He followed a handful of seconds later, wearing only his jeans. And it was her turn to have her breath strangle in her lungs as she stumbled backwards towards the kitchen.
‘Two can play at that game,querida. Remember that,’ he advised as he walked past her, trailing his fingers across her collarbone before his hand dropped to cup one breast in an openly hungry caress that made her rethink her decision to start tussling with a maestro.
Thankfully, he took mercy, plucked an apron from a nearby hook and slung it over her head, securing it primly at her waist. Then with a brisk smack of her bottom that had her yelping in delight, he went to the fridge and started pulling out ingredients.
They ate, not at the small dining table, but in front of a roaring fire, with Lotte planted firmly in his lap as he fed her bites from their overflowing plates.
She fought against the swell of contentment that insisted this was the happiest moment in her life. That, as impossible asit was, she wanted time to stop this very instant so she could savour it for as long as possible before the loneliness that dogged her life inevitably took over once more.
She knew she should be thankful for the stark reminder of what he’d said to her in the bedroom before he’d taken thorough possession of her. This tryst would only be accommodated under his remote cabin roof; the moment they returned to the outside world, he would revert to the near stranger and strict guardian role he preferred.
This was simply a moment in time.
But not even the impending weight of it could dispel the need to obey when he stopped her from rising after their breakfast to take the dishes to the kitchen, instead coaxing her to lay her head against his chest as he wrapped one arm around her back and the other over her hip, his thumbs gliding seductively over her skin, easing her into a deep comfort and serenity she’d never known.
For the first time in her life, Lotte felt no inclination to fill the silence, to challenge this man who had ruled her life from afar for so long.
And when drowsiness overcame her, she didn’t protest when he rose with her in his arms and climbed the stairs, smiling when he tugged the apron from around her before tossing it away.
‘Are you sore?’ he rasped as he kissed his way up her shoulder and jaw to the corner of her mouth.
Lotte wanted to be sophisticated and worldly, but Valenti’s possession was very much evident in the tangible ache of her inner muscles. Biting her lip, she nodded, unable to stop the heat suffusing her face. ‘A little,’ she confessed.
The bite of disappointment across his expression pulled at her heart, and she almost protested when he slid into the space beside her and gathered her up in his arms. ‘Sleep then,’he encouraged roughly. ‘Or I won’t be held responsible for succumbing to my little witch.’
Just a silly little fantasy, she reminded herself sternly.
Still, she slid her arm around his waist, and when he firmly drew up her leg to drape over his thick thighs, she didn’t complain. She merely sighed and let sleep take her.
She woke three hours later, alone, her heart hammering with alarm for vital seconds with the dismaying thought that she’d dreamed everything. But the indentation in the pillow and the discarded clothes verified what had happened.
She’d had sex with Valenti. Her guardian. And whilst that illicit thrill of the forbidden stole through her, Lotte admitted to herself that she didn’t want it to be over. Not when they left the cabin.
Could she…
Her thoughts stumbled to a halt when Valenti filled the doorway.
He wore a black robe loosely tied around his waist and his silver eyes zeroed in on her with a fierceness that made her heart lurch. ‘You’re up.’
She nodded, her heart still racing as he prowled over, angled her head and slanted his mouth over hers. For long endless minutes he dominated her every sense, dragging out a helpless moan when he finally pulled away and perched on the side of the bed.
‘Any news?’ she attempted, even though she was secretly content to live in oblivion just a little longer.
His lips tightened for a moment before he shook his head. ‘He is proving elusive,’ he replied tautly, then his expression hardened into a mask so ruthlessly determined she was glad she wasn’t on the receiving end of his pursuit. ‘But not for long.’
Catching her shiver at that, his expression eased a fraction and he held out his hand. ‘Come.’
‘Where?’
The corner of his mouth twitched. ‘Shower first, then whatever you want,’ he offered huskily.
What she wanted, most of all was to dive into his arms, but a shower was a close second. Especially when they entered the bathroom and he immediately shrugged off his robe. Her senses leaping at the sight of his magnificent form, she could barely concentrate enough to walk into the large cubicle he filled the moment he entered.
Lotte wanted to hate him for being mildly amused at her awkwardness, but he mitigated that too when he lazily squirted soap into his hands, rubbed them together, then proceeded to wash her from head to toe.
The moans she tried to stifle earlier ripped free, then seemingly set loose, they relentlessly poured from her as his expert hands wreaked magic over her skin. At her silent demand to return the favour, he nodded, his gaze devouring her every move as she attempted to reciprocate, faltering embarrassingly when she reached his groin.
But, seeing her effect on him, Lotte grew bolder, wrapping her hand around his sizeable girth and stroking a scant few times before with an animal snarl and nostrils flaring, he captured her hands.
