❝Let's just stay here.❞
RIA TURNS THE RING towards the early morning sun with a smile plastered across her face. A wedding ring for Ashton; all silver with a deep blue undertone because it reminds her of the color of his eyes and his love for the ocean.
After commanding him to get some rest before they start their day, she snuck out and did a little exploring to the nearest jewelry shop from their hotel. Small lines are engraved across the top and bottom. She hopes that when they have the time, she'll be able to have something engraved on the inside like he did for her engagement ring.
Their hotel is as close to the countryside as they can possibly get without isolating themselves from the true allure of Italy. Seeing as Rome is a wildly popular tourist city, she figured they'd have the most relaxed fun away from intense traffic and tourism.
She skips past a fountain and dips her fingertips in it, shivering at the cool liquid kissing her skin. Even the water seems to be entirely different here. Traveling alongside dirt roads and slightly decrepit sidewalks, Ria contemplates renting bikes to avoid too much walking.
Back in their hotel, Ashton is coming from the bathroom dripping and steaming with a towel dangerously low on his hips. He pushes back his damp hair and smiles at her when she enters the room. "Hey. Where have you been?"
"I thought I told you to rest." She pretends to scold him but fails miserably, simpering like a lovesick fool. This beautiful man in front of her is going to be her husband very soon.
"Like I could actually sleep right now. We're in Italy, you're hometown, and we're getting married in a couple days. I can't fucking believe anything right now."
"I know." She throws her hands up before holding her cheeks with desperation. "It feels too good to be true. Like someone could wake me up at any moment."
Ashton drops his towel and begins digging through the luggage on their large satin sheet bed. Ria blushes and drags her eyes away from his shameless allure. "So...not to be culturally ignorant," he begins as he slips on a pair of briefs, "but there's a really weird thing in the bathroom and I thought it was a sink...until I saw the sink."
"Oh." Ria bites the end of her thumb and sways side to side. "That's called a bidet. American's find it really weird, but it's actually quite sanitary."
"Bidet?" He quirks a brow from over his shoulder.
"Mhm. It cleans the lower half of your body instead of using toilet paper."
Ashton's face scrunches up in immediate distaste. "That's gross."
She giggles, fully expecting that reaction, and inches towards him. "Maybe toilet paper is gross."
He narrows his eyes. "When we move here we are not getting a house with one of those bidet things."
"You can't decide that!"
"Oho. Yes, I can." He laughs and turns his back to continue getting dressed.
Ria throws her arms over his shoulders and presses her face against his warm back that's slightly damp from the shower. "You can't make all the decisions. At least let me have a few."
"I'll think about it."
"I love you," she whispers and kisses his back.
"Mhm."
"I love you, Ashton."
"I know you do."
"You're no fun." Ria drops back to her regular height and pouts. "Hurry up and get dressed. We have a lot to do today."
For the first part of their morning, they skip the breakfast provided by the hotel — by Ria's expert advice — and go straight to a café not too much further away. They stroll along the foreign land hand in hand with eyes that graze along everything they possibly can.
The sun caresses their exposed skin; Ria adorned in a sleeveless sundress, designed short enough to ride a bike while Ashton is free from his usual attire, now in shorts and a white billowy shirt that teases eager eyes by exposing his chest.
"Do you just know where everything is?" he wonders.
"Not really. I know a lot of areas, especially in the countryside since that's where I grew up. I never went into the city that much, but I do know all of the best spots." She holds her hand out as they near a little pastry shop along the dirt road. "Like so."
"I like how quiet it is. I never realized just how loud and stuffy New York can be. I feel like I can think and breathe." His eyes glaze over as he sports a distant smile. "I want to paint and drink wine and just sit in the sun for hours."
"Me too."
Ashton scowls as they come upon the café and opens the door for them. "No wine for you, Ria."
"But red wine is good for pregnancy!"
"If you don't abuse it."
She gasps. "I can't believe you would even imply such a thing."
Air conditioning falls over them, dragging along the waft of sweet pastries and fresh coffee. The scent sings to her, summoning her to the empty counter.
