Читать книгу Modern Romance October 2016 Books 5-8 - Ким Лоренс, Kate Walker - Страница 15

CHAPTER FOUR

‘YOU REALLY SHOULDN’T issue a challenge like that...’

That evening, Benjamin Carter’s words still resounded in Lia’s head. Damn the man.

After pacing her sumptuous room for a couple of hours that morning, she’d finally explored the dressing room. Determined to make the most of this situation, she’d kitted herself out in a modest bathing suit and some beach attire. After helping herself to a light lunch in the kitchen she’d headed to the beach.

There had been no sign of Benjamin Carter, much to her relief, but she had heard some noises that sounded as if they were coming from the front of the house. Not wanting to face him in a diaphanous beach cover-up, she’d found an idyllic spot on the beach under the shade of a palm tree, out of immediate sight of the villa.

For a few hours she had almost fooled herself that she was on a vacation she’d chosen willingly. She’d dozed, swum, and read a book that she’d pulled off the shelf in the comfortable den.

She’d returned to the villa as dusk was falling and had nearly tripped over her own feet when she’d seen a half-naked Ben Carter perched precariously on the terracotta rooftop of the villa. Her eyes had been immediately drawn to the sleek muscles of his broad back, moving sinuously under his skin as he’d hammered something into a slate.

The fact that he had been laughing and joking with another man, whose ebony skin had also been gleaming with exertion, had gone largely unnoticed. Carter had been wearing nothing but a faded pair of board shorts and battered-looking sneakers.

Lia had almost jumped out of her skin when a melodious and mischievous-sounding voice had said near her ear, ‘Not a bad sight at the end of a hot day, hmm?’

She’d looked to her left to see a startlingly pretty young woman, with skin the colour of warm chocolate, eyes to match and a huge smile. With a colourful scarf on her head, she had blended into the exotic background perfectly.

The woman had introduced herself as Esmé, and after explaining that the other man was her husband had said, ‘I was just coming to find you. Ben sends his apologies for being busy all afternoon but says he’ll look forward to you joining him for dinner at eight.’

Lia had been about to demur when she’d realised she was being ridiculous, and that this nice woman didn’t deserve to be put out just because the last person she wanted to have dinner with was her host.

Are you so sure about that? a little voice had crowed.

In any event, Lia had made her escape from the provocative view of a far less civilised Benjamin Carter before he’d been able to turn around and see her reaction, which was confusing to her on so many levels. Since when had she found men doing manual labour particularly enticing? And why did the sight of him doing something so earthy appeal to her so much?

She cursed her revolving thoughts now, as she debated what to wear after her shower. A part of her wanted to wear jeans and a shirt, but then she thought of the mocking look in Carter’s eyes when he registered that she was obviously trying not to make an effort. So instead she picked out a simple black silk dress that had a scooped neckline and a gathered waist. It fell to her knees. Positively nun-like. Perfect.

After applying a minimum of make-up, and pulling her hair back into a low bun, she slid on her own kitten heel shoes and made her way downstairs, noticing that she was just on time. She was just grumbling to herself that she was pathologically incapable of being late, even if she wanted to be, when Carter appeared in the lobby below, with a bottle of wine in one hand and a glass in the other.

He’d been transformed from manual labourer back to suave, elegant businessman, in dark charcoal-coloured trousers and a light grey shirt. Lia could see that his normally unruly hair looked damp, and was bombarded with an X-rated image of him in a shower, with water sluicing down over those impressive muscles.

‘Esmé told me she’d found you. I apologise again for leaving you to your own devices but after Joao—Esmé’s husband—offered his services for the afternoon, we managed to get all the maintenance jobs done at once.’

Lia wasn’t quite sure how she’d made it down the stairs, but now she was standing only a few feet away from him. Something about his easy manner and her sense of this villa feeling far too familiar, even after such a short time, was very disconcerting.

Her voice was husky. ‘I wasn’t expecting you to entertain me. I had a lovely afternoon on the beach.’

His voice had a faintly disbelieving tone. ‘You weren’t bored?’

