Читать книгу Sultry Nights - Эбби Грин, Annie West - Страница 13

THE following day Kate followed Tiarnan across the tarmac of the airport in Madrid to his private jet. He was hand-in-hand with a still serious-looking Rosie. As he’d said, Rosie had welcomed the news that Kate was coming with them—much to Kate’s relief—but she still couldn’t quite figure out the tension between father and daughter. Tiarnan looked back at her in that moment, making Kate’s breath catch in her throat. He was wearing jeans and a plain polo shirt which made him look astoundingly gorgeous.

‘We’re flying to New York. I’m leaving my plane there and we’ll be taking a smaller plane down to Martinique.’

Kate just nodded and forced a smile. What she also knew was that, far from just leaving his plane in New York, he was leaving it to be used by the philanthropic organisation he’d set up, which covered a multitude of charities he chaired or had set up. It was a very public move he’d made some years ago, to try and discourage the unnecessary use of private aircraft. Kate also knew he took commercial flights wherever possible.

She cursed him under her breath, her eyes drawn with dismaying inevitability to the perfection of his tautly muscled behind in the snug and faded jeans. The man was practically a saint, which made it so much harder to keep herself distanced. But from now on that was what she had to be—distanced. She was a woman of the world, sophisticated and experienced. Not shy, gauche Kate who quivered inwardly at the thought of what lay ahead.

Once they were settled onto the plane and it had taken off, Kate was relieved to see Tiarnan take out some paperwork. She and Rosie set up a card game at the other end of the plane. They were served a delicious lunch, after which Kate and Rosie had exhausted all the card games they knew—so Rosie started reading and Kate went back to her seat to try and get some sleep.

Tiarnan glanced over at her and Kate noticed that he looked tired. Her heart clenched, and she had the bizarre desire to go over and sweep away all his paperwork and force him to relax. Her cheeks warmed guiltily when she thought of how she’d like to make him relax. Already that precious distance was disappearing into the dust.

His head gestured towards the back of the plane, a glint in his eye. ‘You can lie down in the bedroom if you want.’

Kate shook her head and tried to stem the heat rising in her body, which had reacted to that explicit glint. ‘No, it’s fine. Rosie’s in there reading; she’ll probably fall asleep.’

He just looked at her. After a moment he shrugged minutely and went back to his work. Kate reclined her chair and curled up, facing the other way.

Eventually the tension left her body. She was relieved that since that kiss in his study he’d been the personification of cool, polite distance. For all the world as if she were nothing more than a family friend joining them for a holiday. She would have been scared off if he’d been any other way: triumphant or gloating. But Kate didn’t doubt that Tiarnan was a master in the handling of women, and even though that realisation hit her in the solar plexus she was too exhausted after a couple of sleepless nights to feel enraged.

When Kate’s body had stopped moving, and it was obvious she was asleep, Tiarnan put down his paperwork and looked over. A tight coil of tension seemed to start in his feet and go all the way to his head. He allowed his eyes to rove over her form, taking in the deliciously round provocation of her bottom as it stuck out, straight at him, encased in linen trousers through which he could see the faint outline of her pants. Her legs were curled up, shoes off. Golden hair billowed out across the cushion and her head was tucked down into her chest. He got up silently and took down a blanket from overhead, spread it out over her body. In profile her face was relaxed, with none of that wakeful watchfulness that she seemed to subject him to, her big blue eyes wary.

He’d had to fight to control himself since he’d kissed her in his study. He’d expected to feel a certain level of disappointment in her acquiescence, which was such a contradiction when all he’d wanted was for her to say yes. And yet she hadn’t been coquettish, she hadn’t been calculating. When she’d stood in front of him in his study, strangely defiant, she’d had faint bruises of colour under her eyes, and if anything he might have guessed that she’d spent a sleepless night.

He stood straight and looked down at her. A surge of possessiveness gripped him. None of that mattered now. What mattered was that she was here, and very soon he would be discovering all the secrets of that luscious body. He turned abruptly before he did something stupid, like kiss her while she slept, and went to check on Rosie.

