Читать книгу The Playboy's Baby - Mary Lyons - Страница 7
ОглавлениеCHAPTER TWO
SAMANTHA’S heart was pounding like a sledgehammer, her pulse rate rocketing all over the place as she left the Four Seasons restaurant on Matt’s arm.
In what seemed a dream-like state, totally oblivious of everyone and everything, other than the tall, handsome figure by her side, she was only vaguely conscious of being helped into a large black limousine. As they were swiftly transported through brilliantly lit streets, she had no idea of where they were going. Nor did she care. Just as long as Matt continued to hold her firmly close to his hard, exciting body—they could have been jetting off to Timbuktu, for all she knew!
Coming to a halt at last outside an immensely large, brownstone building, she had only a brief impression of a uniformed doorman greeting Matt before he swept her dazed figure across a vast entrance hall—the only sound in the huge, silent space being the rapid, sharp click of her high-heeled evening sandals on the marble floor—and into an elevator. And then, in what seemed the twinkling of an eye, Matt was unlocking the front door of his apartment
‘Welcome to my humble abode,’ he drawled sardonically as he helped her off with her coat, before ushering her into a huge living room.
Finding herself standing in the midst of what seemed positively acres of lush, thickly piled cream carpeting, Samantha could only stare in open-mouthed astonishment at her luxurious surroundings. The opulent, heavy gilt rococo ‘French Château comes to New York via Hollywood’ style of decoration could only be described as utterly mind-blowing!
‘Make yourself comfortable by the fire,’ Matt directed, picking up a small black handset and pointing it at various objects as he strode towards a mahogany bar on the far side of the room.
Coming slowly back down to earth, she was just wondering how on earth he could bear to live in such dreadful surroundings, when she was startled to see the heavy cream silk, intricately draped curtains being slowly drawn—as if by invisible hands—across the windows, to shut out the chilly darkness of the April night. At the same time, the lamps in the crystal chandeliers slowly dimmed, the brilliant light being replaced by a soft, warm glow from the many occasional lamps dotted about the huge room.
However, when the logs in the massive grate, enclosed by an intricately carved marble mantelpiece, suddenly burst into life she quickly realised that what had at first appeared to be minor miracles were, in fact, merely a result of the appliance of science.
‘Is everything in this “humble abode” operated by remote control?’ she queried, her legs feeling wobbly with nerves as she moved slowly over to the fireplace.
‘No, not entirely. There are still one or two things which I’m quite capable of doing myself!’ Matt told her with a grin, his words accompanied by a loud crack as he removed the cork from a bottle of champagne.
‘It’s definitely all very... er... very grand,’ she murmured, gazing bemusedly at the delicately ornate, highly uncomfortable-looking sofas and chairs covered in blue silk which filled the room—whose walls, covered in dark oil paintings, appeared to be lined in the same blue material.
‘Ghastly, isn’t it?’ he laughed, filling two tall glasses with sparkling gold liquid.
‘Well...’
‘Following my recent appointment as chief executive of the company, I was working practically twenty-four hours a day when I first bought this apartment—which was in a terrible state and badly needed doing up. So, I made the grave error of placing its renovation in the hands of my ex-girlfriend—supposedly a top-notch professional decorator. The rest of the apartment is fine. So why she went so completely over the top in this room is completely beyond me.
‘Unfortunately,’ he added quickly as a mobile phone on the bar beside him gave an imperious buzz, ‘I simply haven’t been able to find the time to clear everything out and start again.’
While he was speaking rapidly into the phone, dealing with some urgent business matter which clearly required an immediate decision, Samantha became aware that the fog in her brain was slowly beginning to dissolve.
Sobering up fast, she realised that in accompanying Matt back here, to this luridly decorated apartment of his, she could have made a really bad, foolish mistake.
