She giggles and whispers, “Speak of the devil. That’s my Alfred, scanning the area for competition even though I’m carrying his spawn.” She taps her belly. “That’s what I get for working with three men who look like Adonis reincarnated.”
I laugh. Of course, he’d feel threatened. Maria’s a twenty-four-year-old Persian beauty with dark, voluminous hair that puts shampoo advertisements to shame, dark-brown eyes, full lips, and skin like Cleopatra’s.
She lifts her bulk from the chair and waddles into her husband’s arms.
“Alfred, this is Sophie. Sophie,” she links her fingers with his and rubs her stomach with her free hand, “he is to blame for this.” But her smile says, “I love you, you big puppy.”
My insides twist as I watch them stare into each other’s eyes. I’ve never given a thought to children and husbands. Would I glow like Maria? Have a husband who’ll look at me like Alfred does to her?
I want that. I want it all. I want what my mother and father had. I want what Alfred and Maria have.
But first, I have to sort out my life.
As soon as they leave, I go back to answering emails and the occasional phone call. Simone texts me to let me know the costumes for Unfathomable arrived, and she’d like me to drop by the theatre on Monday to try them on. After texting her back, I send an email to a company in Japan interested in organizing a mixer party for the Japanese community in Vienna.
The next time I look at the clock on my desk, it’s 3:45 p.m. Lilli calls to let me know she’s all right. Thank God, things seem to have improved. She’s finally accepted her fate of having to go visit Grandma.
The phone rings again, and I pick it up on the second ring.
“Ben,” I say, my pulse quickening like it always does when he calls. Is it about Lilli, or Rafael?
“Everyone’s all right, Miss Fisher.” These are the first words he says, every time.
“Sophie. Please, call me Sophie.”
He coughs. “Sophie. Call if you need anything. Gustav is on watch outside your office.”
I lean forward and shudder as I catch a glimpse of Gustav, leaning on the hood of a navy blue Peugeot. I’d officially met my scrawny bodyguard the morning after I’d spent the night at Rafael’s. The words “Gustav” and “bodyguard” shouldn’t be in the same sentence. But if Rafael trusts him, who am I to judge?
Ben hangs up, and I head to the kitchen to refill my coffee mug. As I round the corner in the hallway and head back toward the reception area, I slam into a chest. I shriek and stumble back, my heart thudding against my ribs. A hand snags my wrist, breaking my fall, but the coffee sloshes over my arm and my blue-and-white striped blouse.
“Holy f--” I jerk my gaze up, shaking the coffee off my hand, and snap my mouth shut.
Oh. My. God. I just bumped into Bapnando. Seriously, the guy’s a cross between Baptiste Giabiconi and Fernando Alonzo.
“Oh, I am very sorry, senorita. Are you all right?” Ah, that accent slays me.
I nod, dazed by his voice, the accent, and my scalded arm. “Sure, Bapnando.” Bapnando? I need to just shut the hell up.
He frowns, probably trying to figure out the name. Or measuring the degree of my sanity.
“Actually, my name is Alejandro Torres. And you must be the beautiful Sophie. Tu eres muy bonita!” His brown eyes walk every inch of me, and by the time they return to my face, I’m ready to drop at his feet.
Maria was right. This is one dangerous male. Before I can recover from his scrutiny, he grasps my hand and kisses it. “Rafael couldn’t keep his mouth shut about you. All the way from the airport, he went on and on . . .” He looks over his shoulder, and I notice Rafael leaning on the front desk counter, glaring at Alejandro’s head. He looks so hot, dressed in a pair of dark jeans that hug his ass perfectly, and a white, V-neck t-shirt. His hair floats around his head like an angry, stormy sea. It suits him.
He shifts his gaze to mine, and I can feel frissons of heat travel through the space between us. His mouth curls up on one side.
“Hello, Sophie.” The way he says my name! It’s sinful, meet-me-in-the-dark temptation. My nipples tighten, and heat curls low in my stomach. My tingles have tingles, and I might just expire on the floor.
“Rafael.” I almost trip over my own feet as I dash for my chair. Standing in the presence of two very-male men is wreacking havoc on my poise. I grab the stapler to ground my stupid hormones. “Good to have you back.”
