"You've led a sheltered life."
"I would have agreed with you two years ago, but I've pretty much been blasted out of my cozy shelter since my dad died."
"I'm sorry for the bad things that happened, but I can't say I'm sorry about you being blasted right into my arms." He rested his hand gently on her thigh.
His black T-shirt gave her a glimpse of thick, tanned bicep. His broad forearm was lightly dusted with black hair. A sturdy platinum watch with a black face revealed that it was way, way, way past her bedtime.
His long fingers slid up her thigh, gathering her gold dress under his fingertips. Heat, and something stronger and deeper, rose inside her.
She wasn't sorry she'd been blasted into his arms either.
Though she probably should be.
And maybe would be when Tarrant hit the roof tomorrow about Dominic leaving his precious party to chase her.
"May I kiss you?"
She couldn't help smiling. And this time she had a different answer to his gracious question. "You may."
His kiss was measured, deliberate. A taste.
He pulled back, leaving her lips parted and pulsing for more.
"May I disrobe you?"
She glanced down at her borrowed dress. "I think this vintage gown would be grateful to see the last of me."
"Allow me."
A hint of a smile played along his arrogant mouth as he tugged gently at the knot holding her halter top up. She could swear she saw a dimple as the knot finally gave way and the front of her dress cascaded down over her bare breasts.
"Wow."
She couldn't help laughing at the way his eyes raked hungrily over her bare skin. Apparently the "courtly gentleman" act was over. "You look like a kid in a candy store."
"I feel like one. Can I have a lick?"
"Help yourself."
She shivered slightly with pure anticipation as his greedy mouth approached her breast.
She pushed her fingers into his thick, black hair. The expression on his face was so serious-reverent, even-that she tried not to laugh as desire bubbled up inside her.
Her nipples tightened as he laid a soft but sure kiss on each one. His tongue followed, then he drew each nipple into his mouth and sucked until the tips were pink. Bella's breath came in unsteady gasps.
"Better than a Juicy Drop Pop." His voice was husky.
"And doesn't rot your teeth."
He grinned, showing those wicked-looking white teeth. "Yeah, but sometimes eating candy on an empty stomach can make you even more hungry."
He tugged at the tie around the waist of her dress. The knot loosened and slid undone. Heat pooled in her belly as he tugged her dress down over her legs.
She'd worn silky gold bikini underwear, an impulse buy in the Hardcastle lingerie department after Risa gave her the dress.
"It matches." Dominic appeared to be transfixed by her skimpy undergarment.
"I do my best." The area under her bikini was in danger of overheating under his intense gaze.
"Shame I'll have to take it off." He looked up, his eyes black and smoky. "If you don't mind, that is."
The arrogant tilt to his mouth dared her to object.
"Be my guest." She lifted her hips as he shimmied the gold fabric down over her thighs.
Her arousal was evident in the moisture already gathering between her thighs. Dominic slid her panties down past her ankles, leaving her completely naked on the vast, round bed. She felt like an odalisque in a nineteenth century harem painting.
"One of us has way too many clothes on." Her voice sounded disembodied, maybe because she was mesmerized by the way his black T-shirt draped over the thick muscles of his chest. "I think we need to rectify the imbalance."
"That certainly sounds like a good scientific approach."
Dominic hauled his T-shirt over his head in one swift motion. Bella's breath caught at the sight of his hard, flat belly, dusted with black hair. The angled overhead light picked out the roping, tanned muscles of his chest and arms.
His big fingers deftly undid his belt buckle and the button on his pants. Bella was too entranced to even think about moving. As he lowered his black slacks she realized she was holding her breath.
Not a good idea. She was already in danger of passing out.
He pushed his black cotton boxers down at the same time, revealing that he was every bit as aroused as she was.
"Wow." She propped herself up on her elbows to get a better look. If she didn't already know he fit inside her as if they'd been custom-made for each other, she'd be worried.
"Are you sure you don't want a microscope to see more detail?" He was laughing at her.
"Was I staring?"
"That's one word for it. Lucky thing I'm not self-conscious." The bed shifted as he settled his solid weight on it.
Fire licked at her muscles as he moved closer. She'd never seen him without clothes on before. At least not when she was in her right mind. "I don't think a microscope would be much use," she managed. "They're usually for looking at stuff that's really small."
"People have called me a lot of things, but 'small' isn't one of them." Dominic grinned.
His fingers brushed the length of her thighs, and rose to settle in the crook of her waist. His thumb skimmed her belly, causing a whirlpool of sensation inside her.
With both hands he lifted her and slid her to the middle of the bed, then he climbed over her and lowered his face between her legs.
She couldn't suppress a whimper of delight as his tongue swept over ultra-sensitive, swollen tissues that had been aching for his touch. He sucked gently, until her whole body shivered. His low moan reverberated against her quivering flesh and she realized her hands were fisted in his hair again.
Lucky thing he didn't have a sensitive scalp. She pried them out, which took considerable effort, since what he was doing with his mouth made her body spasm and jump in an alarming way.
"You have good reflexes," he murmured. "Either that or you're really, really horny."
"Or both," she rasped.
"We'd better do something about that."
"Not yet." She wanted to prolong the wicked torment of being aroused almost to the brink of madness. And she wanted to bring him there too. "Lie on your back."
His eyebrow raised and a smile crept across his mouth. He climbed off her and extended his long, muscled body along the mattress. His broad shoulders settled into the soft covers and he stared at her, his eyes dark slits of passion. "Your wish is my command."
"Good." She couldn't hide the smile that spread across her face at the sight of him laid out before her, bronzed perfection against the soft, white cotton of the bedspread.
First she kissed his torso, taking her time, inhaling the rich, musky scent of his skin, enjoying the line of rough, dark hair along the centerline of his hard belly.
His erection pulsed as she drew near, and she could feel his anticipation in the beat of his blood. Slowly she lowered her mouth to the tip, and licked it. A bead of clear liquid whetted her appetite, and she took him into her mouth.
Dominic ground his hips into the mattress as she sucked hard. Her breasts brushed the skin of his broad thighs and her own breath came in ragged gasps.
A low groan made her glance up and she could see his hands fisted in the luxurious bedspread. An expression of pained ecstasy tightened his handsome features.
She rose and climbed over him. He pulled her up, then tipped them both onto their sides, facing each other. He looked into her eyes, his gaze sure and steady. "I want to make love to you, Bella."
Her lips parted, but her brain was frozen. This was all so thoughtful. So careful. So planned.
I want to make love to you.
Her heart squeezed. His words cut far deeper than he intended. She wanted to make love to him. Not just sex, but something deeper and more powerful.
He leaned into her, grazed her cheek with his thumb. "Do you think we should?"
He wasn't going to let her just fall into his arms. To take what he offered, then blame him later.
If she said "yes" there was no turning back. No regrets, no shame, no recrimination later when the fog of lust had lifted.
"I do."
She flushed at the embarrassingly bridal sound of her affirmation, but Dominic didn't see it because his eyes had already closed, his thick black lashes brushing his cheeks, then hers, as he claimed her mouth in a rough kiss.
There was nothing rushed, desperate or reckless about their lovemaking. It was slow, deliberate, and breathtakingly sensual.
They made love.
Bella felt so safe in Dominic's warm, firm embrace, so cherished by the gentle caresses of his strong hands. She could feel his emotion in his caresses, in the catch of his breath, in the way he said her name as he climaxed, and then again, afterwards as they lay in each other's arms.