“I’m sorry, sir, but take-off has been delayed for several minutes due to a hold up on the tarmac.” One of the flight attendants leant down to inform Dominic.
Louisa couldn’t help but notice the way her breasts fell forward in her tight uniform as she said it, something she was sure Dominic had noticed also.
“That’s fine. Inform the pilot to take off whenever we have clearance. In the meantime I’ll have a scotch.”
The hostess looked put out at being dismissed but regained herself enough to ask if Louisa would also like a drink before take-off. She ordered tonic water. She was still on pain killers and didn’t want the liquor to react with them. The hostess set it down on the small table in front of her without a glance, before busying herself with pouring the scotch in front of Dominic. He kept his eyes on his laptop, and eventually the hostess returned to her duties.
“How long will the flight be?” Louisa asked, wanting some form of conversation even if it was forced politeness.
Dominic adjusted himself in his chair. “A few hours if there is no turbulence.”
Louisa tried not to stare at the way the small movement shifted the fabric on his chest to tighten over his body. She took a deep breath to calm herself. She breathed in the scent of his cologne which was being pushed around the cabin by the vents. The image of his strong body beneath hers flooded her senses. A memory of their time spent together. A time when her senses felt alive with the touch of his hands on her skin, the softest caress bringing goose bumps to her flesh and a jagged edge to her breathing. His hot mouth found hers and pressed hard to her lips, his tongue tracing her bottom lip. A rare breeze came in through the open balcony door, and Louisa shifted, feeling the warmth of the hard bulge pressed to her stomach.
“Please prepare for take-off.” The pilot’s voice came over the intercom.
Both Dominic and Louisa jumped. Louisa snuck a glance at him and found his eyes on her. His gaze was firm, and his eyes crackled with intensity so strong that she felt as if she should cringe back.
“Please don’t watch me like that,” she said, placing her hands in her lap to keep them from betraying her emotion.
“I didn’t mean to upset you. If you prefer I will leave you in silence for the remainder of the trip.”
She could tell that he was testing for her reaction. She hated herself for taking the bait, but he had always wielded a strange power over her.
“You know I would rather speak to you, Dominic.” She kept her voice quiet so that the two flight hostesses didn’t over hear their conversation.
The smallest of smiles flinted behind his eyes but was quick to be cast away. The take-off was smooth, and they soon flew at a height that allowed them to remove their seatbelts. Louisa ordered some food, which she knew would ease her stomach on the long flight. The altitude was playing havoc with her head, and she was growing concerned that she may throw up or pass out. The thought of doing that in front of Dominic made her queasier. Her efforts were wasted. He had always been far too observant of her and picked up on her growing unease.
“Louisa, are you well?” he asked, folding the screen down on his computer.
Louisa tried to smile and nod. The action brought on another dizzy spell, and she swayed in her seat. Dominic moved to her side with one hand on her back and another on her shoulder to steady her.
“It’s just the pain-killers I think.” Louisa tried to lie. In truth she had never been a good flyer.
“Come with me and lie down.”
The very phrase made her tingle all over. She sucked in a breath to steel herself. Before she could refuse his offer he scooped her up into his arms with one firm hand around her back and another supporting her legs. Her vision blackened for the smallest of moments before it swam back into focus, her hand pressed against the warmth of his chest. She tried to move so that she was not pressed so close to him, but his hold was too tight on her body. He carried her to the room at the rear of the plane, which held a queen bed for longer trips. He laid her on top of the sheets, his hands lingering on her skin before he rose to close the cabin door.
“Really I’m fine. Please don’t fuss.” Louisa tried not to let her feelings swell with the thought of being shut in a room alone with him.
“Louisa, when will you learn that we do these things because we care for you?”
She heard the hesitation in his voice as he said “we”. He sat beside her on the bed and placed a cool hand on her forehead. She closed her eyes, savouring the sensation of his hand against the soft skin of her cheek as he drew it down her face. Her lips parted before she caught herself and opened her eyes. His features softened. The look was one that Louisa knew too well, one that he reserved for those he cared for, but Louisa had never seen it used on her.
“Why did you leave me?” he asked.
A tight look of torment creased his handsome features, making Louisa’s heart miss a beat.
“You told me to.” Her voice broke on the words. How could he be doing this to her? Now, after she had got her life back in order. She struggled to keep the lump in her chest from overwhelming her, a feeling she knew meant she was about to lose control of her barriers, of her emotions.
He shook his head but let his hand rest on the curve of her neck.
“Did you not see that I was doing it for you? I wanted you and only you at my side. I could see how restless you were to stay in one place for too long. You needed to leave,” he said.
Her hand came up to rest on his, but he pulled back, his features smooth and free of all emotion again. He rose and left the cabin, closing the door behind him. Louisa tried to swallow her feelings, but the tears sprang to her eyes before she could gather herself to stop them.