Rafael prowls closer. “Is it?”
“My, my, Rafael,” Alejandro says, his grin wide. “You have it bad, don’t you? Ruffled like an ostrich.”
Rafael scowls at Alejandro. “Shut up, Alex. Go lock yourself in your office, or something.”
Alejandro tosses his dark head back and laughs. “Well, then. I will leave you and Sophie,” he winks, “to catch up. Any messages for me, beautiful?”
“I’ll bring them to your office,” Rafael snaps, looking like he’s about to bite Alejandro’s head off.
Alejandro chuckles, turns and struts his lean body down the hall to his office. For some reason, he reminds me of a peacock, plumage spread proudly, back straight.
“What an idiot,” Rafael murmurs under his breath, then says louder, “Give me your hand.”
I blink at him, “Why?”
“I want to check for damage. Come on.” I roll my eyes and place my hand in his. He scrutinizes it for burns, but the coffee wasn’t very hot, so no damage had been done.
He lifts my hand to his mouth, hesitating as if asking me for permission.
Does he remember the night before he left for Milan? Maybe he’s waiting for me to reject him. Well, he’s got another think coming. He makes me happy, and life’s too short to pass up something as special as this. Him. We all need second chances. He is mine. The realization hits me hard in my gut. At this point, I don’t care if he rubbed shoulders with the devil himself. I want my Arie back.
“I missed you,” I say.
He exhales, his breath fanning the sensitive skin on my wrist. He presses his lips on my palm, staring at me from beneath his lashes. “I missed you, too.” He nips at my fingers. “Ready to work on me?”
The stapler I’m holding slips out of my free hand and clatters on the desk.
“Um, yeah. I just need to send a few more emails.”
“Good.” He moves around the counter to sit on Maria’s chair. It creaks under his weight and his scent slams into my throat. There’s no way I’ll get any work done with him sitting there. Every shift of his body heightens my awareness of him. He leans forward, his cheek touching my shoulder, and my heart thuds faster in my chest.
“You have beautiful fingers,” he says, his breath a warm breeze on my skin.
Aw, hell! Two can play that game.
“You have beautiful lips,” I say. “I spent most of my nights this week wondering how they’d feel on my skin--” He shifts closer; the heat coming off him slams into me. The air surrounding him rearranges, bowing to this god of hotness.
Back away. No, come closer, please. Dear God, deliver me from temptation!
Gripping the mouse, I close the email program and power off the computer.
“You done?” he asks. Did his voice get sexier?
I turn to look at him. Is that amusement on his face?
“For now.” I pull out the bottom drawer and grab my handbag. “I can’t work with you breathing down my neck.” I smile saucily at him, and stand. He quickly tugs my hand, and I collapse onto his lap. He leans in to lick my neck.
Oh. My. God!
“I wasn’t breathing down your neck. Believe me, breathing down your neck would feel very different.” His lips are so close. So very close. His gaze is fixed on my lips. If I move two inches, our mouths would touch.
“Question is, will I like it, or love it?”
He inhales sharply, his pupils dark and dilated.
I hop down from his lap, brushing my fingers along the huge bulge in his pants, and wink at him. If he
wants to play the flirting game, I’m all for it. I pick up Alejandro’s messages and walk toward his office, feeling Rafael’s hot gaze on me the whole way.
RAFAEL ISN’T where I left him when I return. I pause, taking a deep breath and look around. He’s so freakin’ intense. My nerves are still tingling from the contact we had minutes ago.
I rub my palms down my black pencil skirt, heading toward my desk. A hand grabs my wrist before I can make it there. Heat skates up my arm like a live wire. I’m yanked into a hard chest and backed up to a wall in two seconds flat. My pencil skirt rides up my thighs as he grabs my legs and tucks them around his hips, pushing his muscular thighs forward. My black heels dig into his back as his body pins me to the wall. He plants his strong hands next to my head, caging me in. I couldn’t escape if I wanted to.
“Will you?” The words sound like a growl and his lips are an inch from mine. He smells like liquor, cologne, and Rafael.
