he claimed had disappeared. “So? Figure it out. You're the mighty capo.” I had no idea where I gathered the courage to talk to him like that, but I could tell it took him off guard from the way his eyes briefly widened.
In the past, he would have reacted with anger. Now, he brushed it off with a curt smile. “You're not going to make this easy, are you, cara?”
“You said you wanted me to be happy,” I taunted. “Being able to work would make me happy.”
“And what else would make you happy?” He took the bait, and I had every intention to take advantage of that.
I kicked off my heels and rested my hosiery-covered feet on the seat opposite me. “Going back to school,” I stated.
“Online course?” he suggested.
“No,” I refused. “The real deal.”
He sneered, as if he were amused by my sudden show of defiance. “Anything else, principessa?”
“Driver’s license.” I stared at him, anticipating his reaction.
“We have a chauffeur,” he pointed out. “You don't need it.”
I shrugged. “It cannot hurt. There might come a day I will need it.”
Nothing would come out of it, but I enjoyed seeing him sweat over the demands he would never even consider meeting. It was proof enough the dynamic of our marriage would never change. But then, something incredible happened.
“Okay,” Alessandro said simply, and my jaw dropped open.
I immediately ceased from arching my poor, aching feet. “Okay?” I blinked.
He smiled in that characteristic, charming way. “I get it, cara. You want independence, and I’m not going to stand in your way. But before we close the discussion, I must say I have a few requests of my own I would like you to consider.”
“Such as?” I breathed, distracted by his swift agreement to meet my demands.
“I want us to share a bedroom when we get to the house in Italy...” he whispered.
“No!” I declined without hesitation.
Alessandro wasn't happy about it. He drew his lips together and inhaled a chunk of air. “I understand that trust takes time to develop, but we have to start somewhere, don't we?” He arched his eyebrows. “You promised you would try.”
“You'll want sex,” I blurted out.
He seemed to be taken aback. “Possibly. Does that scare you, Olivia?”
“It doesn't scare me,” I muttered, struggling to keep eye contact with the current conversation. “I'm just not comfortable with the idea.” I finally admitted what I avoided telling him all this time.
His eyes danced on my face, as if searching for signs of deception. “Was sex always terrible in the past?” he inquired.
I lowered my head. “It wasn't what I wanted.”
He placed his drink on the polished wooden side table and leaned closer. “And what do you mean by that?'' He sounded almost offended.
“I mean, we didn't do it right...” I mumbled, wishing the leather seat would open up and swallow me whole. It was torture explaining something I didn’t want to dwell on, let alone discuss.
“Sex was punishment?” he demanded in slight confusion.
I swallowed and answered truthfully. “No. Never that.”
“What, then?” There was a note of impatience in his voice.
“It just didn't feel right, okay?” I looked at him pleadingly, hoping he would finally stop talking about it, but he had no such intentions.
“And how much experience in sex did you have before you met me, cara?”
“That's irrelevant,” I bit out, angry at the crude blush that spread along my face.
Realization started building in Alessandro's gaze and there was a smug smile on his face. “Was I your first?”
I reddened even deeper from both shame and fury at the question. “Alessandro!”
“I was, wasn't I?” He smirked, and I exhaled a shallow breath as he shook his head. “So, how would you even know if I was doing something wrong, my little innocent?”
“I'm done having this conversation. You're acting like a sexist pig!” I snapped, crossing my arms over my chest.
Powerful awareness rushed through my system, and I could have sworn I picked up on traces of his underlined irritation. I had spoken out of line a couple of times now. I disrespected him. The Alessandro I knew would have slapped me by now and uttered threats he had every intention to see through should I ever repeat the offense. This Alessandro just stared at me and kept his cool, regaining his composure in a matter of moments.
He smiled with devilish precision, almost like he could read my mind. “I'm just saying...I’ve never failed to satisfy a woman. I can't imagine not succeeding in that area with my own wife.”