Читать книгу Mediterranean Tycoons - JACQUELINE BAIRD, Jacqueline Baird - Страница 16

METHODICALLY Eloise unpacked her clothes, placing them in the wardrobe and drawers provided in the dressing room, deliberately avoiding looking at the masses of male garments.

‘What on earth are you doing?’

On her knees, placing the last of her underclothes in a scented drawer, Eloise glanced up. Marcus was towering in the doorway, barefoot, and obviously paused in the process of undressing. The trousers of his suit were unfastened and hanging perilously on his lean hips. His shirt was open to the waist, revealing a hard, muscular chest shaded with black hair. He was a powerful, virile male, she thought almost objectively. Then she saw the expression on his darkly handsome face, one of arrogant astonishment.

He expected to be waited on hand and foot. He had probably dropped his shoes, jacket and tie in a trail across the bedroom floor, she guessed. ‘What’s it look like? I’m unpacking,’ she said facetiously. ‘It’s what we lesser mortals do.’

Hooded black eyes narrowed on hers. ‘I employ staff for such things.’

‘Yes, O lord and master,’ she muttered under her breath.

‘I heard that,’ Marcus drawled silkily. ‘And as long as you remember it, we’ll get along fine.’

He scanned her wide green eyes, anticipating her angry rebuttal, but surprisingly she simply said, ‘Okay,’ and stood up.

‘Wait.’ He caught her arm as she would have walked past him, inexplicably angered by her apparent indifference. ‘The staff are employed to take care of my guests; they are happy to have a job, and will be insulted if you do not use them.’ He sounded like a pompous prig, he knew, and the knowledge made him frown in self-disgust.

Eloise glanced at the hand on her bare arm, and up into his thunderously frowning face. ‘Yes…okay.’

Damn it. She was doing it again, with the okay, and he didn’t like it one bit. Thinking about it now, he realised she had been doing it ever since Katy had lent her voice to his, in persuading Eloise to agree to come to Greece with him. She had been the same on the plane.

His dark eyes narrowed intently on her lovely face for a long moment. But her usual brilliant green eyes returned his scrutiny expressionlessly; something was missing. He felt like shaking her. Instead, his hard features perceptibly darkened.

‘O…kay,’ he drawled cynically. ‘Now share a shower with me,’ he demanded with deliberate provocation, his fingers tightening on her arm.

Eloise was aware that Marcus was trying to rile her on purpose. Why, she had no idea. The only connection between them was sex, and from now on it was going to stay that way until their relationship had run to its natural conclusion, and without trust on either side that should not take too long. But for the moment she had to stay away from England; that was the most important thought in her head.

If she discovered she was unlucky enough to be pregnant, then all deals were off, KHE would have to get by without her, and she would be on her own. In the meantime, she would enjoy what Marcus offered. She could be as hard as a man, if she tried.

‘Yes, okay.’ She lifted her hand and placed it on his broad chest. ‘Whatever you say.’

Marcus made love to her hard and fast with the water cascading over their naked bodies, he felt her climax, her fingernails tearing into his back as they both reached shattering fulfilment at the same time.

His breathing rough and audible, he shot her a blistering glance, and slowly unwound her long legs from around his waist and lowered her limp body to the floor. With one arm supporting her, he reached over and turned off the shower tap, then dropped a soft kiss on her forehead.

‘We’d better get out of here and get dressed,’ he said ruefully. ‘I meant to tell you before I was distracted—Aunt Christine and Stella are coming for cocktails and dinner.’

Reeling under the force of her own response, to be hit with his relatives’ arrival in pretty much the next breath simply confirmed for Eloise she had been right to decide emotional detachment was the only way to deal with Marcus.

Straightening, she shrugged off his arm. ‘Right, okay,’ she said calmly and, unconscious of her nudity, she stepped out of the shower. She picked a towel from the pile provided, wrapped it around her naked body and left the bathroom, without looking back at Marcus.

Okay—she had done it again… An incredulous frown pleating his broad brow, Marcus grabbed a towel and flung it around his hips. For the first time in his adult life he felt guilty about having sex, and he didn’t like the feeling one bit.

