The Carrero Heart - Beginning (Friends to Lovers)

“You know we can’t really plan a wedding while lying naked in bed and doing nothing except having sex all day.” Arrick nudges me in the butt with his groin and wakes me out of the semi slumber I was heading into.

We stayed up all night, having some bedroom acrobatics and now most of the day we have seemed to repeat it. The only time we did get up was for food that he cooked nakedly, and we had to revisit the couch and some of the apartment surfaces to remember how good sex on them was. It feels like we have gone back in time to our first weeks together and have a renewed hunger for it all the more.

Getting engaged really does rock.

“You know I can tell Leila she has a wedding to plan, and we can stay in bed.” I yawn and push back against his groin wiggling expertly until he grows hard once again and smile to myself at how easy he is. Arrick kisses me on the cheek and smacks my ass a little harshly.

“Keep that up and we won’t get out of bed for the actual wedding either. You can’t leave Leila in charge… she will make everything pink, glittery and we’ll have an Ed Sheeran wedding march.” Arrick is in good spirits still and scoops my hand up to kiss the knuckles one either side of my new ring.

“That all sounds fine to me… besides, you told me our song is an Ed Sheeran song.” I turn on him and let my fingers loose on the appearance of his five o’clock shadow, running my fingertips along the masculine jaw with pleasure.

“Okay, so maybe it is, but I don’t want pink and you’re enough sparkle in one wedding party, baby. I like when we cut down on the glitter.”

“Ughhh, I do not understand your weird anti-glitter standing… you live with me. How can you be so against the sparkle?” I huff and throw him my best frowny look, but he only prods me in the space between my eyebrows.

“Because I live with you… You are the reason I am anti sparkle. Overexposed and it’s killed my tolerance.” Arrick then flicks me in the same space and gets a serious glare this time and an ouch.

“Asshole.”

“Princess… Queen of all things sparkly.” He smiles, and this time makes a move to get up, much to my protest.

are you going?” I demand as he slides up and grabs some boxers from the nearby drawer unit without a backwards glance. I have no intention of letting him escape

this shit out for the last weeks of your term. I need to see that asshole tutor of yours and lay down some fucking ground rules about my future wife. If we are not staying there anymore, then we need to list everything we want shipped back here, clothes and everything, and I need to speak to our housekeeper about her contract and Boris too, your driver. Secondly… we also need to tell our families about our happy news and start the ball rolling on you know… an actual wedding. We have to register for a marriage license, Sophie, and we need to throw cash at whoever it is to fast track a wedding in under

Carrero… bossy, in control, throwing orders around and I

cross my arms as I sit

Arry regards me with a look of complete confusion. A hint of nervousness that maybe I rethought my whole ‘I

into a stereotypical Carrero, with your bossy pants on. This is me… you have only no chance of

much time in the folds of his

and I wonder if this is a sudden personality transplant, and maybe

husband equal boss to you?” I narrow my eyes and for the first time wonder if old fashioned Italian upbringing has a whole set of new rules regarding

closer by the ankle and rests his

left us both feeling run down and deflated. We are starting something real, something that really does mean forever and it’s about time I stepped up to the mark and started taking care of what is mine. I’ve spent a lot of time this past few days thinking about my priorities in life and it comes back to the same thing always. You.” He looks like he means it and I watch him silently. “As soon as this merger is signed off and

complete disbelief, not sure what I am

loves working in his family business, it’s more than a feeling of responsibility, he loves it and takes great pride in

how this shit has been and missing your show was the final straw. The fight with my dad… I told him what I intended to do and some of those contracts I was up all night with… they were my resignation of a third of control, Sophie. I handed them to my father before I came home and proposed to you. I know where my future lies. I bought that ring two years ago and kept it in my safe at the office all this time. I should have fucking got my head out of my ass and done exactly what I am

off a damn cliff and this crazy imposter ranting about cutting himself out of Carrero Corp is his doppelganger. I feel sick to my stomach and

are resigning, because of me. You always take care of me, even when you’re not physically with me; you make sure I have people around me to do your job. You missed my show, but you sent Christian, who probably was more excited than you about it anyway. You always make sure I’m cared for in your absence in the form of Janetta and Boris. You always put me at the front of everything … I do not need you to resign! … We need to come home and go back to our lives from before. No more Paris, no more commutes. We can be like we were.” the panic rising inside of me, knowing how immense a deal this is. This isn’t just about him cutting out of something he loves doing. This is about hurting his relationship with his father and possibly Jake too, although I’m sure Jake will be more understanding. Giovanni, however, will not. This is something he built for his sons to carry on and it has always been known that eventually he would hand his control to

in and on top of things, he was never out of the loop. He went to college to learn business, so he could be a part of his family’s empire.

few months… I’m losing us! Why did you never tell me you hated the people at school?” Arrick looks pained and I realize that little