Lia shook her head, realising that the afternoon had been far more pleasant than she’d even admitted to herself. And if she had felt a tiny sense of loneliness it hadn’t been for the company of this man, she assured herself fiercely, and got a grip on her wayward emotions. She put it down to the after-effects of the sun.

‘I swam and read a book. I haven’t had a chance to do that for a long time.’

He didn’t respond, but Lia could imagine that Carter believed she meant since her last luxury holiday. She bit back the urge to disabuse him of that notion. She didn’t care what his opinion of her was... All that mattered was putting up with this weekend for the sake of his charitable donation.

Lia followed him into the salon, where the lights had been dimmed and candles flickered invitingly. The air was still warm after the day, and it was heavenly after the biting breeze of autumn in New York.

Carter turned from where he was opening some wine at a drinks cabinet. ‘Would you like a glass? It’s from a good friend’s vineyard in Argentina.’

Lia was about to say no, but then something stopped her. A rogue desire to give in to this seductive relaxation. So she nodded and took the glass of chilled white wine, noticing that Ben Carter had picked up a glass of what looked like water. She recalled that he hadn’t ordered alcohol on their date—or non-date. And he hadn’t been drinking at the charity auction.

‘You don’t drink?’ she heard herself asking, before she could stop the words.

He shook his head and gestured for her to take a seat on the couch behind her. He sat on another couch, on the other side of the coffee table, his arm spread across the back, his big body dominating the space easily.

Lia looked away and took a sip of wine. It slid down her throat like cool silk, its bouquet flooding her senses and making her head instantly light. And even though she wasn’t looking at him his image was burned into her retinas. He reminded Lia of a lounging pasha she’d seen once in a painting, surrounded by a bevy of exotic beauties. The civilised surroundings didn’t diminish his robust masculinity at all. And that provocative memory of him half-naked wasn’t helping.

He eventually supplied, ‘I don’t drink. At all.’

She couldn’t keep averting her gaze, so she looked back to see that his expression was almost challenging. She just shrugged, as if her curiosity wasn’t as piqued as it was. ‘I don’t drink much myself...a couple of glasses is usually my limit.’

Some of the tension seemed to go out of his shoulders. The thought of him having had a drink problem... She just couldn’t see it. He was way too in control. Perhaps it had something to do with his upbringing?

Just then Esmé appeared at the entrance of the room and told them dinner was served. Ben stood and let Lia precede him out of the room to the dining room next door, similarly dimly lit, with candles flickering.

A table was set with a white tablecloth and silver. It was very romantic. And that, along with her sudden curiosity to know more about this man, made Lia say stiffly, ‘You really shouldn’t have gone to this trouble.’

He held out Lia’s chair and she had to sit down, very aware of him behind her.

As he came around and took his own seat he drawled, ‘It took an eight-hour plane journey and a two-hour time difference to get you to have dinner with me, so a little effort is worth it, I think.’

Lia looked at him and had to figure that most men wouldn’t have bothered pursuing her this far—or they would be resenting the trouble they’d gone to. A man she’d dated briefly before her ex-fiancé had turned nasty when she’d been less than eager to jump into bed after their first date. It was one of the reasons she’d liked Simon—because he’d respected her boundaries. Little had she known that he was being respectful because he was eyeing up a chance to get a permanent foothold in the legal team who represented her father’s company, and because his ‘needs’ were being met elsewhere.

But Carter was still here, and it felt as if he had stormed into her life, blasting apart the cynicism she’d built around herself after her parents’ break-up and her disastrous engagement.

The consequences if she was to unbend even slightly and give in to his seduction were suddenly terrifying to contemplate—because Lia knew now that he’d already slid under her skin enough to make an impact that she really didn’t want to acknowledge.

For him this was just about a conquest—personal and professional. Of that she had no doubt.

She leaned forward slightly. ‘Look, Mr Carter... I know that this is about my father as much as you say it’s about me—’

But she had to stop as Esmé appeared with their starters—beautifully prepared individual ravioli in a cream and mushroom sauce. Lia didn’t miss the all-too-interested look the woman sent to each of them.

