A Touch of Temptation(50)
It had taken everything he’d had in him to not chase after her when she had left for the terrace halfway through dinner. Instead he had spent the evening with Marissa, going over the last few legalities. Even her update that visa issues were now taken care of for two more boys like Miguel hadn’t been enough to keep his mind from Kim.
And yet he had fought the pull.
He didn’t even have a clear idea why. As each day passed with her he had felt an increasing sense of uncertainty creeping into his thoughts. As to how much he enjoyed her company, how much he looked forward to seeing her in the morning, how much he enjoyed it when she pored over a financial report with him and came up with a solution in two minutes flat.
He had learned early on that anything that felt that good always came with a high price.
He tucked his hands into the pockets of his trousers and came to a standstill, watching her. Not his heart, though. It pounded extra hard in his chest.
The utter silence, punctured only by the ocean’s waves, cocooned them, weaving its own magic.
She stood barefoot in the sand, the ocean lapping at her feet.
Her slender back, skin glowing in the sun, was pure temptation marred only by two yellow strings tied at the neck and then down lower. His gaze followed the curve of her back to the dip. A sarong-style wrap hugged her pert behind. Her long legs were only visible again from her knees.
He released a shaky breath. He had purposely pulled himself back these past few days, held back through sheer will. He didn’t want to fall headlong into his desire for her again, to forget the right and wrong of the situation— forget himself.
He wanted the comfortable camaraderie they had slipped into to last. He wanted something stable for his children, and for the first time since she had told him that she was pregnant, for the first time on this island, he felt the goodness of what they had in his bones.
This felt right. This felt good. And he would do anything to keep it like that.
The line of her shoulders tightened infinitesimally. Her hands wrapped around herself and she stiffened, holding herself aloof from the world.
It was enough to burst the bubble of tranquility he had felt just a second ago. Tension curled his muscles and his mind geared up for whatever fight she was going to throw his way, his body exulting in the thrill shooting through his blood.
She turned and met his gaze.
He felt the intensity of her look as if she had run those long fingers over him. His muscles were flexing and rearing for her touch. Lust rocketed through him, tightening every muscle with fiery need.
Her lustrous hair slapped across her face. Her bikini top cupped her breasts just as he wanted to. He couldn’t deny they were looking rounder. She had put on some weight, was losing that gaunt, over-worked look. And she had that first blush of pregnancy he had overheard Anna mentioning to her.
It was in the slight flare of her hips, in the fullness of her breasts, in the healthy flush of her skin. Her stomach, though not yet round, was beginning to grow. He trailed his gaze over her, enjoying the sheer eroticism of looking at her.
She was the sexiest woman he had ever seen, and her innate modesty made her even more appealing. Even now she was oblivious to her effect on him, on his self-control, as her overactive mind whizzed through something.
“Do you miss being with her?”
Diego blinked. For a second he didn’t understand her question. “Droga, I knew I shouldn’t have left you alone for so long. You’re ripe for a fight, aren’t you?”
“That’s ridiculous.”
“You are much more comfortable when we’re fighting, when you can peg me into whatever box you can. We have been laughing, generally enjoying each other’s company, for over a week now. So of course it’s time to draw the lines again.”
“I...I’m serious, Diego.”
He didn’t miss whatever it was he had once shared with Marissa. It had been a comfortable relationship they had both fallen into whenever something had gone wrong in their lives—the one good thing that had stood firm despite every hardship they had faced.
He just wished he had realized sooner that it had meant so much more to Marissa than it had to him. What he felt for Kim—a crazy obsession that knew no right or wrong—he had never had with any other woman in life.
Nothing like the fizzle of anticipation roaring in his blood as she came closer, nor the tightening in his gut every time he thought he had finally reached the core of her and then she retreated behind her shell again.
She came to a halt right in front of him. Her scent teased his nostrils. Hot arousal was inching across his skin.
“You don’t have to spare my feelings. I can take it,” she said.
Curiosity blazed like a forest fire through him. “Does that mean it would hurt you if I said I do miss her?”