The Twelve Vitali Ch. 11

Matteo couldn't help his answering smile as he leaned forward to kiss her. He wanted to ask the dumb questions like, "Are you serious? Why now all of a sudden?" but he didn't want to tempt the wrong answer. Instead, he lengthened the kiss as his hand moved behind her neck, tangling in her hair and holding her tightly to his mouth.

"Our plans for this afternoon and tonight do not fit into the hearts and flowers romance basket," he chuckled. "As for the ring, that's my domain, and we can negotiate the chain, but I don't like the idea of you just taking the ring off whenever it suits you."

"I can't wear an expensive ring while I'm painting," she said reasonably.

"I get that, but I want any ring I give you on your finger, not around your neck, so we would need to talk about when, where, and why you would take it off for any reason," he said seriously. "Or I could have a ring tattooed on your finger."

"You wouldn't! I wouldn't, no!" she exclaimed and laughed lightly, hoping he was joking.

"I guess that depends on how much you want to wear an engagement ring on a chain," he smirked. "I don't do romantic gestures, as a rule, I've never had to, but for you..." he pulled out his wallet and opened a small flap, taking out the ring he had fashioned from a beer bottle label the first night they had met. "It's a little flat, but it might do for now. Catriona Leone, will you marry me?"

She laughed happily at the truly romantic gesture of keeping that ring and presenting it to her again. She nodded and held out her hand for him to slide the paper ring onto her finger. The fact that he had kept this small throwaway thing from the first night they met touched her and made her believe that even back then he had felt something more than friendship for her.

"Why the sudden change of mind?" Matteo asked, unable to help his curiosity after another long drawn out kiss.

"You said you loved me, that was all I ever wanted to hear when you proposed," she said a little shyly.

"I've said it before, I'm sure I have," he argued somewhat uncertainly, but she only shook her head. "Catriona Leone, I have fallen madly, deeply, crazily in love with you, and right now I can't imagine being happier about that fact. Maybe if we had taken the family jet instead of mine, perhaps I could be just slightly happier," he grinned.

"Why is that?" she asked.

"It has a full master suite," he chuckled.

"There's something to be said for delayed gratification. Why don't you tell me what is in the file instead?" Cat grinned, knowing that she was just as eager as he was but was better at hiding it, or a least she thought she was until Matteo pulled her out of her chair and lay her back on the table.

"You continue to test my patience!" he growled, his hands moving up her thighs and hooking into the sides of the lace panties she wore. "I think we've established that I'm only human when it comes to you." He dragged the lace down her legs and kissed his way back up to her thighs, pushing the dress up higher as he moved. She wriggled, lifting first her hips then her shoulders as his hands reached higher, taking the dress with them and revealing the tight corset she'd been wearing all day.

His tongue had worked its way between the folds of her pussy, and he was lapping at her in long smooth strokes, making her pant and whimper as she struggled to take a deep enough breath in the restricting garment. Her chest heaved as she finally drew the dress over her head and lay back revelling in the sensations his expert tongue, teeth and lips gave her, while his fingers began to invade her pussy.

Even her gasp as a second finger joined the first within her seemed strained, and she arched her back as she rode the wave building toward her climax. Everything seemed to heighten her arousal, the cool glass of the table, the narrow cabin and curved white ceiling and the almost too tight corset. She came crashing over the edge of pleasure all too soon, her mind reeling with the impact of it as Matteo stood and loomed over her a moment before driving his cock into her hard, fast and deep, making her cry out in pleasure again as her inner muscles gripped him.

"Mine!" he growled. "Say it!" he slammed into her, making her pay attention to his words.

"Yours, I'm yours!" she panted in a high-pitched whimper. "Yours!"

He lifted her legs from his hips and pushed them back, doubling her over and opening her up to his fucking as he thrust into her deeply. Even with Nik he had never felt the need to possess someone the way he felt with Cat. She challenged him in a totally different way, and he didn't need a battleground and bruises to enjoy her surrender to him. He needed the control and power she gave him each time she gave him what he wanted in their everyday lives, and though he hadn't realised it until now, she had always given him that when it came to sex. The realisation drove him harder, and he bent over her, staring into her brilliant blue eyes as she spasmed and shook with a second orgasm that milked his climax from him.

