Submitting to My Best Friend's Dad by Scarlett Rossi
Chapter 477 -

*Olivia*

"Everything ready, carina?" Gio called out to me from the door to our suite. With one hand on the wood and the other on the frame, he gave me an easy-going grin as I raced back and forth across the seat. Elio giggled from his car seat, his wide, bright eyes following me as I hurriedly stuffed last-minute things into my bags.

"Did you pack his 'sharkie'? That's his newest obsession," I demanded, racing into Elio's room to check if his stuffed animal was still in his crib or not. I pulled back the blanket, checking for the shark plush, but there was nothing there but a pacifier that probably needed to be washed and the pillow he used.

I grabbed his blanket anyway, racing back into the living room.

"I packed sharkie and the bunny," Gio told me, amused as I knelt in front of Elio's car seat, unfolding his white baby blanket and covering him with it, tucking in the sides so it wouldn't slip away.

Our one-year-old gave me a toothy smile in response and I chuckled, kissing his cheeks and nose before I pulled away.

"Are you sure we have everything?" I asked Gio, anxiously, biting my bottom lip as I ran through the checklist one last time.

Gio pushed off the door, shaking his head as he stepped behind me and wrapped his arms around my waist. He laid his chin on my shoulder, holding me close and I sighed, relaxing into the heat along my back.

"We'll be fine, carina. If we forget anything, we can just buy it. Plus I doubt Elio will need too many toys on the trip. He'll have so many new sights and sounds to investigate," Gio told me convincingly, kissing my neck to calm me down. "That's true," I hummed in agreement. "Alright then."

"Let's go!" Gio cheered, releasing me from behind and grabbing Elio's car seat in one hand. Elio giggled, waving his arms happily as he cheered "Go!"

I laughed, holding onto my husband's hand as he led us out of the house and toward the private helicopter waiting for us outside. After so many trips with Gio, his overly extravagant displays of wealth hardly fazed me anymore, not like when I first found out he owned a whole fleet of private jets.

Sometimes it was easy to forget that Gio and I came from totally different worlds, one where I was used to pinching pennies to make our groceries last, but Gio could have lobster dinners every night and still be rich.

It was a short ride to the private airport, and Elio loved it.

The pilot was already up front when we stepped into the jet. I took the time to fasten Elio's car seat to the seat, triple-checking the secure fastenings just for my piece of mind. Gio didn't say a word, but I could feel his eyes on mine as I did so. There was no judgment. He just waited in case I did replace something and needed help. Once I was sure his car seat was going nowhere, I settled next to Gio and buckled up.

"Let's go," Gio called out to the pilot, who leaned over his chair from the front and gave us a thumbs up. The door to the cockpit closed and the plane turned on. The plane rumbled to life and we began to move.

Elio cooed from his seat, looking all too calm while I gripped Gio's hand tightly in mine, my mind rushing through all the things that could go wrong.

It was only once we were in the air and the light for the seatbelts to unfasten lit up that I breathed a sigh of relief and finally let go of the stranglehold I had on Gio's hand. He chuckled, rubbing the feeling back into the white tips of his fingers, and kissed me on the forehead.

"I'll watch Elio so you can try to get some more sleep, okay?" Gio whispered to me and I nodded, getting myself comfortable in my seat. I leaned my head on his shoulder as I shut my eyes and prepared to sleep for the four-hour flight. When I woke, we would be in Naples.

Just like we planned, Gio woke me up before we started the landing process. We arrived just before noon and we managed to land safely without a hitch. Elio had fallen asleep sometime on the flight, and I carried his car seat out of the jet and down to the car already waiting for us.

The first thing I saw and smelled when stepping out of the jet was the sea. Then the whole city settled on top of a mountain before us. It was breathtaking seeing how many different colored roofs were peeking through the green forestation, the way the water surrounded it all in a bright clear color.

It was like something from a painting, only real. The drive to the house wasn't too far, but I peeked out the windows as we drove along the winding streets. It was packed to the brim, much more than Florence was, and everywhere I looked there were hoards of people moving down the streets, just as colorful as their city.

But none of it compared to the breathtaking house I saw when stepped out of the car. Even temporarily, it was hard to believe I was going to live in such a gorgeous house. It was more like a princess tower in a castle, wider on the bottom and stretching far into the sky above us.

