Submitting to My Best Friend's Dad by Scarlett Rossi
Chapter 576 -

Natalia

I was so excited to be spending time alone with Tallon that it really didn't matter where he was taking me, but when I realized that we were in Rome, I was ecstatic.

I had spent a lot of time in Italy, but I had never been to Rome before. I was so excited to explore the city, I was practically bouncing in my seat on the entire drive to our villa. When we arrived, I was awed by how beautiful the place was.

It was obviously a newer construction, but the design borrowed heavily from the historic architecture of the city. The front of the villa featured a lavish garden that was in full bloom at this time of the year. The scent of the flowers filled the air as we stepped out of the car.

While the staff unloaded our bags, Tallon took my hand in his and led me into the villa.

It was just as beautiful inside as it was out. There were gold gilded frames on every wall that featured beautiful landscape paintings. Vases of fresh flowers sat on nearly every surface and carried the pleasant scent throughout the building. Whoever managed the villa clearly paid attention to every detail.

It was like something out of a dream.

I wandered aimlessly through the large rooms for a while, just taking in all the beautiful decor. Tallon followed my lead, and I could feel how amused he was by my reaction. I didn't mind though. He had clearly put a lot of thought into planning this trip, so he was justified in feeling a little smug about it.

"This place is enormous," I said in awe. "We could spend all day here and still not see everything."

"It is a bit much for just the two of us," he said thoughtfully. "But I wanted to make sure that we would have our privacy.

I stood on my toes and kissed Tallon quickly. He smirked back at me.

"Was it worth the wait?" he asked.

"Yes," I said. "But I would be just as happy if you'd told me."

"Would you?" he asked skeptically.

"Yes," I insisted. He was probably right, but I wasn't going to back down. "Do you want to go explore the city?" he asked with a knowing smile.

I nodded enthusiastically. "Of course!"

Tallon laced our fingers together and led me back towards the front door.

I was surprised by how quickly we were able to walk from our private, scenic villa to the city. It made me even more excited to know that we would be able to spend as much time as we wanted in the city and not have a long drive home afterwards.

I felt a little bad for not paying more attention to Tallon as we walked, but he didn't seem to mind the silence. I just couldn't keep my eyes off the skyline of the city. In the distance, I could see the colosseum and the domed roof of what I was pretty sure was the Sistine Chapel.

I pointed both out to Tallon as we walked.

"I didn't realize that you were so familiar with the city," he said in surprise.

"I've always wanted to visit Rome," I answered.

I had daydreamed about exploring the world for much of my childhood, but I never thought that I would really be here. The Sistine Chapel and Colosseum were right at the top of my bucket list. I realized that we would be able to visit both and a whole new wave of excitement washed over me.

The ceiling of the Sistine Chapel was something that I had always wanted to see in person. Everyone had seen the images of Michaelangelo's famous fresco, but I had always wondered what it would be like to see it in its entirety, and not just reproductions of bits and pieces.

I was equally curious about the colosseum. The fact that it was still standing after nearly two thousand years was mind boggling. I thought that being able to stand in a structure that so many others had stood in over the course of so many millennia must feel incredible. I couldn't wait to experience it.

I looked up at Tallon and saw the fond smile on his face.

"It's beautiful," I said.

He nodded, but his eyes never left my face.

"What would you like to see first?"

"I'm not sure," I answered truthfully. "There are so many options, I don't know where to start."

He smiled and placed a light kiss on my lips. "We'll see it all," he promised. "Tomorrow, we'll do whatever you want."

"Tomorrow?" I asked in confusion. It wasn't especially late, so I wasn't sure why we couldn't start today. I was so eager to see everything the city had to offer.

"Tomorrow," he confirmed. "Because tonight we have dinner reservations. In fact, we should get back soon so we aren't late."

"Oh," I said in surprise. He really had thought it all out. "Where are we going to eat?"

"Pulejo," he answered simply.

I should have expected that he would choose a world famous, Michelin-star restaurant.

Tallon led me back to the villa and up to our bedroom.