For one thing, it was never a good idea to try and recapture the past. Everyone knew that. So, why on earth had she allowed herself to be swept along on this tide of sudden, overwhelming lust and desire—which could so easily turn into nothing more than a highly embarrassing encounter?
Besides... this room was so awful, it seemed highly unlikely that a ‘top-notch’ interior designer would ever produce such a ghastly decorative scheme. Not unless the lady concerned had deliberately planned a not so subtle, bitter revenge against her ex-boyfriend.
Matt, as well as being a successful businessman, was clearly a bit of a playboy. He’d also admitted, in the restaurant, that he was definitely not into ‘commitment’. Which meant that it would be extremely unwise, Samantha told herself nervously, to get involved with someone who’d managed to provoke such a very ruthless, savage reaction from his discarded girlfriend.
So much water had flowed under the bridge since she’d first fallen head over heels in love with this man. Which had to mean that they were now two quite different people. Therefore, any idea that somehow time might have stood still—or that they could simply take up their relationship at the point where it had been broken off—was nothing more than total moonshine!
‘I’m sorry about that,’ Matt said as he finished his call, and tossed his mobile phone down on to a nearby chair. ‘I’ve turned the damned thing off—so we shouldn’t have any more interruptions,’ he added, walking across the room towards her.
‘This room has very good proportions,’ she observed nervously as he handed her a tall glass of champagne. ‘I mean... there must be many other good... er... good interior designers in New York. So, it shouldn’t be too hard to turn it into a... um... a comfortable home.’
Appalled to hear herself gabbling like an idiot, she took a quick sip of the deliciously cold, fizzy golden liquid—desperately trying to ignore the way her body was now responding with nervous, tingling excitement to the close proximity of his tall, lean figure.
If it were anyone else, she wouldn’t have a problem. It was just Matt and their past history together... which . must be the reason why she was suddenly feeling as jumpy as hell. So, the smart move must be to try to extricate herself from this tricky situation—as swiftly as possible.
‘Good heavens—just look at the time!’ she exclaimed shrilly, pointedly turning to glance at an ornate French clock, on a spindly side table. ‘I hadn’t realised it was quite so late. I... er... I really think that I should...’
‘I really think that you should calm down,’ he drawled smoothly, placing his glass down on the mantelpiece.
‘Nonsense! I’m perfectly calm,’ she snapped, utterly exhausted by the frantic pounding of her heart and yet, at the same time, feeling so desperately tense and on edge that it seemed as though she’d never again be able to relax.
But his only reply was a toe-curling, low rumble of laughter as he slipped an arm about her slender waist, deftly removing the tall champagne flute from her shaky fingers and placing it beside his own glass, before putting his other arm about her trembling body.
‘Relax, sweetheart!’ he murmured huskily, raising a hand to brush a stray lock of hair from her brow softly.
Shivering at the velvety touch of his fingers on her skin, which were now trailing slowly down over the long line of her neck, a rush of heat seemed to scorch through her veins, her stomach muscles clenching into a hard knot of feverish desire as he began pulling her closer to his tall figure.
Gazing helplessly up at him, she could see a muscle beating in his jaw, a slight flush on the high cheekbones beneath his tanned skin, with the glittering green eyes beneath their heavy lids now growing cloudy and opaque as he stared down at the trembling lips and the confused, troubled expression on her face.
‘I’m sorry, Matt. I...I know you must think that I’m an utter fool,’ she confessed in a husky, breathless voice. ‘But...’
‘On the contrary,’ he murmured thickly. ‘I think you’re sensationally attractive, and a very, very sexy lady.’
‘But, I shouldn’t have come back here, to your apartment It’s impossible to try and recapture the past,’ she protested. ‘Quite honestly, we...we could both be making a bad mistake.’
‘I’ve certainly made some wrong decisions in my life—but this definitely isn’t one of them,’ he told her flatly, the hard certainty in his voice sending shivers down her backbone.
‘No, you’re not thinking it through!’ she gasped.
