Lord at First Sight (The Montevor Royals Saga #8)

Chapter 19

CHAPTER NINETEEN

ANTOINE

S omething’s changed. Our salsa routine was electric, and it wasn’t just the audience that sensed it. I could see it in Laura’s eyes, feel it in the way her body moved perfectly with mine. It’s been at least thirty minutes since then. We haven’t danced again. I don’t trust myself to hold her and not to kiss her.

We’ve been mingling instead. Unfortunately, the enchantment is refusing to go away. It hums beneath my skin, making it hard to concentrate. For the first time since I met Laura, I feel like I’m losing control. I haven’t left her side. Worse, I can’t seem to keep my hands off her. It’s maddening. There’s a rebel lock of her hair that keeps falling on her face and begging to be tucked behind her ear… The imaginary speck on her plump bottom lip… Fingers brushing accidentally whenever I pass her a drink or a canapé…

Every touch is instinctive as if this kind of behavior were natural for me—when it’s anything but! Interestingly, Laura doesn’t pull away. Quite the contrary, she seems to enjoy my obsessive attentions.

The rainstorm comes out of nowhere, a sudden onslaught that has people scattering indoors. Laura and I follow the movement of the crowd. But we aren’t quick enough. By the time we make it to the covered terrace, both of us are drenched. Laura’s dress clings to her like a second skin. The wet fabric is plastered to her every curve, including her perfect breasts and hardened nipples. I can no longer look at them without my cock twitching in response.

She laughs softly. “You’re staring.”

“I’m assessing the damage.”

She mutters something unintelligible under her breath.

The Honeymoon’s End party limps along indoors for a little longer. By the time the rain stops, the band has already left, and no one takes the initiative to set up a DJ stand. After the official program is finally over, someone suggests heading to the beach for an after-party.

Laura glances at me. “Interested?”

“Sure. Why not?”

Anything to postpone returning to our room and finding ourselves alone and off camera. As things stand now, I can’t be sure what I’m going to do. I’m hoping that if I buy myself more time by hanging out with the others on the beach, my massive lust will go away or, at least, subside enough to give me a fighting chance.

We follow the other newlyweds to the dark beach. Groups break off quickly. Some sit around makeshift bonfires. Others wander toward the water. Alain hovers nearby. His audio partner has called it a night, but Alain is still here, following Laura and me like a mosquito that just won’t give up.

Lightning flashes in the distance, allowing me to spot Kurt’s agent Lino on the beach. He’s swapped his uniform for a tee and shorts. Unlike Alain, Lino has no excuse to be at the after-party, which is probably why he’s pretending to be out for a solitary walk.

In principle, his presence shouldn’t bother me. I won’t be discussing the music box with Laura anymore. There’s no point. My next step will be to ask her parents about it, when I officially meet them. But in practice, Lino’s covert surveillance annoys me even more than Alain’s blatant importuning.

I whisper to Laura. “Let’s lose the camera.”

She responds with a mischievous smile.

We slip away and walk briskly along the row of kiosks used by various vendors during the day. Small wooden structures with peeling paint and corrugated iron roofs, they’re all locked up for the night. I look over my shoulder. Alain is searching for us in the largest group. Lino stares at the path leading back to the hotel.

Perfect time to disappear!

I stop in front of a flimsy kiosk. “This one.”

I test the door.

Laura folds her arms. “You’re going to break in?”

“Technically, I’m going to force entry,” I say pushing against the door.

It groans in protest, and then gives, swinging open with a creak. Fortunately, both Alain and Lino are too far to hear it. I peek inside the kiosk. As my eyes adjust, I can see a counter beneath the shuttered hatch. A chair. Shelves stocked with overpriced sunscreen and snacks. That’s it.

“Nothing dangerous or creepy,” I say to Laura. “It’s safe to go in.”

She steps across the threshold. I follow her inside and pull the door shut behind me. The space is cramped, which leaves us little choice but to stand closer together. Lightning flashes again outside, briefly illuminating the narrow gap between us. I turn my phone flashlight on, dim it, and place the device on the counter.

Laura’s wet dress is still clinging to her seductive curves. If anything, her nipples seem even more erect than before.

I really must stop ogling her.

Hiding in here was a bad idea.

She points down to the wooden floor. “You’re still dripping.”

“So are you,” I retort.

“Maybe we should take off our wet clothes.”

Did she really say that, or is my imagination playing a trick on me?

While I stare at her, not daring to speak or move, she looks down at her hands, fiddles with the hem of her dress, then lifts her eyes back up at me. There’s a mixture of anticipation and apprehensiveness in her dark gaze, a cocktail of desire and timidity that’s absolutely intoxicating.

I’m still frozen, fighting the urge to brush her damp hair back from her face and kiss her. It’s not that I have any doubts as to what’s on her mind. She’s made it clear. Why else would she stand so close to me, and say those provocative words?

To make fun of me if I take the bait? Then maybe I should teach her a lesson about taunting me. Maybe I should tease her back, get her all sexed up and begging for it, and then walk away…

As appealing as the idea is, it won’t work. I want her too much. The slightest caress—and it’s game over for me.

She tips her face upward. “Kiss me.”

“Laura…” I take a careful breath. “If we kiss, then I’m not stopping. I won’t be able to.”

We lock eyes—and hold. Slowly, she reaches behind her back, unzips her soaked dress and slides it off. I watch it puddle around her feet, mesmerized. In the faint light provided by my phone, her smooth skin glistens with rainwater as she exhales a shaky breath.

God help me.

She unfastens the clasp of her lacy bra. It flies to the chair, revealing two full, pear-shaped breasts that are every bit as perfect as I imagined. It’s the coup de grace.

My heart racing, I step closer and eat her up with my hungry eyes. And then, suddenly, there’s no more distance between us. I’m crowding her space. My mouth comes down on hers. My feverish, insatiable hands are all over her face, shoulders and breasts. I explore every inch of her upper body, stroke her flesh, squeeze and fondle it…

So soft, so yielding!

Her nipples are the only exception. They harden even more under my touch. That reaction alone would’ve been enough to set my blood on fire. But when I bend down and pull one into my mouth, while rubbing the other one, she lets loose a long, staggered sigh of pleasure.

And I’m done for. Goodbye, swift and painless annulment! I’m not as strong-willed as I thought.

Laura Yang, I’m fucking you tonight.