Slightly Sinful (7 page)

Body tensing in mid-thrust, his thick hot fluid filled her core; it became trapped within the glove fit of her sex around his length.

Roberto collapsed onto her, his glorious weight bearing down on her. He buried his face in her neck and his low speech whispered in her ear, “You have saturated my soul with your essence,
mi cereza oscura hermosa
.”

Chapter four

Sore, thoroughly pleasured and exhausted, Delilah looked at the bright glow of the rising early morning sun. In a little over an hour, the morning flight would leave from Cat Island to Nassau. Glancing away from the spacious window, her gaze rested on the mysterious man. Roberto Sanchez. His features were relaxed and peaceful as he lay on his side under the covers. She wanted to touch him. To reach her hand out and caress his skin, but she didn’t want to chance waking him. Or even worse, he’d awaken, rise from the bed and leave her first.

As she lay on her side, facing him, her heart ached. She was shocked by the feelings assailing her. This was supposed to be one reckless adventure, not a night filled with unforgettable passion this man brought to her.
I shouldn’t have asked for his name. The mask should’ve stayed on
.

It was too late now to understand Silverman’s wisdom of secrecy and subterfuge. It was a lot easier to leave something behind when the true essence hadn’t been revealed. When it was intangible.

Uncertainty lay like a rock in the pit of her stomach, weighing down her heart and mind as she turned over and slipped quietly from the bed. She needed to leave. If he awakened, he might coax her to spend more hours in his arms, and she couldn’t do that. Her raw emotions already hovered under the surface. He made her imagine cozy dinners, quiet evenings in front of a fireplace and whispered conversation at bedtime. This man was an enigma. She didn’t come to Cat Island to risk her heart, but for a distracting night of sex with no strings. Job done, it was time to go home.

Grabbing her small satchel, she silently unlocked the door then turned and looked at him one last time. The back of her eyes burned with brimming tears, but Delilah mentally shook herself, stopping them. No way would she allow herself to cry over him. They both had gotten exactly what they wanted, a night in the arms of someone willing. Once she walked out of this house, Roberto Sanchez would be in her past.

With more bravado than she felt, she stepped into the hall, closed the door behind her and padded to the next room. Opening her friend’s door, she ignored Pamela, who lay snuggled between two men, all naked with the covers rumpled around their feet. All still wearing masks. They had followed the rules.

She quickly used Pamela’s shower, dressed and then awakened her friend. It was time to go home. Back to the hopes of a contract and back to reality.

~YH~

Roberto inhaled deeply, enjoying the sweet and spicy scent of Delilah and sex. It was a hint to him that the prior night had not been a dream. Today they would be leaving the private island, but the last plane would pull out late this afternoon and he did not have plans to leave the room until the last moment. He had decided last minute to even attend the sinful night, but he was certainly glad he did.

Daniel Silverman had provided him the opportunity to make his fantasy a reality. Delilah Reynolds had fallen into his arms. When he’d entered the dining room, he believed he had been seeing things when he saw her among the wicked diners. However, there she was in the flesh.

Other men in attendance had circled around her, practically drooling, wanting to sample her charms and perhaps spend the night between her thighs. However, he ensured he would be the only one there. Pure jealousy he knew, but from the sidelines he’d watched and waited for his opportunity. Seizing his chance when she’d gravitated away from the throng of revelers as he assumed she eventually would do. Looking for a place of solace. As sensual and confident as she may come off, he could easily see in the shadows of her eyes that this event, though perfect for her companion, was out of her league. Hell, it was out of his league to a certain degree.  

Even though she had been a part of his thoughts and life for the past four years, he knew he’d have to take things slow with her. His mind warned him that Delilah may have come to this party because she wasn’t ready to be involved in a serious relationship. Most of Silverman’s attendees hopped for one naughty adventure to the next. Delilah could be made of the same cloth even if she wasn’t into orgies and such. His heart countered the argument.

