by Mary Lyons
But knowing that she’d been a total idiot, caving in this evening to his dark enchantment, and falling a willing victim to the beguiling, almost irresistible force of his overwhelming attraction, was one thing. How she was going to deal with it once he’d driven back to London was quite another.
The main thing, she decided, pouring herself a large cup of black coffee, was to try and keep her end up. To make sure that she gave him no hint or reason to suppose that she was anything but an extremely sophisticated woman of the world. One who’d been pleased to see an old flame, and had, in fact, thoroughly enjoyed his company, both last night and today. But who was also perfectly calm and totally relaxed about the fact that she might never see him again.
Yes—that was definitely the way to handle the situation. Unfortunately it was easier said than done, she realised, just as Antonio came into the room.
‘Ah, I thought I caught the delicious scent of fresh coffee,’ he said, coming over to sit down on the sofa beside her. ‘I’ve just been out to the car to use my mobile phone.’
‘Oh, yes?’ she murmured as she concentrated on pouring him some coffee. ‘Did you have any problem getting through?’
‘No, none at all,’ he told her coolly, his dark eyes glinting with sardonic amusement as he took the cup and saucer from her hands. Which, he noted with interest, were shaking slightly, clearly betraying the fact that Miss Gina Brandon was not quite as cool and composed as she seemed.
And that was merely a case of rough justice, he told himself firmly. Because, thanks to the effect of that quite outrageously sexy dress, he’d had considerable problems himself this evening. Principally in keeping his own hands off this lovely girl’s ravishing figure!
A silence fell on the room as Gina stared down at the black liquid in her cup, trying to avoid looking at the man now sitting so close to her. She seemed to be having trouble breathing and she could almost feel her pulse positively racing out of control.
‘Would you like some more coffee?’ she muttered huskily, doing her level best to ignore the long, muscular thigh touching her own as he leaned forward to place his cup down on the low table in front of them.
‘No, I think I’ve had enough. Especially as I’m not driving back to London tonight.’
‘You’re not…not going back to London?’ Startled, Gina turned to face him.
Antonio gave a shrug of his broad shoulders. ‘I decided it was probably best not to. Which is why I’ve just phoned up my hotel there and cancelled my reservation for tonight. It seemed sensible, since I suspect that I may have drunk more than was wise tonight.’
‘But…but I noticed that you hardly touched any wine. Which is why I thought…well, it seems I was obviously wrong…’ she muttered helplessly, before taking another quick sip of coffee and trying to pummel her sluggish mind into some kind of working order.
‘So, you…er…you’d like to stay on here, in the house…?’
He grinned. ‘As an alternative to sleeping in my car? Yes, indeed I would!’
‘Well…OK.’ She sighed as he leaned back on the cushions and smiled at her.
She really didn’t know whether to be sorry or glad that he’d decided not to return to London. It would mean that he’d still be around for part of tomorrow, at least. But she was rapidly beginning to think that wasn’t a good idea. Not when merely one of those beguilingly seductive smiles could have such a mesmerising effect on her emotions.
‘It has been a delightful evening,’ he said, his deep voice cutting into her disordered thoughts. ‘But now I think that it is about time we went to bed. Don’t you?’
‘Yes, I suppose so,’ she murmured, trying to pull herself together. ‘You know where your room is, of course.’
‘My room…?’ he drawled with sardonic amusement. ‘Oh, no, querida. I am not at all interested in that. Absolutamente, no!’
‘What…?’ She turned to stare at his tanned, handsome face, her mind in a total whirl. ‘Are you suggesting…?’
‘That I wish to go to bed with you? But, yes—of course I do! Is it so surprising that I should want to make love to such a warm, beautiful woman?’ he murmured, casually sliding his arm along the back of the sofa.
‘But…but…you can’t just swan in here…thinking that you can pick up where you left off eight years ago!’ she cried. ‘And…and… Hey! Cut that out!’ she snapped, as he raised his hand and she felt him plucking the combs from her hair.
‘Whatever happened in the past, I have never…ever forgotten your glorious, wonderful long hair,’ he murmured as the heavy mass tumbled down over her shoulders.