Kate woke to the sound of heated voices. Rosie and Tiarnan. She sat up and felt thoroughly dishevelled. She pushed her hair back from her face as she heard Tiarnan’s voice emerge from the bedroom at the back.

‘Rosalie Quinn, I will not continue this discussion until you can talk to me in a civil manner.’

Kate looked around, and her eyes widened as she saw Tiarnan standing in the doorway with hands on hips, obviously facing Rosie. And then she heard a tearful, ‘Go away! I hate you, Tiarnan. Why should I listen to you when you’re not even my real dad?’

And then a paroxysm of crying started. The door slammed in Tiarnan’s face. He sighed deeply and jiggled the knob.

‘Rosie, come on …’

Then, as if he could feel her eyes on him, he looked around and saw Kate. He ran a hand through his hair and walked up the cabin towards her, dwarfing everything around him as he did so.

‘I’m sorry—we woke you.’

Kate just shook her head. ‘It’s fine …’is everything OK?’ Patently it wasn’t.

Tiarnan sat in his seat, tipped his had back for a moment. ‘Not really, no.’

He looked at her then, and Kate felt speared by the intensity of his eyes and the pain she could see in the blue depths.

‘I should be honest with you, Kate. Rosie—well, it’s a little more complicated than just moving schools—’

Just then the captain’s voice interrupted, to announce that they were approaching New York and to get ready for landing. Kate had no idea she’d slept that long.

After the steward had come to make sure they were all awake, Kate said softly, ‘Do you want me to go and—?’

Tiarnan shook his head. ‘No, I’ll get her. It’s not your problem, Kate, and I’m sorry you had to hear anything. I’ll explain later.’

After a few minutes a white-faced and obviously upset Rosie came out with Tiarnan and strapped herself into her seat.

As they landed and went through the formalities to change planes, Kate did her best to be upbeat and chirpy, to try and take Rosie’s mind off whatever tension was between her and her father. She’d said that Tiarnan wasn’t her real dad. Kate had no clue what that could be about. Sorcha had never mentioned anything.

By the time they’d boarded a smaller yet equally luxurious plane for Martinique, Rosie was obviously wrung out, and after picking at a meal she let Kate put her to bed in a small cabin in the back. Kate stayed with her till she fell asleep, feeling a very inappropriate level of maternal concern.

When she emerged to take her seat again Tiarnan asked, ‘Do you want a drink?’

Kate shook her head, and then changed her mind abruptly, ‘Actually, a small Baileys might be nice.’

Within seconds it was being offered to her by the steward on a tray. Once they were alone again, she could feel Tiarnan looking at her.

She turned to face him, and finally he said, ‘I’ve decided to go to Martinique now with Rosie not only because of the school closing but also because we both need a break, and our house there is her favourite place in the world. It always has been. It’s where she gets all the maternal love and affection I can’t give her.’

Or her mother, evidently, Kate thought to herself. But she said nothing. Tiarnan was looking into his glass, swirling the liquid. Outside the window beside him the sky was a clear blue, strewn with white ribbons of clouds.

He looked at her and smiled a small smile. ‘Mama Lucille and Papa Joe are like grandparents to Rosie. They’ve been the caretakers of my house since before I owned it, and they have five children and dozens of grandkids—all around Rosie’s age. When we go there Rosie can disappear for days and I know she’s fine. She turns into something almost feral with all her adopted family … I’m hoping that perhaps—’

He stopped, and the word adopted struck her. Kate asked quietly, ‘What did she mean about you not being her real dad?’

He looked at her, and something intensely bleak crossed his face for a second before it was gone, making Kate think she’d imagined it.

‘I’m not.’

Kate shook her head, frowning. ‘But you are. I mean—’

He shook his head and downed his drink. His jaw clenched. ‘No, I’m not. I believed I was until a couple of years ago. And I’d probably have never found out if Rosie hadn’t got ill and had to have some blood tests done.’

