Page 8 of Modern Romance January 2025 1-4

A sound behind her made her spin nervously. Clad in only his unbuttoned jeans, Nic lounged in the doorway. Her disconcerted gaze collided with liquid black enticement and she could feel her face burning as if it were on fire.

‘You aresoshy,’ he breathed in amusement.

‘I’m not... I’m not!’ Lexy protested, throwing her head high, bringing up her chin as he slowly folded his arms round her and drew her close. The scent of him flared her nostrils. Clean, warm, masculine, already achingly familiar, as if he had somehow imprinted his being on her.

‘I don’t even know your surname!’ she shot at him, discarding the cool front she would have preferred to show him.

‘Diamandis.’

‘Well, how do you spell that?’ she asked huffily into his chest, knowing that it didn’t really matter what his name was as long as he was there for her.

He spelt it out with precision. ‘You sleep like the dead,’ he informed her.

‘I’m not going to argue about that,’ she agreed with a flare of amusement driving off her previous drowning discomfort with him.

‘Are you hungry?’

‘No...but I’m not sleepy either. I must’ve slept for eight hours,’ she pointed out.

Nic stared down at her with brooding intensity. ‘Women don’t usually fall asleep on me.’

‘I can only suppose that’s because they didn’t have to get out of bed at four in the morning the day before yesterday to make a flight to work,’ Lexy told him cheerfully. ‘And then miss out on essential meals because my language skills were required during those hours as well, work late that night and present myself at seven a.m. for another shift yesterday. No, I’m not about to apologise for sleeping like the dead.’

Nic grinned in delight at that pithy comeback. ‘I’m getting that message.’

‘AndI’mgetting the message that you’re one of those terrifying high-maintenance guys, who expects to be the centre of attention at any hour of the day.’

Faint colour darkened his sculpted cheekbones and his eyes narrowed.Highmaintenance?‘Of course I’m not.’

‘Don’t believe you,’ she told him truthfully.

An involuntary grin slashed Nic’s wide sensual mouth. Surprisingly he liked her sass, the insistence that she wasn’t overly impressed by him, and not a flicker of recognition had crossed her face after he’d told her his name. ‘I can see I’ll have to get persuasive,’ he teased, bending down to lift her off her feet.

‘What on earth?’ she exclaimed.

‘I’m carrying you back to bed to prove that I’mnothigh maintenance.’

‘All that proves is that you’re bossy and you like your own way.’

His dark eyes glinted like molten honey and he frowned. ‘No points for romance?’

‘You’re trying to be romantic?’ she exclaimed in disbelief.

‘For the very first time in my life and...Thee mou, you make it a challenge,chrisomou.’

‘What language is that?’ she prompted as he carried her up the stairs and he noticed that she wasn’t objecting and that made him smile again.

‘Greek. I’m half-Greek, half-Italian,’ Nic imparted. ‘But Greek comes most naturally to me.’

As he came down on the bed with her still gathered in his arms, she rested her cheek momentarily against his bare chest, revelling in the scent of his skin, the soft brush of the black curls of hair sprinkling his pectoral muscles. ‘We have one small problem,’ he divulged.

‘What is it? Oh, my word, are you married or something?’ she demanded in sudden horror, already striving to move off his lap.

Strong arms tightened round her to hold her in place. ‘Don’t be silly. I’ve never been married, engaged or committed to any woman.’

‘Ever?’she stressed in stricken consternation at that admission.

‘Not committed, but...’ Nic shrugged a smooth brown shoulder, suddenly at a loss for words because it was way too soon to say anything even though he already knew that, come the dawn, he wouldn’t be done with Lexy ‘...that could change at any time with the right woman.’

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