Ariadne cuddled into him, purring like a cat who’d just eaten her fill. Shell-shocked, Dio’s arm went around her as she fitted her head into the crook of his neck. In her arms, he’d had the most amazing orgasm of his life, and instead of feeling content and sated, he felt panicked. He’d called her my love. What the fuck had gotten into him?
He’d felt something, an emotion so strange he hadn’t been able to truly comprehend it. It had hit him broadside, knocking him on his ass and taking over his senses: no wonder he’d tossed the endearment out and actually meant it at that moment. It had blinded him, but he couldn’t let this strange feeling take root in his mind. It was dangerous to let himself be sucked into believing he was actually capable of such emotion. No, something had to be wrong with him. Maybe he’d eaten something that didn’t agree with him. It had to be temporary. It just had to be.
“I knew it would be like this with you,” she murmured.
“Mmm hmm.” Dio searched for anything to say, but his mind had never been so blank. Was it the warmth of her body that had turned his brain into molasses, or was he still drunk on her taste?
“I knew that once I found the right man, things would be perfect. And they are.” She drew a lazy circle around his nipple, her fingernail arousing him more than was humanly possible. “My mother was right about one thing, you know.”
He couldn’t stop himself from asking. After all, he had to say something at some point. He couldn’t just lie there like a log. “What’s that?”
“If you find the person you’re meant to be with, everything will be perfect. Just like it is with us.”
Dio froze. This couldn’t be happening. Ariadne couldn’t possibly think that this was more than just a fling, well, a one-night-stand really. When had he ever given her the impression that he was interested in a relationship? At that word, something in his solar plexus constricted painfully. Why had he called her my love? And why had he felt so connected to her when he’d made love to her? There: he couldn’t even call it fucking! How pathetic was that? Since when had he turned into some pussy-whipped idiot?
Yes, something was seriously wrong with this picture. He was still in Ariadne’s bed, cuddling, for Hades’ sake! And his body made no motion to move, to get up, get dressed, and get the hell out of there. But he knew he had to. He couldn’t allow the things that wandered through his mind to change him in any way. He was who he was: a philanderer, a womanizer, a seducer. Nobody would change that. It was better if he made a clean break right now before more words about a relationship flew about the room, before he gave her hope where there was none.
And before he seriously hurt her, just like his father had hurt all the women he’d ever been with. And he was his father’s son if he liked it or not.
Even though he hated what he had to do, he forced himself to do it anyway. “Sleep, my sweet.” His persuasive powers, powers each god possessed, lulled her into sleep.
Like a thief in the night, he left her bed. As he cast a glance back at Ariadne’s sleeping body, his chest tightened. His body rebelled, wanting him to return to her arms, to sleep with her body wrapped around him. The draw was so strong, he swayed and had to steady himself with a hand against the wall. She was weakening his resolve just by lying there in her sleep, vulnerable and as beautiful as a summer’s day. But he had to resist for Ariadne’s sake. She would be better off without him.
As fast as his shaking limbs allowed, Dio got dressed while contemplating wiping her memory of him. But the content smile that touched her lips even in her sleep stopped him. He didn’t want to take her memories away. They’d given each other pleasure tonight, and he didn’t want to erase those memories, though he knew it would be better.
As he stalked into the night, running from something he didn’t understand, Dio’s gut twisted. He’d never had any problems walking away from a woman before, and the knowledge that he was hurting her with what he was doing only magnified his guilt and the feeling in his chest that he was making a big mistake. The biggest mistake of his life.
~ ~ ~
Ariadne stretched her arms over her head as consciousness returned and sleep traded places with wakefulness. Slowly, the events of the previous night returned, pasting a smile on her face. Her entire body still hummed from the aftermath of her lovemaking with Dio. She’d been overwhelmed with the intensity of sensations he’d conjured up in her. She’d never felt so cherished.
Even before she opened her eyes to the sunlight that streamed through the partially closed blinds, she knew she was alone. She glanced at the clock on her bedside table and shot up to sit. No wonder Dio had already left: it was past eight o’clock and high time to get ready if she didn’t want to be late. Dio probably had to get to work too.
For a moment, she paused. It was strange, but he’d never mentioned what he did for a living, other than saying that he managed some investments and traveled a lot for his job. Ari chuckled to herself: being the perfect gentleman, he’d always asked her about her life and interests and refrained from constantly talking about himself. It was a welcome change from other men who found themselves so important that they only wanted to talk about their own achievements. Now that she thought about it, Dio always deflected questions about his life, almost as if there was a lot of pain in his past and he didn’t want to talk about it.
