The four of us made our way back to the lobby and the manager jumped to bring us our luggage.

“Syd, can I see your phone for a second?”

I was confused at why he would need it, but I handed Jack my phone without question.

He took it in his hand and turned it off. Then he reached into his pocket and took out his and handed them both to Tyler. “We won’t be needing these. Can you keep them in your suite with Syd’s luggage till we get back?”

I looked at Jack like he was crazy. “All of my clothes are in there,” I responded, as if he didn’t realize what might have been in my suitcase.

Jack turned to face me and looked into my eyes. “You won’t be needing any.” His eyes went from my eyes to my mouth and slowly back up again, making my stomach do a little flip-flop.

“Okay,” I whispered, and Jack gave me the sexy half smile that I loved.

Jack eyed the oversized shoulder bag that I was carrying. “What’s in your bag?”

“Makeup, iPod, wallet, birth control pills.” I emphasized the last part of my response.

“I would guess it would be harder to pry the iPod away from you than it was to get you to give up all of your clothes.” Jack smiled and raised his eyebrows in question.

I smiled back. For a man who had only known me for a few months, he knew me so well. “The iPod goes where I go.”

Sienna interrupted my debate with Jack, her question directed to Tyler. “And what are we doing?”

“Staying at Mr. Romantic’s hotel and seeing how high we can ring up the room bill that he’s going to comp us,” Tyler said, matter-of-factly.

Sienna giggled. “Works for me.”

Jack did the one-arm guy-hug thing to Tyler and I heard him say in a low voice. “Charge anything you want, man. Show her a good time, on me.” I adored that he wanted to take care of his friend and mine and not get credit for it.

***

I wasn’t sure what kind of car it was, but Jack had rented a beautiful convertible that was parked out front of the hotel waiting when we exited. He opened my door and I got in, catching him checking out my legs as I folded in. He smiled at me, not the slightest bit uncomfortable about being caught checking me out. Oddly enough, that quality was one of the things I found most intriguing about him when we had first met. He would blatantly look me up and down, admiring what he saw, and made no secret about doing it. On other men, I would probably have found it to be rude, but when Jack did it I thought it was the sexiest thing I had ever seen. I wasn’t sure why. Maybe it was that I was attracted to his confident and direct personality. Or maybe it was that he seemed to see what he wanted and made no mistake about staking his claim. Either way, I found it damn sexy.

We drove through the city of Rome for a while, slowly moving through traffic. Once when we were stopped at a light, I saw a beautiful young woman waiting to cross the street in front of where we were stopped. I caught her staring at Jack. I turned to see what she was looking at and the sight of his handsome tan face, windblown hair, and square jaw, caught me off guard. I really couldn’t blame the woman for staring; he was truly an amazing feast for the eyes. Jack caught me looking and smiled before leaning over and kissing me with a beautiful, soft, sensual kiss which made my heart melt and my breath catch. As the light changed, I saw the beautiful girl still staring with her mouth hanging open. She had missed the light.

We drove for a few hours and I never once asked where we were going or when we would be there. I really didn’t care. There was no place I’d rather be than where I was going, even though I had no idea where we were headed.

Eventually we turned off the highway and started to drive through what I knew had to be the Tuscany region. The hills in the distance soon fell upon us and we were transported to the middle of a beautiful postcard picture — rolling hills as far as the eye could see, a splatter of olive trees, and a skyline outlined by cypresses. Fields of wheat and sunflowers passed on one side while rustic stone farmhouses stood proudly on the other. I couldn’t take my eyes off of the beauty; it felt surreal, almost otherworldly.

“Wow. This feels like a dream,” I whispered to Jack, in awe of my surroundings.

“I know. It doesn’t seem real.”

“I’ve seen pictures of this, but it just doesn’t do it justice.” I stopped and considered. “Have you ever been here before?”

Jack squeezed my hand. “Once. I was ten or eleven. My father was in Rome on business, busy buying the hotel we were just at. My mom took me for a drive and we got lost. We wound up somewhere around here and I remember thinking I wish I could draw it, but they didn’t make crayon colors as good as this.”

I smiled, thinking of Jack as a little boy traveling with his mother. How adorable he must have been.

“Were you in a convertible?”

“Yes.”

“Were you as adorable as you are now?”

Jack laughed. “I think I was more of a handful back then.”

I pictured a rebellious little Jack driving around with him mom. “I wish I would have known your mom.” My voice was solemn. I hadn’t planned on saying it, but the words just came out because I meant them.

“She would have loved you, Syd.” Jack smiled and rubbed the top of my hand with his thumb as he held my hand in his.

Chapter 11

It was early evening before we finally turned down a long dirt road leading to a secluded but breathtakingly beautiful stone farmhouse. We parked and Jack came around to open my door, extending his hand to help me out. I stood and took a deep breath, smelling the trees and the wildflowers all around me as I turned to take in the picturesque surroundings.

“You like it?”

“I love it. I feel so calm standing here. It’s so beautiful and tranquil. I feel like I just stepped through the wardrobe and landed in another land.”

Jack smiled, pleased with my answer. His hand that was holding me pulled me close and he held me in his arms for a minute as he kissed the top of my forehead, before leading me to the door.

The farmhouse was as beautiful on the inside as it was on the outside. The century old house had been gently updated with all of the modern conveniences, somehow without taking away from its unspoiled simplicity. Hand in hand we wandered around together, appreciating the beauty of the house. But what stopped us both in our tracks was the view outside the wall of windows at the back.

The back of the house was lined with six arched windows, each open to the outside, no glass to spoil the view. Beyond the windows was a balcony that was set high about the vineyard below, offering a view of endless rows upon rows of grape vines. From the front of the house, it wasn’t even apparent that the back of the house was raised, yet the picture from the back offered a view from a perch, high above the vineyard below and the rolling hills in the distance.