The room was beyond extravagant, but I didn't take a lot of time to admire it just yet. I was busy worrying about what to wear. This is why I wanted to know where we were going. I wasn't sure that I packed a dress appropriate for a venue this fine.

Tallon was already adjusting his tie before I had even chosen a dress.

"What's wrong?" he asked in concern.

"I don't know what to wear," I said in frustration. "And don't you dare say it doesn't matter," I added.

He smiled at me and pointed to the bed. Lying on the duvet was a gorgeous gown that I had never seen before. I walked over to it and shook my head. He had thought of everything.

It was a beautiful mauve color, and the cut was flattering without being uncomfortable. I dressed quickly and touched up my makeup, then we were ready to go.

By the time we walked out the door, a car was already waiting for us.

I looked out the window as we drove and took in as many of the sights as I could. I wanted to commit all of this to memory. Tallon had no idea how much this trip meant to me.

When we arrived at the restaurant, there was a woman in an immaculate uniform waiting out front. She greeted Tallon and opened the door for us.

I looked at him questioningly, but he just linked his arm with mine and led me inside.

There wasn't a soul in sight when we entered and Tallon bypassed the maître de station and walked confidently into the dining room.

In the middle of the room was a single table with candles burning in the center.

There was a string quartet at one end of the room, and a nervous-looking waiter appeared from seemingly nowhere as we neared the table. Tallon pulled my chair out for me, and I sat.

Once Tallon was seated, the nervous looking man poured us two glasses of red wine. He stepped away and I looked at Tallon in utter confusion. "What's going on?" I asked.

Tallon looked around slowly and smiled. "I rented out the entire restaurant," he explained. "I didn't want any distractions to ruin our first evening in Rome."

I couldn't help but smile at him. "This really wasn't necessary," I said. "Being with you guarantees I'll have a good time."

He looked pleased by my statement and raised his glass to me in a toast. I lifted mine and clinked our glasses together gently, then took a sip.

The wine was deliciously spiced, and I made a small sound of appreciation.

After a few moments, the nervous waiter returned with a wheeled tray full of dishes. I looked at Tallon in confusion.

"I spoke to the chef about our menu for the evening so that he could prepare our food ahead of time. It didn't make sense to keep the entire kitchen on for the night when they were only going to have two customers. Since he knew what time to expect us, he was able to time things out."

"It smells incredible," I said.

I hadn't even realized how hungry I was until this moment.

The rest of our meal was nothing short of decadent. The food was some of the best I've ever eaten, and the atmosphere of the restaurant was perfectly romantic. The lighting was dimmed, but not too dark to see and the music that the string quartet played filled the room with unobtrusive and gentle melodies.

I couldn't have planned a more perfect evening if I'd had a hundred years to do it.

Of course, the thing that made it so perfect was Tallon.

He focused solely on me while we chatted about the lovely food and what we were going to do for the rest of our vacation. His eyes never left mine for long and he listened intently as I talked, even when I felt like I was rambling in my excitement.

I reveled in the feeling of having his full attention on me and nothing else.

Tallon was a busy and important man, so it was understandable that these moments were rare for us. That just made me savor it all the more.

He reached out to hold my hand and looked at my hand for a long time. I didn't realize at first that he was looking at my ring.

He lifted my hand and gently kissed my knuckles.

"I'm so lucky," he said softly. "A woman like you is more than I ever deserved. When you accepted my proposal, it was the proudest moment of my life."

I stared at him in disbelief.

Tallon had accomplished so much that it was hard to believe he really thought that, but the look in his eyes was so honest that I had to believe him.

"I love you," I said softly. I couldn't think of anything else to say.

Tallon leaned forward and captured my lips in a short, heated kiss.

"I love you too."

I caught myself leaning in for a more intense kiss when I remembered that we weren't actually alone. Tallon must have realized what happened because he chuckled softly and leaned close to me. "We have plenty of time for that," he whispered.

I felt my face grow warm at the implication and his teasing tone. As much as I wanted to agree with him, I had a feeling that we were both going to be too tired by the time we got back to the Villa. But, as Tallon had pointed out, we had plenty of time to enjoy our vacation to the fullest.