a neck or two!’
Nina instantly regretted her teasing. ‘Why are you so set on my inviting you into my apartment, Rafe?’ she repeated determinedly, tempted, oh-so-tempted, by both Rafe and the idea of, for once in her life, thwarting both her father and her bodyguards.
His mouth firmed. ‘Because I don’t think you need another bossy and dominating man telling you what to do.’
Her cheeks paled. ‘My father is— He has his reasons for behaving in the way that he— You don’t understand,’ she repeated softly.
‘You’re right, I don’t,’ Rafe rasped grimly. ‘I don’t understand why any beautiful and intelligent woman would allow her father to dictate the terms under which she conducts her life!’
How could he? How could anyone understand the fear her father had lived with on a daily basis for the past twenty years, the dread that Nina might one day be taken from him?
As his beloved wife had been so cruelly taken from him.
CHAPTER FOUR
‘I NVITE ME IN , Nina,’ Rafe encouraged gruffly as he saw the indecision in her expression.
She looked up at him wordlessly for several long seconds, before nodding abruptly and turning on her heel to enter the shadowed hallway of her apartment, turning on the soft glow of the overhead light as she did so.
Rafe prowled in after Nina before closing the door gently behind him, his gaze intent on hers as he took her slowly into his arms to mould her curves against his. Her hands moved instinctively to his shoulders as she raised her startled gaze searchingly to his, obviously totally aware of the fullness of his arousal pressing against the softness of her abdomen—that same arousal that had been missing the evening before with Jennifer Nichols.
‘There’s just no way for a man to hide his reaction to a beautiful woman, is there?’ he murmured self-derisively.
Her silky throat moved as she swallowed before speaking. ‘I— No, I guess not.’
Rafe’s gaze was fixed on her lushly pouting lips. Those same lips that had been driving him insane all evening, when he had been unable to drag his gaze away from watching Nina part them as she sipped her wine, or put food in her mouth, almost groaning out loud when she flicked her tongue across those lips to capture the morsel of lemon mousse that had smeared her bottom lip as she’d eaten her dessert.
Perhaps he had deserved Dmitri Palitov’s earlier warning, after all, regarding Nina. No doubt the older man had made a note of every single occasion Rafe had been unable to stop imagining all the ways Nina’s lushly provocative lips might give a man pleasure.
She moistened those lips with the tip of her tongue now. ‘I— Do you want coffee?’
‘No.’
‘Oh.’
Rafe could sense Nina’s nervousness, just as he could feel the trembling of her body curved so intimately into and against his. He felt the warmth of her hands through the material of his jacket and shirt. Long and elegantly tapered hands that he had ached all evening to press against his bared and throbbing flesh.
Yes, maybe he had fully deserved Dmitri Palitov’s warning where Nina was concerned.
There was no way Nina could possibly miss the fierceness of the hunger that now lit Rafe’s eyes to a molten, heated gold before his gaze lowered to the swell of her breasts visible above the low neckline of her gown.
‘I want to kiss you, Nina,’ he groaned harshly.
‘Yes,’ she groaned, leaning weakly against him as her legs trembled and her hands tightened on his muscled shoulders.
‘And then I would like to bare and caress these pretty breasts.’ Both his hands moved up to cup beneath their fullness, the soft sweep of the pad of his thumb unerringly finding the swollen tip.
‘With my tongue and teeth as well as—’
‘Will you stop talking about it, Rafe, and just do it?’ Nina groaned softly, almost panting she was so aroused. Her teeth clenched as she felt that arousal sweep down and through her body, a rush of dampness
Nina instantly regretted her teasing. ‘Why are you so set on my inviting you into my apartment, Rafe?’ she repeated determinedly, tempted, oh-so-tempted, by both Rafe and the idea of, for once in her life, thwarting both her father and her bodyguards.
His mouth firmed. ‘Because I don’t think you need another bossy and dominating man telling you what to do.’
Her cheeks paled. ‘My father is— He has his reasons for behaving in the way that he— You don’t understand,’ she repeated softly.
‘You’re right, I don’t,’ Rafe rasped grimly. ‘I don’t understand why any beautiful and intelligent woman would allow her father to dictate the terms under which she conducts her life!’
How could he? How could anyone understand the fear her father had lived with on a daily basis for the past twenty years, the dread that Nina might one day be taken from him?
As his beloved wife had been so cruelly taken from him.
CHAPTER FOUR
‘I NVITE ME IN , Nina,’ Rafe encouraged gruffly as he saw the indecision in her expression.
She looked up at him wordlessly for several long seconds, before nodding abruptly and turning on her heel to enter the shadowed hallway of her apartment, turning on the soft glow of the overhead light as she did so.
Rafe prowled in after Nina before closing the door gently behind him, his gaze intent on hers as he took her slowly into his arms to mould her curves against his. Her hands moved instinctively to his shoulders as she raised her startled gaze searchingly to his, obviously totally aware of the fullness of his arousal pressing against the softness of her abdomen—that same arousal that had been missing the evening before with Jennifer Nichols.
‘There’s just no way for a man to hide his reaction to a beautiful woman, is there?’ he murmured self-derisively.
Her silky throat moved as she swallowed before speaking. ‘I— No, I guess not.’
Rafe’s gaze was fixed on her lushly pouting lips. Those same lips that had been driving him insane all evening, when he had been unable to drag his gaze away from watching Nina part them as she sipped her wine, or put food in her mouth, almost groaning out loud when she flicked her tongue across those lips to capture the morsel of lemon mousse that had smeared her bottom lip as she’d eaten her dessert.
Perhaps he had deserved Dmitri Palitov’s earlier warning, after all, regarding Nina. No doubt the older man had made a note of every single occasion Rafe had been unable to stop imagining all the ways Nina’s lushly provocative lips might give a man pleasure.
She moistened those lips with the tip of her tongue now. ‘I— Do you want coffee?’
‘No.’
‘Oh.’
Rafe could sense Nina’s nervousness, just as he could feel the trembling of her body curved so intimately into and against his. He felt the warmth of her hands through the material of his jacket and shirt. Long and elegantly tapered hands that he had ached all evening to press against his bared and throbbing flesh.
Yes, maybe he had fully deserved Dmitri Palitov’s warning where Nina was concerned.
There was no way Nina could possibly miss the fierceness of the hunger that now lit Rafe’s eyes to a molten, heated gold before his gaze lowered to the swell of her breasts visible above the low neckline of her gown.
‘I want to kiss you, Nina,’ he groaned harshly.
‘Yes,’ she groaned, leaning weakly against him as her legs trembled and her hands tightened on his muscled shoulders.
‘And then I would like to bare and caress these pretty breasts.’ Both his hands moved up to cup beneath their fullness, the soft sweep of the pad of his thumb unerringly finding the swollen tip.
‘With my tongue and teeth as well as—’
‘Will you stop talking about it, Rafe, and just do it?’ Nina groaned softly, almost panting she was so aroused. Her teeth clenched as she felt that arousal sweep down and through her body, a rush of dampness
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