Page 23 of The Virgin's Dance with the Devil
Eyes flickering, his features contorted again.
She brought her face down to his. “I love you, Rico,” she repeated softly. “And I wanted to do that.”
Rico had been told by more women than he could remember that they loved him. This was the only time he’d believed it, and it took everything he had not to say the words back to her. Hewantedto say them. Worse, there was a part of his rotten heart that believed it.
Unable to lie to her face, he did the next best thing and pulled her down for a kiss, losing himself in the soft passion of her mouth, and tried to forget that he was going to break this beautiful, loving woman’s heart.
He hadn’t been lying when he’d said what she’d done to him had felt incredible. What he hadn’t shared was justhowincredible it had felt. A simple, inexperienced hand job that had blown his mind.
Sheblew his mind.
It had felt like being touched for the very first time.
When they broke apart, her face glowed with happiness. And then she smiled widely and raised the hand that had blown his mind. “I don’t suppose you could pass me one of those napkins, could you?”
The laughter that burst out of him was a welcome relief after the intensity of what they’d just shared, and he kissed her again, hard and demanding. “For you, I would do anything.”
And in that moment, he even believed it.
Chapter Seven
They’d reachedthe top of the path again. They’d been packing their stuff away when the yacht had come back into view, marking the return of everyone else.
Marisa would have given anything to have stayed a little longer. Knowing she had to say goodbye to Rico now, even if only for a few short hours, made her heart hurt.
“I guess this is it, then,” she said, unable to hide her sadness.
He drew her into his arms and rested his chin on the top of her head. “We’ll see each other later.”
“Not like this.” Not for two days. Tonight was casino night. The makeshift casino in the ballroom would be open until four a.m. As the man ultimately in charge of it, Rico would be busy. He’d work the whole night through, likely wouldn’t go to bed until she woke up. Tomorrow morning would be spent catching up on his sleep, the afternoon spent with the other groomsmen for their suit fittings.
He didn’t contradict her.
With a sigh, she unwrapped her arms from around his waist to hook them around his neck. There was somethingabout Rico’s size and muscularity that made her feel safe and protected and feminine to her fingertips, and she stretched onto her toes, tilting her face to him in a silent plea for a kiss.
He obliged, holding her tightly as he bestowed her with a demanding kiss that left her weak-kneed and breathless.
When he walked away, she felt bereft.
“Who gave you a pass to miss the boat trip?” Tommaso demanded when he took the seat just vacated by their mother next to Rico in the restaurant later that evening.
Rico’s head automatically turned in Marisa’s direction. They were both dining at different tables than the night before. Tonight, she wasn’t hidden from him. To look at her, all he had to do was turn his head to two o'clock, and, God, she’d clad her hot little body in that white halter-necked dress she’d worn to the engagement party, and all he could think was how badly he wanted to strip it off her. Every time she met his stare, which at their current rate was approximately every twenty seconds, his heart skipped, and her cheeks coloured.
He felt like a schoolboy with his first crush. Watching her pick the food on her plate and he knew it was the same for her too. He would give anything to cancel the casino night.
“I was busy,” he said. Busy bringing Marisa to her first orgasm and enjoying the most thrilling orgasm of his own.
“Too busy to spend an afternoon with a bunch of Siena’s semi-naked friends?” Tommaso suddenly caught the direction of Rico’s stare and grinned. “Is that where you were? With your virgin unicorn? Has she let you touch her titties yet?”
Rico stiffened at his brother’s lewd tone and words. “That is none of your business,” he said icily.
“If you want to keep your Neiman in your possession, then it is my business, little brother.”
“When I win the bet, you will be the first to know.”
“If you’re that confident, you can send me a nude.”
There had been many times in Rico’s life when he’d wanted to punch Tommaso – a handful of times he’d given in to that urge – but this was the first time he’d wanted to punch his face right off his shoulders.
