by Heidi Rice
He walked in, looking tall and dangerous in a steel-grey designer suit. A broad grin spread across his features as his gaze roamed over her figure. ‘You came.’
She hugged herself tighter. He sounded like Rye, he even looked like Rye in some ways. The chiselled features, the mischievous sparkle in those pure blue eyes and his uneven gait were still there. But so much else was different. The unruly hair that had always been carelessly tossed back from his brow had been recently cut so it hugged his head in stylish waves. His clean-shaven jaw lacked its usual five o’clock shadow. The expertly tailored suit accentuated his broad shoulders and narrow hips, making him seem taller and even more imposing. And his skin had a light tan, unlike the winter pallor of a week ago.
He was as breathtakingly handsome as she remembered. But somehow a virtual stranger.
‘Did I have a choice?’ The brittle tone hid the tremor in her voice.
The grin only widened as he crossed to her. He gripped her arms, stroked his thumbs into the curve of her elbows. ‘You’re angry with me,’ he remarked, confident humour in his tone.
She pulled out of his grasp, her temper snapping back to life. ‘Funnily enough, yes, I am.’
She turned round, marched to the window. She didn’t want to get mad. ‘You walk off without a word. You don’t call. And then you expect me to come running.’ She swung back, glad to have the distance between them. ‘I don’t appreciate being treated as if I’m your mistress. Because I’m not and I don’t want to be.’
He made his way towards her, the confident grin still in place. Cupping her cheek, his warm palm settled on her neck and sent an instant quiver through her. ‘So why did you come?’
She opened her mouth, ready to throw the news that she loved him at him. But the words got trapped in her throat. She jerked back, angled her body away so that he couldn’t see the vulnerability in her eyes. ‘Because, for some stupid reason, I missed you.’
He gave a self-satisfied laugh and her heart squeezed.
‘Good.’ His thumb stroked down the line of her neck. She felt the warmth of his body as he stepped behind her, settled a hand on her waist. Of its own accord, her body swayed into his. ‘Because, for some stupid reason—’ he paused, his lips brushing the sensitive skin at her nape ‘—I missed you too, Maddy.’
Electric jolts shot through her as his lips caressed her neck, but she stiffened, drew away. ‘If you missed me you would have called.’
The evidence was irrefutable. As much as she might want it to be true, he hadn’t missed her as much as she had missed him.
His arm banded across her midriff, trapping her against him. She felt the heat of his erection against her bottom. ‘I say we make love,’ he murmured, the feather of his breath brushing her cheek, ‘and argue about this later.’
She shoved his arm away, whipped round, anger at herself and her foolish heart making bitter tears spring into her eyes. ‘I told you, I’m not your mistress.’
CHAPTER NINETEEN
RYE tried to school his features, tried to wipe the smile off his face, tried to feel guilty about the shimmer of angry tears in her eyes. But the task was next to impossible when he was so overjoyed to see her. And when the unfamiliar show of temper only made her more beautiful.
He hadn’t seen her in a snit for a long time, not since their first few days together. She was one of the most even-tempered, easy-going people he’d ever met, settled and content, and it was one of the things he had missed the most in the days they’d been apart. Because it made him feel settled too when he was with her. But, while he hated to be a cliché, the way the unfamiliar spurt of temper lit her eyes and brought vivid colour to her cheeks made her even more adorable. If that were possible.
‘Maddy, I don’t think of you as my mistress,’ he said evenly, not really wanting to placate her, but knowing he should.
‘Don’t you?’ she said, her voice defiant. ‘Then why are you treating me like one?’
‘I’m not. I wanted you to come to London for a number of reasons.’ He thrust his tongue into his cheek to stop from smiling. ‘Not all of them sexual.’
Her eyes narrowed to slits. ‘You actually think this is funny. Don’t you?’
He grasped her wrist as she tried to pass him.
‘Let go. I’m leaving,’ she said, trying to prise his fingers loose.
He drew her rigid body towards him, wrapping his arm around her hips to hold her in place.
