In a heartbeat (Heartbeat #1) Read online

  Yeah, right. That’s why I was ogling him like he was a piece of chocolate cake and I wanted to lick the icing.

  Maybe that was why he literally ran away – he was offended. All he did was help a stranger in need and the said stranger stared at him, open-mouthed, a smile away from drooling.

  In my defence, how could I not? I’ve never met a man who had such an effect on me. I don’t know his name, but I was ready to wrap my legs around his waist. In a heartbeat.

  Shaking her head, Stella limped back towards her shoes. She wasn’t going to be able to run for a few days, which meant she wouldn’t get the chance to see him again. On the bright side, she knew where his station was and would sunbathe on that beach until he showed up. She was going to talk to him again, even if she had to fake her own drowning and he was forced to save her. Again.

  When Stella got home, she felt too exhausted to do anything – she had slept just a few hours last night and after all the events of the morning, her energy levels were running dangerously low. All she could manage was a light breakfast and a shower before she collapsed in her bed.

  She must have slept for a couple of hours when she heard a knock on the door.

  “Come in.”

  “Hey. Are you OK? Why are you in bed?” Lisa was concerned, and it showed in her every move as she sat on the bed.

  “I’m fine.”

  “Are you sure?” Stella appreciated her cousin’s concern, but she knew what she meant – she thought she was in bed because of her illness.

  “I love you to bits, Lis, but if you don’t stop treating me as if I’m dying, I’ll strangle you.”

  “Sorry,” said Lisa, as a smile spread on her lips. “What did you do today?”

  Stella threw the covers away from her body and swung her legs from the side of the bed while she thought exactly how to phrase today’s events so that her cousin wouldn’t freak out.

  “Why is your foot bandaged?” Lisa shrieked.

  Too late for that plan.

  “I’ll tell you if you promise to take it down a notch.” Lisa mumbled something like “Sorry,” so Stella continued: “I went for a run, barefoot on the beach. I wasn’t paying attention where I was going and stepped on a broken mussel shell.”

  “OK ... How did you get home, all bleeding?”

  “I didn’t.” Lisa looked confused and Stella knew it was time to confess the whole story. “I wasn’t paying attention because all my brain cells were focused on the guy who was jogging towards me. It was the lifeguard that I told you about yesterday. He was off duty and out for a run and I couldn’t believe my luck when I saw him. And then I sliced my foot. He came to help me, took a first-aid kit out of his station and bandaged me.”

  “Why are you smiling? That’s horrible!”

  “Horrible? I’ve never been more thankful for an accidental bodily harm in my life.”

  Stella giggled and soon Lisa followed suit. Relaxing, she asked,

  “And then what happened?”

  “Nothing. He helped me up, said, and I quote, ‘Take care,’ and left. I don’t even know his name.”

  “Hmmm, that’s strange.”

  “Yeah ... I thought maybe he was offended because I was ogling him ...”

  “Right, because men hate that.” Lisa rolled her eyes.

  “No, I’m serious. He’s so perfect that I couldn’t stop myself. I’ve never, ever, met someone who made me feel that way.”

  “You know what? You came here to have fun; you deserve a summer fling. The hotter – the better.

  “My thoughts exactly.”

  “What’s the plan?” asked Lisa, with a mischievous grin.

  “I know where he works. Tomorrow we go to the beach and I’ll go and thank him for ‘saving’ me. In my skimpiest bikini.”

  “Perfect. I’m not working tomorrow, so it’s a deal. Now, get your perky ass out of this bed and get ready. Everyone’s coming in about half an hour.”

  Lisa prepared everything and refused to even let Stella anywhere near the kitchen. She was instructed to ‘get a cold beverage and sit her butt outside by the pool’.

  “Can I at least start the barbecue? I can see you’ve got enough meat to feed a small Chinese village.”

  “No, it’s Max’s thing. You know, men and barbecues,” said Lisa, rolling her eyes. She placed the meat and vegetables in plastic containers near the grill. Then she brought a huge bowl of salad and a jug full of icy lemonade, followed by a jug of Prosecco and a plate of nibbles. Placing everything on the table, she flopped on the lounger next to Stella. As if on cue, the doorbell rang.