Chapter Three
He walked to the far side of the cabin and leant against the wall trying to pretend that he didn’t know that Louisa was crying because of him, again. He planned to make it up to her, to win her back, but all he achieved was pushing her further away. The flight hostess came to inform him there was a call from Louisa’s office. Not wanting to disturb her he asked her to put the call through to his phone instead.
“This is Dominic McKillip. Louisa is unable to take your call. Is there something I can help you with?”
“Mr. McKillip, it’s nice to speak with you. I’m Margaret, Louisa’s assistant. I’m not sure I can tell you. I should speak directly to Louisa.”
“I can assure you that anything you say will be taken in the strictest confidence, Margaret, but Louisa is not able to come to the phone just now.” There was a pause on the other side of the line. Dominic understood her hesitation, but he also knew that his family was one of a handful of clients Louisa’s firm had. Chances were that whatever this woman needed to say was related somehow to his own affairs.
“I’m not sure how much I can tell you. Can you please leave a message for Louisa to call me back as soon as she is able?”
“It would be more prudent for me to leave her with a more detailed message, don’t you think?” He was trying not to become impatient with the woman who was just trying to do well by Louisa.
“Yes, yes I believe you are right. Please tell her that Mr Hastings has withdrawn his account, which means that we will need to re-balance the books for the remainder of the year.”
Dominic took a moment to remember the names before thanking her and hanging up the phone. He knew the Hastings family. Their company was larger by far than his own, even if they were new money. This information made Dominic nervous. It meant that Louisa had lost perhaps several hundreds of thousands of dollars, maybe even a million dollar account. He opened his laptop. This was too much of a coincidence to not be related to the email his friend had sent him two days ago. He knew then that it wouldn’t be good news for Louisa, but the situation might have been more pressing than he first realised. He needed to do some research before he passed the message on to Louisa. First he typed an email to an old friend who had done work for him in the past to see if he was willing t
o take on another case. Then he set about finding out who else had received the email.
Chapter Four
Louisa woke and felt confused about where she was for a moment. She had cried herself to sleep after Dominic left. The engine sound soon reminded her of her surroundings, and she pulled herself up to see out of the small window. She didn’t know how close they were to her office in Washington, or how long she had been sleeping. What confused her further was that it was dark outside. She checked what was left of her makeup in the mirror on the cabin door. Her eyes were puffed up. It was clear that she had been crying, but she felt sure Dominic wouldn’t notice the change. She moved to the small bar and used the water jug to wash her face. The cool water helped her to wake up properly and cool her eyes. The time on the TV in the main cabin read eight at night. Louisa moved to her seat again, noting that Dominic’s laptop was still open on his empty seat. Something must have happened. They should have landed over an hour ago. Louisa felt her heart flutter. She was already on edge being around him again, and another problem would serve to strain her hard-won calm.
“Why haven’t we landed yet?” she asked a flight attendant.
“Mr. McKillip requested we fly on to New York. Would you like anything to drink, miss?”
“Yes, tea please. Where is he?”
“Speaking to the captain.”
Louisa nodded and crossed her arms to stop them from shaking. Why had they changed their plans? He had been insistent on seeing the will for himself. What changed in the last few hours to make him change his mind? The idea made Louisa nervous. She came from a world where the rules were set, and all she had to do was learn and play by them. She didn’t like surprises. Her hand shook as she took a sip of hot tea to calm herself.
Leaning forward she peered into the cockpit. The door had been left ajar. Louisa could see the outline of a male leaning over the back of the pilot’s chair. The night outside was pitch black, and only the faint flicker of the control panel lit up the room. She was once again struck at how the sight of this man made her heart beat faster. It was not fair that any man should wield that sort of power over her.
She made it on her own her whole life. His father had been kind to her, for his own needs, yes, but in the end it was her own persistence and hard work that had gotten her to where she was today.
Her unease was too strong to remain seated. She stood and crossed the cabin. She knew it was wrong of her, but she felt curious as to what Dominic needed his computer for that couldn’t wait until they landed. The open screen invited her to look. She was disappointed to see that the screen was black. It must have an auto lockout feature after a certain period of time. She glanced back into the cockpit. Dominic stared out the window, his stance easy as he perched on the back of the pilot’s seat. She didn’t know what he was watching for. She couldn’t imagine there was much to see in the darkness. As she had the thought the sky seemed to lighten. They were descending over New York, she guessed, its lights more than bright enough to illuminate their way.
As if he sensed her watching Dominic turned. Seeing that she was there he spoke to the pilot before coming to see her. She turned to make it seem that she was moving to the wet bar and not to his computer. She couldn’t help but notice he moved with such grace that anyone looking at him would know that he was a powerful man. His eyes were set, his shoulders and back in a posture that was as natural to him as slouching was to others. Louisa felt herself shrink back at as he met her gaze. Had he noticed her at his computer? Cursing herself she made an effort to meet his eyes, showing him that she couldn’t be intimidated. She had faced down the top lawyers in the county and won. This man would be no different. Her traitor legs were weak as they carried her to her seat, where she wouldn’t have to worry about her balance as much as she would have standing.
