Bellissima (3 page)

“
Cara
, don’t be afraid. Nothing you say will be repeated. No one will know, but I must.”

As though the caress awoke her from a stupor, Jane trembled. A wave of pink travelled up from her throat to stain her soft cheeks pink, and the tip of her tongue flicked out to moisten one corner of her mouth.

“You are mistaken, signor.” The words were bold, the look in her light gray eyes bolder yet, and Sergio caught his breath. How arousing was her expression, that hint of dismissal in her tone. “Very, very mistaken.”

“Am I?” He ran his hands down her arms until they covered hers where they lay in her lap. There was no mistaking the shift of her thighs, the heightening of the color in her face. “I am not,
cara
, as we both are aware. Your arms are those of a slender woman. Should I put my hands up your skirt, no doubt I would find legs as fine and trim as any.”

That brought a response he could no more ignore than she could deny. Beneath his hands her fingers clenched into fists, her hips shifted, and a low sound of need broke from between her slightly parted lips.

For an instant, time ceased to exist. Sergio allowed the rainwater-clear eyes to draw him in, to seduce him as effectively as any flirtation ever had. Those eyes, usually so cool, so contained, sparkled and yearned, as he yearned. They told him secrets he doubted she knew they reflected, whispered her need as clearly as words spoken into his ear.

“Should I check to see if I am right,
cara
?” His throat felt rough, dry, his desire to touch this woman, to make her share her most hidden self with him, driving him beyond the bounds of decency. Yet he couldn’t bring himself to care. “I am going to find out your every secret, one way or another. I shall start with seeing if I am right about this one matter.”

All she had to do was say no—even cry out—and he would stop, but she remained silent, pursing her mouth into a pale pink rosette, signally her determination not to speak. It made him desperate to kiss her, to coax those lips open, ravish them until they were swollen and damp from his attentions.

This was a dance he knew well and loved above all others. She wanted him not just to lead but to take command of the situation, of her, and in so doing carry them both through to the ultimate pleasure. If he were skilled enough, demanding enough, along the way she would give up her secrets. If he lacked the finesse to give her what she truly needed, the information he wanted would be withheld and, along with it, her surrender.

He would not allow that to happen.

Chapter Three

Slowly Sergio slid his palms from her lap to her knees, and then rippled his fingers along the crisp fall of her skirt down to the floor, knowing she’d feel the brush of the fabric against her legs. Still watching her face, he covered the arches of her feet with his hands to lightly squeeze the leather of her shoes.

“Trim feet, which signifies nothing,” he said. “There are many larger ladies with the tiniest of feet.”

“You are a connoisseur of ladies’ feet, signor?”

Jane’s voice lacked its usual crispness and wavered slightly. Sergio allowed the edges of his lips to quirk upward as he replied, “I have been known to pay…particular attention to that part of a lady’s body, Mrs. Rollins.” He rolled the words out in a low, suggestive murmur, and her lashes fluttered. Yet her expression remained closed, only the darkening of her eyes telling the true story of her emotional reaction to his licentious implication.

Raising his hands, he cupped her ankles, which were also encased in the leather of her serviceable high-topped boots.

“Again, the ankles tell me nothing. I must seek higher for the answers I require.”

As he spoke, Sergio traced the tops of Jane’s boots, brushing the worsted stockings covering her calves with the sides of his index fingers. Her legs shifted, the scuff of her soles on the floor unnaturally loud in the quiet room. Beyond these four walls, the world continued apace, and no doubt there were other folk indulging in waltzes of earthy delight similar to the one he and Jane danced. Yet Sergio was sure no other could want it more, be more enthralled than he was at this very moment, as he slid his hands over Jane’s linen drawers and caressed the gently trembling limbs.

“Slim and lovely,” he growled, twisting his hands around the shapely contours of her lower legs. Crushing the linen beneath his hands, he explored the creases behind her knees with the tips of his fingers. “As I suspected they would be. And yet…” Letting the words trail away, he brought his palms to rest on her shins, began a slow, intent-filled upward journey toward her knees.

The soft flush on Jane’s cheeks deepened, and she took a deep breath as though attempting to gather her control. “And yet, what, signor?”

