Seduced by Love, Claimed by Passion~Summer Box Set

by Helen Conrad

  Tears filled her eyes. She wanted him. He was hers. She felt at that moment that she would do anything to keep him. Anything.

  They lay together so quietly, she began to wonder if he’d fallen asleep. But when there was a rattle of feathers and a rude squawk, his arms tightened around her and she could feel his warning. Slowly, they both looked up to see their friend the parrot, back to visit them again.

  He noticed them almost the same instant they saw him, and with an indignant cry, he flew off to some more private tree. Summer’s eyes met Jack’s and they shared a smile.

  “You’re never going to try to run away again, you know,” he told her confidently. “You’re mine now. I’ve put my claim on you.” The kiss he placed on her lips was hard and firm. “You’re going to stay with me forever.”

  Forever. In her usual contrary fashion, Summer was chilled at hearing from his lips just what she had been dreaming about herself. Forever.

  Was there really a hope for that? As he slid to her side, running his hands over her body now in loving caress instead of arousal, she knew she was almost afraid to think about it.

  His dark face was so handsome. She reached up a trembling finger to smooth back the tiny hairs at his temple, and he caught her hand, bringing it tenderly to his lips.

  Suddenly, a smile lit his eyes. “You know what?” he said teasingly. “I’m starving. Let’s swim back and have our picnic.”

  She rose with him, watching the way the sun glinted on his tan flesh, wanting to reach out and touch him, just to be sure he was real.

  “Oh, look.” She picked up her soggy slacks and held them away from her. “What a mess.”

  He retrieved her top. “Tie them around your waist,” he suggested. “Well wash them out when we get back to the other side, then hang them up to dry in the bushes.”

  She smiled at him, wondering at how they could stand together this way, as naked as the day they were born, but without shame or self-consciousness. She found that she loved to feel his admiration, and loved to see every part of him too. Every time she thought of how she had held him, what he had said about forever, she felt a surge of proud love that she knew would change her life.

  “You go first,” he encouraged. “I want to watch you swim the way you did off my boat the other day.”

  She laughed. “Did you really like that?” she teased. “You didn’t act like it at the time.”

  “Like it?” He shook his head. “You left me breathless. I could hardly stand it. It scared me to death.”

  “Scared you?” She gazed at him in wonder. “Why? I can’t imagine you scared.”

  His grin was endearingly crooked. “I don’t think I ever was as scared before as you made me.” Then he’d had enough of reminiscing. “Go on,” he prodded. “Dive in.”

  She did as she was told, twisting in the water to welcome him when he split the surface behind her. He slid against her then pulled away and dove for the passageway. She followed close behind.

  They washed out their clothes and sat down on the flat rock to eat their meal.

  “Are you sure no one ever comes up here?” Summer asked nervously, feeling somehow more exposed in this pool area than she had in their sheltered haven.

  “Don’t worry,” he said, grinning. “If we do have any company, they’ll take you for a mermaid who lost her way.”

  “Is that right?” She pushed back her drying hair. “And what will they take you for?”

  “Her enchanted lover, of course.” He struck a dramatic pose. “Forever condemned to life on land while my true love swims the seven seas.”

  “And that is supposed to make all this nakedness okay?” she asked, wide-eyed.

  His eyes turned serious and he cupped her alabaster breast, looking at it wonderingly. “This nakedness is more than okay,” he said huskily. “Much more.”

  What is it, then? she thought, willing him to be more explicit. What did he feel? What did he want from her? She longed to hear it all, just how much, just how little. It might hurt, but at least she would know the truth. At least she would be prepared.

  They ate the delicious meal the cook had fixed for them. The picnic basket divulged a salad of curved avocado slices and grapefruit sections sprinkled with tiny pink shrimps along with rounds of buttered pocket bread and a delicate white wine.

  “A toast,” Jack declared, raising his glass high so that the sunlight kissed it with a golden light, “to happy endings.”