He gave a low snort of derisory laughter. ‘I’m not interested in “thinking” about anything, at the moment. I just need to hold you...to feel you...’
‘Matt! This really isn’t a good idea,’ she muttered helplessly, aware that her body was denying her words of caution; that her swelling breasts and the visible hardening of her nipples were clearly signalling the rising tide of sensual need and passion, now sweeping through her trembling figure. But, quite unable to do anything about it, she could only gaze weakly up at the tanned face, now only inches away from her own.
‘Believe me, this is just about the only idea I’ve had since first setting eyes on you this afternoon.’
His deep, husky voice seemed to echo around the large room, time standing still as his arms slowly tightened about her.
And then, with sudden impatience, he pulled her hard up against his firmly muscled body, before lowering his dark head and possessing her lips in a long-drawn-out kiss of overwhelming sensuality.
At the first touch of his warm lips on hers, there could be no denying that this was what she had been both hungering for and yet, at the same time, fearing since first setting eyes on him this afternoon. She was powerless, totally unable to do anything other than eagerly respond to the mouth moving over her lips with insidious persuasion, gently forcing and probing them apart with a deeply erotic, seductive arousal that totally inflamed her senses.
Desperately attempting to cling on to some kind of sanity, Samantha felt as though she was helplessly caught up in the forceful tide which was pounding and rampaging through her body; betrayed by a deep compulsion to respond to her overwhelming need of him.
However, as his kiss deepened, it seemed as if some outside agency had suddenly pulled a switch—abruptly releasing a massive torrent of dangerous electricity, violently zigzagging like fork lightning through her body.
And, incredibly, it seemed as if the same explosive force of unstable, super-charged voltage was also sweeping like a flash-flood through his tall frame.
Totally gripped by an ancient, primitive force that was quite beyond either of them to control, all normal and civilised behaviour simply vanished into thin air. With their lips still firmly clasped together, he tore the clothes first from her body, and then his—all their garments being feverishly hurled aside as they wildly sought to satisfy their mutual, overwhelming need.
It was only when she became dimly aware of her naked form being roughly clasped to his bare chest, as he lowered her down on to the thick white rug in front of the fire, that she made a last, despairing attempt to cling on to sanity.
‘This is crazy...we must be out of our minds...’ she gasped as he covered her soft naked flesh with his own hard, firm body.
‘For God’s sake!’ he breathed thickly, his hands sweeping erotically over her trembling figure. ‘Are you really asking me to stop making love to you? Because if not, my darling,’ he added with a muffled laugh, pressing his warm lips to her swollen breasts, ‘can we please leave any argument about moral ethics and civilised behaviour until later?’
Unable to prevent a deep, responsive shudder from scorching through her body, she found her arms closing instinctively about him, her fingers curling into his thick dark hair as he pressed feverish kisses over her soft, warm flesh.
She wanted him. There was nothing...absolutely nothing in this world that she wanted more than the possession of this man. Racked by desire, her body burned and shook, her need of him so intense that it was like a deep, physical pain.
‘No, I...I don’t want you to stop...’ she gasped. ‘And yet...’
‘Oh, shut up, Sam!’ he groaned, before effectively putting a stop to any more of her hesitant protests, his mouth crushing her lips in a long, deeply sensual kiss of rampant possession.
A soft moan broke from her throat as she yielded to the intensity of his kiss, the sound provoking a deep, shuddering convulsion in the body pressed so closely to her own. And then she was lost, firmly in the grip of a basic, primeval force that seemed quite beyond both her control and his. There was no time for shame or regret as her fingers savoured the strong contours of his body, the flesh beneath her hands so achingly and poignantly familiar. The savage, raw passion which had been repressed for so long suddenly exploded passionately between them, their bodies merging in a wild, untamed hunger and overpowering need.
Much later, lying warm and drowsily replete, their limbs entwined together on the thick rug in front of the blazing fire, she became aware of Matt’s fingers trailing softly up over her body, to turn her face gently towards him.
