AllFreeNovel
Share Us
As I rise out of the limo, Raoul waits until I’m on my feet to place his lips on the top of my hand in a brief caress. “Tesorina.You look lonely.”
I give him a brief twirl, and am rewarded with an amused exhale. Something tells me Raoul Damiano isn’t one prone to loud laughter. “Thank you for the outfit.”
“My pleasure. Seeing you wearing something of my choosing brings me joy. Now. Come. Let’s walk.”
I take his outstretched hand, which dwarfs mine, and we twine our fingers together. It should be uncomfortable, with the heat of the day and our size difference, but it isn’t. It feels right.
He leads us along a brick path through a tropical forest, eventually switching from holding my hand to putting his arm around my waist, his hand clasped firmly on my hip. It’s a very personal touch, and it gives me another wave of that heat that settles between my legs.
I had no doubt of our physical connection, but Raoul quickly shows me there is more to him than deep pockets and an irresistible body. He tells me about his old home in Italy, and the rolling hills, steep cliff sides, and nearly ancient architecture that made up the background of his youth. He speaks of it fondly, but with the slightest hint of exhaustion, like even the memory of it is hard to bear. I listen intently, fascinated with all these places I long to see one day with my own two eyes, but when I sense that tiredness in his tone, I take over.
“It’s the sun for me,” I explain, watching the dapples of said sunlight dance across the paving stones on our path. “Washington was so dark and dreary. I felt like I wasn’t really awake until I stepped off the plane here.” I look up into his handsome face, to see he’s already gazing at me. “H-have you ever been to America?”
Raoul gives me another one of those amused sighs. “Yes, I have, but not to the places you speak of. New York City, for the most part, and never for very long.”
“Why didn’t you ever stay?”
“It was for work,Tesorina, and therefore it left me very little time for enjoyment.”
I nibble at my bottom lip thoughtfully. Raoul has mentioned that he’s in retirement now, but he is so young that it boggles my mind. Not that he’s truly young, per se, being quite a bit my senior at thirty-eight, but retiring before forty seems wild to me. I try not to linger on the idea of his age… my time in Tenerife is time I’m supposed to be spending finding joy in life, and if I find a little… or a lot… of it with this older man, then so be it.
Sensing my thoughts, Raoul adds, “Don’t bother asking, Skye, because I can’t tell you anything about what I did for my past…career. We will have a much better time if we stay away from such topics.”
“Understood,” I blow out a breath, “I’m sure it’s no comparison, but my job has its downsides, too. Something, or someone I should say, can make even a good day miserable.”
I feel his grip tighten on me. “Who is causing you trouble?”
I shrug. “It’s nothing big, but my manager Paul is kind of a creep. I think he’s figured out that I’m in a strange place on my own, and is trying to take advantage of it.” Raoul makes a deep noise of disapproval in his throat, so I quickly add, “I brush him off every time, so it’s really no big deal.”
We emerge out of the palm forest and into a clearing in front of one of the palmetum’s waterfalls. Jewel-colored birds scatter into the sky as we approach, interrupted from their drinking and bathing. The water below the falls is so crystal clear I can see the minnows swimming within, their scales a shimmering silver. I open my mouth to comment on how amazing it all is, but Raoul clearly isn’t finished talking about Paul.
He takes me firmly by the shoulders and turns me to face him, grabbing my chin in one hand and tilting my face up. The touch is possessive and a bit intimidating.
“No one, including this man you speak of, is to cause you any trouble, or even look at you the wrong way, you hear me? From this moment forward, if this Paul has it in his mind to treat you with anything but respect, he will be disrespectingme.And I promise you that isn’t a line he wants to cross.”
I should tug my face out of his grip and tell him that I don’t need his help, but instead I just swallow hard and nod. When my tongue snakes out to lick my suddenly-dry lips, Raoul focuses in on it like a predator catching sight of his prey.
I’m definitely not thinking of Paul now, seeing the way Raoul is looking at my lips. I’m not thinking ofanythingbut the man in front of me, and the way his free hand is grabbing the back of my neck and pulling me forward until our bodies are pressed flush against one another.
I gasp, right before he lowers his mouth to mine, the spark between us igniting in an invisible flash as I sink into him. Raoul’s lips are firm, but he kisses me softly, maybe sensing my inexperience, moving from kissing the corners of my mouth to laying his lips over mine again fully, right before he runs his hot tongue over my bottom lip. Like he’s requesting entrance.
I hesitate for only a second before I open for him, and when his tongue slides into the cavern of my mouth, I’m utterly lost. Moaning, I slide my tongue against his, and it makes Raoul growl. He releases my chin, that hand moving to my lower back and then slowly downwards to cup my ass. He kisses me relentlessly, like I’m something to conquer, and if I thought he made me flustered before, it was just a drop in the bucket compared to now.
My nipples tighten, wetness gathering at my core as if my body is readying for Raoul after just this simple kiss. Truthfully, it’s anything but simple…it’s scorching, and with each sweep of his tongue I find myself becoming more and more helpless to resist. By the time he drags his lips from my mouth to my jaw, all of my weight is leaned into Raoul. Of course, he bears it effortlessly.
The furious passion between us doesn’t quite cool, but I can tell Raoul is easing us out of the haze of it, trailing kisses from my jaw to my ear before whispering, “You could drive a man mad, you know that?”
He pulls back gently, hands moving to my waist, and lays one last kiss on my forehead. I have to stand on my own again, and this brings a whimper out of me, causing Raoul to drag my body back against his.
“Don’t worry,” he rumbles, brushing my hair out of my flushed face while I catch my breath. “This won’t be the last time I kiss you,Tesorina, far from it.”
As I step back, and Raoul takes my hands in his, I can feel something breathing its first breath in the air between the two of us. Something monumental, and coming on like an unstoppable storm. My body is nearly vibrating with need for him, but it’s a shock to know that my heart isn’t far behind.
With the birds singing around us, and the spray of the waterfall covering us both in the finest mist, I can almost see my future spreading out in front of me, and in all outcomes I am by Raoul's side. I’m terrified, but at the same time, exhilarated.
Chapter 3
Raoul
