Rome for Always (The BAD BOY BILLIONAIRES Collection) (14 page)

But relaxing was the last thing on Rome’s mind. He
reached for her, pulling her onto his lap so he could have greater access to
the sleek smoothness of her body and the silky softness of her lips. As his
hands slid up her body she sighed and tilted her face up to his and when he
lowered his lips to hers she parted willingly, giving him leave to explore her
sweetness.

As his tongue played with hers his hands moved over to
cup her left breast, to caress the round smoothness and tickle the puckered tip
until she gasped into his mouth. Wanting to heighten the pleasure he drew away
but only to lower his lips to the teased nipple so he could draw it into his
mouth. Then he suckled softly until Arie sighed and reached down to clasp the
back of his head and press him into her.

But now that he’d turned her on Rome was ready to turn
the heat way up. Where he’d been soothing her with his caress he now began to
nibble at the distended bud, worrying it till it grew pebble-hard in his mouth.
When she moaned and arched her back he gnawed at the taut nipple, torturing her
even more before letting it slip from his lips,  Then he turned his attention
to the other breast. By the time he was through teasing that one it was Arie
who was pulling at him, urging him out of the water.

“Please,” she whispered, her voice urgent, “let’s go
now.” She was climbing out of the tub even as she spoke, she was that eager to
move on to serious business.

He didn’t have to be asked twice. As he climbed out of
the hot tub he reached for the heavy towel hanging on the nearby rack, wrapped
it around Arie and for the third time that evening he lifted her off her feet. As
he strode back into the bedroom with her in his arms she rewarded him with a
caress of her own. Tilting her face toward his chest she covered his naked
nipple with her lips and applied the same sweet torture he’d administered mere
minutes before.

Her tantalizing teasing spurring him on, when Rome
reached the bed he rolled his beautiful bundle out of the towel and proceeded
to cover her body with butterfly kisses that had her wriggling and giggling at
the same time.

“That tickles,” she complained in-between tiny bursts of
laughter as he pressed his lips to the sole of her foot.

His mouth curved into a smile. "Not exactly the
reaction I was hoping for,” he chided and then he drew her little toe into his
mouth. As his tongue grazed its tip she gasped.

“Ooh, that feels…so sexy,” she crooned.

Rome chuckled. “Now that’s more like it.”

He kissed the tips of each of her toes then slid up her
thighs, grazing the skin with his lips, sending shivers rippling up her body. When
she moaned and reached down to tangle her fingers in his hair, urging him on,
he gave in to her silent plea and moved up her body and back to her breasts
where he nuzzled then suckled until she clasped his face with trembling hands
and drew him up so he could steal her breath in a kiss.

Rome was hard now, ready for her. He pulled away just
long enough to sheath himself and then he was back on the bed, sliding his body
up over hers, settling his hips between her legs. When she lifted those lithe
limbs to wrap them around his waist he captured her lips in a deep, sensual
kiss as slowly, smoothly, he sank into her sweetness.

And then as the kiss became more urgent he began to
move, slowly at first then rhythmically, and as she met each thrust he began to
stroke faster, gliding in and out of her core until the heat began to build
then burgeon then bloom until it burst into a brilliant blaze that had them
clinging to each other, gasping for air.     

As Arie trembled beneath him Rome felt his body shudder
in the throes of release, a sweet agony that made him groan and drop his face
into the pillows.

It was several seconds before he stopped panting then rolled
off the softness of the precious pillow beneath him, his dearest Arie.  As he
lay on his back catching his breath he reached out and gathered her to him.

“That was…awesome,” she whispered and reached up to
touch the tip of his nose with her finger. “And I mean that in the literal
sense of the word.”

The laughter rumbled in Rome’s chest. “So I’m in Michelangelo
class, am I?”

“No doubt,” she said as she traced her finger along his
bottom lip. “And do you know what that means?”

“What?”

“I want more of the same. I can’t get enough of you.”

That made Rome chuckle. “Now hold on, missy. I may be in
the company of
maestros
but even Michelangelo had to take a break.”

“All right, old man,” she said, teasing him. “I’ll let
you sleep, but make sure you have lots of energy in the morning.”

“Mmm,” he murmured, stroking her shoulder. “There’s
nothing quite like making love at sunrise, is there?” Strangely, he didn’t even
hear her reply as his body slowly spiraled from its high and he sank beneath
the shadowy sheet of slumber, falling into a deep and dreamless sleep.

Rome jerked awake, the marimba beat of his iPhone
hauling him back to consciousness. He grabbed for the device and swiped it
before it woke his slumbering companion.

“Yes, who is it?” Still half asleep, Rome’s voice was
husky as he half-spoke, half-whispered into the phone.

“Rome, it’s Iyana. Can you speak?”

“What…what time is it?” He blinked, trying to clear his
vision as he peered at the time on the cable box across the room.

“It’s just after four o’clock. Oops, that means it’s
after eleven in Italy. Sorry.” Then, as if it didn’t matter, she barreled on. “We
have a problem, Rome. I need you back in office tomorrow.”

That made him frown. It sounded serious. “What’s going
on over there?”

“Nothing like this has ever happened before,” she said,
her voice tight. “Major problems with the union. If you don’t resolve this we
could have a strike on our hands. Now tell me you’ll be on the plane first
thing in the morning.”

Typical Iyana, she wasn’t asking. And, as usual, she had
her finger on his pulse. There was no way he would stay in Italy with a crisis
like that unfolding.

“First thing in the morning,” he said and then he
glanced at Arie who still slept, oblivious to what was going on.  He wasn’t
looking forward to breaking this news to her when she woke up.

CHAPTER ELEVEN

Rome hated these wranglings with the union but a man had
to do what a man had to do especially when that man happened to be CEO.