Eloise quickly dried her body and slipped on her clothes without glancing in a mirror. She felt as if she was moving, talking, acting through a swirling fog. She had felt like this before and knew it was the shock of hearing the news about Rick Pritchard, and she had to battle to break free. Only in Marcus’s arms had she become truly aware again, a wry smile twisted her lips. Unfortunately, she couldn’t spend the rest of the day in his arms. She knew from past experience it usually took about twenty-four hours for the paralysing fear to fade.

Dinner was not the ordeal Eloise had expected. Christine was a woman in her forties. She must have been Marcus’s mum’s younger sister, Eloise surmised. She was small and plump with gentle brown eyes, and Stella at seventeen was a younger version. It became increasingly apparent to Eloise as the meal progressed that Christine obviously had no knowledge of the state her husband had left his affairs in. She was a lovely lady and, from her comments to Marcus and to Eloise, it was obvious she had total and utter faith in Marcus to look after the financial side of her life.

After admiring the amber pendant Eloise was wearing and hearing Eloise worked as a jewellery designer, Christine remarked, ‘You are the first girl my nephew has seen fit to introduce to our small family, and you are lucky. He is brilliant at business; he will help you.’ She turned her warm brown eyes to Marcus. ‘I am right. No?’

Eloise swallowed a lump in her throat at the expression of tender love they exchanged. And when the evening was over and Eloise stood at the door of the villa and was subjected to a hug and a kiss from Christine and Stella, plus a demand she must visit them for a meal, her throat closed up with emotion.

This would not do, she told herself, walking back inside. In any other circumstances she could have really loved Marcus’s relatives… But the knowledge that her mother Chloe had had an affair with Christine’s late husband and conned him out of a great deal of money made the bile rise in her throat and left her with an acrid taste on her tongue.

Meeting Christine had brought it home to her as nothing else could why Marcus held her in such low regard.

‘Would you like a nightcap?’ the object of her thoughts enquired as they entered the hall.

She arched her shapely brows. ‘Not wise after all the wine I have consumed,’ she responded flippantly. Actually, she hadn’t drunk much, but she wanted to get away from Marcus for a while.

‘Don’t worry. I won’t let you get drunk,’ he advised her smoothly, his narrowed dark eyes skimming over her figure. Every shapely curve revealed by the green silk dress which was held up by tiny sequinned shoulder straps. It was so slim-fitting that there was a split up one side to enable her to walk, and he remembered the fun he had had buying it for her in Paris with a smile.

Eloise lifted a graceful shoulder. ‘Yes, all right.’

His smile extinguished, Marcus’s sensuous mouth tightened into a hard line. She looked at him and smiled, but it was as if she wasn’t there. ‘Sit on the terrace. I’ll bring the drinks out,’ he snapped. Without a word Eloise sat down and, instead of being pleased she had done as he said, Marcus felt irrationally angry.

Reclining on a lounger on the terrace with a glass of juice in her hand, Eloise glanced across at Marcus. He was leaning against the ornate balustrade, staring down at her. In a white dinner jacket and black trousers, he was devastatingly handsome, but the hint of anger glinting in the darkness of his eyes was unsettling. What had she done wrong now? she wondered bitterly. Not servile enough for him? Well, tough…

‘You liked Christine and Stella?’ Marcus prompted.

‘Yes, they’re both charming. In other circumstances I’m sure we could have been friends.’

‘What do you mean—in other circumstances?’ he demanded hardily. ‘There is nothing wrong with now.’

Gracefully, Eloise rose to her feet and, after draining her glass, placed it on a nearby table.

‘Okay, if you say so.’

‘No, it is not damn well okay.’ Marcus moved to block her path his hands closing like talons on her shoulders. ‘What is with this “okay” to everything I say?’ he growled with savage frustration. ‘You’ve barely said a sentence since we left London.’

He hauled her against him and she looked up into his hard features, and was suddenly aware of the brush of his long body against her. ‘Sorry, I didn’t realise I was supposed to make brilliant conversation as part of our deal,’ she said bluntly.

‘Damn the deal, and talk to me,’ Marcus groaned, his fingers gentling on her shoulders. ‘This is my home, and I want you to be happy here.’ His dark eyes caught and held her own. ‘I want us to be happy here. Not just okay.’ And as he said it he knew he meant it. He wanted much more from Eloise than sex. He wanted her warmth, her friendship, her love…

He wanted to forget their deal! Eloise was so surprised, the shock that had almost swamped her mind all day, but had begun to lift over dinner finally vanished, and she responded tentatively. ‘I’m a bit tired from the flight and everything. Disorientated.’

