was only one question. ‘Why?’
‘Because I love you.’
Aysha heard the words, and her whole body froze. The stillness in the room seemed to magnify until it became a tangible entity.
Somehow she managed to dredge up her voice, only to have it emerge as a sibilant whisper. ‘If this is a trick, you can turn around and walk out of here.’
Her eyes became stricken with an emotion she couldn’t hide, and his expression softened to something she would willingly give her life for.
He caught both her hands together with one hand, then lifted the other to capture her nape.
‘I love you. Love,’ he emphasised emotively. ‘The heart and soul that is you.’ He moved his thumb against the edge of her jaw, then slowly swept it up to encompass her cheekbone. His eyes deepened, and his voice lowered to an impassioned murmur. ‘I thought the love Bianca and I shared was irreplaceable. But I was wrong.’ He lowered his forehead down to rest against hers. ‘There was you. Always you. Affection, from the moment you were born. Respect, as you grew from child to woman. Admiration, for carving out your own future.’
His hands moved to her shoulders, then curved down her back to pull her close in against him.
It would be all too easy to lean in and lift her mouth to meet his. As she had in the past. This time she wanted sanity unclouded by emotion or passion.
Aysha lifted her hands to his chest and tried to put some distance between them. Without success. ‘I can’t think when you hold me.’
Those dark eyes above her own were so deeply expressive, she thought she might drown in them.
‘Is it so important that you think?’ he queried gently, and she swallowed compulsively.
‘Yes.’ She was conscious of every breath she took, every beat of her heart.
Carlo let his hands drop, and his features took on a quizzical warmth.
What she wanted, she hardly dared hope for, and she looked at him in silence as the seconds ticked by.
His smile completely disarmed her, and warmth seeped into her veins, heating and gathering force until it ran through her body.
‘You want it all, don’t you?’
Her mouth trembled as she fought to control her emotions. She was shaking, inwardly. Very soon, she’d become a trembling mass. ‘Yes.’
Carlo pushed both hands into his trouser pockets, and she was mesmerised by his mouth, the way it curved and showed the gleam of white teeth, the sensuous quirk she longed to touch.
‘I knew marriage between us could work. We come from the same background, we move in the same social circles, and share many interests. We had the foundation of friendship and affection to build on.’
The vertical crease slashed each cheek as he smiled, and his eyes... She felt as if she could drown in their depths.
‘In the beginning I was satisfied that it was enough. I didn’t expect to have those emotions develop into something more, much more.’
She had to ask. ‘And now?’
‘I need to be part of your life, to have you need me as much as I need you. As my wife, my friend, the other half of my soul.’ He released his hands and reached out to cup her face. ‘To love you, as you deserve to be loved. With all my heart. For the rest of my life.’
Aysha felt the ache of tears, and blinked rapidly to dispel them. At that precise moment she was incapable of uttering a word.
Did she realise how transparent she was? Intimacy was a powerful weapon, persuasive, invasive, and one he could use with very little effort. It would be so easy to lower his head, pull her close and let her feel what she did to him. His hands soothing her body, the possession of his mouth on hers...
He did none of those things.
‘Yes.’
He heard the single affirmative, and every muscle, every nerve relaxed. Nothing else mattered, except their love and the life they would share together. ‘No qualifications?’
She shook her head. ‘None.’
‘So sure,’ Carlo said huskily. He reached for her, enfolding her into the strength of his body as his mouth settled over hers. Gently at first, savouring, tasting, then with a passionate fervour as she lifted her arms and linked her hands together at his nape.
Aysha felt his body tremble as she absorbed the force of his kiss and met and matched the mating dance of his tongue as it explored and ravaged sensitive tissue.
His hands shaped and soothed as they sought each pleasure spot, stroking with infinite care as the fire ignited deep within and burst into flame.
It seemed an age before he lifted his head, and she could only stand there, supported by the strength of his arms.
‘Do you trust me?’
She heard the depth in his voice, sensed his seriousness, and raised her eyes to meet his. There was no question. ‘Yes,’ she said simply.
‘Then let’s go.’
‘OK.’
‘Such docility,’ Carlo teased gently as he brushed his lips against one temple.
Aysha placed a hand either side of his head and tilted it down as she angled her mouth into his in a kiss that was all heat and passion.
His heart thudded into a quickened beat, and she felt a thrill of exhilaration at the sense of power, the feeling of control.
Carlo broke the contact with emotive reluctance. ‘The temptation to love you now, here, is difficult to resist.’
A mischievous smile curved her mouth. ‘But you’re going to.’
His hands slid to her shoulders and he gave her a gentle shake. ‘Believe it’s merely a raincheck, cara.’ He released her and took hold of her hand.
‘Are you going to tell me where we’re going?’
‘Someplace special.’
He led her outside, then turned to the side path leading to the rear of the grounds.
‘Here?’ Aysha queried in puzzlement, as they traversed the short set of steps leading down to the gazebo adjacent the pool area.
Lights sprang to life as if by magic, illuminating the gazebo and casting a reflected glow over the newly planted garden, the beautiful free-form pool.
Her eyes widened as she saw a man and two women standing in front of a small rectangular pedestal draped with a pristine white lace-edged cloth. Two thick candles displayed a thin flicker and a vaporous plume, and there was the scent of roses, beautiful white tight-petalled buds on slender stems.
‘Carlo?’
Even
