Kissed by You

by Sophia Knightly

  There was so much she wanted to learn about him—his dreams and aspirations, what made him happy and what he disliked. And most importantly, why he would deny himself the pleasure and fulfillment of starting a family.

  Could he be that commitment phobic?

  The hot chemistry between them was real and potent—and utterly drugging. Alex had been warring with his lust—his dark, taut features grappling for control as he’d leaned his forehead against hers and muttered that they had to stop. He’d curtailed any chance of lovemaking, but that hadn’t stopped him from kissing her until her legs barely held her up.

  Yet for all of Alex’s sexy charisma, there was a depth of emotion in him that she’d been seeking and had never found. They had connected on many levels and he had shared some of his deepest pain. She didn’t know what his mother had done to infuriate and devastate him, and now she might never know. It wasn’t morbid curiosity; she just wished she could do something to help ease the grief and guilt trapped in his heart.

  His childhood name was Terremoto—so fitting for the man who could make the earth move under her feet with a mere brush of his hand. Georgiana touched her mouth and swallowed a longing sigh as she relived the fierce, sweet way Alex had kissed her.

  But the reality was she would go home today after getting Bertha towed away, and leave the next day for New York to be with her family. When she returned to Naples, she would have to deal with Bill and it filled her with dread.

  Maybe this weekend had happened to help her get over her break-up with Bill? If she were truly honest with herself, she’d stop swooning over Alex and accept that she had no real future with him. He didn’t want what she wanted most – a family of her own. The harsh reality frustrated her because she craved him much like a heroine addict craved a fix, she imagined.

  It was beyond her control and could ultimately destroy her.

  Startled by the sound of a key turning in the lock, she turned toward the front door. Her tummy did a somersault when Alex walked in carrying two paper bags and all her forewarnings evaporated, replaced by a dizzying need that washed over her.

  His thick hair was rumpled and his dark eyes glimmered as he approached her, smiling.

  “Merry Christmas, Alex,” she said, wishing she could wind her arms around his neck and greet him properly. This was one Christmas morning she would have loved to be standing under mistletoe with him.

  The corners of his eyes crinkled appealingly as he regarded her with a warm smile. “Same to you, Georgie. Ready for breakfast?”

  Ready for you, she corrected silently. She waved a hand at the bags he carried. “What did you bring? I hope there’s strong coffee in there.”

  “There is. And donuts.”

  “I love donuts. How did you know?”

  His broad shoulders shrugged and the corners of his mouth kicked up in a dashing grin. “Lucky guess. Come out to the veranda. We can eat there.” It was good to see him in high spirits.

  “Okay, just give me a minute to freshen up and pop a few aspirins.” She rose from the sofa and had to grab the armrest for balance.

  Alex came forward and took her arms just above her elbows, stabilizing her before him. “Steady there. Are you okay?”

  “Yeah, I just got up too quickly.”

  He raised a sardonic brow as his lips twitched. “No hangover? Headache?”

  “Well…a bit of a headache,” she admitted with a rueful shrub, “but nothing that aspirin and coffee can’t fix.”

  “Any dizziness or nausea?” His eyes roamed her face like a physician.

  “No dizziness or nausea, Dr. Cortes. I have a strong constitution, so there’s no need for a check-up,” she said sassily. “Just don’t play any loud music.” The minute she mentioned music, a flashback of their slow and sensual dance hit her between the eyes. She caught the knowing gleam in Alex’s eyes and realized he was recalling it too.

  Georgiana pushed her disheveled hair from her face with an unsteady hand and willed her head—and heart—to stop spinning. She had brazenly sung all the lyrics of “Sexual Healing” to him, but all she could recall was passionate kisses, and later having dessert and champagne together.

  She didn’t think they’d done anything beyond kissing and all her clothes were intact, yet the light in his eyes made her wonder. How far had they gone last night?

  Alex stroked her hair. “Nothing happened, querida,” he assured her, thrilling her with the unexpected endearment. Querida meant dear in Spanish, she knew that much from living in Southwest Florida.