Deep in her innermost being, she wanted to believe he was serious. She’d only ever belonged to Marcus in the physical sense, and with the warmth of his body enfolding her she was loath to give up the little he was prepared to give her. Was she going to let the ghost of the past that had haunted her all day win, or was she going to take one last chance?

‘Let’s go down to the beach,’ Marcus suggested. ‘The sea air will clear your head.’

‘Ok—’ She nearly said it again, and a brief smile tilted the corners of her mouth. ‘A very good idea, I agree.’

Marcus slanted her a wry grin, and dropped an arm around her bare shoulders. ‘Come on.’

They walked along the deserted beach in a relatively peaceful silence.

For Eloise the underlying tension was never far from the surface but, looking around her, scenting the clear night air, the only sound being the gentle movement of the sea, she realised she felt safe. She cast a sidelong glance at her companion through the thick fringe of her lashes, and knew she had Marcus to thank for her feeling of well-being, and she made a conscious decision to try and relax, live for the moment.

It was a wonderful night, a clear star-studded sky with the full moon gleaming on the dark water. Eloise kicked off her shoes and walked into the gentle waves whispering over the sand. The water was warm, and she turned playfully back to Marcus. ‘Come and have a paddle.’

‘I can do better than that,’ Marcus said thickly, and slowly he stripped off his jacket and spread it on the sand. His shirt, trousers, everything followed.

Astonished, wide-eyed, she watched her own personal striptease show, a slow burning need igniting in her belly. He stood tall and straight not a yard away. A work of art that rivalled Michaelangelo’s David, perfect in line and form, and totally unashamed of his magnificent aroused body.

His dark eyes captured hers, and she was powerless to break the contact. ‘Now it’s your turn, Eloise.’

Hypnotised by the burning intensity of his gaze ‘Yes,’ she conceded softly. Safe and sure in his protection, she caught the hem of her dress; she slipped it over her head, and threw it onto the sand, freeing her high firm breasts to the warm night air and Marcus’s rapacious, hungry and very masculine appraisal.

She tucked her fingers in the top of lacy white briefs, and slowly stepped out of them one leg at a time; then, straightening up, she squared her shoulders and looked at Marcus.

In silence they simply stared at each other, totally naked, at one with the earth, sea and sky.

Marcus reached out his hand, and Eloise placed her own small hand in his palm. His night-black eyes caught and held hers, the simmering passion in his gaze igniting her own. Adrenaline raced through her veins; anticipation heated her blood. For the first time in her life she rejoiced in her own sexuality, neither afraid nor ashamed.

In that moment she saw them as two supreme beings, naked as nature intended, free from all the shackles of convention, all worldly cares, and she stepped forward.

‘You are perfection,’ Marcus groaned as their mouths met in a desperate hungry passion.

He shaped her swollen breasts with shaking hands, his thumbs grazing over the hard tight peaks, before lifting her in his arms, and lying her on his outspread jacket. His large powerful body stretched out beside her his shoulders shook as he lifted his head. ‘Every time I see you, I want you more.’

Reaching up Eloise framed his head in her hands and urged him down to her. ‘Don’t talk,’ she murmured. She wanted nothing to spoil the erotic dream consuming her and pressed her mouth to his, her tongue daringly searching the moist depths of his mouth.

Time suspended in another dimension, they touched, tasted, and explored and, mindless in the grip of a primeval passion, the sea water gently lapping at their limbs, they finally came together in a glorious, slow-burning, ecstatic climax that left them both shuddering in the aftermath of exquisite pleasure.

Marcus recovered first and, smiling down at her, a smile of smug male satisfaction, he kissed the tip of her nose. ‘Skinny-dipping next.’

It was another first for Eloise. She had never swum naked before and later, when they made their way back to the house, dishevelled and looking as if they had done exactly what they had done…she wondered if she ever would again.

The sun was shining through the window when Eloise’s eyes fluttered open.

Marcus, a fully dressed Marcus, if one could call denim shorts and a sleeveless black tee-shirt fully dressed, was standing by the bed. ‘What time is it, what are you doing?’ she mumbled, closing her eyes again. So much virile male pulchritude was a jolt to her system so early in the morning.

‘Almost noon.’

‘What?’ Her eyes flew open.

