She paused and looked at him, her hair a tangled mess from where his fingers had speared through her locks the night before and then again only an hour ago. The memory slid through him in a dark wave and hardened him again instantly.

She didn't speak, but waited for him to continue. "I have to leave for New York on Sunday." He gave her a moment to digest the information while he gauged her reaction, knowing his next statement would be posed as a suggestion when it was anything but. "I'd like you to come with me."

Her body stilled and her eyes widened. "I've never been to New York." Her voice didn't reflect any excitement, it only stated a fact in a detached tone.

"Then you should go," he said neutrally.

"I don't know, I don't have the right clothes."

"Clothes won't be a problem. You'll have three days to shop before we leave."

"I don't have enough m--"

He cut her off. "Don't say it. Don't. Just don't."

She sucked in a breath. "How long will we be gone?"

"A week."

"You have business there?"

"Yes, our home office is in New York and I make frequent trips."

Natalie knew his bank was stationed in New York; it was good he'd given her the information himself now. But that didn't mean she wanted to go with him. "Maybe I should just wait for you here?"

He walked over and stood in front of her. "You could, but why would you want to do that?"

Natalie felt the impact of his body before he'd even made it across the room to her. And now, standing only inches in front of her, his tall body looming over hers, was enough to make her head spin. She was getting in too deep. Way, way too deep. She needed to put distance between them. "It's out of my comfort zone, I guess."

"You know I'll keep you safe, right?" He lifted her chin and their eyes tangled. "You know I'd never let you come to any grief?"

"I--I know."

"Do you Natalie? You know I'll protect you, always? From everything?"

She stared up at him, and sucked in oxygen as deafening silence permeated the room around them.

She watched as he pulled out his wallet and whipped out that damn black American Express card again. The one that meant she was going to have to go shopping again. She just wasn't a normal woman. She couldn't be. In the past, she'd convinced herself she hated shopping, primarily because she hadn't had the money to shop--but now she knew it was true. She did hate shopping.

He pushed it into her hand and her fingers closed over it reluctantly. "You shop. Buy five times the amount you'll think you need, and then maybe you'll get enough. We leave Sunday afternoon."

His lips bussed her forehead and he left the room.

****

Marco leaned against the elevator wall as he rode it down. He let out a deep breath as his head lowered to his chest before lifting and banging back against the wall. That had been close. He didn't like to think about the fight that might have ensued if she hadn't complied with his wishes, because there was no damn way he was leaving her behind. He sucked in a sustaining breath and slowly let it out again. No, he damn sure didn't want to contemplate how bad the fight could have been if she hadn't acquiesced to him. And he wouldn't even let himself think about how bad it would be if he had to try to sleep without her beside him for seven nights.

Chapter Eight

Natalie had flown frequently enough in her youth that the air travel didn't faze her. By Sunday evening, they were standing together sipping champagne in their hotel suite while looking across at the lights of the city. It was absolutely magnificent, but then so was Downtown Houston at night.

But there was something about being in the largest city in the United States of America. The Statue of Liberty, the Empire State Building, and Wall Street, the investment capital of the world and the reason Marco had business here this week.

Natalie stood by the window with Marco at her back. Her nose was almost pressed against the window as she gazed out. She felt a buzzing sensation in her head, both from the champagne and from the arm he banded around her as he pulled her back into his torso. His lips fell to her ear. "I went shopping this week as well," he whispered, his teeth grazing her earlobe.

She trembled against him. "Did you?"

"Mmm," he murmured softly in agreement.

He turned her around to face him and she saw he had a large, rectangular velvet box in his hands. She looked up at him in question, hoping she was sufficiently masking the emotional upheaval racing through her veins.

He lifted the lid and inside lay a sparkling, brilliant necklace and matching earrings in a colored stone that Natalie had never seen before. She reached out to run her finger over them. "What are they?" she whispered.

"Chocolate diamonds surrounded by white diamonds. I hope you like it. I couldn't decide between the white gold and the rose gold, but the rose seemed too much. I think this color will enhance your beauty more."

"They're beautiful."

"You're beautiful," he said swiftly.

"Marco--"

"Do you like them?"

"I--I love them, but I can't take them."

He ignored her as if she hadn't spoken, and lifted the necklace from its bed of velvet. He draped it around her neck, and fumbled just enough with the fastener to let her know this wasn't something he was used to doing. A small quiver of delight at the knowledge pierced her heart.

He picked her hand up and led her away from the windows, to a console with a large mirror above it. He swung her around to face the mirror and stood at the side of her and held out the earrings, with a silent demand for her to put them on.

She fastened them to her ears with hands that trembled. They were gorgeous, absolutely beautiful, and she'd never owned anything even a tenth as nice. But doubt was taking hold of her. She couldn't keep them, could she?

His hands fell to her shoulders and he kissed the nape of her neck, his fingers sliding over the necklace and her naked flesh beneath in a blatant display of ownership. Desire, immediate and strong, overcame her and beat a loud cadence through her veins.

He stood at her back and enclosed her breasts in the palms of his hands, his thumbs stroking through the layer of clothing to her nipples beneath. His eyes were hot on hers in the mirror.

Her lashes began to dip and his nostrils flared in sexual response. When her eyes closed completely, he pulled her shirt over her head with a rustle of cloth and then his hands fell back to her breasts, covered now only in thin lace.

His breathing escalated as he pushed the bra down and out of his way and his hands gripped her with unrelenting strength as he caressed her nipples. "These sweet little tits are so perfect you don't need a bra," he whispered in a raspy voice at her ear, "it's only a hindrance to me."




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