“Will I what?” I’m trembling like I’m jacked up on electricity, and the heat curling between my legs is unlike any I’ve ever experienced.
“Love it?”
Sweet mother of all things holy! That voice! “Time will tell.” I slide my legs off his waist and duck under his arms, giggling--giggling, for crying out loud--but before I can reach my desk, he slips his arm across my waist and slams me back into his rock-hard chest. “Jesus, Rafael. What’s gotten into you? We can’t do this. Alejandro is in his office, and--”
“Fuck Alex.”
“I need to help him access the right files, so he can catch up with everything,” I say, trying again to slow him down.
He spins me around to face him. Jesus, his eyes! Why am I not ashes on the floor right now?
“Alex knows what to do.” Rafael presses his hand on the curve of my back, pulling me to him. “And he’s leaving for Spain tomorrow.”
Crap! I need to move away before I tackle him to the ground and give Alejandro the show of his life. I push at his chest with my trembling hand. “I thought he was staying for a while?”
He shakes his head. “He has some pending work for an event he’s organizing in Barcelona. And they’ve--Hawk and Alejandro--been thinking about branching out to other countries. Might be easier for Alex when he’s based over there.” He leans in and sucks my lip into his mouth, nibbling it. “Now, stop the distractions. Alex won’t be leaving his office anytime soon. And I want to kiss you.” He kisses my forehead, his hot breath fanning my skin. He moves his hand from my back and grabs my hip, squeezing it before sliding his fingers down to my inner thigh. “I love this skirt. You should always wear this. I love the ripped jeans, but I love this more.” He moves his hand to cup me between my legs, rubbing his palm against me. “I can’t wait to lose myself in you, Sophie. I’m clean, but if you want, we can swap health reports. Are you on birth control?”
Rafael’s body is immovable and he seems determined to hold me here. I sigh, letting my body respond to his fervent touch. “No, not yet.”
“Well, get on it, because I can’t wait to sink my dick inside you. Love you until I’m the only thing you can think of. And then, my sweet little butterfly, fuck you so damn hard, the way I’ve wanted to from the moment I saw you in those scruffy boots.”
He brushes his lips on my forehead, my jaw, tracing them along my upper lip teasingly, breathing life into my skin. His tongue sneaks out to brush the labret on my lip, and he groans deeply. I can’t help but moan in response. His warm breath on my skin has me aching so damn bad. He finally kisses me, and I’m flying. Even gravity can’t hold us down. The world around us falls away and, for a moment, we’re in a place where time and problems cease to exist.
Where it’s just Rafael and me.
Rafael
AS SOON as we step through the front door of my house, I drop my traveling bag on the floor and turn around to face Sophie. Those damn teeth tug on the labret again. I brush a thumb on her cheek, trailing down to the corner of her mouth.
“You’re beautiful.”
She tsks, shaking her boots off. “I can’t believe you just noticed that now.” She walks away, her hips swaying, and I’m dizzy just staring at them. Fuck, she’s got spunk. I chuckle, then laugh out loud.
“Let’s get that ego under control, shall we?” I say, following her. I can’t believe I’m trotting after a girl like a damn puppy. Sophie’s not just any girl, though.
She tosses a fuck-me-right-now smile over her shoulder, then looks around and says, “I didn’t get to see this place in the daylight. It’s nice.”
“Want a tour?” Maybe we could end up on my bed.
“You’re dying to show me around, aren’t you?”
I laugh again. The frequency of that, when I’m around her, shocks me. I like it. “So much, that if you say no, I’ll wither away right here.”
We head to the kitchen--which adjoins the living room--first. She looks around, her eyes widening. “You cook?”
“Don’t sound so surprised. I’m very good.”
She smiles and that dimple on her chin winks at me. “Need a second job? I could hire you at Olivia’s Circle.”
“It’s up and running?” The last time I’d been there was before I’d left for Australia. Paint was peeling off the outer walls and main doors, a product of harsh weather and lack of attention. I couldn’t tell the condition of the interior. The restaurant had been closed and locked up after Olivia’s passing. I suspect it needs a lot of work.
“Almost. Did you ever go there, you know, when my mom used to run it?”
