Lily had seen the kind of skinny twits that Travis liked hanging off his arm, and she doubted their IQs were much higher than their dress sizes. Feeling nasty and spiteful, she picked up her suitcase and stomped into the bedroom, angry at Travis for being such a womanizer but even angrier at herself for caring.
He could have a hundred Italian lovers for all she cared.
Besides, she thought with a devious smile, she had brought The Dress with her. Travis wouldn't be the only one with beautiful foreigners falling at his feet. Lily knew the power of The Dress could transcend anything.
On Saturday night hadn't The Dress single-handedly gotten the lust-of-her-life into bed with her? No reason it couldn't work its potent magic again. On anyone but Travis, she reminded herself.
She reached into her suitcase and unfolded the precious dress, smoothing out a few small wrinkles with her hands. She wasn't going to be quiet, pathetic Lily for another minute longer. She was going to wear The Dress to find her own Italian lover. And any chance she got, she was going to torture Travis. She was going to make him so hot for her he was going to need an extinguisher by the time their stay was over.
And no matter what, she wasn't going to let him make love to her. Even if she had to lock herself in the bathroom with a dildo all night long to deal with the way he made her feel, she was going to hold out on him.
"Go away," Lily said to the loud and insistent voice of doubt that told her she was crazy, that said she had no hope of torturing Travis, not when she rated a negative number on the "how sexy are you?" scale compared to Travis's off-the-charts score. Grasping at strings she searched her travel-muddled brain for the positive affirmations she had read in the book at the back of her bookshelf. Looking around the suite to make sure that Travis wasn't going to witness her talking to herself like a lunatic, she said, "I am a strong, beautiful woman. I love myself, and others love me, too."
The sound of running water made her jump halfway out of her skin. Travis hadn't heard her, had he? She could only imagine the kind of ridicule he would heap upon her for repeating her stupid, never-gonna-happen mantras.
Hoping she looked calm and composed, she turned to look through the door of the bedroom into the living room. Travis was leaning against the bathroom door on the far side of the gracious suite, wearing nothing but a towel. His chest was tanned with a light dusting of dark hair in the vee between his pecs, and Lily couldn't help but think that he should have an infomercial on TV selling some sort of abdominal exercise products with a six-pack like his. It took Lily every ounce of willpower not to give away her intense and immediate arousal from just looking at him.
"Like the room?" he drawled.
Even as she breathed a sigh of relief that he hadn't overheard her doing those stupid affirmations, Lily wanted to smack him for being so supremely confident. So deliciously male. So perfect. Why did he have to be so flawless? It wasn't fair that she had been given a laundry list of shortcomings, while Travis had been showered with brains, beauty, and unflagging confidence.
Travis was still staring at her from across the room. The challenge was clear in the heat of his gaze, the indolence of his stance. Lily knew it was time to make some decisions, and quick.
I'll never get what I want out of life if I don't go for it.
Reaching for her new feminine wiles, she said, "This room is amazing," letting her voice drop to a husky burr. She kicked off her heels and moved past him into the exquisite bathroom. A huge sunken whirlpool tub in the middle of the room was filling with steaming water. Glancing at Travis over her shoulder, Lily purred, "Thanks so much for running a bath for me. I really needed one after such an exhausting flight."
Trying not to worry about cellulite, reminding herself that she had been completely naked and in control with Travis at his client's pool just days ago, Lily dropped one strap of her red dress from her shoulder, then the other, pushing the stretchy red fabric of the dress down. The bodice had an inner support built in and wasn't meant to be worn with a bra, so her nipples popped up above the fabric. Lily stilled, unable to continue.
What am I doing?She looked up into the mirror and saw herself half-naked, with Travis standing mere feet behind her in nothing but a towel.
Almost afraid of what she might see, she forced herself to look into Travis's eyes. The unbridled lust in them infused Lily with a new shot of confidence. She stripped the rest of her dress off along with her panties and stepped into the tub, sliding down the slick porcelain into the safety of the hot water.
