when you returned from that two-day business summit in Athens?’ That she had to remind him of that was even more shocking, the unusual recounting of gestures received but never spoken about making her reel.
‘Careful, Sienna, or you’ll have me thinking these declarations you’ve previously led me to believe are over the top are in fact secretly yearned for.’
A flush crept up her neck to stain her cheeks but she didn’t drop her gaze. ‘As I said, perhaps I wish to make an exception.’
His shrug was almost...bored. ‘There is no need. I’ve had a long and turbulent flight, amante. Right now, I want to relax and see you sated with food. Is that too much to ask?’ His voice held a definite bite. A warning to leave well enough alone.
She shook her head, convinced more than ever that something was seriously wrong. ‘Whatever it is that’s bothering you, I...I want to help.’ Throwing caution to the wind, she abandoned her glass and, in a first move that made her insides quake, she initiated touch by placing her hand over his.
He tensed, his nostrils flaring as he gazed down at her hand.
Then he removed his hand from under hers.
Her heart stopped as another thought sliced through her mind.
‘Emiliano? Is it me?’
The eyes that held hers were completely devoid of emotion. ‘Sienna, leave this alone...’
‘Oh, God, are you annoyed with me for finalising the Younger deal without you?’
‘What?’
‘You gave me carte blanche, remember? You said I should go ahead and offer whatever we needed to land the deal. And that’s what I did. I know it was another five million more than we initially agreed, but I did the figures and judged that it was worth it.’
His brow clamped in a frown as he yanked his tie loose with his free hand. ‘Santo cielo, not everything is about business—’ He ruthlessly checked himself and drew in a breath. ‘Rest assured, I’m not annoyed with you about the deal. Without your quick thinking and acting, we’d have lost it. I believe I had Denise send you an email commending you for it today.’
She’d seen the email from his executive assistant, and again wondered why Emiliano hadn’t contacted her himself. ‘Okay, but—’
‘You want further commendations from me? More flowers? More accolades on top of the presents you’ve already received? Is that what this show of neediness is about?’
Shock and anger scythed equal swathes of pain through her. ‘Excuse me?’ Despite having called herself the same only minutes ago, the label stung badly.
He drained his glass and set it down with more force than necessary. Charging to his feet, he rounded the table. His impressive height and bristling demeanour would’ve made a lesser woman cower. Hell, she’d seen grown men wither beneath the look displayed on his face now.
But she’d never been one of them.
Surging to her feet, she faced him, their untouched food abandoned. ‘Did you just call me needy?’
‘Am I wrong? Now that we’re behind closed doors, where your precious reputation isn’t at risk, do you not need something from me? Have you not been full of needful words since I walked in the door?’ he accused.
‘Don’t twist my words. I just want to talk to you, find out what’s—’
‘I don’t want to talk, querida. You’re usually adept at picking up simple cues like that. Has my absence affected you that much, or is there another agenda going on here?’ he taunted.
The tightly furled subject she’d tentatively intended to broach with him tonight knotted harder, congealing into stone that chafed against her heart. Incisive eyes dragged over her face, probing her expression and then widening upon witnessing the evidence she couldn’t quite disguise.
‘Sí, another agenda,’ he bit out. ‘Do I get three guesses or shall I strike for gold and deduce that you’re breaking your unique mould to broach the predictable “where do we go from here?” conversation women feel the need to have at the most inappropriate times?’
Sienna wasn’t sure whether it was his uncanny acuity or the abrasive tone that alarmed her more. ‘You’re turning this around on me, Emiliano. We were talking about you.’
‘A subject I’ve clearly expressed my abhorrence for. Now, are we to go around in circles, or are we going to eat?’
She lifted her chin, the distress and foreboding she’d staunched so fiercely blooming into life within her chest. ‘I’ve lost my appetite.’
He took another dangerous step closer, swallowing the gap between them, extinguishing the very air that sustained them until only pure, sizzling electricity remained. Soot-coloured lashes swept down and paused, the heat in his eyes branding her mouth for endless seconds before his gaze rose again.
‘For food? Or for everything else?’ His voice was thicker. Deeper. His nostrils flared in blatant, carnal hunger.
‘Why are you so angry with me?’ she whispered, unable to stem the dread crawling over her skin.
An enigmatic expression blanketed his face for a blind second, his eyes blazing with a light she couldn’t fathom. ‘Perhaps I’m tired of being compartmentalised in your life, of being put on a shelf and taken down and dusted off only when your needs get the better of you.’
She gasped. ‘What? I’ve never—’
The firm finger that drifted over her lower lip stemmed her answer. ‘I wish to get off this merry-go-round. So I ask you again, what have you lost your appetite for?’
Lust, need, anger and hurt strangled her in equal measures. With a few pithy words, he’d reduced her to a needy female eager to sink her talons into a man she wanted to possess. With one label, he’d reminded her of the one thing she’d vowed never to be again.
Dependent.
They’d had disagreements before, but nothing like this. Sienna couldn’t catch her breath, couldn’t stem the hurt that flowed like a bloodied wound. But with each second that passed, with each intake of his breath and exhalation of hers, a different emotion surged forth. Familiar. Overwhelming. Devastating.
A deep tremble seized her, shaking her from head to toe. He saw her reaction and triumph coated his features, his eyes darkening as he watched. Waited.
‘Emiliano...’
‘Sí, Sienna?’ he whispered against her mouth, but holding himself a breath away, taunting her with his proximity.
Her breath shook out. ‘Something’s going on. Don’t make me think I’m crazy or that I’m overreacting. Please, just tell me—’
‘Stop. You know better than to push a closed subject. You’re an expert on closed subjects, after all. So do not let tonight be the moment you change your tune, querida, hmm?’
Another bolt of shock went through her. Her gaze collided with his. The hunger was still there, but everything
