Princess in the Iron Mask - By Victoria Parker Page 0,48

loafers. ‘Damn woman,’ he muttered, lifting one foot to yank off his shoe, then the other, and throwing them over his shoulder. ‘Claudia!’ he repeated, closing the distance.

She spun around, her eyes...alight? A huge smile illuminated her face. Curls bobbed, caressing her smooth, honeyed shoulders.

‘Lucas, look!’ she said. ‘Fish.’

Bending forward, she pointed to her feet with both forefingers, ramping her cleavage to a lush slit, and his vision blurred.

‘I’m in the sea and I can feel squillions of teeny fish tickling my legs. It’s amazing.’

She hopped, breasts bouncing, and desire slammed into him with the force of a tidal wave—which did not help his current state of mind

‘Fish! Madre de Dios—fish, Claudia!’ he said, balling his hands before he hauled her into his arms, because the need to touch her was so violent he quaked with it. ‘What the hell are you doing all the way out here? I told you the sea was off-limits!’

Eerily slowly she straightened, narrowed her eyes, and folded her arms across her taut stomach—the action bunched those incredible breasts above her bikini top, making them threaten to spill over.

‘No, you didn’t. You told me—and these were your exact words—“No swimming in the sea, Cllowtia. Comprende? There is a ledge beyond which a fierce undercurrent could suck you under.” That is what you said.’

His chest heaved, ‘Sí. That is exactly what I said.’

‘So I’m paddling.’

‘Paddling is also forbidden!’

‘Forbidden?’ she yelled, arms dropping to her sides, hands fisting for a fight, her tone as angry as her gorgeous face. ‘What do want me to do, Lucas? Stay in the house while you ignore me or bark instructions as to where I’m going next. Don’t I obey your every command? Well, I’ve had it. It’s driving me crazy!’

Getting turned on even more by her temper was probably a bad sign, he thought. ‘Quiet and solitude never bothered you in London!’

She seemed to think about that. ‘That was then. And I was working. Really, Lucas, don’t you think you’re overreacting?’

‘No.’ Although he had to admit from his office she’d seemed a lot farther away.

‘For God’s sake, can’t you forget about your blasted job for one minute?’ she hollered.

‘My job?’

‘You aren’t going to deprive the country of an apparent national treasure by letting me paddle! And... Oh!’

She scrunched her nose in that cute way she did sometimes.

Cute? Dios, he was losing the plot. She was senseless and selfish and— Wasn’t she?

‘Ow!’ she said, wincing as she looked down. Lifted her foot.

Before she could blink, he shot forward, grabbed her waist and lifted her clean out of the water. ‘What is it?’

Her hands clamped on his shoulders, fingers digging into his flesh, and either he pulled or she jumped, because the next thing he knew her breasts were crushed against his chest and her legs were wrapped tight around his waist, hooking at the small of his back.

Madre de Dios!

‘Something was getting a bit too friendly,’ she said, a little tremble in her voice.

‘Sí. I do not blame them,’ he muttered, distracted by the feel of the soft skin sheathing her decadent curves. Bad, bad idea, Garcia. The only thing missing from his earlier erotic fantasy was his carbon-steel erection sliding inside of her. ‘You are killing me, Claudia.’

Cupping her delicious derrière, Lucas took all her weight and her fingers slackened their death grip on his shoulders—trusting him, knowing he wouldn’t allow her to fall. Such a small thing, but it made his heart stutter and the need to pull her tighter into his body was a ferocious claw. To hold her, just this once, with her glorious hair falling over his bare forearms, a soft and silky caress.

One of her hands slipped off his shoulder, smoothed down his chest, lay over his breast.

‘Your heart feels like it’s going to burst through your skin,’ she said, her voice awed.

‘It might,’ he breathed, watching her face heat as she stared at his open collar.

With her free hand she tiptoed her fingers to the base of his throat...stroked up his neck and over his jaw, leaving a blazing trail in her wake. And when she slipped her finger between his lips he couldn’t resist licking the blunt tip and lightly sucking on her salty flesh.

Fire ignited her amber gaze and through two layers he could feel her pert nipples rub his chest, the erotic graze making him groan long and low.

‘This is insane. I have to put you down.’ Before he came in his damn boxers. ‘Are you hurt?’

‘Agony,’ she murmured. ‘Can’t possibly