"Everything's great. Wonderful in fact." Running her fingers over the cool blue tiles that lined the enormous Jacuzzi tub, she said, "You did an amazing job with this house, Travis."
Travis grinned, and Lily had a moment's surprise at the fact that her words of praise obviously pleased him. She hadn't thought that her opinion would matter to him.
Was Luke right about his twin brother? Was Travis's ego more fragile than it seemed? Was his heart not a bulletproof, steel-lined fortress?
Because even though she'd had a major crush on Travis since they were ten, she had never fooled herself into thinking that she could ever be a part of his life.
They were so different. She was soft and couldn't help but look for the good in everyone. He was all harsh, unforgiving angles. She was quiet, afraid to speak up because she knew people would laugh at her dumb ideas. He was a storm that erupted in a hundred different ways, assailing any-and everything.
Looking up into his eyes, she saw the storm beginning anew. Taking a step back from him, warring with her own anticipation, Lily said, "I should probably start doing some research this afternoon. After turning in my resignation at Barker's, of course."
Quitting her safe job would be the next-riskiest thing she had ever done--right behind being a sexy queen on the runway and seducing Travis, of course--but it made her smile to think about telling Albert that she quit and was never, ever going to buy a single thing for her clients in his store.
Yeah right, like she'd ever be able to stand up to Albert, even though he deserved it. She really was letting her imagination get the best of her. Although Lily wished she had enough guts to tell Albert what she thought of him, she knew she'd meekly hand him a letter of resignation and let him browbeat her. Oh well, at least a man who had treated her like dirt wouldn't get any commissions from her.
Travis moved toward her, shaking her out of her thoughts. She started, feeling like a gazelle being stalked by some big wild thing. He must have seen the panic in her eyes at being so close to him in such a sensuous bathroom, because instead of cornering her he ran a hand through his jet-black hair, and said, "I'd like you to see the property before we go."
"Why?" Lily asked, increasingly suspicious of his motives. It wasn't that she didn't want him to touch her, of course, it was in fact just the opposite.
She desperately wanted him to touch her. And she was sure that she wasn't going to be able to pull off the ruse of being unaffected by his touch like Luke had told her to do. If Travis so much as ran one finger down the side of her face, she was going to start pleading with him to take her right there, right then, heedless of the consequences.
Travis gave her a coaxing smile. "Just like you said when we walked in, I've always felt that it's important for a designer to see how the inside of the house interacts with the environment surrounding it."
Lily narrowed her eyes, trying to read between the lines on Travis's face, but it was completely, professionally blank. Suddenly she felt foolish. Here he was giving her the biggest opportunity in her career, and she was being distrustful and apprehensive about it.
What a fool she was. He hadn't even mentioned their night together. Why did she think he would ever want to touch her again?
After all, she was just Lily.
And Travis would never dream of sleeping with just Lily. She was sure of it. He had made a mistake on Saturday night, one that she was sure he would never deign to repeat.
Wanting to cry, but forcing a smile back onto her lips, she said, "You're right, Travis. I would really like to see the property." Digging for something at least partially professional to say, she observed, "From what I can see through the windows, there are some wonderfully mature trees on the acerage."
Inwardly she rolled her eyes. Wonderfully mature trees. Like she really cared about the trees. All she wanted to do was get away from Travis before she did something really stupid, like throw herself at him.
The back of the house was dotted with olive and lemon trees. Travis pointed to the far right of the property, toward a thick grove of oaks. "There's something you've got to see back here."
Stepping carefully down the winding path in her heels, Lily gasped with pleasure when she saw what the trees were hiding. "What an incredible pond," she said, taking in the reflection of the red-gold sunset on the surface of the water.
"It's not a pond," Travis said, "it's a swimming pool." Travis shrugged off his jacket and kicked off his leather shoes. Sitting on the edge of a large, flat rock, he folded up his Armani suit's pant legs. "Let's relax for a minute by the pool before we head back."
Lily was about to say no, but something inside her told her to go for it. In the past forty-eight hours her life had gone from lackluster to crazy to simply unbelievable. First making love to Travis, now being hired to decorate a villa in San Francisco. Surely sitting by the pool with the man she had lusted after her whole life paled in comparison to all that.
She sat on the rock and slid her feet out of her shoes.
"Why don't you take off your stockings?" Travis asked innocently. "Feel the grass under your feet."
Lily shook her head. She couldn't do that. Travis would see her big, white legs and immediately start thinking about elephants.
Travis raised an eyebrow. "Afraid that I won't be able to keep my hands off you?"
Something churned in Lily's gut at Travis's taunting. She'd show him. If it killed her, she was going to make him so hot he would be screaming for release. And then she'd leave him cold and desperate for her.
"No, you're right. I'd like to feel the breeze on my bare skin," she said, working hard to pitch her voice in a sensual manner. After all, the sun was almost down. Didn't everyone always say that sunset was the most flattering time of day?
She pulled up the hem of her skirt and unhooked one side of her garter.
"Do you need any help with that?" Travis asked nonchalantly.
Lily forced herself to reply as carelessly. "Not unless you want some help with your pants."
