this had been a bad idea.
He had no problem with making a woman feel special as long as it was only for a short time, but he didn’t want to make one feel so special she decided to stick around. ‘Really special’ sounded suspiciously like a warning alarm that in normal circumstances would have had him running. But he couldn’t run because he was the one who’d arranged this.
‘I’m not surprised no one has done it before. The wig itches and the car is unlikely to make it out of the car park.’ Unsettled by his own feelings, which he had no intention of analysing, he took refuge in humour. ‘Get dressed.’
Checking that there was no one in the small car park, she shimmied out of her trousers and Luca set his teeth. He wondered if he were the only one thinking about sex all the time. He couldn’t look at her without wanting to strip her naked.
‘I said get dressed, not undressed.’
‘One comes before the other.’
He dragged his gaze from her long, slim legs. ‘You’re doing it on purpose.’
‘Doing what on purpose?’
‘Driving me crazy.’
‘Am I driving you crazy?’ She lifted her arms and removed her top in a graceful movement, exposing her lean fit body. She was sexy and she knew it.
Taylor Carmichael didn’t need anyone to reassure her. She made her own choices and was confident in herself.
‘What would you do if I said I didn’t like what you were wearing?’ The question fell from his lips before he could stop it and she raised her eyebrows.
‘You don’t like me in my underwear?’
‘That wasn’t what I meant.’ He wished he hadn’t spoken and truthfully he could hardly concentrate. He was so hard his brain had ceased to function on any level above basic.
She looked at him thoughtfully. ‘To answer your question, if you told me you didn’t like what I was wearing I’d probably just take it off. Is that what you want?’ Her fingers toyed with the lacy edge of her panties and his mouth dried.
‘No, Cristo, don’t take any more off. Put something on. Fast.’
‘But you said you didn’t like what I was wearing.’
‘That wasn’t…’ His flesh throbbed and his mind blurred. ‘Never mind. Just get dressed.’
‘Maybe I won’t.’ She stepped closer and slid her arms round his neck. ‘Maybe I’ll tease you just a little bit longer. I still owe you for the opera.’ Her mouth was a breath away from his and Luca felt his control unravel.
‘Taylor—’
‘Is there a problem?’ Her lips curved slowly as she covered him with the flat of her hand. ‘Because I could probably fix that.’
The skilled stroke of her fingers made him groan. Her confidence in herself was as sexy as her body.
He’d grown up with a woman who needed constant reassurance and worked with women who were body obsessed.
He’d never met anyone like Taylor.
‘I thought you Were careful not to be caught doing naughty stuff in public.’
‘We’re not in public. We’re in your private, hightech garage with just your car as witness. And anyway, you’re talking about Taylor Carmichael and thanks to you she’s currently driving back to your palazzo. Which means we’re alone.’ Her hand slid slowly down his shaft and he groaned and hauled her against him.
‘This wasn’t part of my plan.’
‘It’s always good to be flexible. And talking of flexible…’ She curved her bare leg around his thigh and he gave in to it and pressed her back against the car, breathing hard.
He looked deep into her eyes and then his hands were in her hair and he was kissing her and she was kissing him and it was exactly as it had been the night before. Exactly as he’d remembered it. The intense chemistry, the desperation, the clawing need that made him ignore the fact that his relationship with this woman wasn’t following the usual pattern.
It was the wrong place, the wrong time and not part of his plan but his hand slid low and found the wet warmth of her and he heard her moan against his mouth.
A loud crash in the distance had them both pulling apart.
Frozen, they stared at each other and then Luca gave a soft curse. He would have taken her right there. Right then and not paused to think about the sense of it.
‘Oops.’ A strange smile on her face, she eased away from him and finished dressing in a flash. ‘Maybe this isn’t such a good place after all.’
‘We could go back to the house.’ His mind was a blur, his body rock hard.
‘No. You’ve arranged a secret night out for me. No one has ever done this for me before. I want to do it.’ She grabbed the bag and tugged on a pair of floral shorts. ‘These clothes are hideous. Who chose them?’
‘Someone with no taste whatsoever.’ But it made no difference, he realised. Whatever she was wearing, she was the hottest woman he’d ever met. Trying to think cold thoughts, he changed into jeans and slid into the car, ducking his head so that he didn’t bang it on the roof.
‘Do you really think we won’t be recognised?’
‘I sincerely hope not or my reputation as the head of a fashion house is for ever destroyed. I would rather shoot myself than have someone think I chose to wear this. Come on. Let’s do this.’ Making an effort not to look at her, Luca turned the key in the ignition, rolling his eyes as the engine coughed and spluttered. ‘Believe me, even if the clothes don’t convince people, this car is a perfect disguise. Everyone who knows me also knows I wouldn’t be seen dead driving this piece of garbage.’
Still laughing, Taylor was pushing stray wisps of hair into the wig. ‘Do you like me as a redhead?’
In the process of reversing the temperamental car out of the garage, Luca allowed himself a brief glance. ‘You look surprisingly cute given that you’re dressed in something that should be banned by the fashion police.’
She pushed her feet into a pair of running shoes. ‘Are you going to tell me where we’re going?’
‘No. It’s a surprise. And turn your phone off just in case some nosy journalist is tracking you.’
Her eyes widened slightly but she turned it off. ‘You’re a very surprising person.’
‘Surprising how?’ He winced as the car bumped over the uneven road.
‘Doing this for me. I thought you only ever did things for yourself.’
‘I am doing this for myself. I want to have fun and you’re no fun when you think people are watching your every move. Tonight you can be yourself. That’s if we ever get there.’ He pushed the accelerator but the car chugged along at the same
