Chapter 87
Amaya stepped into their suite, the air whooshing from her lungs as she clutched at her chest, rubbing the sudden ache centring over her heart.
Every detail of the incredible room, from the sheer ivory chiffon draping the open-air French doors leading to a crystal-horizon pool to the raised alabaster king-size bed, from the countless tea lights shimmering in the dusk to the heady scent of frangipani lingering in the air, all screamed, he remembered.
Chase remembered.
Her gaze lingered on the picnic blanket spread in the middle of the spacious room, on the feast of chocolate-dipped strawberries, double-roasted almonds, petit fours, and a bottle of chilled Muscato in an ice bucket.
All her favourites, in her ultimate fantasy room.
When had she told him? Their first meeting? Their second? Their tenth?
It was irrelevant, considering he’d remembered her island fantasy and recreated it to perfection in this breathtaking suite.
“I’m glad you came," Chase said with a small smile.
What little breath Amaya had left stuck in her throat as Chase stepped into view, brushing Chiffon aside to enter the suite.
If the room was gorgeous and the view sublime, Chase was out of this world. Wearing formal black trousers and a crisp white shirt open at the neck, his hair ruffled by the ocean breeze, he padded barefoot towards her, every step accelerating her heart rate towards cardiac arrest.
“I had to say goodbye,” she managed on a squeak as he swept her into his arms, strode to the picnic blanket, and gently deposited her, nuzzling her neck in the process.
“Shh…”
He brushed a soft kiss against her lips—a kiss to fuel dreams, a kiss laden with promise.
“No talk of goodbyes. We have the whole night, and I intend to make every second count.”
If his kiss rendered her speechless, the clear intent in his eyes clammed her up good and proper, for there was little doubt that once they’d eaten, he’d be feasting on her.
“Here, drink this.”
He handed her a wine glass, his knowing smile telling her he knew exactly how flummoxed she was.
After several unladylike gulps, she cleared her throat and finally managed to speak. “This must be the most popular suite in the hotel.”
His eyes glittered as he shook his head. “It’s never been booked.”
“I don’t understand.”
“This room is never available. It’s never been used.”
“But—”
“Tonight’s the first.”
“Is this your hotel too?”
“Yes.”
Raising his glass in her direction, he said, “Rather fitting.”
He couldn’t possibly mean... he wasn’t implying...
“Are you saying—?”
Swooping in for another stolen kiss, he whispered against her lips, “This is your room, Daisy. Your fantasy. Surely you know I could never share it with anyone else?”
Her heart swelled with love for this amazing man.
She loved him with everything she had, but she couldn’t silence the doubt demons perched on her shoulder, whispering in her ears what she’d be giving up and what she’d be risking if she stayed now.
While she’d taken the first tentative step towards forgiving her father, everything she’d been through with him had moulded her into the woman she’d become today: a strong, independent woman too scared to rely on anyone else, a woman wary of loving too much and giving too much.
This room was a fantasy, her fantasy. Was her marriage the same? Started on pretence, built on shaky foundations, something transient, intangible, that could vanish as easily as any dreams she once had for the two of them?
“Why did you build a room like this when you had no idea I’d ever see it?”
He shrugged, his expression delightfully bashful. “I’ve built my dreams from nothing. And when you have nothing, hope is a powerful motivator.”
She shook her head, confused. “You hoped I’d come back into your life?”
"Yes, I looked for you for so long. I counted on it.”
Chase’s confident smile set her pulse racing.
“I used to come up here for a time out.” He pushed to his feet and gestured to the room. “Did some of my best thinking come here?"
“But I only came back for work, and we only married out of mutual benefit for our businesses. How could you have known I’d ever get to see this?”
“You would’ve come back to me, Daisy. It’s fate.”
“Don’t believe in it.”
She made her own luck, having ever since had the sense to flee home and relocate to Rome. Fate had dealt her a bum hand in the paternal stakes, and she’d lost faith in it a long time ago.
Smiling, he held out his hand to her. “It’s the Greek in me. We believe in higher powers.”
So did she at that moment as she placed her hand in his and he tugged her to her feet, where she landed flush against his body.
“I also believe in us. I know I lied to you. I keep Tommy from you, but I was just afraid, scared.”
She wanted to lose herself in the moment, lose herself in the fantasy, but logic wouldn’t be denied. She and Tommy were leaving tomorrow, wanting to make sure he knew where things stood with their marriage.
‘You didn’t six years ago. Not enough to make us work.”
“Because you left? You didn't give me the chance to know you?”
“Yeah, that too. I was naive. Scared and…stupid!” She sighed.
He swore under his breath and hugged her tighter. “I was naive too, idealistic—ambitious; I let you go. Let me prove to you how much you mean to me now.”
“You don’t have to—”
He crushed his mouth to hers, eradicating her protests, her rationale, and her reason.
She shuddered as he deepened the kiss, his tongue slipping inside to touch hers, his hands tugging on the sash holding her tie-around dress together.
It slithered to the floor in a hiss of silk, leaving her flesh bare to his exploring hands, and exploring they did, skimming her skin, his fingers trailing up her thighs, lingering at the edge of her panties before delving beneath.
“Oh…”
She melted against him and clung to him, her need for Chase astonishing in its all-consuming power.
She couldn’t think when he grazed her clitoris; she didn’t want to think when he thumbed it and circled it, backing her slowly towards the bed without breaking the tempo.
“Step up, wife,” he murmured, guiding her like a maestro when they hit the dais, gently laying her on the bed, playing her body until she could’ve sung encore arias all night long.
He kept her on the edge, tormenting her with pleasure as she arched her back and thrust her hips up, desperate to feel his touch and begging for release.
“We have all night.”
He kissed her, swallowed her plea, toying with her until she was incoherent with mind-numbing need.
“Chase, please…”
Finally, he picked up the tempo, his thumb circling her clitoris with perfect pressure, and on the next stroke, spasms rocked her body, wave after wave of intense, mindless pleasure drenching her.
Before she could catch her breath, he’d whipped off his pants, sheathed himself, and was inside her, hard, insistent, and demanding more of her than she could give.
She was spent, listless with satisfaction, but as Chase drove into her, smooth and unrelenting, she reignited, tensed, and exploded at the same time he did, their cries mingling in the night air before fading away to a contented silence.