That night, Liz dreamed of a stormy sea. At first, she was standing barefoot on the bank, wet, pointy rocks digging into her tender soles, but she hardly noticed. She only stared ahead of her at the crashing waves. She waited for someone. She didn’t know who it was, but she was filled with longing and… pain. Pain at the thought of that person out there in the raging sea.
Then she was out there, in a tiny boat that crashed against the angry waves. She was crying out for that person, but the sea’s terrible roar was her only response. The pain in her chest continued to grow as her voice became hoarse. Still, she called out until the sea swallowed her whole.
She didn’t jump. Her heart did, but her body remained still as a tree as she rose out of the dream. Eyes still closed, Liz waited a bit for her madly beating heart to settle before she opened them. Michael was staring right at her.
Her heart jumped again when she saw him, but she still didn’t move. She wasn’t sure she was even breathing, because in the morning sun, hair all ruffled and the sleep still in his eyes, Michael Davidson was beautiful. She wanted to lean forward and kiss him, and had to curl her toes to keep from doing it.
Oh, she hated the effect he had on her.
“Good morning, sunshine,” he chirped, smiling down at her. “Did anyone ever tell you that you murmur in your sleep?”
No. Because she had never slept with anyone like that before. Sex, yes. But once the deed was done, they were out of there.
“Why were you watching me sleep?”
He shrugged. “You’re beautiful when you’re asleep. All your defenses down, so vulnerable.” Absentmindedly, he reached up to brush a lock of hair from her face. “So… innocent.”
Liz pulled away from his touch, sitting forward. The morning sun hitting her bare breasts brought last night’s happenings back to her mind. The way she had rode him in the car had been satisfying, a position she preferred since she had full control.
But it was nothing compared to what Michael did to her last night after they made it to the bedroom. He had taken over completely, and she was horrified to see how easily she was willing to hand over the reins. Without any effort, Michael had dominated her body, worshipping every inch of her skin as if she was a goddess. He gave her everything she needed, far more than she could have imagined, and for once, Liz was brought to orgasm without having to do anything but enjoy herself. Again, and again.
Hunter had tried. Many times, he had tried to get on top, back when they just started out. He wanted to please her as much as she pleased him. And she gave him some leeway, allowed him to try, but in the end, she always got back on top to finish things off.
With Michael, she didn’t care.
For the first time in her life, Liz didn’t feel the need to be in control.
He sat up with her, throwing the covers off himself as he hopped out of bed. “I hope you’re hungry,” he said cheerily, unaware of the chaos going on in Liz’s head. “After last night, I know I am. I ordered everything off the menu for room service because I wasn’t sure what you would want.”
A bit dazed, Liz looked out the window. “What time is it?”
“Six-thirty.”
She blinked at that. “You don’t strike me as the type to wake up so early.”
“Oh, trust me. I’m not. But I have a show today and my manager is probably going out of his mind because I didn’t go back to my hotel room last night. Any later and I’m sure the Italian police would be all over the place looking for me. On that note,” he reached for his pants on the floor and pulled out his phone. It looked like he was turning it on. “We have about an hour.”
“An hour until what?”
“Until they show up at your door.” The doorbell rang. Michael clapped excitedly. “Room service is here!”
He rushed out of the room, leaving Liz staring in his wake.
Her body was still feeling the aftereffects of last night, because when she crawled out of the bed, her knees nearly gave way. She made it over to the dresser and just stared at herself. Was she glowing?
“Liz!” Michael shouted from the other room. “Come get it while it’s hot.”
Slowly, still a bit dazed, she got her robe before joining him. Michael was standing over a wide trolley laden with food. His eyes were alight, eagerly picking out all the things he wanted, which was nearly everything. Liz made her way up to him and he plucked an empty plate off the trolley and handed it to her.
“I don’t think your little room service friend likes me very much,” he said on a chuckle, scooping eggs onto his plate. “You should have seen the look he was giving me. I thought you would be picking my body up off the floor right now.”
“You’re certainly in a good mood.”
“Why wouldn’t I be?” he asked, throwing a grin her way. Without missing a beat, Michael set down his plate and took hers from her hand. He gestured to the pancakes and she shook her head. “After last night, there’s no reason for me not to be over the moon.”
It was a one-time thing, she wanted to say, but the words wouldn’t pass her lips. She only nodded when he gestured to the other assortment of breakfast food on the trolley.
Once both their plates were full, they made their way over to the couches. This time, Michael plopped down right next to her.
“So,” he said. “How did you sleep?”
Like a baby up until that dream. “I slept pretty well,” she told him mildly. Every move he made had her heart fluttering. How annoying.
“I’ve never slept so well before. It was like I had no cares in the world.”
“Something I’m sure you’re probably familiar with.”
“Of course,” he quipped back. “Why stress yourself out about stupid worldly stuff? You’re only going to forget how to enjoy life.”
“Doesn’t mean you should ignore responsibility.”
“Now I never said that.” Michael nudged her. “I can see you aren’t the type to just relax once in a while.”
“I’m relaxed right now, aren’t I?”
“Are you?” he asked, and the question hung in the air.
Liz decided not to answer. She was relaxed, which was what made her feel so on edge. It wasn’t something she was used to. She didn’t know what to do with it.
She didn’t know what to do with the man sitting beside her either, except have many more nights like last night. It was supposed to be a one-night fling, where she would let her hair down and let him into her bed. She had jumped the gun in the car, but it was only proof that she had needed a release, a break from everything. One moment of abandon where she didn’t have to think about all the things she needed to get done. Michael had been her getaway.
