“Then I shall wait for you here.”
He leaned forward and brushed the lightest touch of his lips against hers. He knew he shouldn’t have done it the second he felt her breath against his lips. What was supposed to have been a simple caress sent a flare of heat through his body, and instead of withdrawing from her, as he’d planned, his hand snaked up the slender column of her neck, his fingers tangling in the short strands of her hair so he could angle her head better to plunder the softness of her mouth. Her lips parted with a soft moan, her tongue darting to meet his. The taste of her was intoxicating, sending his blood to thrum through his body with a pagan beat.
It had been like this the first time he’d touched her. This all-consuming need to have more of her. To take what she had to offer and give back threefold in return. He’d never known such consuming passion, not even with Marcella. The thought was both sobering and enticing at the same time.
Blair’s uninhibited response gave him all the answer he needed. He’d been right to pursue her, right to bide his time before making his move. She was as affected by their magnetism as he. Being here each night and not contacting her, not touching her, had been a master plan. As calculated as it sounded, it had been the only way to show her that this thing between them couldn’t be ignored, but was there to be indulged in.
Dio! He couldn’t get enough of her. He nipped lightly at her lower lip, suckling against the pliant tissue, absorbing the tiny sound of pleasure that emanated from deep in her throat.
The clatter of cutlery on bowls brought him suddenly to his senses and he pulled back, his fingers stroking the satin softness of her neck one last time before he forced himself to let her go.
“Hurry. I don’t want to waste a moment,” he said, his voice pitched low so only Blair could hear him.
For a second she wavered, as if slightly off balance. Truth be told, he felt much the same way. But then, with a slight nod, she walked away from him, her steps brisk and to the point.
Three
“Is it getting hot in here, or is it just you?” Gustav remarked, fanning himself theatrically, as Blair pushed through the kitchen doors and headed straight toward the back door.
“Can it, Gus. You got what you wanted.”
“Well, technically, no. But it sure looks like you’re going to. Way to go, Blair. It’s about time. And don’t worry about the restaurant. I’ll lock up.”
Blair hesitated, her hand on the back door. “What do you mean, it’s about time?”
“Well, you know. Since that whole business with Rhys and Alicia, it’s like all your enthusiasm for the place got sucked out of you.”
Had she really been so transparent? Granted, the breakup with Rhys over his betrayal with Alicia and the subsequent legal battle over severing their employment had been draining, but she hadn’t for a minute thought she’d let that impact on her work, or the workplace.
Gustav carried on. “Since you came back from Italy, it’s as if you have a new vibrancy about you, and it shows in your food and everything. Everyone here is much happier. It’s good. And quite frankly, if this guy is the one that made you like this, then all kudos to him. He is the one, isn’t he? The one you met while you were away?”
“Yeah, he is. You don’t think I’m making a mistake, do you?”
“Mistake? You have to be kidding me! Get yourself out of here before I take him off you.”
“Thanks, I owe you.” Blair pushed open the back door and shot up the back staircase to the compact flat she called home when she wasn’t working.
She grabbed a backpack from the tiny hall closet and shoved toiletries and a change of clothes inside, then quickly divested herself of her work gear. She wrinkled her nose as she dragged on a long-sleeved T-shirt and a soft cotton skirt with an asymmetrical hemline. Then she shoved her feet into pretty, low-heeled sandals. She would have appreciated time to grab a quick shower, to rid herself of the lingering aromas of the kitchen, but she had the feeling that Draco would be dragging her still wet into the car if she kept him waiting too much longer.
A pang of need arrowed through her center. One kiss. That was all it had taken and she’d been lost to him. Lost to the sensual delight he promised with every touch of his skillful fingers, every taste of his practiced tongue.
She quickly switched off the lights and locked the door behind her, her sandals clattering on the wooden stairs as she returned to the restaurant. To Draco.
He pushed back from the table and stood the second she entered the dining room. Butterflies danced to a crazy beat in her stomach. Was she doing the right thing? Gus seemed to think so. Draco definitely thought so. But wasn’t she just setting herself up for failure? She knew how hot the flame between her and Draco had burned back in Italy. She’d left before there could be any lasting damage. By agreeing to spend this night with him, would she end up scorched and regretful? Worse, would she be able to walk away from him come morning?