He glanced at Kate. ‘It was nothing serious, but we found out that her blood type didn’t match mine. That isn’t unusual in itself, but other tests were done and, to cut a long story short, I found out that Rosie is not my biological daughter.’

Kate just shook her head, frowning. ‘But if you’re not, then—’

‘Who is?’ He laughed sharply. ‘Take your pick. It could be any one of the three or four men that Stella slept with around the time we split up.’

‘Oh, Tiarnan, I’m sorry.’

His mouth was a grim line. ‘The others weren’t as wealthy or well set-up as me, so when Stella found out she was pregnant she decided to make me the father. A gamble that paid off. She had all the evidence, doctor’s notes, and the dates seemed to match up. And I, who’d never wanted to find myself in that predicament, suddenly discovered a hitherto unknown paternal instinct, a sense of moral responsibility to do the right thing, so I proposed to Stella.’

Kate felt as if a stake were being driven into her heart. She tried to keep her face as bland as possible, not to allow that pain to surface—the pain she’d felt as a vulnerable eighteen-year-old who’d dreamed for a second that perhaps Tiarnan Quinn might fall for her in the space of one kiss.

‘Stella married me and milked that paternal instinct for all it was worth. And then as soon as Rosie was born she was off—back to her current lover. We divorced soon after, she got a nice settlement—and the rest, as they say, is history.’

Kate knew that was an understatement. Stella Rios had made a small fortune out of Tiarnan. It had been all over the news at the time. Her head pounded with questions: Had he loved her, though, despite that reluctance to settle down? Was that why he’d married her, apart from wanting to do the right thing? Had she broken his heart?

Kate’s throat felt dry. ‘When did you find out about the other men?’

Tiarnan closed his eyes for a moment and rubbed a hand over his face. ‘When I confronted Stella with the fact that Rosie wasn’t mine.’ He looked at Kate again. ‘I officially adopted Rosie as soon as I discovered the truth. Luckily Stella had signed complete custody over to me on our divorce. There was no way I was going to allow her any opportunity to use Rosie as some kind of pawn in an effort to get more money. Which was exactly what she did as soon as she realised that I knew. But thankfully by then Rosie was mine, and Stella knows well that taking on a small child would disrupt her hedonistic lifestyle, so she’s never contested.’

Kate could see that, despite finding out Rosie wasn’t his daughter, in every sense she obviously meant as much to him, if not more, than if she had been biologically his. It made her feel an ache inside. This wasn’t the Tiarnan she was used to—calculating and ruthless and a little intimidating. This Tiarnan was far more human.

‘I only allow Rosie to see Stella because she wishes it. Invariably she returns upset every time, but no matter what happens she always wants to go back.’ Tiarnan shook his head incredulously, clearly not understanding the apparently masochistic instinct of his ten-year-old daughter. ‘Over a year ago I went to Buenos Aires to pick Rosie up from a visit. She overheard Stella and I arguing … she heard every word … unfortunately it was all about the adoption. At first Rosie refused to come home with me, but when Stella told her in no uncertain terms that she wasn’t welcome to stay with her any longer, she had no choice …’

Horror coursed through Kate that a mother could be so cruel. She put a hand to her mouth. ‘Oh that poor, poor child.’

Tiarnan looked grim. ‘And yet Rosie still goes back. Still wants to see Stella even though she’s been so unutterably cruel.’

Kate shook her head. She could feel Rosie’s pain acutely. In some ways it was similar to what she’d endured with her own mother for years.

Tiarnan looked bleak again. ‘I haven’t even told Sorcha yet because I don’t want to rake up her own painful memories.’

