A Billionaire's Mistake

35|Venice

"It's called the Venice Canals. It's kind of like our knockoff version of Venice, Italy," she says with pride.

There are so many twinkling lights that it looks like a scene from a Disney movie. The Canal runs underneath a bridge in the distance, and brick pathways run alongside it, trees with lanterns looming above us to guide our way. It's absolutely breathtaking. I've never seen anything like it.

"Wow," I say, unable to think of anything else. "This is...wow."

"Beautiful, right?"

I nod and follow her lead, continuing to hold her hand as we walk underneath the lanterns. "When I was little, around seven or so, my parents took me here for the first time. I remember just being in awe, and my dad said that it was our city's own little version of Italy. I knew at that moment that I wanted to visit there someday."

"Did you visit?" I ask.

"Yeah, but it didn't feel as beautiful. Venice is the city of love, you know? It felt like I was only half there. I think love was the piece I needed to fully feel the magic."

I gaze down at her, my eyes softening as she looks up at the lights in wonder. As soon as I'm able to when all of this business stuff is taken care of, I'm taking us to Venice. I'll put her in one of those boats with a violinist and when we sail under the bridge, I'll tell her I love her for the first time. I'll make love to her that night with the city lights of Venice behind us. The city for lovers. The city for us.

Tugging her into my chest, I stop us underneath one of the trees and kiss her. She smiles against my lips, her hands coming up to hold my face. I love the way her thumbs scrape gently on my cheeks, how her body fits so perfectly against mine. I'm falling so hard for this woman. So fucking hard.

"You look so beautiful right now," I tell her, "and I hope that one day I can experience the magic of Venice with you, Sienna."

"Me too," she replies softly.

There's no one out here, and that's surprising as hell to me. I don't get why tourists would want to visit a pier over this, but maybe it's not that well-known. Maybe it's one of those secret spots that only a few people know about. Either way, I love it. I'll never forget this place.

"I miss my brother," I find myself saying. "We used to play hide and seek as kids with my Dad, and I remember thinking he was so much cooler than me. He always knew the right spots to hide, and I never had a worry back then. There wasn't any pressure. It was just Jett and me, and our bond was inseparable. I wish things could go back to the way they were." I hold my breath once I'm finished with my speech, wishing she won't ask follow-up questions. Thankfully, she just presses a gentle kiss on my lips. One that makes me weak in the damn knees.

"We should keep walking," Sienna says with a shaky breath. "Otherwise, I'm afraid I'll take you right up against this tree."

I bark out a laugh and take her hand, leading her further into the lantern lights.

***

Back at the hotel, we ride up in the elevator once more, that same tension pulling us together like inevitable magnets. It's almost unbearable.

Sienna steps off the elevator first and I follow her to the door. I'm hoping she'll invite me in, praying, honestly, but she just kisses me once on the cheek and thanks me for an incredible night. Normally, I'd be pissed, I'd be upset, but after the night we had, I feel like I'm on a fucking cloud. I don't even need sex with her, so I kiss her goodnight and let her know how much tonight meant to me, still smiling when I step into my room that's directly next to hers.

Not even a minute later, I hear her knocking. I think she forgot something, but when I open the door back up, her hands are on the ties of her trench coat, and she's panting heavily, eyes moving directly to my lips. "You just—" She glances over my shoulder, scrunching her brows together. "Wait, why do you have knives on your counter?"

I look behind me, my face heating up. "Oh, I just... Well, in case we ended up having sex tonight. You know, foreign places, closest weapons... I wanted you to be comfortable."

She continues to stare at the knives in shock, and then she blinks as tears form in her eyes. "Lincoln Nash...you just keep on having to pass my tests, don't you? First, you're okay with ending our night without sex, and then this..." She waves her arms toward the weapons on the counter. "I don't think you understand how rare you are."

I shrug. "You're a one-in-a-million type of girl, and I plan on working hard as hell in order to keep you happy, baby."

With two strides, she's in my arms, kissing me, and her legs are around my waist. I'm laughing into her kiss as I stumble back from the force of her, groaning as her hands mess up my gelled-back hair. She's tugging on my cashmere sweater for me to take it off, but I don't want to do this unless she actually wants it. Maybe this is just her hormones speaking.

"Should I put the knives away?" I ask with a teasing smile.

She giggles and kisses me once more, leaning back in my arms to release the ties of her trench coat. "Absolutely not. Take me to the bedroom."