Raphael
Chapter 13
“What do you mean, there’s a problem with the plane?” I growl, leaning over the counter and getting into the clerk’s face.
His cheeks go white and he stutters. “S-sir, I’ve given you all the information I have. I was only told that there was a mechanical malfunction with the engine and that the aircraft is being examined by the mechanics.”
“Can’t they send another plane?” I hiss through gritted teeth.
He shakes his head nervously. “That’s not a possibility, sir. Apparently, all of the airline’s jets are currently in service.”
“This is unacceptable!” I pound a fist into the countertop and storm away, needing a second to get my anger under control.
I hate all the time-wasting involved in traveling. That’s why I bought my own jet so that I could avoid these kinds of delays. But the tiny, single lane runway at Crystal Whale Island Airport is too narrow to handle my Boeing 757 with its 120-foot wingspan so I chartered a smaller vessel just for this trip thinking that nothing else could possibly go wrong. That was an incorrect evaluation. And right now, a delay is the last thing I need.
I’ve accomplished my mission here. Fenty has renewed his brokerage contract with Silver Metal Brokers for another five-year term. Now, I just need to get out of this place. I need to get away from Eva before we end up twisted in the sheets again.
I woke up this morning and she was all curled up beside me, warm and beautiful and perfect as ever.
And I jumped out of the bed as if she were a cold rattlesnake.
I fucked my best friend’s daughter.
It was amazing. Every other part of her was simply addictive. And that’s just what I’m afraid of. I can’t let her become an addiction. I can’t allow myself to want her. It’s vile enough that I touched her in the first place. I’ve been beating myself up about it since my eyes blinked open this morning. I have to get her away from me before it happens again. And again. And again.
I shove back the sleeve of my blazer and glance at my TAG Heuer. We should have been in the air an hour ago. This is bullshit!
I feel a light touch on my shoulder and my head snaps over to see who it is. Eva’s blue-green eyes peer at me with a soft look. “These things happen, Raph. It’s not the end of the world.”
My shoulders tense further. She doesn’t know what she’s saying. She doesn’t know how much I need to get back to the real world, away from this fantasyland. The real world is cruel and cut-throat. If you’re not always ready for a fight, you get chewed up and spit out. But here with Eva, everything is soft and warm, a whole universe in soft focus.
It’s an illusion.
“Eva…” I say her name low in warning. “Stay out of this. Please.”
She just rolls her eyes and folds her delicate arms under her breasts. “You’re worth over a billion dollars. You won’t go hungry if you miss a single business meeting.”
“Leave it alone, Kitten.”
She persists. Of course she persists. She’s Evangeline Brooks. “You’re all work, no play, Mr. Silver,” she says in a teasing voice. She reaches up and straightens the knot of the woolen tie at my neck.
“This is serious, girl.”
She doesn’t know the first thing about responsibility. She doesn’t know all the sacrifices that have to be made to amass a fortune like I have, all the sacrifices that have to be made to keep it. I have to be focused and level-headed, eyes always on the next benchmark, the next quarterly report. That’s why being this wrapped up in her is so new and unnerving. Unfamiliar. And the fact that she’s off-limits just deepens my discomfort.
“Oh, I’m serious,” she says with a little grin as she laces her fingers around mine. Her eyes on me, she walks backward, pulling me behind a tall, potted palm plant decorating a corner of the spacious lobby. She bats her eyes at me and drops her voice. “I want you to play with me.” She brings both of our hands to the hem of her dress and my fingertips brush against her smooth thigh as she pulls my hand under the fabric.
“What are you doing?” I try to keep a firm voice but I already feel fire starting to work its way through my limbs.
Yanking me by the tie, she pulls me closer. Then, she stands on her toes and presses her mouth to my throat. Oh, God…
Her fingers muss up the back of my hair. I feel sweat beading on my temple and I’m not sure if it’s from the oppressive tropical heat or from the scorching lust pulsing off of her body. My cock is already ready, wanting her, aching for her. Her tongue darts out. Wet, warm suede sliding across my taut skin. A groan moves through me.
“We should take some time to enjoy the beach,” she suggests in a not-so-innocent tone.
“Eva, what we did last night, we can’t do it again. This has to end now.”
She chuffs. “Fuck right and wrong, good and bad right this minute,” she whispers against my skin. “Let’s have fun.” Her words skitter all the way down my spine.
I gather her wrists in my hands. “Stop it, girl.”
But she must see the chinks in my armor. She knows that I want her. “We’re in paradise, Raph. Nobody knows us here. Nobody will ever find out…Let’s be bad,” she implores, her eyes sparkling like the sea.
I glance over my shoulder at the clerk. He’s already serving other customers. Talking and laughing, he’s already forgotten all about me and my grievances. I bring my eyes back to Eva. She’s looking up at me, eagerness and mischief all over her pretty face.
I haven’t been challenged by a woman in a long time. I haven’t met one who pushes my boundaries and tests my limits. Every other woman I’ve fucked over the past years has simply taken what I’ve given them. They’ve accepted the bits and pieces, the hurried moments together. But Eva wants more and she’s not afraid to ask for it. And I sort of like that she’s brave enough to do that.
Giving in, I lower my face to hers so that we’re looking each other in the eyes. “This ends the moment we leave this island. We can’t carry on like this once we’re in Reyfield.”
She looks at me from under her long lashes, giving me a docile smile. “Of course. It ends the moment we leave this island,” she promises, echoing my words.
A weight rolls off my shoulders. I grin back at her and my hands smooth over her perfect ass. I snap my wrist back and strike my palm sharply against her soft bottom. She yelps and quickly covers her sinful lips to contain the sound.
I take her by the hand. “Come on, you bad little Kitten. Let’s have some fun.”