Breathy, far from her usual cool tones, her voice almost made him groan. The desire twisting through his blood, quickening his heart and tightening his muscles rose incrementally higher at the sound, and he raked the lust back, bringing it to manageable levels before he replied, “And yet, madam, it is the thighs that speak most succinctly about a woman’s true size.”

“Is that so, signor?”

“Indeed, it is, madam. Believe me when I say so.”

“Why would I believe you, signor?” She lifted her chin slightly, but there was apparently no mastering the liquid, yearning cadence of her tone. “Is this another area in which you are particularly versed?”

Her legs were set primly together, and now, with his hands firmly on her knees, Sergio urged them apart, keeping the pressure steady, unrelenting. In tiny, seemingly reluctant increments, they parted, wider and wider, until the outsides of her thighs pressed against the wooden uprights holding the arms of her chair aloft. Jane’s breath hitched, but Sergio didn’t move, simply held her there, open and vulnerable, as he looked deep into her now storm-gray eyes.

“Would it please you if I were, Mrs. Rollins?”

She tried to make a sound of derision, but it came out more like a gasp. “Why would I care about your interests in such a matter, Signor Fontini?”

Slowly, deliberately, he licked his bottom lip, a rush of delight and triumph heating his belly when her gaze dropped to follow the motion and remained on his mouth as he replied, “Wouldn’t you want to know that I am capable of appreciating a woman’s most tender and delicate areas? That I am willing—no, eager—to treat those delectable parts of a woman’s body with all the care and concentration they deserve?”

Jane’s eyelids drooped, and a fine sheen of perspiration made her face glow. At the base of her throat, just above the high, puritanical closure of her dress, a racing pulse was clearly visible. Beneath her skirts, heat rose from her skin to almost sear his palms, and the trembling of her legs grew stronger. No words passed her slightly parted lips, but she was unable to control the little gasp she made each time she exhaled.

She was deliciously, audaciously aroused, and the sight was almost more than Sergio could bear. How simple a thing it would be to toss her skirts up, sink into her, find release in her depths. Yet, that would be tantamount to a symphony unfinished, a measure tread only partway through and then abandoned. No. Oh no. This was only the beginning, and they had a far, far way to go before he would consider their encounter satisfactorily complete.

Swallowing against the roughness in his throat, he asked, “So, what will I find, Mrs. Rollins? Soft, pillowy thighs? Or trim, firm ones? It matters not to me either way. What does matter is that you tell me, Mrs. Rollins. For if you make me have to find out for myself…”

Once more he let his voice trail away, leaving the threat unsaid, letting her imagination supply the forfeit. It was one more step to be learned in their intimate dance, for how she responded would tell him much. Would she give in, answer the question herself and take the quick path to pleasure he offered? Or would she, as he thought she might, be difficult, leaving him no choice but to discipline her into submission?

Jane turned her head away, and Sergio growled in soul-deep satisfaction, his balls drawing up, his cock aching with lust-filled anticipation of what was to come.

“You will not answer?” He lifted his hands, tenting the front of her dress on their backs. “You prefer I make you answer?”

Without waiting to see if she would reply, he slid his right hand forward, making sure not to touch her skin until his fingertips came into contact with the linen-shrouded crease at the top of her thigh. At the first touch, a soft, guttural moan broke from her lips, and Jane’s head rolled back.

“I no longer wish to feel the contours of your thighs for myself. Only the surety of seeing them will do for me now. You will lift your skirt and show me your legs, Mrs. Rollins.”

“No,” she whispered, her voice breaking over the word. “No. No.”

“Yes,” he replied just as softly, but with all the weight of command behind the word. “Oh yes.”

He tickled his fingers over the top of her leg, moving them back and forth, each time getting closer to the center. When he felt the slit in her drawers, the brush of fine hair beneath his fingers, he stopped.

“Lift your skirts, Mrs. Rollins.”

She was panting, her body shaking, and he knew it wouldn’t take much for her to find release. And she had gotten to this point all without a single touch on her cunt. Her responsiveness was more than he had ever dreamed to find beneath her cool façade. The thought of how she would react when he put his hands on her there, or his mouth, took him closer to the edge too.