Opening his eyes, he turned over expecting to see her sprawled out beside him in all of her beautiful brown glory, auburn hair wild around her. But the other side of the bed was empty.

Stretching his hand out, he could feel the cool, smooth texture of the sheets. She’d been out of bed for awhile. Turning his head from left to right, he searched for her. The room was large, but not big enough that he could not see that the door to the bathroom was open and dark inside, she wasn’t in there.

Had she gone down for breakfast?

He sat up. Instantly he noticed the closet door was gaped wide and two drawers were open and empty. It didn’t take more than an ounce of his intelligence to realize she had left. Left him.

It had almost been dawn the last time they’d had sex, so she either left shortly after or barely allowed herself an hour of sleep. Seeing the clock on the wall, he noticed it was fifteen after eight. The first plane had already departed the Cat Island to Nassau to a connecting flight to the U.S. main land.

“¡
Mierda
,” he cursed, slamming his fist into the mattress. This was not how he wanted their night to end. He’d thought of setting up contact with Delilah, discussing a possible future relationship with her.

Shoving the sheets off his body, he sat on the edge of the bed. If she thought it would be that easy for her to walk out of his life, she had much to learn about Roberto Sanchez.

Rising and moving towards the bathroom, he felt a smile pull at the corner of his mouth. Delilah was about to discover just how tenacious he could be.

~YH~

“How was your weekend, Lila?” Darren asked when he breezed into her office Monday afternoon.

In the hour, they needed to be over at the lake. Today they would begin renovations on Vacation Paradise Suites.

“Don’t even ask,” Delilah warned, gathering her files and placing them in her briefcase. “I should have just stayed home and chewed my nails.”

“Hell. That bad, huh?”

“Honestly, I don’t want to talk about it.” Her voice held more bark than she meant.

Darren grimaced in response.

She knew she was being a bitch. She had been surly and emotionally unsettled since she arrived home yesterday, but she refused to process a no-win situation.

Her friendship with Darren had started with the company. Unbothered by her attitude, he moved on to the bigger topic plaguing both of them. “Connie said Torres Corp hasn’t called yet.”

Picking up her case, she strolled to the open door where Darren waited. “Yet? I figured we didn’t get it. They said early today. It’s now noon.”

Her design manager and friend put his hand on her shoulder, his voice echoing with sincerity, “I’m sorry. I know how important the contract was for
Précis
Touch.”

“I know you do.” But, this was her reputation. She knew other opportunities would come around, however she pondered if getting turned down by such a prestigious company would always overshadow her.

“We’ll slay the giant next time.” A broad smile stretched across his face.

She’d bust her ass to make sure. “We sure will. First we need to see how our team is doing at the hotel.” She led the way out of the office. At times like this, she was glad to have a close friend giving their support. Just like Darren, she knew they would one day land a major contract. Her company was one of the best. Her team worked hard to meet the needs of their clients. She put everything she had into each job, ensuring success. If Nicholas Torres couldn’t see that, it was his loss.

~YH~

“Everything is looking good from my standpoint, Delilah,” Patrick, her electrician, informed her, the final team member to check in.

Delilah and the rest of her staff had just finished surveying the hotel, which they’d been doing for the last two hours.

She turned to the robust man standing with them in the lobby. “Well, Mr. Spade, everything looks great. The construction company you worked with did an excellent job in keeping to the original plans we’d discussed.”

“Glad to hear it. There were some rough patches, but things worked out,” Spade announced.

Many times she and her staff set up their designs based on the original plans, to do their walk-through forty-eight hours later and see the contractors hadn’t made major structural changes for one reason or another. Occasionally, it meant back to the drawing board for them and a delay of the project.

Holding her hand out to the client, Delilah smiled. “The first wave of our staff will be here on Wednesday.”

Grasping her hand in his meaty one, Spade shook it. “Wednesday it is. I’m looking forward to it.”

She parted company with him then the five-member team from
Précis
Touch followed her out of the semi-finished building.

