“Yeah,” he breathes, “that’s right.” He’s getting even stiffer the more it sounds like she’s talking dirty.
He watches as she finally takes the condom and carefully rolls it down over him, following instructions perfectly.
“How did I do, Professor?” She comes over to lie beside him, her face close, eyelashes fluttering.
And then he understands. He shakes his head. A grin pulls at his mouth. “You’re shining me on again, aren’t you?”
She bites her lip. “A little bit.”
“What part?”
Her face grows serious. “Everything I told you is true. I’ve only been with one other man. But come on, Anthony,” she gives him a teasing smile, “any dumb-ass knows how a condom works!”
He chuckles in a low voice. It surprises him to hear it. He seldom laughs during sex.
Natalie is laughing, too. “I couldn’t resist. I hope you aren’t mad.”
“No, but you’re forcing me to bring out the big guns now.”
“What do you mean?”
“You’ll see.” He pulls her close, and then quickly rolls on top of her, so she’s beneath him and he’s cradled between her hips. She grabs his shoulders with helpless laughter.
“Voglio fare l’amore con te adesso,” he says in a low voice. I want to make love to you now.
Natalie’s laughter dies away and her eyes go dark and smoky. “Uh oh,” she whispers.
Anthony’s face is pure male ego as he watches the effect his words have on her.
“Dio,” he whispers in her ear. “Sei così bella.”
“What are you saying to me?” She hears the passion in his voice.
He pauses. “I said I think you’re beautiful.”
“Is that true?”
“Sì, Natalie.”
They’re gazing at each other and her heart feels like it’s in her throat at such an outrageous statement. She doesn’t say it back, figuring he’s heard it plenty over the years from far too many women. Besides, it isn’t what she finds appealing about him.
“I think you’re . . . good.”
“Good?”
She nods. “Here,” she says, touching his head. “And here.” Natalie places her palm over his heart.
Anthony doesn’t reply at first, taking in her words. He seems pleased by them. “Thank you.”
It’s an odd sort of compliment, but she realizes he is good. He’s not perfect—the fiasco with the bakery has shown that, but she suspects that in his heart Anthony is a good man.
He shifts position on top of her and she feels him then—hard and ready—pressing at her center.
“Fammi di mostrare quanto sono bravo,” he says with a sly smile, his breathing unsteady.
Lust spirals and skitters. Natalie widens her legs and slips one ankle over his hairy calf, arching against him, sending a message. He’s gazing down at her. For a moment, it’s as if time is suspended, but then Anthony is pushing into her. He goes slowly at first, easing his entry, as if sensing it’s been a while for her, but then somewhere along the way his control slips and he thrusts hard and deep.
Natalie gasps at the invasion, her eyes falling shut. The sensation is so intense. So bright and true. It’s been a long time, so long she’s nearly forgotten.
How have I lived without this?
Anthony groans, thrusting into her again, and when she looks at him his eyes are already half-lidded. Lost in pleasure. Wild even. As if he’s been holding back this whole time.
She’s still gazing at him and, even though she didn’t say it earlier, she has to admit, he is a beautiful man.
Anthony says something more in Italian, his voice low and rough, but melodious, too. A language made for sensuality.
She pulls him even closer. His body is hard on top of hers, pressing downward, his muscular arms caging her in on each side as he takes her. It was never like this with Peter. And then she banishes all thoughts of Peter. It is only Anthony.
After a while, his movements begin to slow. They’re both breathing erratically and he reaches for her arms and pulls them out from behind his neck and stretches them above her head. He holds both her wrists in place, the position making her back arch, thrusting her breasts high.
“Look at you,” he breathes, his eyes roaming over her—feasting.
Then he does feast on her. Holding both her wrists in one hand, he bends over, lapping at her breast, capturing a beaded nipple in his mouth, working her over before moving on to the other.
