Taught by the Tycoon (13 page)

When the evening was over, and they were being driven out of the city and toward Milan, it was nearing ten in the evening.

“It will be quite late when we get there. The drive is nearly an hour and a half. You will likely be tired.”

There was silence for a moment, as she stared out the window. They passed under a streetlight and he could see her reflection in the glass, the slight furrow between her eyes.

“I slept well last night and am not the least bit sleepy yet.”

His chest tightened and he closed his eyes briefly.
Dio
, she was not going to make this easy on him. He just needed to get through the rest of this week without touching her, and then things would return to normal. One day at a time.

When they arrived at his home, the lights were on—as he’d requested his staff leave them—and the night was quiet.

The family driver helped them carry their bags inside and then once again left. They were entirely alone.

“Would you care for a snack? A drink?” He was compelled to offer her something. To stall.

“I’m still full from dinner.” She bit her lip. “Actually, I am a little tired. Maybe heading to bed is a good thing?”

Tension claimed his body, and he forced a nod. “Of course. Let me show you to your room.”

There was no reason for them to share a room now, and the main reason why he’d brought her here—to make love—was now off the table.

Surprise flickered across her face, but she didn’t say anything as she followed him wordlessly through the house. He gave her the guest room that overlooked the lake. It was spacious and furnished with a queen sized bed and a large plush couch.

Her gaze slid to the couch and the bed, and something flickered in her eyes. Maybe irritation, but it quickly changed to contemplation.

“I will leave you to your rest. Should you need anything, don’t hesitate to come find me or text me.”

He turned to leave, and her words stopped him short.

“I need you to unzip my dress.”

Damiano’s muscles coiled and he closed his eyes, silently using a string of curses in his head.

He’d barely survived zipping her into the dress in the first place, and now she wanted him to take it off her?

With his jaw clenched, he turned around and gave a brief nod. Trying to keep his mind in a clinical mode as she gave him a grateful smile, before turning and presenting him with her back.

He pushed her length of hair to the side to find the zipper. It was a struggle to resist threading his fingers into the silken locks and tugging her head back. To find the curve of her neck and press his lips against it.

Instead he tugged the metal tab on the zipper down and her naked back came into view inch by tantalizing inch. So soft and pale, and then the sensual red bra peeked out.

“I believe that is far enough, no?” he rasped, and couldn’t quite hide his irritation. But it was with himself, not with her, for wanting her so badly his unshakable control came into question.

There was a pause, and he hoped he would be off the hook, and then, “Actually, it sticks a bit at the bottom. If you don’t mind undoing it completely?”

Merda
. She was killing him here.

He ground his teeth together and continued to pull the zipper down to the bottom. The dress parted all the way, revealing the two strings of red slashed across her hips in some kind of minuscule panties. His cock strained against his suit trousers and the air hissed between his clenched teeth.

“There you are.” The words cracked and he stepped away from her quickly. If he didn’t, he’d give into temptation and pull the dress off her and unwrap the lingerie from her body like a present.

“Thank you.”

Her husky reply was nearly his undoing. When she started to turn around, he spun on his heel and strode to the door. He needed to leave. Now. Before he embarrassed himself.

“Goodnight,” he choked out. “I’ll see you in the morning.”

Rachel flinched at the slamming of her bedroom door. What on earth had just happened?

She stared in dismay at the empty room that Damiano had been so quick to leave from.

Why?

Her stomach sank with disappointment, and her heart ached with what could only be a blatant rejection. Maybe she hadn’t outright said she’d capitulated and wanted to sleep with him tonight, but she hadn’t exactly played coy.

Last night Damiano had vowed to have her in his bed, and today he was acting as if she had a disease.

What had changed?

Swallowing against the lump in her throat, she shimmied out of the dress and then took off the lingerie she’d so carefully picked out.

She bypassed the sexy nightie she’d also purchased at the shop in Milan, and grabbed an oversized T-shirt instead. Clearly there would be no lovemaking this evening.

