A Place in the Sun(44)

“All right then,” she said, finishing off the last bit of croissant and tossing the bag in the bin by the door. “I’ll start prepping the third-floor bedroom for paint and you’ll be down in the first-floor bathroom, right? Fixing that leaky sink?”

I nodded. “Shouldn’t take me long.”

She smiled, tipped her head, and took the stairs up to the top floor. The sound of music spilled out after a few moments. I gathered up the tools I’d need for the job and carried them into the bathroom. It was a tight space, so I had to lay my things out in the hallway so I could lay down flat and get up inside the cupboard. I turned the faucet on and off, laid out my tools, and propped my hands on my hips, staring down at the project before me.

I flipped the light switch off and then on again, narrowed my eyes at the sink, and then turned on my heel, heading for the stairs.

I couldn’t focus.

Not after last night.

I gripped the railing and took the stairs two at a time.

Georgie was already on the second-floor landing, shouting down for me.

“Gianluca! On second thought, the paint could probably wait—”

She didn’t get the full sentence out before my lips were on hers. I hauled her body against mine and then turned, pushing her up against the wall of the stairwell. Her hands were in my hair, her hips were in line with mine, her tongue swept into my mouth, and she let out a tiny moan as I forced her legs up around my waist.

“I’m going mental,” she said as I strung kisses down the side of her neck, unfastening the first two buttons of her dress.

She had on a lacy bra, so soft beneath the palm of my hand that it was likely driving both of us a little insane.

“Take it off. Please.”

I yanked her dress down to her waist and then she tore at my t-shirt.

“This too.”

I grinned and reached back to yank it off.

She dragged her palms down the center of my chest, admiring the marks she’d made.

“You’re the most beautiful man I’ve ever seen.”

I dropped my head to the crook of her neck and sighed. She smelled like jasmine and it was especially strong right there. I had one hand gripping her thigh, keeping her pinned against the wall, and my other hand found the strap of her bra. I slipped my finger beneath it, dragging the back of my knuckle from the top of her shoulder down past her collarbone. Her sharp intake of breath spurred me on, and I let the strap fall down her arm, revealing another few inches of her supple curves.

She tried to press her chest against mine, to hide herself, but I pushed her shoulder back against the wall, locking my eyes with hers. Every emotion was right there for me to see. She was feeling vulnerable up against that wall, but I wouldn’t let her shy away from this.

“Let me touch you,” I said, skimming my finger pad across the top of her bra. Her chest quivered when I hit the center of her ribcage and I went back and forth two more times before gently pushing the material down, baring her nipple for me.

I’d seen her the night before. I’d lain there for hours staring at her, but the light was different here and she looked completely new again, so beautiful and smooth. I dropped my mouth and tasted her there, in love with her skin.

She gripped my hair, keeping my mouth on her. Her legs tightened around my waist and she moaned when I closed my teeth, gently biting her.

“Gianluca!”

I smirked and smoothed my palm over her breast, soothing the ache. Her bra fell away after I released the strap on her other shoulder, and then I moved us, carrying her back down to the first-floor landing and kicking the door open to the bedroom. She wrapped her arms around my neck, pressed her chest to mine, and kissed me senseless as I walked us back to the bed. We tumbled down onto the sheets and she laughed, adjusting so she wouldn’t fall off the side.

I stood back, staring at her as she lay there topless with her brown wavy hair fanned out around her. Her body was every man’s dream, like a petite hourglass. Her breasts filled my hands and her waist curved in, small and slender. Her hips were enough to drive me wild, but I wanted to see all of her. I tore at the rest of the buttons on her dress and then she kicked it to the ground. She wore lacy blue underwear and the color complimented her tan.

“You look like you’ve been living on the beach,” I said, dragging my hand up the inside of her leg. Her skin was the same everywhere: silky soft and demanding to be touched, caressed, felt.

She squirmed beneath me and I held her legs apart gently, pressing a kiss to her knee and then climbing higher, pushing my weight onto her. I knew my jeans scratched against her bare skin. We weren’t on an even playing field, me still half-clothed, but I liked the advantage.

I kissed the inside of her knee and then her thigh, skimming my lips higher until her back arched off the bed. I kissed her hip, just over the lace, and then I pressed my mouth to the side of her bellybutton, not wanting to rush. We had this forgotten room with its boarded shutters and the creaky bed all day; we had forever.

But Georgie was squirming and moaning and I knew she needed release as badly as I did. I wanted to feel her come beneath me and I’d grant her that more than once before the morning was through. I skimmed my fingers along the top of her lacy underwear, dipping gently inside and then lower. With the lace there, it felt like we were trying to get away with a secret, me touching the very center of her. I pushed up onto my elbow to get a good look at her; once I saw her eyes pinched closed and her head thrown back, I brushed the heel of my palm across her and she brought her full bottom lip between her teeth, biting down to keep from crying out.