Riiiiiing…Riiiiing.

The insistent sound of her smartphone grabbed her attention. Pausing in stride, she removed it from the clip on her briefcase. “Hello?” With the phone to her ear she continued toward her car.

“Ms. Reynolds?” a male voice came through the line.

 “Yes, this is she.” She checked the caller identification, but the private number tag gave her no hint to the man’s identification.

“This is Les Carter and I’m calling from Torres Corporation.”

Instantly, her heart and feet stopped simultaneously.

Her team followed suit.

Delilah forced herself to keep her voice calm and professional, instead of panting into the receiver like an expectant mother.

“Yes.”
It’s Monday
. With nervous excitement, her chest tightened as if a band squeezed around her ribcage, causing her to have difficulty in breathing.

He continued. “Your company’s proposal has received favorable comments from our board.”

Oh, my God.

“We’d like to meet with you and your team tomorrow at three, if the time is convenient for you.”

Was it convenient? Midnight would have been convenient. Trying for calm, cool and collected, she swallowed the tumultuous thrill bubbling inside and threatening to spill out in a scream. “If you give me a moment to check my schedule, I can let you know.”

“Take your time,” he told her.

Her team stared at her expectantly.

She signaled them to be patient by promptly holding a single finger in the air and then palming the black device. She selected the menu button and scrolled until she located her electronic planner. Letting out a small sigh of relief, she replaced the phone to her ear. “Three tomorrow afternoon will work for us.”

“Well then, congratulations on the contract and we’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Please pass along my gratitude to Mr. Torres and the board.” After his confirmation to relay the message, Delilah hung up the phone as if she’d just finished placing an order for takeout.

“Delilah, please don’t keep us in suspense,” her head architect pleaded.

Clipping the smartphone on her case, she slowly lifted her gaze to her team.

“Oh, for the love of Peter, Paul and Mary and all that’s holy… spill it,” Darren implored.

Smiling broadly, she whispered in awe, “We did it.” Gazing at each member, she repeated it. “We did it. Torres Corp selected
Précis
Touch.” Her voice rose. “They chose us.”

Her team stood stunned for a moment then everyone reacted at the same time, with hugs, high fives and good-natured slaps on the back. After the congratulations had subsided, the other four people got into their cars and left, heading back to the office to prepare for the next day.

She and Darren stood by her car and waved the others good-bye.

Darren gave her a firm hug. “I knew you could do it. All those years of hard work are about to pay off.”

If anyone knew how much winning this project meant to her, Darren did.

Breaking the embrace, she stepped back and looked at her friend. “You remember the first day you walked into the office and demanded I give you a job?”

Darren nodded and grinned.

“Telling me you wanted to be a part of building something and watching it grow. You worked for the first three months without pay.”

His laughter shook the atmosphere around them. “Actually, no one else would hire me. So, I would’ve been broke either way. Thank goodness for the money I had left over from my final college loan.”

Delilah’s mouth dropped open in animated shock at discovering her friend’s earlier lie. “Darren…” she attempted to sound scolding.

He tried to look ashamed, but the smile that played at the corner of his mouth made the effect weak. “I’m sorry, Delilah. I was fresh out of college with no experience. You were my last choice. My plan was to work for you for six months and pray that I got a more lucrative position.”

Shifting her stance and placing a hand on her hip, she accused, “What about all that business of seeing the job I did at your girl friend’s doctor’s office.”

His laughter roared. “No girl friend at the time and never saw any office. I was sitting in your little two-chair waiting room when I heard your secretary tell you that the check from Dr. Burke’s office had finally come in with a card thanking you for great job on redecorating his waiting room.”

“You’re fired,” she called out in a firm voice, but her one-sided smile caused the effect to be lost.

Pulling her into another quick embrace, he then let her go just as fast. “The truth of the
matter
is that your tenacity in getting your business off the ground inspired me more than anyone else I’ve known. It’s because of that reason I stayed.”