‘Oh—for heaven’s sake!’ she muttered, her hands fluttering helplessly while trying to both scoop up her hair and push him away, as he lowered his arm to encircle her waist, drawing her slowly towards him.
‘P-please, Antonio—you don’t understand!’ she gasped, shivering as he raised his other hand, winding his fingers through the tresses of her pale gold hair. ‘I’m not the silly…stupid girl you knew all those years ago.’
‘Indeed you are not!’ he agreed with a low rumble of husky laughter, his hand tightening in her hair and holding her head firmly beneath him, tilting it back against the cushions so that she found herself gazing up into his handsome, tanned face.
Goodness knows what was happening to her…that was one of the few coherent thoughts flooding through her brain, and her sapphire-blue eyes widened in her pale face as she gazed helplessly up at the hard, sensual line of his mouth. Her head seemed to be pounding with a strange fever, and although she knew…hoped…feared…that he was going to kiss her, she couldn’t seem to move. It was as though she was trapped in a weird, hypnotic trance, totally mesmerised by the intense, fiery glitter in his sparkling dark eyes.
And then, as if in slow motion, he gradually lowered his dark head, his mouth taking possession of hers and parting her quivering, trembling lips to allow his tongue to invade the soft, inner sweetness of her mouth with ruthless determination. She was barely aware of moaning helplessly as he lowered her back against the plump sofa cushions. His hands were sweeping over her body, his strong fingers erotically caressing her soft curves with a mounting, hungry passion which left her utterly dazed and trembling in his arms.
As his lips softened, moving over her mouth with a slow, languorous sensuality, they provoked a wanton, passionate response in her trembling body which she seemed powerless to deny. And how could she? When this was all she’d ever wanted…all she’d ever dreamed of…since first setting eyes on him all those years ago.
And yet…the past now seemed a different country, and of no relevance to the present. Now…now she was a fully mature woman, with every fibre of her being consumed by a rushing tide of fierce pleasure and excitement, relishing the strong arousal of the hard, firm body pressed so closely to her own, the rapid pounding of his heart and the scorching heat of his mouth. And almost of their own volition her arms closed about his neck, her fingers feverishly burying themselves in his thick, black hair as she fervently responded to the electrifying intoxication of his kiss.
Aeons of time seemed to pass before he slowly raised his head, gazing intently down at the sweet, quivering temptation of her lips, at the dazed blue eyes staring helplessly up at him, totally in thrall to the storm of passion and desire rampaging through her body.
‘Querida…!’ he groaned softly, his lips twisted in a briefly mocking smile, before burying his face in her long hair for a moment. ‘I think we are most surely going to bed…together. No?’
‘Oh, Lord—I sincerely hope so!’ she gasped, not fully realising that she’d spoken her instantaneous thoughts out loud until she heard him give a deep growl of laughter.
And then, with what seemed effortless ease, he smoothly rose from the sofa, raising her limp, trembling body in his arms, before swiftly leaving the room and mounting the wide, curving staircase to her bedroom.
CHAPTER FOUR
‘I…I’M NOT sure that this is such a good idea afte
r all…’ Gina muttered nervously as he lowered her gently down on to the bed, suddenly swamped by feelings of deep apprehension.
She liked to think that she was a reasonably sophisticated woman, who’d had her share of boyfriends and lovers. But…she’d had so many fantasies over the years about making love with Antonio that the reality was bound to be a great disappointment. And she wasn’t sure that she could bear that.
‘A good idea?’ Antonio gazed down at her in astonishment for a moment, before giving a deep, husky laugh as he sat down on the bed beside her.
‘Ah, querida—cannot you see? Surely you must know that, good idea or not, I have been thinking of little else other than wanting to make love to you since I arrived here yesterday.’
‘Really?’
‘Sí—ciertamente!’ he said firmly, the sensual mockery in his brief smile and the glittering darkness of his eyes causing her heart to give a dangerous lurch as he put out a hand to gently brush a coil of hair from her brow.
‘We have a history that goes back a long way, no? But that was when we were both much younger,’ he added softly, as his warm fingers moved over her cheek and down down her long neck. ‘You were just out of school. While I…? I was nothing but a callow youth who should have known better than to play with fire.’
