She’d become friends with his cousin and his wife. The hotel staff was in love with her and he couldn’t even walk into his own damned home without catching her scent. The memory of her laugh. The hush of her sighs.
When she left, it would tear a gaping hole in his life, but she would leave. That was their bargain and he would hold up his end. He would give her the divorce she had paid for five years ago and he would never again trust his heart to a woman.
Because even now she was keeping something from him. He didn’t know what, but it was easy to read in her golden-brown eyes that she was deliberately not telling him everything. What her secret might be this time, he had no idea. And it bothered him more than he wanted to admit that she was still hiding things from him.
But through the frustration and the irritation, one thing continuously rang true. He hungered for her. He wanted her now more than ever. And the whole time he’d been here, in the dark, waiting for her, his mind had devised all manner of things he wanted to do with her when she returned. Now that she was here, in front of him, smelling so good, he drew in breath after breath just to taste her scent…Rico didn’t want to wait even the length of time it would take to get to the bedroom.
“You’re driving me insane, Teresa.” His hand cupped her cheek, then slid around to the back of her head.
“You’re not alone in that,” she told him and went up on her toes.
He kissed her, hard, taking her mouth in a rush of desire and all-encompassing need. She tangled her tongue with his, leaning into him for support and wrapping one leg around his hips, pulling him closer. He ground his body against hers, letting her feel the hard, hot, demanding part of him, and she groaned into his mouth, feeding the frenzy.
The staff was gone for the night. The house was theirs. And in the dancing, firelit shadows, he shoved the hem of her T-shirt up so that he could cup her breasts. Through the fragile lace of her bra, he stroked his thumbs across her nipples, eliciting a moan of pleasure from Teresa’s throat.
That soft sound stoked the fires inside him into a blaze that quickly engulfed him. Rico could hardly breathe for the need crouched in his chest. He flicked her bra open and cupped both of her breasts in his palms.
She held on to him, fingers grasping at his shoulders as she pushed herself into his touch. “Rico, more. I want more.”
So did he. But he wanted her naked.
“Clothes,” he murmured, letting her go briefly. “Off. Now.”
“Oh, yes.” Nodding, she pulled her T-shirt up and over her head, then tossed it aside. He watched her step out of her shorts, displaying the lacy, pale pink thong she wore beneath them.
His mouth went dry and his pulse skyrocketed. He kept his gaze locked with hers as he quickly tore off his own clothing and threw it to the floor. When he was naked, her gaze dropped to his erection and she sighed in anticipation.
She reached out one hand to curl her fingers around him and he hissed in a breath at the first touch of her hand. She smiled up into his eyes and stroked, rubbed and caressed him until his eyes were rolling back in his head and he had to fight for every breath.
Body taut, tension coiled, he was so close to exploding he couldn’t risk her fingers on him another minute. He caught her hand in his and shook his head. “Enough.”
“No,” she said breathlessly with a shake of her head. “It’s not nearly enough.”
He had to smile. His Teresa was a passionate one and he loved that about her. No simpering, coy females for him. Rico appreciated that his woman wanted as hungrily as he did.