In a Heartbeat (Heartbeat #1) (33 page)

Without hesitation he grabbed her hand and led her through the door. They got in his car and left skid marks on the driveway as they sped away.

Chapter Twenty Six

Max took her to his house. Stella was so numb that although she was vaguely aware what was going on around her, she was unable to take any part in it. All she wanted to do was fall asleep and find that when she woke up, all that had never happened. Max led her to his bedroom, laid her on his bed, pulled the covers over her and kissed her forehead.

“Have a little rest. I’ll be right back and I promise you we’ll get out of here for a few days.” Stella managed to nod before her eyes closed and shut the real world out.

When she woke up, Max was lying beside her, propped up on his elbow, watching her.

“Hi. Feeling better?” he asked.

“I don’t know. I don’t feel the need to kill anybody, so I guess that’s a good sign.”

Max inched a bit closer and kissed her; then a cheeky grin appeared on his face.

“What?” Stella asked, intrigued. It was amazing how with a soft kiss and a smile Max was able to make her forget everything else, so that her attention was solely his.

“Come on, get up,
tesoro
. We have to go,” he said as he jumped off the bed.

“Go? Go where?”

“You’ll see. Come on, we have to go now if we want to be there before the sun sets.”

“You’re being weird. How long are we going to be ‘there’?” Stella asked, making air quotes and getting up from the bed.

“I love it when you do that with your fingers,” Max said, as he came to her and wrapped her in his arms for a quick kiss. Then he grabbed her hand and almost dragged her out of his bedroom.

“Wait
– you didn’t answer my question. If we’re going to stay overnight, I’m going to need some stuff and I really don’t want to go back to ...”

“I took care of it. Packed you a bag for a few days; it’s in the boot,” he interrupted her and grinned.

“How about your job? How about Aunt Niki? I can’t just disappear; I have to tell her ...”

“Took care of all that, too. Now stop talking and worrying and get in the car.”

Stella did as she was told. Once in the car she relaxed and even smiled.

“You’re sexy when you’re bossy,” she teased Max, as he climbed into the driver’s seat.

He laughed and pressed the ignition button, backing the car off the driveway and onto the road.

“I have a request,” Stella said as they sped along the highway, while she was looking out of the window and admiring the picturesque Italian countryside. She had no idea where they were going, because Max refused to tell her, and frankly she didn’t care. The more distance he put between her and Lisa, the better she felt.

“What is it, babe?”

“I don’t want to talk about what happened today. None of it. I need some time before I can even begin to think about it.”

“No worries.” He squeezed her hand over the gear lever and they drove in comfortable silence the rest of the way.

“OK, we’re almost there,” Max said as he pulled the car over. Stella looked around – they were still in the middle of nowhere: just the road and fields around it. She must have looked confused, because Max laughed and said,

“We’re
almost
there. I need to do something first before we drive the rest of the way.” He opened the glove compartment and took out a black satin sleeping mask. “Put this on.”

“When I said I liked it when you’re bossy, I didn’t have S&M in mind.”

Max rolled his eyes, but couldn’t hide his smile.

“Let me rephrase: put this on,
please
.”

Sighing, Stella put the mask on.

“Can you see anything?”

“No.”

“Good.”

He started the engine again and they drove for about ten more minutes before they took a sharp turn and reduced their speed considerably. The road they were on now was quite uneven and bumpy and Stella assumed it was some kind of smaller, side road. She had given up asking any more questions, because Max wasn’t caving in. He took his surprise very seriously and was completely immune to her probing for information. Thankfully, they didn’t drive on that road for too long, because Stella was already feeling a bit carsick. Soon, the car stopped and Max switched off the engine.

“We’re here,” he whispered in her ear, and Stella started.

“I hate this thing,” she said, pointing at the mask.

“Maybe I can change your opinion later,” Max said in a low, seductive voice and Stella’s heart did a somersault. How did he manage to get her so excited with a single sentence? “Wait here; I’ll open the door for you.”

When the door opened, Stella instinctively extended her hand and he took it in his. He led her a few steps, then stopped and removed her mask.

The view in front of her took her breath away. They were in the middle of a picture postcard! And not just any postcard, but the very beautiful ones you send to people you don’t really like to make them envious of your perfect holiday.

They were standing by the road in the middle of a field that was the most amazing green colour Stella had ever seen. In the distance there were hills and a fir forest, and the winding, single-lane road they’ve been driving on. At the end of the road was a house, or rather a villa. It looked quite big even from that far away.

“Where are we?”

“Tuscany.” Max looked so pleased with himself and with the fact that Stella was speechless. “Come on, let’s get back in the car. I just wanted to show you the view from here.”

“Where are we going
now
?”

Max pointed towards the villa instead of replying. Stella took one last look around, trying to imprint the scenery in her brain forever – the endless fields, the orange sun that had just kissed the tops of the hills in the distance, the amazing fresh-air smell, the natural silence.

They parked in the driveway a few minutes later. Max took their bags from the boot and headed to the front door, fishing in his pocket to get the key out. Stella stepped out of the car and looked around. The place was magical! There were huge trees surrounding the grounds around the house, giving it an enclosed feel. They surely weren’t planted there for privacy, because there were fields all around them and nothing else. But still, it felt kind of cosy.

The villa didn’t seem anything special from the outside; it was a big, boxy building made of grey stone. However, there were huge windows along the walls that looked quite modern, so Stella was curious as to what she’d find inside.