  Summer smiled as she touched his glass with her own, but deep inside a coldness was wavering. Endings? What did that mean?

  “It’s strange,” he mused, looking at her over the rim of his glass, “but even with your blue-green eyes and silver-blonde hair, you fit in with life here on Lelei in a way I never thought a stranger could.” His dark eyes narrowed, studying her as though to find her secret. “It’s uncanny.”

  Her hair was almost dry now and she pushed at it self-consciously, trying to tidy up a bit, knowing it was flying out from her head in a mass of wayward strays. But she was happy that he thought she fit in. Suddenly, she realized how much life here seemed to agree with her.

  “You love it here, don’t you?” he asked softly, taking one tendril of her hair and curling it about his finger. “I can see it in your face.” He smiled. “You looked so perfect yesterday, meeting the matai. They knew you were something special. You could see it in the way they treated you.”

  “I ... I do love it here,” she admitted. “More than I ever thought I could love any place so quickly.”

  His smile was triumphant. “Then you won’t mind if we stay here ... at least for most of every year.”

  She gazed at him, startled as he moved in closer, his eyes alight with excitement. Was he going to push the marriage angle again?

  “Summer,” he was saying with earnest surety, “you won’t miss your oil company. I’ve set up a scheme for this island that will take all our energy for quite some time.”

  His eyes had the faraway look she had seen so often in her father’s face when he was thinking of new ventures. How full of confidence he was, how full of enthusiasm. Suddenly she knew the two of them would have been good friends. But was this confidence the result of his belief that she was about to give his scheme all the monetary backing it needed?

  “I’ve been in touch with people on the mainland and I just got word that the company I talked to has given its complete approval. We can start the groundbreaking for a building as soon as I can get the funds assembled.”

  His mouth quirked into an appealing smile. “Remember that telephone call I didn’t make the day you arrived? It was to this bunch. But I got the word through a friend in Pago Pago.” She felt very cold. Suddenly their nakedness was no longer innocent and harmless. Suddenly she wanted to hide her body from him. She moved uncomfortably.

  What was she going to do? She should tell him right now that the whole thing was out of the question. She was not about to marry him so that he could fund any little project that tickled his fancy. She felt a flash of anger that he could be so cavalier about it, so confident, so sure of her compliance.

  On the other hand, he probably thought he was doing her a favor. He knew she needed to marry in order to secure control of the company. You scratch my back, I’ll scratch yours. That was his motto. She should spit in his eye.

  But she wouldn’t. A part of her was crying out to leave things alone. Let him have what he wanted. After all, that way she got him, didn’t she?

  “How much do you think you’re going to need?” she asked him numbly.

  His dark eyes flashed toward her in surprise. “How much what?” he asked innocently.

  “Money, of course,” she grated out. “How much money do you expect Davis Oil to put out in order for you to float your scheme?”

  She couldn’t look him in the eye. It was too humiliating. So when his hand swooped down and took her chin in a steel grip, she was startled.

  “How much are you willing to give me?” his hard
voice rasped hoarsely.

  Her bright eyes searched the darkness of his. “I... I didn’t say I was ready to give you anything,” she hedged.

  “Good,” he growled. “Because I would only tear it up, and that seems like such a waste of good greenbacks.”

  She stared at him, completely confused. “What are you talking about?”

  “What are you talking about?” he retorted harshly. “Are you going to tell me that all this time you’ve been thinking I wanted funding from Davis Oil?”

  She shrugged. “Didn’t you?”

  Suddenly, the fury left his eyes and he began to laugh. “No, Summer.” He chuckled. “No. It never entered my mind.” He leaned closer, taking her hand in his. “You see, my darling, I happen to have quite a bit of the stuff in my own right. I don’t need your money.”

  “But . . . the gambling, the way you’ve been living ...”

  His eyes narrowed. “Do I detect Karl’s jealous voice in these stories? Yes, I’m sure I do.” He grinned. “There’s nothing I can do to disprove whatever he told you. All I can say is, it’s probably not true.”

