Page 10 of Pregnant in the Italian's Palazzo

‘I’m ADHD, so excitement is fuel for me. Boredom and routine are rather painful.’ He nodded with apparent understanding, a strange look entering his eyes for a moment. Why was she oversharing so much? She cursed herself, wishing he would just start kissing her again so she’d stop talking.

‘We are very different people, aren’t we? But perhaps that’s why I can’t get enough of you. You’re like an injection of pure energy. I haven’t felt this alive in a long time.’

His shirt joined her dress on the floor, then the rest of his clothing. He walked them backwards towards the rainfall shower, reaching out to touch a button that set hot water cascading down. His eyes met hers, his hips rocking that hardness against her for a moment. ‘Once we’re up in the air, I’m determined to get you into an actual bed and not let you back out for a very long time.’

Aria woke with a jolt, her sleep-fogged brain struggling to make sense of the current time and place. The bed was empty and the white sheets were a tangle around her body, a crude reminder of last night’s erotic efforts. She held her breath, craning her neck to listen for any sounds of life beyond the bedroom door.

No Nysio, she registered, refusing to note her own disappointment at that fact.

They’d landed on the tarmac in London before dawn and what had been meant to be a goodbye kiss had ended up with both of them falling back into bed for yet another quick round of mutually explosive lovemaking. She must have fallen asleep again afterwards...and he’d left. She covered her face with her hands. She was trapped in here, naked, and whoever was outside the door was likely fully aware of that fact. The memory of her gown and underwear sliding over her body and abandoned on the bathroom floor was branded in her mind, sending a fresh wave of goosebumps along her sensitive skin.

She flopped back against the luxury mattress, as soft as air. She refused to feel ashamed of last night, when it had been so life-changing for her. She’d known what this was.

But had he really just left her without so much as a goodbye?

No, she was not going to lie here and feel even a tiny bit sorry for herself. With a deep fortifying breath, she stood up and wrapped the white sheet around her torso like a toga. The wall of mirrors in the luxurious master cabin mocked her with her own ridiculous reflection, showing panda eyes and the utterly destroyed remnants of her bridesmaid chignon.

Memories assailed her mind from the night before, tightening up every muscle in her body with a mixture of embarrassment and astonishment that it had all been real. She had truly been seduced and pleasured by a billionaire on his private jet while they flew across the Atlantic. She would not regret it, not when her body felt so deliciously satisfied and loose from pleasure. They were both adults, after all.

He had said he didn’t make a habit of picking up women, but he’d admitted he was under pressure. Tensions were high and she had been a...convenient outlet.

He hadn’t kidnapped her onto his jet, she’d walked on of her own free will. She’d given into temptation all over again. More than once. She closed her eyes, exhaling a shaky breath as she tried to get a handle on herself.

She hadn’t known her body could work that way. She’d always known her previous experiences in the bedroom had been uniquely bad and unlucky, but wow. The flight had lasted eight hours and she was pretty sure he had made it his mission to make her lose count of the amount of times they’d made love before she fell asleep in an orgasm-drunk haze.

Was it even a one-night stand if they had crossed time zones?

Considering she had to slip back into her gown from the day before, she decided to forgo using the lavish shower again. Her pendant necklace had disappeared from her neck and she tried to keep calm as a quick search of the cabin came up empty. Another look in the mirror confirmed that she looked exactly like a woman who was about to make the walk of shame off a luxury jetliner. Not exactly a sentence she’d ever thought that she would use in her lifetime.

There was only one staff member still on board when she exited the bedroom and walked gingerly along the central cabin in her bare feet. A quick search along the floor produced her shoes and little clutch bag. But it was okay—a quick look at the time on one of the screens showed that it was still early enough for her to make it back to her basement apartment in Richmond and quickly change into something before her usual commute into the city.

But when she exited the jet, the morning light momentarily blinding her as she stepped out into the chilly English air, it was to find a dark car coming to a stop mere feet away on the tarmac with the object of her thoughts behind the wheel. She inwardly cringed at the situation, pasting on a much too bright smile as Nysio stepped out and turned up the collar of his tan jacket against the harsh breeze.

‘I apologise for leaving without explanation, but you needed some sleep and my presence was needed to resolve a small dispute with the customs officer.’ He moved to the rear of the luxury car and produced something from the back seat. ‘I was hoping to return with this before you woke up.’

In his hands was a suitcase. But not just any suitcase. It was her very own neon-pink one, easily recognised by a large blue ink splash from where her pen had exploded mid-flight at some point during her last travelling spree. She felt her jaw go slack, a handful of questions crowding her mind all at once.

‘How did you get it from Priya’s apartment?’

‘I have people.’ He shrugged.

Aria took in his calm expression and admitted he didn’t look quite like the rueful morning-after guy on the run she’d expected. But that didn’t mean anything, did it? She didn’t want it to mean anything, and she had told him exactly as much last night. So then why did it make her heart jump a little when he looked at her?

‘I’ll wait here while you shower and change.’

Aria took the bag, silently walking back towards the bathroom, her heart beating fast in her throat. There had been absolutely no need for him to go to such lengths to retrieve her things. But as she opened up her suitcase and spied the black high-waisted trousers and baby-blue blouse she’d chosen specifically for her presentation she felt her throat tighten with emotion.

She was just tired, she told herself. Tired and nervous about work and still recovering from the whirlwind of the day before... And the night.

She took the quickest shower known to man, dried off and dressed, staring at her reflection in the mirror sternly. She would not keep thinking about the night. With a light slick of matte red lipstick, and a quick kiss blown in the bathroom mirror, where she absolutely did not gaze longingly at a certain countertop while her cheeks blushed, she was ready.

When she emerged once more, taking the steps slowly in her kitten heels, Nysio was still leaning against the bonnet of his car. He opened his mouth as though to speak, then closed it again and, for the first time since they’d laid eyes on one another the day before, an awkward silence fell between them.

Nysio had expected someone who worked in fashion to dress well, perhaps one of those businesswoman shift dresses with office-appropriate heels. Of course this woman would turn office fashion into something better suited to the pages of a risqué magazine. Or perhaps there was nothing risqué at all and he was simply looking at her through the new lens of knowing exactly what hid beneath the satin layer of her delicate blue blouse. He wondered if she still wore the strawberry bra beneath and his mouth quite literally watered.Dannazione, his thoughts had a mind of their own around this woman.

She looked unsure. He knew he should say something—he should tell her that last night had been wonderful, because it had. He should tell her that when he had awoken after losing count of how many times they’d made love he had been busy making plans to see if he could stay in London for a few days. He wondered how she might react to the proposition. But before he could say any of that, Aria was the first one to speak.

‘Okay... This is the part I was dreading.’ She avoided looking directly at him while shuffling through her purse.

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