Kate knew what Tiarnan was referring to. When Sorcha and Tiarnan’s father had died, Sorcha had found out that she’d actually been born to the mistress of her father—his secretary. She’d died in childbirth, and Tiarnan’s Spanish mother had taken Sorcha in as her own. But they’d never really got on, and finding out the truth had sent Sorcha into dark turmoil which could have resulted in a tragedy but thankfully hadn’t. Unfortunately Sorcha and Tiarnan’s mother had had an even more estranged relationship ever since.

Tiarnan’s voice cut through Kate’s memories. ‘Rosie is punishing me for this …’

Kate looked at him and answered instinctively. ‘Because she can. She knows deep down that you love her, so she’s lashing out at you when she really wants to lash out at her mother, for rejecting her. She just wants her mother to love her … that’s all.’

Tiarnan’s mouth thinned. ‘I hope you’re right. I could cope with anything if I knew that for sure. It’s been a tough year.’

Looking into Kate’s eyes, Tiarnan had a sudden sense of being out of control. He’d only ever revealed the truth of his marriage to one or two people, and that had been out of pure necessity. His own sister didn’t even know about Rosie. And yet here he was, blithely spilling his secrets to a woman whose presence in his life was solely down to the desire he felt for her.

As if to drive away his disturbing thoughts, and an unwelcome feeling of vulnerability, he reached over and with effortless strength pulled Kate from her seat.

She landed on his lap, off balance, her hands against his chest. Breathless, she said, ‘Tiarnan, stop—we can’t … not here. What if Rosie—?’

‘Rosie could sleep through a bomb going off.’ He quirked a sad smile. ‘I used to think that she got that from me …’

An unbidden wave of tenderness and compassion came over Kate, taking her by surprise. ‘Well maybe she did in another way. Biological ties can be highly overrated, you know.’

A dark brow arched. ‘You sound like you speak from experience. Anything you’d like to share? What skeletons are in your closet, Kate?’

She shook her head and ignored the dart of pain that struck her. Her skeletons were dull and boring. She thought of her stressed-out, harassed father and her vacuous, narcissistic mother. Kate hadn’t seen her flighty mother, currently on rich husband number four, for nearly a year—and that wasn’t unusual. She didn’t want to allow that old familiar pain to rise now. It would make her think of her yearning to create a solid, loving family base. She couldn’t think of that here and now, feeling so raw after what Tiarnan had just shared.

Kate became very aware of being cradled in Tiarnan’s lap. And very aware of a shockingly hard piece of his anatomy. When he tugged on her hair to pull her face closer she was powerless to resist. She felt as if a layer of skin had been stripped away, leaving her even more vulnerable to him. She touched her open mouth to his, breaths intermingling and weaving together. Their tongue-tips met, retreated. Breathing and heart-rates increased. Kate could feel his other hand drag her body even closer, and in an instant the kiss had changed from tentative and exploratory to full-on passion, mouths fused, tongues dancing an erotic dance.

After long, heady seconds Kate could feel the whirlpool of pleasure threatening to suck her down. Tiarnan pulled back, his chest still hard against hers. She made a sound of frustration when he broke away. She felt flushed, dizzy, breathless.

Smoky blue eyes glittered up into hers. ‘You’re probably right. Now is not the time …’

Sanity returned, and Kate pushed herself away from his chest with trembling hands. ‘No, it’s not.’

She stood up unsteadily and wobbled back to her own seat, snapping her belt shut across her lap, as if it might afford her some protection from the man she would have allowed to make love to her sitting right there in the seat if not for the fact that he’d stopped. In that moment she knew she had to protect herself—had to make Tiarnan see that this affair was on her terms and had limits.

She took a deep breath and looked at him, forcing herself not to notice the way his flushed cheeks, tousled hair, the almost feral glitter in his eyes that connected to something deep inside her with visceral intensity.

‘Tiarnan, look—’

‘That sounds ominous.’

Kate cursed him. ‘We need to talk about … this.’ She cast a quick look back to the closed cabin door, even though there was no way anyone could hear their softly spoken words. ‘This has to end when we return home.’

