AllFreeNovel
Share Us
So, Milly Devlin was a praise junkie. He filed the thought away, to use to his advantage at a later date.
‘Okay, I’ll stay, but you’ve got to make me a promise...’ she said, the teasing light in her eyes taking on a wistful glow. ‘Several promises actually.’
He didn’t usually negotiate over sex, or make promises, of any kind, to the women he slept with. Because he would inevitably have to break them. But he was willing to make an exception in Milly’s case, because she was different from his previous dates. She was innocent while also having been forced to mature way too soon, and if she had any unrealistic expectations about his offer, he owed it to them both to debunk them now.
‘Fire away,’ he said, willing to be flexible about his usual rules, up to a point.
But then she surprised him. ‘You mustn’t fall in love with me. I don’t want to get over-invested, so neither should you.’
His lips quirked at the serious expression on her face, which was a fascinating mix of guilelessness and pragmatism. ‘Not a problem,’ he replied. ‘I’m a master at not getting over-invested. And love’s not something I need.’
There was no chance he would fall in love with her, however captivating she was, because he simply didn’t do that level of emotional engagement with anyone.
‘My ego’s way too big for that,’ he offered, then added, ‘So you better make sure you don’t fall in love with me either.’ Although, he decided, she was way too smart to make that mistake—which made the next two weeks even more perfect. He wouldn’t have to hold back, wouldn’t have to pretend he felt something for her he didn’t, because, on some level, he knew she understood he had nothing but sexy times to offer her.
She nodded. ‘I won’t.’
‘Anything else?’
‘You agree to pose for me naked, if I promise not to show the work.’
He laughed but the sound was raw and husky, and the ridge in his pants shot straight to critical mass. ‘You drive a hard bargain.’
She swivelled her hips against his, trapping his erection and making him groan. ‘It seems I’m not the only one,’ she said, the challenging tone making his excitement hit fever pitch. ‘Yes or no, Garner, do we have a deal?’ she mocked. ‘It’s a simple question.’
‘Yes, damn it,’ he said, then boosted her into his arms.
As she laughed and wrapped her legs around his waist, he wondered who was seducing whom, here. With his hands massaging her butt, he marched across the terrace towards the bedroom. She laughed breathlessly as he threw her onto the bed, then climbed on top of her.
Grabbing her wrists, he lifted her arms above her head and anchored them there with one hand, while using the other to tug up her vest and expose her beautiful breasts to his gaze.
‘Here begins lesson one,’ he declared, before dragging his tongue across one tight peak. He captured the swollen flesh between his teeth and gave it a gentle tug.
She bucked against his hold, her incoherent sob like music to his ears.
‘Pay attention, Milly,’ he said as he worked his free hand into her cut-offs and found her wet and ready. ‘Because you’re going to be tested later...’
She undulated her hips to increase the friction, while he teased her with his fingers. ‘Yes, sir,’ she groaned. ‘Now please get on with it...sir.’
He chuckled at her impatient demand, before concentrating on teaching his first formal class in Mind-Blowing Orgasms for Beginners.
CHAPTER SIX
‘RELAX,ROMAN,you don’t have to stay completely still, I can work around movement,’ Milly said, busy fleshing out the line drawing, adding shading and emphasis to the sketch. A smile curved her lips as her subject frowned at her.
The man was as stiff as a board, and not in the usual way. She had never expected him to be self-conscious about posing for her when he didn’t seem to be self-conscious about anything else. But when she’d suggested they do the life drawing this morning, after a particularly energetic bout of lovemaking, he’d found about a million and one reasons why that was a really bad idea. After over three hours of prevarication—during a morning hike, then brunch, then more lovemaking, then a snorkel safari in the private cove below the villa, she had finally had to put her foot down and remind him of the promise he had made to her a week ago.
Gosh, is it already a whole week? Since we made our Devil’s Bargain?
She paused for a second, to let the ripple of disappointment at how fast their time together was slipping away wash over her, then started sketching again with renewed vigour.
The last week had been so much fun. That was all. She was not getting emotionally invested in her spectacular fling with Roman Garner, she was just appreciating how much she had enjoyed it so far. And how much she intended to enjoy the time they had left.
The last seven days had flown past in a haze of incredible sex, delicious meals—provided by Giuliana, who was a fabulous cook—and all the other vigorous activities Roman enjoyed somuch. The man was a natural athlete with energy to spare. But in between the sex, and the swimming and hiking and sailing, Milly had also managed to fit in some invigorating bursts of creativity putting together a portfolio she was already excited about—while Roman slept, something he also did with a kind of all-or-nothing determination.
The island and Roman as subjects for her work had become intertwined in her imagination, both rugged and restless with their own powerful purpose, providing her with a wealth of inspiration.
This was the first time she had managed to get him to pose for her properly. She’d loved the drawings she had done of him already, which she had worked on during the rare occasions when he was still—either while he was sleeping or eating. But she wanted something more detailed this time. As she had promised him originally, this particular composition wouldn’t be for public consumption, because he would be identifiable—and gloriously naked—but she wanted to get the details of who he was on paper, to remember these two seminal weeks of her life, with her first lover, when they parted ways.
