Passion's Mistress (16 page)

hard
, experiencing a thrill of exultation as he lost his balance and was unable

to prevent a headlong fall into the water.

Fear of retaliation lent wings to her limbs as she levered herself up on to the

pool's edge, then, scooping up her clothes, she sped quickly into the house.

A faint bubble of laughter emerged from her throat as she entered the

bedroom. She'd have given almost anything to glimpse the expression on his

face!

Moving straight through to the adjoining bathroom, she turned on the

shower, discarded her briefs and bra, then stepped beneath the warm,

pulsing water.

Selecting shampoo, she massaged it through the length of her hair, then

rinsed it off before reaching for the soap—and encountered a strong male

hand.

4Is this what you're looking for?'

She went still with shock as fear unfurled in the region of her stomach.

Slowly she pushed back the wet length of her hair, and a silent gasp parted

her lips at the sight of him standing within touching distance, every last

vestige of clothing removed from his powerful frame.

'Ready to cry wolf, Carly?'

No sooner had the soft taunt left his lips than she felt the soap sweep in a

tantalisingly slow arc from the tip of her shoulder to the curve at her waist.

She had to get out
now.
She tried, except that one hand closed over her arm,

holding her still, while the other curved round her shoulder, and she was

powerless to resist as he turned her round to face him.

'I'm sorry.' It was a half-hearted apology, and his answering smile was

wholly cynical as his fingers trailed an evocative path over the surface of her

skin, tracing the delicate line of her collarbone, then brushing lower to the

dark aureole surrounding the tight bud of her left breast.

'Don't.' The single plea went unheeded, and her stomach quivered as his

hand slid to caress her hip, the narrow indented waist, before traversing to

cup the soft roundness of her bottom.

Without her being aware of it, he'd managed to manoeuvre her so that the jet

of water streamed against his back, and she stood still, her eyes wide and

luminous beneath his hooded gaze.

'Stefano--' she protested as he pulled her close against him. His arousal was a

potent virile force, and she arched back, straining against the circle of his

arms in an effort to put some distance between them.

'You can't do this,' she whispered in a broken voice.

Yet he could, very easily. He knew it, just as she did. All it would take was

one long drugging open- mouthed kiss to destroy any vestige of her self-

restraint.

One strong hand slid up to cup her nape, his thumb tilting the uppermost

edge of her jaw, holding it fast as she attempted to twist her head away from

him. Then his lips brushed hers, lightly at first, teasing, nibbling, tasting in a

manner that was deliberately erotic, and left her aching with a terrible

hunger, that longing for the satisfaction only he could give.

She resisted for what seemed a lifetime, but playing cool to Stefano's

undoubted expertise wreaked havoc with her nervous system, and she gave a

hollow groan of despair as he lifted her high up against him, parting her

thighs so that she straddled his waist, then she cried out as he lowered his

head and took one tender peak into his mouth, suckling with such flagrant

eroticism that she clutched hold of his hair in an effort to have him desist.

Just when she thought she could stand it no longer, he transferred his

attention and rendered a similar attention to its twin until she begged him to

stop.

Then he slowly raised his head, his eyes incredibly dark as they speared

hers, and she felt her lips tremble uncontrollably at the sense of purpose

evident. Time became a suspended entity, and she couldn't have torn her

gaze away if her life depended on it.

With a sense of impending fascination she watched in mesmerised silence as

his mouth lowered down over her own, and she gave a silent gasp as he

plundered the moist cavern at will, punishing, tantalising, until she gave the

response he sought.

When at last he lifted his head she wanted to weep, and she just looked at

him, her soft mouth quivering and faintly bruised as she blinked rapidly

against the rush of warm tears.

As soon as his hands curved beneath her bottom she knew what he meant to

do, and she swallowed convulsively.

His entry was slow, stretching silken tissues to their furthest limit as they

gradually accepted his swollen length, and his eyes trapped hers, witnessing

her every expression as he carefully traversed the tight, satiny tunnel leading

to the central core of her femininity.

Her beautiful eyes widened measurably as his muscular shaft attained its

pinnacle. The feeling of total enclosure was intense, and a slow warmth

gradually flooded her being, radiating in a tumultuous tide until her whole

body was consumed with it. The blood vessels swelled and became

engorged, activating muscle spasms over which she had no control, and she

unconsciously clenched her thighs, instinctively arching away from him as a

pulsating rhythm took her towards fulfilment.

At the zenith, she threw back her head, gasping as he drew her close and

feasted shamelessly at her breast, tossing her so close to the edge between

pain and pleasure that the two became intermingled, and she cried out,

caught in the sweet torture of sexual ecstasy.

Then his hands shifted to her hips, lifting her slightly as he began a slow,

tantalising circular movement that sent her to the brink and beyond before he

took his pleasure with deep driving thrusts that drew soft guttural cries of

encouragement which she refused to recognise as her own.

Afterwards he held her close for what seemed an age, then he gently

withdrew and lowered her carefully to her feet.

She stumbled slightly, and clutched hold of him, then she stood transfixed as

he caught up the soap and slowly cleansed every inch of her body.

When he'd finished he held out the bar of soap and when she shook her head

he placed it in her palm before covering it with his own and transferring it to

his chest. His eyes never left hers as he carefully traversed every ridge, every

muscle, until his ablutions were complete. She ached, everywhere. Inside

and out. And she stood quiescent as he gently towelled her dry, then

transferred his attention to removing the moisture from his own body.

