“Is Rissa sick, Auntie?”
Robbie’s concerned question floated up to her. Tears formed in her eyes at his obvious concern. She closed her eyes, the light was now hurting them immensely, but she also did not want Raymond noticing her tears. Lately she seemed to be crying around him all the time.
Raymond shouldered his way through the front door and ran up the stairs to place her gently on a King size bed. She looked around and tried to sit up. He pushed her back.
“I’m not staying in your room!”
“You are not going anywhere. You are staying here until you are better!”
The timber in his voice clearly indicated that he would not tolerate any protests. He walked over to the cupboard, pulled out a light blanket and after taking her shoes off gently covered her with it.
Retha came rushing through the door with a glass of water and some tablets in her hand. Gently she assisted Clarissa to take the medication and smoothed her hair back once she lay back down.
“Now you rest and do not worry about anything. These are prescription drugs I take for my migraines. They will knock you out for a few hours, but they work miracles. Both Ray and Miguel can assist with any problems at the hotel should it be necessary. Close the curtains Ray, I think the light is hurting her eyes.”
She watched him walk over and quickly closed the curtains. Concern flickered in his eyes as he stood gazing down at Clarissa.
“You should have put her in the spare room, it …”
“She stays here.”
Retha hid a smile behind her hand and told Clarissa to call her if she needed anything. “I’m staying right here, so she’ll be fine.”
“No, you don’t ha…” Clarissa tried to protest as Retha left the room.
He lowered himself on the bed next to her, pulled her into his arms and placed a soft kiss on her forehead.
“Shh, close your eyes and rest. I’m not going anywhere.”
She stopped struggling and relaxed in his arms. His strong arms around her and his slow steady heartbeat in her ear presently soothed her to a deep sleep.
Recrimination raging through him, Raymond softly smoothed her hair back from her face, his gaze fastened on her beautiful, yet very pale face.
A soft curse escaped his lips and he leaned forward to place a feather light kiss on her lips. She sighed and snuggled closer to him. His arms instinctively tightened around her.
He recalled the words he said to her on the dance floor and he repeated the curse. He was such a jerk, but he could not get the picture of her and Henry Scott out of his head. A picture his mother painted six years ago with such glee.
Miguel abdicating The Princeton Intercontinental Group to him brought all those feelings back to the surface. The disgust, betrayal, hate and distrust, but most of all, the hurt, all of which he still could not seem to overlook. Hurt that she misled him, all those years they were together. Hurt that he gave her his heart and she felt nothing! That she threw all of that away for a job and a tryst with the Personnel Director to secure that job. When his mother told him, he only realized then why she never told him of her interviews. Because if she did, she knew he would have wanted to accompany her, and then she would not have been able to …. He cursed again and forced his thoughts back to the present.
So, if he mistrusted and loathed her so immensely what was he doing lying here sheltering her in his arms? Protecting her and trying to draw the hurt from her body into his?
A small hand shook his arm and he looked around to find Robbie with a worried frown standing next to the bed.
“Is Rissa going to be okay, Daddy?” He whispered so loudly he felt Clarissa move restlessly in his arm.
“Softly Robert. Clarissa has the same headaches Aunt Retha gets.”
“Oh … yes … shhh…,” he said so softly this time Raymond couldn’t help a soft chuckle from escaping.
“Can I stay with you for a while, please Daddy?”
“Yes, but you must be quiet and don’t bump the bed.” Immediately Robby climbed on the bed on Clarissa’s other side, lying down next to her, his hand on her shoulder.
Raymond smiled. “Only until Auntie calls you for dinner.” He nodded and gently stroked down Clarissa’s arm.
Retha came to call them down to dinner some time later. Raymond send Robby down with her but told her he was not leaving Clarissa and that he was not hungry, so she brought him a plate of food on a tray. She came back later and took the untouched tray back to the kitchen, gently took his shoes off and covered the sleeping couple with the thin blanket. She looked back at them and with a smile, switched the lamp off and closed the door behind her.
Clarissa awoke with a start. For a moment, she was completely disorientated, until she tried to sit up and realized she couldn’t move. Her lower body was held captive by a hard male leg snuggled between hers, and a strong arm across her waist held her upper body pressed against a warm, hard body.
She breathed in and smelled Raymond’s familiar fresh aftershave. She closed her eyes and realized her headache was completely gone apart from a feint tingle remaining, which was normal after such a bad migraine.
She tried shifting out from under Raymond, but his arm tightened around her. She glanced up, her eyes caught and held by his in the moonlight shining through the window, so brightly, it nearly lit up the entire room. As she shifted again, she felt the strength of his rough leg settle in the apex between her legs.
She gasped, lifted the sheet and glared at him. “Where are my clothes?”
His voice was still husky with sleep. “You seemed uncomfortable so I removed them.”
“Oh … you didn’t … you didn’t …”
“Do you really think I would take advantage of your body when you are in so much pain and out cold! “ The sleepiness instantly disappeared from his voice.
“No, of course not. I’m sorry.”
“Besides, when I make use of your delectable body, I prefer you to be totally aware of it.”
