'Eleven.'
'Yet you remember…'
'Oh, yes, I remember everything he taught me,' she replied. 'It was my way of pleasing him, Colin, and I thoroughly enjoyed the time we spent together. It made him happy to talk about his business transactions and it made me happy to be included.'
She'd turned the sheet of paper into a wrinkled ball. Colin doubted she was aware of what she'd just done. 'I'll only write down key words,' she promised.
He slowly shook his head. 'You won't need to take notes,' he assured her. 'You're going to remember everything I tell you.'
He was feeling damn proud of himself. The urge to laugh had almost overwhelmed him, but he'd been able to contain himself.
'All right then.' She turned back to the desk, started to put the sheet of paper back, and only then realized the mess she'd made. She tossed it into the trash basket, then turned back to stare at him.
The warm glint in his eyes made her shiver with pleasure and that wonderful lopsided grin of his made her heartbeat become quite frantic. She took a deep breath and ordered herself to calm down.
Dear God, he was beautiful. Without realizing what she was doing, she blurted that thought aloud.
He laughed in reaction to her praise. His amusement didn't upset her, though, and she found herself smiling back. 'For a dragon,' she teased.
The way he was looking at her made her feel as though butterflies were gathering inside her stomach. She needed to give her hands something to do, she decided, and immediately folded them together. 'Are we going to have our talk now?'
'First things first,' he announced. 'I just realized I didn't give you a proper wedding kiss.'
'You didn't?'
He shook his head. Then he crooked his finger at her. She slowly walked across the room to stand directly in front of him.
'Are you going to kiss me now?' she asked, her voice a breathless whisper.
'Yeah.'
He'd drawled out that admission. He slowly unfolded himself from the doorway to tower over her. She took an instinctive step back. She immediately stopped herself. She wasn't afraid of Colin, she reminded herself, and she really did want him to kiss her. She moved forward again. 'I like the way you kiss me,' she whispered.
'I know.'
His grin was arrogant. He knew she was nervous, too. She didn't have any doubt about that. And he was enjoying her embarrassment, too.
'How do you know?' she asked, thinking to give him some clever reply once he answered.
'The way you respond to me tells me you like me to touch you.'
She couldn't think of anything clever to say to that fact. In truth she was having trouble holding on to any thought. Colin was fully responsible for her condition, of course. The warmth in his gaze was making her stomach quiver.
She felt his hands on her waist, looked down, and watched him untie the belt to her robe. She tried to stop him, but before she'd even placed her hands on top of his, he was easing her robe off her shoulders.
'Why did you do that?'
'You look warm.'
'Oh.'
The robe dropped to the floor. Her gown was transparent enough for him to see the soft curves of her body. She tried to pull the folds of the garment close around the front of her. Colin didn't give her time to shield herself. He pulled her tight against him. 'Put your arms around me, Alesandra. Hold me while I kiss you.'
She wound her arms around his neck just as he leaned down and began to nibble on her lips. His tongue traced the inside of her lower lip, sending shivers down her spine. She tightened her hold and leaned up on tiptoes to try to deepen the kiss. Her breasts rubbed against his chest and she let out a broken sigh over the strange feeling of his skin against her. Her breasts suddenly felt heavy, tight, and her nipples hardened. It wasn't an unpleasant feeling, just strange and wonderful. She deliberately rubbed against him again, but ever so slightly so he wouldn't know what she was doing. She didn't want him to think she was bold. She wanted to be bold, though, for the heat from his hard body affected her like an aphrodisiac and she couldn't seem to get close enough to him.
He was driving her crazy teasing her lips with his tongue, his teeth. She couldn't put up with the gentle torment long. She tugged impatiently on his hair, telling him without words that she wanted more.
His mouth finally settled on top of hers in a gentle caress and his tongue eased inside to stroke hers. He acted as though he had all the time in the world. He was slow, deliberate, exerting only scant pressure as he nudged the fires of passion inside her.
Her soft moan told him how much she liked what he was doing to her. He pulled back, saw the passion in her eyes, knew it was mirrored in his own, and let out a low groan of his own. 'So sweet,' he whispered against her mouth. 'Open up for me,' he commanded in a rough whisper.
He didn't give her time to comply with that order but used his thumb to force her chin down. His tongue thrust inside, then retreated before penetrating again. She went all soft and willing on him, and that innocent response made him forget about going slow. He was suddenly so hungry for her he couldn't control his pace. His mouth became hard, demanding. The love play between their tongues-his bold, hers timid-made both of them shake with desire. She was too overwhelmed by the fire Colin was spreading inside her to be afraid of what was to come. She couldn't think, only react. She moved against him restlessly, unaware of what she was doing now, or what she was doing to him. Her fingers threaded through his hair, and his control almost snapped when she began to whimper and move so enticingly against his hard arousal. The kiss turned carnal, ravenous. Passion ignited into raw desire as his mouth slanted over hers with primal ownership. His hunger stroked her own.
The kiss seemed unending and yet over all too soon. When Colin pulled back, her mouth was rosy and wet from his touch. The taste of her was on his mouth now, but it wasn't enough for him.
She collapsed against his chest and tucked her face under his chin. Her breathing was choppy against his collarbone.
Colin lifted her into his arms and carried her into his room. He gently placed her in the center of his bed and then stood by the side, staring down at her. His hot gaze warmed her and made her shiver at the same time.
She felt drowsy from his kisses. Her mind cleared when he hooked his thumbs into the waistband of his pants and began to pull them off. She closed her eyes and tried to turn away from him. Colin was quicker than she was, however. He'd stripped out of his pants and joined her in the bed before she'd even made it to the other side.
He caught her by her nightgown. The fabric ripped when he pulled her back to him. She only had enough time to gasp before the gown was completely discarded and Colin was covering her with his body.
She became as rigid as a board. He gently pried her legs apart with his knee and then completely stretched out on top of her just the way he'd fantasized in his dreams since the moment he met her. His hard arousal pressed against the soft curls at the junction of her thighs, and it felt so damn good to him he let out a low growl of satisfaction.
Reality was better than fantasy, however, for he hadn't been able to imagine how incredibly soft and smooth her skin would feel against him. Her breasts were much fuller than he'd fantasized, and he hadn't been able to capture the intensity of his reaction to having her trembling underneath him. It was as close to heaven as he thought he'd ever be.
'Colin, shouldn't we have our talk now?'
He leaned up on his elbows to look at her. Worry was evident in her eyes; victory was evident in his.
'Absolutely.' He cupped the sides of her face to hold her still, then kissed her long and hard.
He made her shiver with desire. She couldn't resist putting her arms around his waist to draw more of his warmth. Her toes curled against his legs and it suddenly wasn't enough to simply hold on to him. She needed to touch him, stroke him. Her hands moved up his back, then down the sides of his arms.
Her touch was as light as a butterfly's wings against his skin and yet it was the most erotic caress he'd ever received. He turned his attention to her neck. She turned her head ever so slightly to give him better access. His teeth gently tugged on her earlobe, sending jolts of pleasure cascading all the way down to her toes, and, dear God, his tongue was making it impossible to think.