Natalie moans and squirms, mindless, her back arching even more, pushing herself into his mouth. Sharp pleasure angles through her, but this time she wants it. Oh, my God. He’s still holding her wrists tight over her head and then he starts to move inside her again. And it’s so good. Just right. Everything.
“Don’t . . . stop . . .” she manages to say, her voice hoarse.
Anthony isn’t gentle, but she doesn’t want it gentle. She wants his urgency, wants him to use her. The small of her back tingles. And then it’s her whole body vibrating. He seems to sense how close she is, because he’s murmuring things in a low voice. Naughty things, things no one has ever told her before. Telling her how good she feels. How hot and wet. How perfect.
She whimpers and moans, and then finally, it’s a tidal wave, sweeping her under. Her wrists are trapped and it adds to the peak, pushing her higher.
Vaguely she’s aware that Anthony is lost, too. He lets go of her wrists and reaches down to grab her ass. Hooks another hand under her knee as he drives into her, taking what he needs. And then Anthony groans, low and long, the sound torn from someplace deep. He’s still moving and groaning and she feels a tingle of desire even though she just came.
Finally, he stops, his weight heavy on her. His face in her neck rains soft kisses.
Anthony lifts up, gazing into her eyes, not shying from the intimacy, and Natalie feels the strongest sense of peace she has known in a very long time.
JOAN JETT’S “BAD Reputation” blares from Natalie’s phone. She grabs it off her nightstand and declines the call from her sister, who programmed the song as her personal ring tone. Lindsay does it with everyone. Her recent ring tone for Natalie was “Brick House” and Natalie wasn’t sure if she was complimented or annoyed.
“Who was that?”
Natalie turns. Anthony is lying on his stomach with his eyes closed.
She snuggles back under the covers. “My sister.”
“Does she always call so early?”
“It’s ten o’clock.”
Anthony’s eyes open. “Seriously?”
“I know. I was shocked when I saw it, too.” Natalie can’t remember the last time she slept so deeply.
He scoots closer and nuzzles her neck. “Good morning, Miss Natalie.”
The room is on the cold side and Anthony’s warm body feels toasty wrapped around her. His dark stubble is as rough as sandpaper, but she likes it.
“Good morning,” she whispers, winding her arms around his neck.
His mouth slides up to hers, his beard abrading her skin, before closing in on her mouth. Their tongues stroke each other languidly. His hips move as his erection rubs against her thigh.
“We’re out of condoms,” he murmurs huskily. “But there are plenty of other things we can do with each other.”
Natalie’s mind immediately tries to figure out what “other things” he’s talking about. She thinks she knows, but . . .
“I can’t believe I haven’t tasted you yet,” he continues. “That’s a travesty we have to fix as soon as possible.”
Her breath hitches. She swallows and her thighs spasm. Yes, please. God. It’s been such a long time. For whatever reason, Peter stopped doing it years ago.
Anthony rises up on his elbow and gazes down at her, stroking her hair.
Even in the harsh morning light, he still looks incredible. His dark hair is rumpled, but instead of having dorky bed hair, it’s mussed and curling onto his forehead in a way that actually ad
ds to his appeal. His rich brown eyes are clear and his skin unmarred.
He’s so far out of my league I might as well be living on Pluto.
The thought intimidates her. Anthony intimidates her. She never wakes up looking good. In fact, she’s sure her hair is sticking out and her skin is blotchy and pink with a fresh zit or two thrown in for good measure.
“What’s wrong?” he asks, his dark brows drawing together. He’s astonishingly perceptive, too. When she thinks about the inner Anthony, she feels comfortable and at ease. But it’s the outer Anthony who puts her nerves on edge.
“Nothing,” she says. “I’m just feeling shy again.”
“There’s nothing for you to be shy about. That reminds me,” he gets a boyish grin, “now that it’s light outside, I finally get to see you naked.” He starts pulling the sheets down, but Natalie clutches them tight.
“I don’t think so.”
“Come on, you’re kidding, right?”
“You might be disappointed. I’m not as pretty as you are.”