When they were alone again he responded. ‘First of all, my name is Ben. Second of all, the fact that I have a professional interest in your father is common knowledge. Many others have—not just me. Your father has never had a problem protecting his interests, so unless something has changed he is perfectly safe, no matter what happens between us. And thirdly...when I saw your photo in the matchmaker’s portfolio I wanted you before I knew who you were.’

The words sat between them in the thick silence. Fatally, all Lia registered was that he’d wanted her before he’d known who she was. And, God help her, that struck deep. It was like when she’d been standing on that dais and someone had wanted her enough to bid a small fortune for her...an elusive stranger she’d thought she wanted. Who was him. The man sitting across from her now, blue eyes glinting. Handsome as sin.

This man was dangerous to her because he made her yearn for things she’d thought she could live without—for deeply personal desires to be fulfilled. For a man to touch her and make her come alive. Prove to her that she wasn’t defective in some way...

And then she thought of what he’d said about her father. The truth was that her father was vulnerable—he needed to retire and there was no one he trusted enough to take over the business. Lia realised that she was leading Carter to question her father’s robustness when she should be taking the opportunity to deflect it.

She had to give a little...or he’d smell blood.

She forced herself to relax slightly and sucked in a breath. ‘Fine. Ben it is.’ Her heart thumped as she said his name. It felt ridiculously intimate.

He held out his hand across the table, over their fragrant starters. ‘Truce?’

Lia reluctantly held out her own hand. ‘Truce.’

His hand enveloped hers and she had a flashback to seeing him on the roof, skin gleaming with exertion, those muscles bunching and moving. She tried to pull her hand back but his fingers tightened and an unmistakable fire in his eyes mesmerised her.

‘I’m glad you’re here, Lia,’ he said. ‘I look forward to getting to know you better.’

* * *

Ben didn’t fool himself for a second that Lia’s apparent acquiescence had anything to do with him, per se. Oh, she wanted him—that was obvious. But she was still determined to fight it. Still, after he’d declared that truce, and resisted the urge to pull her over the table towards him so he could kiss her, they’d actually had a cordial meal and conversed. Albeit about completely superficial subjects.

On one level it infuriated Ben, because he knew now that he’d underestimated her hugely, and yet she seemed to be determined to close him off, not let him see beneath the surface. And he only had himself to blame. For a man not used to failure—in anything—it was disconcerting.

They’d finished dinner now, and she’d joined him back in the living area for coffee. She was walking around the room, looking at pictures and books, cradling her coffee cup in her hand.

Without that direct blue gaze assessing his every movement, Ben could look his fill. The dress she wore was lovely, but it comprehensively covered her body. He guessed she’d chosen it for that very reason, and once again he found her reluctance to give in to the chemistry between them slightly mystifying.

He didn’t think that any of her reluctance to come with him had been feigned, so he knew she wasn’t the kind of woman who would play hard to get. And yet he’d never expend this much effort on a woman who didn’t want him, so it made him wonder about her, about her experience. Maybe he’d underestimated her in more ways than one?

He asked carefully, ‘So, in light of the fact that you’d signed up with Leviathan Solutions, I’m a little curious as to why you seemed so eager to leave it after your first date?’

He saw how her whole body stiffened at that question. She turned around slowly, after putting the book she’d been looking at back on the shelf. He saw her clear reluctance to speak on her face and it fascinated him—he was used to women who had injected so much filler that they couldn’t emote more than a tense smile.

After a long moment when he thought she was going to deflect his question, she said tightly, ‘The truth is that I had no desire to join a dating agency. Someone decided to do it on my behalf.’

Ben’s curiosity shot up, but he schooled his expression. ‘Who would do such a thing?’

She sighed and came and sat down. Every move she made exuded that effortless casual elegance, even when she was tense.

She put her cup down and looked at Ben. ‘It was my father’s idea. He’s old-fashioned, and he’s determined to see me settled.’

She shut her mouth, as if she’d said too much. Ben could see that she was tempted to fold her arms, shut him out completely. It suddenly occurred to him as he took in her vaguely tortured expression...and when he recalled her reaction to, and subsequent tension during the charity auction...that she might actually be shy.

He leant forward. ‘I know you’re not gay—not after that kiss we shared... So what is it, Lia? Why don’t you want to date?’

