Backing off that kiss in the Jeep was the toughest thing he’d done in a long time. He’d wanted to pull her across the gearshift and into his lap, to taste the salt on her skin and savor the hint of beachiness that clung to her hair. He’d yearned for her as desperately as a child yearned for chocolate chip cookies after watching them bake and inhaling their mouth-watering aroma, but when Kelly’s tongue grazed his and she softened in his arms, he feared his intense reaction might send her scurrying into the house alone.
So he’d backed off. And waited. And wondered at the intensity of their connection.
Was his driving need a response to being deprived of female companionship during his time away, or was it a response to this particular woman? He suspected the latter, though he didn’t want to contemplate it too much. Better to indulge in the sight of her leaning against the kitchen wall, her gorgeous sundress highlighting her assets while her eyes skimmed over him as if she were deciding what to do with him now that he stood in her kitchen.
“You did say you’d come for perspective,” he pointed out. “I couldn’t imagine a better location.”
“It’s as different from my life at home as I can get, and that makes it perfect.” She pushed off the wall and set her small handbag on the kitchen counter, then withdrew a heavy-bottomed bowl from the cupboard.
He eyeballed the bowl as he made his way to the other side of the counter that divided the sitting area from the kitchen, affording her space to move. “Odd choice for a wineglass.”
“This is for Gaspare.” She filled it with water and set it on the tile floor before reaching to the cupboard once more. Holding up two wineglasses, she said, “These are for us.”
He uncorked the bottle as she came around the counter to join him. “This place came fully stocked with everything I could want. Well, except groceries. Those were supposed to be delivered this afternoon after I arrived, but the market called and said there was some problem, so they won’t be able to come until tomorrow.”
“Yet somehow, you managed to find a meal.”
She shot him a mischievous grin. “That I did.”
He surveyed the spacious living room. On one wall, a sleek television topped a long console crafted of local wood stained black. Several modern leather chairs on silver legs were arranged on either end of an off-white wool rug fronting the television, while a thick, dark brown sofa faced the television itself. In the center of the room, an oval coffee table straight from an Italian design magazine sported several glass coasters, a series of jade plants in squat terracotta pots, and an empty glass bottle of cola. The giant blue and green abstract painting above the sofa was one he recognized as the work of an artist who lived in Cateri. Sliding glass doors at the end of the room opened onto a balcony that overlooked the beach.
This place couldn’t have come cheap. As rewards went, this was a good one. She’d obviously taken great pains in her planning, since the stack of tourist brochures and guidebooks on an end table near the balcony doors were punctuated with bright yellow sticky notes.
He poured a glass of wine for each of them, then held up his glass and gave it a gentle swish. The scent of the dark red liquid teased his nose. “To what should we toast?”
She stood only a step away, close enough for him to wrap his arm around her, pull her body flush with his, and kiss her once more if he desired. Much as he wanted to feel her against him, to show her exactly how pleasurable the night could be given the preview he’d had in the Jeep, he sensed her need to ease into physical intimacy.
He wasn’t sure he could remain patient.
She raised her glass. Tipping her head slightly, she met his gaze and said, “To my luck at meeting a polite, funny, ordinary guy on a spectacular beach.”
“Ordinary?” Talk about a blow to the ego. “How charming of you.”
“Believe me, ordinary is good,” she said in dead seriousness. “And remember, I also said polite and funny.”
Not hot? Sexy? Doable? Not that he expected her to utter that particular word in a million years, but he’d sure like her to think it. When she’d asked if he was safe, he’d hoped it was a tease…in that she’d like a night that was decidedly unsafe. A vacation escapade.
Instead, her toast could have described her postman or bus driver, people whose conversations consisted of a sentence at most when she encountered them over the course of the day. Not a man with whom she might embark on a sizzling affair.