  “You fell asleep right after we had dessert,” he added.

  “Ah. Okay.” She stared at him, trying to gather her wits. “Are you some kind of a mind-reader?”

  Hands on his hips, he studied her with amusement dancing in his eyes. “No, but you have a very expressive face. It’s not hard to figure out what you’re thinking.”

  She glanced at the ceiling and back at him. “Yeah, I’ve been advised to be more mysterious,” she said with a shrug.

  “Don’t listen to that advice. I like you the way you are.”

  Georgiana’s belly fluttered at the provocative glimmer in Alex’s eyes as he openly watched her.

  “I enjoyed last night.” The husky timbre of his voice lured her.

  “Me too.” Longing for a kiss, her gaze gravitated to his beautiful mouth.

  When she saw the slow smile spread over Alex’s face, a rush of sensual memories made her heart pound. On an alcoholic high, she had been keen on making love with him, but he, not she, had shown self-restraint.

  Alex’s eyes intensified to brilliant black as his hot gaze glided over her body and then up again to meet her eyes. Sensual hunger stirred deep within Georgiana, and a shudder of excitement wracked her body.

  His jaw flexed. “You don’t know how hard it was for me to stop,” he muttered.

  Her breath caught in her throat at the raw hunger in his low, rough tone. Immobilized, she reminded herself to breathe as his magnetic force surrounded her. She broke eye contact and sucked in shaky breaths to calm her galloping heart.

  “It was hard for me too,” she managed through dry lips. Initially last night, she had balked upon hearing he didn’t want kids, but later as the lulling wine and sheer pleasure of his company had taken hold of her senses, all she could think of was how badly she wanted him to make love to her.

  His dark gaze contemplated her for a long moment, and then he nodded and took her hand. “Let’s have breakfast.”

  “Let me pop a few aspirins first. I’ll be right back,” she said lamely, dashing away as quickly as her noodle legs could propel her.

  “Don’t take too long,” he called out. “I have news.”

  She stopped and turned, staring at him expectantly. “What news?”

  “I’ll tell you over breakfast,” he said and headed out to the lanai.

  Chapter 8

  Moments later Georgiana emerged from the master bathroom, feeling revived. She had quickly washed her face, brushed her teeth, fixed her hair and downed two aspirins with a full glass of water. Deciding to stay in her comfy jeans, she changed out of her warm sweater and into a scoop necked, scarlet knit blouse that made her feel festive.

  Hopefully the aspirins would kick in soon, but surprisingly, she didn’t feel too bad after all. Yay me! Alex would have to acknowledge she wasn’t a lightweight after all.

  As she walked across the house toward the sliding glass doors leading to the veranda, her mind ticked a mental list of everything she had to get done before leaving tomorrow. After breakfast, she’d start calling tow truck companies, then call the airlines and see about getting a flight home. Then she had to call Piper, or she’d never hear the end of it.

  Georgiana opened the sliding glass door and stepped onto the wraparound terrace overlooking the serene Gulf. No one would have guessed they’d had a tropical storm last night, save for the fallen palm fronds and scattered coconuts on the sand. Other than the gentle waves lapping the shore, the water
further out looked as still as glass.

  She found Alex relaxing on a patio chair with his long legs stretched before him, one ankle crossed over the other. Coming up beside him, she sighed happily as she took in the beautiful panorama of sea, sand and palm trees while she inhaled deeply of the fresh sea air.

  “Feeling better?” he asked¸ smiling at her.

  “Much. What a beautiful morning,” she said, thinking how relaxed he looked. “I would love to walk the beach.”

  He drank his coffee and nodded. “We can do that later if you want, when the tide has receded.”

  Later? She was about to ask him about the news he’d mentioned when he handed her a cup of coffee.

  “Here, help yourself,” he said, holding out an open paper bag.

  “Ooh, these look like they’re from the Trackside Donut Cafe.”

  “They are,” he said, biting into a fat, glazed donut.

