A Slow-Burning Dance (7 page)

“If
you don’t like this, all you have to do is say so and I will stop.”

“Okay.”
She tensed, but the only sensation was a warm, wet finger gently slipping into
her asshole. Sela let out a long sigh as she grew used to the fullness and
relaxed her muscles. It felt heavenly, and that wasn’t something she’d
expected. Damien moved his finger in and out, stretching the walls, and then he
withdrew it and inserted two fingers.

He’d
also put more oil on them because everything was wet now, but she didn’t mind.
That he was taking such care touched her heart, and she had to blink back
tears. She’d never been the kind of girl who dreamed about her perfect man, but
if she’d had to describe him, Damien came as close as possible to the one she
would have conjured up.

“Are
you ready, Sela?”

“Yes.”

He
kissed her lower back again, and then she heard him put on a condom.

“Don’t
tense your muscles,
niña
. Just try to
relax. I promise I won’t hurt you.”

How
could she do anything but melt into him at the sound of such soft, smooth
words? He teased the opening to her ass with his sheathed dick, and then
slowly, gently, slid it inside. He took his time, letting her get used to the
fullness, whispering endearments in Spanish the entire time. Her pussy
contracted, which was an unexpected boon. By the time he got his entire cock
inside her ass, Sela shook her head back and forth as the orgasm began.

When
he caressed her clit, her climax exploded in a dizzying display of flashing
lights behind her closed eyelids. She could do nothing but grasp the edge of
the counter and hang on for dear life. Damien groaned loudly and fucked her ass
slowly, but his entire dick was inside her with each thrust. She felt no pain,
only the most exquisite pleasure imaginable. This was definitely a first.
Ass-fucked next to the breakfast dishes.

“
Sela
, please tell me you like this.”

“It’s
incredible.”

“You
feel so damn good!”

It
didn’t take long for him to come, and once he did, he took off the condom and
eased her to the floor to hold her tightly. The tiles felt blessedly cool
against her sweat-covered body. They’d both need a shower now, and she
whispered that to him.

He
nuzzled her neck and chuckled softly. “What a perfectly wicked idea.”

As
Damien helped her stand, he took her hand to lead her upstairs. Sela wondered
how she’d have the energy later to give two dance lessons, but suddenly it
didn’t matter. She only wanted to be with this seductive, passionate man.

Chapter
Eight

Damien
found it difficult to concentrate on work the following week. His mind wandered
to the erotic weekend he’d spent with Sela, and each time it did, his dick grew
rock hard and he relived every exquisite moment.

After
the kitchen experience Saturday morning, they’d showered, and then he’d made
love to her again on the bathroom floor this time. The woman wasn’t squeamish
about trying anything new, and she had an adventurous streak he’d longed to
find in a woman all his adult life.

Before
her lessons, as he’d promised to do, he’d shown her his collection of antique
musical instruments. She had tears in her eyes as he described where each one
had been found on the surface, and how he’d lost most of the collection he used
to have when the floods came, because he hadn’t had time to move it
underground. All of them had lost so much, and it touched him that she
understood how much things that were only luxury items to most people had meant
to him.

He’d
met her at the new mall after her dance lessons because it was a short walk
from the gym, and she’d been delighted with the progress on the corner suite.
Damien had phoned Ernest and
Tomás
the week before,
and asked them to hurry up on that suite if possible, using the excuse that having
the corner done would attract others to the project because of the visual
appeal.

Tomás
was fine with the plan, but Ernest had tried to give him shit, saying Bart
Tabor, the building inspector, wasn’t the kind of man who could be pushed into
anything. Ernest had said that even if they finished the unit well ahead of the
others, that was no guarantee that Bart would give it a green light without the
others done.

Damien
had built far more structures in this city than anyone, and one additional
phone call to Bart had taken care of Ernest’s concerns. Bart had said he’d be
happy to push up the inspections on the unit whenever Damien needed them. He
hadn’t told
Sela
that the unit was now slated to be
ready in two months instead of three. He’d wanted it to be a surprise for her.

Every
day he sent fresh wildflowers to her, and on Friday evening when he came by her
apartment to escort her across town to a club where they were having dinner
before enjoying the live music, he was delighted to find she still had the
flowers everywhere. Each of the bouquets was in a colorful vase. When he asked
about them, she said one of her students made them.

