The Seduction Plan (6 page)

Twenty minutes later, Victor was ushering her into the most beautiful penthouse apartment she’d ever seen in her life. It was enormous and looked down onto Central Park and out onto the New York City skyline beyond. She saw all the buildings lit up in the distance and gasped with awe. “This is amazing,” she whispered, unaware that he was pulling her coat off of her shoulders and handing it to the butler who had magically appeared at their side.

She looked around and shivered. This was not an apartment, she realized, seeing the stairs off to one side of the enormous living room. Out one of the doors was a courtyard filled with trees and grass and an area larger than most people’s yards. Good grief, was that a swimming pool out there?

“Do you swim during the summer?” she asked, blinking at all the luxury around her, unable to take it all in.

 

“I swim all year round.”

That was definitely out of her realm of experience. She couldn’t imagine what it would be like to swim whenever one wanted to. Swimming in the city for ordinary folks meant heading to one of the recreational centers or YMCAs that were scattered about the city. Private pools were reserved for houses that were located out in the suburbs and even then, they were prohibitively expensive. And swimming in the winter? She shivered, looking at the corner of the pool visible from her current vantage point. It didn’t look very warm right now. “Doesn’t it get cold in the winter?” she asked, curious and fascinated at the same time.

He smiled at her horrified expression. “The water is heated during the spring and fall so its pretty comfortable right now. But when it gets too cold to get in and out of during the winter, there are walls that go up and it becomes and indoor pool. Want to go swimming?”

That kind of news was definitely something she didn’t want to hear about. What did he do that he could afford this kind of luxury? She took an involuntary step backwards, shaking her head. “I didn’t bring a suit.”

He chuckled a moment before his hands came to rest on her shoulders. “I don’t think you’ll need a suit if you go swimming with me.”

Lana shivered and turned to look up at him, her eyes wide with fascination and embarrassment. She couldn’t respond and he seemed to sense her discomfiture and took pity on her. Chuckling, he let his hands slide down her arms. “Don’t be afraid, Lana. I promise, you’ll enjoy everything we do together. And we’ll take things as slowly as you need.” He stepped away from her and walked into the huge living room. “How about a glass of wine?” he asked, standing beside an elaborate bar.

“Um…that would be nice,” she said, biting her lower lip as fear started to increase. Now that she was here, she wasn’t sure this was such a good idea. Perhaps Victor was too sexual for her? Maybe he would become impatient with her fears and would get irritated with her.

“Tell me about your day,” he said, handing her a glass of red wine, indicating that she should take a seat on the sofa. He went back behind the bar and made himself a drink, watching her.

Lana took a sip while standing in the middle of the room, then in an effort to appear calm and sophisticated, she walked around the room, admiring the incredible art. “I had a pretty unproductive day,” she finally said, but didn’t go into any details. How could she admit to this man who exuded confidence and purpose that she’d been unable to concentrate due to her fears about meeting with him?

She stopped at one picture in particular that she liked. It looked oddly familiar but she wasn’t sure why. Then it hit her. Turning, she looked across the room at him. “This is a beautiful replica of Van Gogh. Where did you get it?”

Victor smiled as he tossed ice cubes into his glass. Picking up the bourbon, he walked over to where she was standing, trying to pretend this was easy for her and took her purse off her shoulder, placing it on the coffee table behind her. “It’s not a reproduction,” he finally said and stood there admiring it.

Lana swallowed painfully. “Oh.” She couldn’t think of anything else to say, being so far removed from a world where people could casually purchase art work for millions of dollars. The piece wasn’t even the center of the room. There was a large oil painting over the mantle. She didn’t even go close, afraid to find out who the painter was on that one.

“You’re too nervous,” he said softly beside her. “Why don’t you sit down and relax. All we’ll do tonight is talk unless you want something else to happen. Okay?”

Lana let out a breath she didn’t realize she’d been holding and smiled gratefully up at his handsome face. “That would be nice,” she finally said, relief showing all over her features.

He ran a finger down her cheek and smiled gently down at her. “You just have to promise me one thing,” he said and took her hand to lead her back to the sofa.

