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Post by Lovino Vargas on Apr 9, 2010 19:39:03 GMT -5
Bustling in the kitchen of his home, Lovino scowled angrily at a small cut on his finger from the edge of a knife. "Bastard," he muttered angrily at the offending utensil, sticking his finger in his mouth before pulling open a drawer and wrapping a bit of bandage around it. Tying it tightly with his teeth, he resisted the urge to slam the drawer shut in a fit of childish anger, settling for kicking the bottom of the cabinet instead.
"GOD--!" Remembering that he wasn't alone, he muffled his, "Dammit!" to an angry whisper at the blossoming pain in his big toe, resisting the urge to hop around to relieve the pain. Crossing his arms over his chest, he tapped his wooden cooking spoon against his opposite bicep and stared at the offending knife that had started it all before dropping the spoon, huffing and picking up the knife again, more carefully this time, to resume chopping vegetables for a large bowl of salad.
Already the smell of melting cheese and tomatoes was filling the air with a calming aroma from the brick oven near the stove, promising a mouth-watering pizza within. That damn oven had cost several pretty pennies, but it had been worth it. Pausing with his knife over the tomato, Lovino glanced out the small window over the sink and noted the sunset outside, studying it with a painter's eye and glancing longingly at his living room/gallery opposite the kitchen
With a shrug, the Italian resumed chopping various vegetables and throwing them in the bowl, mixing them rapidly with his hands before drizzling a bit of olive oil and vinegar into the mixture, continuing to stir with the spoon he'd held earlier. Nodding with satisfaction at his creation, he held the bowl in one hand and balanced a loaf of bread he'd baked that morning in the other, venturing over to the table in the middle of the large kitchen. "Oi, signorina!" he called up the stairs, wiping his hands on a dishtowel and adjusting the silverware. "Come down here, I made food!"
Standing there looking proud of himself, he stared up the stairs, wondering what she could possibly be doing in the guest room so long. [/blockquote]
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Post by Veata Chea on Apr 9, 2010 20:26:42 GMT -5
A bright glint lighted the dark brown of her eyes brilliantly, raven black locks of hair cascading over her shoulders and brushing gently against the female’s bare arms. Slender fingertips ran across the canvassed paintings in the fading light of the day, her frame silhouetted against the hues of colors that weren’t all due to the sunset. In her gentle movements amazement resounded through and in her features was an unbridled curiosity. Veata had never seen anything so beautiful as this under her young gaze. The mix of unnamable colors, the tender brushstrokes angled ever so slightly into the curves of the mountains, the sky falling into the landscape...she’d never seen anything quite like it before. It was a painting and yet painting didn’t seem enough of a word. Not even nature in its most natural state could have ever looked as marvelous as this.
Lovino’s sudden call broke Veata out of her reverie and sent her lithe form jumping up in a frightened manner. Her heart skipped a few too many beats, none due to the mere sound of his voice of course, and a small squeal departed from her lips. Hands that had wandered across the rough surface of the canvas just moments ago clasped over the area of her heart as she turned just a little too quickly on her heels. It had never occurred to Veata earlier that perhaps this was a room that she didn’t belong in and the Italian that had taken her in just hours ago would be upset with her. She most certainly did not want to anger her kind host.
Her feet moved far too fast for her frame to follow though and before Veata could quite realize what was happening she had fallen to the floor with a resounding ‘thump’. Instinctively her hands fell forward to protect her face but it did not change the fact that a large tearing sound echoed through her ears only to be followed shortly by a sharp stinging in her knees. For a moment she was far too dazed to react to anything much less move about even as a weak cry rolled off of her tongue.
One glance down towards her legs had Veata wincing but not completely from pain. She had somehow managed to tear the fabric of her black skirt in her fall and it wasn’t exactly a cheap type of fabric either. Turning onto her side and pulling a little at it to reveal the tear to have run all the way up almost to the bone of her hip. How she had managed that she would never know. All that her mind could beg for now was that Lovino wouldn’t come up in search of her.
