Harlequin Romance March 2021 Box Set Cara Colter (the mitten read aloud TXT) 📖

face up to the already hot morning sun and closed her eyes, letting the warmth permeate through to her bones. It had, in some ways, been an almost idyllic week despite the oddity of her situation. Her initial worries over Matteo’s health had quickly disappeared, along with his headaches and the fading of his bruises. A local doctor had come out to see him the day before and suggested he continue to take it easy for another few days to be on the safe side, but assured them both that he was well on the road to recovery. As long as there were no more headaches, double vision or any of the other symptoms in the leaflet she still carried in her bag everywhere she went, he should be safe to resume normal life by the end of the week.

Normal life. The words which filled Matteo with such pleasure caused nothing but dread to Charlie, and it had been hard to match his delighted smile. Normal life meant that he wouldn’t be able to resist checking in with his office and then what? Once work intruded he’d lose the relaxed, playful air she had missed so much, his responsibilities once more weighing him down and taking centre stage.

Normal life would mean the return of his phone and contact with other people, with his grandfather, who was champing at the bit to speak to Matteo. After an extremely awkward conversation and some initial resistance she’d persuaded his grandfather that Matteo needed this holiday, reiterating the doctor’s instructions that Matteo stayed quiet and received no sudden shocks. But she still didn’t trust the old man not to let something slip about the divorce; she knew full well he was no fan of hers.

She took another thoughtful sip of her coffee, her gaze lingering on Matteo. He had tanned even in the short week they’d been here, his skin no longer sallow but a deep olive, setting off the dark fuzz that covered his jaw. The casual short-sleeved shirt highlighted the breadth of his shoulders, the undone top buttons showing the hollow of his throat, the vee of his chest. Her stomach tumbled, tightening with a desire that had never, not even in the worst of times, gone away. It felt like such an illicit pleasure, sitting looking at her husband, allowing her gaze to linger on every plane and hard muscled edge.

It was an illicit pleasure because he was no longer hers to enjoy. And that was increasingly becoming a problem. Normal life didn’t just mean access to phones and emails. Normal life meant Matteo would be expecting them to be the still practically newlyweds he thought they were, the passionate-about-each-other, head-over-heels couple he remembered. He was already making it more than plain that he would prefer Charlie to be sharing his room, his bed, and every night it was harder and harder for her to resist his playful entreaties.

It was harder and harder for her not to throw caution to the wind and react when he touched her waist in passing or took her hand as they walked around the gardens. Not to turn and kiss him when he slipped his arms around her waist and held her, when he kissed the exact place on her neck he knew always sent her weak with desire. Not to allow a quick affectionate kiss to develop into a longer embrace. Easy, intimate gestures, each one an exquisite torture. More than once she’d allowed the moment to go on a few seconds longer than was wise, unable to break the embrace with an easy laugh and a reminder that he needed to take it easy, just revelling in the feel and the touch of him. But in the end she always stepped away. Anything physical would only be a lie for them both. However much she wanted to she couldn’t ignore the envelope of not-yet-posted divorce papers packed in the bottom of her suitcase—nor the reasons they existed.

‘What shall we do today?’ Matteo finally pushed his plate away and picked up his coffee, wincing theatrically. Charlie was still enforcing the no caffeine rule, much to his loudly voiced disgust.

‘Why don’t we, oh, I don’t know. How about we swim and sunbathe or we could sunbathe and swim? Or go crazy and do both?’

Matteo peered over the top of his sunglasses to give her a mock stern look. ‘Nice try, Charlie, but the doctor said I was quite okay to leave the villa.’

‘Well, yes, but he did stipulate that you still needed plenty of rest and plenty of fluids and to take things easy and not to rush anything…’

‘Noted, but I don’t think a walk in the village is going to tax me too much, do you? They even have establishments that sell beverages to keep up those fluid levels. Come on, Charlie, you must be going stir-crazy. We’ve been here a week and you haven’t left the villa once.’

‘That’s what you think, but I’ve been out, drinking Prosecco and dancing with dark-eyed Italian men every time you’ve been snoozing, so don’t you worry about me.’

But although his mouth curved into an appreciative smile the expression in his hazel eyes was still firm. The truth was that although Matteo had repeatedly suggested that she go and explore, walk around the village, take a taxi or a local bus down to Amalfi or even along the winding road back to Sorrento with its designer shops and fancy restaurants, she had yet to leave the luxurious confines of the villa. She knew that Maria was more than capable of keeping a close eye on Matteo, but Charlie still didn’t like the idea of leaving him on his own. She told herself it was because she was there solely to make sure he was on the road to recovery, but the truth was she was loving the long lazy days with nothing to do but read, swim, play cards and enjoy each other’s company. This was how she