‘Don’t be daft,’ he said. ‘You didn’t come all this way just to walk off in a huff ten minutes after you got here.’
She wriggled furiously, her eyes flashing to his as his growing erection butted against her. ‘I didn’t come all this way just so you could poke me the minute I got here either.’
He choked back a laugh. ‘Fair enough.’ He lifted his hands, letting her scramble away. ‘How about we call a truce? You don’t run off. And I promise not to poke you.’ He paused, unable to resist the suggestive grin. ‘Yet.’
Temper flared but she schooled it, the flush of colour more vivid. And he felt the first tug of guilt.
She was right. He had been selfish and manipulative. And he knew it. When he’d spoken to her on the phone that morning, he’d heard the shock and the disappointment, then the confusion in her voice and he’d trampled over all three to get what he wanted.
He’d railroaded her into coming, deliberately making himself unavailable so she would find it impossible to back out. He wasn’t going to give her a second opportunity to turn him down the way she had a week ago. They needed to get this thing sorted between them once and for all.
He’d given the problem of Maddy Westmore a lot of thought while he was in California and had figured it all out. Maddy wasn’t really the issue so much as the circumstances.
She’d caught him at a vulnerable time in his life. The accident had knocked his confidence more than he’d wanted to admit. He’d never originally intended to spend so much time with her, but the evenings they spent together had become like a drug. The cottage, with its worn, comfortable furniture, infused with the scent of herbs and spices and decorated in Maddy’s cluttered but welcoming style, had relaxed him, while Maddy’s responsive little body and sweet, undemanding companionship had made him feel whole again.
Bringing her to London would help to put that episode of his life behind him once and for all. This was where he belonged, in the cut and thrust of the thriving metropolis. And Maddy didn’t. Once they’d burnt out the last of the sexual chemistry they shared, they’d both be ready to go their separate ways with no regrets.
The little trickle of guilt dried up. He wasn’t a hypocrite and had always believed the ends justified the means. So, frankly, it was stupid to feel bad about tactics he’d planned so methodically for eleven solid hours on the plane back from California.
Especially when those tactics, however underhand, had produced the desired result. Maddy, in London, in his apartment.
He gave a heavy sigh. Only problem was, if they were going to make productive use of her time here, he’d have to pour some water onto the fire—no matter how tempting it was to watch it spark and sizzle.
He stepped towards her, tucked a forefinger under her chin, brought her gaze to his.
‘I don’t think of you as my mistress, Maddy. And I didn’t bring you here to become my sexual plaything. If you don’t want to sleep with me, you certainly don’t have to.’ Although he’d do his damnedest to make her change her mind.
‘That’s very noble of you, Rye.’ The colour rose even higher in her cheeks. ‘When you know perfectly well how hard it is for me to resist you.’ She didn’t sound pleased but the admission made the heat in his groin pulse harder nonetheless.
‘So what’s the problem, then?’ he asked.
Her gaze fixed on his, the depth of feeling sending a ripple of unease through his arousal.
‘This isn’t a casual fling any more,’ she murmured. ‘Not for me. And it hasn’t been for a while.’ The softly spoken
words were followed by a resigned sigh. ‘I really did miss you. I missed you a lot. And that scares me.’
The brutal honesty of the statement struck him first. One of the qualities that had endeared her to him right from the start was her refreshing lack of guile. She had no secrets, no subterfuge. Unlike all the other women he’d ever dated. Maybe it was for that reason that he felt the need to be honest back. Surely he owed her that much. He knew that they had no future in the long-term. He would never be able to make the sort of commitment that would lead to the kind of life his friends Zack and Kate led. But Maddy wasn’t asking him for that.
