Erica gave up hitting him on the back. “Look,
I’ll redo your apartment, and it won’t cost you a cent,” she
pleaded, trying desperately to negotiate. Once the maniac had her
alone, she knew she would disintegrate to mere putty in his hands.
“You sent that reporter over from
Miami Spaces
. She loved
your new look, but to keep me and Prestige from looking ridiculous,
Craig managed to squash the article.”
“Good for him,” he reasoned. “I would hate to
have such a masterpiece as my ‘Bower of Booty Call’ splashed all
over Miami. I don’t know if I could handle all the women who would
come knocking at my door just to get me in that water bed. Of
course, what you did to my apartment is a moot point right now. We
have much more important things to discuss.”
“Oh, sure,” Erica tempered. “My main question
concerns your impersonation of a nonexistent twin brother! And by
the way, I met your real brother, Adrian, in Bridgeport.”
“I know. I got a call from him shortly before
your associate showed me your handiwork, although, I did have a
feeling something was up with you.” He gave her a quick slap on the
behind, and when Erica screamed, Gianni simply laughed. “You know,
Miss Rael, you’re too enterprising and creative for your own good.
It gets you into trouble every time, although a good kind of
trouble as I see it.”
Hah! His definition of “good trouble” hardly
qualified for recognition in her book. For starters, his required a
prone position. Gianni finally set her down when they came to his
Jaguar, but he still kept a firm grip on her arm as he opened the
door for her.
“We’re going for a little ride,” he
announced, “and then to a quiet place so we won’t be
disturbed.”
“I’ll scream!” she threatened. Again, trying
to pull away from his grasp only increased his hold. “I’ll scream
my lungs out, and David Hughes will call the police!”
“Go right ahead, my darling. I’ve already
spoken to the owners, and they agreed to ignore any of your cries
for help. Now, get in.” With a firm hand on her head, Gianni guided
her into the passenger seat, and cinched the seat belt around her
waist.
To her horror, he produced a length of nylon
cord and proceeded to tie and knot her hands in front of her.
“Remember,
querida
, even if you try to bail out, I have the
master control on my side to keep the doors and windows
locked.”
“Grrrr!” Erica had been too stunned to do
more than grit her teeth and sink down in the seat like a
recalcitrant child. Her captor quickly returned to the driver’s
seat and started the car.
“All right, Gianni, we’ve had our little
fun,” she said as he navigated the Jag to the highway. “I ruined
your place, and you kidnapped me, so we’re even. Why don’t we just
call it a day and go our separate ways?”
Keeping his eyes on the road, Gianni produced
a slim smile. “Ah, my darling, if you think I’m going to let you
off so easily, you have sadly underestimated me. When I want
something, I get it. Of course, I have to admit that you really
made me work hard for your affections.”
“I am not one of your conquests!”
“No, I consider you the ultimate prize
package.”
“Hah! You are a filthy, degenerate pig!”
He laughed. “And do you know, you’re much too
cute when you’re indignant?”
With a huff, Erica sat back and stared ahead.
“So, where are you taking me? Back to your den of erotic
iniquity?”
“Hardly.” He slipped her a quick glance. “My
place is not quite conducive to serious conversation thanks to your
creative decorating efforts. No, I have a better place in
mind.”
For the next few miles, they remained silent
as Gianni set their course northward. With the darkness as a
backdrop, Erica studied the reflection of her face in the passenger
window. Besides the sand in her panties, a few strands of ocean
flora dotted her hair like weedy ribbons. Plus, her seducer’s
sudden appearance gave her no time to replace her sandals. Great!
Barefoot and bedraggled... and probably just the way he wanted
her!
Minutes, hours, miles seemed to tick by, but Erica
refused to look at her abductor despite his occasional glances and
queries as to her welfare. This purveyor of promiscuity couldn’t
care less about her comfort. Gianni Sloan, no doubt, was off to
humiliate her, and Erica had jumped right into his clutches!
When she spied the entrance to the Bay Harbor
Marina, she realized he planned to take them aboard his parents’
sloop. Oh, they would be alone all right, and the cocky player of
women’s hearts would make sure his hapless victim had no means of
escaping his amorous clutches once out to sea!
