blouse offering no protection against the heat of his eyes. His attention lowered, down over the skirt of the same silk, fitting snugly to her hips. Then finally, when Kaliana thought she couldn’t take it any more, his attention shifted to her high-heeled sandals and red painted toenails.
She shivered with pleasure. Anticipation.
He hadn’t touched her, but he’d just undressed her. Right here. In the bar of an exclusive hotel. She felt totally and gloriously naked even though the cool silk against her skin told her otherwise.
Did he know her thoughts? Did he know how he made her feel? Did he know what she wanted? Right now.
‘I think all night would be better.’ Emboldened by the heat of her body, she pushed aside embarrassment. Pushed aside the last remnants of her reservations and made her intentions, her needs, clear. Before she married to save her family from the shame of financial ruin, she wanted to know the pleasure of being desired by a man. The pleasure of desiring this man.
His brows flicked up in surprise but instantly he schooled his chiselled features, the cool charm of moments ago back in play. ‘You wish to spend the entire night in my company?’
No man had ever come close to making her feel the kind of desire Alif had made her feel. If only she hadn’t been so insistent on going to her marriage bed a virgin, she would have known what it was to desire and be desired before he’d been tragically taken from her. Regret rushed through her.
No other man had ever made her feel that way.
Until she’d seen this man. Within seconds of her eyes meeting his she’d known she wanted him. Known he was the only man who could cleanse her body of its innocence.
She wasn’t about to allow this moment, this feeling, this need, to slip away again. She wanted this night. Wanted this man. ‘I do.’ She held his gaze, challenging him to pull back, to call a halt to the dangerous game of passion she was on the brink of playing. ‘I want to be with you all night.’
Kaliana wanted to indulge in the game, dangerous or not. What better way to forget about the future and move on from the past than in this man’s arms?
His gaze narrowed. Was he thinking of a wife he’d left at home? Children even? ‘You are playing a dangerous game, Ana.’
The silky softness of his voice was like a caress. It soothed. It excited. If his voice could do that, what would his kiss be like?
Her gaze flew to his lips; instantly a slow and very sexy smile spread over them.
‘A game I want to play.’ She looked up at him from lowered lashes, flirting coming surprisingly naturally to her. ‘But if you don’t want to. Or can’t...’ She allowed the words to trail off, seductively moving closer to him in a way she’d never, ever imagined herself doing. But tonight she wasn’t herself. She looked boldly up at him. ‘I will go.’
Instantly he put one arm around her waist, slowly but very purposefully drawing her closer. All the while his eyes remained fixed on hers. She moved willingly towards him, her body alive with a sensation she’d never experienced before. The pressure of his hand, his arm holding her, burning her skin.
‘We will play the game your way.’ His eyes darkened as he drew her a fraction closer, the narrowing gap between their bodies alive with sparks. ‘For now.’
‘Good.’ She smiled up at him, feeling out of her depth and very much in control all at the same time. She moved closer still, inhaling the exotic scent of his cologne, the tang of citrus blending with cedarwood pushing her on, taking her higher. This was exactly the game she wanted to play.
Tonight, she wasn’t Princess Kaliana of Ardu Safra. Tonight, she was simply Ana and it felt right. Tonight, she wanted this man. He was exactly what she needed. What she wanted. And she wanted him all night.
RAFE WATCHED ANA’S eyes darken. Desire thundered through him. Harder. Faster. Like the call of a war drum of old. He was losing the mask of the composed businessman who’d a short while ago been drinking whisky alone. Hell, he was losing himself. And he hadn’t even kissed her.
Yet.
With this woman’s body pressed so alluringly against his, he knew he was in danger of completely losing his grasp on reality. Losing everything. His whole body ached for her and the satisfaction he knew only she could give. He’d never been so hard. So ready.
She moved closer, her smoky eyes filling with need, exploding with desire. Shimmying her hips provocatively, pressing against his erection. And he thought he’d never been so hard.
He tightened his hold on her, keeping her delicious body against him. ‘See what you do to me?’ He barely recognised the coarse rasp of his voice.
She smiled. Moved her hips again, forcing him to bite down hard on the growl of desire threatening to rip from him.
‘I feel,’ she purred. Damn, but she was a merciless tease. ‘But I don’t see.’
He couldn’t hold back any longer. He had to taste her. Had to feel her lips beneath his. Feel the passion that burnt in her eyes, taste it on her tongue as it danced with his.
But if he gave into that need here?
It wasn’t worth imagining. Or was it? Erotic images swept through his mind, faster than lightning. Their bodies entwined in the erotic dance of desire.
Rafe inhaled deeply as she pressed her body even harder against his. Making those images so hot they became X-rated.
‘I think we should retire to my suite.’ His voice was hoarse and ragged with desire. He hadn’t known anything like it. Ever. It was like a wild fire bearing down on him at an alarming pace, offering no escape. Not that he wanted any escape.
There was a slight pause as she looked up at him. A hint of uncertainty and hesitation. The fire cooled briefly, stilled, as if waiting to see which way the wind would take it. As he watched her, she looked innocent. Vulnerable. Then it was gone. The sex siren, the seductress, was back in play and the fire raged on relentlessly.
‘And I was enjoying this moment.’ She raised her brows, looking up at him, bringing her lips tantalisingly close to his. ‘I was enjoying my power over you.’
‘If you carry on with this power game, I am going to have to kiss you. Right here. Right now.’ His voice was more of a feral growl, the like of which he’d never heard before. How could one woman, a woman he’d only just met, have such an effect on him?
‘Then kiss me. Right here and right now.’ Her bold and brazen reply excited him further. There would be no backing out now. This would be taken to the inevitable conclusion—in the privacy of his suite.
She moved closer still, her breath feathering his lips. ‘Kiss me.’
Hell, he couldn’t wait any longer. He had to taste her. She moved her lips closer, a spark of sexy mischief in her eyes. He placed his champagne glass on the bar, not taking his eyes from hers, and spread his palm over her shoulder blades, at the same time crushing her lips beneath his.
She