His eyes flashed. Kate knew he probably wasn’t used to his lovers dictating terms. Well, tough. This was the only way she knew would be able to get through this. This would be her great indulgence. She knew better than anybody after those revelations that Tiarnan was not the marrying or settling down kind. Once these ten days were over she would be getting on with the rest of her life. No matter how hard. She had to. She couldn’t contemplate another moment of this lingering pain.

She forged on. ‘I mean it, Tiarnan. I don’t want to add to Rosie’s woes by causing her more turmoil.’

Tiarnan’s whole body bristled at that. ‘Neither do I, Kate. I wouldn’t have asked you here in a heartbeat if I thought it might result in upsetting Rosie. She wants you here too, and she won’t see anything to upset her. If she’d expressed the slightest doubt about you coming I wouldn’t have asked you.’

Kate immediately felt chagrined. ‘Of course not. I know you wouldn’t do anything—But I’d just be afraid of her seeing … something.’ How could she not, Kate wailed inwardly, when all she had to do was look at Tiarnan and feel herself going up in flames …

Tiarnan finally looked away, after a long, intense moment, and seemed to spot something out of Kate’s window. He came out of his seat to lean over her. Kate squirmed backwards, terrified he’d feel the peaking of her nipples against his arm, the evidence of how easily he could turn her on.

He pointed at something. ‘Look—there it is.’

Kate looked down and, sure enough, an idyllic-looking island of forested green rose out of the unbelievably azure water around it. Mountain-tops and peaks were visible through the clouds.

Just then the cabin door opened, and Kate felt Tiarnan tense. Acting on pure instinct, she took his hand for a moment and squeezed it before he stood up to greet Rosie. He flashed her an enigmatic look. Immediately she felt silly, exposed. Who did she think she was? His wife?

‘I was just showing Kate Martinique. We’ll be landing soon.’

Tiarnan was barely aware of Rosie ignoring him as she came and sat on Kate’s lap, pointing things out to her through the window. He sat down and could still feel the press of Kate’s fingers around his. A show of support. He’d never had that—never had that sensation of someone sharing his experience. It made him feel—He didn’t want to think about how it made him feel. Or how it felt to see Rosie sitting on Kate’s lap with such trusting ease, their two heads close together.

Kate’s assertion that she wouldn’t want Rosie to be hurt had made all sorts of hackles rise. He was the one responsible for his daughter’s well-being and security, and he had the uncustomary sensation of having allowed himself and her to be put in a vulnerable position. With an effort, he let himself tune into Rosie’s chatter to Kate about Mama Lucille and Papa Joe, and her best friend Zoe.

Still feeling exposed, and studiously avoiding looking anywhere near Tiarnan, Kate hugged Rosie’s skinny frame close until she had to take her own seat. Kate hated that her heart ached so much for Rosie and Tiarnan’s distress. She shouldn’t be allowing them to get too close. But as the plane touched down in a bright tropical paradise, all she could feel was a bittersweet joy so intense that she had to shield her face with her hair, terrified that Tiarnan or Rosie might see it.

With the time difference, it was afternoon when they arrived. The sun beat down, and it must have rained shortly before as the ground was steaming. The air was heavy and humid, warming right through to Kate’s bones and already making sweat gather at the small of her back and between her breasts.

A smiling young local man met them off the plane, with a small open-top Jeep, and Tiarnan drove it now on a narrow road along the coast. They were heading south, and Kate was happy just to take in the scenery and listen to Rosie chatting non-stop about everything and anything. It was good to see her so animated.

Before too long they came into a charming fishing village, Anse D’Arlet with a white church dominating the seafront and a long wooden promenade that stretched out over the water, where colourful boats bobbed up and down. Shops were strewn along the main street. Some of the buildings were crumbling and had a faded grandeur that just added to the appeal of this slow, peaceful-looking place.

‘This is it—our local village.’

Kate looked at Tiarnan briefly. Even he already looked more relaxed.