After Gianni placed his membership card in
the electronic opener, he waited for the gates to open, and slid
the Jaguar into a parking spot close to the pier. He turned to her
and quickly clamped a short leash on the cord wrapped around her
wrists.
“What are you doing!” Erica squeaked and
raised her bound hands, her eyes wide with alarm. Not that she
didn’t mind a bit of kinky, but this seemed going overboard!
He flashed an innocent smile. “Just making
sure you won’t try to get away.” Flipping up the locks, Gianni
started to open his door, but turned suddenly. “Oh, and you might
as well save your breath. Screaming won’t bring anyone to your
rescue. At this time of night, we’re completely alone.”
Erica shot him a dangerous look. “Thanks for
the warning.” When he came around and opened her door, she refused
to budge.
Gianni tugged the leash, but she held her ground.
Instead of a grimace, he produced a smile of supreme patience.
“Now, darling, we can do this the easy way or not. It’s all up to
you.”
With her own saccharin sweet smile, Erica moved
closer and spat in his face. “You are a lying, contemptible,
thoroughly disgusting pervert!”
Gianni reared back and gave a hearty laugh.
“Now, now,
mi amor
. Let’s save those little terms of
endearment for later, when I’ve inspired you to cry out my name in
passion and not in vain.”
“Oooh!”
Before she had time to react, he reached
over, unsnapped her seat belt, and gathered her up in his arms. As
soon as he had his prisoner out of the car, he hoisted Erica over
his shoulder and strode purposefully to the boarding plank of the
Island in the Sky
.
She pounded his back, flailed her legs and
shouted, but Gianni’s surprising strength kept her folded in this
same humiliating position. With her last struggle, he slapped her
derrière again.
“Ouch! You’re certifiable!”
“And you’re so sexy when you get all spunky
and feisty.”
Oh, he would pay for the insults!
she
vowed. So, he wanted wild, huh? She’d give him much more than just
spunky and feisty!
When they reached the galley stairs, he
finally let her go, but quickly pulled at her leash so that Erica
had no choice but to walk down the steps as he tugged her along.
The minute Gianni turned on the lights, she looked about in
amazement. Besides the little strings of twinkling lights twined
across the top rails, the captain of their “love boat” had
transplanted a few of the items from his apartment. The wide bunk
sported the scarlet bedspread and a jumble of satin pillows, while
the “Penis de Milo” sculpture occupied a niche over the bed.
To add insult to injury, Gianni also added a
bottle of champagne on ice, along with two goblets and a pair of
tapered candles on the dining table.
Despite her humiliating position, Erica had
to laugh at the incongruity of the situation as well as his
ridiculous setup, mixing the gauche and the provocative with his
idea of romance. Come into my kinky lair said the spider to the
fly…
“So, am I still your prisoner?” she sputtered
between laughs, “or will you give me a reprieve?” She continued to
take in his idea of interior decorating. “And do you really think
you can change my mind with all of this so I won’t consider you a
contemptible, lying, scheming,
mezquino
anymore?”
“You got me there,” Gianni admitted as he
placed a hand to her back and urged her forward. “But you’re not a
prisoner. I’ll even let you be the captor of my heart, while I,
lucky fellow, become your prisoner of love.”
“Oh,
pull-ease!
” she snorted. “Spare
me your ridiculous clichés! You’ll have to get me awfully drunk to
become captivated by your charms.”
“Well, sit down. Allow me ply you with
liquor, and I shall continue to enthrall you with my charming
repertoire.”
Sliding into the banquette seat, Erica placed
her bound hands on the table. “I think you’ve done quite enough
damage to the English language, thank you very much.”
“Then, I’ll try to make this plain and simple.”
Sitting across from her, Gianni picked up a book of matches, lit
the candles, and then worked the champagne cork until it popped.
After pouring them both a glass, he donned a more soulful
expression. “Look, I know all the apologies in the world won’t make
up for what I did.”
Erica threw him an indignant look. “You
didn’t have to do anything but be yourself. Instead, you lied and
humiliated me.”