  Lisa went to open the door, and a minute later cheerful voices filled the house. Stella couldn’t help but smile – hot weather, BBQ by the pool, Lisa and her friends. Life was good.

  Suddenly, she had a flashback of the last time she had thought her life was perfect – right before the call about the car crash that killed her dad and Eric. Stella hoped this time her fortune wouldn’t turn, just because she was thankful for what she had.

  Turning her head towards the French doors, she realised her fortune had definitely turned. For the better.

  Because, taking his first step outside, was her lifeguard.

  Chapter Four

  His eyes bore straight into hers and in a couple of seconds his expression changed several times – surprise, realisation and then delight. The corners of his mouth turned up in that mouth-watering grin and he winked at her.

  Thank God Stella was sitting down, or her knees would have buckled. How was it even possible for a single person to possess so much charm? He strolled towards her, his swagger perfectly accented by his faded blue jeans and black T-shirt. His eyes sparkled dangerously as he sat down at the bottom end of her lounger and said,

  “Something I should have said this morning ...” Stella blinked, unable to form words – again. “Hi, I’m Max.”

  Noooo, no, no, no, no!

  “Max? Lisa’s Max?”

  I can’t believe this!

  “So you’ve heard about me.”

  Yes, I’ve heard of you – you’re my best friend’s best friend! You’re probably the only man in Genoa, no scratch that, in Italy, that I can’t have. You’re the only person I can’t have my hot, summer fling with … and the only person I want to have my hot summer fling with!

  This was a disaster.

  Hot blood rushed to Stella’s cheeks as she remembered everything she’d told Lisa. When she found out her lifeguard was Max she was going to freak out. Stella knew her cousin would never be OK with someone using one of her closest friends for some summer fun. Even if that person was one of her closest friends.

  “Yeah, I’ve heard about you,” she said. It was going to be fine. She was going to pretend she didn’t find him insanely attractive and try to be friends with him.

  “Whatever she has told you, I guarantee the real deal is better,” he said, and smirked.

  Good plan, Stella, good plan. Now try and stick to it.

  *

  When Max saw her, he couldn’t believe his luck. He hadn’t stopped thinking about her all day. He knew she reminded him of someone – there was a photo in Lisa’s room of the two of them together. She was about twelve on it so that was why he couldn’t place her right away.

  Stella. Her name was Stella – Lisa’s cousin.

  She definitely looked uncomfortable with his flirting and Max couldn’t help but find it adorable. Not many girls these days shied away from his charm.

  “Max, stop pestering Stella,” Lisa said as she came out, followed by his sister and Beppe.

  “I’m not pestering her; I’m just checking on my patient.”

  Stella closed her eyes and blushed.

  Wow, she must have told Lisa about me, thought Max.

  Judging by his friend’s almost comical surprised expression, she had. And it was juicy – the girls shared a look that spoke volumes.

  “Is that your latest pick-up line?” asked Beppe and walked in their directio
n, stopping right in front of Stella and theatrically kissing her hand. “Don’t waste your time with that loser, bellissima.”

  Stella laughed, to Beppe’s delight. He was still holding her hand. She didn’t pull it away, but held his gaze, her lips parting as she licked them with the tip of her tongue. Max knew women reacted that way to Beppe – his friend was tall, lean and had that dangerous bad-boy vibe. His perfectly symmetrical face, dark smothering eyes, piercings and tattoos also helped lure women in. Right now, however, Beppe needed to move away from Stella or Max was going to make him.

  “Back off, man. This is between doctor and patient. In fact, I think we should go somewhere quieter to examine you properly.”

  Stella tore her eyes away from Beppe and let go of his hand. Focusing her attention back on Max, she bit her lip to stifle a laugh.

  “There’s no need, but thanks. I’m fine.”

