The Return of My First Love novel Chapter 51

Emily

Alessio kept his promise by staying with me in bed. He made it clear to everyone in the mansion that he was not to be disturbed, even going as far as turning off his phone.

He gave me his full attention as we binged a show. His ability to become completely immersed was unexpected, but watching him get so invested in the plots and characters was adorable.

It brought a smile to my face and made me realize that he was just as crazy as everyone else.

At one point, we took a break to greet Naty, who had told us all about her day, and after that, we returned to our marathon in the bedroom.

By now, it was already midnight, but I didn't mind.

"By the way, tomorrow is our monthly Fanucci brunch. Everyone expects you guys there," Alessio mentioned out of nowhere.

"Who is 'everyone'?" My throat went dry at his late invitation.

"Grandma, uncle, aunties, cousins, everyone," he said as if it were the most normal thing in the world.

I panicked. "And you're just telling me this now?"

Alessio shrugged like it wasn't that much of a problEmily. "It's not a big deal, don't worry about it."

"You're telling me I'm about to meet your grandma and you're telling me not to worry about it?" I whispered the last part.

Alessio shot me a half-smile. "You'll be fine, everyone likes you." he softly slapped my thigh.

"Your uncle doesn't, and neither does your dad," I pointed out, rEmilyEmilybering the few cold interactions.

"If my uncle and dad really didn't like you, you wouldn't be here right now. Trust me," Alessio tried calming me down, but it didn't really do much. "So, what do I wear?"

"Usually, we wear clothes," he commented. I laughed out loud to the point where tears pricked in my eyes.

"You know that's not what I meant," I said, wiping thEmily away.

Alessio placed his hand on top of mine, and a strange feeling traveled through my body. He rubbed his thumb over my hand and we locked eyes. "You get to wear whatever you want. Those are the perks of being beautiful."

"So, ugly people don't get to wear whatever they want?" I stammered, not knowing how to deal with the indirect compliment. I had to convince myself that, that was really what he meant. "Do you really think I'm beautiful?"

Alessio trapped my chin between his fingers as he looked into my eyes. "I do."

My heart raced as I held his gaze. His eyes were too beautiful to explain. They were the eyes of the person who had ended up saving me by taking me in, and the eyes of the person I was falling for.

There, I said it.

Now that it was out of the way, I didn't have to fool myself anymore.

I bit my lip as we both leaned in closer, but then we stopped, inches away from each other. I looked from his lips to his eyes, back to his lips, wondering what might happen if neither one of us would pull away.

Alessio leaned closer and I felt his breath on my lips. I closed my eyes, waiting for him to kiss me as he brushed his lips against mine.

Only he never did.

Flustered, I opened my eyes and looked at him, still unsure what to do. What was holding him back?

He leaned in again, but this time he pressed his lips against mine and didn't hold back. He traced my lips with his tongue, and I opened my mouth to let him in.