but he simply shook his head. “You’re going to have to teach me one day, but I’ll just watch for now.” With that, Jemma took Adriana on her first horse ride and smiled when the girl’s excitement came through with her exclaims of delight.
Later that day, Damien surprised them with a helicopter flight from one of her pastures into the heart of Washington, D.C. It was quite an experience. The kids loved the ride, but Jemma was nervous about being in a glass bubble. It was still thrilling, but every time the machine dipped suddenly or raised up, moved by invisible wind currents, Jemma jerked. Finally, Damien took her hand in his strong one, reassuring her that all would be well. That was all she needed to relax and endure the flight.
They dined at one of the fancy restaurants and visited the Smithsonian’s Air and Space Museum. It was painfully crowded, since it is one of the most visited museums in the capital city, but that didn’t diminish the wonder on Dylan or Adriana’s faces as they looked at giant rockets, sleek fighter jets, or the enormous Saturn V engine. She had to admit there were some pretty amazing things there.
Afterward, they headed back to the farm. The return helicopter ride was a little more enjoyable, now that Jemma knew what to expect. She made a simple dinner of burgers and fries, then tucked the kids into bed, exhausted from all the excitement of the day.
Jemma was also exhausted, but one look at Damien’s expression and her fatigue floated away. She started to shake her head, to tell him that they couldn’t have sex, but he ignored her. Instead, he carried her into her bedroom and made love to her until she was clinging to him, crying out for release. And when it was all over, she slept in his arms, forgetting her plans to keep her distance until they knew each other better.
Sunday, she herded everyone out the door to church and Adriana experienced her first church service. Jemma had to laugh at how excited she was, but it was a good feeling. But by Sunday night, when Adriana and Damien left, she and Dylan curled up on the beaten down sofa, both of them feeling a little depressed after such exciting experiences.
And so went each weekend for the next month. Damien and Adriana would arrive either Friday night or Saturday morning and the four of them would spend the weekend together. And no matter how much Jemma protested that she and Damien should hold off on an intimate relationship, despite her attempts to have a conversation instead, Damien simply overcame her objections by kissing her, or touching her until she was shivering with desire.
By the sixth weekend, as soon as Damien showed up, she sent the kids off to the barn to play with the much larger puppies. They were no longer confined to the stall at this point but encouraged to run around the field where the kids would be out in the sunshine as well.
“We have to talk,” she said as soon as the two of them were alone but within watching distance of the kids.
“I agree,” he said and handed a large, rolled up sheaf of papers to her.
“What’s this?” she asked.
“Plans for a new house.”
Her hands froze from unrolling the papers and her eyes shot up to look at his dark ones. “What new house?” she demanded, stepping back again.
Damien sighed and took the papers back, spreading them out on the wooden picnic table in her backyard. “It’s for a house large enough for the four of us,” he explained carefully. “I told you going into this that I want to marry you.”
Jemma shook her hands. “We’re not ready for that conversation,” she said, still scared.
Damien pulled her down onto the wooden seat, taking her hands in his. “Jemma, this has nothing to do with the relationship I want with Dylan. Adriana and I can move here on our own, I have already started putting in motion the shift of my headquarters from Milan to here. In fact, I’ve found a building that is almost empty and the savings in property management fees alone will negate the cost of moving key personnel from Europe to Virginia.” He let those words sink in. “I understand that you can’t as easily move Dylan to Milan as I can move to Virginia, and it is done.”
She swallowed painfully, trying to figure out what it was she wanted,