All the Colors of My Heart by Lo21
Review by phoebes.promise
Rating: M
Characters: Edward/Bella
Summary: On a long red-eye flight to Italy, Bella meets Edward. Their mutual attraction leads to losing inhibitions and a sexy plane encounter. Bella has at least 4 weeks to see if lust can ever lead to love. Sometimes, you have to trust your heart. AH.M.
Originally written for the Up in the Air contest, the first chapter of
All the Colors of My Heart won Host’s Choice. Lo21, thankfully chose to continue the piece and offers readers a breathtakingly vivid romance. Beautiful, elementary school teacher, Bella embarks on a month long journey to Italy to visit friends. Honest and sexually frustrated, her narrative on life, love and erotic dreams is quaint and adorably entertaining. During the long flight abroad she encounters a confident, sexy, businessman, Edward.
"Hi. Is your final stop Amsterdam? And are you going for business or pleasure? I'm Edward, by the way."
He took my hand and I shook it, his big hand engulfed my own little one.
Oh. Big hands.
"Hi, Edward. I'm going for pleasure, but I'm headed to Venice, Italy. I'm visiting my best friend and her husband who are stationed just outside of the city. I'll be there for one month, until July." I smiled then continued, "This will be my first time in Italy and Europe in general. I'm really excited."
I'm going for pleasure. Oh God, let it be pleasure. Please let it be pleasure.
Our hands were still connected as I said my entire little speech. It wasn't quite a handshake; our hands were just kind of sitting there. I wondered if that was my or his doing. His eyes were a wonderland, like a forest of mossy trees and I could get lost in them. I wanted to continue speaking so I had a reason to stare into them and not freakishly stare for no reason.
Oh…where was I? I snapped out of the hypnosis.
"My name is Bella, nice to meet you. So, what's your story? Where are you headed and what for?" I managed to utter out loud.
Hands released. Connection lost. Bummer.
"I'm also on my way to Venice, but I'll be in Amsterdam for a day, meeting with a business partner, and I'll fly out that afternoon or evening. My family owns a couple of properties in Venice and I'm also taking care of some financial business matters for our company. We operate out of Seattle but we have ties in Europe. Once that's out of the way, I'll be there in Italy for the rest of the summer keeping up with the business operations and also maintaining the properties for my family." He talked with his hands and a light in his eyes.
Casual, pleasant conversation reveals a coincidental connection in their personal lives. However, that’s not all they discover about each other… In one hot moment, Edward and Bella realize the time tested sexual fantasy of many, high in the sky…
It was exciting and stimulating to be in a public area doing this, sharing this high above the clouds. There really was nothing like it. I imagined him entering inside of me and I pulled his head toward mine with both of my hands as my body rocked with absolute pleasure. I orgasmed and silently moaned into his mouth. As he removed his fingers, I whimpered at the loss and the sensitive nature of my sex spot. We both leaned back as we caught our breaths. Eventually we put the lower parts of our clothing back on.
He grabbed my hand and wrapped it around his own, placing it next to his rapidly beating heart. I felt the beating of my own heart and his beat at a similar rate as we lay there with our hands connected. There were no words as we drifted off into sleep.
With an intent promise to meet again, Edward offers to guide and show Bella Italy as he knows it. A quintessential, romantic date… a gracious gentleman, a stroll over a historic bridge, a dimly lit cozy restaurant, a quiver and a flirt… simply exquisite. And then he takes her to his houseboat… His houseboat in Italy… Collective sigh.
"It's beautiful," I said looking around the room in awe.
In the silence, my heels' echoing on the light colored oak hardwood floor was the only sound in the room. I took another few cautious steps forward, waiting for Edward to lead. The bottom level of the house was long, but spacious. There were at least two or three windows on each wall that were covered in white window shears, and I could feel the bay breeze from the outside, cooling the inside of the home. From the entrance, I could also see a little all-glass room that had a steering wheel and controls and was all that prevented this from being a land-locked home. It reminded me that that this was something special, unique, and something I'd never seen before.
I thought I might get sea-sick standing inside, but it felt normal, just like a regular house would.
"I need to do a quick look-through, but after, you promised you would tell me..."
"Yes, of course," I said as confidently as I could. I started desperately thinking of a fib. What the hell would be another fantasy in a houseboat? Driving it? Pssh! Lame! I needed more time to think of something else. But, my mind was drunk on Edward, Italy, and literally altered by wine. I was going to have to confess. It didn't mean we had to act on it. It was just words. A fantasy, I reminded myself.
"This is obviously the living room," Edward said, pointing around the entry room.
"Wow, it looks so modern in here, but I can tell it still has nice Italian touches."
"Some of the furniture was included when we got it, so a lot of it is from Italy. My mom, Esme, loves interior design. She decorated this place. In fact, she had some new furniture for the living room and bedrooms delivered about six months ago, but my parents still haven't seen it yet. This is a first for me, too. I like what she's picked so far."
I nodded but didn't say anything. I was focused on the word, bedrooms.
Following his lead, I walked with him to the kitchen area where there were two small steps up.
Standing in the kitchen, it appeared as if the area we had entered was actually a sunken living room. In the kitchen, brand name stainless steel appliances took center stage. It looked like a chef's kitchen down to the high-end marble counters.
And so it goes a gorgeous setting for a heated conversation between two lovers wanting. They rationalize their desire and act, immediate and intense. Lo21 prepares the steamiest of scenes between her dynamic characters…
He lifted me up onto the counter, the cold counter, and even at that height he didn't have to bend much. My lips quickly parted as he expertly moved his tongue to meet mine. My hand still gripped at his shirt, desperate for what was underneath. My other was mixed up in his soft hair. I met his graceful, yet passionate tongue, and we explored each other first with kisses that alternated between lips and tongues. When he came up for air, the kisses on my face came down to a kiss on my ear, a small tug of my ear lobe with his teeth, and then he lowered his mouth down to the sides of my neck where he bit and sucked and kissed on my neck. Goosebumps began their knowing trail. I felt them creep up on my arms, and a shiver ran down my spine.
With our lips apart, I focused on taking off his jacket and tossed it lazily on the kitchen floor with a light thud. I worked my shaky hands over his shirt buttons. I felt like I had opened a gift. It was a rock hard gift of a mostly smooth upper chest. My gaze lowered as I saw a bit of dark hair leading to that special v shape on his lower body which was just barely peeking out from his low slung pants. He watched my expression as I ogled him, and I pulled that shirt right off him, feeling his chest with both of my hands.
He hiked up my dress to my waist, then lowered himself to lick and kiss his way up one of my legs. I felt a shiver of excitement spark its way as he neared my center. I arched my back as he rubbed my leg while he kissed upwards and left a wet trail from where his mouth had been. He continued until he worked his way toward my thigh, and I grew more excited from each kiss closer to my aching core.
They’re connected, body and soul. They can’t and won’t deny their attraction. Edward shares his thoughts as we learn more about his past and present life and love. Someone small and precious already owns the whole of his heart. How will all the pieces and parts melt together for Edward and Bella…
Lo21 creatively tempts a mood for each of the chapters. Labeled descriptively by a color and it’s deeper meaning, what emotion the color represents and invokes.
Blue represents: The color of sky and the ocean, blue is perceived as a constant in our lives. As the collective color of the spirit, it invokes rest and can cause the body to produce chemicals that are calming and cooling. Physically and mentally, shades of blue can affect trustworthiness, dependability and commitment.
All the Colors of My Heart by Lo21, at only six chapters in, promises a mature romantic journey, rich in beautiful surroundings, a brilliantly told sensual escape. Slip away, dream and revel in this award winning love story in progress.