‘Maddy, I missed you too.’ He cupped her cheek, the need to touch her overwhelming him. ‘I didn’t contact you because I thought it would pass. And it felt like crossing a line I had no right to cross. But it didn’t pass. It only got stronger. Which is why I crossed that line and invited you here.’ He threaded his fingers into the short cap of hair, rubbed the silky ends between his fingers. ‘I can’t make any promises. And it wouldn’t be fair to you if I did.’ He drew a deep breath. ‘I’ve never had a long-term relationship. And I don’t want one now. But this isn’t casual for me either. Not any more.’ He huffed out a strained laugh. ‘And if that scares you, believe me, it scares me a lot more.’
The minute he’d made the candid admission he flinched. He sounded like a romantic fool. What was he talking about? This affair wasn’t as casual as it had been, but did he really want her to know that?
But then he looked into her face and saw the same uncertainty, the same confusion that he himself was battling and the panic faded. She leant into his palm, covered his hand with hers, the gesture so warm, so giving, so accepting and so like her that the rapid ticks of his heartbeat slowed.
She blinked, the sheen of tears in her eyes dispelled by the quick, flirtatious grin. ‘I really hope you’re not just saying that to get into my knickers?’
He grinned at her as he touched his forehead to hers and caressed her neck. ‘Actually, I didn’t. But if I’d known it was going to help get me into your knickers—’ he paused to curve his other hand around her lower back and slip his fingers beneath the waistband of her jeans ‘—I would have said it a lot sooner.’
She laughed as he explored the top swell of her buttocks.
‘Talk is cheap,’ she said, stretching up to clasp her hands around his neck, the sinuous movement torturing him. ‘I think now action is required.’
He chuckled and pulled her towards him. Slanting his lips across hers, he thrust his tongue into her mouth, giving her the kiss he’d been wanting to give her ever since he’d spotted her in his living room.
It took them less than ten seconds to make it to the nearest bedroom, and only a few seconds more to tear each other’s clothes off.
He dragged her onto the bed, rejoicing as he slid his fingers into hot swollen flesh and found her wet and ready.
‘Damn. Condoms,’ he snarled, gritting his teeth as he tried to keep a stranglehold on the need to bury himself inside her.
‘I’ll get them. Where are they?’ she gasped.
‘Bedside table.’
He gave a rough chuckle as she grabbed the protection out of the drawer, obviously as eager as he to consummate the passion that had been building for over a week.
After enduring the exquisite torture while she rolled the latex on with frantic fingers, he gripped her hips and forced her to straddle him. She choked out a sob as she impaled herself on his powerful erection. He delved into the curls at her core and found her clitoris, making her cry out as she rode them both to completion. The tight clasp of her body shot him over the edge in record time as heat exploded in his groin.
Her panting breaths brushed his cheek as she collapsed on top of him, the aftershocks of the brutal climax rippling through his body. His hands skimmed up her back, the musty scents of sex and sweat mingling with the flowery spice of her.
He tucked her hair behind her ear, kissed the lobe as her unsteady breathing slowed.
‘It’s good to have you back,’ he whispered.
He felt the instinctive clench of her body on the still firm erection.
‘It’s good to be back,’ she murmured, her voice groggy with exhaustion.
As she relaxed into sleep, he held her on top of him, prolonging the intimate connection between them a few moments more, and made a promise to himself.
However long it took to work this thing they had together out of their systems, he’d make sure he was careful with her—especially when it was time to let her go.
Maddy awoke with a jolt, her body stiff. Heat pumped off Rye like a furnace and she realised she still lay on top of him, her cheek glued to his chest. She shifted over.
The tingle of shame made it hard for her to give in to sleep as she curled away from him. She should have told him she’d fallen in love with him. Why hadn’t she told him?
He grunted, his hand circling her waist as he hauled her back into the curve of his body. ‘‘Sbetter,’ he murmured, his nose buried in her hair.
She lay in his arms, happy to be held, the guilt and recriminations fading as she listened to his breathing even back into sleep.
She’d have to tell him eventually. She knew that. But why tell him now? And make things even more complicated than they already were. He hadn’t made any commitments—but then neither had she. They were still feeling their way, investigating what they really had together.
