Which was probably just wishful thinking on her part, Jess decided. At least the part about his not wanting her to go. They’d just met, after all, and other than his being kind and helping her, had shared little interaction. She hadn’t even really explained what had happened to her today, and how she had ended up jumping off a ship.
No, there was no reason he should care whether she stayed or left. But then there was no reason she should regret having to go, and yet Jess was sorry she couldn’t stay and get to know him better. Raffaele was an attractive man. He was also kind and helpful, and made her feel safe for some reason. Plus, he wasn’t a pirate or a vampire, was very polite, and hadn’t once said anything crude or—
A ding sounded, announcing their arrival at the third floor, and Jess gave up her thoughts and stepped off the elevator when the doors opened. When Raffaele followed and took her elbow to usher her along the hall, Jess experienced the same tingling sensation rushing along her skin as she had when she’d grabbed his hand to stop him from pursuing Cristo.
“It’s too late for any flights this evening,” Raffaele said suddenly, his voice slightly husky.
“Oh,” Jess murmured, distracted by the sensations she was experiencing.
“The airport is probably closed for the night,” he added, pausing at the door to what she presumed was the suite he shared with Santo and Zanipolo. Raffaele released her arm then to retrieve his key card, and Jess started to breathe again, realizing only then that she’d been holding her breath as she focused on his effect on her.
She glanced at the number on the door as he unlocked it, and was surprised to see that this suite was the one directly below the one she and Allison shared. Small world, she thought, and cleared her throat to say, “Then I’ll have to see if I can catch a flight out in the morning.”
First thing in the morning, Jess added silently. She knew she wouldn’t get a lick of sleep tonight. She’d lie awake in bed, jumping at every creak and sound because Vasco had her key card, and while it didn’t reveal a room number, he also had her driver’s license, with her name on it. Not that he’d needed that, she thought with a frown as she recalled Cristo telling Vasco her full name. All the man had to do was control whoever was working reception and make them tell him her room number. Yeah, it was going to be a long night.
Actually, Jess wasn’t sure she’d sleep well once she got home either, now that she knew Vasco had her home address. Chances were he wouldn’t follow her to Montana, but what if he did? Maybe she should go to a hotel when she landed, get some sleep, and then start looking for an apartment or something. The very thought made her frown. She really didn’t want to sell the house she’d inherited from her parents, but knew she wouldn’t feel safe there anymore.
“Jess?”
Dragging herself from her thoughts, she glanced up to see that Raffaele had the door unlocked and was standing to the side, holding it open as he waited for her to enter.
“Sorry,” she muttered, slipping quickly past him into the room.
“The shirt Santo mentioned is hanging in the closet in the bedroom,” Raffaele said as he followed her in. “Go take a look and I’ll see if I can find something for you to use as a belt.”
Nodding, Jess led the way through the sitting area and into the bedroom. She headed straight for the closet, while Raffaele moved to the dresser and began to riffle through the drawers.
Jess found the shirt right away. It was the only blue dress shirt in the closet. As Santo had said, it was a lovely robin’s egg blue. Pulling it out, Jess eyed it with interest, noting that it was a very soft, thin linen that would feel amazing on.
“I might have to improvise something.”
Jess glanced around at that comment to see that Raffaele had given up on finding anything in the dresser and was now staring at the suitcase that stood next to it. The suitcase had a dark blue luggage strap around it. Eyebrows rising, she walked over to join him and peered at the strap. It was custom-made, with “Property of R. Notte” stamped on it in black. “That might work. And it’s even blue.”
“Yes, but I suspect it will be too large,” he said, his brow furrowing.
Jess shrugged. “Most luggage straps can be adjusted from something like forty-one inches to eighty-something. That one probably does too.”
“Much too big, then,” he said with a sigh.
“Not if I wrap it around my waist twice,” she pointed out.
Raffaele’s eyebrows rose at that, and then he grinned and murmured, “Clever lady.”
Jess stiffened at the words. It was what Cristo had said to her in front of the lobby. And it brought the pirate and Vasco, and everything that had passed between them, immediately to mind.
“Jess? Is something troubling you?” Raffaele asked, reaching out to take her free hand gently in his.