She stiffened. Make use of her body. Not have sex with her or make love with her, but make use off! She struggled, but he simply moved on top of her and settled between her thighs.
“No, you are NOT going to make use of my body! Never again! Get off me, Raymond!”
He ignored her protests and closed his mouth hungrily over hers, shutting her up with a deep, demanding and a shatteringly passionate kiss. The hours of lying next to her, holding her warm naked body in his arms had been agony and now with her awake, he could not hold back any longer.
She tried to struggle to shake him off, but he patiently and tenderly seduced her. It was over before it began … her struggles; the tenderness got to her. Every time they made love since his arrival on the island, it had been hot, heavy, lustful and so extremely passionate. It had been about satiating the desires of the body more than anything, not only for him, but for her as well.
For her however, having sex with him was an expression of her love for him, of how much she had missed him and needed him in her life, not just using him as a body for sexual release.
She sighed helplessly and gave herself over to his seduction, feeling the ripples of pleasure shudder through her body. Her hands clutched his arms in helpless surrender as he set out to make her body sing.
“Daddy … wake up! DAD!”
Raymond reluctantly opened his eyes. Robby’s excited face came in focus and he groaned. He moved to stretch out and felt the warm weight of Clarissa on his shoulder. Her soft hair caressed his arm, curled around her back and waist to keep her flush against him.
He groaned again. He intended to leave the room to sleep in the spare room before anyone was up but he must have fallen asleep after they made love the third time.
Of all the people to find them in bed together, Robby was the worst. His beaming smile and his eyes on Clarissa was proof of what raced through his inventive mind.
Softly he disentangled him from her arms and waited for her to snuggle back into the pillows. With a
soft curse, he realized he was naked below the sheets. He cleared his throat and asked Robby to fetch him a glass of water from the bathroom.
When he returned Raymond was in his shorts, opening the curtains and the balcony door. Motioning to Robby, he walked out in the early morning sun.
“Is Rissa gonna be my new Mommy? Is she Daddy, is she?”
Raymond groaned aloud. He should have known what was coming. He cursed softly. How was he going to get out of this one?
Having woken up when Raymond left the bed, Clarissa waited with baited breath for his response to Robby’s excited question.
“What makes you think that, son?”
“Auntie Retha said she and Uncle Miguel sleeps in the same bed, ‘cause they love each other and they are married!” The excitement in his voice rang through her mind and she groaned, which she heard echoed by Raymond.
“You know that Clarissa was sick last night, Robby. I only stayed with her to make sure she was fine.”
“Yes Dad, I know that! But, THEN you got UNDER the sheets and slept in the same bed! THAT means that you lo…”
“Robby, that’s enough. You are going to wake Clarissa and she might still have a headache this morning. Now, go downstairs and help Aunt Retha to set the table for breakfast. ”
“But Dad, are you and Ri…”
“Robert!” Ray sighed and brushed a weary hand over his eyes. He went down on his haunches and took Robby by the shoulders.
“Things between Clarissa and I are not like your aunt and uncle. What they have is special, something that very few people are lucky enough to find.”
“But Daaaad…”
“No buts Robby. Things happened in the past between us that can’t just disappear; things that created a Grand Canyon between us.”
“Huh?” Very confused, Robby wrinkled his brow at his dad.
Raymond sighed. “Forget it. Go now, I’m sure Clarissa is going to wake up soon and you can’t be in the room when she does.”
Muttering to himself, he tiptoed past the bed and out the door. Raymond stood rooted to the spot. Flashes of Clarissa in a wedding dress tortured his mind and he gripped the balcony rail. A family … the three of them, but as always, her betrayal years ago brought him back from fantasy world and he turned back to the room.
The bed was empty and he heard the shower running in the bathroom. He wondered if Clarissa heard the conversation between them, but with an unconcerned shrug, he turned to leave the room and took a shower in the spare room.
That was what he wanted, right? For her to realize that she meant nothing to him anymore. That he could spend night after night in her arms, and walk away the next day.
Yet, he could not shake the feeling of loss and loneliness that crept over him as he stood under the warm cascading water.
Clarissa stood under the shower until she calmed down. If nothing else, the conversation Raymond had with Robby was the final nail in the coffin, in her hope that their relationship would develop in something more.
The fact that he was not aware that she was awake made it so much more real. There was no future for them. She had to accept that he did not love her anymore and that he would not come to love her again.
She had totally and irrevocably, ruined her own happiness. Just as Raymond predicted all those years ago, what did she have to show for it? She chose a career and now, she had nothing. No love, no happiness; only loneliness stretched out in her future.
She knew she would never love again. Her one and only love has always been and would always be Raymond St Claire.
With the towel wrapped around her, she went in search of her clothes and found a neat pile of clean clothes spread out on the bed. The selection consisted of blue jean shorts and a white tank top, with a skimpy white G-string and lacy bra lying on top, even matching white strappy sandals.
Raymond must have gone to her cottage to fetch her some fresh clothes. Underneath his ruthless exterior, he was naturally a caring man and she felt a knot form in her stomach. How was she going to face a future without him? Now that he was in her life again, she could not picture going on without him in her future.
