Page 32 of Modern Romance January 2025 5-8
He exhaled sharply in shock. ‘That’s not—’ He caught himself before he addedpossible, reluctant to draw even more questions. But the truth that he hadn’t slept for seven hours since before that fateful, deadly trip to Colombia was unavoidable as he glanced at his watch, his mind churning.
She did this. She’s responsible...
Even as Jario pushed those whispered thoughts away, he was catching her hand before she turned away from him. ‘You’re not leaving.’ He wasn’t entirely sure if he meant out of his living room or out of his life. Perhaps sleep hadn’t offered the clarity he sought after all.
That sexy, challenging eyebrow rose. ‘Why the hell not?’
Yes, this should be interesting, Jario.
He ignored the taunting voice, pushed it away in favour of the gut instinct that had made him billions in a shockingly short space of time. Then hardened his resolve. ‘Because I’m not quite done with you.’
She faced him fully, the defiance firmly back in place. ‘If you think I’m going to stick around to be used as a punch bag just so you—’
‘I’ll tell you what happened with your father.’ The offer grated in his throat and he wished he could snatch it right back. But that brief moment of peace last night had felt...good. He wanted it back, for however long he could have it. Because ultimately, it wasn’t sustainable.Right?
She inhaled sharply, a mixture of pain, anger and hope in her searching eyes. ‘You will?’
His nod felt jerky. ‘Sí. But in my own time and on my terms.’
‘What does that mean?’
‘How much time do you have? I assume you’re on vacation, which is why you could board a yacht heading for Bali without a second thought?’
She scoffed. ‘Trust me, I had second, third and fourth thoughts.’
He remained silent.
‘I’m overdue vacation, yes. But...’
Her hesitation riled him. ‘But what?’
‘But I also play the piano and violin,’ she said eventually, pride flaring in her eyes and squaring her shoulders. ‘I’ve been offered a place on the Mondia Symphony Orchestra as a violinist in the fall.’
Surprise spiked through him. ‘And you signed up to be a deckhand?’
‘As Ripley’s assistant. I think we both know how I felt about scrubbing your deck.’
His gaze dropped to the hand he was still holding, turning it over with a frown and a spike of guilt. They didn’t look the worse for wear for what he’d made her do. Hell, they were still soft...silky and firm...
He sucked in a breath, dragged his mind back to the relevant topic. ‘That makes you free for how long?’
She eyed him warily. ‘Two weeks, give or take.’
Jario ignored the kick in his chest and the heat prowling through him when her hand jerked within his. ‘Good.’
The faintest tremble went through the fingers he held. ‘You couldn’t wait to get rid of me a few hours ago, and now you want me to stay? I’m not fond of mind games, Jario,’ she said, triggering that need to drill into her reticence. Dismantle her bewilderment.
Because by tackling hers, he might better understand and defeat his own?
‘You didn’t have the decency to stay out of my way. So now we bargain.’ The heady smell of lemongrass from her skin—from both their skins—heated his blood and made his mouth positively water.
Her lips parted in surprise, but she didn’t tug herself free when he pulled her close. As the silence thickened between them, as their bodies reacted as they had from the first, from the insane chemical reaction their proximity created, his gaze dropped to the tightening nipples so very tantalising close to his mouth.
Hunger stalked through his veins, savage, more potent than he’d ever felt in his life. Sharpened by long months of abstention? Perhaps. But more than that, it was a need to conquer the unfamiliar threat she posed, this indescribable fixation he’d developed for her.
Letting her leave as she’d threatened would be the best option, but that need to win, to dominate this problem, wouldn’t free him from its claws.
‘If I stay, I’m not sleeping with you to get you to tell me what happened with my father.’ Again, there was something behind her tone that spoke of past, deeper subtexts.