The ‘somewhere quieter and private’ that Nikolas had promised was the dining room of his suite. Cheryl’s eyes had widened when she’d seen the view, but she had not objected or said anything, simply stared out over the river and the shore beyond.
Nikolas came up behind her. His hand rested lightly and very casually on her shoulder while explaining her the view. Through the thin material of her blouse, Cheryl felt warm beneath his touch. And since he felt her quite startled, Nikolas kept his contact brief.
He stepped away, feeling a wry smile tugging at his mouth as his eyes flickered over her rearview. She had called her uniform ‘stupid’. But Nikolas had another word for it and it wasn’t one he would use in front of her. Not without pushing her away
Completely overwhelmed with wonder and disbelief, Cheryl sat in the wide leather seat of the private jet. She kept pinching herself, still struggling to believe that being there with him was really happening to her, the most uninteresting and normal woman in the world. ‘What on earth am I doing here? How come he wanted me with him on this trip?’ Cheryl kept asking herself avoiding his occasional glimpse. ‘Seriously, Cher? Nikolas Adamos had requested your presence by his side in this lavishing American trip and instead of enjoying this and him, you’re still looking for mysteries where there are none. Just live this moment, girl! Live him for as long as he will have you.’ The words circled slowly in her brain. It was hard to think coherently, rationally. It was
Nikolas turned to glance at her again. She was leafing through a glossy magazine now, her head slightly bowed and her lovely profile exposed to him, and he let his eyes linger a moment. Yes, she was different indeed. And not just in looks and style. In personality too. Cheryl was quiet, for a start. She didn’t try to talk to him, to make sophisticated conversation, or demands of him. She simply gave a fleeting smile, almost shy, her eyes only briefly meeting his, before drawing away as if she wasn’t sure whether to look at him. Nor did she seem, like all the other women he knew, to relish and revel in the attentions of other men. All the women he had selected for his leisure hours had always known how prized they were and had taken it for granted that male eyes would be drawn to them. Cheryl was
Being in Chicago with Nikolas was just as wonderful as being in New York. As it was being in San Francisco, and then Atlanta, and then, after the United States, back in Europe, in Milan, Italy. Being anywhere with him had been wonderful… Anywhere at all! For as long as Nikolas wanted her. And he did seem to want her! That was the amazing, fantastical thing! She had given up wondering at it, worrying about it. Time seemed to have stopped. Past and future seemed to have slipped away. There was only an endless, wonderful ‘now’ that swept her away on wings of wonder and delight. A ‘now’ that was focused only and entirely on Nikolas. The irresistible, gorgeous, sexy Nikolas. Cheryl was helpless and could only give herself to him, time after time, night after night. His care of her, h
Nikolas brought his thoughts back to the present. In the meantime, he would enjoy taking her to ‘La Scala’ tomorrow night and enjoy even more seeing her in yet another exquisite evening gown.“Tomorrow,” he announced, “you must go and visit the boutiques on Via Montenapoleone. You’d find every single famous fashion designer shop there. Your mission will be to buy a gown suitable for the opera at the most important Italian opera houses.”“Really? Are we going to ‘La Scala’?” she exclaimed and, in her eyes, Nikolas could see pure joy.“Have you ever been there?” he asked.“Unfortunately, never… My father loved opera… A lot. This was one of his many dreams. He never saw it coming true,” she whispered and stopped. This was t
Still… while it did last, while Nikolas still desired her, how could she possibly walk away from all this… from him? What reason could she have for doing it? Nothing… absolutely nothing that could resemble to a good reason. The truth was she loved being with him, even if it was for a long or a short period of time because she was already… out of her mind in love with him. Later that night, as Cheryl was lying asleep in the embracing cradle of Nikolas’s strong and protective arms, she woke up from a nightmare. The tormenting notes of the opera’s music followed her in her sleep and Cheryl tried to calm herself down before waking Nikolas up. She gazed out into the darkness of the room. Around her, she could feel his arms, behind her the strong wall of his chest. She migh
Cheryl sat in her wide leather seat on Nikolas’s jet, gazing out of the window at the landscape far, far below. She was so relieved and happy... In her head, she could still hear Nikolas’s voice on the yacht, sounding almost curt. It had filled her with such dread. ‘Baby, there’s been a change of plan.’ Even as she’d heard the words, she had felt her heart stop beating. ‘This is it,’ Cheryl thought. ‘He is sending me away. Everything’s over…’ But it hadn’t been that at all. Instead, the change of plan had consisted not of sailing across the Tyrrhenian Sea to Sardinia, as Nikolas had originally told her, but flying to Paxos, a Greek Island.“It’s only for a couple of nights, Cher,
“Baby, I need your body in ways that you don’t understand…” Cheryl sucked in her breath sharply. Nikolas drew her against him and ducked his head to nuzzle her exposed throat and nibbled his way up the cord of her neck, then positioned his mouth directly above hers. His hard, long, hungry kiss left her weak and needy. She wrapped her arms around Nikolas’s neck for support, and for gratification curved her body against the front of his.“Hm, that feels good… You have no idea how much…” Cupping her hips, he pulled her tighter against him. Then he unfastened the single button on her dress and slipped his hands inside, covering her breasts. Nikolas took off her dress and gazed at her full breasts, filling and spilling over the lace cups of her demi-bra. Deep in his throat,
Cheryl had been swept away, borne off on a tide of longing and wonder and deep sensuality. She clung to Nikolas, hands pressing against his chest, her mouth moving beneath his. She could feel, hot and hectic, the pulse throb at her throat, feel her breasts swelling too, their tips hardening against his chest. When Nikolas released her, she was breathless, boneless. Cheryl could only gaze at him, eyes wide, lips parted, filled with desire for him… unstoppable, irresistible desire. ‘Oh, what are you doing to me, Nikolas? How can I feel like this?’ she seemed to say just by looking at him. The questions ran around in her mind, but Cheryl couldn’t think, couldn’t do anything but drown in the feelings he awakened in her. More than feelings. Nikolas gave