Sweet Temptation by Cora Reilly

I lay awake long after Giulia had fallen asleep, curled up on her side, facing me.
This time she’d accepted it quietly when I’d pulled back after sex to sleep. I
could still feel her warmth, smell her sweet scent, sense her closeness, and
briefly, I considered pulling her toward me. Instead I stared up into the dark.
Giulia had surprised me again today, in more regards than one. She was stubborn
and kind. She stood up for herself without being bitchy.
And the sex… that had caught me completely off guard. I’d expected her to
avoid the physical aspect of our marriage as long as possible until I eventually
approached her because my desire couldn’t be suppressed anymore. I didn’t want
to cheat, and I wouldn’t. The clusterfuck with Gaia… it had ruined everything. I
didn’t want something like that to happen again and it wouldn’t.
I would not allow it.
I didn’t know Giulia, and she didn’t know me, but in bed, we worked well
together. When she’d finally come for the first time, it was the sweetest triumph
I could imagine.
Eating her sweet pussy was wonderful and rewarding in its own way. Gaia
hadn’t wanted me to do it to her, so I hadn’t. Giulia was the first woman I’d gone
down on in almost ten years, and I promised myself to eat her every goddamn
night if she let me. In the short time of our marriage, I already felt younger.
These last few months I’d felt old beyond my age, exhausted and wary. This
exhilaration of the beginning would fade though. It was an illusion I couldn’t
entertain.
As if to remind me of that irrefutable fact, Simona’s cry blared through the
baby monitor, destroying any hope of falling asleep soon.
Giulia stirred beside me, a soft groan slipping out of those sweet lips. I
turned the lights on and sat up. Another sleepless night.
Giulia blinked against the brightness, obviously disoriented. “What’s going
on?”
“Simona wants the bottle.”
Giulia nodded slowly and slipped out of bed. I stood as well.
“You can sleep. I can handle it. I know you have to work tomorrow.”
I paused, watching as she slipped out of our bedroom. After a moment, I
followed. Giulia didn’t have experience with children as had become apparent
last night. I wasn’t sure she could handle Simona. Especially at night, my
daughter was demanding and her cries absolutely nerve-racking. Had Giulia the
necessary calm to handle her?
I didn’t think she’d ever hurt my children, she didn’t seem the type, but she
was young. Feeling overwhelmed could be dangerous.
Simona’s cries didn’t stop, but they lessened in intensity. I hovered in the
doorway to her room, stunned by what I saw. Giulia had bought a sort of baby
sling that allowed her to carry Simona against her chest and was currently trying
to close it in her back. It was obviously the first time she tried to do it. I walked
toward her and helped her. I’d never seen such a thing, so it took us a couple of