Trying to still her trembling fingers, she unrolled her stockings down her thigh. As unbelievable as it might have been that the prom king was lusting after the original wallflower, Lily knew it with every fiber of her being. Now was the time for what Luke had instructed her to do: She needed to whip Travis up into a sexual frenzy, then leave him before he got the upper hand.
Could she do it?
Lily looked up at Travis from beneath her lashes, and what she saw in the green of his eyes took her breath away.
He wanted her.
Badly.
Licking her lips, she said in a husky voice, "Is your offer of help still good?" In less than a second, he was kneeling at her feet, his hands on hers at her knees. "I'll take that as a yes," she said, laughing softly at the new feeling of feminine power that was coursing through her.
"Don't forget, my pants are next," he growled. With painstaking slowness he slid the silk stocking off her leg. With every inch of skin that he uncovered he lightly nipped at her skin until wetness soaked her panties.
She bit her lip to stifle a whimper of pleasure. Somehow she needed to act like she was doing him a favor--at least that's what Luke had said she needed to do--but it was so incredibly hard to think of that when Travis was touching her, kissing her.
With one of her legs bare, he gently massaged the arch in her foot. "Oh God, yes," she said, and Travis surprised her by coming up to seduce her with a hot kiss.
His mouth tasted like sweet lemons and sunshine. She blinked uncertainly when he pulled away from her, but before she could protest she was lost in the sensation of his fingers on her skin as he reached under her skirt to undo the clasps on her other garter. He freed the silk from its binding and began the delectable task of sliding it from her other leg. With every nip of his perfect white teeth on her skin, Lily felt herself melting further and further into him.
"Your turn," he said, getting to his feet. Standing before her, she could see his enormous erection jutting out
from beneath his expensive navy blue trousers.
Lily reached for his leather belt with shaking fingers. She undid the clasp, then her fingers were on the top button of his slacks. She popped open the button and unzipped him, letting his pants fall to the ground.
She sucked in a breath. His huge, perfect penis jutted toward her, and as her hand came up of its own volition to touch it, a drop of Travis's arousal coated the tip.
That settled it. She needed to taste him, and she needed to taste him immediately. Her mouth covered the thick head of his penis and she licked every last drop of his precome before more coated the inside of her cheeks. She sucked down his cock into the back of her throat, wanting to swallow him whole.
She had spent years wondering what it would be like to blow Travis, wanting to know what it felt like to be holding his balls with her hands while she sucked at his velvety skin.
Running her tongue over the ridges of his enormous shaft, she understood that everything she had ever dreamed about doing with Travis was so much better in real life. His cock grew impossibly bigger within her mouth, and before she knew what was happening he stepped back and pulled her to her feet.
"Take off your clothes," he said, his words a command as he took off his shirt.
In that moment it didn't matter that they were on the private property of Travis's clients, that they could be found at any minute by a pool man or a gardener. It didn't matter that she was supposed to be in control, that she was supposed to be telling Travis what do, and not the other way around.
The only thing that mattered was obeying Travis's command if it meant finding the release that she so desperately needed.
Heedless of their clothes, strewn across the flagstone terrace that surrounded the magnificent pool, Lily stood naked before Travis. She barely resisted the urge to cover herself with her hands, to hide her totally imperfect body from him, to flee.
Conjuring up the invincible queen that she had been at the fashion show only days before, she asked, "Is this what you want?" He growled his response as he pulled her body against his.
"I want more than that." He captured her mouth in a kiss that left no doubt in her mind that he intended to claim her, to brand her as his own. The friction of his skin against hers, of the hair on his thighs against the soft, aroused skin between her thighs made her want to scream out with pleasure.
She rocked her pelvis into the hard planes of his body again, but instead of taking her to the place she needed to go, Travis moved them to the edge of the swimming pool, without breaking their kiss.
His hot breath tickled the curls by her neck. "Come into the pool with me."
"Now?" she asked, shivering at the thought of what he might do to her underwater.
"Now," he said, his green eyes nearly black with passion.
He walked down the wide steps into the cool water, and Lily followed his lead. Her nipples grew hard as the water covered first her feet, then her calves, then her thighs.
"Are you cold?" he asked, staring straight at her rock-hard nipples. "Should I warm you up?" he said as he leaned his head in to her breasts.
His hot breath covered her as he nipped and sucked at her. Her knees gave way, but his strong hands held her up, refusing to let her sink all the way into the water. "I need to taste you again," he said in a low husky voice; then his mouth was on her clit, his tongue lapping in long, hot strokes. His hands moved up her body to play with her breasts, cupping them, massaging them, letting the flesh rest heavily on his big, callused palms.
And then he moved her deeper into the water, and the cool water rushed over her silken heat, making her cry out with wonder at the two so different sensations. So hot. So cold. And then hot again as his fingers slid in and out of her.
"I want to see you come."
Lily looked into his eyes, powerless to stop herself from giving this man whatever he wanted. "Now, Lily," he said, his thumb swirling insistently over her swollen nub. "Now."
His eyes bored into hers as she obeyed his order. "Travis," she moaned against his lips.
"Come, Lily," he urged, even as the contractions became too much for her to handle.
