Carpathian 00 - The Scarletti Curse

Nicoletta was dressed in a simple skirt and blouse, her hair on top of her head in some intricate knot. A few tendrils had escaped, falling in silky waves around her face. Her eyes were large and dark and filled with dancing mischief as she teased the cook and one of the guards. Her small feet were bare, and her mouth was lush and inviting.
    The moment they saw him, a hush fell on the group, and Bernado turned quickly back to his work.
    Sophie moved a little behind Nicoletta as if for protection, and the two guards came to immediate attention. Nicoletta smiled at the don with the innocence of a child. "You truly have a treasure here in the kitchen," she greeted him happily.
    "Yes, I do," Don Scarletti agreed enigmatically, his eyes on her small, delicate face. Something in his voice and the intent way he watched her made Nicoletta blush. His smile widened so that his strong white teeth were very much in evidence. "I see you have forgotten your shoes again. I must remember to put a pair in each room so that when you kick them off, it will be of no consequence." His voice was low and gentle, a brush of velvet heat over her skin.
    "You seem to be very concerned with shoes," Nicoletta observed, her dark eyes laughing openly at him.
    He held out a hand to her. "Come walk with me, piccola. I am sure Signorina Sigmora and the others will ensure I do not take a bite out of you, although you look very inviting this morning."
    Faint color crept up her neck under her sun-gilded skin. She stared at his hand for a moment as if he might really be capable of biting her. Very slowly, almost reluctantly, she extended her own. At once his fingers enveloped hers, curling around them firmly. He drew her to his side so that she fit beneath his broad shoulder. Behind them, Sophie giggled nervously. Giovanni didn't turn around but rather walked Nicoletta toward the entrance to the courtyard. "Did you sleep well?" His body brushed against her, hard and muscular, very different from her own, making her all too aware of her own soft, feminine contours.
    "You mean after all the commotion?" Nicoletta glanced sideways at him. He was tall and powerful, and every time she looked at him her heart seemed to cease beating and then begin to pound. She couldn't look at him without remembering her wicked, erotic dreams, still very vivid in her memory. "Is it always like that around here at night?"
    His thumb feathered along the inside of her wrist. Once. Twice. Her heart did a funny little somersault.
    Color was creeping slowly under her skin again. All at once the drafty hall wasn't nearly cool enough.
    The pad of his thumb lingered over her frantically beating pulse. "I confess, you seem to cause quite a stir," he answered, his mind clearly on other matters. His fingers were moving over her skin as if of their own volition, stroking caresses along her forearm, sending heat waves throughout her body.

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    Nicoletta knew she should pull away, but his touch was mesmerizing. He dropped her hand, abruptly halting so that he trapped her close to the wall, his large frame blocking her view of the courtyard. She felt the heat of his body through the thin barrier of her clothes. His fingers curled around her throat. His dark eyes stared down into hers. "When you laugh, you light up the world. That is a very dangerous thing."
    It should have been a compliment, but he said it in a brooding, almost disapproving voice. There was no laughter in him, no hint of gentleness. His black gaze was intense as it roamed over her face. His fingers tightened on hers, making her gasp.
    Her lips parted, a tempting invitation. With what sounded like an oath, he lowered his head and fastened his mouth to hers. At once Nicoletta's world changed. The ground shifted, a subtle, rippling movement beneath her feet, making it seem natural to take shelter next to his heart. He was enormously strong, his arms sweeping her soft body against his hard, muscular one as his mouth took possession of hers. He was fiercely hungry, a dark, dangerous need he didn't bother to hide. She melted, her body becoming boneless, pliant, flames dancing along her skin with a need she couldn't define. A wildness began to rise from somewhere deep inside her, needing, demanding.
    "Don Scarletti! Nicoletta!" Maria Pia's horrified voice lashed at them both. "This is scandalous behavior!"
    The don took his time, his mouth moving gently over