Ari knew something about pain. She’d gotten hurt over a year ago, and it had taken her until now to pick up the pieces and let go of the disappointment and heartache. And in the process, she’d found Dio. Sometimes things did turn out all right.
Ari swung her legs out of bed and rushed to the bathroom. She had no time to daydream right now, but even her lack of time couldn’t wipe the smile off her face. As she stepped into the shower and let the warm water sluice down her body, she was aware of every cell in her body, every inch of skin Dio had touched and kissed, and particularly of the place between her legs that throbbed pleasantly in synch with her heartbeat.
She bit back the disappointment that Dio hadn’t woken her when he’d left, but maybe he was just being considerate. She must have fallen asleep shortly after they’d made love, because for the life of her, she couldn’t remember that they’d talked or cuddled. She wasn’t normally one to nod off that quickly, but then she’d never before felt so sated after being with a man. Her body had been so relaxed that it was probably normal that she’d fallen asleep so quickly.
Without much ado, she finished her shower and dried off. Maybe next time when they had more time, she and Dio could shower together and then go back to bed. Ari shook her head and started blow drying her hair. She’d turned into such a dreamer again. After the debacle with Jeff, she’d stopped wishing for things she didn’t think she could have. She’d felt useless and unworthy of someone’s love. And why wouldn’t she? The humiliation she’d endured was a feeling she never wanted to reacquaint herself with. The only way to protect herself from it had been to close off her heart and keep others at a distance. But Dio had pierced her armor and broken down the walls she’d erected.
For the first time in many months, Ari left her house feeling elated and carefree.
The walk to her shop was short, and when she arrived, her assistant Lisa was waiting at the entrance. The summer dress Lisa wore made her appear even younger than her twenty-two years, or maybe it was simply the fact that she was extremely pretty and tanned. As a vintner’s daughter from California, she’d come for a one-month internship and had then asked if she could stay on for another year since she really liked Charleston and found the people charming.
Knowing that she needed help with the shop if she didn’t want to work seven days a week, Ari had hired her immediately. The girl had a great way with customers and could charm just about anybody. And she knew her wines. Besides, being from California, she was able to negotiate larger discounts from some of the California wineries whose owners she knew personally and whose sons and daughters she’d grown up with.
But aside from that, Ari loved Lisa’s bubbly personality.
“Sorry, I forgot my key this morning,” Lisa greeted her. “It’s gonna be a busy day. I’m so glad you’re on time. We’ve got the Dry Creek shipment coming in today.”
Ari pulled her key out of her handbag and unlocked. “Morning, Lisa. What happened? You’re normally not forgetful.”
Lisa followed her into the shop, and Ari flipped the lights on.
“I was out last night and had my keys in my other handbag.”
Ari’s wine shop wasn’t big, but it stocked a nice selection of domestic and international wines, and she prided herself on good customer service. After purchasing the lease from the old couple who’d run the shop for over thirty years, she’d made a lot of changes to it.
In addition to the wooden racks along the walls, there was a small tasting corner with a wet bar. The dark granite counter top had been her idea, because she wanted to avoid wine stains from showing up. They were unavoidable, but on the dark stone they barely showed. She also used the corner for occasional wine appreciation classes, an idea she had to thank Lisa for. The free classes brought new customers into the store who were otherwise too intimidated to ask about wines. By offering to teach them about wine, she’d gained many new loyal customers.
“Do we need bread and cheese?” Lisa asked.
“I used up the last of the bread yesterday. But check in the storage room to see if there’s any cheese left.”
While Lisa went in the back, where a room as large as the sales area was stocked full with cases of wine and other supplies, Ari booted up the computer and logged into the sales program: another upgrade she’d brought to the shop. The new computer program didn’t simply ring up purchases and process credit card receipts, it was also tied into her inventory system and kept track of what bottles she had left. It cut down tremendously on the time she had to spend on re-ordering.
“Lisa,” she called out toward the open storage room door.
“Yeah?”
“What time are you expecting the Dry Creek shipment?”
“Between eleven and one.” Lisa reappeared from the back. “And we’re out of cheese too. Do you want me to stock up now before it gets busy?”
Ari nodded. “Yes, and also get some crackers and—” The ring of the phone interrupted her. She reached for the receiver and brought it to her ear. “—and bottled water,” she continued her instruction to Lisa. “In Vino Veritas,” she answered the phone with a smile. “How may I help you?” The new name for the shop had been entirely her idea. And every time she answered the phone and announced the name, she felt her chest swell with pride. This was her baby, something she’d achieved all on her own.
“So, what happened?” Natalie chirped on the other end of the line without as much as a greeting. “Tell me everything.”