She stood up again, agitated, and moved back over to the shelves, turning to face him. ‘Is it so hard to believe that a woman might not want her life to revolve around a man? That she might have ambitions of her own? In case you hadn’t heard, a revolution was fought and won a long time ago.’

Ben sat back, more and more intrigued by these buttons he was pushing. He drawled, ‘I’m no misogynist, Lia, and some would say there’s still a fight to be fought. But people—women in particular—can multitask, dating and working at the same time.’

Now she flushed. ‘I know that.’ She wrapped her arms around herself. ‘I just... My father shouldn’t have done that. Not after—’

She broke off abruptly and Ben sat forward again. ‘After what?’

She glanced away, her jaw tight. When she looked at him again after a moment, she said, ‘Well, it’s not as if you couldn’t find out easily enough.’ She lifted her chin. ‘I was engaged briefly. A year ago.’

‘Who was he?’ Ben asked sharply, hackles rising.

Lia came back around the couch and sat down, picking up her coffee again. ‘I met him at one of my father’s parties. He was a solicitor with a firm that my father’s legal team uses sometimes to take on extra work.’

Ben felt a surge of that same possessiveness he’d experienced when he’d seen Lia standing on that dais in front of everyone. ‘I wouldn’t have had you down as the wife of a mere lackey.’

Lia’s eyes sparked. ‘No? That just shows how much you don’t know about me, doesn’t it?’

Ben shrugged a shoulder. ‘I hardly know you, Lia, but I know you’re more than just corporate wife material. He would have stifled you to death.’ It surprised him that he did know this. And it made him wonder what on earth kind of marriage of convenience he had in mind, if not corporate.

He noticed then how she’d gone still. ‘That’s some leap to make when you hardly know me...’

Ben grimaced. ‘I owe you an apology. I was wrong about you. You’re not a princess, Lia. If you were you’d have been screaming and begging to get back to civilisation hours ago, and yet you’ve been perfectly happy here all day, looking after yourself. Esmé told me you made your lunch and cleaned up after yourself.’

She responded with a touch of wry defensiveness. ‘Making lunch and cleaning up hardly merits special congratulations. I’ve still had a more privileged upbringing than most people ever see in their lifetimes.’

‘But you’re not spoilt. Far from it.’

For a long time she said nothing, biting her lip. And then, finally, ‘No, not as you might have imagined at first. It’s been just my father and I since my parents divorced. I became his hostess from a young age and...and I think he overcompensated to make up for the separation. But I was never really comfortable with lavish gifts or things like that. Once he was happy, I was happy.’

Ben absorbed this nugget, acknowledging uncomfortably that he’d misjudged her again. He’d known Louis Ford was divorced, but not the particulars. He asked, ‘Where’s your mother now?’

Lia shrugged minutely and her face was carefully expressionless. Ben recognised it because he used that defence mechanism himself when someone asked too many questions about his past.

‘I think she’s in a Swiss château with husband number four. It’s hard to pin Estella down. I don’t see her often. When I was a teenager she would summon me periodically to whatever luxurious resort she was residing in at the time, usually when she was between husbands and in need of distraction.’

Ben felt a surge of irritation at this faceless woman, but he said lightly, ‘She sounds charming.’

Lia blinked at Ben and then put down her cup and stood up abruptly, taking him by surprise. He’d not even noticed that they’d got into a personal discussion, and he usually did his utmost to avoid straying into such territory with women.

He stood up too, just as she said, ‘It’s been a long day. I think I’ll go to bed.’

‘Of course.’ His gaze tracked her as she turned to leave the room, and then he made a split-second decision and said, ‘I thought that perhaps tomorrow I could give you a tour of Salvador. It’s a stunning city, and I’d like to make it up to you for leaving you to your own devices today.’

She stopped, and the lines of her body were tense. For a moment Ben had a premonition that she was going to turn around and say enough was enough, that she wanted to go home tomorrow... And in all conscience he realised that he couldn’t really say no if she wanted to. Even as everything in him rejected the thought.

But she turned quickly and just said, ‘Okay—fine.’