‘Darling...’
‘Mmm...?’ she muttered sleepily.
Still feeling dazed at the passion which had so completely engulfed them, she was almost unable to believe the frantic intensity of her own reaction to his equally frenzied lovemaking. It seemed as if some wild, dynamic force had taken possession of her mind and body, igniting a fire in her blood which had raged totally out of control.
But now, as the first glimmer of harsh reality began to break through the thick mist in her mind, Samantha became aware of the first definite stirrings of unease.
‘Darling Sam,’ he said quietly, softly brushing stray locks of damp, pale blonde hair from her brow. ‘I hope you’re not expecting me to apologise for what’s just happened between us. Because I’m damned if I will! It was wonderful, glorious, totally sensational—and virtually inevitable.’
She trembled at the note of certainty in his voice as his arms closed possessively about her body.
Quite suddenly, each and every one of the high barricades and fortifications which she had erected so carefully over the past years now seemed in danger of being entirely swept away. And with them all sense of being in charge of her own destiny. It was frightening to realise that she might now be leaving herself dangerously exposed.
She had been deeply in love with Matt, all those years ago. But was it a resurgence of that deep emotion which she was now experiencing—or merely a sudden flash-flood of overwhelming lust? Because there was no point in denying the powerful sexual magnetism which lay between them. But she feared it would prove as unstable and potentially explosive as TNT—merely needing a light spark on the fuse to destructively blow her life apart, yet again.
With the touch of his fingers softly caressing the curves of her warm, naked flesh, it was practically impossible to try to think in a straight line. Even as she struggled to sort out the thoughts crowding into her brain, she found herself being gathered up into Matt’s arms and carried down a wide corridor to his bedroom.
‘I think we’ll both be much more comfortable in here,’ he said with a low laugh as he lowered her down on to the wide bed. ‘And I don’t want any arguments,’ he added firmly, rolling her beneath the sheets and joining her a moment later, before once more clasping her in his warm embrace. ‘We’ll have all the time in the world to talk later, OK?’
But ‘talk’ did not seem to be anywhere on his agenda when she found herself stirring some hours later, the first pale fingers of dawn gradually seeping in through the light, gauzy curtains at the window, and illuminating the room with a ghostly light.
Drowsily gazing at the unfamiliar surroundings, she turned her head to see Matt slipping silently into bed beside her. And, as he gathered her gently into his arms, she noticed, from the slight dampness of his flesh, that he must have just had a shower.
In a dream-like state, halfway between sleep and waking, she became aware, despite the fresh scent of soap on his skin, of the intoxicating aroma of his own spicy, individual body heat.
Carefully clasping her in his arms as if she was a cherished object, precious beyond compare, he gently kissed her mouth before tenderly trailing his lips down to the scented hollow at the base of her throat. She could feel his breath on her skin, his hands slowly moving down over the warm curves of her body, each lingering caress, each sensual and intimate touch generating tremors of deep pleasure, leaving her aching with the intensity of her need for his possession.
‘My darling!’ he whispered thickly. ‘Right from the first moment I saw you this afternoon—standing so nervously across the room—I suddenly knew just what a fool I’d been. It was totally devastating. Like...like being hit by a ten-ton truck!’
‘A truck...?’ she echoed, so bemused by the thrilling, velvety touch of his fingers on her quivering flesh that she was having difficulty in concentrating on what he was saying.
‘I suddenly realised just what a stupid idiot I’d been. We were always so great together. Both mentally and physically. Two halves of one whole. But it couldn’t work then, all those years ago...you were so very young...with the whole world in front of you.’
‘Oh, Matt...’
‘I’m absolutely crazy about you, Sam,’ he whispered huskily. ‘I always was, of course. But now...now we can handle it. We can make it work. In fact, I’ll make damn sure it does—because I’m not prepared to let you go again,’ he vowed, before giving a low groan of pleasure as he buried his face between the deep valley of her breasts.