  Looking at him, she knew it wasn’t. How could she have been such a fool as to believe the lies Karl had told? He had been out to spite Jack from the beginning.

  “So you’re loaded?” she said, looking stunned.

  He nodded. “The business world has been good to me for the last ten years. I’m what you might call….a billionaire.” He shrugged. “Believe me, it surpised me as much as it surprised anyone.”

  “A billionaire.” She laughed too, feeling suddenly free of so much worry that had dogged her. “Oh my gosh. And here I thought….” She frowned. “Then what is this scheme of yours?” she asked curiously.

  The excited look was back. “You know that the copra is not as lucrative as it once was. When I realized what was happening, I was very worried about what would happen to the people of this island if their main source of income was cut off. I decided it was high time we diversified.” He smiled proudly. “So I contacted a number of firms on the mainland and researched the possibilities. Over the past few years I’ve been everywhere. I finally decided on an electronics assembly plant for starters. I found an outfit willing to open a branch here, and now all we have to do is construct a building to house it.”

  It was finally coming clear to her. He didn’t want her money, he never had. He wanted her. All by herself. He wanted her the same way she wanted him. Could anything so marvelous really be true?

  She frowned, looking at him searchingly. “Then why do you want to marry me?” she asked, her voice betraying the ache inside.

  He took her face between his two hands, holding it tenderly. “Because I love you, you little fool,” he said impatiently, then grinned. “Now don’t give me any more trouble.”

  Without giving her further warning, he reached down to hook an arm under her knees, picked her up high in the air, and tossed her, squeal of fright and all, into the blue water. In less than a second he was diving in beside her.

  They cavorted for a time, then climbed back up to sun themselves on the black lava rocks. Summer even slept for a time, a bit more secure now, warm and almost sure. She loved him. That she knew. He said he loved her. Could she trust him? Could it really be true? She wanted to believe, but somehow it seemed too fantastic to depend on.

  She woke up with the sun dappling her face and Jack’s kisses tickling the inside of her thigh. There was no time to prepare. He had already set the chain in motion before she had opened her sleepy eyes.

  “Oh!” she gasped, twisting away from his lips and rolling over onto her stomach only to find that she had put herself in position for him to massage her spine with his tantalizing fingers. He knelt above her, kneading her flesh, and she found herself turning back to him again, wanting his touch on her breasts.

  He sensed what she wanted, and as he tugged at the dusky nipples, she reached up and buried her fingers in the coal black hair that covered his chest.

  “Do you want me again, sea witch?” he asked huskily, then laughed softly as she let her body answer.

  They had rolled far enough to have reached the edge of the waterfall basin, and as his caressing hands brought out the sweet desire that she held inside her; as his long, tanned body met hers again in the dance of primal fire, arching and twisting, as she cried out her ecstasy and he groaned out his love words; the silver spray of the waterfall fell around them both, hiding them in a curtain of sparkling mist.

  They swam once more, talking quietly and laughing often, then dried and pulled on their stiff clothing. The walk down the mountain, eyes blinded by the setting sun, was as dear to her as any part of the lovemaking they had enjoyed. It was here, as he helped her over the rough spots and stopped to teach her the names of plants and insects, that she felt it might be true. He might really love her. If only she had the courage to trust.

  Chapter Eleven

  Dawn had turned the sky the same pearly-pink color Summer had seen inside a giant conch shell. Thick, wind-puffed clouds scudded across the horizon, edged in gold cast by the rising sun.

  Summer studied the contrast between these pastel colors and the vibrant greens of the jungle and sighed with pleasure. She really did love this island. It was paradise. Where else in the world would she spend her morning picking wild jasmine for Jack’s mother?

  They’d returned the night before, tired and slightly dazed by their afternoon. After freshening up, Summer had gone in to visit with Mrs. Masters again, and something about the glow that followed her must have communicated itself to the woman. She’d seemed stronger than ever and anxious to tell Summer stories of her first days on the island.