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Post by Lovino Vargas on Apr 9, 2010 21:42:04 GMT -5
Lovino frowned at the muffled thump from upstairs, momentarily forgetting about the salad. Glancing at the oven, he frowned harder before deciding that the pizza would be fine without him; he couldn't say the same for the young Cambodian woman. "Oi, signorina!" he called, masking a slight concern with annoyance, mounting the stairs two at a time.
He started to head down the hall to the guest room, but his attention was caught by the door to his spare room... a door he didn't remember leaving half-open. "What the hell...?" he muttered to himself, pushing the door fully open, then dropping his dishtowel in shock.
For a moment, he just stared, dark eyes following the curve of her pale leg, clearly visible beneath the long tear in her skirt, tracing the ridged hardness of lean muscle hidden beneath her soft, unblemished skin before traveling up to her flushed face. "Oi, you okay, signorina?" he asked gruffly, dropping down to her level with a comforting smile, eyes flicking again to the bare skin of her leg.
Oh damn... He was starting to feel like she'd just wrapped her fingers around his hair curl and tugged... hard... [/blockquote]
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Post by Veata Chea on Apr 10, 2010 15:36:11 GMT -5
Small sputtering noises tore through her throat as Veata found herself with left with a loss for words. It was bad enough to have been discovered, fallen, in a room that she wasn’t meant to be in for starters; it was worse when she was discovered, fallen, in a room that she wasn’t meant to be in with a long tear in her skirt slipping up her thigh and an Italian’s heavy gaze flittering across the exposed skin. Proper conduct and a strict upbringing reprimanded the girl in her mind for being so careless as to allow this stranger to ever see so much of her but there was another part of the Oriental’s mind that was too frozen in his gaze to do much, much less move and hide away her leg. “I-I’m fine…” Veata stuttered out quietly after gaping for a few more moments. She must seem like such an idiot right now in Lovino’s eyes and for some reason, the thought made her more upset than she probably should have been. After all, what did this stranger matter to her?
Slender hands, scraped slightly by her fall, flinched a little as she shifted around so that she was resting atop of her knees instead of laying there in front of Lovino. Her heart-shaped face was bright red with embarrassment and Veata found that she couldn’t bear to bring her gaze up to meet the golden eyes staring at her in concern. The expression on her face was childish, reminiscent of a child trying hard not to cry or show emotion though clearly upset and really, she was. How would Lovino react to finding her in this room that wasn’t meant for her? He could yell at her and possibly even hit her. That was certainly would have been the case and punishment if this was Cambodia or even the refugee camp in Thailand.
“I’m sor-sorry,” she muttered, “I was ju-just curious when I passed by this room and when I sa-saw the paintings I couldn’t help myself…” Veata allowed for her head to hang silently. [color=red“I’m sorry…”[/color] [/size]
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Post by Lovino Vargas on Apr 10, 2010 15:53:17 GMT -5
Lovino reached forward to lay a hand on her upper thigh, his fingers just barely grazing the skin beneath the tear. "You sure you're okay?" Her eyes reminded him of a small, frightened rabbit, and he was slightly unsure what to do. Leaning back on his heels, he took both her scraped hands in his and kissed each injured palm lightly in turn. "We do this in our country to make things stop hurting," he muttered without looking at her, trying not to let his eyes wander to the tiniest bit of white fabric peeking out beneath the tear. It didn't take too much imagination to think of what that fabric could be.
He didn't release her hands immediately, glancing at the small room with a smile. "You like paintings, signorina?" With a slightly embarrassed laugh, he pulled her to her feet. "I guess they're pretty good, huh?"
Don't look don't look don't look... Dammit, I looked.
Tearing his gaze away from her leg again, he smiled and released one of her hands, tugging her gently toward the stairs. "Come on, signorina, I'll show you some of my paintings after we eat, okay? I shouldn't leave the pizza in the oven too long." [/blockquote]
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Post by Veata Chea on Apr 10, 2010 16:42:33 GMT -5
“A-ah!” Veata flushed wildly, her eyes falling close in her embarrassment and uncertainty. The warmth of his hand pressed against the bare skin of her sensitive thigh, the gentle brushing of his lips against her scraped palms, his golden eyes focused solely upon her form; all things that brought hot flutters into her stomach, reminiscent of what had burned underneath her skin just a few hours ago in Lovino’s hold. Something inside of her tried to argue that she should be pulling away from his hand but it was overpowered easily by something that the female didn’t quite understand fully herself. In Cambodia something like this had never happened to her before. Nobody looked at her the way that Lovino did, nobody touched her in this manner...nobody woke up quite these exact emotions in her trembling form...It was far too confusing and Veata did not enjoy it as she muttered out quietly, “I...I see...”
