the packet open with his teeth and sheathed himself without a fumble.
‘What’s so funny?’ he said when he noticed her small smile.
‘Just thinking how practice makes perfect.’
He almost retorted that he’d been thinking exactly the same thing about her. But he had enough common sense left to know how easily women could be put off by the wrong comment.
So he just smiled and rolled over on top of her, his erection pressed between them.
‘I want to kiss that delicious mouth of yours whilst it still tastes of me.’
His mouth hovered over hers. ‘You are seriously sexy. Now kiss me, Bella.’
A wave of dark triumph rushed through him when she obeyed him. Though she did close her eyes, as if by doing that she was lessening his power over her. But it only strengthened his resolve to seduce her further, to make her do things that perhaps she hadn’t done before, make her want him to dominate her totally.
He sent his tongue in deep before setting up a rhythm that echoed what he ached to do to her. In and out, in and out, till she was gasping for breath. Only then did he stop, withdrawing totally, then rolling over onto his back, taking her with him.
‘Sit up, Bella,’ he commanded, and she did so, staring dazedly down at him as she sat up and straddled him.
‘Now take down your hair.’
God, but he adored the way her hands shook as they lifted to do his bidding. Seeing her so turned on didn’t make up for all the years he’d suffered because of his unrequited passion for her, but it was something.
He watched in awe as her glorious hair tumbled in erotic disarray around her shoulders. It was her crowning glory, her hair; soft and silky with a slight wave when dry and lots of curls when wet. He glanced down at where only the narrowest strip of fair curls guarded her sex. Some chose to totally denude their bodies but he’d always preferred a little mystery.
Bella still remained a mystery to him in some ways. But not in the bedroom. She obviously liked being in control sometimes. But mostly she preferred playing the submissive role. That was fine by him. He liked being the boss in the bedroom.
‘You can take over now,’ he said, appealing to both sides of her nature.
She looked startled for a split second, but then smiled, a rather enigmatic smile that he could not read. Without saying a word, she rose up onto her knees, her eyes dropping to his freed erection. A groan hovered on his lips when she grasped it with both hands, directing it carefully but inexorably to the entrance to her body. Both their eyes remained glued to that spot, Sergio’s heartbeat ceasing as his flesh began to slowly disappear within hers.
Dear God...it felt incredible. She was incredible. And so hot.
He didn’t start breathing again till he was fully inside her. He might have stayed relatively sane if she hadn’t started to move, rising up high then sinking back down upon him with her eyes shut, her head thrown back in an attitude of blissful rapture. Her own breathing grew more rapid, a harsh panting escaping from her parted lips. She was off in another world, a world where it didn’t seem to matter what male body was underneath her. And did he care? Hell, no. He was too far gone to care about anything but being released from the agony that was gripping his sex.
Her first contraction sent him over the edge, his hips jerking up from the bed as he ejaculated into her with the violence of an erupting volcano. Reaching blindly for her shoulders, he dragged her down on top of him, holding her tightly whilst their bodies throbbed and shuddered together, wallowing in the fact that she was as crazy in lust as he was.
If only she hadn’t nestled into his neck with her face. If only she hadn’t pressed her mouth against his skin, murmuring his name at the same time.
His heart immediately squeezed tight, then flowered open, emotion flooding in.
His groan was the groan of defeat. Or was it resignation?
He could keep telling himself it was just lust dictating his actions with Bella; and this was true to a degree. But Sergio could no longer pretend that his emotions hadn’t become involved as well. Was it love yet? He hoped not. He’d never actually fallen in love before so he had nothing to guide him. But he could not deny that she was getting under his skin in more ways than just sexual. Which was most unfortunate. Bella didn’t want him to fall in love with her, and he sure as hell didn’t want to fall in love with her. Once their holiday fling was over, she would return to her life on the other side of the world, with this interlude just a pleasant memory. Their friendship—even with benefits—would not survive. She’d get sucked back into her career and that would be that. She wouldn’t give him a second thought, the way she hadn’t when their parents had divorced all those years ago. It had been bad enough lusting after her from afar. He didn’t want to love her from afar as well.
Sergio decided then and there to make sure that didn’t happen.
So get your butt out of this bed, Sergio, he told himself firmly. And cut back on the sex from now on. She’s too damned good at it, that’s the trouble. All these fabulous climaxes are scrambling your brains, and messing with your emotions. The plan to get her out of your system was seriously flawed from the start. Logic should have told you that once you had Bella in your bed, you’d be in danger of becoming even more obsessed with her.
It took a supreme effort of will for Sergio to extricate himself from under her body, especially when she moaned and tried to cling to him. Thankfully, her limbs were weak, though her eyelids fluttered open when he pulled the sheet up over her.
‘Don’t leave me,’ she begged softly.
God, but she was the very devil; a siren calling him to sure disaster.
He had to get out of here. And now!
‘Go to sleep, Bella,’ he commanded. ‘You’ve had enough for tonight. And quite frankly, so have I.’
So saying, he whirled round and strode from the bedroom before she could glimpse that he hadn’t had enough of her. Not by a long shot!
His self-lecturing didn’t stop after he returned to the master bedroom, continuing all through the long cold shower he forced himself to endure.
‘No sex tomorrow,’ Sergio muttered as the icy shards of water lashed his burgeoning erection into retreat. ‘Thankfully, Maria will be here for a few hours during the day. That should stop me from going skinny dipping with Bella in the pool, then sweeping her off to the master bedroom for a lazy afternoon of non-stop lovemaking.’
Unfortunately, both ideas projected arousing images that refused to be banished. Sergio imagined their indulging in lots of oral foreplay in the pool and its surrounds. Maybe he’d even let her go all the way with that delicious mouth of hers. God, but she was good at that. Once he came that way, he’d be able to take his time with her in bed without his own frustration getting the better of him. He could play with her for ages. Maybe even bind her to the bedposts. Would she let him do that? he wondered. Possibly not yet. But soon, she would. He was sure of it. She—
Sergio abruptly pulled himself up short. What in hell did he think he was doing, making plans for seducing Bella further? He was supposed to be working out how to reduce the amount of sex between them, not increase it.
He shook his head at himself, vowing to do everything in his power to take control of the situation. Some sex with Bella was fine. But only last thing at night, and only under the pretext of helping them both with their insomnia. Because let’s face it, Sergio, you’re not going to be able to sleep till you’ve had her again. But sex during the day is simply not on. That will only lead to your becoming addicted to her. Or worse!
By the time Sergio emerged from the shower, he had his body and his mind under control. He also had a plan to survive the next month, because that was what it had come down to. Surviving. Of course, having a plan and putting it into action were sometimes two different things entirely. It also wouldn’t help that he would have Maria playing