And then she was disappearing from view and Ben let out a long breath, more relieved by that small concession than anything he could recall in a long time.

* * *

As soon as Lia made it back to her room she closed the door and leant back against it, breathing deeply to calm her racing heart. What the hell had just happened down there? She’d been moments away from curling up on the couch and spilling her entire guts to Benjamin Carter, as if he was some kind of confidant she could trust.

It had only been when he’d responded to what she’d revealed about her mother, and she’d had the distinct impression that he was angry on her behalf, that she’d snapped back to reality. First of all, she never spoke about her mother to anyone—the old wound of rejection still smarted, and she usually avoided being drawn into any discussion about it. Usually.

And what about telling him that she wasn’t interested in dating? And letting him provoke her into talking about her failed engagement?

Lia groaned and kicked off her shoes, walking over to the French doors that led out to the balcony.

The air was still deliciously warm and balmy, caressing her bare skin. She couldn’t see anything in the inky darkness but she could hear the gentle lap of waves against the shore and it soothed her jittery nerves a little, and her sense of exposure.

She thought of his apologising for calling her a princess, and his observation that she was more than corporate wife material, and something inside her felt weak. And yet hadn’t she almost settled for that? Because after yet another stroke, her concern for her father’s health had been so great that she’d given in to his plea that she give Simon Barnes—the nice but dull solicitor—a chance.

When she’d started dating him and they’d had a frank discussion he’d admitted that he’d pursued her to get into her father’s good graces, thus potentially securing a job on his legal team. Simon had then assured her that he would not stand in the way of her ambitions, and so—foolishly, maybe—Lia had seen a way to keep her father happy, and also to forge a life for herself within a marriage that wouldn’t confine her.

After all, she’d never entertained romantic notions of a happy-ever-after marriage—not after witnessing her own parents’ disastrous marriage and her father’s subsequent heartbreak. Lia had vowed from an early age never to be so destroyed by giving someone else that control over her.

But then her chest grew tight when she recalled that oh, so vivid image of her fiancé’s head buried between his secretary’s legs, and the humiliation washed over her again. It hadn’t been his infidelity that had hurt her—after all, they hadn’t been in love—it had been the stark knowledge of the fact that she hadn’t been able to rouse that passion in him.

Lia curled her hands around the balcony railings as if that would centre her again. The truth was that as much as she wished she could find it easy to dismiss Benjamin Carter...she couldn’t.

Something about this place, about him, was making her loosen up. Dangerously so. She’d all but accused him of being boorish and she had outright accused him of being crass. But this beautiful house didn’t belong to a crass man, and a boorish man didn’t climb up to hammer slates into a roof with his housekeeper’s husband. And, an overly arrogant man who had made no bones about the fact that he wanted to take her to bed wouldn’t exercise such restraint that he’d actually let her go to bed. Alone.

Lia hadn’t mistaken the heat in his eyes... It was one of the reasons, apart from her over-sharing, that she’d practically run from the room.

She had to remind herself that the man was a consummate playboy; he knew exactly what he was doing. He was like a big jungle cat playing with a tiny helpless mouse—letting it believe that it could get away when all he had to do was bring down a big paw and that would be that. Game over.

She’d been here less than twenty-four hours and the man was already playing her like a fiddle. Lia was very tempted to go back downstairs and demand that he take her home immediately.

Funnily enough, she suspected that if she insisted he would let her go. But, perversely, she didn’t want to give him the satisfaction, or let him suspect for a second that she was perturbed by all that she’d revealed to him. One more day in his company... She could keep her mouth zipped and keep him at a distance. She could. She had to.

* * *

Lia sat beside Ben in the open-top Jeep as they drove down the main route to Salvador from his villa. Her dark hair was pulled back into a practical ponytail and the warm breeze made it look like skeins of silk behind her head. He was finding it hard to maintain some semblance of control. It was as if he’d never seen a woman dressed in a sleeveless T-shirt and shorts before. But he’d never seen this woman dressed like that before, and it was all he could do not to stop and ogle her slender pale limbs.