Feeling much more confident with her lumps and bumps at least partially hidden beneath the bubbles of the jets, she whispered, "Ahh, it feels so good," and had to bite down on the inside of her lip to fight back her smile of victory at Travis's instantaneous reaction to her erotic teasing.
The towel around his waist did nothing to conceal his enormous erection. Patting the tile surrounding the tub, not knowing whether she was being foolish or brave, Lily said, "There's enough room for both of us in here. Besides," she said, dropping her eyes to hide her lie, "I trust you to honor our agreement."
Travis ripped the towel from around his waist and Lily got an eyeful of his glorious cock before he climbed into the opposite end of the whirlpool tub, the hair on his legs tickling the skin on the outsides of her thighs as he stretched his legs out around her hips. Lily pulled in her legs just enough that her knees crested at the top of the water, anything to get away from Travis's heat.
Every nerve ending in Lily's body was on fire. Every part of her begged to touch him. She wanted to feel the hot length of his shaft in her hands. Against her lips. In her pussy.
It took every ounce of strength not to straddle him in the tub. She was already so wet, so ready for him, that she knew how easily he would slide deep, so deep, into her slickness. Her muscles contracted at the thought. Too tired to fight her arousal any longer, and knowing that she'd never be able to relax or sleep again until she relieved her intense arousal, Lily let her hand drift under the bubbles.
Gently, she touched herself between her legs, pushing one finger inside. Slick fluid coated her finger, and her vagina clenched, disappointed that the slim digit wasn't nine hot inches.
Lily could hear Travis's breath coming out in short, loud puffs, and it excited her even more. I'm getting to him, she thought with satisfaction. I'm driving him crazy.
Not only did she desperately want to make him suffer, but God almighty did she need to come, or she was going to go crazy herself. Feeling deliciously naughty, instead of pulling her hand away from her mons and putting it back on the tile rim of the large tub, she allowed her hips to settle firmly against Travis's calves and rubbed small, firm circles against her clit. From beneath her half-closed eyes she could see Travis watching her breasts as they floated on the surface of the water, her nipples appearing above the water, then moving below again.
"What the hell are you doing?" Travis growled.
Not stopping the movement of her hand on her clit, Lily opened her eyes wide, giving Travis her most innocent look. "Taking a bath," she replied, knowing that he had begun to watch her hand under the bubbles as she swirled the moist and swollen nub between her legs.
Feeling incredibly bold, she turned the question on him. "What are you doing?"
Travis pierced her with his green eyes. "Watching you masturbate, I think."
Lily's hand stilled at his audacious words. How could she continue like this? Lily Ellis wasn't a bad girl! She was a good girl who masturbated in the privacy of her own bathroom, not in front of a virile man sharing a tub.
But the hunger in Travis's eyes told her she was doing everything just right, and somehow, Lily managed to stay the course, never forgetting for a moment that it was imperative to make herself come like a rocket while leaving Travis high and dry.
Lily shifted to let her breasts surface again. "If you had gotten me my own room, we wouldn't have this problem. I would have been able to masturbate in the privacy of my own bath, as often as I felt li
ke it."
A choking sound emerged from deep in Travis's chest.
"You can leave if it's making you uncomfortable," she offered, knowing that a thousand horses couldn't drag Travis from the tub.
"I don't think so," he said with a grin, which seemed a tad forced. She wondered what it cost him to stay on his side of the tub, when she knew he desperately wanted to suck on her nipples.
"I'm happy to sit back and enjoy the show," he added. "Unless, of course, you need some help."
Lily smiled a purely feminine smile, even as she admired his bravado. "Now, Travis, you know that would be a strict breach of our agreement. Besides," she added, "I can take perfectly good care of myself."
With that she closed her eyes and spread her legs farther. She heard Travis switch off the jets. Knowing that he would be able to see everything she did to herself only made her wetter. She brought one hand up to fondle her breasts while the other swirled her increasingly sensitive clit.
