Page 16 of Stolen Temptation

I assumed Leo was selling theidentityof the famous and mysterious artist, but with the way these people are talking, it sounds like Leo’s selling the actual painter…which can’t be right.

I step back into the hall to process the revelations and continue my investigation. I don’t get far before a body crashes into my back.

Stumbling forward, I barely resist the urge to whip around and snatch the person by the throat. My nerves stretch tight as I spin to face off with the culprit.

Shock squeezes my ribs.

Deep brown eyes with tiny glimmers of green, rounded with fear. A little Grecian nose. Full lips and tendrils of dark hair framing a soft, breathtaking face.

“You.” The word escapes my mouth as soon as I recognize the woman who stole my breath earlier.

Only now she’s no longer wearing the risqué red dress. Instead, she’s clad like a stagehand in a pair of formfitting black pants and a button-down. The more casual attire does nothing to detract from her beauty.

“I-I’m in trouble. Please help me.” Her voice barely tops a whisper. “If Leo finds me?—”

Her eyes widen, and she claps a hand over her mouth, as if she just revealed a huge secret. She trains her gaze on me, the desperation in them as vivid as the color flushing her cheeks.

A beat passes while I just stand and drink her in. Up close and without her heels, she’s even tinier. She’s more beautiful, too, and her musky-sweet fragrance floods my senses, giving me an instant semi. To keep my raging lust under control, I’m forced to breathe through my mouth, and even that doesn’t fix the issue completely.

My brain ticks into hyperdrive as an idea forms in my mind.

I don’t think she intended to name Leo, but I’m glad she did. If she fears Leonardo De Luca enough to ask a total stranger for assistance, she also might be afraid enough totalk.

To give us information on Leo that will ensure his demise and her safety.

This woman might be the most valuable thing in this entire place, and she’s literally fallen into my lap. The serendipity hits me so hard, I smile.

“Sounds like you need a place to hide.” I observe her in greater detail, estimating that she can’t be more than twenty-five.

“Please. He’s coming.” She’s trembling, her pretty face pinched in terror.

Out of nowhere, a dark and protective instinct sweeps over me, propelling me into an impulsive decision.

I take her quaking hands in mine and lift them to my face. Her eyes follow until she’s focused only on me and not the slimy bastard stalking down the hallway.

“Do you trust me?” I murmur in the dark, dropping my hands from hers and letting them fall to her waist. She blinks those big, beautiful brown eyes at me. Her expression blanks for a moment, and then she gives me a hesitant nod.

I don’t know what the hell I’m doing or why I’m doing it, but her small vote of confidence swells in my chest like an ocean wave.

My grip on her waist tightens, causing her to jump a little, which is just fine because I mold my mouth to hers in that same moment.

Her breathy, startled gasp feathers my lips. The sound shoots straight to my dick. I walk her backward, deeper into the alcove beside the walkway, lifting one hand from her waist to brace on the wall before I pin her to it.

She startles again, and I take advantage of her parted lips to thrust my tongue between them. She tastes delicious, like chocolate-covered strawberries paired with Champagne, and I want to lap her up until she’s a breathless mess.

At the first stroke of my tongue against hers, she freezes, and her fingers dig into my shoulders. Then she melts against me as her tongue shyly returns the favor.

Electricity zaps me from top to bottom, sizzling in my chest like the inside of a thundercloud.

She locks her arms around my neck, stirring something deep within me I thought was long dead. On instinct, I yank her tighter to me, turning our heads to hide her profile from anyone who might be searching.

Behind me, Leonardo De Luca passes by, his voice steady and unaffected as he speaks to whoever’s with him, but I barely notice.

Because something’s happening inside me right now.

Something completely unexpected.

Fuck.I demolish her lips with mine, feasting on her mouth. The delicious sensation shoots straight to my groin and causes my heart to perform a series of little hops.