“She
wants to open a studio, but right now she’s working in a coffee shop to make
enough money. She’s not only a gifted dancer, but quite a budding artist. I’m
thinking of taking her on as a part-time instructor because I know she’d make
more money teaching than serving coffee.”

“Is
she that talented?”

“I
believe so.”

“The
vases are lovely.”

“They’re
still a bit crude, but she’s taking classes at the university. I think with a
little work she could make a living doing this, as well as dancing, or at least
teaching it.”

He
smiled and brushed a hand across her hair. He loved touching it. It was wild
and untamed, just like her. “You’re kind to help her. A lot of people in the
arts wouldn’t do that much for someone who might be competition for them one
day.”

She
waved a hand in the air. “I’ve never believed in that kind of behavior. This
isn’t a zero sum game. There’s room for all of us.”

“You
have a generous heart. Most of my employees could learn a thing or two from you
and Santino both.” At the mention of her brother’s name, Sela frowned. “What’s
wrong?”

She
averted her gaze and reached for her bag. “Nothing.” When she glanced at him
again, her smile was forced. “Ready to go?”

He
placed a hand on each shoulder. “Put down the bag, and tell me what’s wrong.”

****

Sela
sighed and placed her bag back on the table. Telling him would only cause
trouble for Santino at work, but Damien was too sharp. He hadn’t missed her
reaction to her brother’s name, so she was stuck.

“Santino
came over Wednesday morning to bring me some gypsy peppers from one of his
neighbors. He’s been trying to grow them in the courtyard of the apartment
complex, and finally had so much success that now he has too many. Santino
thought I’d like some, so he stopped by only I wasn’t here, of course. I was
still at your apartment.”

She’d
spent more time in Damien’s apartment this past week than her own. “That was
the text message I had Wednesday morning.”

He
nodded slowly. They’d been interrupted by the sound of Sela’s phone as they
were having a leisurely fuck in bed before getting ready for work. “I called
him as soon as you left, and he was still waiting for me when I got home.”

“What
did he say?” asked Damien.

She
shrugged, but she already knew he wouldn’t be satisfied with a half-assed
answer, and he didn’t deserve one. “He didn’t know. About us. I guess I had
assumed you might say something.”

“Why
would I do that?” he asked quietly. “It’s not my place to gossip about you to
your brother.”

“I
understand.”

“Why
didn’t you tell him about us yourself?”

“Because
I wasn’t sure what to say.”

He
watched her face carefully.
Too
carefully. “Are you afraid this won’t last? Is that why you didn’t say anything
to him?”

She’d
never be able to hide anything from this man. “I wanted to wait a while and see
where things went.”

“You
don’t believe what I said to you Saturday morning.”

“I
want to believe it.”

“But
you don’t.” He pulled her close and stroked her hair, which was such an
unexpected gesture that she was at a loss for words. “It’s all right. I
understand. Everyone you loved was taken from you, and it’s difficult to trust
in anything again. I’m the same way.”

She
pulled out of his embrace to look into his eyes. “What do you mean?”

“I
mean I’m the same way, or I used to be. It’s why I went from woman to woman for
so many years. I was afraid. I didn’t want to trust in anyone because everyone
I loved left me.”

She
swallowed hard against the sudden lump in her throat. Not even Santino had ever
admitted feeling this way, but she knew he did. To hear Damien voice it aloud,
and tell her he understood her reluctance to trust in this relationship, was
like a breath of fresh air—
real
fresh
air.

“I
don’t want to be this way any longer,” she said, “but I don’t know how to
change. How did you do it?”

“It’s
not a pretty story.”

“Will
you tell me anyway?”

“I
will, but first I want to hear more about what Santino said to you. It
obviously upset you.”

“Damien,
I’m really uncomfortable telling you. He works for you. I can’t come between
him and his job. It means too much to him.”

She
could see the struggle on his face, but wasn’t sure what he had difficulty
with. “His job is intact. I need him as much as he needs me, but you’re my
niña
. I won’t let any man hurt you or
make you feel insecure about us, and that includes your brother.”

Oh,
he was so getting another blowjob later. “He said you were a player.”

“He
doesn’t know I’ve changed. I don’t discuss my personal life with my employees.”

“I
tried to tell him you had, but he wouldn’t hear it.”

Damien
sighed, but his expression wasn’t angry, and for that she was grateful. “I’ll
speak to him.”

