‘What’s difficult about it?’
‘Well, because—’
‘Because my father slept with his mother? That wasn’t Rafael’s fault. He wasn’t there.’ Nathaniel gave a sardonic smile. ‘At least, not until nine months afterwards. And now that’s enough about my family. There’s only so much reminiscing I can stand in one day and we’re definitely into injury time.’
‘So, will I meet Rafael?’
She was imagining happy family gatherings. ‘No chance. We’re going to Rio so that we can have steaming-hot sex in the land of the steaming-hot samba.’
‘I’ve never even danced the samba.’
‘Don’t worry—’ he flashed her a smile and took her hand as they walked along the beach ‘—I’m going to teach you. The way you move your hips, you’ll be a natural.’
‘This place is incredible.’ Katie stared at the view from the terrace of the exclusive penthouse apartment. ‘Your brother must be very successful.’
‘He’s slowly taking over the technology world.’ Nathaniel leaned on the balcony and scanned the beach. ‘Rafael and I have got drunk on this balcony more times than I want to remember. Whatever you do, don’t touch anything. He’s a techno genius and this whole place is run by gadgets. If you sneeze some piece of electrical equipment will probably hand you a tissue. I’ve told him that the day he invents an app for my phone that will kill photographers, I’ll invest in his company.’ He slid his hand behind her neck and brought his mouth down on hers and Katie gave a low moan.
All he had to do was kiss her and she melted every time.
She was a total pushover.
Disturbed by that thought, she eased away from him. Last night she’d given him everything. Today she was a little more cautious. ‘Are we going sightseeing?’
‘Of course. This is Rio.’
Nathaniel took her everywhere. They drank in the spectacular views from Pão de Açúcar, Sugarloaf Mountain, and ate in a beachside restaurant packed with locals.
When they arrived back at the apartment it was late and Katie automatically walked towards the bedroom but he closed his fingers around her wrist.
‘Rio is just waking up. Tempted as I am at the thought of an early night—’ his kiss was swift but devastating ‘—we’re going to samba school.’
‘School? It’s almost midnight.’
‘It isn’t a school in the sense that you mean. The samba schools are part of the neighbourhood where people go to dance. Part of Rio’s culture. They’re all rehearsing for the Carnival in a few weeks’ time. Here—’ he picked up a box that had been delivered earlier ‘—I bought you something to wear.’
‘You’re in jeans.’ Delving through layers of tissue paper, she retrieved a short dress in a vibrant shade of electric blue, dipping to the waist and ending in a flared skirt. ‘I might as well go naked.’
‘There’s something else in the box.’
Katie shifted the tissue paper and found an emerald-green sequined bikini top. She blinked. ‘Gosh. That’s—’
‘Perfect for dancing the samba.’
She hadn’t worn brown since she’d arrived in South America. And that was because of Nathaniel. He’d brought colour into her life. Being with him had given her confidence. ‘I love it.’ Katie examined the flow and texture of the fabric and then disappeared into the bedroom to change.
Nathaniel followed her and she was conscious of him watching her as she pulled on the dress. ‘Stop staring.’
‘You have fantastic legs.’
‘All the better for dancing.’ She met his eyes in the mirror. Felt the sharp stab of chemistry. ‘Shall we go?’
It was the most exciting evening of her life, although whether it was the dancing or just being with Nathaniel, she didn’t know.
The samba was an innately sexual dance and Nathaniel was a hotly sexual man. Those heavy-lidded blue eyes and that slow, masculine smile soon drew the attention of every woman in the room—that and his enviable sense of rhythm and the effortless way he moved. He danced with a natural grace and an unapologetic sensuality that blurred the lines between bedroom and ballroom. Dancing with him was a hedonistic experience that was a full-on assault of her senses and Katie felt her head and her heart spin as their eyes held and their bodies touched.
Drowning in those blue eyes, Katie suddenly wanted to be alone with him. ‘Can we go home?’
‘You’re not enjoying the samba, angel?’ His smile was slow and knowing and her heart was performing its own version of the samba.
‘I love the samba.’
The heat flowing between them was immense and he curved a strong hand over her hip and held her against him for a moment. The lazy humour in his eyes turned sharp and hungry. ‘You’re right. Let’s go.’ He took her hand and virtually dragged her out of the building and into the waiting car.
The instant the doors closed, they were kissing and they kissed all the way back to the apartment, their mouths frantic, hot, explosive as they feasted. His hands were under the flirty skirt of her dress and Katie moaned and curved her leg over his, urging him on. She loved the way he watched her, with eyes half shut and the promise of ecstasy shimmering in the depths of that blue gaze. The excitement of his skilled touch was intensified a thousand times by that raw masculine sex appeal. All over the world, women had posters of him on their walls. Just looking at him was a visual pleasure but Katie tried not to dwell on that because she didn’t want to think about him as a movie star. As a movie star he was unobtainable, out of her league. As a man—
They shared a fierce, explosive chemistry.
‘We’re here.’ His voice thickened by passion, he lifted his head, his eyes still on her mouth. ‘We need to take this inside or we’ll be arrested. Two minutes,’ he promised thickly. ‘We just have to get ourselves up in that elevator and into the apartment.’
Trembling with anticipation, Katie followed him out of the car, too embarrassed to look at the driver. They were kissing as they tumbled into the lift that led to Rafael’s luxurious penthouse, and then Nathaniel lifted her so that she straddled him and pressed her back hard against the mirrored wall.
‘Two minutes is too long.’ He groaned and Katie was so desperately excited after dancing with him that she simply sobbed her encouragement as he unzipped his jeans.
Caught in a vortex of excitement, she was blind to her surroundings, blind to everything except him. He was silken warmth and hard masculinity and then he was inside her and the delicious shock of it made her gasp.
‘Oh, yes …’ Her head tilted back against the cool, hard mirror as he thrust into her. It was hot and primal, as out of control as that first night in the tropical gardens of Wolfe Island.
A gentle ringing sound indicated that they’d reached the penthouse. Without lifting his mouth from hers, Nathaniel slammed his hand against the panel of buttons, trying to hit the one that stopped the lift. Instead he hit the one for the ground floor and the lift started moving again.
‘How do you stop this thing?’ His eyes fevered with lust, he lifted his head impatiently and tried to focus on the buttons but Katie took advantage of the sudden shift in his attention to move her hips. He gave a thickened groan and turned his head back to her. ‘Don’t move. You’re killing me ….’
‘I want—I need—’ Her voice broke and his hands plunged into her hair and his mouth devoured hers in a hungry kiss.
‘I have to stop this damned lift.’
He was deep inside