Free The Italian's Passionate Return by Elizabeth Lennox

to get through the other hole. In the end, he just fell onto the floor and pulled them on that way. Unfortunately, he decided to do that right in front of Jemma’s bathroom doorway so she pulled her towel off of the rack and dried herself inside the shower. It was warmer in there anyway.
    “Did you hear that?” Dylan demanded and sprung up off of the floor. “I think that was him arriving!” he said and sprinted out of her bathroom.
    Jemma sighed, wondering how she was going to get through the next half hour until he really did arrive. Dylan was about to pop out of his skin from excitement; she was ready to curl up into a ball, completely terrified of her reaction to Damien’s return.
    Jemma heard the front door open. “Dylan?” she asked, rushing out of her bedroom, the towel still wrapped around her. “Dylan?” she called again when there was only silence.
    She hurried through the house, worried now. But as soon as she stepped into the kitchen, she skidded to a halt. Dylan was grinning from ear to ear because he was in his father’s arms. Damien was standing in her kitchen looking perfectly tailored, cool and composed while she was trying very hard not to let the towel fall to the floor. “You’re here early,” she whispered, unable to get much more sound out of her throat.
    “Only a few minutes,” he countered.
    Jemma looked at the clock and groaned. He wasn’t early, she was running very late! “Goodness,” she mumbled and turned back around. She rushed into her bedroom and dried off, pulling on the new pair of khakis she’d bought this week, just for this meeting. The slacks weren’t nearly as comfortable as her jeans, but she felt good in them. More pulled together. She topped it off with a new sweater, added a pair of small gold earrings her mother had given her in high school and then dabbed on makeup. She even took several moments to blow-dry her hair, her heart racing the whole time.
    When she was finally finished, she stood in front of her mirror, giving herself a pep talk and trying to calm down. She was acting just like Dylan, but that was crazy! She was an adult. She wasn’t excited about seeing Damien again. He was here to visit with Dylan, to get to know his son.
    And make love to her again?
    Darn it! She’d been keeping that thought out of her head, if not out of her dreams. He slipped into those easily enough. She shouldn’t want this! She needed to wait, to get to know the man and find out about his personality. Not just how good he was in bed.
    She groaned, her head falling forward as she tried to figure out how to calm herself down. This was ridiculous!
    A knock sounded at her doorway and Jemma jerked towards the sound.
    “Jemma, come on out, love,” Damien’s deep voice said through the wood. But he didn’t stop and wait for her response. Jemma watched in fascinated horror as the knob turned. She saw it all in slow motion. The knob turned, the door moved, the light from the rest of the house spilled in through the opening and then her eyes traveled upwards. First his hand, then his arm….his broad shoulders in a neat, white polo shirt and then his smile. Oh, goodness, that wicked, knowing smile made her stomach tighten with anticipation.
    Then her eyes traveled even higher and she caught his eyes. She’d thought his smile was dangerous but the heat in his eyes was breathtaking.
    How had she convinced herself that he was coming back this weekend just to get to know Dylan? What crazy brainwaves had let her get away with that?
    He was here for her as well. Oh, sure, Dylan was a strong draw. But he wanted her. And no matter how terrified he made her feel, she still wanted him. She could have accepted that if she’d been listening to her dreams over the past five days. But she’d pretended. She’d played mind games to protect herself from this possibility.
    She was an idiot.
    And he was here. In her bedroom! Walking towards her!
    A flash and a gasp, and she was in his arms. His