“You’re telling me you’re the only woman on the planet who doesn’t harbor a secret wish to be swept off her feet by a man who’s rich and powerful? No fairy tale princess fantasies for you?” He said it in jest, but found himself curious to hear her response now that she’d used ordinary as a compliment. Nearly every woman he’d encountered in his life knew his identity and all that came with it from the moment they met. In Sarcaccia, he was well known on the streets. In the military, his unit knew his background cold. And during his travels abroad, his arrangements had been made beforehand by the palace, meaning he had little opportunity to move about anonymously.
“None whatsoever,” she insisted. “Rich and powerful are overrated traits as far as relationships go. In fact, I’d say they’re a detriment. I’d rather go to dinner with a laid-back guy who owns a simple fishing boat than a luxury yacht. One who has friends like Giulia and Guillermo and takes me to a restaurant for a meal made with love instead of a swanky place with fussy tablecloths and an overblown maître d’. Besides, rich and powerful men are treated differently, so they view the world differently. And that includes how they conduct their relationships.”
Apparently she’d had experience with rich and powerful, and the experience it hadn’t gone well. Interesting.
She angled her chin in challenge. “Too much perspective for you?”
“Not at all. I find it fascinating.” There was a lot to be said for anonymity if this was what he could discover. She might’ve asked about his last name, but she still hadn’t made the connection, even with Giulia’s slip about Sophia. He doubted Kelly would’ve spoken so candidly if she had.
“In that case” —she raised her glass, and he couldn’t help but grin at the irony of what he suspected she was about to say— “here’s to an ordinary guy who treated me to an extraordinary dinner. You’ve made my vacation in Sarcaccia special.”
Well. He’d take that. “And to you, for accepting the dinner invitation despite not knowing my last name or exact height.”
“Or your eye color.” She clinked her glass lightly against his and took a sip. After he took a deep drink from his own glass, she set hers on the countertop and surprised him by taking his and setting it on the counter beside hers, then reaching up to touch a spot at his temple. Slowly, she ran the tip of her finger around the outside of his left eye to his cheekbone, peering at him as a doctor might evaluate a patient but with a feathery touch that nearly made him come out of his skin. It had been a long, long time since a female touched him with such tenderness. “I’m still not sure if they’re brown or green.”
He managed to find his voice. “Feel free to come closer and take a better look.”
A mixture of trepidation and anticipation filled her gaze as her hand drifted back to her side. “If I come any closer, I won’t be looking at your eyes.”
“Definitely come closer, then.”
He’d felt daring in the Jeep, asking Kelly if he’d be invited in, then kissing her the moment he saw an opportunity. That brief taste of her plush lips and sun-warmed skin left him aching for more. But rather than be daring once more and simply take, he wanted her to give. It was all he could do to remain motionless now, waiting for her to close the distance separating them. Or not.
His breath stilled in his lungs as he waited, lusted. Then saw the same burning desire reflected in her gaze.
All his life he’d been the good son, sticking to protocol, taking extreme care not to gift the royal gossips with fodder for their publications. He’d never lived life on the edge in the
way his brothers had, risking their family’s reputation for a night of partying at a club, carousing with friends, or—as his brother Stefano once did—running barefoot and shirtless past a crowd outside the royal palace so he could see a certain female.
He’d certainly never slept with a woman on a first date, despite numerous opportunities. Then again, he’d never been as intrigued with a woman as quickly as he’d become intrigued with Kelly. There was an open, honest quality about her that held him rapt, that made him want, and it was high time he took pleasure in his life and had a bit of fun. He’d worked his tail off in college, despite the expectation he appear at every social gathering imaginable. After graduation he’d risked his life for his country and his fellow soldiers, not to mention the people they’d been sent to protect. He’d done everything expected of a royal son and then some. He deserved to have a night of wild sex, sex without fear of consequences. Sex with a woman whose sensually curved body would be the ultimate indulgence for any man. A woman on vacation, with no expectations whatsoever beyond tonight.
A woman whose insights penetrated his very soul when they’d been in that dark, enclosed wine cellar, away from the light of day. She’d seen what others had not.
