AllFreeNovel
Share Us
One
SILAS
“If you’ll excuse me, I’m here to enjoy the wedding.”
Her hair was pulled back in some complicated knot that bared her neck and shoulders. Her dress wrapped around her body in a way that made me want to unravel and discover her secrets.
Gia brushed past me, her floral scent lingering in the air as she strode with purpose down the aisle toward my hotel.
Irritation burned in my gut as I followed her. I hadn’t knownshe’dbe here. Gia Giovanni was my best friends’ younger sister and the woman who never failed to spark every one of my competitive instincts.
I couldn’t believe she’d shown up at one of my weddings. As the owner of a wedding planning service, Happily Ever Afters, she was my primary competitor when it came to weddings.
I kept a wedding planner on staff, Hannah, and didn’t allow couples to use any other planner. A few years ago, Gia came to me with her offer to plan weddings for her brides at my resort. I could torture myself by working with the woman who drove me crazy, or I could distance myself from her. I didn’t need the temptation.
I loved the Giovanni family, and the last thing I’d ever do was mess around with their youngest daughter and sister, no matter how much I wanted to usher her into the nearest closet and have my way with her. She was off-limits. Forbidden. And it only made her more attractive.
Gia opened the door to head inside the hotel. I grabbed it just in time, and she looked back at me in surprise.
“What are you really doing here?” I hissed into her ear.
I stood so close to her that I felt the ever-so-slight tremble in her body.
She pulled away from me, but I followed her, looking for somewhere I could talk to her alone. When I spotted a corner covered by a large potted plant, I grabbed her elbow and guided her there.
She looked up at me with a challenge in her eyes. “Why do you think I’m here?”
I braced my hand above her head. “To check me out.”
I’d clearly lost my mind because I was fairly sure she was here to scope out my five-star resort, not get in my pants, but I loved the way her eyes flashed with red-hot anger. Getting a rise out of Gia had always been easy and unbelievably satisfying.
She placed the palm of her hand on my chest, right above my pounding heart, as if to push me away. Instead, her fingers curled around the material of my shirt, making my heart race. “You wish.”
I smirked. “I wouldn’t touch my friends’ younger sister.”
She tipped her head to the side. “Then why did you drag me into this corner?”
“I won’t let you get away with whatever you’re up to,” I growled, a little distracted by her proximity.
She crossed her arms over her chest, pushing the globes of her breasts higher. “I’mnot up to anything.”
One blonde strand of hair fell from her updo and curled over her forehead. I wondered if the dyed-blonde hair was an act of rebellion from her Italian family. I swept it aside, loving the flash of awareness in her eyes as my fingertips brushed over her forehead. She wasn’t immune to me. “You’re always up to something.”
She cocked her head. “Wouldn’t you love to know what it is?”
“That’s why I’m standing here.” I moved closer to her, wanting to press my body against hers. I wanted to trace a trail of kisses down her neck, over her collarbone, and lower. I wanted to tug down the bodice of her gown so that her breasts spilled over. I bet Gia wore sexy-as-hell lingerie.
I’d gathered important details about her over the years. She was feisty, quick to start a fight, and highly effective at ending one with her sharp tongue. She always rose to a challenge, and I seemed to be the ultimate one.
I lowered my head, breathing in her scent, floral with a hint of something spicy, and her breath hitched. I let my breath trail over the shell of her ear.
“What are you doing?” Her voice was shaky.
“You’ve never been seduced?” I taunted as my pulse kicked into overdrive. There was a roaring in my ears that drowned out my good reason and any sense of self-preservation.
“Is that what this is? A seduction?” Her voice was light as air. She tipped her head slightly so I had more access to her neck.
I cupped the back of her head, giving in to my desires, and sucked hard on her neck. She moaned softly into my ear, and it was the most beautiful sound I’d ever heard. I would enjoy making this woman come apart. It would be the greatest challenge of my life.