  “They have the best donuts in town. I’ll try one of these.” She chose one oozing with red jelly and sank her teeth in, nearly swooning at the combination of sweet raspberry, fluffy dough and powdered sugar. “Yum. Coffee and donuts. The best combination.”

  Alex leaned forward and wiped the powdered sugar from her lower lip. The heady feel of his blunt thumb slowly gliding across her lip made her want to suck it into her mouth.

  “I have good news and bad news. Which do you want first?” he said lightly.

  Bad news she could do without. “I guess I have to hear both, though I dread the bad news. I’ll try not to let it ruin this delicious donut and your good company.” She smiled and took another bite of the donut, taking a moment to savor it. “Since it’s Christmas morning, give me the good news first, please.”

  “I got someone to come out early this morning and take a look at your car. The good news is it’s fixable. Felix thinks it’s only the alternator that needs to be replaced.”

  “Oh,” she said, wondering how much it would cost to fix. “I feel like such a slug. Here you’ve been up early taking care of my business, and I’ve been sleeping in. I must admit that wine was delicious though.” She smiled guiltily. “Thank you. So what’s the bad news?”

  “The soonest we can get your car fixed is tomorrow. Not only is it Christmas, it’s Sunday too.”

  “Yeah, I figured as much,” she said. “I’m resigned to wait. Anyway, I’ll be on my way to New York tomorrow…if I can get a flight out. I’ll have it towed to my apartment and take care of it when I get back.” Her shoulder lifted in a hapless half-shrug.

  He smiled. “No need to. Just give me your address, and I’ll make sure Bertha is there before you return.”

  “Are you Santa Claus?” she quipped. When his smile broadened to a grin, she said, “It’s too generous of you to offer. Are you sure you don’t mind? It’s such a bother.”

  “It’s no big deal. Felix already towed your car to his garage.”

  “He did? But what about the stuff I had in the trunk? My suitcase and—”

  “I took them out of your trunk and put them in mine before he took it.”

  “Oh, that’s a relief!”

  Georgiana felt a weight lifted from her shoulders, but she felt a little uneasy that he’d done it without asking her. While she appreciated his efforts in resolving her car issue so quickly, she wasn’t sure she liked Alex taking over like that. She had spent most of her life fighting for independence from her older brothers, who grew up convinced they knew best in everything that pertained to their little sister.

  They still watched over her, especially after she’d made an unfortunate mistake in her college years. But since Alex had been so helpful, she wasn’t about to act ungrateful.

  “Thank you. That was very thoughtful of you.” She smiled at his self-satisfied look. “Let me know how much it costs, and I’ll repay you.”

  Alex shook his head. “No need to repay me. I’ll take care of it.”

  Her brow creased. Now that was taking things a bit too far. “Why? I mean—no! I can’t let you do that.” She spread her arms in an expansive gesture. “I can pay for my own bills,” she said with a firm thrust of her chin. “Don’t get me wrong. I appreciate it, but—”

  “It’s a gift,” he cut in. “Don’t argue.”

  “Thank you, but I can’t—I mean I won’t—accept it. I’ll cover it as soon as Felix tells me the amount. And you don’t have to give me a Christmas gift,” she added with a smile. It was really too sweet how he wanted to take care of poor Bertha for her.

  “It’s not a Christmas gift.” A cryptic glint lit his eyes as his black brows lifted. “Is there something you haven’t told me, Georgie?”

  “Not that I can think of,” she said, bewildered at his taunting tone.

  The spark in his dark eyes turned roguish as he grinned slowly.

  “Why are you looking at me that way?” she asked. It was as if she’d committed a transgression and he was taking her to task on it. “Give me a hint. My head is too fuzzy to figure it out.”

  “Your phone was buzzing nonstop most of the night.”

  “And?” She got up and turned to face the water, wondering if he was referring to all the texts from Bill.

  “You’ve been hiding something.”

  Nervous, she whirled around, surprised to find him grinning devilishly. “What?”

  “It’s your birthday, that’s what,” he said.

  “Why, yes, it is,” she said with a bright smile.

  “And why didn’t you tell me?” he inquired mildly.