“What’s that?” she asked, reassured and positive she could respond appropriately. Now that he’d reassured her that she could back out of the sex part without him being angry, she felt much, much better.

“Just let me kiss you once, right now so we can get that out of the way.”

Lana blinked and her heart rate spiraled. She could feel her breath catch in her throat and tried to take a deep breath, to ease the tension. But it was impossible. She looked up at him, at his dark eyes that seemed to be able to see into her soul. What she saw there was only slightly reassuring, while at the same time, it excited her beyond belief. “You just want to kiss me?”

“Yes,” he replied, taking her glass of wine out of her hands and placing it on the coffee table beside her purse. “If we can just get that out of the way, I think you’re nervousness will disappear. My housekeeper has made an excellent meal and I want you to enjoy it. You won’t taste anything if you’re this tense so…”

A moment later, his lips were touching hers. It wasn’t hard or demanding. His lips were firm and caressed hers gently, nibbling at her lower lip and just teasing hers until she responded.

With a gentle sigh, Lana lifted her face towards his more. “I’m not really sure what to do. I didn’t like kissing…”

He placed a finger over her mouth. “Don’t bring up the past. It’s gone. If you don’t know what to do, just do whatever I do, or use your imagination and try something different. I can’t imagine anything you do with that mouth that I wouldn’t like,” he said, laughing softly as she blushed.

He didn’t let her say anything else, but pressed his mouth against hers once again, just as gently but he took her hands and placed them on his chest, flattening the palms against his shirt, then placing his own hands on her waist. He didn’t pull her closer, but allowed his lips to brush back and forth against her lips, his teeth nibbling, teasing.

Lana followed his instructions, her mouth moving slowly, testing to see what would happen, how he reacted. When she moved her mouth, she felt his heart beat under her hands accelerate slightly. She kissed him back with a little more enthusiasm, moving her lips and when she dared to nibble his lip as he’d done to her, his response was to pull her closer. She liked that a lot. The feeling of his hard length against hers made her tremble and his hands, which had been calmly at her waist, were now moving slightly up against her waist, just as he’d done back in her apartment and the movement again made her tremble as desire spiraled within her.

He deepened the kiss, his mouth covering hers, his tongue touching her lips. Lana opened her mouth slightly and all thought of imitating him went out the door. In fact, all thoughts completely fled her and she moved closer, his tongue moving inside, his mouth kissing her as if there were no tomorrow and Lana couldn’t care less if there weren’t. All she wanted was for him to continue kissing her, the desire boiling inside to a level she’d never known before. Unbeknownst to her mind, her hands had moved up and her fingers dove into his hair, her body arched against his and she pulled him down so she could feel more of him against her.

Victor wanted to take it slowly, but with her soft curves pressed against him and her mouth moving against his, doing everything he did to her back at him, he was having a hard time maintaining control. When she started those sweet, sexy little sounds in the back of her throat, he almost lost it and he had to pull away or carry her into his bedroom to make love to her.

He saw her surprised expression and was quick to diffuse her anxiety. “If we don’t stop now, I don’t think I’ll be able to and I want you to enjoy the whole evening,” he said softly, bending to gently kiss her lips once again.

“Oh!” Lana gasped and quickly stepped back, looking around as if she weren’t really sure where she was.

Victor smothered a smile at her disorientation. He liked that about her. She couldn’t deny her reaction, nor did she really understand it. Realizing how far gone she was didn’t help his painful erection though. He grimaced as the throbbing increased. Knowing he had to slow things down, he forced his mind to switch gears. “Are you hungry?” he asked, handing her drink back to her. “I thought we could eat out on the terrace. I know its early fall right now but the terrace is blocked from the wind so its pretty comfortable out there.”

Lana smiled, relieved that he wasn’t going to suggest they jump from here right into his bedroom. “That sounds lovely.” She hoped he didn’t notice her shaking fingers or the blush that she was sure had reddened her cheeks. She wasn’t sure what had happened a few minutes ago, but she definitely liked the experience. It wasn’t anything like kissing Drew which had been more of an effort than anything else.