Like a small kitten she followed after the male, their hands still firmly intertwined with one another. Her face expression betrayed nothing but on the inside the small shocks passing through her skin had her shivering. It would be so much easier to ignore these feelings and to pretend that they didn’t exist but in the warmth of this stranger, Veata found that she couldn’t turn away. With a small nod she whispered shyly, “Yes...I do...” There were a few more moments of silent hesitation before she followed after him quietly, the tear in her skirt all but forgotten in her embarrassment. “Al-alright.”
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Post by Lovino Vargas on Apr 10, 2010 21:24:23 GMT -5
Lovino grinned over his shoulder as he led the young woman down the stairs, holding her hand with just enough pressure to let her know he was there without trapping her... though with the way her torn skirt swished across her legs as she descended the stairs was almost enough to make him forget himself. His eyes sparkled as the smell of pizza in the oven intensified, and he carefully pulled out her chair to seat her at the table. "Here, I made salad..." Offering the bowl, he sat across from her and rested his chin in his hands, watching the way the setting sun reflected from her pale skin with a small smile. "The pizza'll be done soon..." he added, leaning the chair back on its back legs to peer into the kitchen.
His lips stuck out in a pout as he leaned toward her across the table. "Looks like you got a little sunburn, signorina," he observed, unsure if it were just a blush or an actual sunburn. "I've got some lotion you can put on that'll heal it back up."
Standing again, he reached to the center of the table and uncorked the bottle of red wine, pouring some first in her glass, then in his own before setting the bottle back down. The red liquid was still slightly chilled from the icebox, but pleasantly so after the long day in the sun. Taking a sip, he smiled as he forked over some of his own salad. "Do you like your room? Comfortable?" [/blockquote]
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Post by Veata Chea on Apr 10, 2010 21:46:06 GMT -5
What on Earth…was this? Veata picked quietly at the strange green leaves resting in front of her with a silver fork. She’d never seen the likes of it before in her life, not even anything close in resemblance to what was found back in Cambodia. It seemed so…flimsy and thin, an unnatural green webbed with lighter shades of an almost white color. The tomatoes were easily recognized but the female just wasn’t sure what to make of this salad. It would be rude though not to eat the odd little leaves that seemed to have no name considered that Lovino had gone through the trouble of making it for her.
A hesitant mouth took in a forkful of the leaves, a sense of surprise flooding through her at the freshness of it. In Cambodia they had only ever taken vegetables fresh but this was something else entirely, there was a sort of crispy quality to it that Veata had never tasted before. It seemed that even the food here was strange and foreign. “This is very…refreshing, Mister Lovino. Thank you for making it… A silence hung in the air as she looked away shyly. Veata didn’t want to seem incompetent but she really did want to know just what exactly this was named...“What…is this leaf called?”
Another few mouthfuls of the strange leaves fell into Veata’s mouth as she stared absentmindedly at the tablecloth. Dark brown eyes focused on the folds of the cloth as she fell into something akin to a reverie when the Italian’s voice lured her away from her shy quietness. “O-oh?” A bright blush overtook her cheeks in slight humiliation. She really had had no idea that she must look like that…“I-I…didn’t realize…” Her gaze drifted away as she muttered out quietly, “Tha-thank you…”
Veata glanced quietly at the rich red of the drink. She recognized easily by the sight and the scent that it was some type of alcohol but again, it was unknown to her. Alcohol had usually been avoided in her home with only a very few occasions where she was allowed some sips. The taste had been intoxicating and as a child she had always seemed to relax under the influence…which was most certainly what she needed now more than anything else.
