Strawberry Kisses Phavy Prieto (bookstand for reading TXT) 📖

"It's probably just a game for him, a hobby," I convinced myself.

"I'm glad to know you're not tired at all before the hard workout I'm going to put you through," he whispered into my ear as the elevator doors closed.

Maybe I was mistaken, but I didn't get the feeling he was talking about sports.

Chapter XX

Damian surely had to have flaws, still unknown to me, but bragging was not one of them. Damned Adonis! No wonder he could flaunt those muscles: he was inexhaustible!

"Fifteen more," he said as soon as the machine stopped.

We had been training for two hours at the gym. There weren't many machines available, just the ones needed to keep one fit: a couple of treadmills, a stationary bike, a multi-gym, a couple of elliptical bikes, and my personal torture, a climb mill.

"I can't take it anymore," I admitted exhausted.

Until that moment I had been trying to resist not to look like a weakling who couldn’t take an hour of training, but damn, it seemed that that guy wanted to kill me and not make me exercise.

"Do you really have so little stamina?" he asked with that perfect and seductive smile that, on that occasion, made me want to throw myself on the floor instead of his arms.

"Little stamina?" I asked ironically. "I've been on this devil's machine for over an hour!" I yelled pointing at it.

"One hour?" he said as if he was not aware of it. "I guess I lost track of time while looking at you."

"Have you been staring at my butt for an hour?" I told him, not knowing whether to laugh at the situation or be pleased.

"At least I was on a machine that pulls up my rear end nicely," I told myself.

"I don’t know how I could last so long myself," he admitted, stopping the treadmill he was running on. With a jump he stood up in front of me to take me in his arms. "I love your butt, but it's not the best part of your body," he added staring at me.

"It’s not?" I asked remembering how many squats I did at the gym over the course of my life to keep it fit and in its place.

"No, it’s not," he said with his deep voice, giving me goose bumps and making me feel like the eighth wonder of the world. "You have a beautiful body that drives me crazy, but it’s your eyes that mesmerize me, with their beautiful and unique colour in which I want to lose myself every time I look at you."

I didn’t need to hear more to fall prey to everything he wanted to do to me. I was so bewitched by him that if he wanted to use a pair of handcuffs and a whip at that moment, I would have let him.

Think, Maria, think! Pull yourself together because the time to dive into reality will arrive soon, and it will be painful.

At that point, I no longer worried about being hurt: I knew my heart was going to crack as soon as those bloody days were over.

Luckily or unluckily, depending on the point of view, Damian was not the kind of person fond of whips, handcuffs or any sadomasochistic practices that people came up with to cope with their traumas. He made me fly to heaven with that primitive masculinity that had awakened my basic instincts.

Even that night he made me yell with pure pleasure.

I don't know what I'm going to do with my life when that divine sex is over. I might take a vow of chastity or shoot myself.

Would Damian still be willing to have casual encounters after those two weeks? Maybe it was easier for him: he would simply turn the page in the blink of an eye. For me, on the contrary, it would be impossible to forget everything.

I was having my morning coffee freshly made by Damian. He was distracted, looking at his cell phone and frowning. He was probably reading his work emails, the ones his assistant sent him early in the morning to organize his work day.

"Didn't you tell me once that you had a tree in the middle of your living room?" I asked, suddenly remembering our date at the Italian restaurant.

"Did I?" he asked faking a genuine smile.

"You are a born liar," I said amused.

"You can't blame me for longing to take you to bed and devour you," he replied with a shrug. "You are the temptation I can’t resist," he added putting his hands around my waist to drag me close to him and print a kiss on my neck. "By the way, I almost forgot. How about the audit guy? Is he satisfied with the reports?" he asked putting the phone down on the table.

I had to bite my tongue.

"I guess so since he didn't say anything. No news is good news," I replied, bringing the cup of coffee to my lips to avoid saying something inappropriate about that idiot.

"I'm happy to hear that. He is an important client. But better not to talk about business at home. Don't forget we are going to visit one of the venues my mother chose for the wedding today."

I didn't say "We are going a little too far" or "I feel terrible about lying to your mother this way" or "Don't you think we are crossing the line?" No, I limited myself to whispering a simple "Yes". The only thoughts that came to my mind were those of the last night of passion that had lasted until early morning, the reason for the dark circles under my eyes and my messy hair.

As soon as I entered the office, a bouquet of lilies was waiting for me in a crystal vase. It was not necessary to ask my secretary who