Cat felt him collapse over her and shudder as he came. He was already so aggressive and demanding when it came to sex that she couldn't wait to start exploring other kinkier facets of their love life after their small talk when they had first come on board. She kissed his shoulder and neck lightly, letting her hands caress his back as his breathing slowed. He loved her, and she finally let go of the fear that he would suddenly wake up and realise that she wasn't good enough for him or his family. If he loved her she could endure the whispers and innuendo of being a gold-digger, she could even wrap her head around his destiny and try to deal with it in a better more informed way.

Matteo picked her up and carried her to the door at the end of the cabin. She found a small bathroom and he handed her panties to her as she stepped inside to clean up as best she could before he used the small room himself.

The file had remained closed as the remainder of the two-and-a-half-hour flight was spent talking about their future. The captain announced their decent and Cat froze, her eyes going wide.

"What's wrong?" Matteo asked.

"Just like the first night we were together, this has been a nice fantasy, but we can't make any plans yet. The family is everything to you, and I don't think they will be happy about our engagement, despite what you say. I don't want to buy into the fantasy fully until you've spoken to your fathers and I've met the rest of your family. I won't lie, I still care about Ricco, and I don't want things to be awkward between us forever, but..."

"Stop!" Matteo cut her off. "You said yes, and we are getting married!" he asserted, using a low, menacing voice. "My fathers adore you; they encouraged me to pursue you. Ricco may take some time to get used to the fact that we are getting married, but, like you, he still cares and wants you to be happy. As for everyone else, they will love you because I do, including Trista. That's how my family works." Now that he had told her that he loved her and realised that she needed to hear it he said it as often as he could to make sure she believed him.

"I'd like to talk to Roberto before you tell anyone else that I said yes. Please?" she said nervously.

"I'll call him when we land," Matteo said easily. "I will call Peri too, if you like, and tell her we are staying in Melbourne for a day or two so you can speak with him face to face and meet the rest of my siblings." He offered, looking at her intently. "I will have you back before the opening of the art show. There is little for you to do there. Roz is the expert, and I am sure they can manage without you for a day or two."

"I..." Cat began to argue, but the look in his eyes stopped her. She could see that he wanted her agreement and paused. He was right, she didn't need to be there with Roz, it wasn't like there was much to do while they waited for the framers to complete the work on her sketches and the few canvases that Mick had sent up from her garage studio. She had no urgent reason to start arguing with him over two days. "Okay," she agreed hesitantly. "I have kept you away from your home and family for over a week already, I understand that you are missing them."

"Thank you," he smiled softly, feeling relief flood through him, and drew her into his arms to kiss her. His mind worked over all the knowledge this plane ride had brought him. She'd said yes, even with all of the knowledge she had gained about his family and what saying yes entailed. She'd said yes because he had finally admitted he loved her out loud. He would show her how much he loved her once he got her home, he thought eagerly. A few minutes later they sat in the recliners as the plane landed.

"This is my driver, valet and friend, Knox," Matteo introduced the huge man who waited for them as they alighted from the plane.

"A pleasure, Miss Leone," he nodded his head respectfully at her as he moved past them to gather the bags from the plane.

"You packed for us?" Cat asked, wondering when he would have done this.

"My day, my rules, I have been making plans for almost a week," he grinned.

"You knew I would agree to stay for a couple of nights? She asked.

"I had hoped I could convince you," he pulled her into his arms and kissed her before opening the car door. "I had quite a lot of plans. Your confessions on the plane have made me rethink," he chuckled as he climbed into the car beside her. He turned his phone on and began making the calls he had promised and arranged a dinner with his family for the following night and a meeting with Roberto for Cat. He also called Dante and explained the situation, insisting that Peri phone if she needed anything at all for the gallery before they returned.

