Carnevale and Subterfuge (16 page)

She licked her lips, unsure of if she should voice her desire.

“Tell me
, amor
.” Diego reached out and cupped her face. She turned into that touch, anchored herself to that contact and drew in a deep breath.

“Would it be too painful for you to change your eyes to green?” She watched his lips curl into a smile.

He nodded. “For you, I can do that.”

“Will it hurt?” Worry filled her face.

“Some, but not a lot.”

Ana watched in awe as the blue color began to fade away, green slipping from the top of the pupil to the bottom until both orbs were the familiar olive green that she knew. “Is this…is this your real eye color?” she whispered.

“Yes.” He reached out and traced her cheek with the tip of his finger.

Relief hit her in the chest. At least something during that time was real. She reached out and cupped his face, stroking his cheek. “I want to stare into your eyes as we have sex.”

He shook his head. For a second she thought he was going to pull away. Ana was about to move when he covered her hand with his. “Not sex,
tesoro
. Making love. How about this—you sit on my lap and ride me?”

Her heart pounded against her rib cage at this suggestion. She’d never had sex that way before. The idea intrigued her. “OK.”

“Scoot over.” He crawled around her as she moved, turned around and settled against the pillows. “Come, straddle my lap. Let’s take this slow.”

She didn’t hesitate to move. Rising up on her knees, she threw one leg over his thighs and got ready to take his cock in hand when he halted her attempt with a hand on her shoulder.

“Not yet. We’re going slowly and I’ve never had you like this before. Lean closer.”

She did as he asked, leaning forward. Her nipples touched his chest. The heat of his skin against her sensitive tips took her breath away. A shock shot straight to her clit. He grasped her hips and pulled her closer until her body met his from breast to stomach.

His cock was caught between them. Just the feel of the hot, velvety flesh, slightly wet from the precum leaking from the slit at the top of the crest, made Ana’s sex clench in need. She could feel the throb of his pulse against her skin. She rocked against him, drawing a moan in response. His shaft jerked between them.

“Vixen.” Diego moved up and pressed his mouth to hers, taking her lips in a tender kiss. His kisses ranged from hard and biting to soft pecks. She didn’t know what to expect from him and loved it.

Ana responded in kind, giving exactly what she got. She reached out and steadied herself with hands on his shoulders as he held her closer, pressing her body against his, trying to get as much contact as she could. Her hips rocked against his abdomen.

As he grunted and moaned, she slipped her tongue inside of the humid cavern of his mouth. Their tongues dueled and twined with each other, teasing and taunting. Her nails dug into corded muscle as sensation pulsed through her veins.

The press of flesh and caresses weren’t enough for her. She wanted to feel his hard cock inside of her, driving her mad with each thrust. Her pussy lips were heavy, aching for stimulation. She needed him to fill her emptiness.

She pulled her head away and stared down at him. Moving her body back just a fraction, Ana wrapped her hand around his thick shaft. With slow strokes, she teased and tormented both of them. Just the feel of his velvet flesh in her palm made her ache with need.

He looked down to watch her actions. “Fucking hell, I need to be inside you right now.” His shaft twitched in her hand.

“Do you, now? Open your legs.” Ana released his dick and moved to the side. She watched as he complied with her order before she moved between his legs. Taking her time, she laved the wide cockhead. She paused to pay some attention to the leaking slit at the top.

The salty taste of his seed rolled over her senses, drawing a moan from her. She enveloped the head, swirling her tongue over the mushroom head before taking more and more him inside of her mouth until he hit the back of her throat. Ana dropped her hand as her mouth slid down. Her reward was his moans.

Diego threaded his fingers through her hair, grabbing a handful and guiding her movement. She released the base of his cock and took his balls in her hand, rolling and tugging the orbs. Ana hollowed out her cheeks to increase the pressure around his shaft.

“Ana,” Diego said.

Tracing the thick vein on the underside of his shaft, she felt his heartbeat against her tongue. The steady pulse soothed her.

“
Cara mia, please.
” Diego rasped as his grip increased.

