Eloise's POV
"Can we go in there?" I asked, pointing to a store alongside the street. It looked like some type of antique shop.
It had been three days since we arrived in Italy. Arsenio told me we were going to leave to go to the city tomorrow, but I begged him to show me more of the area he grew up in before we left. So, he took me into town and showed me all around.
He said we were only staying in the city for two days because he needed to get back home and deal with things, and also because, "I fucking hate people."
We entered the store and a nice woman approached us, asking if we needed help finding anything.
I walked around the store and noticed a beautiful necklace in a glass case full of other jewelry. It was a beautiful topaz stone with a gold chain. It was gorgeous.
I walked away from the glass case though because I didn't have any money, and I wasn't going to ask Arsenio to buy it for me. I wished I could purchase it though. I'd always wanted a beautiful piece of jewelry to call my own, one I could pass on to my future children.
I continued searching around the store. A few things had caught my eye, but that necklace still held strong onto my attention.
I looked around for Arsenio when I decided I had browsed enough. He was leaning against the front counter staring at me. A smile formed on my lips when I caught his intense gaze on me.
"Are you ready?" He asked, wrapping his arm around my waist. I nodded and waved goodbye to the woman behind the counter.
"I guess you didn't find anything that you wanted?" He asked as we walked down the sidewalk.
"No. Nothing really caught my attention," I lied. I didn't want him to feel obligated to buy me things.
He nodded and continued walking down the sidewalk, where we walked into the cutest bakery. The aroma was divine and I ate the best biscotti and cannolis I had ever eaten in my life.
After we left the bakery, Arsenio drove us back home. "Can we come back here?" I asked as he drove down the country roads to his house.
"You want to come back?" He asked.
"Of course I do. It's amazing here." I gushed.
"We will come back, Bella," he said. "Any time you want."
A smile lit up my face just thinking about my future with Arsenio. My eyes widened slightly. The warmth in my chest and the butterflies in my stomach at the thought of spending my life with him were indicative of something. I was falling in love with him.
When we got back to the house, Arsenio went outside to chop some firewood so we could light the fireplace later that evening. I offered to help him, but he ordered me to lay on the couch since I told him I was developing a headache.
I turned on the TV to entertain myself but soon felt my eyes growing heavy. Within a few minutes, I couldn't keep my eyes open anymore, so I let myself drift into a dark sleep.
"Mommy," I called, sitting on the stairs.
Daddy hurt mommy again and she was sitting on the couch with blood dripping off her face.
She looked up when I called her and she quickly slipped a smile onto her face. It was a fake smile.
"Sweetie, you should be in bed," She said, trying to sound enthusiastic as if nothing was wrong.
"Are you okay, Mommy?" I asked. I stood up from my spot on the steps and walked toward her. Blood was dripping from her mouth and nose, but she was trying to cover her face so I couldn't see.
"Yes, Elly, I'm okay," she said with a smile on her face. Even though I was just a kid, I knew that smile was fake; it didn't meet her eyes.
My mommy walked into the kitchen and wiped her face off. She came back to me holding a paper towel up to her nose.
"Let's get you to bed," she said. She grabbed my hand gently in hers and pulled me up the stairs to my room.
"Mommy, why was daddy hurting you?" I asked.
"Your dad wasn't hurting me, sweetie, he was just angry." She explained.
"Why was he mad," I asked.
"I spilled his drink on the carpet and he got mad, that's all," Mommy said, but I didn't believe her. I think she knew that I didn't believe her.
I nodded, but I wanted to know more. Dad hurt mom, she was bleeding and there were tears in her eyes. Why was daddy so mean to me and mom?
She crouched down beside my bed and ran her fingers through my hair. "You have beautiful hair, Elly," she said.
I didn't get to answer before the door was pushed open and dad walked in with a knife. There was a crazy look in his eyes as he pointed the knife at me and mom. Mom stood up and tried to calm dad down, but he wasn't listening.