Carly felt totally enervated, and she was powerless to resist as he placed a

thumb and forefinger beneath her chin. She wanted to cry, and there were

tears shimmering, welling from the depth of her eyes. There was a deep

sense of emotional loss for the passion of mind and spirit they'd once shared.

For then it had been a joy, a total merging of all the senses, transcending

everything she'd ever dreamed... and more.

Her lashes fluttered down, veiling her expression, and concealing the

haunting vulnerability she knew to be evident.

Without a word he slid an arm beneath her knees and carried her through to

the bedroom, sweeping back the covers on the bed before slipping with her

beneath the sheets.

Carly craved the sweet oblivion of sleep, but it had never seemed more

distant, and she provided little resistance as Stefano curved her close in

against him. She felt his lips brush the top of her head, and the gentle caress

of his hand as it stroked the length of her body before coming to rest on the

soft silken curls at the junction between her thighs. His fingers made a light

probing foray, and she stiffened as they encountered the slight ridge caused

by endless sutures.

'You had a difficult birth with Ann-Marie?'

Carly closed her eyes, then opened them again. 'Yes,' she acknowledged

quietly, and felt silent anger emanate through his powerful body as he swore

softly, viciously, in his own language. There was no point informing him

that her meagre savings hadn't allowed for the luxury of private care.

Nor, in the long silent minutes that slowly ticked by, could she assure him

that the wonder of holding Ann-Marie in her arms for the first time swept

aside the trauma of a painful birth.

Even now it was a vivid memory, and she stared sightlessly into the

darkness as she recalled the joy and the tears associated with those initial

few years as she'd struggled to support them both.

Carly became aware of the soft brush of his fingers against her skin, and felt

the faint stirring deep within her as her body responded to his touch. She

wanted to move away, but she was caught in a mystical mesmeric spell, and

she gave a faint despairing moan as his lips sought the soft hollows at the

base of her throat in an erotic savouring that sent the blood coursing through

her veins like quicksilver.

Not content, he trailed a path to her breasts to begin an evocative tasting that

made her arch against him, and she barely registered the faint guttural

sounds that whispered into the night air as his mouth travelled lower,

teasing, tantalising, until she was driven almost mad with need.

When he reached the most intimate crevice of all she cried out at the degree

of pleasure he was able to arouse, until ecstasy transcended mere pleasure,

and she begged, pleading with him to ease the ache deep within her. Yet he

stilled her limbs, soothing her gently as he brought her to a climax so

tumultuous that it was beyond any mortal description, then he took her in his

arms and rolled on to his back, carrying her with him so that she straddled

his hips, his mouth warm as he pulled her head down to hers in a kiss so

sweetly passionate that she almost cried.

His mouth left hers and trailed to nuzzle the sweet hollows at the base of her

throat, then he shifted his hands to her ribcage as he gently positioned her,

his eyes dark and intently watchful of the play of emotions chasing across

her expressive features as she accepted his full length.

Carly felt a heady sense of power, and her eyes widened slightly as she

glimpsed the slumberous passion evident in his dark eyes, the gleam of

immense satisfaction, and knew the measure of his control. Unconsciously

she arched her body, stretching like a playful young kitten, and revelled at

his immediate response.

'Careful,
cara
,' he bade teasingly. 'Or you may get more than you bargained

for.'

She moved against him with slow deliberation, undulating her hips in a

gentle erotic movement that drew a warning growl, then his hands closed

over her lower waist, and she lost control as he set the pace, taking her

higher and higher until she cried out and clung on to his arms in a bid to gain

some balance in an erotic ride that had no equal. At least, not in her

experience.

Slowly, gradually, his movements began to ease, and then his hands slid to

her hips, holding her still as he gently stroked his length, almost

withdrawing before plunging with infinite slowness until she felt a

wondrous suffusing of heat that swelled, triggering a miasma of sensation

spiralling through her body until every nerve-end seemed to radiate with

exquisite sweetness.

He shuddered, his large body racked with emotion, and she looked at him

with an incredible sense of wonder as he became caught in the throes of

passion: man at his most vulnerable, adrift in a swirling vortex of sexual

experience.

Then his breathing began to slow, and the madly beating pulse at his throat

settled into a steady beat. His features softened and his eyes became

luminescent for a few heart-stopping minutes, and just for a milli-second she

glimpsed the heart of his soul.

Then his hands slid up to cup her breasts, caressing with such acute

sensitivity that she caught her breath, and she made no demur as he gently

drew her down to him, cradling her head against a muscled shoulder. His

fingers trailed over her hair, while a hand slid with tactile softness down the

length of her spine. She felt his lips brush across her forehead, then settle at

her temple, soothing, until the shivery warm sensation gradually diminished

and she was filled with a dull, pleasurable ache.

'I hurt you.' The words held a degree of regretful remorse, and she stirred

faintly against him.

Tomorrow there would be an unaccustomed tenderness evident, but she

didn't care, for it had nothing to do with physical pain, merely satiated

pleasure in its most exhilarating extreme. She sought to reassure him, and

moved her lips against his throat, then gently nipped a vulnerable hollow.

'You still want to play?' His voice reverberated against her mouth, and she