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He focused on her mouth. Kissable, definitely. “Great.”
She slapped the lid on the saucepan and made for the kitchen door. “Things are simmering. Dinner will be ready in thirty minutes.”
“It’ll give you time to think of your own answer to Odele’s question,” he called after her, and could swear she muttered something under her breath.
But when she was gone, Rick acknowledged that much as he enjoyed teasing Chiara, the joke was on him. Because she was his dream woman. If only she wasn’t also a publicity-hungry actress...
Through dinner, he and Chiara trod lightly around each other. The beef Stroganoff was delicious, and he helped clean up—a little surprised she didn’t keep a full-time housekeeper even if she traveled a lot. Afterward, she excused herself and retreated to her room, announcing that she had to memorize her lines.
Left to his own devices, he took a quick tour of the house and grounds, familiarizing himself with its security...and possible vulnerability to intruders. Then, with nothing more to do, he headed to bed.
Passing Chiara’s door, he could see a light beneath, and shook off thoughts of what she wore to bed and how her hair would look around her bare shoulders above a counterpane... Still, in the guest bedroom, he found himself punching his pillow multiple times before he drifted off to sleep.
* * *
“Rick?”
He opened his eyes and saw Chiara’s shadowy silhouette in his bedroom doorway. His lips curved. Apparently she’d had a hard time sleeping, too.
She walked toward him, and he made no attempt to disguise his arousal—he’d been thinking about her. Her short slip with spaghetti straps hid little, her nipples jutting against the fabric. She had a fantastic figure. High breasts and an indented waist...softly curved hips. His fingers itched to touch her.
Instead, he propped himself on the pillows behind him.
She sat down on the side of the bed, and her hand brushed his erection.
He saw no prickliness—just need...for him.
“What can I do for you?” His voice came out as a rasp.
Chiara’s eyes glowed in the dim light afforded by the moon. “I think you know.”
She leaned closer. Her lips brushed his and her pretty breasts tantalized his bare chest.
He cupped the back of her head and brought her closer so he could deepen the kiss. His tongue swept inside her mouth, tangling and dueling with hers.
She moaned and sank against him, breaking the kiss just long enough to say, “Love me.”
He needed no further invitation. He pulled her down onto the mattress next to him and covered her body with his.
She responded with the lack of inhibition that he’d hoped for, arching toward him and opening in invitation, her arms encircling his neck as she met the ardor of his kiss.
His only thought was to get even closer...to sink into her welcoming warmth and find oblivion.
It would be sweet release from the restless need that had been consuming him...
Rick awoke with a start. He couldn’t tell what had jerked him from his fantasy, but the room was empty, and he was alone in his bed.
He was also frustrated and aroused.
He groaned. Yup. It was going to be torture acting as if he were Chiara’s boyfriend and hiding the fact that he was her protector.
* * *
The next morning, Chiara was up early for the drive to Novatus Studio. She donned jeans and a knit top. No use prettying up since she’d be sitting in a makeup chair at work soon enough. In fact, it was so early, she figured she might be able to get in a few minutes to study today’s lines of dialogue before the drive to the lot.
Concentrate, that’s what she had to do. But she hadn’t slept well. In bed last night, she’d stared up at the ceiling, very aware of Rick’s presence in her house.
What attracted her to him?
