The Princes' Brides. Sandra Marton

he said in a low voice. “It will only make things worse.”

      “Please.” Her voice trembled. “Please, don’t do this.”

      “I told you this afternoon, you lack manners, cara.”

      “Let me go! Damn you—”

      “The next time ‘something happens,’ as you called it, between you and a man, you will know how to respond.”

      “If you’re after an apology…”

      “And if I were, would you finally offer one?”

      She was terrified; he could see it in her face, feel it in the trembling of her body. Her gaze locked on his, and he felt a rush of disappointment.

      She was desperate, desperate enough so she was, in fact, going to apologize. And then, as a civilized man, he’d have to let her go…

      Wrong.

      Her chin lifted; terrified or not, her eyes blazed with defiance.

      “Only a barbarian would think that taking a woman by force is the way to get even for damage to his ego.”

      “Is that what you think? That I’m going to rape you?” The muscle flickered in his jaw again; he cupped her face with his free hand and held it steady. “You know better.” His voice was low and husky. “I saw the way you looked at me a few minutes ago.”

      Color stained her cheeks. “I don’t know what you—”

      “Yes,” he said, “you damned well do.”

      His head lowered to hers, and he kissed her.

      His mouth was hard. Hungry. Hot against hers. Aimee jerked against the restraint of his hand, tried to twist her face away but he wouldn’t permit it.

      Instead he brought her closer, crushing her tightly against him so that she could feel the strength of him, the power…

      The thrust of his straining erection.

      A whimper rose in her throat.

      “Stop,” she said, against his mouth, but he went on kissing her, his fingers sliding into her hair, twisting the curls around his hand, backing her against the wall so that now she was pressed against him from breast to groin.

      “Kiss me back,” he said in a thick whisper.

      No, she told herself frantically. She wouldn’t. She wouldn’t. She wouldn’t…

      Aimee gave a strangled cry, rose to him and opened her mouth against his.

      He groaned. Let go of her wrists and threw his arm around her hips, lifting her against him. His tongue teased her lips, slipped between them and she tasted his hunger, his need, his rampant masculinity.

      “Say it,” he growled against her mouth. “Tell me what you want. What you’ve wanted ever since this afternoon.”

      Blind to logic, to reason, blind to anything but the feel of him, the scent of him, Aimee gave up lying.

      “You,” she whispered. “Only you. All day. All evening. I couldn’t think of anything else, couldn’t get you out of my head—”

      He cupped her face in his hands. Kissed her, deeply. Thrust his leg between hers and she moaned at the feel of it against the tender flesh between her thighs.

      She moved against him. Moved again, but it wasn’t enough, wasn’t enough…

      She moaned.

      The sound damned near sent Nicolo over the edge.

      The taste of her was exquisite. She was strawberries and cream, spring rain and summer sun. She was everything a man could imagine a woman might be, if only in a dream.

      He lifted her from the floor. Her arms rose; she wound them around his neck.

      “Yes,” he said, and he grasped her slender thighs and brought them around his hips.

      He thought of taking her to his hotel. To her apartment. To a place where he could undress her, touch her, watch her eyes as he entered her.

      But not now.

      Now, he needed this. Needed her. Needed to bury himself in her, needed it more than his next breath.

      Locked in a dance as old as time, mouths fused in mutual hunger, Nicolo carried Aimee to the marble vanity. Sat her on its edge. Fumbled between them. Unzipped. Freed himself. Put his hand between her thighs, groaning as he felt the wet heat of her against his fingers, and tore aside the scrap of silk that kept her from him.

      “Look at me,” he commanded.

      She did, fixing those incredible violet eyes on his face.

      “Yes,” she said, and he thrust forward, sank into her, felt her close around him.

      She cried out instantly; he felt the pulse of her muscles as she came and then he exploded within her, came in a rush of almost unbearable ecstasy.

      She trembled.

      Then she gave a little sob and dropped her head on his shoulder.

      Nicolo put his arms around her. Stroked her silken hair. Whispered to her, his native language soft on his tongue while he tried to figure out what in hell had just happened.

      This was not the first time he’d had quick, hot sex. It was not the first time he’d had sex in the hidden heart of a public place.

      Both could be exciting.

      The truth was, sex was always exciting. But this, what had just happened…He’d never experienced anything like it.

      He didn’t even know this woman’s name.

      He hadn’t used a condom.

      Madre del dio, was he losing his mind?

      And then she sighed. Her breath tickled his throat. She lifted her head and looked at him, her eyes filled with uncertainty, her mouth gently swollen from his kisses, and Nicolo forgot everything but the soft, sweet feel of her mouth, her arms, her thighs.

      “I don’t—I don’t know what happened.” Her voice was shaky, her face white except for two spots of color high on her cheeks. “I never—God, I never—”

      “No. Nor have I.”

      She started to speak again and he knew what she would say, that this was wrong, that he had to let her go.

      He knew of only one way to keep her from saying those words.

      He kissed her.

      Gently at first but then—then, the fierce wave of desire swept over him. And over her. He felt her swift intake of breath, the whispered plea against his lips, and suddenly he was deep inside her again, rocking against her, swallowing her cries, coming when she came and knowing that it still wasn’t enough, that he needed more…

      Someone pounded on the locked door.

      The woman in his arms blanched.

      “It’s all right,” he whispered, but she shook her head.

      “No. Someone’s outside. They’ll see—”

      He brushed his lips over hers. Then he set her on her feet and did what needed to be done to make himself presentable. She did the same, but he saw that her hands were shaking.

      “Cara. Don’t be—”

      “Hey, you gonna be in there all night?”

      Nicolo looked down into the face of the woman he’d just made love to. “It’s time we introduced ourselves,” he said softly. “My name is—”

      She put her palm over his mouth. “No. No names. This was—it was only a dream.”

      He caught her hand, pressed his lips to it, then closed her fingers over the kiss.