Page 36 of Cinderella and the Outback Billionaire

‘Cinderella!’ He sounded delighted. ‘You’re raunchy. Bawdy. Risqué. I love it.’

‘Cinderella was not raised a lady, Reid. Do keep up with your fairy tales.’

‘I have to kiss you.’

He had quite the flair for drama, or was it silliness? She loved it. ‘Because you’re unbearably smitten?’

He angled closer until their lips were almost touching and she didn’t pull away. ‘Mainly to shut you up,’ he murmured, and then his lips were on hers, cool and sure, tempting and teasing until she opened for him and let the heat take hold.

It wasn’t like their last kiss. He didn’t see the need to ask more wordless questions he already knew the answer to. He turned playfulness into searing desire so fast she was in danger of drowning.

Ari clung to him, her heart tight in her chest as his hands caressed her skin, wove through her hair and he cradled her close.

He’d been living rent-free in her head for so many weeks now, but the reality of being in his company again was so much better than anything she’d imagined, and she’d imagined a lot.

Water had long been one of her favourite things. Reid was fast becoming her favourite person. Put the two together and she had no defences left.

Ari didn’t end the kiss, Reid did.

He took a step back, leaving her clinging to the pool edge as he ran not quite steady hands through his already soaked hair.

‘Think I need a cool-down,’ he murmured, and turned and climbed from the hot pool and entered the larger lap pool. Sexy guy. Even with his carved-up leg and visible injuries.

Sexy guy who wanted her, Ari Cohen—nothing special—in his life and was going to quite some lengths to make it happen.

Which in Ari’s opinion made him even more desirable.

She rested her forearms on the side of the spa and watched as he swam a couple of laps, his movements slow and precise. Still recovering, her brain supplied helpfully.

‘You’re a pretty good date,’ she said when he surfaced at the side closest to her and didn’t attempt another lap. ‘More of a fairy godmother than Prince Charming, though.’

‘I’ll take it under advisement.’

He left the pool and reached for a towel from a pile sitting on a small side table. He scrubbed his face and hair dry and wrapped the towel around his waist. When she made her own exit from the water, he handed her a towel too.

‘It’s a lot to take in.’ She didn’t look at him as she dried off and reached for her pretty silk wrap. ‘I’ve never thought much beyond having to take care of myself. There’s never been a Prince Charming on my horizon until you dropped from the sky.’

‘I thought you said I was the fairy godmother.’

‘Yeah, well, maybe you’re both.’ She wanted to make another confession, so he would know all her limitations up front. ‘I’ve never been in a relationship. Never even tried to trust a man to put my well-being on equal par with his. I didn’t exactly have good role models for that.’ She was looking for a reaction from him, but he didn’t flinch. ‘I’ve had sex. No strings. One-offs. They fit my sense of self-worth.’

‘Work on that,’ he commanded gruffly.

‘I will. I am. You’re helping with that by offering me options I’ve never dreamed of, and it’s a lot. You’re a lot to take on, this world you inhabit isn’t one I’ve lived in, even though you’re doing your best to make it seem mostly normal. For me it’s a lot, so thanks for taking it slow.’

‘All part of my plan for world domination, but you’re welcome.’ He’d finished towelling his hair dry and it stuck up in tufts, going every which way. ‘How about we have that beer now? Or food. You hungry? There’s a riverfront restaurant a short walk from here if you feel like dining out. Or we can have it delivered. Your call.’

She had wet hair, no make-up, and beautiful casual clothes to change into. She didn’t want to add anyone else to the night’s mix. ‘I’d like to hang around here and eat in. We could put together that design brief you mentioned earlier. I could cover your gorgeous outdoor table in scribbled notes and drawings while you describe what you want to achieve. There could be half-eaten plates of food and boutique beer on the table that no one’s rushing to clear away. And maybe at the end of the evening as I’m walking out the door to catch a ride home, there could be farewell kissing and a promise to catch up again soon.’

‘That’s your wish for the evening?’

‘Yeah.’ Pretty simple. And yet every moment of it had the potential to make her heart sing. ‘Too lame?’

‘Not at all.’

The evening unfolded with a magic born of stunningly beautiful surroundings, the prioritising of creativity, imagination, and the feeding of the senses.

Not to mention the teasing, flirting and touching.

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