They dined on perfectly grilled salmon and rice pilaf with a savory butter sauce and white wine. While eating, Victor wouldn’t let her become self-conscious. He engaged her in conversation that relaxed her, made her laugh and even challenged her mind to keep up with him. Sometimes his arguments actually changed her mind which she found thrilling. Drew had never really argued with her, simply telling her how to vote, what meal she’d prefer at restaurants, what furniture they should purchase. It was nice to be able to talk with someone who didn’t end every conversation with, “You don’t know all the facts so stop talking!”

“Come, let me show you the terrace. The view is perfect from up here. You can see all the way across Central Park,” he said when Beverly, the housekeeper and cook, took their plates away and disappeared somewhere in the huge penthouse.

Lana took his hand readily this time, only a little nervous now that the dinner was finished and food wasn’t in the way. Would he pull her into the bedroom and shove her down onto the bed? Looking up at his handsome face, she knew he wouldn’t. And it gave her courage to walk with him to the side of the terrace and look out onto the city. Over here, one really could see farther and the lights were spectacular. With all the pollution and lights, one couldn’t see many of the stars which was sad in a way. But the skyline was no less dramatic for the lack of stars. The lights from the buildings and streets helped with the romantic atmosphere and Lana just noticed the soft, classical music in the background.

She looked out and sighed with contentment, sipping her second glass of wine and feeling very relaxed. Looking up at his handsome profile, she felt a warm glow form inside her. Victor was very nice, she thought. Actually, she didn’t think he’d appreciate that adjective but she couldn’t help it. He was extremely nice and she felt herself warming inside at the thought of him touching her, kissing her.

So different from…no! She wasn’t going to think about him anymore. Drew was in her past. Victor might not be a part of her future but he was part of her here and now. It was time for her to embrace the current and enjoy everything that she could get her hands on. And she definitely wanted her hands on Victor. And his hands on her, she admitted.

He must have felt her looking at him since he looked down. He didn’t smile as he bent to kiss her and Lana didn’t hesitate this time. Her fingers were shaking but it was with a different emotion now. She was still nervous, but excitement and desire were overriding her fear now.

As his lips moved over hers and his tongue asked for and was granted entry, Lana realized that she desperately wanted more. She was pretty sure she didn’t want the entire sexual act tonight but she definitely liked this. His hands on her waist made her shiver and she stepped forward, wanting to feel him against her just as she had earlier in the evening.

Just as it had hours ago, her body had a mind of its own when it came to kissing Victor. He was wonderful and she couldn’t think with his hands on her and his strong, muscular body against hers. When his hands slid up her back, she arched against him, shivering in delight and Victor caught her gasp of surprise against his mouth.

While his mouth continued its magic, she felt dizzy as he pushed her back against the wall of the terrace but couldn’t form a thought to figure out what was happening. But then she felt his leg move between hers and her head fell back against his arm. Lana felt as if she’d been running a race and her breathing was frantic. She couldn’t think, couldn’t breathe, couldn’t stop him even if she wanted to which she didn’t. There were no thoughts of Drew, no fear of the pain or humiliation. Just a desperate need to feel more, to discover more.

Victor wanted to go slowly, let her feel all of what she could possibly feel. But her body was so responsive he had a hard time slowing down. He was afraid to go too quickly for fear that she would become frightened.

He groaned as he pulled away, but he kept her body close against his. “Lana, if you don’t help me, I won’t be able to go slowly,” he growled against her neck, the sweet scent of her hair teasing his nostrils. His hand moved higher along her rip cage, settling just under her breast. He wanted to test the waters, see if she would cry out with fear when he touched her perfect breasts but just the opposite happened. When he didn’t move higher, her body shifted so that his hand covered her right breast. She did cry out at that point and Victor immediately removed his hand, looking down into her face which was thankfully still smoldering with the desire he was also feeling. “Did I hurt you?” he asked, trying to clear his mind so he could think.

In response, she lifted her hand from his shoulder and took his wrist, placing his hand back over her breast. Immediately, her eyes closed, her mouth opened and Victor was lost in the painful lust that knocked the breath out of him as he watched this beautiful woman discover sexual pleasure for the first time in her life. She was magical, sensuous and he wanted to pull her dress up, tear her underwear off and push himself inside her.