Rosie was standing up behind his seat, pointing a finger, and she said excitedly, ‘That’s Zoe’s house—there, Katie, look! Tiarnan, please can I get out and go see her now?’

Kate could see Tiarnan’s jaw clench, and she felt his pain at Rosie’s insistent use of Tiarnan. He looked for a moment as if he was going to say no, but then he slowed the Jeep at the bottom of a small drive and Rosie jumped out. Another small girl appeared, and the two started squealing and running towards each other. Tiarnan waved at the woman who had appeared in the doorway of the house, and Kate guessed it must be the little girl’s mother.

He turned then and shook his head at Kate. ‘See? We’ll be lucky to get her back for dinner, but she’ll want to see Mama Lucille …’

Tiarnan kept driving southwards out of the small town, and after a couple of minutes turned right towards the sea into an open set of gates that were wildly overgrown with frangipani and exotic flowers. They emerged from under a dense canopy of foliage into a small forecourt in front of an idyllic white-painted villa.

It was old colonial French-style, and had a wooden deck wrapped around it and what looked like a long balcony above, with an intricately carved railing. Shutters were painted bright blue, and everything looked pristine and lovingly cared for. A shape appeared in the open front door, and Kate saw a huge, buxom woman with the biggest, whitest smile she’d ever seen in her life.

Tiarnan had stopped the Jeep, and as he helped her out he smiled and said, ‘May I present the inimitable Mama Lucille …?’

The woman came to the top of the steps and put her hands on ample hips. She looked from left to right. ‘Where is my baby girl?’

Tiarnan took the steps two at a time and gave her a huge hug before standing back, ‘Where do you think? She had to stop and see her partner in crime—your granddaughter Zoe. No doubt they’re already driving Anne-Marie crazy.’

Mama Lucille shook her head and laughed a big belly laugh, and as Kate came shyly up the steps behind Tiarnan she could see that this woman truly was some sort of universal earth mother. She looked ageless.

Mama Lucille set Tiarnan aside and put her hands on her hips again. ‘And who is this vision?’ She glanced at Tiarnan with a wicked gleam in her dark eyes. ‘Is she an angel come to save us all?’

Before Tiarnan could answer, Kate stepped forward and smiled. ‘No angel, I’m afraid—just Kate. I’m an old friend of Tiarnan and Sorcha’s.’

Kate’s innate humility struck Tiarnan forcibly. She was one of the most famous models in the world, but she had absolutely no evidence of an ego to reflect that; no expectation that people should know her. The realisation unsettled him for a moment, and he had to concede that Kate was surprising him—exactly as she’d done in San Francisco, when he’d imagined things going differently. He was somewhat belatedly aware that he didn’t really know her that well at all, and with that awareness came a tingling sense of anticipation.

Kate was holding out her hand, but Mama Lucille waved it away and dragged Kate into her massive bosom. ‘Any friend of theirs is a friend of mine.’ She pulled back then and held Kate away from her slightly, looked her up and down critically. ‘Are you a model, the same as that sister of his?’

Kate nodded.

‘Hmph. Thought so. Too skinny—just like that other one—but I’d say she’s bigger now, after the baby!’ Mama Lucille guffawed again and pinched Kate’s cheek. ‘Don’t you worry, angel. A few days of my cooking and we’ll put some fat on those hips …’

Kate had to laugh as she imagined her agent’s horrorstruck face if she arrived back a few pounds heavier, and with that came the familiar yearning to just let go and stop being so aware of things like her weight.

Before she knew it, Mama Lucille had disappeared in a flurry of movement, with a promise of some dinner in a couple of hours. A young girl with a shy pretty smile appeared and took their bags into the house.

Tiarnan took Kate by the hand. She would have pulled away, but he held her with easy strength, looking at her with an assessing gaze that made her toes curl.

‘Come on, I’ll give you the tour.’