As his hoarsely whispered words seemed to hang in the air of the quiet, still room, Samantha could almost physically feel the burden of uncertainty and doubt rolling away, like a great stone from her shoulders, her qualms and hesitant fears dissolving at the deeply sincere note in his voice, and in the direct heat of her own need and desire.
As his hands and mouth moved enticingly over her body, she was filled with wonder and amazement at just how familiar...just how right it all seemed, and how equally right Matt had been when he’d said how perfectly their bodies appeared to fit together.
His flesh was sweet and moist and firm as a summer apple. While his groans of delight, and the shudders that rippled through his body in the wake of her own, softly tender touch, as she caressed the oh, so familiar taut muscles and smooth, tanned skin, only served to increase her own pleasure and excitement.
She suddenly realised that making love with Matt again, after so many years, was like returning home from a long voyage, and rediscovering a familiar and intimate joy. And she could only marvel, silently, at why she hadn’t always known that it would be so.
In sharp contrast to their earlier, frantic coming together—when they’d been like two people dying of thirst in the desert, who suddenly discovered a lush green oasis—Matt was now slowly savouring her swollen breasts and aching nipples, his fingers and mouth exploring each intimate and private part of her quivering body. As her flesh opened to him like a flower unfolding in the sun, it seemed to her that he moved in love as he did everything else in life, smoothly and easily, clearly tempering the strong, pulsating thrusts of his possession to fit her own rhythm and pleasure, until she became lost to all sense of reality. Her whole existence seemed concentrated on the powerful, exquisite friction; an ever-increasing sense of wild exultation rapidly built up inside her, before the whole world appeared suddenly to explode and disintegrate about them, in shattered fragments of light and power.
When Samantha next opened her eyes, it was to discover bright sunshine flooding through the gauzy bedroom curtains, and Matt’s dark head on the pillow beside her.
Careful not to disturb his sleeping form, she eased herself carefully out of bed, before padding silently across the room towards the bathroom. As she had hoped, there was a large white towelling robe hanging on the back of the door. It dwarfed her slim body, of course, but after slipping it on and brushing her teeth with the aid of a brand-new toothbrush, which she’d found in the bathroom cabinet, Samantha decided that she now felt able to face the day.
Locating the kitchen proved to be a more difficult operation. It really was a huge apartment Quite apart from the awful, over-decorated main sitting room, there seemed to be at least two other bedroom suites, and a large study-cum-library.
Luckily, it looked as if his ex-girlfriend, the mad interior designer, had managed to get at least one room right. Standing just inside the door, she gazed around at the walls lined with books, their polished leather bindings in brown, red and green adding a warm glow to the severely masculine lines of a huge mahogany desk, covered in green leather chased in gold, with its matching green leather swivel chair set on a dark grey carpet.
It was clearly a room devoted to quiet, peaceful contemplation, either reading in one of the large, comfortable leather chairs beside the grey marble fireplace, or working at the desk. In fact, it could have been an eighteenth-century gentleman’s refuge, were it not for the black telephone, fax and modern laptop computer neatly positioned on the desk.
Feeling slightly ashamed of giving another quick glance around the room—well. Matt might have had a photo of his ex-girlfriend still lying around—Samantha firmly pulled herself together, and continued her search for the kitchen.
When she finally tracked it down, she was relieved to note that the large room was a purely functional one.
So, OK, the very modern decor—which mainly consisted of glass, and a mass of stainless steel over light oak-coloured floorboards—wasn’t everyone’s taste. But, since she had no problem with the cool Scandinavian style, she felt perfectly at home. And she was absolutely crazy about the enormous fridge, deeply envious of a piece of equipment which seemed designed to do just about everything except whistle a tune.
