Caribbean Casanova (5 page)

“Dinner?” The both startled as Marco spoke, having approached while they were stuck in whatever that had been.

He sat up straight, unaware until now that he’d been leaning toward her. A busboy cleared their plates as Marco unveiled their entrees.

“Triggerfish with an orange caper sauce and Brazero lobster with mango coulis.”

Holly snickered then covered her mouth with her napkin. When they were alone, she contained herself for a moment.

“Bizarro lobster?” She managed to get the words out before she erupted.

“It’s blackened, smart ass. And we can trade, I can eat either one.” She had a lovely smile, especially unguarded like this with her nose wrinkled and a tiny bit of her tongue showing between her straight teeth. He wouldn’t even mind if she nipped his bottom lip again.

She held up her plate. “I want to see how the Bizarro world eats. But just because you bought me lobster, doesn’t mean I’m putting out.”

“Keep telling yourself that.” He swapped entrees and watched the way she tucked into her meal, humming in delight. He’d never watched a woman eat before, let alone enjoyed it.

“We’re friends now, right?” She asked after a few blissful moments of quiet. “You’re not going to screw with my photo shoot?”

“Never intended to.” He met her gaze and something started to circle his mind but he shuttered it closed.

“So I have a question. And I don’t mean it in an offensive way.” She held up her half-eaten plate. “Can we switch back? This is too spicy.”

“That’s not a great opening to a question, and I can have Marco bring you something else.” Though then he’d have to order and he really didn’t want to explain about his health issues or get mired in food-preparation details right now.

“Why, what is triggerfish?”

“A mean tropical fish. They bite and everything.” They traded plates and she eyed the fillet with trepidation.

“Like a piranha?”

“No, not with teeth. More like a snapper, but triggerfish taste better.”

She tried a dainty bite then shimmied her shoulders as she hummed. “So good. Now, don’t get all huffy.”

“I’ll try.” He pulled a chunk of spiced lobster through the mango coulis.

“Why did you have your jeans on when Sass and I walked in on you?”

He dropped his fork. “Holly, for God’s sake.”

“I’m curious. Four totally naked women. A guy in jeans. I don’t get it.”

He shook his head and studied her face. She tried for nonchalance as she took a sip of water. But when her gaze met his he saw it, the vulnerability she hid so well. She wasn’t looking for a tidbit of salacious gossip to share. She needed to know how he played in order to know if she’d be willing to join in.

No, he’d never met another woman like her. He doubted anyone else would dare to be so blunt, or do it with such honesty. Her candor was unexpected, like a rollercoaster in the dark with thrilling twists and sudden turns that he wasn’t sure he liked. But it was too late to get off the ride now.

“You want to know?” He stood and held out his hand. “Let’s take a walk.”

Chapter Eight

Oh, she knew better. Holly had never been one for impulsive actions or stupid moves. She didn’t have time for mistakes, so tended to go for the organized, well-thought-out method of decision making.

But really, she couldn’t not take his hand. She’d spent her teen years dreaming about scenes like this, so she did it for the chubby girl in sweatpants with her nose always in a book.

A candlelight dinner on the beach with the ocean as background music didn’t happen in real life. At least not in hers. And even in her daydreams she hadn’t come up with a man as devastatingly gorgeous as Harmannus Prinsen.

He kept his loose grip on her hand as they stepped off the deck and onto the sand. He toed off his shoes and she did the same, glancing back at his black leather loafers and her nude sling-back wedges. The overwhelming romance of the moment gave her heart a squeeze. If only.

Moonlight painting the water, stars twinkling in the inky night sky, candles in jars illuminating a path to the sea. The soft purr of the ocean as it lapped at the sand and the sweet smell of the tropics. No wonder women lined up to drop their panties for this man. He was that damned good.

“It was a thirtieth birthday party,” Harm said as they neared a patchwork quilt at the end of their trail of candles. “Marco doesn’t miss a thing, does he?”

“You mean this isn’t your typical date scenario? Here I was, thinking I was getting the full-on Harmannus Prinsen experience.” She slipped from his grasp and knelt on the soft blanket, a wave of nervous energy threatening to wash away her composure.

“I don’t think I’ve been on a date in a decade.” He joined her on the quilt, stretching his long legs in front of him. “I like to go to a club, listen to the music, people watch and let what happens happen.”

“Is that how your orgy happened?”

He was handsome in bright daylight, but devastatingly so under the soft whisper of the moon. He’d dressed for dinner in a black shirt that showed off the breadth of his shoulders and tailored slacks that highlighted the narrowness of his slim hips, but he hadn’t shaved. She itched to run her hand along the hard line of his jaw, feel the dark hair shadowing his. Even beneath the polished clothes, he seemed raw, animal-like, as if he held back his primal urges.

“I’ve never understood the American condemnatory attitude about sex. There is no need to be judgmental.” He leaned back on his elbows and stared up at her, lust filling his gaze.

Damn, he was good. “I’m keeping an open mind.”

“And yet you’ve spent months wondering about the choreography of my
orgy
.”

“Go on. Tell me how it played out.” She sat and stretched her legs in front of her, a quiver of anticipation tickling down her spine. She’d graduated from reading the romantic classics of her childhood to erotic romances. Hearing Harm tell a scene is his deep voice and clipped accent had her slick with anticipation.

“They were dancing together at a club, and I watched.”

“Is that why you had your jeans on? You were just watching?”

“Don’t rush me,
schatje
.” He tickled his fingers on the back of her hand and sparks of delicious sensation traveled up her arm. “When they sat down I sent over a round of drinks, and they came over to thank me. They were Americans, and drunk. So drunk. I don’t know why women do that.”

