Billionaire: Billionaire Romance: Billionaire Tiger (A Billionaire New Adult Shifter Contemporary Romance) (48 page)

“Eudora, are you alright? You look pale,” Annabelle said to me as she placed her hand on my arm.

She followed my gaze to the charismatic Leonardo across the room, who had locked eyes with me.

“Who is that man? He’s looking at you as though you have no clothes on,” she said in shock.

“I have no idea. I’ve never seen him before. Will you ask William who he is?” I said.

Annabelle inched her way toward her husband while I stared inappropriately at Leonardo. He smiled this arrogant smile at me and then pulled a flask out of his lapel and took a discreet, but not so discreet swig.

He was a rule breaker and unconventional and I was hooked at that moment.

“William says that is the painter, Leonardo Drivatti. He’s half Italian and staying with his very rich patron here in London while he paints,” Annabelle whispered in my ear.

I hardly heard her, as I was in a deep trance.

Annabelle disapprovingly pulled me into another gallery room away from the wicked man. I pretended to not be interested. Eventually I pulled away from Annabelle and her husband and made my way alone into another gallery. I felt Leonardo’s eyes on me. My race pulsed and my heart fluttered as I felt him closing in.

“Are you discreet?” he whispered over my shoulder. He stepped away circling me as I stared at the painting on the wall.

“What are you talking about?” I whispered and swallowed hard.

“Are you discreet?” He asked with an air of arrogance.

My face turned bright red. He walked across the room and came inches away from my body. The energy moving between us was magnetic and I could sense that it was building up to something. I wanted to reach out and touch him. He turned toward the doorway to make sure no one was coming and then leaned in close to my ear and whispered, “Can I trust you to be discreet?”

My head was spinning. Maybe it was from the champagne or maybe it was from his manly scent filling the air around me. I felt like I might have to hold onto the wall in order to keep my balance.

“Discreet?” I asked.

“Do I have to spell it out for you?” he grinned in amusement.

He was so arrogant it drove me crazy. I looked up at him and forced myself to smile.

“Discreet? Meaning you’re trying to get me into your bed sir?”

He froze and said nothing. He looked at me up and down and I felt like I was being judged by his dark brown eyes. Then he started laughing. I immediately felt mortified. Why did I just say that? I’m sure that my face was bright red now.

“No, I was talking about modelling for me,” he whispered.

“That’s what you meant by discreet?” I barely got the words out in my extreme embarrassment.

“Yes, I know it’s probably against the rules from a polite lady like you, but I thought you could be discreet about it. Bend the rules just a little, for me. You are too perfect not to paint,” He grinned again at me. I’m sure he had never had a woman say no to him in his entire life.

“Oh, I see.”

I stared at him, feeling stupid for making such an assumption. Why did I think that in the first place? How could I have thought he wanted to have sex with me? Look at him. He could have any woman on the planet just by smiling. Men like him don’t want a woman like me. I was poor without a dowry and only barely on the outskirts of elite society and that was only because my sister had married well. Leonardo was a famous artist. Then he continued with the compliments.

“You are absolutely captivating. You possess a quality that I can’t put my finger on. But I must have absolute discretion. Other artist are always trying to copy my style you see, so if they know you are my model, they will find another that looks like you,” he said with that arrogant grin.

I quickly jotted our street address down on a piece of paper. I handed it to him, but he didn’t take it from my hand. He paused and looked me over and said, “Stick it in my pocket.”

I looked up at him looking for a sign that he was kidding. That dashing grin was gone. He was being serious.

“I’m not going to do that.” I said taking a step backwards.

He laughed again at me. It was something that was starting to make me uncomfortable with every second. He grabbed the paper pulling it slowly out of my hand. He reached his hand into his pocket, going deep. He left his hand in there for a second and then winked at me.

“Thank you,” he said.

He turned and walked out. I sighed a breath of relief. I was so thankful that he was gone. But I spent the entire night thinking about him.