She sucked in a breath at the shock of awareness that again tingled its way up her arm from where his skin touched hers, and then just shook her head and stared at their entangled fingers. As she did, he used his hold on her hand to turn her arm slightly so that he could get a better look at the scrape by her elbow. Frowning, he ran a finger lightly alongside the injury. The action sent another tingle through Jess, one that made her shiver and close her eyes.
“I originally intended to take you to see the resort physician, but—”
“The resort physician?” Jess’s eyes widened with surprise.
Raffaele nodded solemnly. “You should really be examined by a doctor to be sure your injuries will not be an issue.”
Jess smiled faintly at his concern. She thought it was sweet, but shook her head. “I’m fine. I don’t have any injuries.”
Raffaele arched an eyebrow and then returned his gaze to her arm.
“Well, a couple of scrapes, maybe,” she muttered with chagrin. “But nothing serious.”
“You also have scrapes on your stomach and hips,” he said quietly, “and they are very large and appeared deeper than this one.”
Jess glanced to him sharply. “When did you see my stomach and hips?”
“I carried you up here from the beach,” he reminded her gently. “The life jacket only partially covered your stomach, and didn’t do anything to hide your hips.”
“Oh,” Jess muttered, aware that she was blushing. She could feel the heat in her cheeks. Irritated at herself for it, she handed him Santo’s shirt, and then turned away from him and opened the towel so she could get a look at herself. She’d been so eager to cover up that she hadn’t had the chance to check the scrapes on her stomach and hips before wrapping the towel around herself earlier. Now she peered down at her stomach, and then her hips, and winced as she saw where she’d been skinned while forcing herself through the porthole. Jess had known it was happening at the time, but was surprised at how big they all were. None of them appeared too terribly deep, but they were deep enough, and the one on her stomach was a monster, stretching across her entire stomach from side to side.
Still, while they weren’t pretty, they weren’t life-threatening either, Jess decided, and closed the towel over herself again before turning back to face Raffaele. “I’m fine. Really. They’ll heal quickly.”
“Infection is a real danger in the tropics,” Raffaele informed her quietly.
Jess was frowning at that when he cleared his throat and asked, “Do you have any other wounds anywhere?”
“Probably,” she admitted with a grimace. “Some bruises at least, maybe other stuff.”
“What kind of stuff? Where?” Raffaele asked at once.
“My back for one,” she admitted, recalling Allison attacking her while she kissed Vasco. “I got hit in the kidney pretty hard. It probably bruised.”
“May I see?” he asked with concern.
Jess hesitated, but then sighed and turned her back to him again and opened her towel. This time, though, she let it drop just below the waist of her bikini bottoms and glanced over her shoulder. “Is there a bruise?”
“Hmm, yes,” Raffaele murmured, and she felt his fingers gently probing the area, making her shiver as more tingles raced through her. “You have a couple of bruises back here actually.”
“Yeah, aside from getting punched, I got knocked around a bit,” Jess admitted, turning to face him so that he’d stop touching her. “Allison—Well, it doesn’t matter. I just took a tumble off a raised surface,” she muttered, unwilling to discuss how she’d been bounced from a bed by her cousin who was jealous of the crazy-sexy vampirate who had been ravishing her.
“You have a bruise here too,” he said with concern.
Jess glanced down with a start when he ran one finger lightly across the curve of her breast where the edge of the knotted T-shirt didn’t cover it. The action reminded her at once that she hadn’t wrapped the towel around herself again, but it seemed a bit late for that. Besides, between the ripped T-shirt and the bikini bottoms, she supposed she was wearing more than she wore on the beach. Of course, she didn’t usually have people touching her this way in her swimsuit, Jess thought, and glanced down at the bruise he was examining. She was quite sure it was a result of her forcing herself through the porthole. Before she could say as much, however, she noted the way her nipple was pebbling and pressing against the cloth of the T-shirt in response to Raffaele gently probing just the curve of her breast. It seemed a ridiculous response to her. It wasn’t like he’d actually caressed the nipple that was sticking its head up for attention. But her body obviously wanted him too.
Dear God, Jess thought with dismay, was she just going to respond like this to every man who touched her now? She’d never been like this before. Maybe her hormones were out of whack. Perhaps a trip to the clinic was a good idea.
Stepping back, Jess closed the towel, and then reached out to take the blue shirt from him. Heading for the bathroom with it, she muttered, “I’ll be right back.”