"Come, Lily," he growled as he shifted her in the water and thrust his cock all the way into her ready body.
Travis's thumb never stopped its perfect pattern on her clit as Lily wrapped her legs around his waist and slid up and down on his hard, thick shaft.
Her pleasure was so intense, she was barely able to say, "We need a condom."
Later she would admire his force of will in pulling out of her, spilling his seed on her belly in several quick thrusts. But at that very moment she was heartbroken. She had wanted nothing more than for him to explode in her, to complete her with his essence.
But even in her lust-filled haze, Lily wasn't stupid enough to risk getting pregnant.
Travis's warm body was wrapped around her in the cool swimming pool, but Lily felt a shiver work its way up her spine. A baby with Travis. She knew without a doubt that it would be the most wonderful child in the world, maybe even twins, a little Travis and a little Luke.
Oh no. Luke had told her not to do this. Under no circumstances was she supposed to have sex with Travis. She was supposed to get him hot and bothered, then leave him wanting more.
She knew she couldn't resist Travis. But she also knew that Luke would crucify her if she didn't at least stick to part of the plan. Steeling all of her soft feelings, she prepared to do battle.
Travis gently kissed the top of her head. "That was some amazing orgasm, wasn't it?"
Lily couldn't believe how smug he sounded. As if he thought that all he had to do was be near her, and she'd explode into a million pieces. Tamping down on the truthful part of her that said that was precisely the case, she said, "It was fine, Travis."
In his shock he let go of her, and she swam to the side of the pool.
"It was fine?" he said through clenched teeth.
Lily shrugged. "Yeah. It was fine." Looking up at him all innocence, doing her darnedest to pretend that she was worldly and had sex with men in strangers' pools all the time, she said, "Oh, I don't mean to hurt your feelings, Travis. I really did like it, you know."
He followed her out onto the flagstone patio. "You really did like it? What the hell does that mean?"
Ignoring the racing of her heart--who was she to mess with a man like Travis?--she said, "Any towels out here?"
He reached beneath the seat of a wood bench and threw a towel at her. Pinning her with his green eyes, he said, "You loved what I did to you. Don't try to deny it."
Lily kept her expression as bland as she could, but inside she was incredulous. Luke seemed to be dead on target with his brother. Travis wasn't sure if she had actually enjoyed herself with him. She had come all over the place, and he actually thought that she might have faked it.
Wow.
It was hard for Lily to believe, but it seemed that, for the first time in her life, she had the upper hand with Travis.
Letting her mouth curve up into a small smile that barely hinted at the secrets inside her woman's mind, she got dressed, ignoring his words completely. "I'd really like to get started on the project now. Could you please take me back to Barker's so that I can leave a note of resignation and pick up my car?"
Lily fought back a laugh as he stalked up the path to his car. Following behind him, her hips swaying to a new, all-female rhythm, Lily thought that maybe, just maybe, her life wasn't quite as predictable as she had thought it to be.
"I T WAS FINE."
"I liked it."
"I don't mean to hurt your feelings, Travis."
Travis pulled up to the curb in front of the store and stared straight ahead as Lily fiddled with the seat belt. He could feel her big blue eyes on him, making him feel things he never wanted to feel. He was ten years old again and on the playground trying not to cry, trying not to be a big baby just because he didn't have a mom anymore.
"Thanks for this opportunity, Travis.
I won't let you down."
He grunted, knowing she was waiting for him to say something. Finally, she gave up, saying, "I'll be in touch in a few days once I've done some research at the design center downtown," before slamming the door.
Travis intended to burn rubber as he peeled away from the curb, but his foot wouldn't obey his command. Instead, he watched Lily walk up the short pathway to the front entrance of the store, hating how turned on he was by the sway of her hips.
Utterly disgusted with himself, he peeled out from the curb and broke at least ten traffic laws on the way back to his office in the trendy South of Market area.
A new receptionist sat at the front desk. When he walked in, she stood up in all of her twenty-year-old blond-and-nubile glory.
"Mr. Carson?"
Travis nodded and gave her his most devastating smile. "And you are?"
"Megan. Your partner hired me." She shook her blond hair over her shoulder and stuck her chest out slightly, her nipples perky beneath her thin silk shirt.
Travis shook Megan's hand and waited for the usual rush to come from touching a beautiful young woman. He held her hand a few seconds longer than normal and looked deeply into her blank brown eyes.
Nothing.
Dropping the girl's hand like a pile of hot coals, Travis bit out, "I need two first-class tickets to Rome for Wednesday."
If he couldn't fight Lily's lure, he was going to have to do the next best thing.
He was going to have to drown in her until he was completely, totally sick of licking her, kissing her, sliding in and out of her incredibly tight pussy.
Until he never wanted to touch her again.
5
THE NEXT MORNING, Travis made a beeline for Janica's design studio. If he was going to take Lily to Italy, he wanted her to look good. Apart from her red suit and Janica's dress, Travis couldn't remember ever seeing Lily in something that didn't make her look frumpy. So he needed clothes. Incredible clothes. And from what he had seen during the fashion show, even though she was just starting out in the business, Janica was going to be one of the best.