She suddenly found herself feeling deeply touched, both by Antonio’s honesty and the genuine sincerity and regret in his voice as he acknowledged his part in that unhappy episode. And she, who had been so preoccupied all these years with her own hurt, could now almost physically feel the cold icy fingers which had encased her frozen heart for so long slowly melting beneath the warmth of his smile.
‘It wasn’t all your fault,’ she admitted with a slight sigh. ‘I was…well, I was a very silly young girl. Stuffed full of romantic nonsense from reading too many Victorian novels.’
‘Ah, no! You were charming. So sweet. So innocent,’ he murmured, ignoring her slight gasp as his hand slowly trailed down over the fine bones and soft skin of her bare shoulders, lightly brushing aside the thin straps of her dress to expose her breasts. ‘As for what happened? Well, I very soon came to bitterly regret my stupid behaviour.’
But Gina was finding it increasingly difficult to concentrate on what he was saying. The warmth of his long, tanned fingers moving enticingly over the hardening tips of her bare breasts was almost driving her to distraction. And when he lowered his dark head, his mouth closing possessively over one enlarged, swollen nipple, she gave a helpless moan as a stream of electrifying, fiery excitement zigzagged through her body.
‘So…we will make love, no…?’ he breathed huskily against her skin, before his warm lips trailed a scorching path over her quivering flesh towards her other breast.
‘Oh, yes!’ she gasped, impatiently helping him as he removed her dress and panties, before he swiftly unbuttoned his shirt. Tossing it and the rest of his clothes aside, he slipped into bed beside her, his warm arms tenderly enfolding her trembling body.
‘Mmm…you smell wonderful!’ he murmured, his voice husky with desire, before kissing her very gently, as if she was something rare and precious, his lips seeming to carry a magic spell as they trailed slowly down over her face and neck to her breasts. The touch of his mouth brushing against her nipples sent shivers of excitement dancing across her skin once more; the feel of his warm lips and hands moving down over her body, carefully savouring every inch of her quivering, naked flesh, almost drove her wild with desire.
For the first time in her life she could feel her emotions spinning totally out of control. And she simply couldn’t care less!
By now firmly in the grip of a languorous, wanton force as old as time itself, she surrendered to the need to run her trembling hands through the dark curly hair of his broad chest, sliding her fingers over the contours of his firm, muscular body and on down the smooth line of his back, revelling in the sound of his sharp intake of breath as her touch became more enticing, more intimate.
‘Dios…!’ he muttered hoarsely against her skin. The deep, huskily sensual note in his voice inflaming her desire. ‘How did I not know it would be like this?’
As his hands moved slowly over her flesh, exploring every soft curve and crevice, she felt as if she was drowning in ecstasy; his lips and tongue stroked her, leading her upwards towards some far-off land of bliss and passion. The helpless moans of a voice which she barely recognised as her own were echoing in her ears as the excitement increased to become a frenzy deep inside her. And then she was suddenly gripped by a seemingly endless series of ever-mounting convulsions, soaring up into the stratosphere on wings of sheer rapture and delight such as she had never dreamed existed.
It was only then that his strong, muscular figure swiftly covered hers with a fierce urgency. The dynamically hard, forceful thrusts of his powerful body were vigorously propelling them both towards a shattering climax, until he, too, groaned out loud in the release and ecstasy of their mutual fulfilment.
Much later, as she lay wrapped in his arms, Gina was still feeling totally dazed by Antonio’s lovemaking, which far and away transcended anything she’d ever experienced. Or anything she could have imagined, she told herself with a deep sigh of utter contentment, before she slowly drifted off into a dreamless sleep.
When she finally awoke, still firmly cradled in his arms, it was to see the bright morning sun pouring in through the windows—she and Antonio clearly having been far too absorbed with one another last night to even think of drawing the curtains.
Lying still for a while, quietly aware of the strong, rhythmic beat of his heart, she hadn’t realised he was also awake until he whispered in her ear. ‘You made me a very happy man last night, my darling Gina. And you? You were happy, too?’