She seemed ethereal and delicate beside him. Even though he knew he shouldn’t be thinking of her as delicate at all. When she’d arrived in the kitchen earlier she’d had a determined look on her face and had kept up a general patter of inane conversation. No doubt signalling to Ben that the little confidences of the previous evening wouldn’t be happening again.

And that the sooner this weekend was over the better.

In fact—and his jaw clenched when he thought of it now—she seemed to be determined to treat him as if he was just a hired tour guide. Bestowing bright smiles upon him and sticking to annoyingly trite and inconsequential conversation.

Determined to crack through that cheerfully icy veneer, Ben asked, ‘So, did you sleep well?’

The dark glasses she wore hid her eyes, and when Ben glanced at her she was smiling brightly. ‘I slept like a log, thank you. All this fresh sea air makes such a change from muggy city pollution.’

His jaw clenched again. Time to ruffle her feathers a little. ‘Aren’t you going to ask how I slept?’

She looked at him, and he could sense the glare behind those protective shades. ‘I hadn’t planned on it, no.’

‘Well, if you must know,’ he said, ‘I didn’t sleep well at all. Lots of tossing and turning.’ He grimaced. ‘And I had to take a shower during the night.’

Because every time he’d closed his eyes all he’d been able to envisage was an image of her, standing in her long red evening dress, looking crumpled but sexily dishevelled, and he’d wondered what it would have been like to go and pick her up and bring her into his bedroom—

‘Well,’ she said stiffly now, her faux brightness gone, ‘we didn’t have to do this today. You know, if you’re too tired, you can always drop me off at the airport and I can get a flight home. That way you can get as much rest as you need.’

His mouth quirked. ‘Not a chance. And I didn’t say I was tired. I don’t sleep much, as a general rule.’

She was practically bristling beside him now.

He continued, ‘So, tell me about these ambitions of yours...the ones you mentioned last night when you were assuring me that a woman’s life doesn’t have to revolve around a man.’

She crossed her arms and stared straight ahead. ‘I don’t think that’s any business of yours.’

‘Maybe not,’ he agreed, glancing across at her, his eye instantly caught by the lush curve of her mouth. ‘But humour me?’

* * *

Damn the man, Lia thought churlishly. She’d bet money he was just trying to rile her. And her sense of complacency had gone out of the window as soon as he’d revealed that he’d taken a shower during the night.

It had been hard enough to maintain a cool front as soon as she’d walked into the kitchen and seen him sprawled in a chair, wearing faded worn jeans and a dark polo shirt, with bare feet.

His hair had still been wet and he’d looked at her over his coffee cup and said, ‘You should have joined me for a swim in the sea this morning. It was magnificent.’

Instantly Lia had been bombarded with an image of their wet bodies entwined as waves crashed around them.

She’d forced a sunny smile and sat down, helping herself to coffee and ignoring his comment. ‘It’s almost hard to believe we were in New York this time yesterday, isn’t it?’

Until now she’d kept up her valiant façade.

‘Tell me about these ambitions of yours...’

Lia thought about his question for a long moment. This was exactly what she’d reassured herself she’d do last night—keep him at a distance. Get on a plane and go home. And yet...there was something inside her that felt as if it wanted to break free.

It might be the sun-drenched exotic surroundings and the sense of being out of her comfort zone, thanks to having been literally transported to another country. Or it might be the effort it was taking to resist this man’s natural charm. Or, more dangerously, it might be the desire to reveal herself. Somehow along the way his opinion had come to matter to her—just a tiny bit.

She sighed volubly and Ben said cajolingly from beside her, ‘It’s another thirty minutes to Salvador...’

Treacherously, she felt resistance give way inside her. Angry with herself for giving in she said almost accusingly, ‘If you must know, I studied Architectural Engineering at university.’

It was almost worth saying that to see the way his head snapped around.

Lia smiled sweetly. ‘Didn’t expect that, did you?’

Ben had the grace to look slightly sheepish and he said, ‘When I met with your father at your house a few years ago he said you were on a skiing trip...’

Lia rolled her eyes. ‘I’ve never skied in my life. I was in college. My father never liked to admit to anyone—or himself—that his daughter had ambitions and wanted a career. He preferred people to think I was a harmless socialite.’

