“Oh, yes, you did. Many times. I noticed you watching me when I was working in Indulgence. I also noticed you were standing outside my house the other night. In the dark. All by yourself. You stood there for well over a half an hour. What would you call that?”
“Ensuring you were safe.”
“Ah. I guess there’s a difference. As far as what I’m doing, well, I figured since you’ve scared off every single guy who even considered asking me to dance, there’s only one thing left.”
“Yeah? And what’s that?”
“You’re going to be my date.”
He half snorted. “You know I can’t do that.”
I reached over, placing the glass on the table and taking his hand. “Yeah, you can. You’re not going to allow me to enjoy having any fun, especially for my birthday because you have to do your job. So I figure it this way. If you want to stay close, then do so. I’ll allow it, but you’ll need to make that happen my way.”
“Which is?”
He allowed me to drag him onto the dance floor. “Which is dancing first. Then a little dinner afterwards. The Brazilian way.”
With his teeth gritted, he looked adorable, but I wasn’t going to aggravate him further by telling him that.
When we were in the middle of the floor, I pulled my hand free, immediately twisting my hips to the rhythm. He stood still, just like I knew he would.
The trouble was that I knew he could dance. He was simply being stubborn, refusing to follow any of my rules.
I did enjoy tormenting him, dancing around him in circle after circle while he wasn’t budging, but soon it became somewhat annoying.
“Dance with me. I promise you I won’t bite.” Laughing, I took both his hands into mine. The crazy shot of electricity was even more incredible than before. I’d never felt such extreme chemistry with anyone.
But it was obvious to me he wasn’t loosening up. When I closed the distance as I’d done many times, I was certain he was prepared to push me away, keeping me at arm’s length.
“Would you relax? I’m going to loosen your tie. In case you haven’t noticed, you don’t need to be buttoned up. This is a tropical paradise.” Even before I touched his tie, I felt his weapon in the pocket of his jacket. He was never without his weapon. A man who was always prepared.
Maybe I did feel a little safer around him. How could I not? He’d never allow anything to happen to me. That much I was certain of.
He stared down at me with daggers in his eyes while I loosened the tie. I even popped a couple of buttons on his shirt. When he didn’t object, I continued moving in time to the music and tugging his tie completely free.
Backing away, I slipped it around my neck, performing a couple of hot moves. Or I thought they were hot.
The way he shook his head was as if chastising me, but when his upper lip curled and I noticed a flash in his eyes, I sensed he was starting to enjoy himself. I kept going, unfastening a few additional buttons.
When I took a step back as well as a deep breath, he shoved his hands into his pockets. At least I was given a full view of his chest, a chiseled masterpiece.
I’d never thought I’d be interested in a man with ink anywhere on his body. Maybe with the exception of a small tat on his forearm. But he had a full sleeve and intricate art on his chest, which I could see some of even in the wild lighting.
I dared swipe a finger down the opening, blowing out a level of hot air that hadn’t existed a few seconds earlier. The man’s skin was hot to the touch. I wondered if that was all the way around. When I’d seen his cock, I’d almost blacked out.
Well, maybe that was a slight exaggeration, but not by much. He was built rock solid everywhere. In fact, I’d never seen a man with a cock as long, thick, and hard as his. I wondered if he’d noticed my mouth had been watering and I’d been close to drooling. I hoped not. That wouldn’t be considered very ladylike.
I pulled back, dancing more aggressively than I had before.
Donatello was still a statue. “Dance. What? Are you scared of me?”
“Do I look like I’m scared of anything?”
“I don’t know. Right now, I can’t tell.”
Very slowly, he shook his head back and forth and for the first time this evening, he allowed himself to glance all the way to my sky-high heels. As soon as he was finished, his cheeks puffed up. That’s when he ripped off his mask, shoving it into his outside jacket pocket.
Since the day I’d met the man, I’d thought he was handsome. That was ages ago when I shouldn’t have been experiencing immoral thoughts. He’d been stick thin, a kid who hadn’t had a decent meal in a very long time.
