She could have argued against all of those “maybes” except the last one. That one floored her.
“Look at us now. Away from your father’s business legacy, away from the pain of your history, we’re good together. And in the bedroom, I know we can be good together. We could make it work this time.”
Inside her a voice screamed “no”. There was still too much he didn’t know. She nodded and heard herself agreeing. “I’d like that.”
“Good.”
“But…” She pressed her lips together as she tried not to smile. “The bedroom bit…”
He narrowed his eyes suspiciously. “Yes?”
“Tell me how you’re so sure.” She shrugged innocently. “Because we’ve only made love twice since I’ve returned and the last time was memorable for all the wrong reasons.”
“Hm. The number of orgasms I gave you aren’t good enough reasons to remember our lovemaking?”
She nearly choked on her drink as she looked around to see if they’d been overheard. But the music was so loud it seemed unlikely. And, she noticed, being at the back of the room, the walls of the booth kept them completely hidden from view. She shifted her leg closer to his and he put his hand on her thigh beneath the table. Her breath hitched and she moved her face closer to his, her lips brushing his chin, the rough stubble stimulating her even further. She moaned as his hand slid under her dress and moved up her inner thigh. She closed her eyes as he massaged her leg, his thumb tantalizingly brushing her sex every now and then. But his hand didn’t move any higher.
“How about a little aperitif.” He dipped his head to her ear and whispered. “An orgasm now to get you in the mood and then more later.”
If he was expecting any kind of verbal response, he was out of luck. All Taina could think about was movement of his hand against her bare skin, suggestive and tempting and… driving her crazy. She kissed him, pressed closer to him, and hoped her movements would push his hand higher up her leg. It did.
As the kiss deepened, he fanned out his fingers in the narrow gap between her thighs until the side of his hand was pressed hard against her sex—covered only by the damp silk of her knickers. She hooked one thigh over his to allow his hand greater access and he took the hint. His hand immediately slid beneath her thong and played along the wet length of her lips, just as his tongue played in her mouth. She tipped her head back, her mouth open, allowing him to plunder her just as his fingers pushed deep inside her. She moved against him harder now, her clitoris ramming against the V of his thumb and forefinger as he pleasured her to within an inch of her life. Less than an inch. Because with a loud cry, only partly drowned by the thudding beat of the music, she felt she’d died and gone to heaven as she collapsed against him.
“My Taina. I adore pleasuring you. You melt under my touch. Like some delicious dessert that I need to taste. Come…” He straightened her dress. “Let’s go to my family’s home and I will make good my promise to you. Luckily there’s no one else staying there at present.”
Taina needed no further incentive and they’d soon hailed a cab and were drawing up outside the Paris home of the royal family of Ma’in in the Place Des Vosges. She looked up at the impressive house as Daidan paid the cab driver.
She whistled. For all the wealth she was accustomed to, these mansions were something else with their smart brick and stone striped façade and vaulted arcade which fronted them, held aloft by pillars. “I didn’t know your family had a house in Paris.”
“There is so much you don’t know, Taina.”
Once out the taxi he took her hand and unlocked the house. Taina walked through the rooms, admiring the graceful proportions and the beautiful antique furniture.
“If this is only your pied-a-terre in Paris, I can’t imagine what your family home is like.”
“The palace in Ma’in? It’s grand. Of course it’s grand. My father made sure of that.”
“How come you never talk about it?”
“Because it’s my home no longer. I feel more at home in Helsinki than Ma’in.”
“Really? Why, when you spent so much time in Ma’in?”
He shrugged as he poured them both a glass of champagne. “I didn’t really spend so much time in Ma’in. As soon as I could, I left. Studied overseas. Worked overseas.”
She accepted the glass and went to the window to look out at the gardens opposite, mysterious in the long twilight of a Parisian summer. She opened the window and leaned out. “Is that a fountain I can hear?”