He framed her face with his hands and kissed her again, slower and deeper this time. His tongue was her undoing, its slow seductive teasing sending her completely over the edge of reason. She groaned softly, sliding her hand under the edge of his shirt to touch his skin. Having him like this, feeling him under her palms...she was half afraid he would disappear if she blinked.
The truth was like an invisible barrier between them, and here in the golden light, with his eyes on hers, she felt as if she’d been given the cruellest gift. She thought back to all the times she’d wished for just one more night with him. She wanted to take this moment and live in it. To have him, even if it was selfish.
The thought jarred her. Of course it was selfish.
She bit her lower lip, feeling the weight of the moment press down on her like a ten-ton truck. She took a step back from him and the words she knew she needed to say seemed to stick in her throat, choking her.
‘We need to stop.’ She closed her eyes. ‘There are things I promised myself I would tell you tonight, even though I know it could ruin everything between us. But now I’m standing here I have no idea how to begin.’
‘Then don’t,’ he whispered. ‘I promised you a night out and that means no serious business. Right now, all I want to do is keep kissing you.’
‘You don’t mean that,’ she breathed. ‘You’re not thinking with your head.’
‘I’m trusting my gut, and my gut is never wrong.’ He met her eyes. ‘Will these things still be exactly the same tomorrow? Are they time-sensitive?’
Nora breathed in a shaky breath, looking up into his gold-flecked eyes. ‘It will still be the same.’
He leaned down, gently pressing his lips to her temple and pulling her close. ‘Being here...being with you...it’s the closest I’ve felt to happiness in a long time. Even long before what happened to me. I was always seeking new thrills, always on the move. I was never actually calm enough to just...be. But when I’m with you, I’m actually here. I feel present in a way I’ve never been able to tolerate or enjoy before. I think we owe it to each other to allow ourselves a moment of happiness, don’t you?’
‘Just a moment?’ Nora breathed, half hoping he would draw the line at tonight.
If he ended it—if he showed her he was the careless billionaire she’d once believed him to be—maybe this would be easier. Because this version of Duarte—the one who spoke of happiness and called her beautiful... It broke her heart to imagine a life without him.
She had never stood a chance of resisting him from the moment he’d swept her off that dance floor all those months ago, she realised. She was hopelessly in love with this man and helplessly careening towards full-on heartbreak once she revealed everything to him. Her heart seemed to ache at the thought, as she imagined him looking at her and seeing the lying, deceitful criminal that she was.
Closing her eyes, she sank against him and kissed him with every ounce of love she possessed in her foolish, foolish heart.
When they were both finally out of breath, and in danger of committing a public indecency offence, Nora took a step back, meeting his eyes steadily, without a single doubt. ‘Does this ship have a bed?’
Duarte fought the urge to throw her over his shoulder like a caveman and kick open the doors to the cabins below. He’d never been more grateful for the top-to-toe valet service he’d ordered before he’d arranged for O Dançarina to be skippered to Paraty. The ship was freshly cleaned and gleaming, ready to sail and with the cabins made up.
Taking Nora’s hand in his, he led her down towards the master cabin, briefly giving her a lightning-fast tour as they passed through the ship. Her eyes sparkled with mirth as he pulled her into the large cabin and laid her down on the giant bed before she even had a moment to take in the sumptuous décor.
He adored O Dançarina. The ship was beautiful—one of the most exquisitely restored sailing yachts he’d ever known in his two decades of sailing. But right now nothing compared to the view of Nora spread out on the bed below him, her lips slightly parted and swollen from his kisses.
She reached up, looping her arms around his neck and pulling him down for another deep, languorous kiss. Her hands tangled in his hair, pulling roughly against his scalp and sending shivers down his spine.
‘I don’t think I can wait another minute,’ she breathed, her hands exploring his ribcage, and lower, pulling at his belt.
He allowed her free rein for a moment, before taking hold of both her wrists and clasping them above her head. She gasped, her hips flexing against him with surprise and definite appreciation. His little l
ioness liked being commanded—he could see it in the darkness of her eyes and feel it in the way her heartbeat pounded.
‘I didn’t come prepared,’ he said, groaning with sudden realisation of his lack of contraception. ‘I wasn’t expecting us to...’
Nora bit her lower lip, desire warming her cheeks. ‘The nurse has already got me covered in that regard.’
Duarte fought the urge to sink into her then and there with relief. ‘Remind me to send that woman a gift basket,’ he said, and smiled against her skin. ‘I know I’m clean.’
‘Thank God,’ she breathed.
Her nervous chuckle fast turned into a groan of pleasure as he licked the sensitive skin below her ear and gently bit down.
‘I don’t know where I want to kiss most,’ he murmured, trailing a torturously slow path of kisses along her collarbone. ‘The glimpses of you in that bathing suit have played in my memory for so long I could hardly imagine having you in the flesh.’
‘You have me,’ she breathed. ‘I’m not going anywhere.’
Something blazed in her eyes and made his chest feel so tight he had to look away, his mouth seeking out her hardened nipples through the silk material of her dress. He focused on teasing the peak, feeling her gasp and thrust against him, following the delicious friction.