After preparing for bed, she snagged her phone and climbed beneath the sheets.

Drowsy with fatigue and disappointment, she opened her messages to find an unread one she’d missed from her brother.

She winced as she read it. Of course he had completely freaked out when he’d seen the gossip about her and Damiano. She should’ve expected that and notified him of their ruse ahead of time.

The message had been sent early this morning. Odd that he hadn’t followed up when she didn’t reply. Unless...

She sat up in bed and bit her lip. Unless he’d called Damiano and they’d talked.

It was all too easy to envision how that conversation would have gone. Disbelief, accusations, and likely some kind of warning.

Was it possible Damiano was backing away from her because he’d spoken with Theo? Would he be so easily influenced?

Even though it was late, she texted her brother back and asked if he’d spoken to Damiano.

Almost immediately, Theo responded.

Spoke with him this morning and he cleared everything up. Glad to hear the relationship is a pretense. I think he knows you’re off limits anyway. Talk to you soon, and we’ll have dinner when I’m in New York
.

The disappointment gripping her stomach switched to a slow burn of anger and disbelief. Theo had warned Damiano away, she didn’t doubt it for a moment. And Damiano, who never let anyone call the shots for him, had heeded the warning in respect of his and Theo’s long-standing friendship.

She closed her eyes and sighed.

This was, to be crude, complete bullshit.

When she went down to breakfast in the morning, Damiano was seated at the table, dressed in his suit and tie, and eating breakfast.

She knew his schedule had been cleared, but apparently he’d found something to fill it. Her lips thinned as she sat down at the modest, cozy kitchen table. The view was a bit less than modest, with the shimmering blue of Lake Como just beyond the glass.

“Where are you off to?” She kept her tone light as she helped herself to a croissant from the variety of breads and fruit in the middle of the table.

“I’ve a meeting in Milan, just before lunch.”

One of his staff brought over a carafe of coffee and filled the mug beside her.

“All right. If you can give me a half hour I can be ready to accompany you.” She wrapped her hands around the mug and took a sip. “I’ll just need to change into something more suitable.”

Though the khaki pants and sleeveless black top might be fine, she preferred something a bit more professional.

Damiano set his mug down, dodging her gaze as he stood. “That won’t be necessary. I can attend this alone.”

He was officially avoiding her. Her lips twisted with a mix of amusement and irritation, but she kept her face turned away from him so he wouldn’t see any trace of it in her expression.

“I feel as if I’m hardly working,” she protested.

“You did not come to Italy to work. You came to pose in the role of my lover,” he paused, and his tone held an edge when he spoke again. “Also to learn lessons on dating a billionaire, no? Well here’s another lesson. You must learn to relax, Rachel.”

He’d completely dropped the endearment
Dolcezza
and was back to calling her Rachel. Maybe she was wrong? Maybe he’d simply changed his mind about wanting her.

Her heart pinched at another possibility. Maybe he’d decided he was interested in Maria after all. It wasn’t a farfetched deduction.

“I have a beautiful pool overlooking the lake below. Go outside and sit in one of the lounge chairs. Read a book. Listen to music. Whatever you’d like.”

“The pool. Of course.”

“You have a suit to swim in?”

“Yes.” She’d brought one from home, not really imagining she’d need it.

Her phone beeped and she glanced down to see a text pop up. She opened the message from Lexi and read the details on a date her friend had gone on the other night. Lexi, never shy of giving too much information, went into detail by comparing her date’s jeans-restrained erection to having a python in his pants.

“Blushing?”

“Sorry?” She closed out of the text quickly and tried to hide her smile.

“You’re blushing.” Damiano’s gaze narrowed on her, his expression cooling. “Lionelli again?”

Lionelli? She barely thought about him anymore. The only man she wanted right now was standing in front of her, trying very hard to be immune to whatever charms she may or may not have.