“Yes.” Many times. You were there too. I fight to say the words, but don’t. I used to stand in the shadows when I could sneak out of Kravic’s clutches and just stare at her. I’d begged Olivia not to tell her about me, that I was in Vienna, until I was ready and out of Kravic’s Crowd.
Suddenly, all I want to do is make her wish come true, help her turn the restaurant into the happy sanctuary it used to be.
But first, I’ll need to convince her to make me a partner. I clear my throat, snapping her attention back to me.
“Come.” I link my fingers with hers and pull her upstairs to my room. Her gaze bounces from the bed to me as she licks her lower lip.
I chuckle, tugging our linked hands to my lips. “Keep looking at me like that, and we won’t get any hair cutting done.” I kiss her knuckles, nipping at the skin gently, my eyes never leaving hers. She sucks in a breath, her eyes telling me more than her body does.
“You wish,” she says, rolling her eyes. She drops my hand, heads toward the door leading to my music room and stops. She props one hip on the doorframe, looks over her shoulder once, then away, cheeks flushing.
Images of our bodies moving together, my hands tangled in her thick hair and her nails scraping my back, hits my vision hard.
Fuck! We need to leave this room before I toss her on the bed and forget my bet. Besides, she deserves better than to be taken in pure lust. I should wine and dine her, then--
“Rafael?” I jerk my gaze up from her curvy ass. She sighs dramatically, pushing out her bottom lip in a pretend pout. She looks so damn cute. “I wish my face was as interesting as my butt.”
I finally move toward her, trying to bring my ragged breathing under control. I cup her face with my hands. “You are fucking beautiful, Sophie. No one has the power to look at me the way you do. You render me powerless. Humbled. If I was to die today, the only thing I’d want to take with me is the memory of you looking at me with so much kindness.” I slide my hand down her neck, tracing her collarbone with my thumb. She shivers, her body sagging forward. I circle her waist with my free arm and slip my fingers down to cup her ass, pushing her into my erection. “Your perfect body makes me want to drop on my knees and worship you.” I press a kiss to her forehead, then look around the music room. “This is my favorite room. The place I compose my music.” I point to the walnut-burl desk beside the window, then indicate the Bosendorfer piano sitting in the middle of the room. “And that’s where
I want to do very naughty things to you.”
She makes a sound at the back of her throat, and my dick twitches, responding to that primal noise.
“What do you think, Sophie?” Her chest rises and falls against mine.
“I--it’s perfect,” she whispers, turning to face me, her hot breath brushing my lips.
“Good,” I say, tracing my tongue along the outline of her ear. “Not now, though. I want you ready for me when I finally have you.”
She chuckles, burying her face into my chest. “You’re a tease, Mr. Van Rees.”
No, I’m a fucking idiot. Pulling back, I tuck a finger under her chin, tugging it up to look into her eyes. “I deliver what I promise.” For the sake of our sanity, I drop my arm from her waist and take a step back, fighting the urge toss her on the bed. I’ve never been known to break my word. But it looks like tonight might be a first.
“Come,” I say, leading the way back downstairs to the kitchen. “I want to talk to you about Olivia’s Circle. Promise to listen to what I have to say?” She nods, folding her arms across her chest. “I’d like to invest. Jace told Hawk you were potentially looking for a partner.”
She stares at me, probably assessing how serious my offer is. She throws her head back, running her fingers through her hair. I need to convince her, kill two birds with one stone.
“Look at it this way: you’ll be able to pay Kravic his money, and Olivia’s Circle will be back on its feet sooner. It’s a win-win.”
She moves in a circle, staring at the ceiling while she nibbles on her bottom lip. My Butterfly’s proud and stubborn. I don’t expect her to let go easily.
“How’s the ledger balancing?” she asks.
“So far, looks like Kravic is the only one your dad owed money to. But we don’t have paperwork to prove they had a deal. We can’t take them to court, and you’d never have a moment’s peace if you involve the authorities.”
She runs a hand down her face, suddenly looking tired. “I don’t intend to report this. I might not be the cleverest person when it comes to such matters, but I know enough to realize I don’t want to step on Kravic’s toes.”
A Need So Insatiable Page 17