‘It happens.’
‘Yes...’ His frown deepened. ‘You’d be amazed at how cruel some couples can be to each other. How can people who once claimed to love each other change so much? It doesn’t make sense, unless they didn’t love each other in the first place.’
‘People change,’ Holly said. ‘Feelings change.’ Wasn’t that the truth? She could feel her feelings undergoing a subtle change. Had done so since the first time he’d kissed her. If she wasn’t careful she would be in way over her head. Way, way over her foolish romantic head. Drowning in feelings she wasn’t supposed to be feeling as per their agreement. No falling in love.
Zack took another measured sip of his champagne, his frown relaxing. He put his glass down on the nearest lamp table and then took hers and placed it beside his. He picked up a wayward curl of her hair and wound it around his finger. ‘Did I tell you how beautiful you look tonight?’
Holly gazed into his night-sky eyes and felt another piece of armour drop away from her heart like petals falling from a rose. She would have to be super careful not to fall in love with him. He was everything she had dreamed of in a partner. Loving, attentive, sensitive and spine tinglingly masculine and sexy. ‘You look pretty awesome yourself.’ Her voice came out as a whisper. A whisper of longing and need she could no longer suppress.
He gave a slow smile and brought his mouth down to hers, moving his lips in a gentle caress of her mouth that made her blood heat like fire in her veins. Her hands came to rest on the hard wall of his chest, her body listing towards him as if pulled by a magnetic force. Her inner core contracted when his tongue found hers, teasing it into a dance that made her heart race and her skin tighten in anticipation. His hands slid up on either side of her face, cradling her head so he could deepen the kiss. The writhing and tangling of their tongues made her ache for his possession. Ache and ache and ache until she was whimpering and blindly tearing at his clothes.
His hands moved from cradling her head to slipping off her dress. She shivered when he unclipped her bra, his hands warm and gentle as they cupped her sensitive flesh. His thumbs rolled over each of her nipples and then he bent his head and swirled his tongue over her peaked flesh. Darts of longing shot through her body and she gasped when his teeth grazed her in a gentle tiger bite.
Holly went to work on his shirt, almost ripping it from his body and pressing open-mouthed kisses to his chest. Her hands went lower to the proud bulge of his erection and she quickly unfastened his jeans and dipped her hand beneath the fabric of his underwear to claim her prize.
‘Bedroom. Now.’ Zack pulled her to her feet and led her to the sumptuous bedroom that was decorated in similar tones to the sitting room.
But Holly barely had time to notice her surroundings—all she could concentrate on was the magic of his hands on her body, the raging fire of lust in her body that seemed to be just as ferocious in his. The rest of their clothes were removed and thrown to the floor, underwear discarded like tossed garbage and then bliss as naked flesh met naked flesh.
Zack drove into her with a swift deep thrust that made her moan in sheer pleasure, her body wrapping around him, her legs hooked behind his hips, her hips rising to meet each downward thrust of his. It was a wild coupling, a wild animalistic thrashing of the senses until there was nowhere else to go but heaven. Holly felt herself lift off, her body racked with ecstasy, ripples and waves and floods of release.
His release followed hers and he gave a desperate-sounding groan, his body rocking and shuddering until he was spent. She held him close, listening to the gradual slowing of his breathing, wondering if he had been as stunned by their lovemaking as she was. Had it been this good with his other lovers? Was this run-of-the-mill sex for him? She could feel his essence between her thighs, could smell the musky scent of their aroused bodies.
He suddenly swore, rolled away and sat up, scraping a hand through his hair. Holly lifted herself up on her elbows. ‘What’s the matter? Did I do something wrong?’
His frown sliced like a knife between his brows. ‘I did something wrong.’ He got up from the bed and rubbed a hand down his face. He turned and looked at her with such a look of disgust she shrank back against the pillows. ‘I didn’t protect you.’
Holly realised then what he meant. In the mad rush to make love he hadn’t used a condom. ‘It’s okay. I’m on the pill. I use it to regulate my periods.’
He let out a savage-sounding breath. ‘Doesn’t matter. I should’ve used one regardless.’
Holly moistened her suddenly dry lips. ‘I hope you’re not implying I might be carrying some sort of disease?’
He closed his eyes in a slow blink. ‘No.’ His tone lost some of its brittle edge. He came back to sit beside her on the rumpled bed. ‘No, I’m not implying that at all... It’s just I take protection seriously. Always. I never ride bareback.’
‘But we’re being exclusive and I’m using reliable contraception,’ Holly said. ‘You don’t have to worry about using a condom, not unless you don’t plan to be faithful for as long as we’re together.’
He flinched at the word faithful as if she’d slapped him. ‘I saw what my mother’s unfaithfulness did to my father. I have never cheated on a partner. If I feel even a mild attraction for someone else, then I do my current partner a favour and tell her it’s over.’
Was that what he would do to her? Tell her he was attracted to someone else and then cut her from his life? Holly suddenly realised how much power she had given him—the power to hurt her. The power to break her heart like it had never been broken before. She swallowed a tight restriction in her throat and kept her gaze averted. ‘So...you’ll tell me when you’re ready to move on?’ She wished her voice hadn’t sounded so thready.