"What do you want?" she whispers as the clerk approaches the counter, a young man with a tired smile and a dark complexion that rivals her own.
"Whatever you have," Ashton whispers back.
Ria greets the boy in Italian and orders two coffees and cornetti. As he rings it up, Ria gladly takes out the clutch slung across her front and pays in euros.
They wait for their food in the quiet shop, listening to the coffee machine and the whir of the air conditioning. Ashton touches her waist with his fingertips. "You enjoyed that, didn't you? Speaking in Italian, paying with euros, ordering traditional things." He's smiling as he says this as if he fell in love with the entire exchange.
"I do enjoy it. I enjoy it a lot."
"Maybe we should move after we take care of everything in New York." His suggestion is hesitant with an underlining eagerness in his voice. "You can have the baby here. I'll be a legal citizen since we'll be married. It could work."
A tender wave of adoration warms her heart and she hooks her fingers in one of his pockets. "I love that idea."
Morning eases on peacefully as they enjoy their breakfast. Ria watches the appreciation on Ashton's face as he eats his sweet croissant and downs his coffee. "It's different," he had said. "I like it better than the American version."
Returning to the loving sun, they make their way to a bike shop a few minutes away. Ria made sure to bring her camera and takes a plethora of photos, some of the vibrant land while wishing she could capture the low melody of cicadas and chirping birds that hide behind the grass and low trees. Others of the shops, occasionally getting a glimpse of a local striding in and out or someone strolling by. She captures the blue of the sky and white of the clouds. Most of all, she captures Ashton, the love of her life surrounded by a foreign land that is her home.
His eyes are wide and lips parted as he takes in the details of Rome like he's falling in love with every charming feature. She watches as he inhales the vegetation, lets his fingers brush along with breezes. He stares at every Italian or possible tourist as if they were an exquisite being from a foreign planet.
Suddenly, he whirls to her, eyes wide and face flushed. He grabs her arms and pulls her close. "I want to paint them. I want to paint all of this."
"You can," she laughs.
"It's so different here. Everything is so...I don't know." He laughs and drives his fingers through his hair. "I feel so many new things and inspirations. There's so much more to explore. We're only in the countryside. Imagine the city with all of the old buildings and fountains. Even the breakfast tastes different here."
She beams at the infatuation burning in his soul, so close to matching hers. "So...do you want to stay here?"
"Yes."
"I told you, you would." She leans up and pecks his lips, dragging away the leftover taste of coffee and sugar. "Let's just stay here and pretend we lost all of our money and tickets back home."
"Tempting." He grins. "Very tempting."
When they reach the bike shop, they rent two of them for the week and set off to see everything they possibly can within a short twenty-four hour day.
The outskirts of the city come alive where the countryside fades and Ria takes him to all of the places she can remember. They go past her old school and the church her father used to take her to every Sunday. She vaguely wonders if it's the same church where her parents got married.
An hour before noon, Ashton declares, "I want an authentic, Italian pizza," as they pass a lunch café with tourists piling inside.
Ria scrunches her nose as they come to a stop on a congested corner. The city is thriving with cars and taxis wild along the streets, other's traveling towards stores, and tourists huddling over their devices as they try to figure out where to go.
"How about we make one?" she suggests.
"Sure." He shrugs. "Should we go to a market? Grocery store?"
"Mama always said food in the market is better so..."
"Market it is."
The market area is mildly busy for a spring afternoon, mostly filled with costumers speaking rapid Italian, broken English and light French. Ria grabs a woven basket and tries her hardest to recall what her mother used on everyone's favorite pie.
Ashton becomes a child in a toy store and touches everything. Shirt free, exposing his fair skin, sneakers scuffing through the dirt as he bypasses shoppers so he can go to the next stand. Ria scurries after him, mumbling scusi occasionally as she shifts through busybodies.
By the time she reaches him, he already has a handful of tomatoes. He tosses them in the basket and moves along to the next stand. She trails after him as he's already purchasing a bag of flour and yeast.