Kate felt dizzy by the time Tiarnan was leading her upstairs. The house was completely charming. All dark polished wooden floorboards, white walls and beautiful old furniture. White muslin curtains fluttered in the breezes that flowed through open sash windows, with latticed shutters wide open. She’d seen a butterfly dart in one window and out through the next with a flash of bright iridescence. It was truly a home. Kate could imagine the doors always open, people coming and going all day, and yet it had a tranquil air that beguiled and seduced …

‘Do Mama Lucille and Papa Joe live here too?’ Kate asked as she followed Tiarnan up the stairs and tried not to look at his bottom. He glanced back and she coloured guiltily.

‘No. Even though I’ve been trying to get them to move in for years. They’re on the other side of the property. There’s a back entrance, down by the private beach, and they live in the old gate lodge. Mama Lucille says she prefers it because there’s not enough room for her family to come and stay, and it’s the only way she and Papa Joe get peace and quiet to themselves.’

Clearly, from the warmth in his voice, Tiarnan was as crazy as Rosie was about this place and the people. It made Kate’s heart do a funny jump in her chest. And what also made her heart feel funny was that the same impression she’d had on the plane: she’d never seen this more relaxed side of Tiarnan before. There’d always been something slightly aloof about him, distant and distinguished. Formidable. And here all that was being stripped away. Distance—keep your distance, she repeated like a mantra in her head, futile as she knew it was.

She got to the top of the stairs to see a wide open corridor, doorways on each side, and a huge window seat at the end with what she could imagine must be a spectacular view over the garden. Tiarnan was leaning nonchalantly against a door that led into a bedroom.

‘This is your room.’

Kate looked at him warily as she passed him and went in. Her bag had already been deposited inside. The same lovingly polished floorboards were echoed in the antique furniture. Old black and white photographs hung on the walls. A huge four-poster bed was in the centre of the room, its muslin drapes pulled back. A small door led to a white-tiled bathroom with a huge stand-alone bath and shower in the corner. It screamed understated luxury. A pair of open veranda doors led out to the second level wooden balcony, along which trailed vine-like flowers of colours so vibrant it almost hurt to look at them. And beyond that lay the unmistakable clear blue waters of the Caribbean. This truly was paradise.

She turned at the open door and looked back at Tiarnan, her heart thumping heavily. ‘It’s beautiful. Really.’

He walked towards her with all the grace and danger of a dark panther, and Kate could feel her eyes grow bigger as he came closer. Her loose linen trousers and shirt suddenly felt constricting, but he just took her hand and led her outside and to the left, where she could see an identical set of open doors. He stopped at the entrance and Kate could see another room, a little bigger and obviously decorated along much more masculine lines. His room.

He didn’t even have to say it. The understanding was heavy between them. Within this stunning house and these two rooms they were as effectively cut off and private as they wanted to be. He let go of her hand and looked down at her. Kate felt unbearably hot right then, and it had nothing to do with being in the tropics.

He gestured with his head back to her room. ‘That used to be Rosie’s room when she was smaller, so I could hear if she woke during the night, but she hasn’t slept there for a few years. Her room is on the other side of the villa. This balcony isn’t accessible except by these two rooms.’ He took her hand and raised it to his mouth, kissing it briefly, his eyes searing down into hers. ‘All you have to do is let me know …’

Kate gulped. ‘Tiarnan, I …’ She stopped. She couldn’t fight the inevitable—couldn’t not own up to her own desire. So finally she just said weakly, ‘OK.’

Sudden trepidation assailed her. He must be assuming that she’d had plenty of practice in the last ten years, and while she hadn’t been celibate, she hadn’t exactly been swinging from the rafters either. He certainly wouldn’t be getting the sophisticated seduction he was no doubt used to and expecting!

He let her hand go and stepped back. ‘Why don’t you rest up and settle in? Mama Lucille will be serving dinner in a couple of hours …’

He stood there, silhouetted by the sun, looking taller and leaner and darker than she could ever remember him being, and Kate felt almost paralysed by the strength of her desire. When she finally could, she just nodded, and turned and fled.