Zack bumped up her chin, meshing his gaze with hers. ‘I’m with you right now, Holly. This week is ours, okay?’
But for how long after that? Holly eased out of his hold and tossed her hair back behind her shoulders. ‘I might be the one to end it first. I might be the one who feels attracted to someone else.’ She lifted her chin another fraction. ‘I might get bored.’
His jaw worked for a moment, as if he was biting back a retort, the words backed up behind his tongue like soldiers keen to go into a bloody battle. His eyes contained a dangerous light. A light that warned her she had roused an emotion in him he didn’t like feeling. Possibly a feeling he had never felt before—jealousy.
‘You could.’ His tone was back to brittle, all hard edges and corners. His hands came down either side of her body, trapping her on the bed.
Holly could feel her body preparing itself, the tight clench of her inner core, the prickling sensation coursing over her breasts and belly, the intimate moisture between her legs. Desire so hot and strong it threatened to consume her. To burn her. To scorch her. To destroy her. She couldn’t stop herself reaching for him, pulling him down so his mouth crashed against hers in an explosion of lust.
It was a hard kiss, hard and insistent and irresistible. Brutal passion flared between their mouths, stoked by the twin fires of jealousy and defiance. Holly relished in the black magic of it, the way his kiss triggered something feral inside her. No one would ever be able to kiss her like this, like he wanted to devour her. No one could ever make her feel as if she would literally die if he didn’t possess her. Her body was twitching, twisting, tortured by rampant need. Her nerves were aching for his touch, her intimate muscles contracting in anticipation of his passionate possession.
How could she ever want anyone more than him?
He pinned her to the bed with his weight, the erotic tangle of their limbs sending her senses into another tailspin. He brought his mouth in a hot kiss to her breast, his lips and tongue caressing her flesh until she was writhing beneath him, wanting more, aching for more. He moved to her other breast, his teeth taking her nipple in a bite just short of pain, the exquisite torture making her fist he
r hands in his hair, dragging his mouth back to hers.
He turned her so she was on top of him, her legs splayed on either side of his hips, the heart of her so painfully aroused she could feel it pulsating. She took control and mounted him, sinking onto his turgid length with a cry that was almost primal.
He held her by the forearms, his movements within her body strong and forceful, but Holly wanted him that way. He was exactly where she needed him most, the friction of his erection against her swollen clitoris sending her into the stratosphere.
She had barely come out of her orgasm when he flipped her over again, this time so he could enter her from behind. A part of her split from her mind and looked on from above, almost a little shocked at her shamelessly resting on all fours with him holding her hips and thrusting his way to his own release. She had never been all that adventurous with sex in the past. But Zack unlocked something in her, something wild and uncontrollable.
He suddenly gasped and groaned, shook and shuddered and then collapsed, bringing her with him in a hold that was unexpectedly, disarmingly tender given the tumultuous storm of passion they had just shared.
Holly laid her head against his chest, listening to the thud-pitty-thud of his heart. His hand played with her hair, the other rested on the flank of her thigh crossed over his body. She had never been good at post-coital conversation but, after such an earth-shattering experience, what words could ever be adequate? There weren’t enough superlatives to cover what she had just experienced. Her body would never be the same. She would never be the same.
Zack shifted beneath her splayed limbs, turning her so she was on her back. He smoothed her hair back from her face, his touch so gentle it made her wonder if there was a part of him that was developing feelings for her in spite of his determination not to. His expression was hard to read—inscrutable, unfathomable, and yet with a shadow of something at the edges of his gaze as if he was working hard to keep it that way. ‘Are you hungry?’ he asked.
Her stomach growled audibly in response and she laughed. ‘I’m always hungry. Don’t you know that about me by now?’
He gave a ghost of a smile and found another tendril of hair to tuck back behind her ear. ‘I love hearing you laugh. It sounds like a tinkling bell.’
Holly wondered if she’d still be able to laugh in a few weeks or months, once their ‘engagement’ came to an end. But she didn’t want to think about that now. For now, she wanted to live in the moment. Wasn’t that what all the meditation experts said you had to do? Stop stressing the small stuff. Enjoy the moment. Live in the now.
She traced the bridge of his nose with her finger. ‘Are you hungry?’
He gave her a smouldering look. ‘Starving.’
Somehow Holly knew he wasn’t talking about food. She arched one of her eyebrows in mock surprise. ‘Not again?’
He smiled and brought his mouth down to just above hers. ‘Always.’
CHAPTER EIGHT
LATER THAT NIGHT Zack managed to drag himself out of bed and away from the temptation of Holly’s body. It was ridiculously late to be going in search of something to eat, but this was Paris and there was always somewhere open. He found a late-night tapas bar and they shared some food and wine, chatting over inconsequential things as if they’d been together for years.
His body was still recovering from the sensual workout he’d subjected it to. Strike that—what Holly had subjected it to. He couldn’t resist her. She was like a drug he hadn’t realised until now he needed to stay alive. Had he ever felt this alive? It was like he had been tuned to a higher setting. He was noticing things he had never noticed before. Colours, angles of light—even the food and wine tasted different.