She opened her mouth, ready to explain it was her roommate, and then closed it again as she remembered one of his first lessons.

Men love competition.

Hmm. She gave a small shrug and slipped her phone back into her pocket. Instead of answering his question, she gave a languid smile. “You’re right. Maybe I should try and get used to this poolside lounging.”

The immediate flash of jealousy in his eyes only confirmed her suspicions from last night. Theo had put Damiano in a chokehold of guilt, and Damiano was trying to do the right thing. She’d just have to ensure he ended up doing the wrong one.

They were making decisions for her, as if she were irrelevant in this all. Just a pawn in a game. Well then. She’d just have to play her own gambit.

Damiano returned to his home in an irritable mood he hadn’t been able to shake since morning. It had taken hold when Rachel had read that text from Lionelli and gotten all flustered.

He hadn’t been able to make himself leave the house fast enough after that, before he said something he regretted. Or did something like drag her into his arms and kiss the thought of his fellow tycoon away.

He moved through the house trying to figure out where she’d disappeared to, and then realized she was likely in the very place he’d suggested.

A quick step outside showed her off at the far end of the pool, lying on one of the lounge chairs.

She was too far away to see more that a flash of pale flesh and bikini. If he were smart, he’d leave her be and go inside and send the few emails he needed to reply to.

But at the moment, intelligence seemed to be failing him. He stepped out onto the grounds behind his home and made his way to where she lounged.

“I hope you’re wearing sunblock?”

She’d been lying on her stomach, and at the sound of his voice turned over to her back.

“I am. Though I’m sure quite a bit rinsed off when I swam.”

Her hair was still damp, curling slightly around the ends that touched the tops of her breasts.

“Maybe you could help me apply more?” Her smile was lazy. Challenging.

Merda
. She was bent on tempting him.

“I must attend to business inside.”

“Oh must you? Really?” Amusement laced her tone. “What happened, Damiano? You were so eager to seduce me, and now it’s as if you couldn’t be bothered to even look my way.”

Couldn’t be bothered to look her way?
Dio
, he was having a harder time taking his gaze off her. But he needed to desperately. Needed to not stare at the triangles of crocheted pink fabric on her breasts. At the flat stomach that stretched below it. And he most definitely shouldn’t be staring at the tiny scrap of swimsuit that barely covered the swell of her mound.

She crossed one long leg over another, and his blood quickened.

“Let’s just say my conscience kicked in.”

She arched a brow. “And by conscience you mean my brother?”

His gaze reluctantly slid to hers. “
Sí
.”

“Ah. At least you’ve admitted it.” She unfurled herself from the lounge and walked toward him. “Didn’t you once say that we were both adults?”

“Rachel.” He didn’t step back, but rasped her name in a plea to cease whatever intentions she had.

“This trip was about lessons, and you’ve taught me quite a bit already.” She gave a light shrug and toyed with the string that held her bikini top up. “I told you once before that I’m not a virgin, but the two times I’ve had sex were fairly awful.”

The jealousy that surged through him at the image of her with other men was instant and powerful. So much so, he almost convinced himself he’d heard her next words wrong.

“And so I’ve decided there’s no reasons for our lessons to stop at the bedroom. Teach me how to be a better lover, Damiano.”

One quick pull on the knot behind her neck had the bikini top half off. His tongue was glued to the roof of his mouth as he tried to protest, but she’d already reached behind her to untie the string at her back.

Deftly she plucked the top free and tossed it onto the lounger. Her pert breasts were now set free to the Italian sun and his hungry eyes.

“
Rachel
,” he said thickly as she took his hands and placed them on her breasts. “Your brother—”

“Is completely irrelevant in my decisions, and honestly kind of a mood killer, so please don’t bring him up again.”

He groaned, unable to stop himself from molding the small curves of her breasts in his palms. She made a little gasp of pleasure that completely undid him.

“Just promise you won’t find some reason to fire me down the road for sleeping with you.” She sounded half-teasing, half-solemn.