  To prove her point, she swung her legs from the lounger and got up, stepping on her injured foot. Not such a good idea. Max saw her flinch in pain and lose her balance. Fortunately, he had shot to his feet the moment she had stood up and supported her weight by circling her waist with his arms. She tensed under his touch and her breath caught.

  “Are you sure about that examination?” Max whispered in her ear, as he released her and she supported her weight on her other foot. Stella exhaled loudly, her pupils dilated and she flushed as she looked at him.

  “Pretty sure.”

  Her words were saying one thing, but her body had a completely different opinion. Max liked that. He couldn’t remember when the last time was, if ever, that a girl had had that kind of reaction from just being close to him. Sure, he didn’t lack female attention, but it was nothing like that.

  Nothing that sincere.

  “Don’t mind them, Stella. They’re idiots,” said Gia when she came to rescue Stella. “I’m Gia, idiot number one’s sister.” Stella grinned at her as his sister embraced her and kissed both her cheeks. “Come, leave them to their BBQ. Let’s get us a drink.”

  And she took her away.

  *

  Gia was almost an exact copy of Max – a female version of his perfection. Her dark hair was long and wavy, and Stella thought that was how Max’s would look if he didn’t cut it short. Her face was a great example of perfect symmetry – straight nose, high cheekbones, plump mouth and those sparkling hazel eyes. The only difference was that Gia’s body was a faultless case of femininity – small, graceful, and curvy – while Max was tall, with broad shoulders, and emitted power and poise with his every move.

  Gia took two glasses and started pouring Prosecco in them.

  “I’ll have a glass of lemonade,” said Stella before she could fill her glass with wine.

  “You sure?” Stella nodded. “The wine goes perfectly with the antipasti ...”

  Yeah, when you’ve got liver cancer – not so much.

  “Maybe later.” There wouldn’t be any wine drinking later on Stella’s part, but she didn’t want to offend Gia; Italians took their wine very seriously.

  Despite the initial surprise at Max’s identity, the evening flowed seamlessly with no awkward pauses. Gia was nice, funny and straight-talking, and Stella really liked her. Beppe looked as though he belonged in a romance novel, not in real life. He was flawless: his body was lean and muscled, tattoos peeking under his tight T-shirt; he had a few days’ growth of stubble on his cheeks, accenting his casual look; his right eyebrow was pierced; and Stella was pretty sure she saw tongue piercing in his mouth as well. And yet, in Stella’s eyes, his gorgeousness seemed to disappear the moment he sat next to Max.

  Beppe loved to get on Max’s nerves and make everyone laugh. They kept going at each other, alternating between English and Italian the whole time as if it was the same language. Beppe’s English was quite good, although not as perfect as Gia and Max’s. Stella wondered why that was and made a mental note to ask Lisa later.

  Speaking of Lisa, she seemed worried when she found out that Max was Stella’s lifeguard; but as the evening progressed, she relaxed. Stella was adamant about nipping his flirting in the bud, because it would clearly make Lisa uncomfortable – and with good reason: two of her closest friends hooking up, when one of them had cancer and lived in another country, was a recipe for disaster. Stella didn’t want to put her cousin in a position where she had to choose between the two of them if things ended badly.

  Dinner was delicious – barbecued meat, sausages and vegetables. Stella had to admit that while joking around, the boys had managed to handle the BBQ to perfection. Max was especially proud when Gia-the-chef praised the food. He didn’t make any more moves on Stella while they ate and she was glad. It really did feel like dinner between friends and it was easy to forget that she had just met them a few hours ago.

  “So Stella, do you have any plans? Anything you want to do while you’re here?” Gia asked.

  “No, I haven’t made any particular plans. I’m up for anything, I guess.”

  “Good. We’ll take good care of you, then.” Gia smiled warmly at her.

  “Are you coming with us to the football match on Saturday?” Beppe asked, eyes glowing with excitement.

  “A match? Isn’t the season over?” Stella was pretty sure Serie A ended in May and didn’t start until the end of August.

  “It is,” said Beppe, his interest peaking up. “But it’s a charity match between Sampdoria and Genoa. The whole town would probably go.”

