She opened her mouth, but the word stalled in her throat.
Ramon pushed away from the wall, took a bold step back, then another, robbing her of his closeness, dangling the possibility of loss in her face.
No.
This time the word was in objection of the temptation she knew she shouldn’t surrender to. Suki wasn’t aware she’d followed him to the edge of the kerb until a sleek black limo rolled to a stop behind him. Reaching for the handle, he pulled the door open, his eyes not leaving her face. ‘You will get in the car and I’ll take you home, Suki. What happens beyond that will be up to you. Only you.’
INSTINCTIVELY SHE KNEW her path was set the moment she murmured, ‘Okay.’
Life’s too short. Give yourself a break and live a little.
Suki knew that there would be no turning back the second she let Ramon help her into the car and he slid along the soft leather bench seat after her. The door slammed behind them, cocooning them in silence and edgy lust.
‘Your address?’ he rasped.
‘167 Winston Street, Vauxhall.’
He relayed the information to the driver, then his mouth firmed. ‘There are two dozen pubs between where you live and Luis’s residence in Mayfair. Why do you choose one so far outside of the city?’ he asked, casting an irritated glance at the establishment that stood on a quiet street in the middle of Watford.
‘A uni friend of ours just inherited it from his parents. Luis promised we’d stop by for birthday drinks,’ she said, a little relieved at the harmless tone of the conversation.
He’d activated the privacy partition and tinted the back windows, and now, trapped in the dark expanse of the luxurious car, his scent once again sliding intimately over her senses, she needed something to alleviate it.
Unfortunately, the reprieve didn’t last long. ‘And do you always do what my brother says?’ he asked, a different type of edge lining his voice.
Her fingers tightened around the strap of her handbag. ‘Are you about to pick another fight with me? Because if I recall, we haven’t resolved the last one to my satisfaction yet.’
In the space of one breath and the next, he closed the gap between them. Her bag was plucked from her fingers and tossed onto the adjacent seat. Firm fingers speared into her hair, the grip firm enough to direct her gaze up to his.
Electricity vibrated from his body, the dark, purposeful gleam in his eyes rendering her mouth dry. He stared down at her for an age, their breaths mingling.
‘Lo siento. I’m sorry for my less than admirable assumptions. I am not in the best mood tonight, but that was no excuse, so accept my apologies.’
The words were deep and genuine, momentarily silencing the voice screaming a warning at her. ‘I... Okay,’ she mumbled.
His fingers moved, slowly massaging her scalp in lazy, masterful rotations, triggering a low heat in her belly. ‘Are you satisfied?’ he asked.
‘That...that depends.’
One eyebrow rose but the rest of his face tautened with expectation. ‘On what?’
‘On whether or not you’re about to start another fight with me.’
‘No, querida,’ he breathed. ‘I’m about to start something else entirely. And you know it.’
‘I don’t...’
‘Enough, Suki. I told you what happens next is up to you. But I get the feeling I need to move things along before one of us expires from impatience. So the only word I want out of that delectable mouth right now is yes or no. I want you, gatito. Do you want me? Regardless of my sub-exemplary behaviour tonight. Yes or no?’
Her heart leapt into her throat. For three long years she’d harboured a growing crush on this man. But nowhere in that secret longing had there been a possibility that he would be here, in front of her, saying these words to her. She’d always believed she would wake up one day to find herself cured. She’d dated a handful of men like Stephen who, even before they’d proved themselves faithless, had fallen victim to not being dynamic enough, confident enough, tall enough or dark enough—hell, even Spanish enough.
Stephen’s betrayal had triggered a numbness of her emotions, had finally pressed home every warning her mother had relayed since she turned sixteen. A desperate part of her wished for that numbness now, yearned for a clap of thunder to deliver her from the ferocious lust threatening to swallow her whole.
Because, staring into Ramon Acosta’s eyes, she didn’t think she was anywhere near numb. Anywhere near cured of her foolish crush.
And now that he was free...
Oh, God.
She shook her head; the voice whispering that this was the worst idea she’d ever had grew into a scream. Swallowing, she slicked her tongue over her lower lip.
His fingers convulsed in her hair and a strangled sound escaped his throat. About to utter the word that would free her from this madness, she dropped her gaze. His velvet-smooth lips were so close. And good heavens, she was so hungry for a taste.
One. Just one.
Then she would satisfy herself that he was no god, that the lofty status she’d afforded him in her mind was nothing more than dreams spun from loneliness and long-forgotten fairy tales.
‘Suki.’ Her name was a fierce, demanding whisper. A silken, alluring chain winding her closer.
Her breasts grew heavy, the slick, damp place between her thighs clenching with a manic need she’d never experienced before.
‘Yes.’ The word poured from her in a swell of surrender.
Ramon didn’t need further encouragement. With a rough exhalation, he tugged her closer to meet his descending mouth. A hot, demanding mouth that slanted over hers, fusing power and pleasure into her fired-up senses.
His tongue stroked against her lips, tasting boldly, over and over before he demanded entrance. Entrance she gave with a shaky wonder at the thought that she was kissing Ramon Acosta. That wonder melted away in the next instance when he licked his way into her mouth.
Sensation lashed her from head to toe, the onslaught eliciting helpless whimpers that started from deep within and were crushed between their melded lips. The knowledge that she was whimpering sent another bolt of shock through her. She’d been kissed before. Enough times to know that no one kiss was the same, that some were better than others.
But nothing compared to the kiss Ramon was delivering now. Each slide of his tongue against hers, each bold nip of her swelling flesh rained sizzling delight on her, making her strain closer, silently pleading for more.
When the need to breathe forced them apart, he only permitted a second, smoothing his thumb across her lips
