Hidden Heart Read Free

placed his
other hand on her lower back. He locked eyes with hers and
waited.
    Tessa took a step closer
and cupped his shoulder. Bulging muscles threatened to rip the soft
fabric of his shirt. His scent reminded her of sandalwood and
lemongrass—pure masculine.
    One step right, one step
left, one step right, one step left. Nothing complicated. Yet his
proximity made her forget about everything as the world around
disappeared behind clouds of haze. His strong arms held her captive
without force. Her knees weakened without buckling and a floating
sensation took over her senses. His fire-burning stare hypnotized
her, paralyzing her willpower. Warmth radiated from his body as she
nestled in his embrace. No words needed, nothing else
mattered.
    Alessandro spread his
fingers on her lower back, hugging her closer. She felt as if she
were pressed against a wall of rigid, resilient muscles. Instead of
holding her hand lateral from their bodies, he pulled it in,
resting it on his chest. She couldn’t tell if he was nervous, but
she felt his rampant heartbeat. His hip felt hard against hers, his
long powerful thighs brushed hers. With each gulp of air, Tessa’s
breasts swelled, touching Alessandro’s ribs. With each touch,
Alessandro’s breath quickened and a moan escaped his
lips.
    One step right, one step
left.
    A song finished as another
started.
    He stopped and took her
face between his hot palms, caressing her cheeks with his thumbs.
He gently touched her, like one does a fragile Russian doll, a
tingling sensation coursing through her body. He searched her face
hungrily as if trying to memorize every single inch, every single
feature and when his gaze stopped on her lips, Tessa’s heart
skipped a beat.
    She bit her lower lip,
swallowing hard. She lifted her chin and angled her face closer to
his, her lips near his mouth. He pressed his lips on hers, and then
parted them, kissing first her upper lip, then lower lip. She
closed her eyes in ecstasy when he licked her upper lip, nibbled at
her lower only to assault the inside of her mouth the next second.
His tongue made love to hers, probed, circled, teased in a dance of
total arousal. Little ripples spread down her belly like waves
breaking against the shore.
    I must be dreaming…such
things exist only in fairyta—
    “ Tessa! Tessa, there you
are!”
    Tessa’s eyes flung open at
the sound of Carlo’s voice. Alessandro pulled away and pressed a
hand to his lips, looking down like a thief caught in the
act.
    “ Oh, I’m sorry, I… didn’t
mean to… we…I was looking…” Carlo’s puzzled look darted back and
forth between Tessa and Alessandro. He finally seemed to understand
what he had just witnessed. A wicked smile spread over his face as
he nodded his head approvingly.
    “ It’s okay, don’t worry,”
was all Tessa could mutter. Could the balcony just open up and
swallow her alive? She couldn’t be more embarrassed than being
caught kissing a stranger by no one other than her friend, who for
years teased her for being too uptight, too scared to let her guard
down.
    “ Sorry to interrupt, but we
need to go,” Carlo said.
    “ Why so soon? What’s the
matter?”
    “ Well, Lara doesn’t feel
too good. Too much cake is not good for the baby, so we have to
take her home.”
    “ I’m coming with
you.”
    “ Oh, no, no, no. No need
for you to come. But we can take you to your hotel, if you’d like,”
Carlo said. He extended his hand and shook Alessandro’s, then
patted him on the shoulder. “Nice meeting you, man.” He took a step
aside and waited for Tessa.
    She turned and looked at
Alessandro, then whispered, “Thanks for a wonderful evening…I had
fun...Nice meeting you.” She stood on her toes, placed a kiss on
his cheek and walked away.
    “ Tessa, wait,” Alessandro
said.
    She stopped and so did
Carlo.
    Alessandro caught up with
them. “Let me walk with you to your room. This way Carlo can take
his wife home faster.”
    They walked inside the