hear the smile in his voice and feel the sure, confident slide of his hand between my shaking thighs. ‘But you’ll have to come with me.’
‘You’re suggesting I leave my own Christmas party?’
‘You haven’t talked to anyone else since we sat down.’
A burst of raucous laughter brought me back to the present and I glanced at Rosie, who winked at me and raised her glass.
A different person might have scowled at the thought of being left with the washing up, but Rosie wasn’t like that.
She’d set this up for me.
This was my Christmas present.
I owed it to her to make the most of it.
Deciding that this was one gift I was going to unwrap in private, I pushed my plate away and turned to Nico. ‘Let’s go.’
Chapter Six
His car was still the same low red Ferrari. A growling gas-guzzling trophy of Italian engineering perfection.
I wondered if I was supposed to play it cool and pretend I travelled in cars like this all the time. Then I remembered he’d seen me half-exposed in a torn dress and found my computer search. Cool had flown the nest. I sank into expensive leather and sighed.
‘Do you realize this has a 4.5 litre V8 engine? They reduced the piston compression height as they do in a racing engine. Oh, God, I love it. I want to crawl all over it and lick it.’ I restricted myself to stroking the dashboard. ‘I suppose being Italian, you have to have a car like this. You’re not compensating for deficiencies in your masculinity, are you?’
His response was a slow smile because of course I already knew the answer to that question. I’d eaten Christmas lunch with one hand on his masculinity.
It was the first time I’d seen him smile and it was worth waiting for. It pulled his mouth into a sexy curve that hinted at more hidden layers. I stared for a moment, fascinated. There was so much more to this man and I couldn’t wait to uncover those parts—all of them.
This promised to be the best Christmas day I’d had in a long time.
Glancing in the mirror, he pulled smoothly away from the curb and down the empty streets.
It was still snowing. The Ferrari should have been a nightmare to drive in these conditions, but he didn’t seem to have any problems.
Nico Rossi was a man who seemed to take everything in his stride, be it split dresses, table fires or a lethal road surface.
‘So I guess the ability to drive fast cars is in Italian DNA.’
Risking life and limb, I put my hand between his thighs.
‘ Cristo —’ He breathed in sharply but kept his eyes on the road and his hands on the wheel. Impressive. As I said, this man had iron control. ‘You didn’t know Kiara and I were coming today. I assumed Rosie had discussed it with you.’
‘No. She sprung it on me.’
Cursing softly, he pulled in to the side of the road, the movement so sudden I was surprised the airbag didn’t smack me in the face. ‘Tell me the truth.’ He spoke through his teeth and his eyes were a dark flash of molten passion.
I couldn’t believe I’d ever thought him cold. ‘About what?’
‘About how you feel. I need you to be honest.’
I had no problem with honesty. I preferred it, even though honesty meant exposing yourself. Not the split dress type of exposing—the other type. ‘I’m in your car. That should tell you how I feel.’
‘I just want us both to be clear about what this is.’
I’d forgotten he was a lawyer. ‘You want me to sign a contract or something?’
He shot me an exasperated look and I shrugged.
‘Sorry, just checking. If you expect me to read your mind, you’ll have to give me more clues. You don’t reveal anything about yourself. Most of the time I can’t even tell whether you’re happy or sad.’
‘What about turned on?’ His voice vibrated, low and sexy. ‘Can you tell when I’m turned on?’
I thought about how he felt under my hand. ‘Those clues are easier to read.’
‘They’re the only clues you need.’ His gaze held mine. ‘I want you.’
It
‘You’re suggesting I leave my own Christmas party?’
‘You haven’t talked to anyone else since we sat down.’
A burst of raucous laughter brought me back to the present and I glanced at Rosie, who winked at me and raised her glass.
A different person might have scowled at the thought of being left with the washing up, but Rosie wasn’t like that.
She’d set this up for me.
This was my Christmas present.
I owed it to her to make the most of it.
Deciding that this was one gift I was going to unwrap in private, I pushed my plate away and turned to Nico. ‘Let’s go.’
Chapter Six
His car was still the same low red Ferrari. A growling gas-guzzling trophy of Italian engineering perfection.
I wondered if I was supposed to play it cool and pretend I travelled in cars like this all the time. Then I remembered he’d seen me half-exposed in a torn dress and found my computer search. Cool had flown the nest. I sank into expensive leather and sighed.
‘Do you realize this has a 4.5 litre V8 engine? They reduced the piston compression height as they do in a racing engine. Oh, God, I love it. I want to crawl all over it and lick it.’ I restricted myself to stroking the dashboard. ‘I suppose being Italian, you have to have a car like this. You’re not compensating for deficiencies in your masculinity, are you?’
His response was a slow smile because of course I already knew the answer to that question. I’d eaten Christmas lunch with one hand on his masculinity.
It was the first time I’d seen him smile and it was worth waiting for. It pulled his mouth into a sexy curve that hinted at more hidden layers. I stared for a moment, fascinated. There was so much more to this man and I couldn’t wait to uncover those parts—all of them.
This promised to be the best Christmas day I’d had in a long time.
Glancing in the mirror, he pulled smoothly away from the curb and down the empty streets.
It was still snowing. The Ferrari should have been a nightmare to drive in these conditions, but he didn’t seem to have any problems.
Nico Rossi was a man who seemed to take everything in his stride, be it split dresses, table fires or a lethal road surface.
‘So I guess the ability to drive fast cars is in Italian DNA.’
Risking life and limb, I put my hand between his thighs.
‘ Cristo —’ He breathed in sharply but kept his eyes on the road and his hands on the wheel. Impressive. As I said, this man had iron control. ‘You didn’t know Kiara and I were coming today. I assumed Rosie had discussed it with you.’
‘No. She sprung it on me.’
Cursing softly, he pulled in to the side of the road, the movement so sudden I was surprised the airbag didn’t smack me in the face. ‘Tell me the truth.’ He spoke through his teeth and his eyes were a dark flash of molten passion.
I couldn’t believe I’d ever thought him cold. ‘About what?’
‘About how you feel. I need you to be honest.’
I had no problem with honesty. I preferred it, even though honesty meant exposing yourself. Not the split dress type of exposing—the other type. ‘I’m in your car. That should tell you how I feel.’
‘I just want us both to be clear about what this is.’
I’d forgotten he was a lawyer. ‘You want me to sign a contract or something?’
He shot me an exasperated look and I shrugged.
‘Sorry, just checking. If you expect me to read your mind, you’ll have to give me more clues. You don’t reveal anything about yourself. Most of the time I can’t even tell whether you’re happy or sad.’
‘What about turned on?’ His voice vibrated, low and sexy. ‘Can you tell when I’m turned on?’
I thought about how he felt under my hand. ‘Those clues are easier to read.’
‘They’re the only clues you need.’ His gaze held mine. ‘I want you.’
It
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