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He began to lift her onto the lip of the pool, then instantly regretted it as she froze and clung to him even tighter. ‘Don’t lift me!’ She pushed a hand at his chest.
Valerio growled with irritation. ‘Dio, again with the worrying. I have lifted you before and, believe me, I was not even slightly hampered by your size. You honestly have no idea how perfect these curves are.’
Her eyes went wide. ‘I meant...don’t lift me out where the snake can get me.’ She began to blush a bright pink, her body suddenly softening in his arms. ‘But...thank you.’
He froze for a long moment, just looking into her brown eyes, feeling her heartbeat thudding against his chest through the wet fabric of his shirt. He was an idiot. An absolute idiot.
His forehead dipped to press against hers as he fought the insane urge to kiss her. But he knew that if he kissed her now he would want more. He would want as much as he could have of her...as much as she was willing to give.
And where would that leave them? He had promised himself that the first time had been the last, that this was how it needed to be. And yet every time they were alone together it seemed like the most natural thing in the world to have her in his arms.
Thank God for the water around them, or she’d be all too aware of the nature of his thoughts.
‘Valerio...’
She shifted against him, her thighs tightening on his hips as she tilted her face slightly. Her lips brushed against his, soft and wet, and he felt the ravenous beast within him roar with triumph. Surely, if she was starting it, it would be rude to stop her?
His arms banded around her, pulling her chest flush against him as he plundered her mouth, deep and hard. He felt her nails on his back as she moved against him, heard the sound of her groans as he pushed her back against the side of the pool.
With one hand he gripped her hair, tilting her head back and gaining deeper access, deeper control of the kiss. The darker forces in his mind screamed at him to take her right here in the water and to hell with the conseque
nces. But it seemed Dani had different ideas. She stiffened in his arms, pushing him away with surprising force.
‘I’m sorry...’ he began, readying himself for the inevitable argument.
‘No, Valerio... The snake moved again. I heard a splash.’
He turned, and sure enough, the reptile was now fully submerged in the water. He lifted Dani up with ease, doing his best to ignore the deliciously wet curves under his hands. Once he’d lifted himself out too, they both looked down at the impossibly long, dark shape in the water.
‘I’ll call Animal Control in the morning. Our snake friend has a nest of babies under that bridge that need to be taken somewhere a little bit safer.’
Dani shivered at the word ‘babies’, stepping backwards, away from the pool. ‘I swear, I’ll never swim peacefully again.’
That made two of them, he thought wryly, but for entirely different reasons.
The cool evening breeze cut uncomfortably through the wet fabric of his clothes. He needed a hot shower and a lot of distance between them to get his head in order.
Making a snap decision, he pulled off his soaked shirt and hung it over a chair, doing the same with his trousers. The outside shower was tucked into a wall on the terrace of the villa. It was fully stocked with toiletries and had a cabinet filled with towels. It seemed the rental company had thought of almost everything—except checking for hidden families of snakes, of course.
When he emerged from the shower, he hoped Dani would have gone inside. But she sat waiting for him on a sun lounger, with a towel wrapped around her body. A wet pile of fabric lay on the ground beside her. Her discarded bikini.
Valerio gritted his teeth, wishing he had taken his shower inside and then locked himself in his bedroom. Being a coward was infinitely preferable to this kind of sexual torture. If she had any idea what her mere presence was doing to him, with her damp curls hanging over her bare shoulders and the way she watched him through her lashes with a look of uncertainty on her beautiful face...
He tightened his fists, searching for control, hating it that she made him ache for all that he couldn’t have. And he was finally admitting to himself that he did want to have her—not just because of sexual frustration or circumstance. He wanted her.
‘You said you were sorry.’ She spoke softly, standing up to face him. ‘About that kiss. But I’m the one who kissed you this time. I didn’t even ask. Surely I’m the one who should be apologising.’
‘You don’t need to apologise. I’m the one who needs to apologise. My behaviour towards you has been unacceptable from the moment I came home,’ he said, cursing himself as her eyes widened and she took a step towards him.
He raised a hand between them, holding her at arm’s length.
‘I’m sorry for how I spoke to you last night. I’m sorry I can’t be...what you need. But we both know why we need to keep things professional here. My priority is keeping you safe, and that includes keeping you safe from me too. You’ve seen the way I am. I can’t even be woken from sleep without becoming a danger.’
‘That’s ridiculous. You would never hurt me, Valerio.’
‘You have no idea who I am. Not any more,’ he rasped, his eyes lowering to take in the towel she clutched to her chest. ‘I’m the man who promised to keep his best friend’s sister safe. Then kissed her for the first time in front of an audience and had to stop himself from lifting her up like some kind of brute and carrying her off to the nearest bed. And if there hadn’t been a damn snake in that pool, the same thing would have happened ten minutes ago. I have no control over myself around you.’
‘Well...that would have certainly got everyone’s attention...’
