“Harder than you know,” Nicola said barely above a whisper.
“I won’t ask again. If you don’t want to then I’ll respect your decision.” Ivy moved away from him giving him room to think.
“You realize that this won’t make you get over Grey,” Nicola said reminding her of her self-expressed true love. Trying not to rip her clothes off her body that very moment, he shifted on the couch. Brooks would kill him if he knew that he was actually running from this woman.
“No one said that I’m over Grey,” she said softly. “This isn’t even about him.”
“Then what is it about?” he said nearly at wits end. The sweat was already starting to form at the back of his neck.
“This is about us and what’s going on at this very moment. I know that you feel it, too. otherwise you wouldn’t be running from me. And you’re starting to sweat.” Smiling, she kissed the dimple in his chin. It was such a wonderful feeling to be in complete control of a situation. She instantly understood Nicola’s addiction to this sort of playful banter
Nicola thought intensely for a brief moment. He might not get this chance ever again. He was just in the right place at the right time. In a time like this, any woman would consider running to another man for comfort.
“I don’t want to do anything to you that you’ll regret in the morning?” Nicola stated again how all of this could be ruined if what she was saying was not totally true. It was important for her to know exactly what she was asking for before he touched her.
“I’m sure about what I’m asking,” she said confidently. “I just want to be loved by you. Is that really so terrible, Nicola?”
He touched her face softly. “No, but there are other ways I could love you.” He couldn’t believe that he was actually saying this to her.
“I’m sure that there are other ways, but I want you to make love to me.”
Nicola was blown away by her request, but excited and gratified in the same skipped breath. She was so close to him. So close to who he actually was. Yet she was so far away from belonging to him. The thought made him realize that he should treasure every second he had with her.
“Alright.” Nicola said nodding his head. Normally, he would have something very clever to say, but tonight he was speechless.
In a silent bid of approval, Ivy smiled shyly. He was such a gentleman.
Taking her by the hand, Nicola decided not to waste another moment. He led her out of the living room into the foyer where she followed him up the long spiral staircase to his master bedroom. Opening the door, he escorted her inside of the dimly lit bedroom and kissed her on the forehead.
“I’ll be right back,” Nicola said leaving her all by herself.
“Okay,” Ivy said admiring her surroundings.
One could tell a lot about a person by their house and the things that they chose to put in it. Based on this one room, Ivy could honestly say that Nicola had extremely expensive and classic taste. The most noticeable feature of the room was that everything was eggshell white…the walls, the comforter on the bed, the molding on the walls.
In isolation on a wall hanging above the fireplace was a massive mahogany oak framed painting of a small white boat on a dark blue sea that gave the room a much-needed splash of color. On the wall facing the bed, there was a sixty-inch flat screen plasma television and a custom built-in entertainment armoire.
Facing across from bed was a wall-to-wall window facing the backyard that was draped with what appeared to be eggshell white silk crepe curtains pulled back by velvet blue rope and attached to brass handles.
The king-sized oak sleigh bed was regal yet simple. It was covered in an eggshell white velvet comforter that appeared to have satin on the inside. The pillows were overstuffed and accented by little velvet blue and gold pillows. The floor was covered in an eggshell carpet that was so thick she couldn’t wait to allow her feet to sink into the cushion.
It seemed that under the romantic lights that cast only a small glow around the room, the most attractive element in his sacred domicile was his bed. Realizing this she smiled slyly feeling as though she had revealed a deep secret about him.
A woman of impeccable taste had obviously designed this room. The question was who was the woman? Ivy thought for a moment about all the other women who had been in the same room, at the same hour. She suddenly became acutely aware of her position.
*
Nicola checked the front door to make sure that it was locked, turned on the alarm and stopped at the coffee table to finish the glass of champagne sitting by the lamp. Looking at his watch, he realized that it was already 3:00 a.m. He had to be down at headquarters by eight the next morning, and he hadn’t slept all day. Oh, well, he thought smiling to himself as he peeled out of his sweater.
Grabbing the bottle of champagne, he headed back upstairs where Ivy awaited his return. As he approached the room, surprisingly he heard soft music. Apparently, she had already turned on his CD player. How did she know that Sade was his favorite singer?
Opening the door, he saw her standing by the window looking out over the pool. He couldn’t wait to see what she really looked like under all that long dress. Closing the door behind him, he smiled a devilish smile.
“You have a beautiful home,” she said turning around from the dream like view of the Mississippi River.
“Thank you,” Nicola said setting down the bottle of champagne by the bed. “Come here,” he demanded softy.
Ivy walked over to the bed nervously. Oh God, she thought, this is actually about