CHAPTER TWO

He had begun to occupy not only my thoughts but also my dreams, which had turned incredibly sexual. I tried to keep myself occupied with lady luncheons and tea. I went for walks around Hyde Park with parasols and nice conversation. However, it did not matter. I was only going through the motions of it all as I could not stop thinking about Leonardo and I wondered if he would call for me.

I decided to go back to the art gallery. I convinced the carriage driver to take me there and escort me to the front door. Once I was inside, it was indecipherable to tell that I was a lady with out an escort.

I walked to the front door when I heard, “Are looking for me?”

I turned to see him standing in the gallery. I was shocked and startled.

“What are you doing here?” I asked nervously.

“I came for a piece.” He grinned at me.

I dropped my bag from my hand. I nervously looked at him. He did that thing where he looked me up and down. My body flushed with excitement. Was he here for me this time? Had he been thinking about me as much as I had been thinking about him?

“What?” I asked.

He walked slowly toward me. I could feel my breathing getting heavier as he glided confidently across the room. When he squatted down to the floor and picked up my bag, he looked at my feet and let his gaze linger. He rose slowly and his gaze followed. It went from my feet all the way up my body until he was standing up. He towered over me. I looked up at him with desire in my eyes. The amount of lust I had for this man was undeniable.

He handed me my bag and said, “Though it might be too late for me to have it?”

My heart pumped louder and I was sure he could hear it. “Have it?” I asked.

He raised one eyebrow at me and said, “The piece?”

I felt confused, but his close proximity to me was interrupting my clarity. I stood in silence until he said, “I want the big one there.”

He stepped away from me and went to look at a painting on the wall. Of course, I thought. He wanted to buy a piece. This was an art gallery after all. I felt silly and quickly pulled myself together and joined him.

“This is it. I want this one.”

“I see.”

He was silent as he stared at me. I started fidgeting because it was an awkward moment of silence. I didn’t know what he was thinking. He was obviously processing something. I seemed to make a fool of myself when I opened my mouth around him, so it was better that I kept it closed.

“Have you ever been to Venice Ms…?”

“Eudora. Ms. Eudora Sterling, and no, I have not.”

“I see, yet another reason you should model for me. I take my models with me all over the world. I have a palazzo overlooking a canal in the heart of the most romantic city in the world, Venice.”

It all sounded so grand. No, it was a dream. I could only imagine how wonderful it would be to go to Venice with this glorious enchanting man before me. He was striking and passionate. He was a creative genius and I wanted him. I had never had such strong feelings for a man before and it shook me to the core.

“Here is my card. In case you change your mind. If you do change your mind, then come to me at noon tomorrow. I will be expecting you,” he said.

Then, as soon as he had appeared. He disappeared. I stood in the empty gallery alone with a new exciting path beckoning me. Could I leave the safety of a stable environment and embark on a new and unpredictable journey along side a man I had been dreaming about?His presence made my brain shut down. I was not able to ask questions while I was concentrating on struggling to just be a normal person. I paced the gallery wondering what I should do. Up until this point my life was very boring. I did not like any of the suitors that came around for me. I found them dull and with each one I would see a very boring life in store for me. However with Leonardo Drivatti I did not see that. I saw excitement and a world I did not know. I wanted to experience that. However, I knew that doing so would put me in great danger of a scandal. Modelling was not a respectable thing for a woman to do unless she was having her portrait done. In that case the artist would come to the home and never be left alone with the lady. This, however, would be different. Most painters ended up using prostitutes as models because they were often painted nude. Modelling was considered only one step above prostitution. However, even knowing this I still wanted to do it. I wanted to have the sensual experience of being painted by a famous painter and I wanted to spend more time with Leonardo. That was it. I had decided that I would go.