He pushed her on the floor, causing her to let out a loud groan of pain. I wanted to help mommy, but I was too scared to move. Daddy was walking toward me with a knife and I didn't know what to do.
I pushed myself as far back on the bed as I could. He kept walking toward me and reached over the bed to get to me. "Dad!" I yelled as he walked closer. My cries for help were cut short when I felt a searing pain and my abdomen. I looked down and a knife was sticking out of my stomach.
Blood was leaking from the wound. I looked around for help, but no one was there. Mommy and daddy were gone.
A piercing scream woke me up. I shot up in surprise, looking around to see who was screaming when I realized the sound was coming from me.
The front door pushed open and Arsenio ran through the door looking disheveled.
"What's wrong?" He yelled, running towards me. I didn't have time to answer because he had already reached me and was checking my body for injuries.
"What's wrong? Are you hurt?" He demanded, looking flustered.
"Arsenio, I'm fine," I said, but he continued searching my body.
"Arsenio!" I said louder, catching his attention.
"I'm fine," I said.
"Then why were you screaming?"
"I had a bad dream," I said, embarrassed. I didn't mean for him to come rushing in here like a madman because I had a bad dream.
A look of relief crossed over his features and his body seemed to relax. For a man who didn't show much emotion, he was showing a lot at that moment. He seemed almost scared, something I had never seen in him before.
"Fuck, Eloise, I thought you were hurt." He said and roughly ran a hand through his hair.
I shook my head and finally noticed what he was dressed in. He was in a pair of jeans and boots, and that was it. He was shirtless and drops of sweat were sliding down his body. I was officially hot and bothered.
"So you heard me screaming?" I asked sheepishly, pulling my attention away from his body. This was not an appropriate time.
He nodded and sat down on the couch beside me. He reached over and pulled my face close to his, running his large hand through my hair. "I thought you were hurt," he said.
"I wasn't hurt. I just had a bad dream," I said as our foreheads connected.
I closed my eyes and leaned in to gently press my lips against his. "I really like you, Arsenio," I whispered. I more than really liked him.
"I really like you, Eloise."
After I had calmed down, Arsenio went back out to finish cutting up the wood. When he finished he came back inside and hopped in the shower.
While he was showering I was busy making us dinner. I was going to make us skillet chicken with stuffing and cream of chicken soup. We would also have mashed potatoes, corn, and coleslaw as sides.
As I stood over the stove waiting for the chicken to fully cook so I could add the stuffing and cream of chicken soup, strong arms wrapped around my torso. I jumped slightly but leaned back into the hard body.
"Smells good," Arsenio complimented as his head rested on my shoulder.
"Doesn't it?"
He started kissing my neck and he moved one hand around my back and cupped my buttcheek.
"Stop feeling me up," I teasingly scolded.
He huffed against my neck and pulled away to stand beside me. "Do you want to talk about it?" He asked, referring to the dream that had me screaming in terror earlier.
I put the tongs in my hand down and moved to lean against the counter. I crossed my arms over my chest and took a deep breath of air before starting.
"Ever since my mom died, I've been having these nightmares almost every night. Sometimes they were about things that actually happened, sometimes they were just made up. When I met you, I didn't get them as often and when we started sleeping together they went away completely. I guess you make me feel safe," I said. A blush crept across my face as I revealed that to him.
"When I fell asleep on the couch and you weren't there with me, I felt scared I guess and I had a nightmare. It was about one of the times my father hurt my mom. She tripped and spilled his whiskey on the carpet and he got mad," I said. I felt my throat getting tighter as I thought about that night.
"He hit her in the face and she started bleeding pretty badly. I heard yelling, so I came down from my room in time to see him hitting her. She tried to lie and tell me nothing was wrong, but I wasn't naive. She took me back to my room and laid with me for a few minutes, but in the nightmare, my father came in and stabbed me with a knife. It felt like the pain was real, so I guess that's why I screamed." I finished. I wasn't crying, but my throat was tight and it was hard to breathe.