Anthony rolls his eyes. “How about you let me be the judge?”
She doesn’t say anything.
“You’re going to have to get out of this bed sometime,” he reminds her. “I’ll see you then.”
Natalie figures she’ll wrap herself in the sheet when she gets up. She glances at him. By his expression, he knows she’s working on her escape strategy.
“I saw you naked last night,” he says, changing tactics. “And trust me—you totally turn me on, so there’s no reason to still be shy.”
But it was dim last night, everything draped in a deep red glow. She knows she’s probably going overboard with all this, but after being told for years by Peter that she’s unattractive—a part of her believes it.
“How about we start slow,” Anthony suggests. “You could maybe let me see your breasts?”
He sounds so hopeful, it’s hard to say no. And she appreciates that he’s being patient with her.
“Please,” he adds for good measure.
“All right, I’ll show you.” She sits up, leaning back against the pillow. Her hands are still gripping the sheets. Then taking a deep breath, she slowly lowers them.
Anthony is watching her as if it’s Christmas morning, and when the sheets are finally at her waist his expression doesn’t change.
“See, I was right,” he says, his voice huskier than before. “You’re gorgeous, Natalie.”
He was wrong last night. Natalie’s nipples aren’t pink or brown, but a dusky rose color. And her skin is like milk. Pale and smooth. His tan fingers are a stark contrast against her.
“You’re even prettier than I remember,” he murmurs. Letting his hand stroke the underside of her breast, his thumb moves up, rolling over her nipple.
Her breath catches.
“Thank you for showing me,” he says, meeting her gaze.
Natalie puts her hand on his jaw. “I’m sorry I’m being like this.”
He swallows and shakes his head. “It’s okay.” His thinking is already getting muddled by her naked body. “We’ll figure it out.”
She nods and he bends over to kiss her left breast, when suddenly her phone starts blaring “Bad Reputation” again.
“Ignore it,” he says. “I have a whole list of dirty things I plan to do to you this morning, so there’s no time for you to be taking phone calls.”
Their eyes meet and his cock stiffens even more when he sees the heat in hers. Apparently, she’s on board with his dirty plans.
“Bad Reputation” finally stops as Anthony is running both his hands over her breasts, kneading and molding them while Natalie lies back like a goddess watching him. Her cheeks have a pretty pink flush and he can tell she’s getting turned on.
“Does that feel nice?”
“Yes.” Her eyes darken with desire. He bends over to take one of her nipples in his mouth when “Bad Reputation” starts blaring again.
Natalie sighs. “She’s never going to stop calling. I should answer it.”
“Can’t it wait?”
Then suddenly his own phone starts, too, Star Wars music blasting from inside his motorcycle jacket.
“Madonna mia!” Anthony says in frustration, sitting up. The dueling phones go on for about twenty seconds. “This is ridiculous.”
“I should call her back. She’s probably worried. If I don’t call her, she’ll show up soon to check on me.”
“Why would she be worried?” Anthony asks, getting up to go grab his phone, just in case it’s Serena.
“Because of what happened between us over the bakery.”
He feels a flash of guilt and then annoyance. “I apologized for that.”
“Did you?”
“Yes, I did.”
She sighs. “All right, whatever.” She looks over at him. “Who called you?”
“My brother.” Anthony is holding his phone, flipping through the recent calls. He sees the voicemail from Gio, but decides to listen to it later.
“You have a brother?” Natalie’s eyes are wandering over his naked body as he walks back toward her. His cock is at half-mast. But with that expression on her face, he suspects it won’t be long before it’s flying at full-mast again.
He sits down on the bed.
“Does he look like you?” Her eyes are still absorbing him.
Anthony chuckles to himself. It’s the first question all women ask when they find out he has a brother. “Yes and no.”
“What does that mean?”
“It means we look alike somewhat.”
“I see.”
Not a satisfying answer, he realizes, but it’s the truth. Most women want to know if his brother is good looking, but Anthony never knows how to answer that, either.
