‘I really don’t,’ he admitted in the half growl she loved.
Rose was perfect. Everything about tonight had been perfect. Knowing every inch of Rose intimately was inevitable and right. Planting kisses on her neck, he abraded her skin very gently with his stubble. The thong she was wearing was composed of the finest Swiss lace and yielded easily to his strong fingers. She was so aroused the flimsy fabric could barely contain her. Trailing his fingertips over the site of her arousal, while denying Rose any real pressure, made her fierce. ‘Don’t tease me,’ she warned, attempting to guide his hand to where she wanted it.
‘But I enjoy teasing you,’ he admitted as he shook her off to continue his lazy exploration.
Thrusting fiercely against his hand, she clung to him, almost in desperation. A complex mix of strong and vulnerable, Rose was unique in his experience. He enjoyed the contrast, but refused to take advantage of it. ‘Relax,’ he soothed. ‘You don’t have to rush this or do anything. Leave it all to me.’
She obeyed, moaning in pleasure as he gradually increased the movements of his skilled fingers until she had to stifle her cries of completion.
Having made sure she was completely satisfied, and knowing he’d always remember the look on her face as she came, he reached for his phone.
‘What are you doing?’ Rose asked, frowning, still panting with the force of her climax.
‘Telling my people to have the helicopter ready to leave right away.’
‘You’d leave without saying goodnight to the Prince?’ Rose sounded scandalised. ‘I should thank him for a wonderful evening,’ she insisted. ‘I feel bad—’
‘There’s no need to thank him. The Prince is fully occupied with matters of his own. If it helps you to feel better, you can send him a note tomorrow.’
‘I will,’ Rose assured him with feeling.
He helped her straighten her clothes. ‘We’ll pick up your shoes on the way,’ he promised, reminding Rose of the high heels she’d discarded.
‘I still feel bad, leaving like this,’ she admitted with a glance towards the brilliantly lit ballroom.
‘The one thing you don’t feel is bad,’ he said, wrapping a protective arm around her shoulders.
‘You could be right,’ Rose conceded with a mischievous nod.
Raffa directed the pilot to the second officer’s seat, and he flew the helicopter from the palace to thePegasus, while Rose sat in the second row, wondering if it was possible to be any more aware of her body and its needs than she was now. It seemed the more Raffa introduced her to this forbidden pleasure, the more she wanted. She was so greedy for him.
He was tough, rugged and hot-as-hell sexy, and an excellent pilot too. Their landing was barely discernible. One moment they were in the air and the next on the swaying deck of the superyacht. It could have been a metaphor for her life, Rose reflected, now she’d had the chance to quietly and calmly reflect on the events of the night.
‘You can take your headphones off now,’ Raffa prompted as the second officer bid them goodnight and left.
Not wanting the fairy tale to end, Rose gave herself another blissful moment, before reluctantly doing as Raffa said. She knew that the clock had struck midnight and Cinderella’s shoes were now firmly in place. ‘What time would you like to meet up tomorrow?’ she asked, to demonstrate her understanding that they were back on the boat where things would have to change between them.
‘Tomorrow?’ Raffa sat back in his seat to shoot her a quizzical look.
‘I thought—’
‘What did you think, Rose?’
Opening the door, he came around to help her disembark. Moving into his arms felt so right. It was moving out of them that felt wrong, but now they were safe on deck, she imagined they’d be heading off to their own accommodation. How their hands touched, brushed, until finally they linked fingers, she had no idea. It didn’t do to examine things too closely sometimes.
‘Do you want to call by your room first?’
‘No need,’ she exclaimed breathlessly.
They almost didn’t make it as far as his suite. The moment they were inside thePegasus, Raffa swung her around and thrust her back against the wall. Lodging his fists either side of her face, he kept her in place for a kiss as hungry and as fierce as any she could dream of. The pressure of his body against hers was exciting and arousing, and it was only moments before she was moaning again...noisily.
Raffa was laughing when he released her. ‘My security guards will come running.’
‘Good! Kiss me again,’ she demanded, high on Raffa wanting her.
Their kisses grew increasingly heated until she took Raffa by the hand and dragged him through the ship, laughing, excited and breathless. This was what had been missing in her life, this ability to feel without counting the cost of everything. If she could just have this—him—Raffa—for one, single night, she’d take it, no question.
Shouldering open the door to his suite, Raffa swung Rose into his arms and carried her to the bed. The only thing clear in his head was Rose. She was his focus, and he was determined to make every moment special for her—
