Page 103 of King Of Order

He gave me a keen, narrowed look as he settled on the lounge chair in my office, working through his emails on his laptop.

I sat back with some relief. The promised cash would be in my bank by Monday, allowing me two days to transfer the Barbieri amount.

‘Stai bene?’ he murmured, flicking a glance at me.

Once more, I got a hit of his sheer raw manliness, his muscled presence crowding my workspace, giving off menace in his dark pants and turtleneck.

‘With you here, I’m very OK,’ I reassured him, my utterance husky with appreciation laced with my never-ending desire for him.

He caught onto my drift and smirked, eyes heating and icing up at the same time, raking themselves over me.

I shivered as my clit pulsed.

‘Stop,’ I scolded him, fighting off the rush of need.

‘You stop,’ he rasped, eyes dropping to my blouse, where I knew my nipples were stark against the silk material.

I escaped him, finding chores galore in the show spaces.

Away from his devastating presence, I spent the morning moving around the gallery, dusting, straightening a frame, and adjusting a sculpture.

Since my assistant Lucia had the day off, I also vacuumed the place, readying it for the expected foot traffic the following day.

Suitably calmer, I returned to my office, where Rio smirked at me.

I ignored him, moving on to admin and emails while he continued with his.

We worked in quiet harmony, on occasion sharing heated glances that promised pleasure later.

At one point, leaning over a small print of a canvas I was considering from a new artist, my stomach growled.

Rio glanced up, his pale eyes glittering. ‘Someone’s hungry.’

I tilted my head at him and shot him a coy smile. ‘Am I now?’

He surged to his feet, heat-seeking, and in seconds, our lips melded, his arms tucking tight into me as we hungrily ate each other’s mouths out.

Desire ratcheted through me even as he lifted off, his eyes glazed with lust.

He dipped his nose to brush mine. ‘Woman, you’ve got me strung out. You’re the one exception to my rules, to what I thought I knew.’

‘And you’ll never know anyone like me,’ I added with a smile. ‘Too wild for the ordinary, too wise for the reckless.’

His expression clouded over as if recalling a bad memory. ‘That is true,’ he murmured.

I sensed his passion cooling as he stepped away, his eyes stormy, as if he were keeping something from me.

Unwilling to engage in what seemed like a minefield, I nodded.

‘I’m going to grab us some lunch,’ he rasped, stepping away. ‘At the trattoria next door. I’ll always have eyes on the front door.’

His voice was quiet but firm, and his eyes searched mine for any sign of concern. I smiled at him, brushing my hand against his arm in reassurance.

‘Grazie,bello,’ I murmured, my gaze lingering on him longer than usual.

‘I’ll be back in a few,’ he assured me, leaning in to kiss my cheek.

Then he turned and left the gallery, taking a short walk down the street to a café serving the fresh Mediterranean fare he knew I liked.

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