Page 65 of Tour Wars
Studly boyfriend? Now, there was a compliment he appreciated. “I could be of service this morning, if you want.”
She wagged her finger at him. “First things first. You need to send the report to Angelo. Do it now before we forget.”
Yesterday evening, after compiling the sixteen-page report on her laptop, she’d sent it to him, and he’d attached it to an email he’d drafted to Angelo. All he had to do was hit Send. After putting on his glasses, he grabbed his phone and took care of it. “There. Done. Sent to Angelo, cc’d to Dr. Roberti and Luca, and out of our hands. Now can we have sex?” He’d already grown hard in anticipation of their next few hours together.
“Sure, but…”
“But what?”
Her mouth turned down in a cute little pout. “I wish we didn’t have to leave today.”
“Well, actually…” Though he hadn’t mentioned it last night, he’d already planned for this very scenario. “Since it’s Saturday, we don’t need to rush back yet.”
“Wait. It’s Saturday?” She ran her hand through her hair, messing it up even further. “I’m so disoriented after being on the tour that I don’t even know what day it is.”
“It’s definitely Saturday. So, what’s to stop us from spending another night in Rome? It’s not like we ever go into work on a Sunday unless we’re giving tours, and I can’t imagine you’d want to do that.”
She gave an audible shudder. “Hell, no. I don’t want to put on that polo for at least another week.”
“Right, so we could spend tonight in Rome, then head back tomorrow afternoon. That’ll give us time to unwind before we have to be back at work on Monday.”
Her eyes lit up. “Great idea, but Angelo would never comp us another night here. He’d suspect something’s up.”
TJ wasn’t deterred that easily. “Then we don’t tell him. We check out of this place at noon, like we planned, then check into another hotel for tonight. I found a guesthouse a block over that’s a lot more affordable. A small room with a queen bed is less than eighty euros a night.” A total steal, given the high cost of hotels in Rome.
She eyed him suspiciously. “Less than eighty euros? Are you sure it’s not a dump? What’s it rated?”
He pulled it up on his phone and passed it to her. “It has 4.2 out of 5 stars on Tripadvisor. Check it out.”
As she looked it over, he was struck by an unpleasant sense of déjà vu. The last time he’d picked out a cheap hotel for them had been the previous summer in Istanbul, when he’d made a terrible mistake. A mistake he’dneverapologized for.
“If you’re worried this is going to be Istanbul all over again, I promise it won’t be.” He softened his tone. “I’m so sorry for how I treated you. If I pay for this place in Rome, will you forgive me?”
She placed her hand on his shoulder and gave it a gentle squeeze. “You giant dork. That was last year when we barely knew each other. I’ve already forgiven you, and I’m fine with paying for my half tonight.”
“Please let me pay. In lieu of flowers or chocolates or gifts you don’t need?”
“Okay.” Laughing, she passed him the phone. “Go ahead and book it. But in return, I get to take you out to dinner tonight. A nice place where we can sit outside, drink wine, eat pasta, and flirt with each other shamelessly. Deal?”
“Deal.” Now he could relax, knowing they had a full twenty-four hours left together. “Are you okay if we take it easy today? No museums or ruins?”
She grinned at him. “As long as there’s sex and gelato, then I’m good.”
He glanced at the clock. “It’s a little early for gelato, so…”
“Sex it is, then.” She pulled him closer, wrapped her arms around him, and kissed him deeply.
Once again, he was lost in the blissful embrace of the woman who’d captured his heart.
CHAPTERTWENTY-SIX
Emilia didn’t want to get out of bed. Getting up would burst this sweet little bubble she and TJ had created. A bubble where they’d spent hours teasing each other, having sex, snuggling, sleeping, and having more sex, interrupted only by the occasional break for food. But checkout was at noon, and their train left Rome at two, which meant they couldn’t linger.
She should be grateful she was returning to a job she enjoyed. For as much fun as she’d had leading the tour with TJ, she was better suited to the role of archaeologist, using the skills she’d spent years honing. How many people got to work on a site as extraordinary as Pompeii? Landing this gig had been one of the best things that had ever happened to her. If fate smiled on her, maybe Dr. Roberti would choose her and TJ to stay on until next spring.
But right now, this bed was so cozy and inviting that it was hard to make herself move. Unlike the crappy hotel in Istanbul where she and TJ had stayed last year, their tiny room in this guesthouse was perfect. A comfy queen bed, a standing shower big enough for two, and a stunning view of St. Peter’s Basilica in the distance.
She lay beside TJ, tracing patterns on his bare chest with her fingernails. “I don’t want to get up. You can’t make me.”