That was, until she got a taste of him. Now, she wanted more. She was becoming insatiable, the yearning rising in her every time his arm brushed hers. All she could think about was going back into that room and having a repeat of last night. Not what happened in the car, but in the bedroom when he had driven her insane.
“Liz, you’re spacing out again.”
“I’m not spacing out,” she said calmly. “I’m thinking.”
“About?”
Liz faced him. Michael raised his brows in questions, mouth full. “Let’s do that again,” she said.
He almost choked. Quickly, he put his plate down and looked at her with wide eyes, coughing. “Huh? Did I hear that right? You want us to do what again, exactly?”
“Sex, dummy,” she said with a roll of her eyes.
“Last night, you said that it was the last time, so I shouldn’t bother bringing that up.”
“I’m surprised you actually listened to that.”
“I wasn’t planning to. I was going to wait until you finished eating first and let the food settle in your stomach before seducing you again. I was going to present a very convincing argument. Especially since—” he broke off, taking a deep breath. “I’m rambling. I just… didn’t expect you to say that is all.”
“Neither did I,” she admitted, not bothering to wonder why she was saying any of this to him. “But last night was good. Great, actually. And I want more of you. At least, until I have to leave Italy. So, I’m saying yes. Again. Let’s agree to make this a regular thing until we’re both done.”
He waited a beat. “But…?”
Smart. “But we are going to need some boundaries.”
“I figured. What? You’re going to say that I can’t call you after ten?”
“You can’t call me at all. I’ll call you. Or text you. You should—”
“I already put my number in your phone,” he said with a cheeky smile.
Liz glared at him. “That’s crossing a boundary. Don’t ever touch my phone or any of my personal belongings again, Michael.”
The ice in her voice did nothing but make him shrug, that smile still on his lips. Clearly, he didn’t regret it. It bothered her that he wasn’t even the slightest bit scared of her. “I won’t touch your phone again. I swear it. Are those all of the rules?”
“No. If we’re going to do this, I have to make one thing clear. No emotions. No attachments. It’s just strictly sex.”
“Really? And here I was thinking casual sex was a prerequisite to marriage.”
Liz paused a bit to swallow her laugh. “I’m assuming you’re on board with that, then.”
“You took the words straight out of my mouth. I’m not looking for a girlfriend any more than you’re looking for a boyfriend. Strictly sex.”
“Good. Strictly sex.”
“Let’s seal it with a kiss, then.” Michael leaned forward, his smile turned soft with desire. She nearly leaned forward to meet it when there was a banging on the door.
“Michael?” came a loud, rough voice. “Michael, are you in there? Open up!”
Michael paused, then sighed. “I shouldn’t have underestimated him.”
“I thought you said an hour,” Liz said over the pounding on the door.
“Clearly, Marcus is hellbent on beating his previous records.” With another sigh, Michael rose. He made his way over to the door to reveal an angry balding man and the concierge hovering over his shoulder. As soon as the door opened, the man marched inside.
“Are you out of your damn mind?” he shouted. “Do you know how crazy I went looking for you? Did you forget why you’re even here in the first place, Michael? You have a show in,” he paused to check his watch, “ten hours!”
“Ten hours?” Michael said with surprise. “I have more time than I thought.”
“If we miss our flight, it takes about nine hours to get to Palermo, Michael! God, sometimes it’s like you don’t think and expect everything to fall into place without even trying. One day, I’m not going to find you on time, Michael. And you’re going to royally screw up.”
“As long as I know you’re looking for me, Marcus, my heart will be content.” Michael threw a companionable hand around Marcus’ shoulders who brushed it off in disgust. The sight made Liz laugh, which brought all eyes to her.
“You’re the woman from the plane,” Marcus noticed at once, with surprise.
The concierge finally found his voice. He rushed into the room. “My apologies, Miss Harley,” he sputtered. “He was demanding to see Michael Davidson and since I knew he was your guest, I figured—”
“It’s alright, Roberto,” Liz said with a wave of her hand. She still hadn’t gotten out of the couch. “Everything is fine here, so you can go now.”
Roberto nodded respectfully and made his way out of the room. As soon as the door clicked shut, Marcus spoke again, this time to Liz. “I don’t know who you are, ma’am, but Michael has to go now. He has some important business he has to attend to.”
Before Liz could reply, Michael warmly moved forward. “Marcus, this is Elizabeth Harley. She’ll be coming to Palermo with us.”
“No, she’s not.”
“Yes,” Michael said with a vigorous nod. “She is. She’s my guest.”
Marcus stared at him, then sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. Liz continued to eat, amused. “Alright, fine. I already have your things so make sure you’re in the lobby in the next ten minutes.”
“You got it, chief.” Michael saluted Marcus. Marcus huffed angrily out the door.
Michael whirled on his heels, facing Liz. “Well, you heard the man.”
“I heard him say ten minutes,” she said. She set her plate down and got to her feet. “What can we do in ten minutes, I wonder?”
A knowing look slipped into his eyes, followed by a flare of heat when she tugged on his robe, bringing him closer to her. “You must not think very highly of me if you think I’ll only need ten minutes.”
“I think you’re resourceful and time-efficient.”
“Hmm.” The rumble of his chest felt glorious against her body. “I’ll see what I can do.”
Liz felt another smile on her lips when he kissed her.