The pastry was still warm, flaky layers giving way to cinnamon-spiced apples.I closed my eyes as I took the first bite, unable to suppress a small moan of appreciation.When I opened them, Oktober was watching me with an intensity that had heat pooling low in my belly.
“Good?”he asked, his voice lower than before.
I nodded as I smiled, swallowing hard.“Very.”
We ate in companionable silence for a few minutes, the occasional birdsong and lap of water against the shore the only sounds.I found myself studying his profile.The strong line of his jaw beneath the beard, the slight bump in his nose that suggested it had been broken at least once, all things completely opposite of Eric.Eric was what one would term a “fine, upstanding citizen of these here United States of America.”
“I’ve been thinking about your situation, little Mia,” he said finally, turning to face me.“With your ex.”
I tensed slightly.“Have you?”
“Ja.”He brushed pastry crumbs from his hands.“He didn’t deserve you if he couldn’t keep his dick in his pants.Simple as that.”
His bluntness startled a laugh from me.“That’s… direct.”
“Am I wrong?”One eyebrow quirked up, challenging me.And why did I find that slight accent sexy as hell?
“No,” I admitted.“You’re not wrong.”
“The way I see it,” he continued, leaning forward with his elbows on his knees, “he did you a favor.Showed his true colors before you wasted more time.Better to know now than later,ja?”
I considered this.“I suppose that’s one way to look at it.”
“The right way.”His certainty was oddly comforting.“Some men are justschwachköpfe.Idiots.Weak in the head and the spine.”
Oktober’s eyes, startlingly blue against his tanned skin, held mine steadily.“I think we could help each other, you and I.”
“Help each other?”I repeated, my heart suddenly hammering against my ribs.
“Ja.”He reached out, tucking a strand of hair behind my ear, his fingertips lingering against my cheek.“You need to… how do you say it… cleanse your palate after that betrayal.And I” -- he paused, his gaze dropping briefly to my lips -- “I find myself very attracted to you, Mia.”
I should have been offended.Should have interpreted his words as a crude proposition.Instead, I felt a rush of heat that had nothing to do with embarrassment.
“No strings,” he continued, his voice a rumble that seemed to vibrate through me.“Just pleasure.For the time we have here.And only with each other.”He smiled, but the slight crease between his brows said he might not have intended to add the last part.
The rational part of my brain screamedcaution.This man was nothing like anyone I’d ever been with.He lived in a world I didn’t understand.In three days, we’d go back to our separate lives in Nashville.But my body had already decided.I felt it in the way my skin prickled with awareness, in the heavy throb between my thighs, in the way my breath caught as his thumb traced the curve of my lower lip.
“Yes,” I said, surprising myself with the steadiness of my voice.“I think I’d like that.”
Oktober’s eyes darkened, and the slow smile that spread across his face made my clit throb low and insistent.He stood, offering me his hand.
“Then let’s not waste another minute,Kätzchen.”
I took his outstretched hand.The simple contact sent electricity arcing up my arm.Oktober pulled me gently to my feet.“You don’t have to do anything you’re uncomfortable with.We don’t even have to have sex if you’d prefer not to.But I want to spend time with you.And I want to touch you.”
I nodded my head, way too eager for my way of thinking, but I couldn’t help myself.Iwaseager for this.“You promise you’ll make me come?”In another situation I’d be mortified at my directness, but by God, if I was doing this, I was going to do it right.
Instead of looking amused, Oktober looked almost… angry.“He didn’t see to your pleasure,Kätzchen?”
I hesitated, really looking at him.“Are you… Did I say something wrong?”
He blinked, jerking back slightly.“What?Nein!Eh… no, little Mia.You did not.Tell me, though.Did your ex not make you come during sex?”
“Sex was always pleasant, but never earth shattering.I wouldn’t say he didn’t make me come, just that I’m not the most easily… aroused.Type.Person.”God, could I sound more like a dork?
“You give me a chance,Kätzchen.I’ll give you as much pleasure as you can stand.Then push you a little further.”
His words sent a shiver through me, igniting a primal and hungry energy inside me I didn’t want to fight.I grabbed his shirt, pulling him toward me until our bodies pressed together.“Prove it,” I whispered against his lips.
