Page 139 of Titus

“Good morning, preciosa,” he said.

“Morning,” I answered.

His eyes drifted slowly over me in his shirt, and the look that crossed his face made heat immediately crawl back into my cheeks.

“Tan hermosa,” he said, licking sauce off his thumb.

So beautiful? My ass, I thought.

“Come,” he said. “I helped prepare breakfast because I wanted to treat you to something that would help restore your energy, since I depleted it all last evening.”

I chuckled, following him as he carried two plates to a linen-covered table next to a massive pool, overlooking the bow of the boat and the sea.

“You look suspiciously alive for a man who barely slept.”

A faint smirk tugged at his mouth. “I’m functioning on determination and espresso.”

After I sat, he took the seat across from me. “I left early this morning,” he said quietly, placing a napkin over his lap. “You looked so peacefully asleep that I didn’t want to wake you. I also wanted to surprise you with breakfast.”

I smiled at him and brought the freshly poured coffee to my nose, inhaling its aroma before taking a sip. “Mm,” I said, feeling the coffee’s scent energize me, “this smells delicious.”

“I have creamer and sugar as well, cariño,” he said.

“After last night,” I smirked before taking a sip, “I need it black.”

He chuckled, reaching toward the bowl of fresh fruit already on the table. “My staff retrieved these from the local farmers’ market. I will say that I am impressed.”

I took a strawberry and gently took a bite, feeling the juicy fruit explode with flavor in my mouth.

“If you keep making those sounds, my leaving you in bed this morning will start to feel like a terrible decision,” he said with humor.

“Speaking of which,” I said, taking another sip of coffee. “Do you make breakfast for all the women you’ve had in your bed?”

He frowned, momentarily making me wonder if he’d taken my words, which were meant to be jovial, as an insult.

“No,” he said, his expression softening sweetly and sincerely. “Only for the one woman who has captivated me body and soul in ways that I cannot explain.”

I felt heat rush to my cheeks, wishing this new bodily reaction would just stop happening.

That earned a smile from Titus. “And if you must know,” he said, taking a bite of his eggs Benedict, “most women never saw me after the night ended. If a woman stayed until morning, it was usually because I was too exhausted to send my driver for her before sunrise.”

“Damn,” I said. “You say that as if you never left a woman in tears before.”

“They were never left wanting,” he grinned. “Sexually, that is. But a relationship? That was never going to happen.”

“Why am I still here, then?” I questioned before I could think.

“Perhaps I want more,” he said sincerely. “Correction. I absolutely want more with you.” He sat back in his chair and eyed my plate of untouched food. “Are you going to at least try it? I heard it’s better to eat it warm rather than cold.”

I returned his smile and took a bite. “Wow,” I said. “And you don’t cook?”

“No,” he licked his lips. “I have no time to learn the skill,” he grinned. “But for you, preciosa, I most definitely want to take that time.”

“Like making our lunches?”

He took a sip of coffee. “Yes.” His eyes stayed on me a moment too long, and I quickly turned my attention back to my breakfast. There was something about the way he looked at me that made it impossible to concentrate on anything else while he sat across from me, and my food was bound to get cold if I kept getting caught in the tractor beam of his gaze.

Titus leaned back slightly in his chair, sipping his coffee and watching me for a long moment before speaking again.