had set off a fire that brought him alive in a whole new way. He hadn’t been ready to call it a night. Far from it. They’d actually been communicating on a level he hadn’t expected to happen this soon.
> He gathered the scattered cards and put them away, but his body was trembling. Once he’d folded the blanket and put it on a chair, he turned down the fire.
Letting out a tormented sound, he headed for his bedroom, knowing he wouldn’t be able to sleep for a long time. Thank goodness he could get on his computer, but she had nothing. It made him feel guilty.
He paused outside her door. Of course there was no sound. On a whim, he knocked on it.
“Lanza? Would you like my radio to listen to? I have plenty of batteries.”
After ten seconds he heard, “You’re sure you don’t want it?”
She needed help going to sleep, too. “I’m positive. Give me a minute and I’ll put it by your door.”
“Thank you. Sogni d’oro, Stefano.”
“Sweet dreams to you, too, sposa mia.”
He hurried into his room and brought the transistor radio to her door. He knocked once more. “It’s here. Enjoy.” After putting it down, he went back to his room and shut the door.
After getting ready for bed in a fresh pair of sweats, he sat down to a new batch of emails. Enzo had sent another update a few minutes ago, but nothing had changed in terms of the mountain road being cleared. Among the messages was one that came from the Casale Mining Company near Zacatecas, Mexico.
He hadn’t been there for four months and wouldn’t be going again for another four or five. The message was sent from Alicia Montoya, the only woman he’d been intimate with for a short time in the past three years. She worked in the main office, but he hadn’t given her a thought in all this time.
Stefano let out a small groan. From the moment he’d learned she had a husband and hadn’t told him, he’d stopped seeing her because he had no desire to get involved with a married woman.
He found out she and her husband lived apart, but they couldn’t divorce because of religious reasons. Stefano understood her pain, but the revelation had changed the situation for him. Unfortunately, she had access to the files in the office.
Stefano, I have to see you. We must talk. I’ve been confiding in my priest. He thinks a divorce might be possible because I’ve lived apart from Julio for over a year with no hope of reconciliation. Answer me back and tell me you still want to be with me. I can’t bear this separation from you any longer. Alicia.
He rubbed the back of his neck while he gathered his thoughts. There’d been a time when he’d enjoyed Alicia’s company. But even if he hadn’t gotten married and Alicia was now divorced, Stefano knew it had never been an affair of the heart and wouldn’t endure.
The fact that she hadn’t told him she was still married caused his feelings to undergo a complete change. It wasn’t difficult for him to compose his answer.