Page 60 of The Veiling

He slid his fingers out and held them to my face. “Taste.”

I wrapped my lips around his digits, swirling my tongue around them in a circle.

“I need to go shower so we can eat, but I really enjoyed that.” He chuckled darkly, removing his fingers and leaned over, kissing me. He took his watch off the nightstand, holding it to his lips.Jean Pierre, Isabelle, and I will be having breakfast on the back terrace this morning. His gaze found mine. “Is that okay?”

I nodded with a smile.

Breakfast was remarkable as usual, with too much food prepared. The staff cleaned it up and took the rest of it for themselves. Valentino read the newspaper while drinking his coffee. I sat, admiring his formal black button-up shirt rolled up to his elbows and the way it hugged his muscular arms. My gaze spotted my photo on a page when he turned it.

“What is that?”

He peeked over the paper, then folded it and laid it on the table when he noticed my mortified expression. Placing his coffee cup to his mouth, he smiled. “You’ll be happy to know everything is calm in the world again, and the media is now reporting you have been found.”

“So, I can go off property?”

He set the mug down on the small saucer. “I’d prefer you wait until one more thing is handled. And people are still going to bother you like they have since we announced our engagement.”

I lifted my eyebrows, folding my arms.

“I just need you to trust me.”

“I always do, you know that.” I sighed. “And I totally respect the way we live and the need for bodyguards, but—”

His gaze shifted behind me. I glanced back to see William and Joseph standing in the doorway.

“Sorry to interrupt, boss,” Joseph cleared his throat. “We have to go into the office today.”

I looked at Valentino whose face turned to anger before his eyes narrowed. “Why?” He gritted his teeth.

Shortly, Noah exited the house. “I’ll stay here with Miss Ayala while you guys are gone.”Why are they being official?

Valentino folded his arms. “We just finished breakfast and are spending time together right now.”

“Sir,” Noah sighed, “can we speak with you in private, please?”

Sir? Boss? Miss Ayala?They only used formalities when they were inwork mode,which meant something was going on. I could see the worry in Noah’s eyes.

Valentino fisted his napkin and dropped it on the table. He pushed back and stood, placing a hand on the back of my chair. His other fingers rested under my chin as he leaned down and left a kiss on my lips. “See you in a little while.”

I remained pleasant, not wanting to stress anyone out. Though I was used to him having to run off sometimes, I was still hoping to spend a little more time with him. He was agitated about having to abandon me right after we finished eating. He hated when we were interrupted for any business matter, regardless of how big or small.

After they disappeared into the house, I looked around at the floral arrangements the gardeners had spruced up on the veranda. They always did an amazing job, paying great attention to detail. I pushed back from the table and strolled inside, planning to find Laura and try to distract myself with final wedding planning details.

Valentino was standing in the foyer, having a serious and hushed discussion with Noah and William. William glanced at me and cleared his throat. The three of them painted fake pleasantries on their faces.

Valentino slid his hands in his pockets. “Okay, it appears wedohave to run out for a bit.”

I nodded. “I know.”

He strode over to me. “You should catch up on those books you wanted to read.”

I darted my eyes at the others before bringing my gaze back to him. “I was hoping to do some more wedding planning with Laura.”

“She’s out with Tanya, getting some things for a surprise,” Noah interjected.

“Oh.” I knew they had been planning a baby shower behind my back and I was not supposed to know anything about it. I smiled. “Noah, would you like to escort me to the juice bar down the road?”

Valentino laid a hand on my arm. “I need him to come with me this time, but Giacomo is around here somewhere. Just call him if you need to go anywhere.”

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