Arsenio grabbed my hand and pulled me to him. "He won't ever hurt you again, ragazza dolce." (Sweet girl.)
I believed him with all of my heart. I knew that with Arsenio, my father and all of the people he let into our lives would never hurt me again.
Arsenio's POV
After we ate dinner, I helped Eloise clear the table up and wash the dishes. Even the most boring of chores was entertaining when she was around.
I looked at her face, a big smile gracing her lips, as I grabbed her hand while we sat on the living room couch.
The thought of someone hurting her, or bruising her beautiful face, or making her bright smile dull made my blood boil.
When I heard her screaming in the house earlier that day, I knew I would do anything and kill anyone to get to her. For the first time in a very long time, I felt true fear. I was scared that someone was hurting her. I was scared that I would lose her.
That feeling was what I tried to avoid, but that feeling also gave me a sense of self-worth, as if it was my duty to protect her and keep her out of harm's way. That was a job I would gladly do until the day I died.
She said that her screaming was caused by a nightmare and I had never felt such relief. I'd never been so thankful, thankful that my woman wasn't hurt.
I looked down at her when I noticed her gaze flickering to me before quickly disappearing. I wrapped my arms around her and pushed her down on the couch while I crawled on top of her, leaning my weight on my elbows.
"What are you looking at, piccolo gattina?" I asked as I squeezed her hips in my hands. (Little kitten)
"Nothing," she giggled, the usual pink highlighting her cheeks.
"You're never going to quit blushing in my presence, are you?" I asked.
She shook her head and laughed. "Good," I said. I never wanted her to lose that innocence.
"What do you want to do after high school?" I asked as I stroked her soft brown hair. I wanted to uncover every bit of information about her. I wanted to know her better than she knew herself, and I think I might already.
"Well, ever since I was little, I have always wanted to open up my own restaurant bakery thing. I wanted to go to college to learn how to run a business and also attend a culinary school, but I knew I never could. My father would never allow me to leave, and we didn't have money," she said sadly. A longing look crossed over her face, but it soon went away.
She didn't allow herself to ponder on things she thought she couldn't achieve.
"When you graduate, I will sign you up for online college classes. A man I know has a wife that runs a culinary school, I could get you in there," I said as I continued to run my hand through her hair.
Her eyes quickly shot to mine and her mouth fell open. "Are you serious?"
"I want you to be able to accomplish anything you desire."
Tears started to form in her eyes and she quickly squeezed them together as she brought her hands up to her face.
"Bella, why are you crying?" I asked, confused. I thought she would be pleased with my offer.
"Because I'm so happy, Arsenio. You've given me everything I've ever wanted. I don't deserve you," she said through a hiccup.
I pulled her hands from her face and wiped away the few tears that leaked out. Shaking my head, I told her, "It is I who does not deserve you, Eloise." I leaned my face closer to hers and pressed a kiss against her lips.
"My mom and I used to cook and bake together all of the time," Eloise said quietly after I pulled away from her lips.
"Yeah?"
She nodded. "That's why I want to open up my own restaurant. That's why I accepted your offer so quickly when we first met." Her hands were absentmindedly wandering around my chest.
"My mom used to call me Elly." A smile gracing her lips and her tears a thing of the past.
"Elly?" I thought about the nickname for a minute. "I like it, but I will continue calling you my little kitten, gattina."
She giggled and fisted her hand in my shirt before winking at me. I attempted to wink back, but unfortunately, I was winking impaired. Instead, both of my eyes squeezed closed.
"You can't wink," she said through her giggles. A sound that both softened my chest and hardened my cock.
"Yes, haha. So very funny." I said.
"It's cute." She said.
"It's not cute."
"Stop being grumpy. It is cute, and so are you. And you have nice eyelashes," she said.