She stood brushing her hair with a brush she found on the dressing table when Raymond walked in. He looked fresh and very attractive, in his black shorts and loose white shirt that hugged his muscled body like a lovers’ glove.
She turned to him, but avoided his eyes. He lifted her chin with his thumb and forced her eyes up to his. It was the first night he spend the whole night with her since his arrival. The look in his eyes was inscrutable as he searched hers. With a sigh, he lowered his head and kissed her softly on her lips.
“Breakfast is ready.”
“Oh no, I can’t stay…”
“Yes you can. It is Sunday, so you have no reason to go to the hotel. Your day off, remember? Besides, you have to eat and Aunt Retha prepared a special breakfast in your honor.”
Ignoring any further protests, he drew her along with him down the stairs onto the patio where Retha has set the table and they were all waiting for her.
“Clarissa, dear, how are you feeling this morning? Come sit down, everything is ready.”
“Thanks, but you should not have gone to so much trouble. I’m fine thank you. Those tablets of yours really performed a miracle. I thought it was going to take days for the migraine to clear.”
“Do you get them often, my dear?” Miguel asked with concern.
“At least five or six times a year, for the past si … six years.” She faltered as she realized her migraines only started the same time she started working for Princeton Hotels.
“It must be all the stress. We are clearly working you too hard. Well, let’s forget about work and hotels and enjoy breakfast. ”
Robby nodded and eagerly reached for the plate his aunt just loaded for him. Clarissa watched in amazement as he started guzzling down his food. In between, he smiled up at her when he noticed her looking at him.
“Goodness Robby, you seem to be very hungry. Did you not have supper last night?”
“Of course I had supper last night, Rissa, but that was ages ago! My stomach is empty as a bucket again!”
Everyone laughed and with a sly look at Raymond, Retha said in an undertone. “I know of a few other stomachs that are empty because they had other things on their mind last night…”
“Aunt Retha!” Raymond reprimanded her and Clarissa’s cheeks flushed red.
“Don’t mind me, dear. I was just saying, the tray I took up to you came back untouched, so …”
Raymond glared at her so ferociously that she swallowed the rest of her sentence, but smiled broadly at her husband who winked back at her.
Before Raymond could say anything else Robby sing-songed across the table. “Daaaddy kissed Riiiissa … Daaaaddy kissed Riiiissa…”
“Robert!” Raymond thundered at the smiling boy across from him and Clarissa’s cheeks burned even more.
“But Daddy, you did!”
He gazed at his father with the pretend innocence of the young. He grinned widely and looked at his aunt.
“AND they slept UNDER the sheets in the SAME bed! So they are married!”
Retha and Miguel laughed whilst Clarissa and Raymond groaned in unison.
“Robert, I thought I explained to you earlier that …”
Robby waved his father’s protests away. “Yes, I know, but I don’t think you understand how married works, Daddy.”
He looked at his Dad with a serious expression on his face. “You should ask Aunty Retha to explain it to you more. Besides, I am not getting any younger and I need a mommy!”
Retha burst out laughing at his appropriate use of her favorite phase, when she wants something from Miguel.
“I think he has been in your presence too long, Retha.” The merriment in both of their eyes, were too much for Cecile, who arrived just as Robby expressed his wishes.
“Well, Robby, you will have to look elsewhere for a mommy. Clarissa is famous for r
unning out on people and you would be left high and …”
“Mother!” Raymond thundered at her and he felt anger mounting to the surface. Especially as Robby’s face fell immediately.
“Cecile, your normal polite self I see. What brought you to our doorstep this morning?” Miguel’s tone of voice clearly indicated that she was not welcome.
Cecile huffed, ignoring Raymond’s fuming gaze on her, she settled on a chair at the end of the table next to him.
“Well, I am family, so I did not think I needed to wait for an invitation.”
“You are more than welcome here, Cecile. Provided you behave yourself and not insult others we hold dear.”
“Hold dear! Please, since when do you hold her dear! You know exactly what she is! What have you got up your sleeve, Miguel?”
“Mother … enough. I do not want to hear another word against Clarissa. Is that clear?”
“But, Raymond…”
“No buts. Either that, or you are welcome to leave.” Raymond glowered at his mother and his hand closed around Clarissa’s knee, softly stroking the tender skin on the inside of her leg. He could feel the tension in her and expected her to leap up at any time.
“Breakfast, Cecile?” Retha handed her a plate with her lips compressed.
“Don’t mind if I do.”
Chapter Nine
Wednesday was again a bustling day with everyone rushing to give the St Claire’s the best anniversary and birthday party ever. Clarissa moved around from the kitchen to the banquet hall to make sure everything was ready.
She stood in the doorway leading into the banquet hall, a soft smile on her lips as she noticed Bette in the middle of the decorating flurry. She always liked to be part of the decorating and party arrangements and Clarissa gave her free reign to organize everything for the party. Bette naturally did a superb job.
“Bette … everything looks absolutely lovely! Where did you find all the time to get everything ready so soon after the Pirates Week?”
Cayman Desires Page 10
