Submitting to My Best Friend's Dad by Scarlett Rossi
Chapter 595 -

*One Week Later* *Tallon*

I found Natalia curled up in an armchair in the living room reading a thriller. I loved the way she bit her lip and furrowed her brow just slightly every time she read something that intrigued her. She was always beautiful, but I especially loved her like this, curled up in her pajamas with a good book.

I knew she was most at ease when she was immersed in her reading, and I loved that I got to see that more vulnerable side of her.

I still couldn't believe that she was my wife. It felt strangely formal yet somehow exactly perfect to look at her and think, 'That's my wife.' Every puzzle piece was finally falling into place, and now there was just one thing I still wanted to do. I walked over behind her and leaned down to kiss her neck, loving the way my touch sent goosebumps down her skin. She groaned in mock-irritation and closed her book, turning to look at me pointedly.

She knew that there was no point in trying to ignore me now that I was wanting her attention. I was pretty sure that she secretly loved the way I would replace her just to pull her in for a few kisses.

"Yes?" she asked, her lips quirked up in a half smile.

"I've realized that we made a terrible mistake," I murmured, pressing kisses along her neck to punctuate my words.

"And what could that possibly be?"

"We forgot to plan a honeymoon!" I pulled away from her neck and walked around the chair to kneel in front of her. "I know you were so distracted by the thought of marrying such a catch as myself, but I can't believe you forgot to tell me where you wanted to go."

She laughed at my teasing, then thought for a second.

"We can go anywhere," I promised, "no limits."

"I'll be honest, Tallon. I'm kind of tired of planning things. Can you just surprise me? I know I'll love whatever you decide."

I grinned. "I was hoping you might say that. Alright, you get back to reading. I'll get to planning!"

I already knew exactly where I wanted to take her.

***

*A Few Days Later*

Our private jet taxied on the tarmac at Naples-Capodichino International Airport. Natalia turned to me, her face lit up.

"We're going back to Positano, aren't we?" she asked excitedly.

I nodded and she immediately hopped into my lap, wrapping her arms around my neck and squeezing tightly. Her excitement made my own build as I held her close and rubbed her back absentmindedly, thinking of all the things we would get to do that we hadn't been able to the last time we were here.

This time around, it would be the perfect trip. I had given Vinny and Alessandro strict instructions not to contact me. I had faith that they could handle anything that would pop up.

Natalia and I needed this time uninterrupted together. I wanted to really show her that she was the center of my whole world, and nothing could take me away from her.

We got out of the jet and into the black SUV that had been waiting on the runway for us. I didn't always opt for flashy transportation, but for our honeymoon I had chosen a luxurious vehicle that would have us traveling in comfort and style. There was already a bucket of ice in the back with a chilled bottle of champagne waiting for us to pop. As soon as Natalia had settled in, I poured us both glasses and tipped mine toward hers for a toast.

"May our love grow stronger with each passing moment. May we always remember the best times and tackle the hard times together, hand in hand. I love you, Natalia, forever." She clinked her glass against mine, tears welling up in her eyes. "I love you," she said quietly, her voice thick with emotion.

We both took a sip from our glasses but quickly set them down in favor of wrapping our arms around each other. We just wanted to hold each other and remind ourselves that this was real.

In what felt like no time at all, we were driving into Positano. The last time we had left here, I had wondered if I was screwing things up between us for good. The fact that I was coming back with Natalia as my wife overwhelmed me with pride. It had not been an easy road for the two of us, but we had overcome every difficulty that life threw at us, and we were a stronger couple for it.

I had rented a private home for us in Positano. As we walked to the front door, I sat our bags down, then reached out and swept Natalia off her feet so that I could carry her through the front door. "Tallon, what are you-" she giggled.

"Isn't this what I'm supposed to do with my new bride?" I asked, setting her down and closing the door behind us quickly so that I could pull her into a deep kiss.

She fell into the kiss as much as I did, and before long we were both breathing heavily, our faces flushed and our clothes wrinkled from more than just traveling. She pulled away before I did.