“Liquid courage. Plus, it quiets the voice in our head telling us a man will never buy the cow if he can get the milk for free. I’ve never bought into that one. I don’t want to take home the entire pig when I just want a little sausage.”

His rich laugh made her smile and he pushed a hand through his hair, tousling it into his usual haphazard style. “These women weren’t after barnyard animals, just a good story. One of them kissed me and we took a walk on the beach.”

“Aha, I knew this was part of your M.O.” And it stung like a belly flop. “Were there candles and quilts too?”

He reached up and tweaked her nose like she was a child. “Don’t rush me, smart ass. We walked along the beach, towards the villa.”

“But there are rocks in front of your place.”

“Do you want to hear this or not?”

Not
. She’d changed her mind the second he’d taken those women for a walk on the beach, but she motioned for him to continue.

“We’re almost at the villa and the one in the blue dress decides she wants to swim. So her dress comes off and she heads for the water. She’s laughing and splashing and the others decide it’s a great idea. So I’m on the beach, watching these women playing in the water, and I can’t leave them because they’ve been drinking.”

“You are such a martyr. I bet it was
hard
for you to have to watch naked women like that.”

“I do what I can for the good of humanity. While I’m being an upstanding citizen, the birthday girl hugs one of her friends and the next thing I know they’re rubbing their tits together.”

Holly lay on her side and propped her head on her hand. “I knew there were naughty bits in this story.”

“You have no idea. It was spectacular. The rest decided to treat the birthday girl. One stood behind her and kissed her neck while the other friends each enjoyed a nipple. I couldn’t really tell, but I think they were all trying to finger her. The moaning was almost like a song. She came with this screaming orgasm that had them all slipping into the water. I stood up to make sure they were okay, and I think that is when they remembered that I was there.”

Holly closed her eyes and wanted it to stop. The erotic scene was about to sicken her because she knew the idea of Harm with any woman wasn’t something she could stomach.

“Hey.” His soft whisper brushed her ear. “Did you fall asleep on me? You’ll enjoy this next part.”

She opened one eye and wrinkled her nose. “I doubt it.”

“No, it’s good.” He lay down beside her and faced her, propping his head on his arm. “I picked up their clothes and we walked up to the villa.”

She pressed a finger to his lips. They were softer than she’d expected and slightly damp. “I changed my mind.”

He wrapped his warm fingers around her wrist and kissed her finger, then brought her hand down to his chest. She pressed against the bare skin where his undone buttons exposed a few wisps of the sparse chest hair that defined his muscles so beautifully.

She opened both eyes and stared at her hand there, her sugar-plum manicure too innocent for the scene painting in her mind. She wanted to roll on top of him and kiss him until he forgot all his stories. Which would never happen, even if she tried.

“I’ll stop, but this is the part my brother likes best. I’m thinking the water sobered them up a bit and things are going to go my way. I let them into the house and drop their clothes in the dining room. I go back in the living room and they’re at it again. So I watch as they explore, touching and tasting and rubbing until one kneels down and starts licking and she looks up and says, ‘Tell me what to do.’ I almost came right there.”

“Did you tell her?” Her tummy tensed, preparing for the punch in the gut. But she needed this, after hearing about his escapade she wouldn’t be tempted to be another of his stories.

“She wasn’t talking to me.” He rested his hand on the curve of her hip, making her breath hitch. “One lay down and the other three pulled her legs back and went at her pussy. That’s when I moved closer because I had to see it. Flicking and licking and humming.”

He leaned close and vibrated his lips against her cheek. Holly clenched her inner muscles as her core gave a spasm of want.

Harm shifted away and continued. “I had no idea. They were directing each other and trying techniques I’d never imagined. Eventually it became a circle of them all down on another with me in the middle. I don’t know how they managed to fall asleep all pussy-faced. But I didn’t want to leave in case it started up again.”

“So you’re saying your orgy was a graduate course in cunnilingus and you didn’t even get your cock out?”

He laughed, his chest vibrating beneath her hand. “See? You judged it all wrong.”

“Or maybe you’re making it up. You could tell that story so women want you to show them what you learned.”

He pinned her with a sexy, smoldering stare. “If you want me to prove it to you…”

“I know you seduce women for sport, but not me, okay? Be a good friend here, Harm.” She closed her eyes and took a breath to calm herself and rise above the tide of lust threatening to carry her away. Harm’s musky scent pushed through her instead, tempting her to dive in. Everyone fantasized about sex on the beach. This could be her shot at it.

“And if I want to be more than friends?”

“You don’t though.” She stared into his eyes, surprised by the earnestness there. Either she was a sucker, or he was one hell of an actor. “Whether you see it or not, this whole routine is just your way of getting back at Saskia for telling you not to screw the models. Do her one better and sleep with her best friend. But I’m a person, and beneath the hard-candy shell I’m a big marshmallow. We’ll be tangled in each other’s lives forever, and I don’t want it to be awkward.”

“You don’t think we’ve already crossed that line?” He shifted closer, the heat of his body seeping into hers.

“We’ll be fine if we walk away now.”

Chapter Nine

Harm stared into the depths of Holly’s brown gaze and saw the lie glistening there as surely as the gold flecks in her eyes. They weren’t going to get past this, neither of them. Whatever it was, it wouldn’t be ignored.

He wished he could let it go. He’d had enough reticence in his early life, he didn’t need more. No matter what he accomplished, a part of him would forever remain the little boy who lost his mother too soon, who’d been forced to realize his hero was human, who’d done whatever it took to keep his brothers together.

He didn’t like the thrilling trepidation he felt when he thought of Holly, and yet he couldn’t shake it. The closest he’d come to easing the ache was here, now. His lips seconds away from hers.

He’d been captivated by that full, pink pout all day. If being close to her lessened the anxiety, he knew what would cure it.