Author's note: this is from Serina's point of view

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"Miss…", Maria called. "Mr. Orsini arrived."

I held my breath for a moment and calmed myself how much possible before heading to greet my guest for the weekend.

Is it OK to call Duke a guest? What is he? My date? Lover? Boyfriend? All of that?

"Hi…", my voice drifted away at the sight of a massive bouquet with legs.

Duke peeked on the side of the enormous colorful flower arrangement. It seems that he emptied a flower shop.

Gosh! His smile was bigger than the bouquet!

"Hi, beautiful. These are for you."

I was touched, but the man was going overboard.

"You really didn't need to get this much…"

"I missed so many chances to give you flowers. I need to make it up to you.", Duke explained.

"You didn't need to make it up all in one go.", I said helplessly.

He cocked his handsome eyebrow at me. "This is just a fraction of what I owe you."

Owe me? You don't owe me a thing, especially because the last three years of our separation were kind of my fault. If I went to you right away, when I got my memories back... there was no point in thinking about what-ifs, and I didn't want to share these thoughts with Duke.

I decided not to argue with Duke about the needlessly humongous bouquet of flowers and the possibility of him doing it again. How much I know him, he will do whatever he wants no matter how much I protest.

I met his expectant gaze, and I knew he was looking for praise. Well, he deserved one. "Thank you for the flowers. They are lovely."

He grinned happily and I couldn't believe how easy is to make him smile.

His smile was contagious.

I wanted to hug him, but the flowers were in the way.

"Maria, can you arrange these?"

Maria stepped forward with her brows furrowed, "I will send Mitch to buy more vases…"

She approached Duke and said, "Excuse me", before she hugged the flowers with both hands and waddled toward the kitchen.

I stifled a laugh at the sight.

The next thing I know, I found myself in a solid embrace and the scent of pine trees with a hint of the ocean filled me up.

Duke kissed my forehead, cheek, and then he buried his face in my hair, just above my shoulder. He took a deep breath, and I felt his firm chest rising and falling against me.

"I missed you." His deep voice rumbled through my system, and my legs went weak.

I leaned into him. "I missed you too." I really did.

Is it normal to miss someone this much after spending only one day together?

I thought that a few days of separation will help me clear up my mind, but now that Duke is here, my mind is filled with pink clouds, each with his picture on it, and I feel like an enamored teenager.

"How was your trip?", I asked as I peeled myself from him.

He grabbed my hand and our fingers intertwined. My hand in his felt good, just like five days ago. Or maybe better.

Duke tugged me toward the sofa, and we sat next to each other.

He kissed the back of my palm before responding, "My trip was fine. How much time we have?"

"We should leave for the event in about two hours. Why? Are you hungry?"

He smiled. "I could eat."

"Let me ask Maria…"

"How about we eat downstairs?", Duke interrupted me. "There are many restaurants, we can pick one."

I liked the idea. Anything with Duke sounded wonderful.

We found seats at the table on the street, in the shade that protected us from the heat of the afternoon sun.

Duke ordered a family-size portion of the house special that came with two big glasses of chilled beer from the tap.

More than the massive plate full of sausages and different cuts of meat that were perfectly grilled, I was amazed by Duke's fluency in the German language. He spoke with the waiter like a native.

Based on his accent, I knew that he spoke Italian and English, but German was unexpected.

I wondered what other skills he has that I am yet to discover.

"There is a farmer's market tomorrow morning, just two blocks from here.", Duke told me when the waiter left, his cheek swollen from the chunk of sausage that was already in his mouth.

"The guy says that it's a perfect place for breakfast as there are many stalls that offer freshly made local specialties.", Duke said before putting another piece of meat in his mouth, making his other cheek swell as well. It seems he was hungry.

"Let me know what you want to eat so that I can cut it for you.", he said with a mouthful.

I stifled a laugh.

"What?", he asked innocently.

I shook my head, refusing to answer as I focused on the small mountain of food on the table.

Will he be angry if I tell him that he looks like an adorable chipmunk? My chipmunk.

"Hey! I demand to know what made you laugh.", Duke protested playfully, and I lifted my gaze only to pause at the sight of his deliciously glistening lips.

He is a messy eater, or maybe the sausages are so juicy. In either case, I didn't mind.

I wiped his lower lip with my thumb and put it in my mouth.

Duke's eyes widened and he swallowed hard while staring at me licking my thumb clean.

"I'm happy that you are here.", I said, satisfied with his reaction.

I knew I was playing with fire, but I was happy to confirm how I'm not the only one easily dazed.

It took him some time to realize that I put a piece of meat on my plate, and he clumsily grabbed it and started cutting the meat.

I reached for his plate and cut the meat for him in return.

"What are you doing?", Duke asked with his brows furrowed.

"If you insist on serving me, I will do the same for you.", I responded and placed my fork with a piece of grilled meat in front of his mouth. "Besides, you look hungry."

He half smiled and mumbled, 'thanks', before accepting my offer.

"I apologize. I was in a rush to see you, so I didn't eat today."

What? It's late afternoon! "You are kidding."

"I had coffee this morning when I reached my office. The rest of the day I spent in meetings because I rearranged my schedule so that I can leave early."

I shook my head helplessly. What a silly man. He could have eaten on the plane.

I gave him another bite and then I saw that he was offering to feed me in return.

Sausages were delicious, and their spiciness went great with the slightly bitter beer.

He was asking me for details about the event, and I told him that the company hosting the event is called Triamgene, and they are pioneers in analyzing viruses and their interaction with medical components using artificial intelligence.

Duke listened intently and asked smart questions.

I enjoyed talking to him and I was amazed at how easy is for me to get lost in his endlessly blue eyes.

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