He glanced at the clock. Eleven fifty-six. Time to head
down to the conference room for his meeting with the big guns.

He’d gotten up from around his desk and was heading for
the door when it opened and Iyana peeped in.

“Time for you to get going,” she said. “Got everything
you need?”

“Outside of a bulletproof vest, yes.” As he walked
toward her she stepped aside and let him pass.

“Sure you’re good after yesterday’s flight?” she asked
as he walked by. Then she threw a parting shot at his back. “Want me to come be
your bodyguard?”

“I’ll give you a shout if things get too rough,” he shot
back then shook his head as he heard her laughter echoing down the hallway.

Even though Iyana was laughing he hadn’t been joking
when he made that comment about her. She was bossy but she was also
super-protective and when it came to defending her boss she went all out. He
was sure she would find all kinds of excuses to pop in and out of the meeting
just to check how things were going. If things looked bad she would not
hesitate to break up the meeting and send the union leaders packing. Yes, she
was a bossy one and Rome had had a hard time taking her down a notch, reminding
her that he was the boss, training her not to be so overbearing. He was still
working on that.

It was four exhausting hours before an agreement was
reached and Rome was finally able to wrap up the meeting. “I trust that the
terms are satisfactory,” he said as he stared at the three men and two women sitting
around the conference table. “The increase in overtime pay is far more generous
than what prevails in the marketplace and there’s no other firm I know in the
State of Louisiana offering up to six months paid leave for illness or to
facilitate caring for a family member.”

“I believe we can work with this, Mr. Milano.” Linda
French, the union leader, gave him a satisfied smile. “We’ll take this back to
the workers. I believe they will go with your proposals.”

“Thank you,” he replied and before he could say another
word Iyana appeared in the doorway, face grim, ready to escort the visitors out.
They looked surprised at her quickness to dismiss them but that did not deter
her. She stood at the door, waiting for them to stuff their papers in their
cases and follow her to the door.

By the time she'd bid them farewell Rome was back in his
office. “You must be glad that’s over,” she said. “Next time you decide to run
off to Italy on vacation make sure you don’t have any disgruntled employees
waiting in the wings, ready to stir up trouble.”

“I didn’t go on vacation,” he said, loosening his tie
and walking over to flop down in his chair. “I had to take care of some
important business.”

Iyana frowned. “Business? But you didn’t check in with
the Europe office. I thought you went to see your family.”

“I did. I had to go over to introduce my fiancée.”

Iyana’s head jerked back and her brows rose in surprise.
“Your fiancée? What fiancée?” Then she caught herself, shaking her head then
biting down on her lower lip, probably realizing how presumptuous that had
sounded. “I’m sorry but…you’re engaged?”

“Yes, for a couple of months now. We’re getting married
in the spring.”

“I see…” The words trailed off as Iyana watched him,
then her eyes narrowed. “I didn’t even know you were seeing anyone, not since
you broke up with that lady in Italy. You didn’t tell me.”

That got Rome’s attention. Where he’d been lounging in
his chair, tired after that hell of a meeting, now he sat forward and it was
his turn to regard Iyana with narrowed gaze. “I don’t make it a habit of
discussing my personal life with my employees,” he said, his voice cool. “You
learned of Daniela by mere coincidence. The fact that I’m in this relationship
has nothing to do with your responsibilities as my personal assistant.”

For the second time in minutes Iyana’s head jerked back.
She looked like he’d just slapped her across the face. Then her brows fell. “I’m
sorry,” she said, looking more angry than sorry. “I overstepped my bounds. I’m
very sorry. It won’t happen again. Sir.” With that, she turned and marched out
of his office, pulling the door closed with such strength it was just shy of a
slam.

Rome sagged back in his chair, baffled. What the hell
was that all about? 

***

Next day when Rome arrived at the office he was not in a
good mood. After what had happened the evening before he could guess what a
grizzly bear Iyana was going to be. He was not looking forward to it.

But when he got to the office she was not there. He was
almost ashamed to admit it but he was relieved. “Damn coward,” he muttered
under his breath, chiding himself. It would almost be funny if it weren’t so
pathetic. A man afraid of his own employee.  Although, when that employee was
Iyana Jackson, who could blame him?

Rome went straight into his office, locked himself away
and buried himself in the ton of work that had piled up when he’d been away. He
was so absorbed in his task that he didn’t surface until his cell phone rang
and he glanced at the screen. Eleven twenty-nine and Arie was on the phone. Jeez.
He’d been in office three hours already and the time had flown by like it was
half an hour.

With an involuntary smile he swiped the screen to answer
the call. “How’s my favorite girl?” he asked. “Hard at work?”

“Yeah,” she said with her usual tinkly laugh. “Lena’s
got me under pressure, saying I’ve got to catch up on all the work I left
behind when I went to Italy. I’ve been working hard all morning but now I’ve
got a better idea.”

“Yeah? What’s that?”

“I’m going to play truant,” she said in a dramatic whisper,
“and come and steal you away for lunch.”

He laughed. “Now that sounds like a great idea. I could
take a break myself. And besides, I miss you.”

“Aaw, that’s so sweet. I miss you, too, Boo-Boo.”

That made Rome groan. “Please, not that god-awful name
you gave me.”

“But it’s my special name for you, just because I love
you.”

Rome stifled a second groan. There was little you could
do about an embarrassing nickname when your woman told you she loved you.

“I’m coming over to rescue you,” she said. “I’m taking
you to lunch. Be ready by twelve.”

At exactly one minute before twelve Rome walked out of
his office in anticipation of Arie arriving at the executive suite. The
receptionist had buzzed him to say that she'd arrived and he wanted to be there
to receive her when she got to his floor.