*****

"I'm not going to lie to you, Cat," Matteo said as he opened the door to his penthouse apartment. "Part of me expected you to refuse to fly back to Melbourne with me."

"Your day, your rules," she said as she walked into his home for the first time. She took in the champagne pink Roses that stood on the entry table and smiled. "You seem to have been pretty confident I would come," she indicated the flowers.

"I'm an optimist, and the part of me that worried was drowned out by the part of me that was excited about sharing my home with you. This will be our home in the short term until we decide where we would like to live," he turned as a woman appeared in the entryway. "This is my housekeeper, Lisa," Matteo introduced the woman, who nodded her head and smiled slightly.

"Welcome, Miss Leone. Please let me know if you need anything this afternoon," she said in a soft voice and moved away with the bags.

"Thank you," Cat said awkwardly to the woman's retreating back. "You have a household staff?" she asked, tilting her head, wondering why this hadn't occurred to her.

"I'm not totally hopeless around the house, but they do make my life easier," he said defensively.

"I don't know why I was surprised," she tried to contain a smile at the thought of him doing his own laundry or washing. The idea seemed ridiculous to her now, and a small giggle escaped her lips. He'd been single for a very long time, but he had said he travelled a lot as well, so it made sense to have people in place as caretakers for his home.

"You find it amusing that I have a housekeeper?" he asked, tilting his head.

"I find it amusing to think of you doing domestic work yourself," she admitted and giggled again. "It makes sense that you have a housekeeper and driver," she admitted.

"They are both intensely loyal to me and have been contracted to me for over ten years," he explained. "They are discreet and totally trustworthy. You can ask either of them for help if you need, there is an intercom system," he showed Cat a panel on the wall. "The apartment is quite large, and if Lisa is not in the kitchen, you can speak to her through this. Knox will usually be with me if I am not home. They live on the floor below this."

As they spoke he had guided her into the apartment, again there were roses in the living room, and she smiled. The apartment was huge, and she was amazed by the vast open plan rooms, his office space and the immense master bedroom and bathroom. There were quite a few guest rooms, which she assumed he would need having such a large family, and a cosy smaller sitting room off the master bedroom suite for privacy while he had guests staying. Matteo pressed a button and blinds lifted to expose a view of the city that she imagined would look magical at night.

"This is beautiful," she whispered, approaching the windows to take in the view properly.

"You are beautiful," Matteo moved behind her, kissing her neck. "And mine."

"You're so possessive," she turned her head to look up at him. "I agreed to marry you. There is no need to claim me anymore. I love you and will be yours 'til death us do part, once I talk to Roberto." She lifted a hand to his cheek and kissed him softly.

"I'm not telling you so much as reminding myself how lucky I am that you're mine," he admitted. "I didn't think I would ever feel this way. It's very different to anything I have felt before, and I want everything we talked about, with you, but I don't ever want to feel like I am taking advantage of what you have been through, or that I am forcing you into something you are uncomfortable with. So I have to ask again: is it just the romanticised fantasy of submission that you are curious about? If you're not sure, despite what you said on the plane, now is the time to tell me before we celebrate Valentine's Day the way I have planned for us, because your confession on the plane has made me eager to celebrate a little differently tonight."

"That sounds ominous," she tilted her head and looked at him curiously. "I haven't lied to you about anything, not Ned or Ricco or how I feel about you and what I'd like to explore with you," Cat reassured him.

"I'm glad," he kissed her neck again. "So..." he paused, as there was a discrete knock at the door and Lisa came in with a jug of iced tea and cheese and fruit platter. Without a word, she placed it on the small table and left the room quickly.

"Iced tea?" Matteo asked, leading her to a comfortable sofa and picking up the jug to pour them a drink as she nodded. "Now that I now know the vanilla good girl image you project is just for show, we need to set some ground rules for exploring the things you're curious about before anything escalates tonight."

Cat turned to give him her full attention after taking in what he was saying.

"I am experienced as a dominant, and I don't want to push you into anything you are not ready for," he explained further. "Do you understand what limits are? Hard limits, soft limits? Is there anything you know you don't want to do or wouldn't be comfortable with?" His tone was serious as he tried to convey the gravity of this conversation.

