had been looking forward to it with excited anticipation. Only to arrive in Rome and find herself then incarcerated without having seen her brother or a single one of the historic attractions she had obviously so looked forward to exploring.
Because Dmitri had decreed it should be so. Because, out of concern for his sister and anger towards Felix, he had decided to punish the only person who was available to him.
‘There is no question of it. I was unreasonable with you on your arrival in Rome,’ he acknowledged heavily.
Lily’s eyes widened. ‘Are you sure this isn’t just the wine talking?’
Those sculptured lips curved into a teasing smile. ‘Wine is like mother’s milk to an Italian, Lily.’
‘Really?’ His lips on a woman’s breast was an image that did absolutely nothing for Lily’s earlier resolve to stop her imagination running away with her—and not just any woman’s breast, either, but her own.
Okay, it was definitely time she excused herself and went to bed!
Past time, if her fantasies about this man were going to become so explicit she had actually felt a sharp spike of arousal—from the tingling of her breasts to the rapidly increasing dampness between her thighs …
‘Where would you like to go?’ Dmitri asked.
Bed probably wasn’t the answer she should give right now! ‘In all the guidebooks I read it said that the Trevi Fountain is particularly spectacular at night.’
‘It is,’ he confirmed, rising to his feet and coming around the table with the obvious intention of pulling her chair back for her. ‘And, luckily for us, the best ice cream in Rome is just around the corner from it.’
She looked up at him uncertainly. ‘At this time of night?’
‘Of course. Roma is a city that never sleeps, Lily.’
‘Like New York?’
Dmitri shook his head. ‘In my experience New York is frenetic and Roma is romantic,’ he corrected.
Oh, yes—a romantic walk in the moonlight with this devastatingly handsome man was just what she needed when her defences already felt like mush!
‘Why have you suddenly become so … accommodating, Dmitri?’ she asked awkwardly.
Those pale green eyes darkened with what looked like regret. ‘Perhaps because I now realise exactly how … unaccommodating I have been up till now?’
Lily stood up slowly, not sure that she altogether trusted Dmitri in this relaxed and charming mood. Definitely not sure she trusted herself in his company when he was in this almost playful mood!
Much as she welcomed the possibility of leaving the palazzo, if only for a short time, this collapse of her defences surely made it a recipe for disaster? Moonlight. Delicious ice cream. The Trevi Fountain. Dmitri Scarletti. Most especially the latter …
She turned, with the intention of telling him that it had been a long day and she thought it better if she went to bed now, only to tense as she realised how close he was now standing. He made no effort to step away from the back of her chair. So close Lily could once again feel the heat emanating from his body. Smell the aftershave that mingled so appealingly with hot, virile male. And see the dark shadow of stubble once more on his chin.
She could actually see the way the iris of his eyes had once again darkened to emerald as his gaze became fixed, apparently captivated by her slightly parted lips …
She couldn’t breathe, and was pretty sure she couldn’t have moved even if someone had shouted Fire! In fact, she felt unable to break away from his compelling gaze, her body actually starting to tremble as Dmitri continued to look deeply into her eyes.
Her throat moved convulsively as she swallowed. ‘It’s pretty late, Dmitri—’ Lily didn’t get any further in excusing herself as his arm moved firmly about her waist and he pulled her in close against him.
‘You’re right, Lily.’ His voice was a low, husky growl. ‘I am afraid it is far too late.’
His head moved down slowly and he captured her mouth with his own.
Lily heard herself groan low in her throat as his skilful lips opened hers, sipping, tasting, his tongue hot and demanding, while his arms tightened about her, crushing her breasts against the hard muscles of his chest. His hands moved down the slope of her back to cup her bottom and pull her in hard against him, and her legs began to tremble as she felt the pulsing evidence of his arousal against the softness of her stomach.
Her fingers dug into his broad shoulders as his mouth moved to trace the long column of her throat, his lips hot against her skin as she arched her neck to allow him freer access. Her legs felt so shaky now she was afraid that if she didn’t cling on to him she might actually collapse at his feet.
She was being bombarded with sensations. Her senses were assaulted by his heat and overpowering strength, and at the same time she wanted to push even the thin barrier of his shirt out of her way, so that she could touch the skin beneath. Not just touch. But caress. Kiss. Taste. God, how badly she wanted to taste him—all of him.
What was Dmitri doing to her? How was he doing it to her?
She didn’t behave like this. Had never felt like this with any of the men she had dated over the past ten years. She’d never wanted to rip anyone’s clothes off before throwing off her own clothes and begging him to take her. Right here. On the table. Amongst the debris of their meal.
Dmitri could be her dessert! Lily instinctively knew he would taste rich and creamy and totally decadent. Sinful, in fact …
Not giving herself time to think, to regret, she unfastened the buttons on his shirt, her breathing ragged, fevered as she pulled it apart and gazed hungrily at his bared muscled chest before touching him tentatively, her fingers a light caress. He gave a low groan as she explored, touching him where he was most sensitive, holding his fevered gaze with her own as she ran the soft pad of her thumb experimentally across his skin and saw for herself the effect it had on Dmitri. His eyes glittered, and there was a slight flush now to those sculptured cheekbones.
‘Lily … ?’ Dmitri hadn’t planned on kissing her, let alone having her touch him like this.
He had been totally aware of her throughout their meal. Her smile. Her wistfulness. Her occasional sadness. A sadness he had longed to dispel. He had felt himself unwillingly drawn to her. To her beauty. Her heat. The musk of her arousal beneath the soft floral of the perfume she wore. And now that he had tasted the fullness of her lips, he wanted more …
‘I am not sure I can stop this, cara,’ he warned her gently, even as he rubbed the throb of his arousal against her yielding softness.
She seemed not to hear him as she lowered her head and placed her lips against his skin, her tongue feeling like the rasp of a cat’s against his sensitised flesh, sending shock-waves of pleasure straight to the pulsing hardness of his shaft.
Dmitri buried his face in her throat as he surged hard and demanding against her, his hands tightly gripping her bottom now.
It was a perfect fit in his hands, just as he had imagined