In fact, having poured herself some orange juice, she was just experimenting with its ice-making machine, when she nearly jumped out of her skin to hear Matt’s voice just behind her.
‘Good morning, darling. I was just wondering what had happened to my dressing gown,’ he murmured, laughing as she gave a shriek, spilling half the ice cubes on to the floor as she spun around to face him.
‘For heaven’s sake!’ she gasped, quickly bending down to clear up the mess around his bare feet.
‘Now... that’s what I like to see. A woman who knows her place. Which, in this case, appears to be on her knees in the kitchen, before her lord and master. Keep up the good work, Sam!’
‘Dream on—O Mighty One!’ she retorted with a snort of derisory laughter, gathering up the last ice cubes and rising to her feet.
‘Ah, well...bang goes one of my favourite fantasies,’ he drawled with a sardonic grin. ‘So, I guess it’s back to the real world, hmm?’
‘Damn right!’ she muttered nervously, evading his eyes as she walked over to the trash can.
She might have pinched his towelling robe, but she did wish he could have found something else to wear, other than that very short towel, wrapped so tightly about his slim hips. Because just at this moment it was desperately important that she keep her wits about her.
While exploring his enormous apartment,, she hadn’t been able to prevent her mind from see-sawing back and forth, trying to sort out a mass of confused emotions.
Matt had proved to be a warm and generous lover—as well as firmly declaring his deep feelings for her. But she wasn’t a starry-eyed young girl any more. And she knew that, while it was easy enough to make promises, and whisper sweet nothings during the height of passion, that same passion had a way of cooling right down to vanishing point in the cold light of day.
More importantly, she wasn’t into one-night stands. There had been a time, in the immediate and unhappy aftermath of the breakdown of her marriage, when she’d been stupid enough to think that having sex would provide some sort of comfort. But it had only taken one unfortunate encounter for her to realise that was a total fallacy. So, it was no good getting too starry-eyed. She might regard last night as a totally magical experience. But, as far as Matt was concerned, it might well have proved to be nothing more than a very pleasant diversion.
‘Here, let me dry your fingers,’ he murmured, walking across the kitchen and firmly wiping her hands with a thick kitchen towel, before placing his arms about her nervous figure.
‘Now...I think it’s about time I had a good-morning kiss, don’t you?’ he continued, before pressing his lips to hers.
The sweetness and warmth of his mouth was wonderfully reassuring, and she savoured the strength of the arms clasping her to the dark hair of his bare chest; her nostrils filled with the cool, astringent scent of his aftershave.
‘Incidentally...’ he murmured, slowly raising his dark head and regarding her with a faintly quizzical gleam in his green eyes. ‘Just in case you have any doubts about my intentions... I meant everything I said last night.’
‘Really?’
‘Really and truly—cross my heart and hope to die!’ he murmured, both of them smiling at his use of the solemn childhood vow.
‘I’m not going to beat about the bush, Sam. We’re both sensible adults, and I’m sure you must recognise, as well as I do, that what we have going between us is something very special. And, yes, I know that I hurt you very badly in the past,’ he added as she stirred restlessly in his arms. ‘But I had no choice. Not with the university authorities breathing down my neck. Not to mention the obvious fact that you were so young—with the whole world in front of you. Believe me, there was no way we could continue our affair.’
‘Yes...I can see that now. Although, at the time...’
‘At the time, I behaved like a callous brute,’ he admitted sadly, his lips tightening in self-disgust as he glimpsed the brief flicker of recollection and pain in her blue eyes.
‘But it’s all quite different now. We have to let go of the past, because just about everything has changed,’ he continued. ‘Everything, that is, except our very strong attraction for one another. We’re both now fully grown up, and although we lead frantically busy lives—we can do it. We can make our affair work this time round. In fact, since it only takes four hours to cross the Atlantic by Concorde, I’m going to make damn certain that it does work!’