"This is going to be so fun," he gushes. "I'm surprised so many people speak English here."
"Well, Rome gets a lot of American visitors. There are locals who are only fluent in Italian though."
"Hmm." He nods and glances at their basket. "What else do you Italians use on your pizza?"
"We like vegetables on top. Just find what you like. And," she adds before he can scamper off, "the next thing you buy, ask for it in Italian."
Ashton smirks and rubs his jaw. "Oh? Well, how do I ask how much something is?"
"Quanto costa?"
"Got it." He winks and is off again.
Ashton peers over shoulders at the stalls until he finds one serving raw spinach. He grabs the clerks attention with a brilliant smile and a small wave of his fingers. "Scusi? Quanto costa?"
Ria bites her bottom lip as thrills race through her body. His accent is still obviously Americanized, but the words actually flowed quite nicely from his lips. And his smile, it must certainly work wonders because the price the older woman gives him is certainly a few euros cheaper than she'd expect.
"How was that?" Ashton inquires cockily and tosses the spinach in the basket.
"Very good." She suppresses a smile, not wanting to contribute to his ego. "You're getting better."
"Thank you." He throws her another haughty smirk. "I'll be fluent in no time."
"Slow down now. I have another way I want you to say it. Sono molto credulone."
Ashton blinks rapidly but nods, eager to conquer the challenge. He goes to a stand filled with onions and peppers and asks, "Sono moto...cray duloni?"
The man jerks his head back in confusion and Ria slaps a hand over her mouth to keep from bursting into a fit of snorts and giggles.
"Credulone?" he asks.
Ashton nods vigorously, face growing ripe tomato red.
The middle-aged man shrugs. "Cento euros!"
Ashton blinks absently and rubs his neck. "Uh..." He turns to Ria eyes desperate for help. "What?"
Laughter erupts from her lips and she holds her chest.
"Ria," he hisses and storms over to her. "Did you make me say something stupid?"
"N-no," she giggles and covers her mouth again as steam rises from his scarlet face.
"What did I say?" he demands.
"I am very gullible and he said One hundred euros!"
He narrows his eyes. "You're the worst."
"Come on. It was cute!" She nudges his arm and eases past him to a stand full of fresh fruits. "You'll believe anything I say if it's not in English."
"That's not fair." Ashton trails after her this time, grumbling to himself about things he'd do if she didn't speak English.
She tosses him a peach and winks at his confused expression. "For juice."
"Peach juice?"
"Anything can be juice." She tosses a couple of apricots and peaches into their basket. "Taste how amazing it is freshly picked."
Ashton bites into the peach and nods in immediate approval. "That's really good," he says over his bite and licks his lips. "You know, I thought you didn't know how to cook."
"I don't." She grabs his peach and takes a small bite of her own. "I do know a lot about traditional foods. Just don't expect it to be perfect when we actually get to cooking."
"Noted. So I'll be doing most of the cooking?" He points at himself and takes the peach back.
"Yep!"
"Even on an entirely different continent, you're still the same Ria." He shakes his head with a chuckle.
"And you love me," she chirps.
His fingers find the dip in her back and he pulls her close. "That, I most certainly do."
"Okay, the first thing we do is make the dough." Ria purses her lips and stares at the bowl of yeast sitting on the counter, and then glances over to the bag of flour. "So we mix these together and add water."
"How about I look it up on the internet." Ashton chuckles from the other side of the kitchen island and pulls out his phone.
"No!" She reaches over and snatches it from his fingers before he can react. "You wanted an authentic Italian pizza and that is what I'm going to make for you without any help."
"Ria, don't be stubborn. We both know you don't know how to make dough."
He reaches for his phone but she holds it behind her back and puffs out her chest. "No."
"Ria." His voice gets deeper and he reaches again.
"No." She leans back and steps aside.
"Don't be silly."
"Don't call me names."
Ashton rolls his eyes and folds his arms. "I don't want to have to use force."
She raises her chin and narrows her eyes. "You can't force me to do anything."
