Page 26 of His Innocent's Passionate Awakening

‘Not at all.’ She smoothed away his frown with her fingertip. ‘Thanks for being so gentle with me.’

His hand brushed back the hair from her face in the tenderest of movements. ‘Your enjoyment is top priority for me. I don’t want you to feel you ever have to service my needs above your own.’

Artie ran her fingertip over the fullness of his bottom lip, not quite able to meet his gaze. ‘Was it good for you too?’

He tipped up her chin and smiled, and her chest felt like it was cracking open. ‘Off the charts.’ He leaned down to press a soft, lingering kiss to her lips. He lifted off again, his expression becoming thoughtful. ‘I’ve never been a virgin trophy hunter. A woman’s virginity is not something I consider a prize to be claimed or a conquest to be sought.’ He captured a loose strand of her hair and tucked it back behind her ear. ‘But I have to say I feel privileged to have made love with you.’

Artie wrapped her arms around his waist and leaned her cheek against the wall of his chest. ‘I feel privileged too. You made it so special.’

There was a moment or two of silence.

Luca stroked his hand down between Artie’s shoulder blades to the base of her spine. ‘I should let you get up and get dressed.’

Artie lifted her head off his chest to smile at him. ‘Is that what you really want me to do right now?’

He grinned and pressed her back down on the bed with his weight playfully pinning her. ‘Not right now.’ And he brought his mouth back down to hers.

CHAPTER EIGHT

LATER THAT MORNING, Luca had to convince himself to get out of bed with Artie. He couldn’t remember a time when he had spent a morning more pleasurably. Making love with her for the first time had affected him in a way he hadn’t been expecting. The mutual passion they had shared had been beyond anything he had experienced before. And that was deeply troubling.

Why was it so special? Because she was innocent and he so worldly and jaded that making love with her was something completely different from the shallow hook-ups he preferred? Or was it the exquisite feel of her skin next to his? Her mouth beneath his? Her touch, her sighs, her gasps and cries that made him feel more of a man than he ever had before?

The trust she had shown in him had touched him deeply. And he had honoured that trust by making sure she was completely satisfied, and yet his own satisfaction had risen to a whole new level of experience. It was as if his body had been asleep before now. Operating on a lower setting that didn’t fully register all the nuances of mind-blowing sex. The glide of soft hands on his body, the velvet-soft press of lips on his heated skin, the delicious friction of female flesh against him. Every moment was imprinted on his brain, every kiss, every touch branded on his body.

And he wanted it to continue, which was the most troubling thought of all. He, who never stayed with a lover longer than a week or two. He, who never envisaged a future with anyone. He, who had locked down his emotions so long ago he didn’t think he had the capacity to feel anything for anyone any more.

And yet...

Every time Artie looked at him with those big brown eyes, something tugged in his chest. Every time her pillow-soft lips met his, fire spread through his body, a raging fire of lust and longing unlike any he had felt before. Every time she smiled it was like encountering sunshine after a lifetime of darkness.

Luca swung his legs over the side of the bed before he was tempted to make love to her for the third time. He turned and held out a hand to her. ‘Come on. Time for some more exposure therapy.’

Artie unfolded her limbs and stood in front of him, her hands going to his hips, sending his blood racing. Her eyes were bright and sparkling, her lips swollen from his kisses. ‘Let’s stay here instead. It’ll be more fun.’

Luca gave her a stern look. Exposure therapy was well known to be the pits the first few times but it still had to be endured for results. ‘Cara, you’re procrastinating. It’s classic avoidance behaviour and it will only make things worse.’

Her gaze lost its playful spark and her mouth tightened. Her hands fell away from his hips and she turned and snatched up a loose bed sheet and covered her nakedness, as if she was suddenly ashamed of her body. ‘Last time I looked, you were my temporary husband and lover, not my therapist. I don’t appreciate you trying to fix me.’

Luca suppressed a frustrated sigh. ‘I’m not trying to fix you, cara. I’m trying to help you gain the courage to go a little further each day. I’ll be with you all the time and I won’t push you into doing anything you don’t want to do. You can trust me, okay?’

Her teeth chewed at her lower lip, her gaze still guarded. ‘Look, I know you mean well, but we tried it before and I failed.’

‘That doesn’t mean you’ll fail today.’

There was a long moment of silence.

Artie released a long, shuddering breath. ‘Okay... I’ll give it another try.’ She swallowed and glanced at him, her cheeks tinged with pink. ‘Do you mind if I have a quick shower first?’

Luca waved his hand towards the bathroom. ‘Go right ahead. I’ll meet you downstairs in half an hour.’ He needed to put some space between them before he was tempted to join her in the shower.

She walked to the door of the bathroom, then stopped and turned to look back at him with a frown between her eyes. ‘Did you only make love to me to make me more amenable to going outside the castello grounds with you?’

‘I made love with you because I wanted you and you wanted me.’

And I still want you. Badly.

Her teeth did another nibble of her lip, uncertainty etched on her features. ‘I hope I don’t disappoint you this time...’

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