Alessia Mancini
I hesitated, weighing my words carefully. How could I explain the storm of emotions raging inside me? The undeniable attraction, the lingering fear, the dangerous hope that maybe, just maybe, this could be more than a business arrangement.
"I'm thinking," I said slowly, "that I'm in way over my head."
Giovanni's hand came up to cup my cheek, his thumb brushing lightly across my skin. "And yet," he mused, "you're not running away."
I closed my eyes, leaning into his touch. "No," I admitted. "I'm not."
The confession hung in the air between us, laden with unspoken implications. I knew I was playing with fire, but in that moment, wrapped in Giovanni's arms, I couldn't bring myself to care about the burns that might come.
I opened my eyes, meeting Giovanni's intense gaze.