The cool liquid slipped down her throat with a welcome relish. Almost instantly the tension eased out of her lithe frame as a small tugged at her lips. “The room? It’s quite comfortable. Pretty too.” Veata lifted her gaze towards Lovino’s face. “Thank you so much for letting me stay here again. Are you sure there isn’t any way that I can repay you?”
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Post by Lovino Vargas on Apr 10, 2010 22:13:56 GMT -5
Lovino frowned and tilted his head in confusion before comprehension dawned. "It's lettuce," he explained brightly, spearing a leaf on his fork and displaying it as if that would help more than the ones on her own plate. Realizing what he was doing, he hurriedly popped it in his mouth and chewed. "There's no lettuce in Cambodia? You guys are missing out. And this one?" Poking his fork several times in quick succession, he displayed several different vegetables. "This is cucumber, green pepper, red pepper, and an olive." Closing his eyes as he slowly took each vegetable off the fork one by one, contentedly swallowing one before starting another.
"The sunburn?" Opening his eyes, he tilted his head and smiled honestly. "Nah, don't worry, signorina, it's cute. Like a blush. And don't bring up the matter of paying me again, got it?" He mock-scowled before letting it dissolve back into a smile as he took another sip of wine.
Wiping his hands on a napkin, he stood and ventured purposefully back into the kitchen to check the pizza, smiling with satisfaction at the bubbling cheese already darkening to a rich golden brown around the edges. Humming softly to himself, he pulled the pizza from the oven and swiped it onto a wooden tray, slicing it into several small, even pieces and carrying it back to set in the middle of the table with a flourish. "Pizza!" he announced proudly, taking his knife and slicing through the strings of cheese to deposit it on her plate.
"If it's too hot, you can cut off bites with a knife and fork," he mentioned, demonstrating with his own slice. "When it's cooled down enough, you just pick it up and bite it~" Attempting to demonstrate, he burned his lips and muffled a curse, taking a long drink from his wine glass to try and sooth the burning before refilling both his and Veata's respective glasses from the bottle. [/blockquote]
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Post by Veata Chea on Apr 10, 2010 22:53:08 GMT -5
Dark brown eyes flitted over, following after Lovino’s frame as he stepped up towards the stove. Her eyes had taken over a slightly glazed look with each small sip of red wine that quivered down her throat and as she rested her face against the palm of her hand, the female realized that her thinking had become a little hazy. Strange really there was still half a…A single glance towards her cup revealed it to be empty. Now how did that happen? It had been full only just a few moments ago and Veata most certainly did not recall drinking it that quickly.
With a small shrug of her shoulders, Veata drove away her thoughts and allowed her gaze to fall back onto something much more tempting than any type of alcohol could have been. Hours ago Veata had not given herself the chance to take in Lovino, not very well anyways and as he moved about the kitchen, she couldn’t find a more opportune moment. Earlier had been nothing but taking in the male’s face, not his body or stature and the pleasant view that met her eyes now made for some reasonable regret on Veata’s side. That was most certainly a very, very cute ass that the female couldn’t hold herself back from enjoying. This was eye candy if ever she had seen one before.
Lovino’s proclamation had Veata jumping slightly and turning away from him in a hurry. Slightly tipsy she may be but the Oriental was not completely at a loss for her shame. An absent-minded noise departed from her lips, her gaze flittering over every now and then towards Lovino’s calloused hands. Such strong and deft hands, elegant fingers, and a solid hold that was gentle and firm all at once. Just the intertwining of their hands had been delightful and for a brief moment, Veata wondered what it would be like to have those hands brushing elsewhere against her skin…
Almost instantly the blood rose to her cheeks, sober enough to know that she shouldn’t think like that but tipsy enough that it didn’t bother her as much as it should have. Whatever longing for Lovino that may have resounded through her though was completely forgotten with a bright laugh as the male burnt his own tongue. “You certainly are the odd one, Lovino. Does everybody here go about that way burning themselves with their own food?” she teased gently even as she brought a forkful of the odd food into her mouth.