  “I wouldn’t miss the local derby for anything. Count me in.”

  Sampdoria vs Genoa? In the summer? Wow – Stella had wanted to be able to see a game, but she never hoped it would be the epic derby, since it was out of season. Her face must have showed exactly how excited she was, because Beppe narrowed his unnerving brown eyes at her and cocked his pierced eyebrow.

  “You like football?”

  “Yeah.” She tried to sound nonchalant, because it always threw people off guard. Football had been her passion since she was a little girl, thanks to her dad and Eric. Her brother had been an avid Liverpool fan and had taken her to numerous games. His enthusiasm had always been very addictive and, before she knew it, Stella had become as obsessed as he had been. After he died, she felt it was her duty to continue his allegiance to his favourite team. She felt that if he could see her, he’d be proud.

  “So which team are you going to support at the match?” Beppe asked, testing her.

  “Genoa. No question about it.”

  It was the wrong answer, because Beppe’s face fell. On the other hand, Max’s lips spread into a lazy smile. So maybe it was the right answer after all.

  “Just a piece of warning – the supporters of the losing team are buying the beer afterwards.” Beppe relaxed back in his chair, thinking he was off the hook.

  “Better bring your wallet, then,” said Stella, as Max and Gia laughed. Beppe’s face grew serious, and Stella felt she had struck a chord and was about to be tested further.

  Bring it on.

  “Do you even know what colours Genoa wear?” Oh, she wasn’t a proper fan, was that it? Her opinion didn’t count?

  “Red and blue home, white with red and blue stripes away.”

  Beppe gaped involuntarily and Stella took her chance to strike again. “And before you say anything else, if it wasn’t for us Englishmen who came over here and made you a football club, your most popular sport would probably be beach volleyball. That’s why I’ll be supporting Genoa on Saturday – it’s the first football club in Italy, founded by Englishmen in 1893 and still proudly wearing St George’s cross on its shirts.”

  Silence. Beppe was speechless. Max was amazed. Gia and Lisa had left to clear the table of the empty dishes without Stella noticing.

  Beppe managed to sort out his thoughts after a few seconds and if Stella could judge by the wicked twinkle in his eyes, he was ready with his comeback.

  “Speaking of flags, you English people should thank us, the people of Genoa, for lending you our St Georg
e’s flag when we protected your fleet while sailing our waters in the twelfth century,” he said, and smirked, proud of himself for that reply.

  “We weren’t speaking of flags per se, we were speaking of football. Don’t try to lead the conversation in another direction. In fact, you should probably thank me right now, since I’m a representative of the nation that gifted football to your country. If you do, I might just overlook that fact that you’re bad-mouthing the very reason Italian football even exists.”

  Max let out a throaty laugh and it was the sexiest thing Stella had ever heard. It filled her whole body with waves of pleasure and she struggled to remain calm and impassive, when what she really wanted to do was close her eyes in bliss. Her eyes darted in Max’s direction and he tipped his beer bottle towards her, before taking a sip. He kept his eyes on her as he drank, his Adam’s apple going up and down in his throat. Stella’s lips parted as she saw herself placing a kiss just below his jaw line and sucking on the tender flesh.

  Stop it! Friends, remember?

  “How about you thank me? We gave your country a fucking national flag!” Beppe’s voice was serious, but amusement played in his eyes.

  “OK, I will. As long as you thank me for football.”

  He eyed her incredulously.

  “Well? Do we have a deal?”

  “Over my dead body.” Beppe pronounced every word slowly and carefully and Stella couldn’t hide her smile. “Did he put you up to this?” he asked, pointing at Max.

  “What? No!”

  “Are you sure? Because it sounds awfully like something his half-English ass would say.”

  Half English? That explained a lot.

  “I’m going for a smoke.” Beppe stood up, taking out a box of cigarettes from his back pocket, and headed away from the table.

  “You really got to him; he only smokes when he’s extremely frustrated,” said Max, boring his eyes into Stella’s. It was getting dark outside and without any light to reflect they looked almost black.