The gentle edge of pain pushed her into action. Relaxing her throat and breathing through her nose, she swallowed him. His body shook beneath her. The harsh sound of his breathing and the staccato beat of her own heart filled her ears. The bed trembled under her knees. Time centered on this moment. Indecision filled her head: to let him come in her mouth or come in her pussy. He made the decision for her when he pulled on her hair. “No, Ana, not like this. I want to be inside of you.”

Reluctantly, she released his cock, but not before lapping up more of his precum. She released his balls and rose, settling on her heels, waiting for his next move.

He reached out and caressed her face. “Sit on me.”

Ana didn’t have to be told twice. The slow-burning arousal in her veins flared to life. Her stomach clenched as she moved to straddle him once more. She reached between them and held his cock as she lowered herself onto him.

“Wait! Protection.”

Ana nearly growled at the interruption. Gritting her teeth, she released him and looked around. “Where?”

Diego leaned over and opened a drawer. He glanced at her. A cheeky smile on his lips set her at ease. “I checked and found these.” He produced a small packet. Ripping it open, he sheathed himself before settling against the pillows. “Proceed.”

“You’re going to pay for that little interruption later.”

“I look forward to it.”

She wrapped a hand around his cock again and positioned herself. Taking her time, she lowered herself onto his shaft, moaning as his wide cockhead slipped inside of her. He brushed her hand aside, gripped her hips and thrust upward. A cry was torn from her mouth only to be swallowed by his lips as he took a kiss. To balance herself, she held onto his shoulders and lowered herself until he was fully seated inside of her.

They moved together in a slow glide of flesh. She squeezed her vaginal muscles, trying to pull him farther inside of her. Hooking an arm around his neck, she placed nips and flicks down his neck while tweaking his nipple with her free hand.

Something didn’t feel right. Pausing, she gazed at the deep red bud. It wasn’t pierced. Disappointment sliced through her but didn’t stop her.

“I’m sorry,
cara
. Had to take them out,” he said.

“Later. We’ll talk later.” She moved up and down over him, riding him harder. With each down stroke, her clit scraped against his abdomen, setting off sparks, increasing the desire.

Diego growled as his hips moved faster. His cock stroked over that secret spot inside of her that set off small fireworks and shivers of pleasure through her body. She fought with herself as her orgasm grew, twining and curling in on itself as the desire grew.

“Yes, faster. I want you to come.” Diego kissed her shoulder. She pressed her mouth to his as she moved closer. Her nipples rubbed against his chest. Each brush sent shards of electricity to her clit.

Ana’s orgasm expanded, growing until the pleasure overwhelmed her. She stood on the precipice ready to come. All she needed was one little push. Ana slid a hand into Diego’s hair and pulled his head up. She stared into his eyes, seeing desire and need burning in the olive green depths. The sight took her breath away.

She tightened her hold around his thighs and rode him faster as they watched each other. So many emotions flitted across his face. There was need, want, regret, desire and affection. The world narrowed to just the two of them. Everything faded away and all that mattered was them.

Not breaking eye contact, she took kiss after kiss, pouring every ounce of her feelings into each bit of contact. The pleasure continued to well up inside of her. The first tremor of her climax ran through her, then another and another until she came with a cry.

His lips swallowed her exclamation as he continued to thrust into her, driving her into another orgasm as liquid heat slid into her veins and wave after wave of pleasure rushed over her.

“Diego,” she said, as yet another climax rocked her.

He stared at her, gaze softening. His eyelids lowered until all she could see was green glittering behind a fan of golden brown. His cock pulsed inside of her. The thick shaft jerked and expanded, pressing against her sensitive vaginal walls.

He came, crying out her name, but not once did he look away. Once more she climaxed, riding the wave with him until her body floated down. As muscles jumped and twitched and the sweat cooled, she remained seated on him.

Time stretched on as they looked at each other. She saw him in a new light. Her heart expanded in her chest. The gentle caress of his breath against her lips made her mouth burn. Goose flesh rose on her arms.

The moment continued on as they both calmed. As she sank into his gaze, he seemed more open to her. Each layer of his disguise peeled away to reveal a good man—strong, smart, loyal, thoughtful and caring. He was a treasure she wanted to keep with her always. Pain lanced her chest at the thought of having to give him up. She wanted to look away but couldn’t. The hot trail of tears slipped over her cheeks to mingle with her sweat.

