CHAPTER TWO
Arianna slipped her feet into a pair of flat sandals flipping her long, silky hair over one shoulder. It was a beautiful morning, she decided as she looked outside through her curtains. Dylan’s estate spread out beneath her window in sprawling fields of green vegetation that made her eager to start exploring.
Hastily, she ran a brush through her hair and then tossed it carelessly onto the dresser; smeared some lip gloss on her lips and ran downstairs, taking the stairs two at a time.
“Slow down!” her step-father Will shouted form the dining room.
Arianna consciously slowed to a walk, almost bursting with enthusiasm as she took a few measured steps; then unable to contain herself, she quickened into a run again as she raced the rest of the way into the dinning room. She was so excited even Will’s usual disapproving frown couldn’t faze her.
“Hey Mum,” she greeted, as she cheerfully stacked her plate high with bacon and eggs.
“Hey honey. How was your night?”
“’Twas okay I guess,” Arianna mumbled as she chewed on her bacon. Her green eyes flitted around the room; no Dylan and she relaxed automatically.
Her relief proved to be short-lived though because Dylan appeared immediately as though on cue, striding into the dinning room like the lord of the manor; which, she reminded herself, was exactly what he was. His blonde hair was sexily mussed, springing up around his head in every direction as though he had just gotten out of bed. He was wearing a white tee-shit and a pair of well-washed jeans that fitted so snugly against his thighs, she could have sworn she could make out the outline of the bulge behind his fly.
Arianna’s egg stuck in her throat as that train of thought conjured up the naughtiest images possible in her brain. Resolutely, she shoved the thought away and forced a bite of egg down her suddenly constricted throat.
“Morning,” Dylan greeted casually, his blue eyes encompassing the occupants of the room before coming to rest on Arianna’s already heated face.
She ducked her head, focusing intently on the slices of bacon on her plate as she took a sip of her now-tepid coffee.
Dylan deposited himself onto the seat beside Arianna and she desperately tried not to notice how he seemed to fill the entire room somehow. Every single one of her senses were attuned to him, as he blithely took a sip of Earl Grey tea. His strong hands held the delicate china with ease and unbidden, her mind’s eyes filled with images of those same hands caressing soft, plaint breasts. How did he manage to stay active without caffeine pumping through his system, Arianna wondered idly, deliberately forcing her mind to more mundane things.
“We’ll be going to see the museum today honey. Wanna come with?” Penny smiled at her daughter. “Arianna is such a fan of the histories,” she added to her husband.
Arianna barely refrained from rolling her eyes as she tried to think of a graceful way out of a potentially boring day. They had been visiting the museum every single day since they arrived and she was itching to enjoy Santa Fe before she had to traipse on back to Manhattan. While the El Museo Cultural de Santa Fe was nothing to sneeze at, she wasn’t too eager to live out her three weeks holiday in the same spot; this was her first time in Santa Fe and who knew, she could go out exploring and fall head over heels for one of the many artists in the area. But how could she turn her mother down without making her feel bad?
“What are you doing this morning Dylan? Off to work as usual?” Penny asked buttering a slice of toast as she turned to Dylan.
“Nah. I was actually hoping to show Arianna the sights,” he began.
“Yes! Yes!” Arianna interjected eagerly a little too eagerly judging by the surprise on her mother’s face.
Dylan’s firm mouth canted to the side as he apparently tamped down on his amusement.
His incredibly blue eyes swung to hers and she read his understanding of her reluctance to spend a delightful day traipsing up and down the length of a museum. Something warmed in the pit of her belly and unbidden, another blush started to spread in her cheeks.
Hastily, Arianna looked away from him, “I would like very much to go with Dylan, Mum.”
“Excellent! You two kids go do whatever it is children do in the afternoons,” Will boomed from his place at the head of the table; and the matter was settled.
She would be going out with Dylan! Her stomach somersaulted a little and she squelched it before turning to smile shakily at her nemesis, as she said, “Awesome.”
Arianna Pepple told herself she was a little witch as she tugged on the dress she had picked for their ‘outing’. It was an innocent enough sundress at least when one looked at it from behind. But the front was another story; the plunging neckline, aided by her Victoria’s Secret wonderbra put her cleavage on full display revealing a tantalizing expanse of flesh beneath her throat. The waistline of the gown was tightly cinched; emphasizing her waist in a way that unbeknownst to her would make a man’s hands itch to span the tiny waist. Her hair fell in a mass of riotous waves down her back and the hem of the gown which came only to her thighs revealed miles and miles of slim, gold-bronzed legs.
She grabbed her green sling-purse and stuffed her feet into the matching flat sandals before studying her reflection in the mirror. A pretty, gamine-faced girl with full pouty lips and a body made for sin, looked back at her.
With a toss of her long mane of hair, she turned and descended the stairs eager to see Dylan’s face when he caught a glimpse of her cleavage. If his tryst with Linda the other day was any indication, he was a breast man.
As she descended the stairs, she saw Dylan waiting for her at the bottom of the stairs, his back turned as he spoke quietly on the phone.
Arianna cleared her throat quietly, he turned around immediately, his face creasing into a warm smile which froze the moment he clapped eyes on her.
Fire leaped into his turquoise eyes and before she could guess his intent, he was marching right up the rest of the stairs to her, his face dark as a thundercloud.
“What the hell is wrong with you?” he yelled right in her face
Arianna stiffened, her chin jutting out stubbornly as she gave him a basilisk-like glare of her own. “There is nothing wrong with me, thank you very much,” she informed him with an offended huff.
“Why are you dressed like that? Don’t you know what could happen?”
“My own mother got me this dress so if you have a problem with it, I suggest you take it up with her!” she shot back. “And at this point, I don’t give a crap for what your fevered imagination thinks may happen!”
Angrily, she jerked her arm from his grasp and flounced down the stairs, fighting tears with every step. She had expected him to be overcome with lust or at least see her as a woman for once, and instead he had acted as though she were some poor relation from some backwater state come to embarrass him in front of his adoring fans in his precious Santa Fe. That was what he feared would happen.
With a muffled oath, Dylan grabbed her arm and jerked her into his arms pulling her flush against him as he crushed her mouth to his in the same motion.
Arianna stilled; she was in the presence of a practiced seducer, she recognized dimly as Dylan slanted his firm mouth across her soft, pouty lips with rough urgency. Tingles of excitement raced down her spine as she helplessly wound her arms around his neck, unconsciously molding her soft plaint body to his hard muscular frame. Dylan deepened the kiss, desire exploding in his body as his arms tightened around the enticing woman in his arms. His tongue delved into her mouth, stroking and caressing as his large, warm palm trailed to the hem of her short gown, lifted it and then smoothed over one bare cheek of her bottom.
The top of Dylan’s head almost came off when he discovered that she was wearing a G-string. He caressed the soft mound of flesh under his palm again, wringing an intense moan from Arianna’s throat. His mouth moved with hungry, persuasive insistence over hers as she clung tighter to him.
Dylan moved his left hand from the small of her back, over her midriff, and upwards to close over one breast that fit perfectly into his palm. Arianna gasped at his touch and the small sound was like a bucket of ice water; what was he doing? She was his step-sister!
Hurriedly he jerked his hands off her and took a quick step back, his blue eyes darkened to an almost black shade.
Arianna’s forest-green eyes clashed with his, wide and filled with arousal and bewilderment.
“Dylan?”
“That’s what happens when you dress like a slut!” he bit out.
The moment the words passed his lips, he wished he could call them back. Arianna stiffened, her face going blank and smooth like a porcelain doll. Wordlessly, she turned and walked the rest of the way down the stairs.