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Post by Lovino Vargas on Apr 11, 2010 19:16:37 GMT -5
Lovino covered his pout with another sip from his wine glass, managing to transform it into a smile as he set it down. "I just wanted to hear the signorina laugh," he answered quickly, tilting his head and grinning at the flush adorning her cheeks. "For if the signorina is happy, I am happy." Eyes narrowing just a bit, he took another sip of wine thoughtfully. It was a mild vintage that would take several glasses to start clouding his thinking, but... judging from the alcohol-induced flush on her cheeks, he should keep her away from much more.
Or not... an evil little niggling voice smirked inside his head. She'd probably be pretty damn hot completely smash--
Lovino immediately stopped that train of thought, purposefully picking up the still-hot pizza and biting it to take his mind off any little fantasies dancing around in there. Through a mouthful of scalding-hot cheese, he swallowed quickly and mentioned, "So how do you like it? Delizioso, non?* Maybe you can make me Cambodian food sometime."
The thin, crisp crust of the pizza almost melted in his mouth, and Lovino took the opportunity to mentally congratulate himself on how well it had come out. "It's a beautiful evening," he mentioned, holding the glass in one hand and staring out the window at the first hints of dusk blotting out the sunset. With a grin, he turned back and toasted her with his glass, "Almost as beautiful as the signorina."
------------- *Delicious, isn't it?
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Post by Veata Chea on Apr 11, 2010 19:50:36 GMT -5
A small giggle, hidden behind her wineglass, danced on the tip of her pink tongue as Veata took in a few more sips. Her dark brown eyes were lidded in an almost inexplicable delight that had the female melting into a puddle of giddiness and pleasure. If she were in a moment of sobriety, Lovino’s ill-covered lie would have not slipped away undetected but in her tipsy state, Veata took everything that he said at face value and only gave a small nod. Besides, it seemed like something that this strange male would do; hurt himself to make her laugh. As odd as it seemed, Lovino seemed to enjoy it when she was in a happy state more than she did herself.
Veata’s head gave a slight tilt to the side at the sudden flush of the Italian’s pale skin. One slender finger curled a lock of her raven black hair about while the other brought another forkful of the strange food onto her tongue. She was enjoying the pizza almost as much as she was enjoying the effects of the alcohol upon her. A good deal of the ingredients were familiar to Veata but only in their raw state, they had never been mixed together like this because it just hadn’t seemed to fit at first. Eating this…pizza now changed that opinion rather quickly.
A little squeal departed from her lips as some of the cheese fell onto the tip of her fingers rather than into her mouth. The scalding temperature of the still warm cheese and the instinct to not waste food brought the tips of her fingers into her mouth, her tongue lapping out to catch the melted material as she forgot her audience that was no doubt giving her an odd look. Customary and normal as it may be in Cambodia, something like this may have been looked down strangely by the people of this land where food seemed to be in constant abundance but in Veata’s state of mind, she couldn’t bring herself to care or realize it.
With one last, small shake of her hand, Veata drove off most of the heat and focused her mind instead onto Lovino. There was a spark of interest in her slightly glazed eyes at the mention of Khmer food but something sounded odd about it…but what was it? There was a moment’s struggle before the blurred thought came to her mind. Ingredients! Cambodian ingredients would not be easily found in this place. Such a shame really considering just how delightful their cuisine really could be. And Veata wanted to show something of her homeland to this male but without the materials, food was out of the question but…maybe something else wasn’t out of the question.
Another sip of the wine fell down her throat as Veata mumbled out, “I can’t make you Cambodian food. Not ‘nough ingredients but…but…” What was she offering him again?...Oh, that’s right! “I can show you one of our dances.” Dark brown eyes slid close. “I’m very good at…at dancing so I could show you one…if you’d like, Mister Lovino.”
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Post by Lovino Vargas on Apr 11, 2010 20:36:37 GMT -5
Lovino flinched, eyes widening in uncharacteristic concern as she squealed and stuck her fingers in her mouth before clearing his throat and drinking from his glass to hide his flush. The way she licked those slim, elegant fingers was far too suggestive for his brain to handle at this point, and her half-lidded, far-too-innocent eyes were enough to make him seriously contemplate joining her in this tipsy state.