Max unlocked the door and walked in, leaving it open for her. When she walked through the threshold, Stella’s mouth flew open and stayed like that for a while. The house was incredible inside. They had stepped into a large space that was a living room, dining room and kitchen all in one. It was very modern, with hardwood floors, plainly plastered walls and those big windows that let in so much light. The sitting area consisted of two overstuffed sofas, a lot of beanbags and a leather recliner. There was a gas fireplace and a flat-screen TV over it. The kitchen was compact and separated from the sitting area by a bar and four stools. On the other side there was a big dining table with eight chairs.

The decor was minimalist, but comfortable. However, Stella couldn’t find any personal touches anywhere – no photos, no magazines or books scattered around, nothing on the counters in the kitchen. It looked too clean and mess-free.

“What is this place?” she asked Max when he left their bags on the floor and went to open the glass doors leading to the back garden.

“It’s Beppe’s.” That was all he said, as he unlocked the doors. The whole wall leading to the garden disappeared as Max slid all six glass panels to the side. Stella joined him, unable to resist the urge to look outside any longer. She walked out onto a stone patio area. A luscious green lawn spread beyond it right up to the trees circling the garden. On her left she saw an oval swimming pool, with an alcove right next to it. Looking closer, she noticed it wasn’t just an alcove – there was a jacuzzi tub inside. Raising an eyebrow at Max, who was watching her reaction, Stella pointed to the jacuzzi.

“Like I said
– it’s Beppe’s,” said Max, and grinned.

“Why doesn’t he live here, then?”

“Can you see Beppe living in the middle of nowhere full time? He’d go crazy in two days max.”

“Then why did he buy it?” Stella hated to pry, but it seemed odd to buy such a huge house, in Tuscany no less, and not live in it.

“He didn’t. His grandfather left it to him.” Max answered her question, but it was obvious by his tone of voice and rigid stance that he didn’t want to elaborate any further. Stella let him be. Why did it matter, anyway? They were in this beautiful house all by themselves; everything else was irrelevant.

“How long can we stay?” she asked.

“However long you want. I called Antonio before we left and he must have stocked the fridge for us. It’ll last us at least a few days. But we can always go into town and buy more food, or anything else we need.” Max moved behind her and circled her waist with his arms, resting his chin on top of her head.

“How about your job? When do you have to be back?”

“Don’t worry about it, babe; we stay as long as you want. I mean it.” He kissed the side of her neck and squeezed his arms more tightly around her.

“Who’s Antonio?”

“He and his wife Cristina are the housekeepers.”

“You mean we aren’t alone here?” Stella couldn’t hide the disappointment in her voice. Max chuckled.

“We are. They live in the other house, right next to the vineyard.”

“Another house? Vineyard? How big is this property, exactly?”

“Big. I’ll take you to see how they make the wine tomorrow if you want. They’d love to meet you.”

“Do they have one of those enormous tubs full of grapes that you can mash with your feet?” Stella’s eyes lit up with excitement. She’d always wanted to do that, ever since she’d seen it in a movie once. It seemed like an extraordinary experience.

Max laughed again.

“They do. They keep one for entertainment, I guess, since nobody uses that method to make wine anymore. But it’s too early for harvesting the grapes; they usually start in mid-August.” He pecked the side of her neck again. “We can come back in August if you want.”

“I’d love that.”

Stella turned her head to face him and couldn’t hide her delighted grin. Thankful to Max that he’d gone to all this trouble to clear his schedule and take her away from her problems, Stella kissed his cheek tenderly and whispered,

“Thanks.” He nodded, accepting her gratitude and, tugging on her hand, led her back inside.

“You hungry?” he asked.

“Yeah.”

“Good, ‘cos I’m starving. Let me see what I can make.” He opened the fridge and started taking stuff out. “If you want you can go upstairs and unpack, take a shower or something. I’ll make us something to eat in the meantime.”

How was it even possible for such a wonderful man to exist? He was considerate, generous, caring, passionate, incredibly sexy and charismatic
– and he cooked! Stella had yet to find a flaw in him.

“You’re staring at me again,” he said, producing a devilish grin and startling Stella out of her thoughts. “I’d give anything to find out what brought that dreamy expression on your face.”

“You,” she said, her smile vanishing unexpectedly and her face growing serious. Sensing the change, Max covered the distance between them in a few long strides and crushed his mouth onto hers. Stella responded immediately, opening her lips to him and allowing him full access to her mouth, her tongue
– her soul. He grabbed her hair at the back of her neck, pulling it back and exposing her throat and her jaw for him to explore with hungry kisses. There was something desperate, animalistic, about the way he had reacted to her single-word admission. Stella opened her eyes, trying to regain her senses and saw Max trailing his tongue along her neck, watching her. His hazel eyes were unfocused, anxious and glazed with need. There was something much deeper going on behind them, but Stella was too worn out and too afraid to walk into that right now.

“Max ...” she said, her voice coming out raspy. He moved his lips back to hers and slowed down, kissing her tenderly, trying to regain control. His hands moved to the side of her face, cupping her cheeks as he pressed his forehead to hers, breathing heavily. Stella pressed her hand on his chest and felt his heart beating in a frantic rhythm.

“I’m sorry,” he said quietly, still not letting go of her.

“Don’t be.” Stella moved her hand from his chest to his cheek, brushing it with her fingers.

“I know we came here to get your mind off things and the last thing you need is me all over you like that
– but it’s just that I can’t control myself around you. Especially when you get all dreamy and sexy and thinking about me.”

“It won’t happen again,” Stella said, and the horrified look in Max’s eyes made her laugh. “I’m joking! I couldn’t help it even if I wanted to. Ever since I saw you that day on the beach, all I think about is you.”

Max took a step back and grinned, his eyes glowing with delight. “Me too. Do you still have that yellow dress you wore that day? I’d love to peel it off you.”