‘I thought you needed the rest, and your friend Katy called. Apparently she has talked Harry into letting her come out for a few days. She will be arriving this afternoon.’

Her eyes properly open now, Eloise looked at Marcus. The lover of last night had gone; his dark eyes were narrowed speculatively on her small face, his body tense.

‘That will be nice,’ she said politely, his obvious reserve a timely reminder to her to keep her emotional distance from the man, and she dragged the cotton sheet up to her armpits.

‘Maybe, but it seems rather a sudden decision on Katy’s part,’ Marcus opined darkly. ‘So much so, I could be forgiven for thinking you had arranged it between you. Are you really that bored at the prospect of staying alone with me?’

His black eyes roamed broodingly over her beautiful face, the fabulous red hair spread over the pillow, to where she had tucked the sheet firmly across her breasts. His throat constricted as he recalled the lushness of her body beneath the sheet. Hell! What on earth was the matter with him? Challenging her like some jealous teenager, just because she had a friend coming to stay, when he wanted her all to himself, he finally acknowledged with a frown.

Watching him frown, Eloise shivered in spite of the heat. Marcus was back to his usual cool, remote self. Yet she could have sworn in the middle of the night she had felt his arms close around her, holding her close, protecting her. Sadly she realised it had been wishful thinking on her part. Inexplicably, she felt like crying but, gritting her teeth and fighting back the tears, she sat up in bed, pulling the sheet up under her chin.

Taking a deep breath, she tilted back her head. ‘You have to be joking.’ She forced a light laugh. ‘I wouldn’t dream of inviting a friend of mine anywhere near you, unless I had to. And may I point out this is your home; Katy asked you. You could have said no.’ She knew she had gone too far; he took a step forward, his black eyes blazing, and then he stilled.

Marcus stared at her as if she had sprouted horns and a tail. Her words had cut deep. She had no family, but she didn’t even want him near her friends, while he had wanted to bring her to his home, delighted in introducing her to his family, and was looking forward to her meeting his friends on the island.

In that moment, Marcus, a man who had never believed in love, suddenly realised he was madly, passionately in love with Eloise. He bent forward again. ‘Eloise.’ He had to tell her and, reaching out, he gently stroked her red hair from her face.

Eloise flinched back.

‘No,’ he said sharply. ‘I…’ and he could not say it. The deal, everything came flooding back, and he almost groaned out loud. How could he have been such a blind fool? He didn’t give a damn about revenge. It was Eloise he wanted, had always wanted, and he’d been too arrogant, too jealous, to admit as much.

‘I’ll go and collect Katy,’ he said, pulling back. ‘You rest, eat, pamper yourself—do what women do.’ He must sound like an incoherent idiot, he knew, but he had so much ground to make up with Eloise, he didn’t know where to start.

A grim smile twisted his lips. He needed a strategy to woo her, win her love. On the plus side, he knew he wouldn’t need to coerce her into bed. The chemistry between them was explosive. Maybe a private talk with Katy might give him a few pointers.

‘Pamper?’ Eloise exclaimed and, watching the fleeting expressions chase across his handsome face, she was totally confused.

Glancing back at Eloise, seeing the confusion in her emerald eyes, the master strategist lost it. ‘I want us to stay together, get married, everything,’ Marcus said with grim determination, sitting down on the bed and pulling her into his arms.

She shook her head, unable to believe her ears. He looked more like he had swallowed a dose of horrible medicine than a suitor. Then he kissed her.

‘Damn Katy,’ Marcus muttered, lifting his head, as the whirling blades of a helicopter landing broke the silence.

Eloise looked up and collided with lustrous dark eyes. Was she dreaming or had Marcus really asked her to marry him? He looked frustrated and, unbelievably for him, vulnerable, unsure. ‘Katy,’ she mumbled irrationally, too stunned to comprehend what he meant.

‘I have to go and collect her, but think about what I’ve said,’ he prompted, and leaping to his feet, he left.

Not for a moment admitting he had to get away, he was as stunned as Eloise looked. He had proposed marriage without a second thought. Hell, who was he kidding? Without even a first thought! His brilliant mind had been turned to mush by a pair of green eyes. Eloise drove him crazy. He must be crazy to want to give up his freedom. A few minutes after climbing into the waiting helicopter, a broad smile broke on his face. He felt nothing but joy.