As he drank in the details of her face now, from the turned up eyelashes at the outer edges of her almond eyes to the arches of her dark brows, then to the soft, full lower lip that called to him, he realized that a night with Kelly Chase wouldn’t be something he’d classify as fun. It would be far more explosive than that.
He craved whatever it was more than he craved fun.
But she’d have to come to him, and she needed to come to him not knowing anything of who he was other than what he’d chosen to disclose. She had to view a night spent with a relative stranger as part of her reward to herself, part and parcel of the spectacular beach and villa. Not as a means to the royal family, to wealth, to fame, or to security.
She had to want him for him.
“Are all Sarcaccian men as flirtatious as you are?”
“I don’t know. They’ve never flirted with me.”
Her laugh was low and seductive. “Ordinary…but not at all boring. How can I resist?”
The word don’t never left his mouth. She was on her tiptoes, stretching to kiss him, but her hands remained at her sides. She surprised him once again by shifting just enough to bypass his mouth and brush her lips over his jaw. The short hairs at the back of his neck stood on end as she lingered there, her warm breath stirring him to full arousal. She moved lower, slowly caressing the skin of his neck with her lips, yet touching him nowhere else.
“Now who’s the flirt?” he whispered, though the sound was rougher than he’d anticipated. Oh, but this woman knew how to entice.
“I suppose I am.” There was a mixture of desire and nervousness in her exhalation as she continued to tease at his now-sensitized skin with her mouth.
“You are” —he struggled to clear his mind enough for the proper phrase that would let her know he wouldn’t think less of her for allowing him to make love to her, yet at the same time making it clear she could cry off at any time if that was what she desired— “one of a kind. No wonder Gaspare made a beeline in your direction when he made it to shore. The boy knew exactly what he was doing.”
“You saying you trained him to find me?”
“No one can train a dog that well.”
As if on cue, or perhaps because he heard his name, a low canine grumble rose from the other side of the kitchen counter.
“Shhhh,” he ground out. “There’s a beautiful female flirting with me.”
Kelly’s head lifted, then her lips brushed the outermost corner of his mouth. He fought to keep his breathing even as she rewarded his patience with the softest of kisses. And then he was lost. Unable to remain still any longer, he wrapped his hands around her narrow waist, pulling her to him, lifting her slightly so he could gain better access to her glorious mouth.
Oh, but he’d missed being with a woman. And this woman held more allure than any he could recall meeting. A wave of overwhelming need gripped him, driving him to deepen the kiss. The fingers of her right hand sought the nape of his neck while her left arm snaked around his back, pulling him closer. She moaned into his mouth, as if she experienced the same deep, unrequited primal craving he did and had finally allowed herself to indulge.
He ravished her mouth with his, taking his pleasure as if he might never kiss a woman again. At the same time, he found himself wondering what drove her. He knew why he needed this. Why did she? Her passionate response to his kiss wasn’t one of mere lust. This was a bone-deep craving borne of loss or of pain or of having gone without. Five years ago, even a year ago, he wouldn’t have recognized it. Now he recognized it because he’d experienced it.
Then she surprised him by smiling against his mouth.
“This is no longer safe,” she murmured.
“No, it’s not.” Not at all. Not for either of them. He kept her body pressed to his but eased his face back from hers just enough to take in her glazed expression.
Her gaze narrowed as she whispered, “Good.”
Chapter Six
Flirtation turned carnal in an instant as she kissed him once more, fitting the soft curves of her breasts against the harder planes of his chest, allowing him to imagine how it would feel if there were no clothing separating them, if they were skin on skin. He stroked her spine, moving upward until his hands reached the soft, bare flesh of her back where it was exposed above her blue sundress. She smelled of the beach, of Giulia’s, and of lemon shampoo. Of perfect femininity and beauty. Yet the musk of desire clung to her skin, too, making her irrevocably human. Making him want her all the more.
He rasped a command to Gaspare, sending the dog to a corner to sleep as if they were at home. He didn’t check to see if the dog obeyed. The padding of paws behind him was enough assurance.