Right down on the water, the scent of the salt and sand was refreshing. With a blooming garden to the side and a winding staircase that traveled down the cliffside to the beach, it was perfect.

Gio led me inside, a watchful eye on my expression as my jaw continued to drop. The whole house was picturesque, filling with art and seeming to head upward forever. Our room, luckily, was at the top of the tower, and our bags were already there when we stepped inside.

Our room had a massive bed and a huge balcony. The scene was just to die for, looking out over the ocean as the sound of the rolling waves crashed against the shore. I breathed in the air, taking the moment and tucking it away as a memory I wouldn't forget.

"Like it?" Gio chuckled, grabbing my waist from behind me and pulling me flush against his back. I giggled, leaning up with a doting smile as my handsome husband.

"Yes," I breathed, leaning up to kiss him on the lips. "It's perfect. You're perfect."

"I know," Gio grinned arrogantly, kissing me back sweet and soft. "I have a chef coming to prepare dinner tonight so we don't have to exhaust ourselves. In the meantime, wanna take a walk to explore the city?" Gio asked, swaying us back and forth.

"I'd love to," I chuckled, grabbing his hand in mine.

Elio rubbed his eyes from sleep, yawning as I unbuckled him from the car seat and pulled him into my arms. Gio fished his bag for the sharkie plush and Elio beamed as he reached out for it, grabbing it by the tail happily.

"Let's go take a walk, okay, sweetie?" I brushed Elio's curls from his forehead, reminding myself to give him a haircut. He just cooed in response, shyly burying his head into the crook of my neck. He tucked his sharkie under his chin, his little fingers playing with the toothy smile on the plush. I put him in the stroller since he was still a little sleepy to walk, and he squeezed his sharkie tight.

Gio took my hand, rubbed Elio's back for a moment, and then led us out of the new house and into the streets. Instead of heading down to the beach, we turned left to enter the city. We were lucky we were so close to the city center. Naples was just as beautiful as I'd imagined.

I was in awe of how utterly in tune with the water the Naples people were. Everywhere I looked, I saw natives carrying boards back from the beaches, and families and couples walking the streets dressed in swimwear and still-wet hair. We stopped for lunch at a local gem, a cozy family-style restaurant with no actual menus. The waiter spouted out fast-paced Italian, naming all the daily specials. I ordered the pasta with potato sauce and provolone, which was to die for, and got Elio the basic spaghetti alle vongole, which of course, ended up with half of it on his face and hair.

Gio was a bit more adventurous and ordered the octopus with spicy red sauce. And after trying a tiny bite at his convincing, I vowed never again, especially since said octopus still had a face to it. I had to cover the poor creature's eyeballs to even stand the bite I took.

Spicy food was not my forte, and after three drinks to cover the spice, we continued on our tour.

The water was central to the city, but life grew elsewhere as well. We stopped by the Botanical Gardens and I held Elio's hand as I let him walk down the bridge over the lake, giggling at his reflection and trying to chase the dragonflies. The lily pads across the calm water, the blooming flowers around every edge were gorgeous to see. I had never seen so much green in my life. The tropical plants down the winding paths and routes, traveling through every continent it seemed, were more than enough to take my mind off the troubles back at home.

Bronze statues of animals wowed Elio, and he especially loved the mother and child elephant pair. We stopped so that Gio could lift him into his arms and let him touch the trunks. He also adored the colorful murals painted on the few walls, running down the paths as fast as his little legs could carry him so he could trace the colorful shapes of birds and handprints.

I read out loud every plaque for the flowers he showed an interest in, but he wasn't really old enough to pay attention or understand yet. We stopped by the beach to let Elio play a bit and helped him build a sandcastle.

Elio took it very seriously, especially after his daddy built him a moat around the lump of sand he called a castle.

I leaned against Gio's shoulders, offering little suggestions as Elio continued to build up his masterpiece.

"Thanks, Gio," I murmured to my husband quietly, relaxed and content to watch my son play in the sand, "for always knowing exactly what I need."

I only realized it now, but I had needed this. It was like all the fears and anxiety faded away like the pull of the tide.

"You're welcome, carina." He kissed my forehead, smiling proudly. "My first goal in life is to make sure you and Elio are happy."

And there, on the beach, I didn't think it was even possible, but I fell in love with him even more.