“No,” she moaned, rolling her head from side to side. But her fingers were clenching into the fabric of her gown, and he knew from her tone, the bright red blush, from the way she shivered, he almost had her where he needed her to be.

“Lift them,” he demanded, letting the roughness of lust color his voice, not concealing how much he wanted her to comply. “Lift them so I can see your legs and your cunt, and I will consider giving you the release I know you crave.”

“Oh,” she moaned, no doubt hearing the continued threat, apparently finding it irresistible. “I shan’t.”

“You shall.” Sergio withdrew his hands abruptly and pushed himself to stand, grimacing with the pain of his cock pressing on his tight-fitting pants. Jane’s eyes flew open, and he met her stormy, lust-sheened gaze, held it as he began to unbutton his fly. “You will do it now, Mrs. Rollins. Right. Now.”

A soft cry broke from her throat, and her hands moved as though of their own accord, gathering her skirts up, lifting them higher and higher. Her gaze had dropped to watch him undo his clothing, and her breath raced so he feared she may faint away. But her hands continued their chore, lifting and gathering until her legs lay bare before him, the dark, straight hair between them clearly visible in the shadow of her skirts. But even with her legs spread, Sergio was dissatisfied with the view.

“There, now, that was not so difficult, was it?”

“N-no,” she whispered, the muscles of her thighs straining and shuddering.

“It’s a shame it took you so long.” Sergio freed his cock and testicles from his clothing as he spoke, and her eyes, which had started to rise to meet his, dropped to his crotch once more. They widened, and her tongue slipped out to wet her lips, making his prick pulse. A bead of excitement formed at the slit, and Jane licked her lips again. Ah,
Dio
, the sight made him wild for her, the thought of those sweet, pink lips wrapped around his member clawing at his control. “Stand up, and turn around.”

There was no hesitation now. Jane was on her feet in a thrice, her eyes lingering on his rampant cock for a moment before she turned as he commanded.

“Lean forward. Brace yourself on the back of the chair.”

As she took up the position he demanded, Sergio stepped forward to toss her skirts up onto her back.

Now, there was a view worth having.

Even covered by her linen undergarment, the long legs, with their trim, strong thighs and delicate calves were displayed to full advantage. Her plump ass, temptingly up in the air, strained the fabric and, peeking out from between the split crotch of her drawers, he could finally see the pink, wet slit he hungered for.

Such beauty. And on display only for him.

Stepping closer, he palmed one buttock, feeling her shudder beneath his caress.

“Spread your legs wider.”

Again she complied without demur, shuffling her feet out and even bending a little lower, exhibiting her sweet cunt and ass to him.

“Very good.” Using both hands, he tried to widen the slit in her drawers, but the padding around her waist held it in place. With a growl of frustration, he grasped the sides and tugged them apart as hard as he could, a feeling of feral satisfaction filling him when the linen tore and sagged away. Once more he palmed her ass, rubbing in circles, letting his thumbs brush ever closer to the lips of her cunt. “Now, stay here while I have my tea, Mrs. Rollins, and consider how much better it would have been for you had you answered my questions to begin with.”

“Please…” It was just a breath of sound, but it drove straight to his cock. “Please, I’ll answer your questions.”

He chuckled. “I know you will…now.” Stepping around the chair, he stood before her and met her frantic, thunder-cloud gaze. “If you answer to my satisfaction, it will be to your benefit.”

Fisting his cock, he used his thumb to collect the moisture at its tip, then offered it to her. When she immediately sucked the digit between her lips, her tongue swirling and dancing over it, Sergio was almost undone. His plans faded from mind, replaced by the vision of replacing his thumb with his cock, letting her obviously talented mouth take him to heaven.

Forcing himself to draw his hand back took far more determination than he ever thought he possessed, and the sound of distress she made came very close to shattering his resolve.

But still he turned and walked away, trying to conceal how his hands and legs shook, how hard it was to deny himself what they both so obviously wanted.

The music still played, he reminded himself. The dance was but only partially complete.