He yanked the knot at the back of Kelly’s neck harder than necessary, loosening the ties that held the blue cotton fabric of her sundress between them, then located the elastic that held her hair in its elaborate twist and pulled it free. He buried both his hands in her waves, savoring the rich texture as he continued to plunder her mouth. Tasting, exploring, meeting every touch and caress of her tongue with his own. Nipping at her lower lip, sliding down to sample the divine column of her throat, then moving back again. Wanting to taste her everywhere at once.
Gradually, he became aware of her hands on his chest and pulled back. The wetness of their kiss left a sheen on her bottom lip, but she didn’t wipe it away. Instead, she took a step backward, the movement causing the front of her dress to sag. She didn’t fix it. Instead, she kept her eyes locked with his. Slowly, deliberately, he slid his hand inside the fabric, lowering it to her waist so he could see her. She wore nothing underneath, rewarding him with the amazing sight of her full breasts. He bent to take one taut nipple into his mouth, but she stopped him with a gentle hand. “No. I want to feel you against me,” she murmured, her eyes fixed on the front of his shirt.
Deftly, her fingers worked the buttons free. For a moment, he simply watched in wonder, but as she released the final button and pushed the white fabric from his shoulders, he wrapped his hands around her narrow waist and pulled her to him, letting her feel all she wanted as he kissed her once more. Taking a step backward, he felt one of the kitchen barstools against the back of his thighs and sat, pulling her flowing skirt high before lifting her into his lap to straddle him. His cock was at full attention now, straining against his slacks and against her. He wanted her to feel him, to know what her hands, her mouth, and her body did to his. The warmth of her panties against his lower body assured him she was every bit as wet and hot with need as he was hard with it.
He circled one beautiful nipple with his fingertips, then dragged his gaze from her breasts to her face. She’d been watching him. The unconcealed desire and shock in her dark eyes mirrored the chaotic thoughts filling his own mind. She cradled his
face in her hands, then dipped her head to kiss him. As she slid her hands to his shoulders, then wrapped them around him, the full weight of her breasts settled against his chest once more. He groaned into her mouth.
There was no doubt from her kiss what she wanted from him.
“I don’t sleep with men on the first date. Ever.” The words were said even as the soft, wet sound of their kisses filled his senses.
“I have no plans to sleep,” he replied. Sliding his hands down to palm her ass, he shifted his lower body even more firmly against her crotch to show her just how awake he was.
“Still…I needed to make the point.” He felt her lips curve into a smile against his. “But I suppose if we’re not sleeping, we don’t have a problem.”
Holding her fast, he stood. She started to slide her legs to the ground, but he managed a, “no, don’t,” and moved his grip to her thighs, encouraging her to wrap her legs around his waist.
He met her gaze, making his intent clear and ensuring she shared the need that thrummed through his veins. Her breathing came in the same staccato rasps as his as she tilted her head to indicate the door behind her.
“Bedroom’s that way.”
“How very polite of you.”
“Bedroom too ordinary?”
“Tell me later if you think it’s ordinary.” He strode across the living room and kicked through the partially open door to enter the bedroom. It, too, had windows overlooking the beach, though the thin white curtains were fortuitously drawn, allowing in the light bleeding over from neighboring villas and from the low-slung moon without sacrificing privacy.
As he neared the side of the bed, he allowed her to slide her legs down his until her toes touched the floor. Without words, she moved her hands to the front of his waistband to unbutton his slacks while she kicked out of her sandals and sent them skidding across the room. He followed her example, shedding his shoes while he watched her fingers work the front of his pants open. Patience finally got the better of him and he moved to help her. In seconds, she caressed her way down his thighs to pool his pants and briefs at his feet. As she stood, she ran her palms from the outside of his legs to the length of his shaft. An involuntary shiver ripped through his body as her fingers skidded over the head, then moved back down, deliberately coaxing him toward ecstasy.
Honeymoon With a Prince (Royal Scandals) Page 6