"I'm not really sure, I've never been given a choice before," she said carefully. "I imagine that Ned didn't have much of a clue what he was doing anyway, and all I have to go on is fiction rather than specific experience, unlike you." After talking with Pete, she wasn't surprised that Matteo was experienced in a dominant and submissive type relationship.

"Today is my rules, my way, and I find it hard to believe after discussing how curious you were on more than one occasion that you would suddenly start acting all innocent with me. I also know that you can and will top from the bottom if I allowed it. So why don't you start again, and be honest with me this time!" Matteo almost growled, but his voice remained husky and deep, telling of his arousal.

The truth was that Cat had been fantasising about this. She imagined that Matteo would have the cool, calm confidence and dominance she read about in novels she preferred. Now that she was faced with the reality of surrendering to him willingly, rather than being forced as she was with Ned, she wasn't sure about what she wanted. She swallowed hard, realising where this afternoon and evening was leading.

"I thought maybe we would find out as we went along. I guess it would be easier for me to tell you what I like rather than what I don't like," Cat tried to keep her sudden anxiousness from her voice. "I haven't done anything I don't like, but, as I said, Ned wasn't a dominant so much as a bully who called me names and liked to push me around."

"There will be no name calling. I want no comparisons made between what we have and your past," he said assertively. "Things may get rough, but if you are ever hurt, beyond what would be considered erotic pain, or if there is accidental bleeding from a scratch or the like, everything stops immediately, and the wound will be dressed. I am not saying that is likely to happen, or that I would intend to hurt you that way, but I want the ground rules clear before we go any further."

"That sounds extremely considerate of you," she acknowledged. After being with Ned, she was surprised that this would be one of his rules. Ned would have just denied that he had ever hurt her or that he ever would.

"That is not considerate, that is being safe and sane. I love you, and I would never want to hurt you beyond painful pleasure," Matteo reassured her. "If that is what you think this is about you are even less experienced than I thought." He ran his fingers through his hair as if reassessing if this was a good idea and sighed heavily.

"I promise I will tell you if I am uncomfortable with anything that happens. I trust you to look after me," Cat took his hands in hers and looked into his eyes. "I want this; really want this, with you."

"Okay, safe words, you must use them. If I find out you aren't, or that you are lying to me at any time during a scene, everything will stop. Do you understand?" Matteo asked and watched Cat nod. "If I ask you how you are and you are feeling good, say green. If you are uncomfortable or starting to feel pain, but it is tolerable, say amber to warn me so I can monitor you closely or change what I am doing. If anything becomes intolerable and you need me to stop, you say, shout or yell red and I will cease whatever is happening immediately. Do you understand?"

"Yes, I understand," she nodded. "I heard of those safe words before in one of the books I have read." She blushed slightly as Matteo raised an eyebrow at the mention of books other than fifty shades, which was the only one she had talked about until now. "I appreciate that you are explaining everything so clearly to me," she said, feeling a little like a fraud in the face of his frustration with her inexperience, despite her asking about this lifestyle since her return from the Gathering.

"You're welcome," he leaned forward and kissed her. "You trust me?" he questioned her earlier words.

"Completely," she said, looking him in the eyes and discovering that she did without question. She had known him for such a small amount of time, in reality, but such was the intensity of their first strange weeks together she felt she had known him for months instead.

"Come with me," he took her hand and led her from the small sitting room. The small room he took her to surprised her. His apartment was decorated in a minimalist style that suited a bachelor, but this room took it one step further. The room was white, the walls, the heavy curtains, and the large four post bed that dominated the centre of the room were all stark white in colour, including the linen used. It seemed sterile and oddly impersonal with the few items of furniture being hard and cold in their appearance.

"I never understood the appeal of a red room when it would take away from all the fun we would be having making your skin that colour," he murmured softly in her ear as he moved her toward the bed. It was only then that she saw the gift box wrapped in a white linen paper that had made it blend with the bed in the stark room.