Page 45 of The Layover

The mood was ruined. Not that there had been much of one after the leaks. What a night. “When did you fall in love with Milan?” I didn’t want to end this evening on a down note. We’d started off having fun, and I’d rather add some good new memories than wallow in old, bad ones.

Carly looked surprised at my question. “I never said…”

“You did on the plane.”

We had finished dinner, and I made quick work of gathering everything up, and setting it aside to throw out.

“I guess I did.” Some of the tension seemed to drain from Carly. “I don’t think I can pinpoint an exact moment where I said I love it here. It was more of a slow-burn, you know? Knowing that the perfect restaurant was always there when I was in the mood. The perfect wine. The perfect old church with flying buttresses, five-hundred-year-old stained glass, and the kind of altar that made me want to do wicked, blasphemous things on it. And one day I realized this city captivated me like no other, and that it had for a while.”

“It does do that,” Diego said.

I was hung up on a different part of her reply and was about to do something that would either backfire on me, or build some unique memories. Probably the former. I was willing to risk it. “Wicked, blasphemous things on the altar?”

“Ah. You caught that.” Pink flooded her cheeks, and she ducked her head. “Terribly wicked.”

“Wicked enough to help us forget the bad parts of our pasts for a little while?” This was reckless in so many ways, and I was finding it hard to remember any of them. Further proof that we needed to mute the echoes.

Carly met my gaze. “Depends on how good you are.”

“Absolutely not at all.” Not tonight. We were talking about wickedness, after all. “But we give as well as you do.” I stood, moved to stand next to Carly, and tugged her to her feet. Dipping my head near her ear, I whispered, “If we make you our sacrifice, will you scream our names in worship?”

She pulled away with a smirk. “God, yes.”

Diego watched us, surprised. “Did I miss something?”

“The moderate need to mask pain with sex?” Carly said.

On the plane, I hadn’t been sure what to think of her bluntness. It was growing on me, and possibly infecting me. “What she said.”

A faint frown crossed Diego’s face. “I’m trying to decide… If I want the same, but for different reasons, is it okay?”

“Well,” I moved closer to him, until we were toe-to-toe, and linked my hands at the back of his neck. “Do you want to say no?”

“Not really.” The way his reply rumbled through me… the familiar scent of his cologne… his heat as his frame pressed into mine… It was all familiar comfort, and at the same time, seductive intoxication.

I crushed my mouth to his, sinking into the purity of Diego’s soul. Devouring his moan and relishing the connection between us. I didn’t let him go when we broke the kiss. “Sounds to me like a good reason to say yes.”

“So I probably shouldn’t be the one to point this out.” Diego clucked. “But I’m going to anyway. The altar is not a good size for having sex on.”

“Boo.” Carly’s pout was adorable. “Do you think they planned it that way on purpose?”

Grabbing her hand, I tugged her to us. “Probably. I’m sure they specifically had spoiling our fun in mind when they designed it.” I rested my hands on her hips, and when I spun her, she squealed. That sound would never get old. I guided her back to the table. “Fortunately we’re good at modifying the original plans when the situation requires.”

The oak table was more than sturdy enough for what we had in mind, and it didn’t so much as wiggle when Carly sat on it.

“What happened to just this once?” In contrast to her question, she wrapped her legs around mine and tugged me closer.

Diego brushed her hair from her neck and glided his mouth along the curve. “We’re adapting. Also, this was your idea—the two of you.”

“And you’re such an unwilling participant?” Carly leaned into his kisses.

“I never said that. In fact, I am positive I said the opposite.” Diego gripped her hair and tugged, as if to emphasize his words.

I traced the knuckle side of my finger down Carly’s front, barely making contact. Hesitation flashed through me, and the thoughts didn’t make any sense. What if this was the last time we got this? Of course it was, we just agreed. What if she was like Isabella? She wasn’t, because Diego and I didn’t plan to make her a long-term part of our lives.

What if we didn’t get to keep her?

Rather than dwelling on the ridiculously obvious, I rested my hand on Carly’s face, stole her from Diego’s kisses, and crushed my mouth to hers. She grunted against my kiss and fisted my shirt in her hands. This was the kind of physical that drove straight to my cock. I pressed into her heat, letting her feel my erection, grinding my hips until it ached.

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