This was bad, this was very very bad... Flirting was all well and good, but he had a suspicion that taking things too far with this particular signorina would leave him feeling particularly awful afterward. It wasn't like him to think of others, but since obviously it would really suck for him to be stuck with a grumpy, half-terrified houseguest, it was in his own best interest to be on his best behavior.
That's what his brain decided, anyway. His body had far too many other traitorous plans, and as she offered to dance for him, his brain couldn't keep up and just gave up completely. "I would love to see you dance, signorina," he answered after a moment of roughly shoving his rational mind in a box and hiding it in a deep, dark corner of his mind. Drinking the rest of his wine, he poured himself a third glass before his brain peeked out and reminded him to slow down. "And you'd be surprised what we can find in the marketplace around here, you know."
Setting down his knife and fork, he scooted back from the table and smiled, waiting with barely concealed excitement to see what this exotic signorina would unveil next. [/blockquote]
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Post by Veata Chea on Apr 11, 2010 20:59:42 GMT -5
Veata’s lithe frame leaned back into the chair, the hard wood offering a stable support that she seemed unable to find this eveing. Which was rather odd really...She was normally so light and agile in terms on not only on her feet but her mind as well. What could possibly put her into this state slipped the female’s mind even as she brought her glass up to her lips. The cool, red wine fell into a welcoming mouth and Veata waved the thought off easily. This unusualness would be gone by tomorrow no doubt.
“Oh? You would?” Her mind struggled briefly to recall what Lovino was talking of. Something about…Ah! There it was! Veata had offered to dance for him rather than to cook him a traditional meal of her home for some reason or the other. How silly of her to have forgotten something so important in her own thoughts. “Well…” Dark brown eyes drifted upwards towards the white ceiling. “I suppose I could show you one right now…”
Without waiting for an answer the female slipped out of her chair. She gave a little stumble, the fabric of her skirt shifting about her legs but caught herself before she could fall. A silly grin was sent to the older male with a light flush to her cheeks and a small noise slipping through her lips. One fall in a single evening was more than enough for Veata and she would much prefer that it didn’t happen again, especially in front of her gracious host.
“Ah…now…how did this go?” Veata muttered quietly more to herself but the words were not much. Tipsy as she was, her body remembered the movements of her home well that it had come to be more of instinct than of practice. Delicate feet fell into place as her arms went up, her hands turning gently in time to a tune only she could hear. The movements, rigid and awkward when she had stepped, fell into a gentle flow that spoke nothing of her state of mind. Her expression fell into a calmness, a gentle smile pulling at her lips as she closed her eyes and allowed to let the age old movements take over.
This was the dance of her people, this was the dance of her home, this was the dance of a past that she was not quite ready to let go of.
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Post by Lovino Vargas on Apr 11, 2010 21:59:03 GMT -5
Lovino leaned forward, eyes widening as she stumbled and nearly fell. As if his imagination needed more encouragement, the almost-fall flashed her leg through the tear and oh Dio lacy white panties--! Blood racing through his body, his hand scrabbled toward his glass, unable to take his eyes off her as he took another comforting sip of wine in an attempt to force himself to relax.
Then she started to dance, slowly at first but then with a deceptively simple flow, she simply literally fell into it as if it were as natural as breathing. His own breath caught somewhere in his throat, Lovino's jaw unconsciously slackened in amazement, eyes darkening as he watched her slender arms move first one way, then another, hips following in a mesmerizing dance. Leaning forward against the table, his tongue poked out to lick his suddenly dry lips as he stared unabashedly, trying to take in as much of her as he could.
It was her face, perhaps, that captivated him the most, that calm, utterly contented face that conjured up images of waking up to see her peacefully asleep, wearing that same expression.
This was dangerous. This was wrong. But he'd be damned if he let an opportunity like this go to waste. Taking another drink from his glass in an attempt to wet his dry mouth, he set it down and stood smoothly, crossing the room in a few quick strides to take both her hands in his. Breath heavy as he stared into her eyes, he murmured, "This is how we dance in my country..." Gently, he rested one of her hands on his and maneuvered the other to his shoulder, wrapping his free hand around her waist and pulling her in so their bodies just barely touched, just enough to feel the heat between them. [/blockquote]
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