Sweet Distraction ✔︎

[3] 𝑪𝒂𝒏𝒐𝒐𝒅𝒍𝒊𝒏𝒈

Isabelle had seen the sun rise over the African Savannah and dolphins leaping in Plettenberg Bay. She had been awed by the pyramids at Giza, the Great Wall of China and, the sight of Machu Picchu through the froggu reddish light of dawn. She had walked on Ireland's Majestic Cliffs of Mother and felt as if she were standing on the edge of the world.

And yet for all the magnificence of those experiences, none of them had inpriewd a slow, billowing sensation like molten lava flowing through her veins. None of them had spun clouds in the middle of her soul.

But Evan's kiss did. The world with its ancient monuments and sweeping vista's faded beneath the sheer pleasure of his lips moving against hers. Isabelle's body came alive, every nerve ending lighting up.

He brought his hands up to hold either side of her head, increasing the pressure of his mouth. Isabelle's heart thumped with an emotion both painful and sweet, as some distant part of her mind wondered if any man had ever cradled her head while kissing her.

And Evan kissed her. Oh, did he kiss her. His mouth loved with deliberate ease over hers urging her lips apart so he could dip his tongue inside. He tastes like sweet, spicy perppermint, and his breath was cool against her lips. Isabelle's pleasure blossomed outward, filling her veins with heat. He slid his tongue over hers, nibbled at her bottom lip and licked the corners of her mouth.

It was delicious, prolonged seduction, carrying the promise of so much more. Her whole body swayed toward him as she longed to press her breasts against his chest, to feel his hands slipping beneath her shirt and touching her bare skin.

He drove his fingers into her hair, threading his hands through the long strands. He tilted her head and deepened the kiss, gliding his tongue over the surface of her teeth before moving to press his lips on her cheek. His stubble scraped her skin exquisitely, igniting little fires in her veins. She trailed her fingers over his arms, feeling the muscle of his forearms beneath his tuxedo jacket.

She could drown in him, sinking into the heat of his body and never wanting to come out again.

A burst of light glared behind her closed eyelids, and dimly she heard the cheers and cat-calls of the crowd. A chill ran down her spine. She tore herself away from Evan, caught by the burn of his blue eyes.

"All right, folks!" Adam King stepped in front of them suddenly, lifting his hands to the crowd. "Our baby brother Tyler is next on the auction block, and toud better believe he wants to beat both me and Evan in the bidding war."

Voices rose as people returned to their tables and servers started forward to refill wine glasses. The spotlight shifted back to the stage, casting Evan and Isabelle in darkness again.

Their heavy breaths mingles between them. Isabelle couldn't think past the haze of desire and shock. Evan tightened his grip on her wrist and led her away from the courtyard, back into the quiet of the kitchen. He closed the door and turned to face her.

"You...you should get back out there," Isabelle stammered in an rush. "I mean, go up for the auction again. I'll tell everyone it was a terrible mistake so someone else can bid on you, and you can go on the dates with a woman who can actually afford you."

He regarded her, his eyebrows drawing together.

"You owe me $8.56," he said.

Isabelle swallowed. "I owe you fifty thousand dollars."

He shook his head. "You bought me for $8.56. I'll take care if the rest."

"The rest? You mean the fifty thousand dollar rest?"

Evan shrugged, as if the amount were negligible. "I mean the forty-nine thousand, nine hundred, ninety-one dollars and forty-four cents rest."

"But that's a fortune!"