She blinked up at him. “A picnic seems like one of the most traditional first dates two people could have. Maybe a bit old fashioned, but…”
“It’s fine. In fact, I know the perfect spot for star gazing,” he said, then led her back to the limousine.
Twenty minutes later, he pressed the button on what looked like a private elevator. “Where are we going?” she asked, feeling those wonderful tingles again. Actually, they hadn’t stopped, but while they were around others, the sensations seemed to be slightly muted.
“My place,” he announced, the elevator doors sliding silently open to reveal an elegant foyer with a massive chandelier done in a modern style. Pepper hated it on sight, but she kept her mouth shut. “This way.” Dimitri led her through a massive penthouse that had a huge great room that looked out over the city, but it was furnished with the most hideous sofas she’d ever seen. They looked as if they were built with cement instead of stuffing, they looked so hard and uncompromising. There were also some artsy coffee tables, but they weren’t anything that she’d want to put her feet up on.
The whole space was decorated with lines that were clean and sparse, but nothing that looked inviting. Nothing that looked like one could curl up in a corner and read for an afternoon.
It was so completely different from her small but cozy loft, she almost told Dimitri that this wasn’t going to work. The furniture and the man were such a stark contrast to everything she liked, how could they ever compromise?
“Will this work?” he asked, opening up a glass door that opened onto a lush patio. There were plants on both sides and with comfortable chairs hidden away. He turned off all of the ambient light and set the bag down on a low table.
“This is wonderful!” she exclaimed, relieved that this area, at least, was more to her liking. Maybe, there was hope for them!
“Good. I got the sense that you weren’t thrilled with my décor,” he teased, gesturing for her to sit.
“Oh, I’m sure it was…” she had no words. It was just ugly, horrible stuff! “I’m sure that it’s very good quality,” she finally finished.
He laughed and bent down, taking her shoes off and sliding his hands up her calves. “You’re quite diplomatic, agapita mou.”
She looked down at him, surprised by his tender caress. “What does that mean?”
“It means, my dear, in Greek,” he explained. Then moved higher. “I’ve wanted to do this since I arrived at your loft,” he said, then wrapped a strong hand behind her neck and pulled her closer, kissing her. The caress started off softly, but then he increased the pressure when she lifted her hands to touch his shoulders. By the time he pulled away, they were both panting. “You are lovely, omorfia mou.”
Pepper smiled. “That sounded different, but I like it when you speak Greek, Dimitri.”
“Kalos!” He brushed his lips over hers, but didn’t deepen the kiss. “Let’s eat.”
They dined on crackers with the assorted cheeses and meats. She loved the different kinds of olives that he’d selected and the wine was…amazing! But it was nothing compared to talking with him, laughing about his childhood antics, and sharing her hopes and dreams. Pepper talked about things that she’d never shared with anyone else, not even her sisters. Of course, she didn’t dare tell him about that time after her mother had passed away. Even more than thirteen years later, the humiliation was too raw, too painful.
She finished the glass of wine and sighed, staring up at the stars that appeared brighter up here on his private patio. “I should head home,” she told him, but in truth, she didn’t want to leave. She wanted to stay right here, with him.
“You should come over here and sit with me.”
Pepper laughed, shaking her head. “No way. I know exactly what will happen if I move over to that love seat with you.”
“I do too,” he purred, then he took her hand and tugged, pulling her out of her chair and around to the love seat.
Pepper hesitated for only a moment before she allowed him to pull her down into his arms. “This is a mistake,” she muttered, but he covered her mouth with his anyway. And it felt too good to pull away.
He kissed her slowly, deeply, nipping at her lower lip until she gasped. She gripped his shoulders as she tilted her head, reaching for more. Someone moaned and it could have been either of them, Pepper had no idea. But moments later, his soft, teasing caresses weren’t enough and she found herself climbing onto his lap for closer contact. His groan was like a lightning bolt shooting through her body and she pressed against him, gasping at the contact of his erection against her core.
His hand dove into her hair, twisting it around to pull her head back to his and he kissed her, hard and deep, sending a thrill of molten desire throughout her body.
“We have to stop!” she gasped, then kissed him again, shifting and pressing, so out of control she wasn’t sure what was happening to her. She’d never experienced desire like this before, so she wasn’t sure how to control it. Plus, she felt his desire as well, which only inflamed her even further!
“Yes. We’ll stop,” he agreed. “Just let me…!” He pulled his mouth from hers and kissed her neck, her ear, that spot right at the base of her neck. His hands slid from her back to her waist, then higher to cup her breasts through the material of her yellow dress and she gasped and jerked backwards, almost falling off his lap.
Somehow, she got her feet under her and she didn’t fall, but it was a close call. For a long moment, she simply stared at him, stunned by what had just happened. He stared back, looking furious and just as crazed as she felt. But slowly, he regained a small amount of control. Lifting his hands, he ran his fingers through his hair, smoothing the strands back into place.
“Syngnomi!” he growled, standing up and pausing. “I’m sorry. I hurt you. Tell me how I hurt you!”
Pepper wanted to throw herself back into his arms and beg him to keep touching her. But if she touched him again, she wasn’t sure if she would be able to stop.
“You didn’t hurt me,” she finally replied, hearing the strangled voice as if it were coming from a distance.
“Then why did you pull away as if I’d struck you?”
Pepper wrapped her arms around her waist, trying to figure out the best way to explain it. That was going to be difficult because she didn’t fully understand what had just happened herself.
“You didn’t hurt me, Dimitri,” she whispered, pressing her lips together. She took a breath, closed her eyes, then opened them again. “Just the opposite. What we were doing felt…too good. It…” she paused, not relishing having to explain this to him.
“Pepper, you jerked out of my arms and almost fell. Of course I hurt you.”
She shook her head, not wanting him to think for even a moment that he’d done anything to harm her. “No!” she insisted, and reached for him. Her hands hesitated a mere inch away from his body. “Please,” she begged, almost sobbing with frustration at the effort to get him to understand. “It wasn’t you!”
He reached out and took her hands, placing them against his bare chest. When had his shirt come open? She looked at his tan chest covered with a light layer of dark hair right there and…her eyes blurred, her mind blanked. Before she could get sucked back into the vortex of lust, she jerked her hand away again, stepping back.