She loved him. But did she really know what that meant? Or whether it would last? Maybe her love for Rye was as fickle as her parents’ love for each other had been, based on sexual chemistry and little more. Spending time with him in his real life would help answer those questions.
But, even as she drifted off to sleep, trying to remain sensible, her heart skipped at the tantalising prospect that what Rye had told her—about missing her, about being scared too and about not being casual about their affair any more—meant he was falling for her too.
CHAPTER TWENTY
‘WAKE up, sleepy-head.’
The smell of pine forests and spicy aftershave beckoned Maddy from a deep, dreamless sleep. She stretched, and sighed as Rye’s handsome face came into focus.
Then frowned. ‘You’re dressed?’ she murmured, her voice rough with sleep as she took in the pristine white shirt, the maroon silk tie draped round his neck and the sheen of water in his slicked back hair.
His lips curved into a sexy smile and her heart galloped into her throat. ‘It’s almost midday.’ He straightened and flipped up his collar, looped his tie underneath. ‘I have a meeting in about …’ he glanced at the pricey watch on his wrist. The sterling silver timepiece was one she didn’t recognise. ‘Damn. Ten minutes.’
She pushed up on her elbows, tucked the sheet under her armpits. ‘I’m sorry; you should have woken me.’
‘Now she tells me,’ he said, giving a soft laugh as he knotted his tie. ‘I was being noble.’ He looked at her, his smile full of sensual promise. ‘I exhausted you last night.’
She coloured slightly, remembering the two times he’d woken her during the night.
He finished with the tie and flipped down his collar. Cradling her cheek, he pressed his lips to hers in a brief possessive kiss. ‘And, let me tell you, I deserve a medal for being so restrained.’
She grinned at his playfulness. ‘I’ll have to reward you later.’
‘I’m counting on it.’ He stood and grabbed his suit jacket off the bed. ‘Listen, there’s fresh coffee in the kitchen and some pastries.’ He shrugged on the jacket, which draped perfectly over his broad shoulders, then sank a hand into the pocket of his trousers. ‘Ring the concierge if there’s anything else you want. I haven’t got much in the place because I usually skip breakfast.’
She settled back to watch him grab his wallet and keys from the dresser, puzzled by the admission. He’d always devoured a full plate for breakfast, his appetite ravenous in the morning whenever he’d stayed at the cottage.
; ‘I could go shopping and make us dinner?’ she said, eager to keep busy during the time without him.
He hesitated for a moment before pulling some notes out of his wallet. ‘Don’t bother. I thought we could eat out tonight.’
She watched him flip out several notes, trying not to be hurt by the casual rejection of her offer.
‘But get whatever else you need,’ he said, dropping the money on the dresser.
She bolted upright. ‘I have my own money, Rye.’
‘I know.’ He leant over her to give her a quick peck on the forehead. ‘But this area is expensive.’
She could well imagine. ‘Even so, I don’t need your money.’
‘Then don’t spend it,’ he said, leaving the notes on the dresser. ‘I’ll send a car this evening. I’m afraid I’ve got a pretty busy day scheduled so I’ll have to meet you at the restaurant. But there’s someone I want to introduce you to before we eat.’
‘Who?’
He simply grinned. ‘I’ll explain later. I’ve got to run.’
And, with one more quick kiss, he was gone.
She huffed out a slow breath, and felt the aching sensation of confusion and uncertainty as she flopped back onto the pillows.
They’d made love three times since she had arrived. The first time fast and frantic, the second full of heat and passion and the third slow and tender. She could still feel the firmness, the tenderness between her thighs where he had lodged deep inside her. But, as familiar as his body was, and the exhilarating pleasure it could give her, she couldn’t shake the feeling that the moody, magnetic man she had fallen hopelessly in love with during those idyllic weeks in Cornwall was only one small facet of Ryan King.
Their relationship didn’t feel equal any more. And not just because of his money or his lavish lifestyle. She had no idea how he felt about her.
A vicious shiver racked her body, despite the climate controlled temperature in the luxurious bedroom.
‘Get a grip, woman,’ she murmured.
