She left a stinging red mark on his cheek and the sight of it burned sadness into her gut. “You slept with me out of pity?”
“No.”
“Curiosity then.”
“No.” He pushed his body forward, wedging her against the door. His mouth was hard when it collided with hers. The kiss was as demanding as ever. His hands pushed at her blouse, lifting it from the waistband of her skirt.
Lilah sobbed but she didn’t break the kiss. She couldn’t. For months she had craved this. She had dreamed of this. She had wondered if any man would ever touch her with such hot desire ever again.
And now Will was ripping her clothes in a desperate bid to feel her soft skin in his hands. He cupped her breasts with possessiveness and still his tongue lashed against hers. He stroked his thumbs over her nipples, enjoying the sensation of her tautness – the physical sign of her desire that she couldn’t deny.
Not that Lilah wanted to deny any of it.
She lifted her arms and wrapped them around his neck, curling her fingers into the blonde hair at his nape.
He raised the intensity of his kiss, plundering her mouth and making her wonder how she’d stayed away from him for so long. Months and months and they could have been doing this that whole time.
It wasn’t possible, but in that moment she struggled to recall the reasons she’d left him behind when she’d left America.
“Please,” she whispered into his mouth, her hands dropping lower to run against his sides and search for flesh.
She didn’t need to ask twice.
He pushed at the waistband of her skirt, making a sound of frustration when it wouldn’t give.
“Buttons,” she explained almost incoherently.
His hands pulled at the fabric, lifting it so that his fingers could finally connect with her bare legs. The anticipation was a slick inside her. She tilted her head back, hitting it abruptly against the door.
He laughed softly. “Are you okay?”
Lilah shook her head. “No.” And she wasn’t. She was terrified.
He understood. He linked his fingers with hers and pulled her away from the door. “I slept with you because I wanted to.”
“But that book … you are so … your notes are so …” Her breath was ragged and it was almost impossible to find the words she wanted to utter. “You are the one who is detached. How can you analyse me like that?”
His lips twisted in a cynical smile. “I should have been detached. I should have kept you at arm’s length.”
“I wouldn’t take no for an answer, remember?”
“Thank God for that,” he said in an attempt at humour.
Lilah shivered. “I don’t know why I came here.”
He reached up and cupped her cheek. “You are so beautiful.”
She pulled away from him and her body screamed in silent rejection to the distance. She tucked her shirt back in place with fingers that were trembling. “You said you wanted to talk. So talk. I will be missed soon.”
A muscle jerked in his cheek. “Don’t you ever want to get away from all this?”
“No,” she lied, staring out at the glistening night sky. The stars twinkled happily overhead and Lilah felt that their joy was a betrayal to the heaviness in her heart.
“Come with me.” He held his hands out and though she knew it was stupid, she reluctantly placed hers in them. He led her through the room, through the sliding glass doors onto the private balcony. The fragrance from the orange blossoms below was heaven.
He wrapped his arms around her waist and began to sing softly in her own language, whispering the words so that they wrapped around her heart. “Will,” she said softly but he shook his head.
“Tell me you want to be anywhere else,” he challenged gently, stroking her back.