  “Isn’t it enough that I invaded your home on Christmas Eve? I didn’t tell you because I didn’t want you to know,” she admitted.

  He tsked and shook his head. “That was naughty of you, Blondie.”

  “Blondie?” She laughed at the unexpected nickname. “No one has ever called me that. Naughty, maybe, but not Blondie.”

  A wicked gleam igniting his eyes made her inch away from him.

  “Not so fast.” His big hands reached for her, but she danced away. “Do you know what naughty birthday girls get?” he inquired with a lift of his black brow.

  “Birthday kisses?” she blurted out.

  “No,” he said, slowly advancing on her.

  “Lots of presents?” she squeaked, poised to take flight at the mocking menace in his tone.

  “Wrong again.” He lunged for her and she took off, but not fast enough. He caught up with her in three strides and upended her over his shoulder. “They get this!” he said, playfully smacking her bottom twice. “Birthday spankings,” he added with a diabolical laugh.

  Blood rushed to Georgiana’s face as she grappled to push her hair out of her eyes. “Not this birthday girl. Cut that out,” she yelped when he continued.

  “How old are you today?” he asked in a conversational tone, striding into the house.

  “You really think I’m going to tell you in this position?” she demanded giddily, shoulders shaking with helpless giggles.

  “Then I’ll just have to guess,” he said, peppering his words with frisky smacks. He counted out ten and then laid his hand on her tingling bottom. “That’s about a dozen. How many more, birthday girl?” He carried her inside, laughing at her protests.

  “Put me down, you…you sadist!” she squealed, squirming so much she nearly fell off his shoulder.

  His arm tightened across her thighs as he carried her to the living room couch and plopped her down and joined her. Taking her glowing face between his hands, he nipped the tip of her nose. “Happy Birthday, Blondie.”

  “You’re evil,” she replied, barely catching her breath and trying to glare at him in spite of her mirth. “A bully and a madman—”

  He cut her off by laying a finger over her mouth. When she stilled, he indolently traced the dimple next to her mouth. “You have the most delicious little dimple,” he drawled, “and I love your plump lips. They taste so good and seriously tempt me to devour you. All of you.” His finger trailed across her lips, inciting tremors of pleasure so inte
nse, she clamped her thighs tightly against the onslaught of voluptuous sensations.

  Speechless, she stared at him. Did he realize how erotic he sounded? Delicious little dimple. Plump lips.

  “Tell me something,” he said, kissing the tender hollow below her earlobe. “How do you know all the lyrics to ‘Sexual Healing?’” His warm breath tickled her skin, making her shiver as every pore heated with desire.

  “It’s one of my favorite songs,” she said breathlessly.

  “Why?” His eyes grew tender as he gazed at her expectantly.

  “I like how honest the lyrics are. Why do you bring it up now?” She frowned slightly. “As I recall, you didn’t like my singing. It stopped you cold,” she said, waiting for his reaction.

  Alex’s brows snapped together. “What gave you that idea? I never said that.”

  She sighed. “You didn’t have to. You put the brakes on us right away. Just when I was ready to…when we were ready to…oh never mind,” she said in a rushed tone.

  Alex’s thumb lightly grazed the curve of her cheek. “That’s right, I put the brakes on us, Georgie, and I would do it again because the timing was off.” He sighed heavily and drew back a few inches. “We both had a lot to drink last night, and you were tipsy.”

  She gazed at him from beneath her lashes. “I might have been tipsy, but I remember how enjoyable it was.” Her lower lip pushed out defiantly and he leaned forward to kiss it.

  The ardor in Alex’s molten eyes when he straightened from the brief kiss nearly singed her lashes. “It was enjoyable. Very enjoyable.” He pulled her onto his lap, holding her easily with one hand on her waist and the other around her shoulders. “But when we make love, I don’t want you to be tipsy, baby.”

  Georgiana sucked in a tremulous breath and stared at him. He had just guaranteed they’d be making love…and he’d called her baby. The endearment had rolled off his tongue naturally; as if she were his girl and he called her baby all the time.