Ari rolled her eyes. “Hold on a sec.” She put the phone to the side and opened the till. “Lisa, you’ll need some money.” She fished two twenties out of the drawer and handed them to her.
As soon as Lisa closed the shop door behind her, Ari picked up the phone again. “Morning, Natalie.”
“Yes, yes, good morning. So, tell me what happened.” Clearly her friend wasn’t up for useless pleasantries this morning when there were juicy details to be had.
Ari couldn’t help but grin. “We went out. He took me to this little restaurant with—”
“Don’t give me this,” Natalie warned. “You know exactly what I want to know. Did you guys do it?”
She took in a deep breath and could have sworn she could still scent Dio’s aftershave around her. “It was very nice.”
“Very nice? Very nice? That’s all you’re giving me? I’m your best friend! Your only friend if I may add! Oh, girl, you’re so getting a tongue-lashing from me if you’re not coughing up the goods right now!”
“Okay, okay,” Ari capitulated. The reminder that Natalie was her only true friend always worked. “It was amazing. We went back to my place, and he just ... he was so ...”
“Amazing?” Natalie helped, a grin evident in her voice. “Details, Ari, details!”
She eyed the door, secretly hoping for the first customers to arrive so she would have a legitimate reason to cut the conversation short, but nobody entered the store. All she could do was stall. “He’s really ripped, you know.” That was a safe enough admission, and it didn’t give too much away. And wow, had he looked good naked. Dio had a seriously gorgeous body. Even now the mere thought of running her fingertips along his bare skin sent shudders through her core.
“You mean like a six-pack?”
Ari suppressed her chuckle, glad that her diversion tactic seemed to work. “Almost like Arnold Schwarzenegger in his young days. But way less pretentious.”
Natalie’s laugh echoed through the phone. “He’d better be less pretentious.” She paused for a moment. “And more faithful!”
Ari felt a sense of warmth flood her. The way Dio had looked at her last night, she just knew that he would be true to her. There’d been so much desire and affection in his gaze, she couldn’t possibly be wrong. “I’m sure he is.”
“Did he stay the whole night?” Natalie’s next question came as though fired from a gun. “Because if he stayed the night, that’s a good sign.”
“You know, I’m not sure. I fell asleep so quickly. But I’m pretty sure he stayed the night.” Had he? Or had he left once she’d been asleep?
“What do you mean, you’re pretty sure? Did he wake up with you or didn’t he?”
Ari swallowed away her rising doubts. “He was gone by the time I woke up, but then,” she added hastily, defensiveness creeping into her tone, “I overslept, and he probably had to get to work too, so you can’t blame him for leaving early.”
“Uh-huh.”
Annoyance spread in her belly. “What?”
“So, let me get this straight: you’re not sure he spent the night because he was gone by the time you woke up. Did you guys at least cuddle afterwards?”
Ari hesitated. She remembered saying a few words to him, but after that, things went blank. “Uh ... well ...”
“So, that’s a no then. That kind of answers my next question. He didn’t say the ‘L’ word, did he?”
Ari felt heat rise into her cheeks. She hated it when Natalie drilled down to the essentials so quickly and dug up stuff Ari felt uncomfortable about. “Guys don’t say that immediately. You know that as well as I do!”
“Okay, I grant you that.” Yet that admission didn’t shut her friend up. “Has he called you yet?”
“It’s nine thirty in the morning! Of course, he hasn’t called me yet. Don’t you think that would be a little desperate?” Actually, if Dio called now, she’d find it very sweet. More than that, she’d find it utterly endearing.
“Desperate, schmesperate,” Natalie said. “It would be the right thing to do. After all, you guys had sex last night. The least he could do is leave you a note on the pillow or call you first thing in the morning. Just saying.”
There had been no note, at least Ari hadn’t seen any. And she had searched for it. Just on the off chance that he had left her a little message. Maybe he’d been in too much of a hurry to get to work.
“I’m sure he’ll call later this afternoon.”
“He’d better.”
“Listen, I’ve gotta go. We’ve got a big shipment coming in, and I still have to make space in the storeroom.”
“Okay, but call me as soon as you hear from him.”
“Sure.” Ari put the phone down and smoothed back her hair. Fifteen minutes ago, she’d felt like walking on Cloud Nine, and now she had doubts. She felt like a sixteen-year-old school girl wondering if the high school quarterback would ask her out again. With an impatient gesture, she tried to rid herself of the stupid thought. Of course, Dio would call. They’d made love last night, and she’d seen the sincerity in his eyes. There was nothing to worry about.