  One of these stories had involved wild jasmine from a special cove. Mr. Masters had picked it for her every morning when it was in bloom, putting it in a crystal vase on her breakfast tray. She’d told Summer just where the cove was, and when Summer had woken early, she’d given in to the impulse to run down to the cove and collect some herself.

  Now she was on her way back to the house, still dazed, still moving in a happy cloud and not allowing any doubts or misgivings to intrude. In fact, she wasn’t letting her mind run over any of the pros or cons of her situation. She wanted to live for the moment. At least for a while.

  Coming in through the stand of rangy breadfruit trees, walking carefully to avoid the smashed, rotting fruit that fell so heavily from the brittle branches, she looked up for her first view of the plantation house, expecting the usual lift of pleasure she always received at the sight of it. Instead, she saw something that froze her thoughts and chilled her soul.

  There was someone on the balcony of Jack’s bedroom. Summer knew, even before she got close enough to make out the features of the woman, who it was.

  How could she have shoved the whole problem of Valima into the back of her mind the way she had? How could she have ignored the threat that woman posed to this naive dream of happiness she had been floating in?

  She looked up as she came under the balcony. Valima was still there. Her hair was hanging loose and flowing about her. She wore a long gown of a gossamer violet fabric, a substance the breeze tossed as easily as it would a spider’s dewy web. It might be a nightgown.

  The woman was staring down at Summer, her dark, liquid eyes tranquil, her perfect mouth curved in a slight smile, but she didn’t say a word. She didn’t have to.

  Summer’s heart was beating very fast, but her hands were ice cold. She continued into the house, thinking she would go ahead and take the flowers in to Mrs. Masters, but as she walked in through the open entryway, she saw Valima coming down the wide stairway.

  She couldn’t think. She could only react, emotions suppressed. She waited for the woman to reach the foot of the stairs.

  “What are you doing here?” she asked lightly, as though making casual conversation.

  Valima smiled her slow, serpentine smile. “What do you think I’m doing here?” she asked in a voice as low and smooth as the not
es of an oboe. She watched Summer’s reaction, her eyes soft and amused.

  Summer had become two people. Watching herself, she was amazed that she could stay so outwardly cool when a torment was raging in her soul.

  The outer, cool Summer shrugged. “Reliving old memories, perhaps?” she said archly, narrowing turquoise eyes and tilting her head. “Dreaming of what might have been?”

  For the first time, Valima showed a spark of anger. “Oh, no, Summer,” she said sharply, her eyes flashing. “I don’t need to live on dreams. And I don’t live in a fantasy world, like you do.” She tossed back her veil of ebony hair. “You see ...” her long, elegantly shaped hands came forward and cupped the rounded protrusion of the child she was carrying. “I have them both.” She nodded slowly, smiling pleasantly again. “Yes, Summer. Both Karl and Jack are mine. All that is left for you is second best with either one of them.”

  The cool Summer laughed, a silvery shiver of a sound, and deliberately put the wild jasmine down on the entry table. “I would say the one who gets the wedding ring has claim to that status, wouldn’t you?” she answered lightly. “And I don’t see a band from either man on your finger.” She glanced down at the evidence of Valima’s motherhood. “Despite all your attempts to get it.”

  There was fury in the black eyes now, but Summer turned away. “Say hello to Jack for me,” she called back over her shoulder. “And tell him I’m still thinking over his proposal.”

  She walked blindly from the house, the cool Summer melting into the red dust as she was no longer needed, the frozen, tortured Summer taking over.

  How could she have forgotten the child? She knew she could make all the smart remarks she wanted to make, score all the verbal sparring points, but that still wouldn’t erase the existence of the Child. Jack’s child.

  Anger surged through her, anger at her own foolishness, anger at Jack’s arrogant attitude, anger at life. Without conscious direction, her path became the road to Karl’s house. Maybe he would give her some clue as to what she could do to extricate herself from this mess.