Page 173 of Titus

I shrugged. “Hope that’s not too cheesy,” I said, smiling.

“You are truly a man I couldn’t have dreamed up if I tried,” she said, holding the card to her heart.

“How long have you been planning all this?” she asked, more out of disbelief than anything.

“Since I was overseas and realized I just needed time alone with you, with nothing to interrupt us. I wanted a few days where work wasn’t pulling either of us in different directions.”

She smiled softly. “I don’t think I’ll ever be able to thank you enough for this. For thinking of this getaway, even though you didn’t know how much I needed it. Hell, I didn’t even know how badly I needed this escape until we drove up here and I walked through those doors.”

“I believe I felt the same way you’re feeling now the night you brought me to dinner at the fish shack and demanded that I take you to a public beach.” I smiled. “And for that, your reaction to it all is the only expression of gratitude I’ll ever need.”

“Well, once I’m done touring this place, you’ll receive a proper gesture of gratitude, kind sir,” she said with that arch of her eyebrow.

“Keep doing that, and you won’t make it through your private tour,” I winked as she turned toward the bathroom.

A few moments later, she disappeared through the doorway, and I followed, softening further in response to her reaction.

The bathroom was larger than some hotel suites, with stone flooring stretching beneath our feet and an oversized soaking tub beside tall windows overlooking a private garden.

Catalina walked directly toward it. “I might be living in this all weekend. Good thing there’s room for two,” she teased.

I stepped closer toward her, sliding my hands into the pockets of her jeans. I bent to kiss the side of her neck, “I’ll ensure we both fit if it’s your desire to soak in this bath all weekend.”

Her hand reached up behind her, snaked around my neck, pulling my chin down to rest contentedly on her shoulder.

“This place is unforgettable,” she finally said, looking out the window.

My gaze followed hers to the views beyond. Lantern-lined pathways wound through private gardens filled with roses, citrus trees, and towering oaks. The Santa Ynez Mountains rose in the distance beyond the property.

This moment of peace was priceless. Just me and her, the rest of the world forgotten.

She turned to me, and the look in her eyes stopped me before she even touched me. There was no teasing smile, no playful remark, and no attempt to hide what she was thinking.

For perhaps the first time since I’d met her, Catalina wasn’t questioning herself about me or us. She wasn’t second-guessing, and she wasn’t worrying about tomorrow. She was simply certain.

And God help me, that certainty was breathtaking. My pulse slowed as she reached for my hand and led me back toward the bedroom. Everything around us had gone quiet. The distant sounds from outside seemed to fade. The crackling fireplace. The rustle of leaves beyond the windows.

It was just the soft fragrance of roses and jasmine lingering in the room. Then everything narrowed until there was only her.

I had spent most of my life leading, making decisions—making these decisions in particular. I carried responsibility and controlled outcomes, yet with her? She controlled every outcome I seemed to be part of.

My chest tightened when she grabbed my hand and guided me back into the bedroom. I reached for her face, and her eyes closed as she leaned into my palm. I watched her beautiful eyes reopen and lock onto mine.

“You’re mine right now,” she said with a fiery look in her eye that made my thoughts scatter.

The words shouldn’t have affected me as much as they did. I’d spent my life building and acquiring companies, hotels, aircraft, and entire developments. None of them had ever meant as much to me what Catalina did in that moment. Not because she’d demanded it, but because giving myself to her had become the easiest decision I’d ever made.

She gently bit down on the corner of her bottom lip as she unfastened my belt, and the next thing I knew, my pants were on the floor.

My eyes closed, allowing this woman to do with me whatever she wanted. My button-down was removed and tossed aside, and I sucked in a ragged breath as her lips moved over the center of my chest while her fingernails gently glided over my ass, removing my briefs.

As if I wasn’t already fucking ready to explode from this gentle, erotic moment, she gently stopped my lips from touching hers with just one finger.

A slow heat spread across my chest when her eyes dropped to my erection. She licked her lips and stepped back from where I stood.

I watched as she gracefully rolled her camisole off, tossed it aside, and gently unbuttoned her jeans in the most sexual way I’d ever seen a woman do. Everything was slow and precise, and now I was staring at the most beautiful woman, wearing nothing but a lace bra and panties.

“You’re going to let me properly thank you,” she said softly.