Page 83 of When She Unravels
I place my palms on his chest and try to shove him away, but his body behaves as if it’s made of granite. He doesn’t budge.
He takes my chin and tilts my face toward him. A powerful shiver runs through me.
“Cold?” He flicks his gaze down to my bathing suit where I know he’ll find the sharp outline of my nipples.
I can’t allow him to know the effect he’s having on me. “As I’ve been trying to tell you, I’m dripping wet, and the AC is on.”
He leans forward and presses his warm body flush against mine. I gasp when my breasts connect with his hard chest.
“Better?”
“No.”
He snakes one arm around my waist and places his other hand at the nape of my neck. “How’s this?”
It feels like Pop Rocks are popping over the entire expanse of my body. “Awful,” I breathe.
“Liar,” he says with a smirk. His eyes flare with desire and the fact that he’s not even bothering to hide it this time tells me he thinks he’s winning this game.
He’s wrong.
“Get off me,” I say.
“As soon as I do, I’m taking you back to your room. Is that what you want?”
I bite my lip.
“Ah, so you don’t want to go back upstairs?”
“No,” I admit.
“You don’t like your room?” He traces circles over the small of my back.
“It’s a cage. There are literal bars on the window.”
“Think of them as being for your own safety.”
“What are you going to do with me?” I ask.
At this, he pulls back and stares down at me. “I don’t know yet.”
“How much longer do I have to wait?”
“I don’t know.”
My eyes narrow, and the haze induced by the rosé and his close proximity fades. I’m so damn tired of being in this limbo. The uncertainty weighs on me heavier with each passing day. “I’m ready to go up.”
This time, when I push my palms against him, he moves away.
There’s a twinge in my chest. I tell myself it’s just my body missing his physical warmth.
When I’m inside of my room and he locks the door behind me, I nearly manage to convince myself it’s the truth.
CHAPTER25
DAMIANO
After I leaveValentina to stew in her room, I make my way back to the pool and try to forget the visceral sensation of her curves pressed against my chest.