She had dreamed of Travis watching her touch herself, but knowing that he was in the room with her, smelling his essence was driving her positively insane. I'm in a bathtub with Travis, she marveled and the thought was so wicked, so delicious, that a wide smile curved across her lips.
Her womb felt heavy and thick, as if all the blood in her body was pooling between her legs. Spreading her legs even wider, she slid down another inch in the tub to give her fingers better access. She slipped them between her slick folds, past the tight entrance. She was incredibly aroused by Travis's eyes on her, the pressure of his thighs and calves against her hips.
Her finger swirled in tighter and tighter circles, and she was about to open her eyes, to watch Travis's face while she came just inches from him, when the water rippled across her breasts and her eyes shot open. Travis was moving toward her, one hand reaching for her, the other pumping up and down on his shaft.
"Oh God, Lily, you've got to let me..."
Lily desperately wanted Travis to touch her, to run his tongue over her nipples, to slip a finger into her. But, much to her surprise, in that crucial moment, even more than she wanted him to give her sweet release, she wanted to see him beg.
Lily needed to see Travis suffer for wanting her like she had suffered for wanting him all these years.
Mustering up the courage of her own no-longer-latent sex goddess within, she put her foot in the middle of his belly, directly above the throbbing head of his glorious cock. "Stay over there," she said as she pushed him back into the water with a splash.
His face was a picture of surprise, much like it had been in the airplane bathroom, and Lily had to swallow a giggle. It was time to finish what she started. Settling back against the edge of the tub, she stretched one leg out until the arch of her foot was pressed against the long, thick length of Travis's cock. Pulling up the knee of her other leg, opening herself wide to Travis's astonished glance, she rubbed herself while gently rubbing her toes against the head of his shaft.
The heavy silence in the room was broken only by the sound of the water lapping against porcelain and their heavy breathing. Lily looked away from Travis's mesmerizing eyes and focused on his penis, so glorious even underwater, velvety soft against the sensitive skin on the bottom of her foot.
She bit her lip and, on the edge of coming, moved her foot away and cried out at the thought of Travis ramming into her. He reached for himself, and she was undone.
Her head fell back against the thick tile rim. "Travis," she moaned, as her hips bucked up in the water against her maniacally moving fingers. Her orgasm, while not as good as anything Travis had made her feel with his tongue and cock, was so much better than any orgasm she had ever had solo. She didn't simply contract between her legs, she convulsed.
Travis panted, "Jesus," and when she opened her eyes, Lily watched him come in thick spurts, the cords of his neck taut, his biceps flexed, his abs tensed into a perfect six-pack.
Get out of the tub, Lily, she advised herself silently. Get out of the tub, and it will be Lily, one, Travis, zero. But the combination of warm water with a huge orgasm was a powerful relaxation formula. She so badly wanted to close her eyes and go to sleep.
Get up before he convinces you to go for round two.She couldn't help it, she smiled at the thought of round two. And three. And four.
Get up before he punishes you for pushing him away.
Her eyes grew wide at that thought. In a flash, she was up and reaching for a cream-colored plush bath towel.
"Lily," Travis growled in a menacing tone from behind her. She instinctively scurried to the door before she remembered that she was in control of this situation. Conjuring up a playful, unconcerned glance, she peeked at Travis over her shoulder, and said, "I'm starved, aren't you?"
Travis's eyes ran from her head to her toes, then back up. Lily's blood rushed hot, but she pointedly ignored her arousal. "I'm going to get dressed and find a restaurant," she said, heading into the bedroom without waiting for an answer, hoping that Travis hadn't noticed the towel shaking in her trembling hands.
Why, oh why, did the first thing to come out of her mouth when she was stark naked in front of Travis be about food?
Lily sighed and dried herself off. Somehow she was going to make it through the trip. Either that or throw herself off the balcony, where she would surely crush a lovely rosemary plant when she fell.
8
TRAVIS TOWELED OFF his hair with quick, angry strokes. He couldn't remember the last time he had been left so unsatisfied by a sexual encounter. Lily was turning out to be one mean cock-teaser.
Either that or she's just not that into you, buddy.