‘Oh, well…’ She grinned up at the ceiling. ‘I suppose I could say that I wasn’t too unhappy… But I’d be lying!’ she added quickly, as he raised his dark head to glare down at her. ‘Oh, come on, Antonio,’ she laughed. ‘Surely you don’t need me to tell you that you’re a sensational lover?’
‘Of course I do!’ he retorted with a broad smile. ‘I am a man, no? But…since you appear to have doubts about my sexual prowess…’ He gave a heavily dramatic sigh. ‘Well, it seems that I have no choice but to try and convince you that I am at least, as you say in this country, “better than sliced bread”!’
‘No…really…Antonio! For heaven’s sake—I was only joking!’ she gasped, as she felt his hands beginning to move slowly and sensually over her body.
‘Too late!’ he murmured huskily, his strong arms tightening possessively about her slim body as he drew her up against him. ‘Ah, querida! How wonderfully soft your skin is…as smooth as silk,’ he breathed, obviously savouring every moment as his hands moved slowly and leisurely over her warm, pliant flesh towards the round peaks of her breasts, swollen and aching for his touch.
Becoming aware of the rising heat of his body, pressed so closely to her own, she was swept by a fierce and overwhelming compulsion to respond to his increasingly urgent touch; every inch of her flesh was quivering and vibrating in response to his sensual arousal. And then suddenly, from almost out of nowhere, savagely raw passion seemed to explode passionately between them, their bodies merging in a wild, untamed hunger and overpowering need for one another.
‘Strewth!’ Gina muttered some time later as she became aware of Antonio levering himself back up against the pillows beside her. ‘I’m not sure I can take much more of this lovemaking Spanish-style! But I’m happy to give you a signed testimonial to the effect that you’re definitely better than sliced bread!’
Antonio laughed, before swinging his long legs off the bed and striding over to the window, throwing it open and taking deep breaths as he stretched his long, tall frame.
‘Thank goodness the Lamberts are away for the weekend,’ Gina giggled, gazing at his naked, superbly fit, tanned figure. ‘Poor Doris, our housekeeper, would probably have a heart attack if she could see you now!’ she added, languo
rously stretching her own satiated body and preparing to drift off to sleep once more.
But Antonio clearly had other ideas.
‘Come on, sleepy-head!’ he said, coming over to pull the sheets down from her protesting figure. ‘It is time to get up. We must go shopping.’
‘Shopping?’ she groaned, reluctantly sitting up in bed and raising her arms to brush her hands through the long, tangled coils of her pale hair.
‘Ah, querida!’ he murmured, lowering himself down on to the bed beside her and running his hand over her warm, soft body, savouring her slim waist and those wonderfully firm full breasts. ‘I am almost tempted…but, no—shopping it must be!’
‘But I don’t understand.’ She frowned up at him in puzzlement. ‘What’s with this sudden desire to hit the shops?’
‘Really, Gina!’ he exclaimed, rising to his feet, clearly surprised at her question. ‘I must buy some clothes, of course.’
‘Clothes?’
‘You will recall that I was only intending to stay here, with you, for one night? Which means that I have left most of my luggage in the hotel in London. And I cannot possibly be expected to wear, for the whole of today, the shirt and trousers which I wore yesterday,’ he told her firmly.
‘Oh, well—I suppose you’re right,’ she acknowledged.
‘So, while I go and have a shower in the guest suite, I expect you to immediately rise and get ready to leave the house as soon as possible,’ he said, swiftly gathering up the clothes he’d discarded last night before leaving the room.
‘By the way,’ he added, popping his head back round the door to give her an engaging smile. ‘When you are making breakfast, I would like some of your English toasts, with lots of marmalade, and a large pot of black coffee.’
As his dark head disappeared from sight once more Gina reluctantly scrambled off the bed, muttering under her breath about male chauvinist pigs as she made her way into her adjoining bathroom.
What did he think this was—a first class hotel? Still…there was no getting away from the fact that the damn man was, without any shadow of doubt, the most fantastic lover! Never, in all her life, had she been raised to such ecstatic heights of rapturous happiness.