"I packed too many designer clothes to leave our bags just sitting outside," she laughed.

"I'll buy you a new wardrobe every week," I declared, pulling her back in for another kiss.

She rolled her eyes but didn't move to stop me. I knew she loved it just as much as I did. Our physical chemistry had always been perfect.

Once I had kissed her enough to know that she was putty in my hands, I nudged her to go toward the bedroom and told her to let me get our bags. She walked off in a daze, and although I wanted nothing more than to follow her immediately, I knew that we really would regret it if our luggage was stolen.

As quickly as I could, I grabbed the bags from outside and pulled them in, only to dump them by the front door so that I could follow her to the bedroom.

My beautiful bride was curled up on the bed, waiting expectantly for me to join her. Although we had a day filled with plans, I couldn't resist climbing in next to her and running my hand over her hip, knowing we didn't really have time for what I wanted to do with her.

"Tonight," I promised, "I will have you every way that I can think of."

Her cheeks turned pink with the innuendo, and I leaned over to catch her mouth one last time before we really did need to leave.

Hours later, we had walked ourselves to exhaustion. Natalia had taken thousands of photos to show Mia when we got home, and I had spent the entire day just watching her and soaking in every second. We were both exhausted, but we just barely had time to get ready for our dinner reservations.

"Where are we going?" Natalia asked as she pinned her hair up in a way that accentuated her lovely jawline.

I came up behind her and wrapped my hands around her waist, careful not to get in the way of the work she was doing to her hair.

"Il Tridente, of course," I murmured and pressed a kiss to the side of her neck.

She shivered under my hands.

"Alright, but this time, I'm only sticking to two glasses of champagne," she chuckled, remembering the last time we had eaten there.

"Oh, that's too bad, I had a great time with drunk Natalia," I teased. "But I suppose I'll have an even better time with tipsy Natalia. She won't fall asleep before I manage to get her to bed."

She smiled slightly as I kissed my way from her neck to her shoulder.

"You look so beautiful, baby," I said quietly, letting my chin rest on her shoulder so that I could make eye contact with her in the mirror.

And she did. She was absolutely breathtaking in a shimmery black gown that skimmed her curves perfectly before elegantly cascading to the floor. She looked like a Russian princess.

"I love you," she said as she finished with her hair. She turned around so that she could wrap her arms around my neck.

"I love you so much," I responded, nuzzling my face once more against her neck.

At Il Tridente, I had rented out the entire restaurant so that we would get the royal treatment and total privacy. We sat at a table near the edge of the roof that had the perfect view of the sparkling city as well as the moonlit ocean. Natalia kept staring out at all of it, but I couldn't stop staring at her.

"I never thought this would be my life," she sighed as we dug into our first course. "I still keep pinching myself, thinking it's going to turn out that I'm back at my mom's and this has all been an elaborate dream."

"You deserve this and so much more. I feel so lucky that I get to be the one to give it to you," I said fiercely.

I hated the way her family had convinced her that she wasn't worth a life like this. I knew she still had a few deep-rooted insecurities left over from them.

"I'm just glad you found me... or I guess I technically found you," she said with a laugh.

I laughed too, then held up my glass. "To the most beautiful spy whom I've ever met. Thank God they sent you and not your uncle."

She threw her head back and gave a deep belly laugh, the kind that she so rarely let out. It made me so proud to make her laugh like that. Natalia had always been a person who guarded her heart. That she had let me in would never cease to

amaze me.

She raised her glass and added, "To the most forgiving person who has ever been spied upon."

I smiled as we clinked our glasses, and we both took a sip. I wasn't sure if I was the most forgiving person, or if I just knew that she hadn't truly done anything that needed my forgiveness.

"No matter what fate throws at us next, I'm sure that we can overcome it. I will always know how lucky I am to have a woman like you at my side," I told her.

I knew it was true. She was the strongest person I knew, and thanks to her, I could handle anything.

"Thank you, I hope I can be the woman you think that I am," she said quietly.

I reached out and took her hand in mine. "I know you are."