“I think you look beautiful,” Marco said, sliding his fingertips down her cheek. “The most beautiful girl in New York City.”
Sabrina bit her bottom lip and looked at the ground, unable to fully accept such a compliment. How Marco saw her and how she saw herself were two entirely different things.
“That's really sweet,” she said, bringing her gaze back up to his eyes. “Thank you.”
Marco leaned in and kissed her. Her eyes widened at first, surprised by the sudden affection. They resumed what they had started at the haunted apartment, though this time with even more passion and far fewer ghosts. Sabrina stood up from her stool without breaking the kiss. She brought her hands to the top of Marco's shoulders, pulling herself close to him. Her body tingled all over as their tongues danced.
Somewhere, in the very back of her mind, Sabrina knew that she was falling for this guy. And she realized that it put her at risk of getting hurt. She'd had her heart broken before, and she understood that it could likely happen again. But Marco was different. She wanted to believe that he would never hurt her.
She felt his hands slide down her sides, gliding easily along the smooth fabric of her shirt to the band of her pants. His touch turned her on, and a surge of excitement pumped through her. She breathed in, letting the soft scent of Marco's cologne fill her nose. She placed her hands onto his face. His beard stubble scratched at her fingertips as she drew her hands downward, all the way to his neck and then to his chest.
Marco slowly broke their kiss and looked into her eyes. Sabrina saw that his pupils had dilated and he was breathing harder now. Her hands were still on his chest and she noticed the rise and fall of each breath.
He wrapped one arm around her waist and lifted her from the floor, cradling the backside of her knees with his other arm. She was surprised by his strength as he carried her effortlessly away from the bar and to the darkened bedroom. It was as though she was in a trance, unable to take her gaze away from him. His masculine features, the beard stubble and his chiseled jaw, which were half-covered by his shoulder-length black hair. This was every woman's dream come true, and she was living it. Sabrina put a note in the back of her mind to pinch herself when this was over, just to make sure that it was all actually real. Until then, she didn't want to wake up…