As she gazed up into the deeply hooded green eyes staring down at her so intently, Samantha realised that if she hadn’t yet quite managed to sort out all her emotional feelings for this man he was quite right about letting go of the past
After all, she was a lot older and wiser. There was no way he could ever hurt her again—or cause her to suffer those agonising pangs of first love. All that was water under the bridge. Besides, he’d made it crystal-clear that he was talking about an affair—which meant no total commitment on either side.
You can handle it, she told herself firmly. You’re a modern woman, and fully in charge of your emotions, nowadays. Besides, as he’d said, they both had very busy careers.
Making love with Matt was truly wonderful, stupendous—and just about any other glowing adjective she could think of—but it was only one part of her life. Her career was vitally important to her, and she wasn’t about to give it up for any man—even if he was the sexiest thing on two legs!
So, what was there to worry about? She certainly wasn’t going to make the mistake of once again falling deeply, irrevocably in love with this man. To be blunt, she’d been there, done that—and worn the T-shirt! Lust was one thing—love quite another. So, there was no reason why she shouldn’t have a super-charged, highly intense affair with Matt. Absolutely no reason at all.
‘Well...?’ Matt demanded tersely, his arms tightening involuntarily about her. ‘For heaven’s sake, darling—I’m not exactly talking about a fate worse than death! I merely want to make love to you, as often as possible. Surely you’re not going to turn me down?’
‘Well...I don’t seem to have any problem with your basic proposition,’ she teased, laughing as he gave a highly dramatic sigh of relief, before once more pressing his lips firmly to hers.
‘And now, having sorted out the small print in the contract, I’m going to jump into some casual clothes, and then make us a strong cup of coffee. OK?’
‘Ah—now you’re talking! That’s definitely one proposition I’d never turn down.’ She grinned, suddenly feeling incredibly cheerful and happy.
‘Mmm...that was great,’ she sighed some time later, having been served toast and marmalade as well as several steaming cups of coffee. ‘However, I really can’t stay here all day. So, I guess it’s time I went back to my hotel.’
‘Come along—there’s something I want to show you before you go,’ he said, rising from the kitchen table. And, although she was disappointed that he hadn’t suggested they spend the day together, Samantha had enough sense to realise that without prior knowledge of her visit he undoubtedly had other engagements booked for that day.
‘I want you to see why I originally decided to buy this apartment,’ he told her, taking her arm and leading her down the hall to the over-decorated sitting room. Operating the remote control to open the curtains, he beckoned her towards the tall, floor-to-ceiling arched windows, which opened on to a small, ornate iron balcony.
‘Oh, Matt—it’s great! What a wonderful view!’ she exclaimed, gazing down at the wide, shady street between his building and the green grass of a large park—which contained a rather grand-looking monument supported on marble columns—and beyond which lay the sparkling blue water of what, she quickly realised, must be the Hudson River. ‘Did you spend ages looking at various apartments before finding this one?’
‘Well, it did take a long time, and then...’
Whatever else Matt might have been going to say was lost as he was interrupted by the loud, strident tones of the front-door bell.
‘Back in a moment,’ he muttered, leaving her to admire the view as he walked quickly back across the room towards the hall.
Savouring the early sunshine and bright, fresh morning air, she was only dimly aware of a low buzz of conversation as Matt appeared to be talking to somebody, out in the hall. However, he was soon back by her side, and asking whether she felt like another cup of coffee.
‘That would be very nice. But I think I really ought to return to my hotel.’
‘Have you got anything in particular lined up for the rest of your stay?’
She shrugged. ‘Well, no, not really—but I’d like to see as much of the city as I can. Which is why I must get back, and...’
‘I was hoping that you hadn’t any firm commitments.’ Matt grinned down at her. ‘Which is why I’ve been putting together an itinerary, for the rest of the weekend. And, since you’ll be staying here, of course, I think we’d better get dressed and hit the town, as soon as possible.’
