Читать книгу Bought: One Island, One Bride - Susan Stephens, Susan Stephens - Страница 8

AND anyway, I’ve got nothing to wear, Ellie told herself as she moved about the boat, making the last of her preparations for her tour.

I’m sure you have, her inner voice argued. What’s wrong with what you’re wearing now?

Market-stall clothes? A cheap cotton top and shorts? Every girl knew that was the dream outfit for dinner on board a billionaire’s yacht. Not that she had the slightest intention of attending Alexander’s party, of course. She hadn’t lost her hold on reason altogether.

Turning Alexander’s invitation down flat and seeing surprise flash across those hard green eyes had been worth every moment of her one-off loss of control when he’d kissed her. And a one-off it had to be. Not that she hadn’t replayed The Kiss over and over in her mind, but in those daydreams it had been safe to kiss him, because Alexander had been magically transformed into a pleasant, reasonable man and she, of course, had become Miss Sensible, who knew just where to draw the line.

And now it was time to draw the line under her daydreams altogether, Ellie told herself firmly. With the keenest of her group expected on board any minute she still had some final checks to complete.

Everything looked good. The radio was playing up and there was no time to fix it, but as she wouldn’t be going out of signal range her mobile phone would do. She kept it primed with all the emergency numbers she could possibly need. She had cleaned every inch of the boat, and the ingredients for lunch—pasta with a fresh tomato sauce and cheese along with home-baked bread and crisp green salad—were stowed away in the refrigerator in the galley. Planting her hands on her hips, Ellie surveyed her kingdom. It looked as if she was ready.

The success of her tours had exceeded Ellie’s wildest expectations. It was a wrench to think this would be her last trip from the main harbour, but at least she was going out with a bang—no thanks to Alexander. Ten people had booked, which was the maximum number she could take on board.

Glancing at the notice to quit she had received from his agent soon wiped the smile off her face. Forty-eight hours to arrange everything and say goodbye to the harbour where her father’s boat had been berthed for generations was nothing short of an insult.

Alexander hadn’t wasted a second when he bought the island, Ellie reflected angrily, gripping the rough hessian ropes at the sides of the companionway as she headed back on deck. Fortunately it would take him a little longer than that to turn Lefkis into the billionaire’s playground he envisaged, by which time the locals would have surely have rallied and found the courage they needed to keep him on a leash.