We stepped outside onto the balcony and Jack wrapped his arms around my waist, pulling me close to him.

“Beautiful.” Jack’s voice was so close to my ear, it sent a shiver down my spine.

“Yes, it’s absolutely incredible.”

“And you smell good too.” He buried his face in my neck and took a deep breath, absorbing my scent.

I turned. The feel of his rock hard body behind me, and his voice so close to my ear, sent a shudder through my body that Jack had to have felt. Would there ever come a day when being so close to him wouldn’t send my body into a frenzy? I put my hands flat on his chest, splaying my fingers out to feel the hard muscles beneath. I looked up and found Jack watching me, his beautiful green eyes blazing with desire.

“Need you now, babe.” His voice was low and serious.

I nodded, unable to speak.

“It’s been hell the last few weeks. All I could see whenever I closed my eyes was you touching yourself for me that night.”

My heart rate sped up thinking about the night I masturbated for him over a video chat while in the back of the tour bus.

Jack began unbuttoning my blouse. “Out here or in the house?”

“In the house.”

Jack nodded. He took my hand and started to walk toward the house, but I stopped him.

“Is there anyone else on the property but us?”

“Not for miles.”

I smiled a devilish smile. “In the house now, then outside later.”

“That’s my girl.” Jack reached down and picked me up and put me over his shoulder, not stopping until we had reached the bedroom.

He placed me on my feet and wasted no time in removing my skirt. He took a step back and looked at me in my new lace boy shorts. “Pink lace.” His low simple words emanated his desire.

I smiled at his reaction. I knew that he liked me in pink and lace, so I’d knowingly put the two together, wearing a pale pink set of boy shorts and a matching demi cup bra.

“I need to be inside you now, babe. I’ll take my time and make it up to you later.” I had no doubt that he would.

It turned me on immensely knowing that I brought such a powerful man to the point where he lost control and his need became feral. He took off his pants, not wanting or being able to wait for me to undress him. Then he walked me over to the footboard of the oversized sleigh bed and gently turned me, directing me to lean down over the footboard.

I felt his hard c**k push against the top of my ass as he reached around and felt my wetness between my legs. He groaned as he realized I was already ready for him and he quickly positioned his shaft into my wet slit and pushed inside of me in one long deep thrust.

I gasped at the intense feeling of being filled so fully.

“You okay, babe?” His voice was gruff and he struggled to still himself while he waited on my response.

“God yes, please.” My voice was barely a whisper as I pushed back and ground hard against his thick erection, already deeply seated inside of me.

“Fuck, Syd.” Jack pulled out and began to thrust into me deeply, over and over, each time pounding harder than the last.

After a minute I felt a build and began to join him, pushing back and meeting his punishing rhythm with each thrust as he sank deeper into my wetness. A moan escaped my throat and Jack must have sensed my impending orgasm. He shifted his h*ps lower, changing the position of his thrusts, slightly lifting my ass so that my toes were barely on the floor.

His thick shaft swelled and the new position allowed him to penetrate even deeper, sending me spiraling over the edge of my orgasm. I moaned Jack’s name, trying to tell him I was there so that he could join me, but he already knew. I heard Jack whisper my name as he found his release, sending a jolt of thick heat coursing through my already trembling body. The sensation extended my orgasm, allowing us to ride the wave of pleasure together until we were both exhausted.

Eventually he pulled out of me and turned me around, reaching down and lifting me, cradling me in his arms as he moved us to the bed and gently placed me down on top of him. I was lying completely on top of him, yet I seemed to fit perfectly where I had settled.

Jack chuckled to himself. “I thought about pulling over on the side of the road to do that. You would look incredible bending over that little convertible.”

“So why didn’t you?”

“Because if anyone else got a look at that sexy little ass of yours, I might have to chase them down and beat the hell out of them.”

I laughed. “So is that what you were thinking about while we were driving through the beautiful calm scenery?”

The playful sound of his teasing response warmed my heart. “Yep. And remember that stone wall that you thought was so beautiful?”

“Yes.”

“I wanted to bend you over that too.”

We both laughed. The lightness of our conversation was exactly what I needed after our intense activity. We talked for an hour or two, Jack’s hand tenderly caressing up and down my body the whole time.

I propped my chin on my hands on his chest and looked up at his face lying beneath me. Jack looked down at me and pushed a stray tendril of hair behind my ear, waiting for me to speak.

“So what am I supposed to wear, since you wouldn’t let me take any clothes?”

“I had Chloe send ahead two silk nightgowns and a bathrobe.” Chloe was Jack’s personal shopper, who I’d met a few months earlier. She had impeccable taste and picked out clothes for me better than I could have myself.

“Any underwear?”

“Nope.”

“Just two silk nightgowns and a robe?”

“I don’t plan on having you wear those most of the time either.”

“How will we go to the store?”

“Don’t need to go to the store.”

“What about food?”

“Had the house stocked before we came.”

“What if I want to go outside?”

“Go outside. The closest house is six miles away.” Jack was stroking my hair and stopped.

“What?”

“Just wondering if we have a stone wall out there in the vineyard.”

I felt Jack’s arousal beneath me. “Is that all you think about?” I teased.

“It wouldn’t be if you were home. But when I only get to see you once a month, I can’t help myself.” His voice was serious.

I turned my head and kissed his stomach. “Home.” I smiled.

“What about it?”

“I just like the sound of you calling where we live home.”

***

The next morning I made breakfast while Jack was in the shower. He wasn’t kidding when he said he’d had the housed stocked before we arrived. It looked as if it was stocked for a month for a family of eight rather than two people for two days. But that was Jack and I had already come to realize the man didn’t do anything halfway.