He watched her move across the cabin, like a cat watching its prey. Louisa had seen the look before in the court room, the look of a person who had to break bad news to a client. The court room was where Louisa had learnt many hard lessons. The subtle look on a jury member’s face could tell her if she had won or lost their vote. She had changed her approach to a case on more than one occasion because of a raised eyebrow or shifting of position.
“Are you feeling any better?” he asked, coming to sit beside her.
His leg pressed against hers. She wanted to move away from him but knew he would notice her unease.
“Much.” So far all she had shown was that she could be taken down with the smallest things. She resented him for that as much as herself. She sat for a moment waiting for him to continue, but she was anxious to find out what was bothering him, and more importantly, why they had changed course.
“Is there a problem?” She cursed her voice for breaking.
“In a sense.” He paused for a moment seeming undecided on how to go on. He leaned forward, and Louisa felt taken aback by his closeness, her breath catching before she forced herself to calm down. She was being a fool, a giddy teenager who lusts over the untouchable man. She had been with men before. There was no reason this one was any different, but she knew that he was.
She always felt a certain extra flutter at the sight or even mention of Dominic’s name. Everything about him, his soft lips, stern eyes, and his personal scent combined with his presence was enough to send Louisa into the mindset of a teenager again. She knew it would never be. Images ran through her mind of a future together, a home of their own, dark-haired children. She knew that he would marry a beautiful woman with a willowy figure who would care for him and look good on his arm at parties where he would show her off to his friends. Louisa, with her classic Italian dark eyes and chestnut hair was plain by her own standards. Her figure, she was told, was one that many women would die for, and she knew that her curvy shape was one that drew men’s eyes. She still saw herself as a plump, curved woman, not whom Dominic would marry. She was too homely for such a worldly man as he.
“Louisa, I had a call from your assistant, Margaret. The Hastings withdrew their account.”
****
Dominic watched as her face turned ashen. He was afraid that she might faint again. Her eyes swam with moisture, and she seemed to mentally calm herself as her breathing slowed and became deeper. Her eyes were red already from crying, but he knew better than to comment. He placed a hand on her slim waist, the fabric of her shirt warm from her body. The information he found proved to be useless. There were a few leads but nothing to suggest who might be trying to put Louisa out of business. There were some cases he knew of that she lost, some that made her enemies, but none that would have the resources to contact and lure away her entire client list. Nor could he find a reason for anyone to gain from doing so. Every law firm in the area had a full client list. Those which he contacted knew nothing of the emails. He didn’t know if he could trust them, but they seemed as lost as he as to what the person had to gain by this stunt.
Louisa seemed to absorb what he said a lot faster than he would have given her credit for. He could see the calculating look on her delicate face, a slight crease between her eyes as she gazed into the air over his shoulder, thinking. She would be considering her options for maintaining her firm. She would have to pull on any excess cash she had saved, if any. Downsizing was clear. Her own expenditure would be nil, and they would move to a smaller, less central location. All of this would lose her more clients as they became aware that she may not be able to support their business anymore. Her mind worked like a computer, he remembered. Louisa had the uncanny ability behind those brown eyes to process large amounts of information at once and see all connections and outcomes. He had watched her once, before she became aware of his presence in the room, map an entire case on a board. In moments she had the case outlined and, as far as he could see, solved in just a few lines and diagrams.
He had also thought hard about this problem, and though not one to calculate a solution as Louisa did, Dominic was a rational man. His mind worked like a contract, someone had o
nce told him. It outlined each clause and effect and melded them into a solution at the end. Whoever was at the end of such a decision would be signing off. He never had someone refuse him, and Louisa wouldn’t do so now. As a business man he knew it would work out for the both of them. As a man who was looking into the eyes of the woman he loved, he didn’t know if he would be able to go through with his plan.
He tried to stay away from her. When he found himself along with her in the back room on the plane, her closeness, the way she felt in his arms, he knew that any feelings he once had for her hadn’t disappeared, and if anything they had intensified. Now he was no longer the man who had everything at his call. He had everything to lose, and he wouldn’t, couldn’t, let her get away again.
The words he rehearsed swam in his mind as he waited for her to regain herself. He tried not to notice how her deep breathing caused her chest to push against the fabric of the too-small shirt. His sister had a slim figure, and her clothes strained in the places where Louisa filled them out.
“I have a business proposition that can help you, if you’ll accept it.”
She looked up as he caught her chin in his hand and raised her face to his. He looked into her eyes, which sparkled with held tears. “It will profit both of us, so I don’t want you to think that I’m taking advantage of you. Your firm will not survive this, am I correct?”
The Millionaire's Convenient Bride Page 4
