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He paused, finally realising that he was browbeating me. ‘All right, then. Let’s forget about it now,’ he said, sounding disconcerted for the first time since I’d met him. Was he as stunned by his impassioned defence of me as I was?
I thought of his own background, the horrors of his childhood which he had outlined to me in such stark, unemotional terms. As if they’d happened to another man, as if he’d come to terms with them years ago and got over them. And now I wondered—was that really the case? Perhaps he believed he had been unaffected, that he had risen above those traumas and moved on. But surely he hadn’t, if he could hear about the fairly minor slight Elise had subjected me to—which, I would hazard a guess, was nothing like the kind of insults he had probably suffered—and be so enraged on my behalf.
‘She’s gone and she’s not coming back,’ he added.
He tossed the last of the champagne back, and I wondered if his mouth was now as dry as mine.
‘Do you want the rest of that?’ he asked, nodding at my full glass as he dumped his own empty glass on a waiter’s tray.
I shook my head, still not sure of my ability to speak coherently with so many wants and needs and desires swirling inside me.
‘Bene,’ he said lapsing into Italian, which I knew he only did when his emotions were too close to the surface. He grabbed my glass and dumped it on the waiter’s tray too, then grasped my hand. ‘Because I want to get my hands on you,’ he said, marching through the crowd as he hauled me towards the ballroom and the sound of the orchestra playing another waltz. ‘And the only way I’m going to be able to do that for the next few hours is to dance with you.’
He spun me into his arms, his steps assured and confident, his arms holding me tight. I clung to his wide shoulders as the kaleidoscope of lights whirled around us.
My heart expanded another inch, threatening to choke me. The dangerous emotions surging through me were so strong and so real I knew they would hurt immeasurably tomorrow when we parted—and this affair was over. But tonight all I was capable of doing was following his lead and letting those glorious, overwhelming feelings take hold. Because it was far too late to stop them.
The evening drifted past in a daze, his body wrapped around me as we danced, his hand never letting go of mine even when the music paused and he was forced to release me. He even gripped my hand during the speech he had to give and the final toasts.
The clock was ticking towards midnight, the applause still ringing in my ears when he dragged me through the crowd to charge up the staircase towards our suite.
Perhaps I should have been embarrassed. I could see the knowing looks on some of the guests’ faces, the lascivious smiles on others. Every single person had to know exactly where we were going and why we were leaving the ball so abruptly. But after his passionate defence of me, the petty judgements of people like Elise Durand no longer had the power to hurt me.
I wanted him with a hunger that had been consuming me too—and I refused to be ashamed of it.
Even so, my breath caught in my lungs, my thighs quivering with anticipation, my nipples so hard they hurt when he slammed shut the door of our suite and pressed me back against the wood.
‘I thought tonight would never end,’ he growled, his irritation sending darts of pleasure through my system as he fumbled with the fastening of my gown. ‘To hell with it,’ he said, before the sound of rending fabric tore through the air.
Shock and excitement careered through my body as the exquisite gown slid to the floor, leaving me naked.
‘Dio? Seriously?’ he groaned, the feral grunt filled with outrage. ‘All this time you’ve been wearing no underwear beneath this thing?’
‘I couldn’t,’ I said, moaning as he captured one yearning nipple between his lips and plunged thick fingers between the slick folds of my sex. ‘Nina insisted it would ruin the line of the dress.’
‘I’m going to kill Nina next time I see her,’ he said as I arched into his caresses. ‘But first I’m going to punish you,’ he added, but the teasing tone was hoarse and not remotely convincing.
‘Please...’ I said, circling my hips, thrusting against his hand, as his thumb found the swollen nub of my clitoris—the diabolical touch too much, and yet not nearly enough.
‘Tell me what you need, bella,’ he demanded.
‘I need you,’ I said, blurting out the truth, the emotion which had been holding me hostage all evening starting to strangle me.
‘Anch’io ho bisogno di te...’ he murmured, his voice as raw as my own now. I need you too.
I’d barely had time to translate the words, to grasp hold of what they might mean, before he released his erection and lifted me.
Suddenly, the immense weight of him was plunging heavily inside me, his hands gripping my buttocks to hold me up, to hold me open for him. My back thudded the door as he began to rock his hips and drive into me. My body welcomed the deep thrusts, the huge erection filling up the empty spaces inside me, sending me higher and higher. I sobbed as the orgasm raced towards me.
At last I soared on the rolling wave of pleasure pushing away all my doubts and fears until all that was left was the sweet, sublime joy of our lovemaking. As the orgasm broke over me and I heard his harsh shout of release echoing in my ear, I clung to him, wishing the moment could last for ever...
But knowing if tonight was all I could have, I would take it.
As I floated in afterglow, giddy and dazed and a little sore, stupidly close to tears, he carried me to the bed, then stripped off his clothing.
I needed to protect myself, I knew that, but I couldn’t seem to find the energy or the will to do so as he gathered me against him, our naked bodies slick with sweat from the fury of our coupling.
‘Are you okay?’ he asked, his fingers brushing my hair back as he stared down at me with a tenderness that broke my heart. ‘I didn’t hurt you, did I?’