He felt different.
Zack looked at Holly sitting across from him. She was wearing a navy blue velvet dress that highlighted her creamy complexion. Her hair was wild about her shoulders, her mouth still swollen from his kisses. And yes, the little patch of stubble rash was on her chin like a brand.
His brand.
He refused to be ashamed about the ferocity of his lovemaking. She had been with him all the way. He couldn’t remember having more exciting sex. She met his fire with fire. She stoked the fire within him, turning it into something wild and uncontrollable. He had never had sex without a condom before. Not even when he was a teenager. He had always used protection. Always. But with Holly he had his guard down and made love to her without a barrier. It worried him that if he wasn’t careful he might lower other barriers. Barriers he had never intended on lowering. With anyone.
When she’d said she might be the one to end their relationship, he’d been triggered by the most appalling jealousy. He had never felt jealous before. Why would he? He had never invested himself emotionally in a relationship. He had always kept his distance. Kept his guard up. But somehow with Holly he had lowered his guard and allowed her close.
Too close.
Dangerously close.
Holly put down her half-empty wine glass. ‘That’s it. I’m done. I’ll be dancing on the tables to ABBA if I drink another mouthful.’
Zack reached for her hand and smiled. ‘Do you like dancing?’
Her eyes lit up like beacons. ‘I love dancing.’
He rose from the table and drew her to her feet and into the circle of his arms. The band was playing a romantic ballad that somehow suited his mood. She looked up at him with dreamy eyes, or maybe that was his vision playing tricks on him—some of those settings on her personality, on his perception tampered with, without his awareness—without his permission.
But then, with a soft sigh, she settled closer against him, her lush curves against his hard planes, her cheek resting on his chest, her arms around his waist as if she never wanted to let him go.
He hadn’t realised until now that dancing was a little like making love. Some couples looked like they belonged together, their bodies meshing, moulding, moving as one entity. His body moved in time with hers, the rhythm of the music somehow matching the rhythm of their bodies. Slow, sensual, sexy.
Holly glanced up at him and smiled, her eyes as sparkling bright as the diamond ring on her finger. ‘Normally when I dance with someone I tread on their toes.’
Zack pulled her closer, right up against his painfully tight erection. ‘It’s not my toes you’re treading on right now.’
Her cheeks flushed a delicate pink. ‘Thanks for bringing me to Paris. I’m having an amazing time.’
He pressed a kiss to the middle of her forehead. ‘So am I.’
* * *
They left the bar a short time later and walked hand in hand along the riverbank of the Seine. It was a cool night with a light breeze that wrinkled the water like crushed silk, but Holly felt warm from Zack’s company. And possibly from the amount of alcohol she’d consumed. It was hard to tell if she was tipsy from the delicious wine and champagne or because he was so the most attentive and romantic man she had ever met. Dancing in his arms had felt as amazing as making love with him. There was the same natural rhythm and motion as if they’d been dancing together for years.
They got back to their hotel in the early hours of the morning and, although Holly should have been tired, instead she turned in his arms as soon as the door of their suite closed. His mouth came down on hers in a gentle kiss that soon turned into something else, something greedy and passionate that refused to be contained. His tongue drove through the seam of her lips, tangling with hers in a combative duel that made the fine hairs on the back of her neck stand up and a storm of need gather between her thighs.
He walked her backwards to the bedroom, blindly skirting around furniture, almost at one point knocking over one of the lamps. He began working on her clothes as she worked at his, tossing them to one side like sheets of paper ruthlessly ripped off a gift.
But then he was a gift—a gift to her senses. Her senses had been dead before him. Dea
dened by boredom. No one had ever made her feel this level of arousal. This spine-tingling level of thrilling aliveness that made her blood sing through her veins and her heart run like a supercar in her chest.
Zack pressed her down to the bed, coming over her with his body, his mouth a hot liquid fire on her breasts, on her sternum, on her quivering belly. She sucked in a breath as he went lower, his mouth on her where she throbbed and ached the most. He stroked her with his tongue up and down and in tiny circles until she was teetering on a vertiginous cliff. Her back arched off the bed as the orgasm smashed into her, making her shudder and moan and thrash beneath him.
He waited only long enough for her to catch her breath and he was inside her, driving into her with breathless gasps and deep guttural groans that signalled the thundering approach of his release. He tensed all over, his grip on her wrists somewhere in that hazy area between pleasure and pain. And then he let finally himself go, letting out a low desperate-sounding growl that made her skin lift in a shiver as the shudders racked his body, leaving him spent and useless in her arms.
Holly moved her hands up and down his back and shoulders in light massaging movements, her erratic breathing gradually slowing to keep time with his. She had never felt so physically close to someone. There was gorgeous symmetry to their lovemaking, a pattern, a beautiful, sensual choreography that was almost beyond description. It was as if in a parallel universe their bodies were delicately synchronised, recognising the other as its perfect mate.
She closed her eyes and listened to him breathing, her senses sated, every muscle deliciously relaxed. The sounds of Paris at night faded into the background, her worries about the future—her future with Zack—a muffled white noise at the back of her brain...
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