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The coil of tension winds tighter and tighter until I'm trembling on the edge of release.
"Isabella, I'm close," I warn through gritted teeth.
Rather than pulling away, Isabella redoubles her efforts, hollowing her cheeks as she sucks hard. The added sensation tips me over, and I come with a strangled shout, spilling down Isabella's throat.
She swallows around me, milking every last drop until I have to push her away in sensitivity. Isabella releases me with an obscene pop, a self-satisfied smile on her swollen lips.
"I told you you'd love it," she purrs, wiping the corner of her mouth with a thumb.
Chapter 7
Isabella
Iemergefromthelavatory, my cheeks flushed. My heart pounds as I think of Stefano's hands, his lips, the heat of his body against mine. I walk on unsteady legs to my seat in first class, a tumble of emotions swirling inside me. Excitement, desire, uncertainty.
What have I done?
Diego would have killed Stefano for what just happened. My father was fiercely protective of his little girl. But Diego is gone too soon, and I am adrift in a world both familiar, yet strange without his guiding hand.
I sink into the plush seat and gaze out the window at the retreating coastline of Mexico, the land of my birth. So much has changed in the past two weeks.
Now, I'm running from my home, from Torres Tequila. To embrace a life of safety in the hands of people I am yet to be acquainted with. I'm not sure I'm ready for what's to come, since I don't even know what's coming my way.
My thoughts drift back to Stefano. That kiss, his hands, his gaze.
But we can't. I have a duty to my family, to my father's legacy. No matter how Stefano makes me feel with a single touch, I can't lose myself in his embrace. I've only just met him. This was only a one-time thing. I better not give him false hope.
I steel my resolve and take a deep breath. When Stefano emerges from the lavatory, I will tell him this can go no further.
Even as the words form in my mind, I know that will be far easier said than done.
My lips still tingle from his kiss.
Stefano slides into the seat beside me, the scent of his cologne invading my senses. My traitorous heart skips a beat.
He turns those fathomless eyes on me, a hint of a smile playing about his lips. “Have you reconsidered my offer for dinner at that little place in Manhattan, Isabella?”
I fold my hands in my lap to hide their trembling. “There is nothing to reconsider. What happened between us cannot continue.”
One dark brow arches. “Cannot? Or will not?” He reaches out, catching a tendril of my hair between his fingers. My breath hitches at his touch. “There is passion between us, Isabella. Deny it all you want, but I see the truth in your eyes.”
I jerk away from him, ignoring the pang of loss I feel at the absence of his touch. “You see what you wish to see, nothing more.”
“Do I?” His gaze bores into me, seeing too much. “Tell me you felt nothing during our little escapade and I will not bother you again.”
I open my mouth but the lie will not come. Because I did feel something. A spark I've never known, a fire that threatens to consume me from within.
But I cannot have this. I cannot have him.
I lift my chin and meet his gaze. “It meant nothing.” The words taste bitter on my tongue. “Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to catch up on my reading.”
I turn pointedly away from Stefano and pick up my book, but I can feel the weight of his gaze on me. He does not believe my lie.
And deep in the recesses of my heart, neither do I.
My heart pounds as the plane rolls to a stop at the gate.
I'm really here: New York. To many it's the city of new beginnings, to me the city is a daunting sight.
