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‘This is wrong.’ The deep tones of his voice were heavy with accent and raw with unquenched desire. The sheer potency of his sexual magnetism made any kind of reply impossible. All she could do was look into his increasingly black eyes.
He lowered his head and brushed his lips over hers, the kiss so light her lips tingled. She sighed in pleasure, swaying towards him. She wanted him and whatever she said, however much she denied it, her body would call to his. Could something so potent be so wrong? Did she have to give her heart to taste the desire between them?
‘So, so wrong, mia cara.’ His lips left hers fractionally as he spoke, his voice husky with the same passion which flowed around her body. Her stomach churned nervously as her body heated in response to his desire-laden words.
‘How can it be wrong?’ She drew in a deep breath, trying to calm the erratic beating of her heart. She looked deep into his eyes, searching the bronze-flecked brown as they became inky black.
‘It’s wrong because I promised Sebastian I would look after you.’ He stepped back away from her, breaking the powerful spell and leaving her so weak she thought she might crumple on the floor. ‘I did not promise to seduce his sister and right now that is all I can think of doing.’
Her breathing was becoming ever harder to control, the sequin-encrusted bodice of the dress tightening with each attempt to breathe normally. He’d admitted he wanted her and her body hummed with a need she’d never known before, one that demanded satisfaction.
‘We will be late.’ She said the first thing that came to her mind to avoid confronting what sparked between them.
He laughed, a sound so sexy and throaty she blushed. Why had she said that?
‘Is that an invitation, cara?’ He pulled the cuff of his jacket back with long tanned fingers and looked at his watch. ‘When I make love to a woman I take my time, give pleasure and enjoy it. You’re right, if I take you back in there now we will be late. Very late.’
The smile on his lips, the invitation in his eyes were all too much, shocking her and giving her a much-needed reminder why she was even here with him. ‘That can’t happen, Alessandro. I’m not here to be your latest conquest.’ Desperately, she tried to hide her desire, her confusion behind the words.
‘Are you sure about that, cara?’ He folded his arms across his broad chest and leant back against the wall, looking so handsome and sure of himself.
‘You’re impossible,’ she fumed and turned towards the stairs, rushing down them so quickly her dress billowed out behind her and her heels tapped out an angry rhythm. His gentle laughter followed her, teasing and so sexy. She let out an exasperated groan.
Once at the bottom of the stairs, she pulled open the door of the building, drawing the warm early evening air deep into her lungs, wanting to banish the lustful throb that still hummed inside her. Seconds later, he was at her side, his hand in the small of her back, guiding her towards the door of the car as the driver opened it and stood back.
Swiftly, she got in, thankful of the roomy interior. At least she didn’t have to sit close to him. But that roomy interior vanished as soon as he got in and, despite the expanse of leather seats between them, he felt too close. Her pulse, still unbalanced from that fleeting kiss, raced, making her light-headed.
She looked out of the window as the car pulled away, leaving the historic centre of Milan and the impressive Duomo behind. She feigned an interest in the passing streets she was far from feeling after their encounter outside his apartment. She couldn’t trust herself to look at him, didn’t want to see the hot desire in his eyes. Not now, on the night of the launch—a moment that was for her brother.
* * *
Relief surged through Alessandro as they reached the exclusive hotel where the launch party was being held. At least with other people around him he could distract himself. From the second he’d seen her, the red silk of her dress clinging to her narrow waist, enhanced further by all the red sequins, he’d been lost. Her one bare shoulder distracted him so completely that all thoughts of keeping her at a distance after the test track kiss had vanished.
He wanted her. More than he’d ever wanted any woman.
The driver opened his door and he got out amidst flashes from the waiting press and made his way around to Charlie’s door. He held her hand as she stepped out, fighting the sizzle that shot through him from that contact. He didn’t miss her hesitation as the photographers went crazy, flashes lighting up the ever darkening sky, their calls resounding around them.