She frowned up at him. ‘What do you mean, I’m “staying here”? You can’t seriously imagine that I’d be prepared to go sightseeing in either this towelling robe or the dress I wore last night? If so, you must be off your trolley!’
‘Don’t be ridiculous, darling!’ he drawled coolly, his deeply hooded green eyes glinting with laughter. ‘I wouldn’t dream of asking you to do any such thing. Which is precisely why I telephoned your hotel, earlier this morning—while you were busy experimenting with the ice-making machine—and asked to have your bags delivered here, to the apartment’
‘What? I don’t believe it! Are you seriously trying to tell me that you had the nerve to ring my hotel, and...?’ She paused, the full enormity of what he’d done suddenly striking home. ‘Oh, Lord—you must have got them to pack my suitcases, as well!’
‘Certainly I did,’ he agreed, with another maddening, cool smile. ‘Why would you want to waste a precious hour or two of our valuable time together in such a mundane task?’
‘But...but you just can’t do that sort of thing!’ she retorted crossly, appalled to think that some chambermaid had been forced to collect up all her things, empty her drawers and pack her suitcase. Thank goodness she had at least left her bedroom looking reasonably tidy.
But the whole affair was still highly embarrassing. Goodness knows what the hotel must have thought! And what gave Matt the right to act in such a dictatorial, domineering and high-handed manner?
‘It’s no good telling me I can’t do something—especially when it’s clearly obvious that I’ve already done so,’ he drawled. The maddening truth of what he was saying only increased her annoyance.
‘But I haven’t settled the bill, or...’
He waved a dismissive hand. ‘That’s all been taken care of.’
‘Well, thanks a bunch, Matt!’ she snapped. ‘With my reputation now clearly in shreds, I don’t see myself being able to stay at the Mark again. Right?’
‘Absolutely right,’ he agreed smoothly, placing his arms firmly about her rigid, angry figure. ‘Why on earth would you want to stay in a hotel—however comfortable—when you could be curled up in bed with me, here in this apartment?’ he added softly, his arms tightening about her as he lowered his dark head.
The sweet seduction of his lips and tongue, together with the close intimate contact with the hard, male contours of his body, was, as usual, proving totally irresistible.
And, after all, Samantha told herself weakly, what was the point of quarrelling over something so unimportant as a suitcase? All that mattered was the fact that his deepening kiss was, as always, causing the blood to race in her veins, her body shivering with delight at the sensual, erotic touch of his fingers as he loosened her robe, slipping his hands inside to caress her warm, naked body.
Trapped in a dense mist of desire and pleasure, she could only give a slight moan as he slowly moved his lips from hers.
‘There’s no need to be cross with me, sweetheart,’ he murmured softly. ‘I’ve merely been putting into practice the agreement we came to, earlier in the kitchen. Which means when you’re in New York you stay here with me. Got it?’
She nodded. ‘I guess I’m just not used to someone telling me what I can and cannot do. But I’ll try to work on it.’
‘OK.’ Matt grinned. ‘Now, I’d like to point out that we have—thanks to my foresight in arranging for your suitcases to be delivered here—managed to save an hour or two of valuable time. Which means,’ he added with a low, sensual laugh, ‘we can now relax, and go back to bed.’
‘You’re kidding!’
‘Absolutely not,’ he drawled blandly, his lips twitching with laughter as he led her firmly back over the thick cream carpet towards the bedroom. ‘Surely you must have realised that New York can be a very exhausting city?’
‘And so we need a rest, right now, to conserve our energies for the day ahead?’ she queried ironically, struggling to keep her face straight.
‘Precisely!’ He paused, turning her around to face him. ‘You do, I hope, approve of my new schedule?’
Samantha gazed up at the man who’d so unexpectedly reappeared in her life.
‘Well, taking the rough with the smooth...’ she began, before giving a muffled laugh as she buried her face in his warm shoulder. ‘Yes, my darling Matt, I think I can just about handle it!’
