Chapter 5

Rio

I jerked my eyes up, nearly choking on my drink. “What?!”

She burst into laughter, the kind that made people turn to look, and clapped her hands once in delight. “It’s okay! You can look. I don’t mind. You’re Italian…it’s permitted.”

She was bold… spoke her thoughts…beautiful and making it damn hard not to get turned on.

She rested her chin on her palm, eyes gleaming with mischief. “Do you always get flustered when a woman flirts with you?”

I narrowed my gaze. “Do you always enjoy teasing strangers at bars?”

“Only the cute ones,” she said, grinning.

“But you can’t even see me,” I reminded her.

She gasped dramatically. “Ahh, true! Then I guess it’s not your face that got me…it’s the Italian accent.”

I tried not to smile.

Failed.

A quiet laugh escaped me, and she lit up like she’d won the lottery.

“There it is!” she pointed. “I knew you weren’t a complete grump.”

I shook my head, sipping my drink. She was trouble.

The hours slipped by faster than I expected.

She talked… a lot.

And I listened for someone who enjoyed quiet, that was saying something.

But with her? I didn’t mind.

Her voice had this soft, lilting rhythm, like the way sunlight moved through half-closed blinds warm, distracting, and oddly comforting. She jumped from one thought to the next like she was flipping through pages of her life with no filter.

Truffle mushroom risotto.

Peonies.

Strawberry allergies.

How much she hated being interrupted.

How chamomile lavender tea felt like a hug in a cup.

I didn’t say much. Just nodded, watched the way her lips curled when she talked about things she loved. Her eyes lit up—even through the drunk haze—like she was showing me her world in fragments. And I let her.

Because for the first time in a long time, silence didn’t feel like a shield.

It felt…full.

“If it’s been a really hard day, I’ll take a nightcap. Château d’Yquem,” she said, tipping her glass slightly in the air like she was toasting invisible ghosts. “Super fancy, I know. I blame my mother for that.”

I raised a brow, smirking. “So spoiled and self-aware. Impressive combination.”

She grinned, leaning in closer across the table, her elbow knocking over a menu neither of us had touched. “Did you just call me spoiled?”

I shrugged, feeling the warm buzz of whiskey start to loosen my jaw.“Just honest,” I muttered. “And also… sexy. Distractingly so.”

“Oh, I had no idea I was distracting,” she said, biting her lower lip as a mischievous smile played on her face.

She leaned in slightly, just enough for her dress to dip forward, giving me a front-row view of those perfect, full breasts barely restrained by silk. My throat went dry. I swallowed hard, trying…failing…to keep my eyes on hers.

But I looked away.

Barely.

She rolled her eyes dramatically. “Oh, for fuck’s sake.”

Before I could blink, she stood, heels clicking softly against the floor as she walked around the table. Her scent hit me first, vanilla with a floral scent that was dangerously addictive. She stopped right in front of me, tilted her head like she was scolding a shy schoolboy, then leaned in.

And kissed me.

I should’ve pulled away. I should’ve told her she was drunk. That I was drunk.

But I didn’t.

Instead, my hands gripped her waist and I pulled her onto my lap.

She let out a surprised laugh that melted into a moan the second our lips touched again. This time, deeper. Hotter. My fingers curled around her hips, guiding her closer until her chest was flush against mine. I could feel every curve through that thin, teasing dress.

I was known for my control. My quiet. My restraint.

But with her?

It shattered.

Every rule. Every line. Gone.

Her hands slipped into my hair, tugging gently like she already knew what drove me crazy. My heart pounded, my body tensed, and my mind? Gone.

She tasted like wine and temptation.

As we broke apart, her lips still hovered near mine, breathing fast. I could see her flushed cheeks, her wide eyes, the tiny smirk tugging at the corner of her mouth.

“Come home with me,” I whispered. My voice was low, husky, rough with need.

She nodded, no hesitation. “Okay.”