Ben’s jaw clenched and Lia saw his hands tighten on the steering wheel.

‘I have to confess that I did assume you were part of a certain social set...’

Something tightened in Lia’s chest. ‘I guess that’s understandable. Most people aren’t interested in my qualifications.’

He glanced at her before looking back at the road. Lia was glad his eyes were covered. She wasn’t sure if she wanted to see what was in them.

‘So, what do you plan to do with your degree?’

She hesitated for a moment, and then said, ‘I have a specific interest in crisis zones—in being the first on the ground to help with the rebuild.’

‘Hence your interest in the charity whose benefit we were attending? They’re renowned for the work they do in desperate situations.’

She nodded. ‘I volunteered with them after an earthquake in South East Asia, and that’s when I became really committed. I persuaded my father to support the charity too.’

Ben cast her another quick look, a wry tilt to his mouth. ‘You weren’t planning on shopping this weekend, were you?’

Lia shook her head, her heart tripping at the thought that she was telling him this. ‘No, I had planned to go to a series of lectures at NYU.’

He said with a devilish grin, ‘I’d be lying if I said I was sorry for upsetting your plans.’

Lia felt breathless again as something hot moved through her. Then Ben made a small whistling sound.

‘Intelligent, noble and beautiful? If you’re trying to turn me off, it’s not working.’

Lia felt a rush of pride and berated herself for being so weak as to seek his regard. But still... The fact that he seemed to be so accepting of this more secret side to her meant something.

In a bid to deflect attention from her, she said, ‘The CEO of that charity appeared to know you?’

He nodded. ‘Believe it or not, I’m also interested in what it takes to make disaster areas stable again. I’ve taken equipment and some of my men into crisis zones to help them stabilise buildings, the infrastructure. The truth is I’m one of the patrons of that charity.’

His words sank in and Lia turned in her seat to face him, shocked. Instant humiliation washed over her, because she’d believed he’d pursued her there for no other reason than to get her to agree to date him. Because he’d wanted her so badly. Now she felt like an abject fool—because he would have been there anyway.

Had he simply seen her there and made the most of the opportunity? More humiliation flooded her when she thought of how she’d just been laying out her accomplishments, seeking his approval. Lord, she had it bad.

Fury strangled her words, but eventually she got out, ‘Stop the car—now.’

She had her hand on the door handle even before Ben pulled the car into a layby. As soon as it stopped she jumped out and faced him when he got out too and stood beside the bonnet. She pushed her sunglasses on top of her head and put her hands on her hips, not even sure why she was so angry...just that she was.

‘So everyone there must have known exactly who you were, and yet you let me make a complete fool of myself—standing on that podium with no clue as to who on earth you were—’

He came towards her, cutting her off. ‘My aim was never to make a fool of you, Lia. I hadn’t intended on hiding my identity for as long as I did.’

He muttered something that sounded like a curse and pushed his own sunglasses to his head. His eyes were intense on her, making her regret reacting so forcefully.

Ben went on. ‘The opportunity to talk to you without you knowing who I was was too tempting. Especially after that date. And the truth is that I didn’t want to see your reaction when you realised who you’d been talking to.’

Lia forced down the weak way she wanted to seize on that and folded her arms. ‘That doesn’t change the fact that you saw me and made the most of an opportunity. Were you bored? Was that it? You thought you’d have some fun at my expense?’

Ben frowned and shook his head. ‘No, it wasn’t like that at all. I had no plans to go to that particular function, Lia. I went because I found out that was where you’d be.’

The fire drained out of Lia’s anger like a stealthy traitor. She believed him. He looked almost angry, as if he hadn’t wanted to admit this to her. A muscle pulsed in his jaw.

Lia was embarrassed by the emotion she’d shown even as she began to feel mollified. She’d revealed far too much. So she just said, ‘Okay,’ and walked back to the car and got in.

Ben looked at her for a long moment as she buckled up, and then he got in too. For the remainder of their journey to Salvador they only spoke when Ben pointed out things of interest to Lia.

The fact that they did share a common interest in a cause very close to Lia’s heart was something that she’d never expected, and it wasn’t doing much to help her resolve to keep him at a distance.