“What’s his name?”
“Giovanni.”
“Is he an astronomer, too?”
Anthony shakes his head. “No, he’s a pediatric surgeon.”
“Wow, really? That’s impressive.”
“It is. And he’s very good at what he does.”
“He must be kind of intense.”
Anthony nods. It’s an astute observation. “Yes, he is intense. Very.”
“Are you guys close? Like Lindsay and me?”
“Not like you and your sister, but we’re somewhat close. My brother travels even more than I do for work, so we don’t see each other very often.”
Natalie rolls over onto her side, unfortunately pulling the sheets back up with her, covering herself. “I’ve never heard you mention him before, but I guess I don’t really know that much about you.”
Anthony hears the mild reprimand in her words. He knows he’s told her little about himself, but it’s an old habit. He seldom shares many details about his personal life with his lovers. It just makes for fewer complications.
“My brother’s kind of a character. In some ways he’s a saint, but in other ways he’s the biggest asshole you’ll ever meet.”
“Really? He must be great with kids, though.”
“He is. Serena adores him.”
“So how is he an asshole?”
Anthony doesn’t answer. Instead, he moves closer to her on the bed and pushes her long blonde hair aside, lets his hand glide down over the smooth skin on her back. “Your skin is so soft. I could sit here all day and touch you.”
She turns her head to study him. “Maybe I’ll let you touch me all day.”
“Will you?”
“Yes, but let me call my sister first.”
“What are you going to tell her?” He’s curious to hear her answer. He doesn’t want to be on the bad side of all these people who are important to her, but at the same time, what’s done is done.
“I’m not sure.” Natalie thinks about it. “But I’d like to talk to her alone, if you don’t mind.”
“I don’t mind at all. Go right ahead.” He motions toward the door. “I’ll just wait here in bed for you.”
Anthony knows she’s not going t
o get up naked after all the fuss she made about it earlier, but he can’t resist teasing her. Challenging her, even.
The room is quiet. Natalie remains still, but her eyes narrow on him. There’s a stubborn set to that sexy mouth.
And then to Anthony’s utter astonishment, she throws the sheets aside and sits up.
“Fine.” A little smile plays around the edges of her lips, though her eyes are hot with emotion. “I’ll just go talk to her in the hall.”
Natalie slides out of bed, grabs her phone, and then leans down to kiss him. “I’ll be right back.”
Stunned, Anthony watches her walk across the room, his eyes glued to her body, taking in every luscious curve. Every bounce and jiggle. His mouth goes dry.
Damn.
Natalie is hot. She’s not skinny, and she’s built like a real woman, which is exactly the way he likes it. Plump ass and round hips, narrow waist, and then of course there are those magnificent breasts. She’s far sexier than any fantasy image of her he’s tried to come up with.
When she gets to the dresser, she unfortunately picks up that blue cardigan sweater from last night and covers herself with it. As she reaches the door, she turns and looks at him over her shoulder.
Their eyes meet and he can see this was a big deal for her.
“Hurry,” he tells her. His list of dirty things can’t wait, and when she gets back he’s starting at the very top.
Natalie is in the hallway leaning on the wall to catch her breath.
I did it!
It’s all Anthony’s doing, though. No man has ever looked at her the way he does. With such blatant desire.
The phone in her hand starts playing “Bad Reputation” again.
“Hey, Lindsay,” Natalie says, answering it immediately.
“Where have you been? I’ve been calling nonstop!”
“I know, I turned my phone off and forgot to turn it back on.” Natalie cringes at the lie. She hates to lie to anyone, especially Lindsay, but she isn’t ready to explain the situation with Anthony. Truth is, she isn’t even sure what the situation is yet. Plus she suspects Lindsay isn’t going to support this, not after what happened with the bakery. Both Lindsay and Blair are going to think she’s lost her mind.
Year of Living Blonde (Sweet Life in Seattle, Book 1) Page 28