The next day I paced my room nervously. I put on a green dress and pulled my long dark curly hair into a bun on top of my head. I pinned my hat on and pulled on my lace up boots. I was ready, and had practiced my excuse over and over. I went downstairs and found that Annabelle and William were out. I left instructions with the maid that I went to have tea with lady friend. I picked a lady friend that was located on the outskirts of London to make up for the hours I needed to be gone. Then I took the carriage and told the driver the address a few blocks away in Mayfair. I pulled the curtain closed on the window as not to be seen. I was very nervous and jittery and wished I had a tonic or cherry to calm my nerves. If I were to get caught it would ruin my reputation forever. I was risking a lot to be in the presence of this beautiful man. He really did have a hold on me.

The carriage pulled in through a large gate and my mouth dropped at the sight before me. A large historic and monumental house stood on the property. It was two stories high with white limestone walls and a blue roof. It was very grand indeed. The park surrounding it sprawled out on the property. I did not know the patron that Leonardo Drivatti was staying with, but by the looks of it, he was a very prominent figure in the community. I carefully stepped out of the carriage with the help of the footmen who were waiting by the front door of the house. Was this real? It was so elegant and rich.

The maid met me inside the doorway and took my coat. Then she led me a little further in, into the atrium. She didn’t speak and quickly walked off. I didn’t follow her. I was alone in a vast hall. The butterflies in my stomach tripled as I realized that he must think I’m a whore for showing up like this. I began to fidget again. It was unusual that I wasn’t shown to some sort of sitting room to wait. Instead I just stood there. The atrium had a white marble floor that led to a grand staircase in the back of the room. The wood banisters were elegantly carved and there was a baroque theme through out the house. The walls were high and covered in paintings and tapestries. No doubt the patron was a lover of the arts. No wonder Leonardo Drivatti was staying here and working here. The patron probably thought it was quite exciting to have a famous painter working under his roof. It was a spectacle to be talked about at parties and balls that the patron could take great pride in. This way whatever masterpiece was painted here, the patron could always gloat that it was painted at his estate. I followed the staircase up with my gaze as it led to the upstairs galleries that overlooked the atrium. I saw a tall looming figure standing there. There he was, standing there staring down at me. I felt small as he looked at me from his place up high. Like I was a courtier visiting a king in his castle.

“Eudora, I’m glad you came,” he said as he descended the stairs.

“Thank you for having me,” I replied. I tried to keep my eyes on his face instead of letting them go up and down on his long lean body. I had to remember I was here for business and not pleasure. If I kept repeating that in my mind maybe I would believe it. He was the perfect specimen of a human being. He walked towards me and I would have felt nervous if I could control my own mind. I felt out of control of myself. My blood felt like it was boiling in my veins as I became hot, flushed, and turned on by his presence. I wanted nothing more than to surrender myself to him.

“Follow me,” he said as he swept pass me.

I followed him through the large house entering and exiting one cavernous room after another. We exited through the back of the house and onto a large portico. There was a table set with an elegant lunch. I tried to keep my mouth closed, as I wanted to gape at the vast gardens and enormous fountain that was so beautifully landscaped.

We sat at the beautiful table and I tried not to stumble over my words. He started to tell me about the painting, but I was having a hard time focusing. None of this made sense to me. It all sounded grand. However, I couldn’t gage the vibes he was sending me. The awkward pauses, and the way he looked at me made me feel like I was here for something else. It was a feeling.

“Your gardens are just lovely,” I said after the business side of things came to an end.

Leonardo smiled at me with a knowing grin. “Would you like to take a walk with me then?”

“Yes, that would be nice,” I fumbled the words out.

He stood up and put his hand out. I placed mine in his and he helped me to my feet. His skin touching mine sent fire through me. It went from my hand, up my arm, and into my body and spirit. I had to remind myself to breathe.

We walk the steps down the portico and onto the path that lead deep into the gardens. We didn’t talk. The garden was dense and lush. I was astonished by the abundance of life. I was deep in this moment of beauty when Leonardo grabbed my arm and pulled me to him. I was caught off guard and stumbled my way into his chest. He looked down at me and I breathed in his scent. It was intoxicating. Within seconds his lips were on mine. My breath caught in my throat.