“
Sempre
, Anarrae.
Sempre
,” he said, before breaking the moment with a single kiss. “Now we sleep.”

Chapter Eleven

Sleep eluded Diego. The day crashed into him. His mind continued to turn over everything that had happened.

Despite Ana’s presence by his side, uneasiness shot through him. He tilted his head upward. His gaze snagged on the gray ceilings that were prevalent throughout the ship and he shuddered.

A sense of the room closing in on him caused gooseflesh to rise on his bare arms. For a moment, breathing became difficult. During the panic he reached out. His hand made contact with Ana’s arm. Not even that calmed him.

What the hell was he doing? Why was he even thinking about staying on this ship? He was a wanted criminal. It didn’t matter what the ambassador promised him. A con artist is a con artist, regardless of where he want or what he did. He could become President of the United Planets of Neve Four and still be a con.

In a flash, he realized that this could all be a setup, that he may have walked straight into a trap.

“I’m in need of gondolier to guide me tonight.”
Why had she said that to him and not someone else?

He replayed the evening in his head. Everything had started with a call from a “friend” who wanted to meet at the pub. That friend hadn’t shown up, so he had gone up to the bar for a drink. Diego hadn’t gone to his usual spot in the dark corner of the pub with his back to the wall and eyes on the door. Instead, he’d spied Ana and became interested. He’d only wanted a peek.

When she’d asked him about being a gondolier or guide of the sexual kind he’d been put off. To him, women—no matter how gorgeous they were—who were looking for a gondolier, were trouble that he didn’t want. Besides, gondoliers were scum. They may be suave and smooth, but they don’t care about the women. To think about his Anarrae going to one of those Lotharios for pleasure made him physically ill.

The panic he had was a dull pulse in the back of his mind, reminding him that if he was truly caught, there would be nowhere he could run except out into the freezing, airless arms of space. A cold sweat broke out over his forehead and upper lip. Needing to move, he threw off the blanket and began to pace while his mind worked over his first encounter with Ana.

Why had she thought he was a gondolier? He examined the room in his memory. There weren’t a lot of partiers. In fact, only one or two people were wearing masks. One of them was a man in drag. The other was a woman wearing the best use of tape and ribbon he’d ever seen. Other than that, there was nothing unusual except for his friend’s absence.

Diego paused. That day he’d chosen to wear all black, play up the rogue image. A quick itinerary of his outfit didn’t make him think anything was out of place, although he was the only one with a feathered mask.

A glance over at Ana reassured him that she was sleeping. He loathed waking her up, but there were gaps that needed to be filled in. With a heavy heart and a sigh, he sat on her side of the bed and shook her shoulder.

“Diego?”

Her sleep-roughened voice sent a shiver through him, trailed by the heat of arousal. For a moment he was caught in exquisite pleasure, remembering the tight embrace of her pussy around his cock as she’d fucked herself on him.
Focus.

“Ana, how did you know to approach me that night at the pub? Why did you think I would be a gondolier? It’s urgent.” The quicker he got an answer the faster they could return to bed.

She blinked a few times before her eyes settled on him. “I was told that my gondolier would be wearing all black with a black, feathered mask.”

A chill speared Diego. His heart stuttered. “I told him I’d be wearing all black. OK, go to sleep now, sweet. I just needed an answer to something.”

Ana yawned and fell back to the bed, eyes closed.

Shit!
Diego got up from the bed and began to pace. It was looking more and more like he’d been set up. The question was why. The world became divided between what he knew and what he didn’t. The fact that he’d been fooled at all shook him to the core. The facts became puzzle pieces that didn’t fit together, no matter how much he tried to jam them into the slots.

On the surface everything looked so perfect. It had seemed to be kismet that he’d met her at the bar. Now, he could see he’d been set up to be the mark. Like a caged Delphinian tiger, he paced the room. The answers didn’t come. The movement only reminded him that he was on a ship in space. There weren’t a lot of places he could go to get the freedom he needed.