A teasing smile graces his lips and his eyes lower. "You're so fucking cute." He inches closer and touches his fingertips under her chin. "Why are you so stubborn?"
"Because I can be."
"Mhm." He leans in and brushes his lips over hers.
"Don't try to seduce me."
"What do you mean seduce you?" One of his hands sneaks down her lower back until it finds the small dip. He presses his lips to hers with more pressure.
Ria stiffens at first, resistant to fall for his tricks. Ashton cups the side of her face and kisses her more passionately, sending chills through her body. She can't help but part her lips, starving for the taste of his tongue gently grazing over hers.
Tightening her fingers around his phone, she wraps her arms around his neck and leans into the heat his body provides. Ashton's hands slide to her waist, gripping her soft flesh with hunger and he pulls her in until her body is flush against his solid form.
Ria sighs as a fire begins to burn like an inferno inside her core, causing her to weaken against him like always. He grabs the soft fabric of her sundress and begins to lift it.
"W-we should cook first," she breathes, recognizing the aggressive hunger in his movements.
"Why?" He nibbles her bottom lip as he raises the skirt of her dress even more until her underwear is exposed and his fingers find the outline of the soft fabric.
"Aren't you hungry?"
"I have plenty to eat right here," he mumbles huskily.
Ria gasps as he lifts her by her waist and sits her on top of the counter. Her hot skin connects with the cool surface and she shivers. Ashton grabs her inner thighs with impatient fingers and pries them apart. His lips find hers again, starving and desperate. He teases her lightly over her panties, rubbing a tantalizing pressure against the fabric that grows wet with her arousal.
Moaning, Ria is desperate for him to do so much more and moves her hips slowly against his movements, creating disastrous friction between them. "Please don't tease me," she begs and arches her neck as he kisses the searing surface.
He drags his teeth over her skin and runs his tongue along her every weak spot, making her so desperate to have his lips elsewhere. Lower. Just a little lower.
"Ashton, please."
He grins and kisses back up from her neck to her jaw to her cheek and back to her lips. "I like the way you beg." He grabs her thighs again and pulls her forward until she's resting on the edge of the counter.
He drops to his knees and yanks her panties down her legs. Ria shivers, already insanely wet and ready to feel him on her, in her.
Ashton grabs her bottom and places his tongue between her legs and right on her sweet spot. She throws her head back and moans desperately as he tastes and teases her ruthlessly, expert tongue touching every part of her that he knows she enjoys.
She drives her fingers through his silky hair and sighs his name over and over as he works wonders. She surrenders her entire body to this pleasure. Ashton teases her with two fingers before tenderly easing them inside her, all the while tasting her gently and appreciatively.
"Oh my goodness," she groans and lies back as her body edges so close to coming undone. She props a leg over his shoulder and her body moves desperately as he teases her skillfully. His fingers move faster, probing her to finish, daring her. His tongue moves gently and he buries his face deep between her thighs.
"Oh, fu-" An orgasm explodes through her core, hot and furious. Her thighs tremble lustfully and she runs her fingers through her hair and bites her lip roughly to keep from panting too hard.
"You always sound so fucking beautiful," he murmurs and places his lips on her quivering inner thigh. He drags his fingers over her sensitive skin and kisses higher, heightening her pleasure. "I could listen to you just like this all day."
Ria presses her fingers to her lips and sighs as Ashton suddenly stands over her. Their eyes meet, hers hazy and his gleaming with devilish intent.
He leans over her and she presses her palms to his chest. She wraps eager legs around his waist, ready to take all of him.
"Do you want more?" he murmurs.
"Please," she breathes and reaches for the waist of his sweats.
Ashton places his lips on hers and grabs her wrist, stopping her wandering fingers. He pulls back with a grin and stands at his full height.
"Ashton," she whines, "come here."
He flashes his phone in front of her face and winks. "Right after I look up that recipe."
Happy Valentines Daaaaaay with this special romantic episode of AshRia just being happy and romantic in Italy 💕
-bri🍑