Travis stood up too fast and bumped his head on the marble counter around the sinks. He scowled at his reflection in the mirror. "Bull," he said, before wrapping the towel around his waist. "She's into me," he stated, trying for a cocky grin, but it fell flat, and he knew it.
Travis had never had to work so hard with a woman. He beckoned, they came. He wanted, they gave. He left, well...he didn't know exactly what they did when he left. But the one thing he did know was that there was no way that Lily was going to mess up his sexual self-esteem.
Travis turned and walked out of the bathroom, colliding with Lily as she headed for the main door of their suite.
He grabbed her arm roughly, hoping it looked like he was trying to steady her, when really all he wanted was to finally touch her. He repressed a groan of desire as his fingers wrapped around her upper arm, lightly brushing against her incredible breasts.
"What are you doing in that dress?" he said, regretting his sneer and tone the minute the words flew from his lips. Dealing with Lily was difficult enough right then--he was so horny he wanted to drag her by her hair into the bedroom and take her again and again and again--but seeing her in that dress, the incredible sheath from the fashion show, was enough to send all of the remaining blood away from his brain.
Lily wrenched her arm from his grasp and took a step away from him. Licking her delicious red lips, she narrowed her eyes. When did her eyelashes grow so long? Travis wondered inanely as he watched her pupils dilate.
"Not that it's any of your business, Travis," she said, his name sounding like a curse, "but I'm going out to eat dinner."
Travis took another step closer to her. "Everything you do in this country is my business," he said, unable to stop the rush of words even though he knew he sounded like an idiot. "I brought you here, and whatever you do you're going to be doing with me." If only that were true, he thought.
Lily's eyes widened. "Oh." Her mouth formed a pretty little circle. Sweet as sugar, she said, "I didn't know you were so proprietary with your colleagues. I wonder why you even brought me along if you were planning to make all of the decisions anyway?"
Travis didn't trust himself at all standing so close to Lily, particularly when she was wearing that dress. If she were any other woman, he would have kissed the smirk off her face; but for the first time, he wasn't sure if a woman wanted him to kiss her
. Yet again, Travis regretted his impulsive decision to bring Lily to Italy. He had been blinded by the need to bury himself between her breasts, to sink into her wet heat.
Angry at her, but even angrier at himself, Travis ground out, "Wait here for me. I'm coming with you." Lily sighed dramatically but had the good sense to head back into the living room to sit down. If she had tried to bolt, he would have had to spank her until she knew who was boss.
His cock surged beneath the towel at the thought of bringing his hands down onto her round butt cheeks. He grabbed his suitcase off the living room couch and walked into the bedroom. God forbid Lily knew that he couldn't keep from getting a hard-on around her, even after he'd beat off like a schoolboy in the tub minutes before. Then she'd think that she actually had some sort of control over him.
No matter how cool he had to play it from that point forward, he was going to make sure that she never found out how badly she affected him. Lose the hard-on and get dressed, moron, he instructed himself with cold practicality.
Five minutes later he emerged in faded jeans and a Red Sox T-shirt. Lily, who was lounging on one of the plush sofas, had the nerve to raise an eyebrow when she saw him, and say, "Nice T-shirt."
Travis had hoped to shame her into changing her outfit by dressing like a slob--her dress messed with his brain waves in a big way--but the opposite had happened: He felt like a schmuck for underdressing.
The only thing left to do was to get out of this godforsaken hotel room--the bathtub would never look quite the same again--and into the crisp, clear Tuscan air. After a quick dinner he'd drop Lily back off at the hotel and prowl the bars in town. If a festival of weddings was going on, there were bound to be plenty of single, desperate women dying for an American businessman to show them a good time.
Travis held open the door. "Let's go."
Lily ignored his brusque manner and as he followed her down the stairs, he felt like a double-sized schmuck. At the bottom of the stairs, the man behind the counter inquired, "Is the room okay, Signora Lily?"
Lily graced him with a wide smile. "Oh, Giuseppe, it's absolutely perfect."