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Oh, God, he’d forgotten how good this felt, even in the few days since he’d last kissed her It was as if his mind couldn’t believe the memory was as sensational as it truly was

Seb cursed the counter between the his ability to sweep Maria into his arms and hold her close But then, as they broke the kiss, coh to breathe and stare at each other, Seb decided it ht be for the best

He’d wanted to roht To show her how ready he was to be the kind of husband she needed—in every way To focus on her completely

If he took her to bed before they even got to dinner, he would kind of bethe point

So he pulled back, sht eyes, and her chest heaving with too-fast breaths under that gorgeously slinky dress He was just about to think of so wonderfully suave and seductive to say when the pasta boiled over behind him

‘Hold that thought,’ he said, and turned to deal with the culinary crisis

Ten minutes later, dinner was served

‘Is it like you remember?’ he asked, as Maria tucked in He was pretty sure he’d recalled hisher there to ask had brought him down for a few minutes, the way it always did when he reone

But his parents would approve of his attempts to win Maria back, he was sure Well, his father would be worrying about hi the business, but Mamma would understand, and she’d talk his papà round She always did

‘It’s perfect,’ Maria replied, s ‘Just as I reht of my visits Do you remember?’

‘I do In fact, I took it as evidence that you were always her secret favourite, long before you actually married into the family’

Maria laughed ‘I think she just liked cooking for an appreciate audience You and Noemi were too used to her incredible meals My mother liked us to pretend we could exist on air and water alone I used to long to escape her steamed chicken and salads and come to your place for proper food’

‘I knew there had to be so around us,’ Seb replied ‘I was just hoping it had a little bit ood looks’

‘Oh, there was definitely that appeal, too,’ Maria said, with another flirtatious smile ‘But mostlymostly I just liked the way your family felt like, well, a real faether because they had nowhere else to go’

Seb re her parents’ ho him Which led to the memory of the first Christmas they were married, and how they’d spent it in the chilly atmosphere of the Rossi mansion He knew exactly what she reed to always spend Christmas with Sebastian’s family after that

‘Do theyhere for Christmas with Frankie this year?’ he asked, aware that it was rather late to be asking that question If they did, it wouldn’t have stopped hi her to co with them for a full year

‘I didn’t tell thelass

Seb blinked ‘You don’t think they one? Ielse, they ht remark on the sudden quiet’

‘They’re away visiting with friends for the holidays Besides, I wasn’t exactly staying with them,’ Maria said ‘I mean, the idea was to find somewhere Frankie and I could be happier And that place was never going to be with my parents’

That stung a little, but Seb acknowledged the truth of it Though he felt slightly reassured that even beingwith her parents ‘So where have you been living?’

‘Do you ree of their estate? Down by the lake?’

‘The one we ice-skated on? Of course I ree the first Christether away from them It wasvery cosy’ It had been tiny, even by normal house standards, and Maria was used toSeb could really remember about it was how he’d made love to Maria in front of the fire

‘I love it there,’ Maria said, breaking into his memories ‘And Frankie does, too He spent time with my parents—well,soo home to’

‘You liked it being just the two of you?’ Seb asked, his heart sinking a little That was soive her

‘It ht have been otherwise,’ Maria said ‘But in lots of ways it didn’t feel all that ave hi to ease the guilt and pain eating him up inside