“What
will you say? I don’t want him to think I asked you to run interference for me.
Santino and I have always been close, even if he is a bit too overprotective. I
don’t want him to think I no longer trust him.”

“He’s
overprotective because he loves you so much. You’re all he has left.”

She
had to take a couple of deep breaths before she spoke. “I realize that, but I’m
not a child. I can make my own decisions.”

“Did
you tell him that?”

“Of
course I did, but you’ve never seen him in full big brother mode.”

Damien
looked thoughtful for a few seconds, and then he smiled. “I have an idea. Why
don’t we do something with him this weekend? Let him see us together. Then
he’ll realize I’m not trying to hurt you and I might not have to say anything
at all. Unless he asks. If he confronts me about the way I used to be, thinking
I’m still that way, then I’ll speak with him about it and clear the air. Okay?”

“Okay.
Thank you. That’s a better idea. That way it’s him bringing up the subject, not
you, and Santino won’t think I’ve put you up to it.”

“I
want to show him I’m not out to hurt you. He needs to be set straight on my
intentions toward you.”

She
grinned at the old-fashioned sentiment. “What exactly are your intentions
toward me, Mr. Rivera?”

His
gaze turned dark and lust-filled, and Sela wondered if they’d make it to the
club. Right now, she didn’t care if they ended up here for the night. “My
intentions, Miss Chavez, are first of all to make you so hot and wet for me
that you can’t even think of looking at another man ever again.”

I’m already there.

“Secondly,
I intend to make you so crazy about me that you fall at my feet and do anything
I ask you to do.”

“Oh
my…” Sela pretended to swoon, but Damien wasn’t quite ready for her theatrics
and almost didn’t catch her in time. They both laughed until they were wiping
their eyes, and then Sela grabbed her bag again and they went outdoors.

On
the way to Paraíso, the club they were attending, Sela asked Damien what the
not-so-pretty story was he’d been about to tell her.

“Oh,
that.”

“Quit
stalling. You said you’d tell me.”

He
gave her a droll look. “I know I did,
niña
,
but once I tell you, you might not want to see me again.”

She
stopped walking. “Well now I have to hear it. This ought to be good.”

“You’re
a brat.”

“No
kidding. You just figured that out?”

They
resumed walking. “About six months ago, I let a relationship go on longer than
I should have. By that I mean I probably shouldn’t have gone out with her after
our third date, when she started talking about helping me run my company after
we were married.”

Sela
came to a halt and glanced up at him. “You were engaged?”

“No.
Not even close. I never asked her to marry me, and we never discussed it. She
jumped to a lot of conclusions and was—how do I put this delicately? She was
unstable.”

“You
mean she was batshit
loco
.”

The
corners of his mouth turned up as they began walking again. “Well, yes. That
was it in a nutshell. Instead of ending it, I let her go on for a couple of
weeks like that, never committing to anything. I can’t even tell you why I
didn’t set her straight. I think part of me didn’t want to believe that she was
serious, but when she starting showing up at the office and telling my
employees she would one day be their boss, I had to step in.”

“What
happened?”

He
frowned. “She tried to discredit me. She started a smear campaign on the
Internet that my PR team was able to quash before too much damage was done, but
it meant involving your brother and the rest of my IT team. They eventually had
to dig behind the scenes to find dirt on this woman. It seems she’d made a
career out of this, and had successfully blackmailed high profile company
executives in other cities both below ground and on the surface.”

“Then
she was in the wrong, not you.”

“Yes,
I realize that, but I’m not proud of the fact that I let it go on too long
instead of listening to my instincts. I’m also not proud of the fact that when
my IT and PR departments were done, her prior schemes had been exposed. Our
company name was never attached to the blog posts, or course, but I think we
went too far.”

“Why
did you go as far as you did?”

“She
tried to make a fool out of me and my company.”

Sela
understood the male macho ego better than Damien likely thought she did. “So
what happened after you made sure she couldn’t come after you? Did you swear
off dating?”

He
stopped again and gazed down at her. “Yes, I did. Until last Wednesday, that
is.” Sela sighed as he brushed a finger along her face, sending shivers down
her spine. “Until you walked into my life. You’re the woman I’ve waited for,
Sela. There is no one but you, and there never will be again.”

How
could she help falling in love with this man?