Gianni placed a goblet in front of her. “I
had a problem with being myself. You didn’t like the first Mr.
Sloan, so I had to invent a second one, a twin brother, to try and
win you over.”
“So, what’s your point now? What do you want
to prove?”
He toyed with his wine glass. “I just want
you to understand, even forgive me if you can. I certainly don’t
want you to hate me any more than you do at the moment.”
Eying her champagne, Erica lifted her bound
limbs. “Well, if you want me to reconsider, you might cut me loose
first.”
“Oh, coming right up!” Gianni went to one of
the galley drawers, retrieved a steak knife, and promptly cut away
her bindings.
Erica rubbed her wrists. “Gee, thanks.”
“You won’t try to run away until we talk,
will you?”
“Where would I run to? You have me at the
disadvantage.”
“Well, at least let’s toast to your success
with my apartment. You’ve done an over-the-top, stupendous job of
putting me in my place.”
“It was the least I could do.” Taking her
glass, Erica tapped it against his and then took a sip of the
champagne. At least Gianni or Nico or whomever he wanted to be had
provided a decent brand.
“What can I say,
Eriqueta querida?
” he
continued. “I thought you might actually start to think differently
about me if I presented a more suitable, likable side.”
Erica tried to gauge his sincerity, but
Gianni kept his gaze focused on the table. Now, she caught a
glimpse of the soft brown glimmer of his eyes beneath the long
lashes. “I don’t understand why you had to go to all that trouble
when you could have just acted like a decent human being. At least
I could have appreciated your efforts, made without the lies and
subterfuge.”
“I know, I know!” He held up a hand. “I
screwed up, okay? Can we put Nico to rest and hopefully start over
again with an even slate?”
As Erica straightened, she threw him glaring
darts meant to force him to look at her. Sure, Gianni might be
expressing genuine contrition, but she refused to be cajoled so
easily. “You actually had me falling for your twin! I even told you
how I felt! So, how long did you plan to keep up the
deception?”
He shrugged. “Long enough, I suppose, until I
felt sure I had you completely won over.”
“You mean skewered on your booty hook!” she
shot back, her cheeks burning with humiliation. “You used Nico as
your bait to entrap me under false pretenses! You saw me as just
another one of your conquests, and I represented a challenge
because I didn’t give in so easily to your smarmy come-ons!”
“Erica, no, I would never do that!”
“So, now you think we’re even? Hardly,
mister! My job on your apartment didn’t even register on my payback
scale.”
To emphasis her disgust, Erica picked up her
glass and threw the champagne in his face. Without missing a beat,
Gianni continued with his confession. “I never intended to hurt you
or anyone else, but I ended up making a mockery out of everything.
I admit that. It started out as a challenge, yes, but I soon fell
for you, totally and completely! You’re not like any of the women I
knew. You’re smart, sexy, creative, generous, beautiful and totally
too good for me! And yet, I can’t help myself. I’ve fallen for you
big time.”
He let out a sigh of resignation. “I tried to
find a way to get out of the mess I created. I meant for the ruse
to run its course quickly. Yet the more I saw of you, the more I
knew if I revealed my deception, you’d hate me forever. I didn’t
want that to happen, especially since we hit it off so well when
you knew me as Nico. I could be with you and make love to
you—without the lies and come-ons that Gianni used.”
When Erica didn’t respond right away, he
slowly wiped his face with the back of his sleeve. “I’m in love
with you, dammit! You think you’re surprised, but let me tell you!
I thought I could fight it or ignore my feelings for you in hopes
they would all go away, but they didn’t. In fact, they continued to
grow until I knew I was absolutely, positively in love with
you.”
She blinked, startled by his revelation. She
never took Gianni Sloan, the master of one-night seductions, as
anything but a superficial, shallow, egotistical skirt chaser with
no redeeming qualities. Now, here, he wanted to bare his soul!
Love? What did he know about the give and take of love? Erica had
yet to be convinced of his sincerity on the subject of undying
affections.
“You already made a fool out of me once. How
can I possibly believe you a second time around? You’re nothing but
a sex-driven con artist!” With her indignation on the rise, she
slipped out of the banquette and stood her ground with arms
crossed.