Last of the Great French Lovers

by Sarah Holland

  They worked through without a real break till six o'clock that night. Alicia's shoulders ached, but she felt the exhilaration of achievement and knew they had laid some solid foundations.

  'Jean-Marc always serves drinks in the drawing-room at six.' Dominique told her as they walked back through the corridors to the central part of the chateau. 'And I could certainly do with a glass of wine!'

  Alicia smiled. 'Yes, why not? We've earned one!'

  'We'll have to think about the drinks, too,' Dominique mused. 'I think Laurent-Perrier vintage champagne is very fashionable this year...'

  Alicia laughed, opened the drawing-room door, and saw Isabelle Janvier kissing Jean-Marc Brissac passionately on the mouth. ;

  With an indrawn horrified breath, she shut the door again.

  White, she stood frozen, her dark eyes reflecting shock.

  'Alicia?' Dominique's voice was worried. 'What's wrong?'

  For a second, she didn't understand the French language, and just stared at the girl, her face blank, skin taut over delicate bones, while the knife of jealousy thrust searingly in her heart.

  The door opened.

  Alicia stepped back, staring in horror at Jean-Marc as he stared down at her. Red lipstick stained his hard cheek. His eyes were fierce silver and his face darkly flushed.

  'You should have knocked,' he said slowly, and she felt her face tightening in appalling jealous rage.

  'Why?' Dominique was frowning. 'What's going on?'

  'Nothing.' Alicia struggled to pull the cloak of icy dignity back around her shoulders, her face closing into an aristocratic mask. 'I just interrupted your godfather in a private conversation. Forgive me. You're quite right. I should have knocked.' She turned to leave.

  He caught her arm. 'You were going to have a drink before changing for dinner?' His eyes were narrowed and saw far too much. 'In that case, come in.'

  She gave an icy smile, aware that her hands were shaking uncontrollably, and immediately put them behind her back, assuming a cool businesslike stance.

  'Really, it's not necessary,' she drawled, affecting indifference.

  'I insist,' he said in a voice like steel.

  She could hardly argue. Alicia walked coolly into the drawing-room, and even she was unprepared for the white-hot burn of jealousy as she saw Isabelle Janvier's perfect face.

  'Mademoiselle Holt...' Isabelle had repaired her red lipstick, her face flawless once again, no emotion whatever in the crystalline eyes.

  'Good evening,' Alicia said tightly.

  Dominique came in slowly behind her, eyes flashing round the room, sensing the atmosphere but apparently not understanding it as she gave Alicia a curious frown.

  'Isabelle is on location here,' Jean-Marc said coolly, pouring two glasses of red wine. 'Filming at Chateau Clemet, ten kilometres from us.'

  'How interesting,' Alicia drawled. 'What's the film?'

  'La Belle Dame Sans Merci,' Isabelle said, relaxing, sitting back in her armchair and pushing a swath of ice-blonde hair back. 'It's a medieval film. I have very beautiful costumes.'

  'French?' Alicia asked, her smile tense.

  'American,' Jean-Marc drawled with a sardonic smile, striding coolly to Alicia and handing her a glass of red wine. 'Isabelle is one of our greatest cross-over actresses.'

  'Yes, I've seen many of your films.' Alicia could not look at Jean-Marc in case he saw the jealousy in her eyes. 'You're quite exceptional.'

  Isabelle's perfect mouth curved. 'Thank you,' she said softly.

  They talked politely for fifteen minutes. Alicia's nerves were in shreds. She had never experienced jealousy in her life before. Not like this. Not so consuming, like a fire raging in her stomach, sending poison into her veins and making her want to scream at Jean-Marc, How dare you do this to me? How dare you... ?

  'Well,' Alicia put her wine glass down when she deemed it politely acceptable to leave, 'I'm afraid I'm exhausted and in need of a long hot bath. Would you excuse me?'

  'Yes, of course.' Isabelle smiled, tilting her ice-blonde head. 'I hope to see you again while you're here.'

  Alicia's smile froze in her eyes. 'I hope so too.' Turning, she left the room without even glancing at Jean-Marc, until he held the door open for her.

  He gave her an astute, narrow-eyed look as she passed him. Alicia treated him to her tightest smile and felt great satisfaction in seeing his brows shoot up.

  Ten minutes later, she was seething in the great bath, her face scarlet amid the steam, scrubbing her fingernails with a brush and cursing Jean-Marc Brissac. Damn him! How many more women did he have carrying fierce desire for him? And how many did he have under attack at any one time?

  She had been a fool ever to come here. Now that she had seen him with Isabelle she realised that she had accepted for personal reasons. It had never just been the job that tempted her. It had been Jean-Marc himself, his hard mouth and long, skilful hands and that powerful body that knew how to make her feel every inch a woman.

  He's right, she thought, horrified. I do want him.

  When she emerged from the bathroom in a white wrap, he was sitting on the bed.

  Alicia felt the rush of fierce, shaking hatred return. 'Must you keep doing this?' she demanded.

  'Doing what, Alicia?' he asked softly, eyes taking in the rigid, angry stance of her body. 'I knocked and received no answer, so I came in.'

  'What do you want?' she asked tightly, folding her aims, acutely aware of her nudity, the steamy scented texture of her flesh beneath the wrap.

  'I came to see why I got the icy treatment just now.' He was watching her closely. 'And why you were so impeccably polite to Isabelle when you obviously dislike her.'

  'I don't dislike her,' she said, her tone rigid with choked emotion.

  'Come on, Alicia. I know you too well for this to work.' He got to his feet, strolling coolly towards her, his mouth as hard as his grey eyes. 'You've been melting, slowly, and softening. Suddenly the haughty aristocrat is back, and your voice is dripping with ice. Why?'

  Hot angry colour swept through her face. 'I don't know what you're talking about!'

  He towered over her, caught her chin, forced her to face him. 'I know what it is, Alicia,' he said softly. 'I'll say it if you want me to. But I'd rather hear it from you.'

  'I've had a hard day!' she said thickly, trying to tear her face from his hard-fingered grasp. 'I just want to rest and relax! I was forced to be polite to Isabelle when I was tired! Is it so surprising that I --'

  'You were jealous,' he said softly.

  'I was not jealous!' she denied hotly, trembling with sudden rage. 'I was just tired and the last thing I wanted to do was --'

  'You were jealous, Alicia.'

  She slapped his face without thinking, her mouth trembling with rage.

  His head jerked back and his eyes darkened. 'Yes!' he said thickly. 'You were jealous!'

  Her eyes flared with dark fire. 'Go to hell, you conceited, arrogant bastard!' she swore hoarsely, and started hitting him in blind fury, her hands raining blows on his powerful shoulders and broad chest.

  'God...!' he bit out roughly, and caught her flailing wrists, pinned them behind her back and jerked her hard against his body, ignoring her violent cries of rage as his hard mouth covered hers.

  Alicia struggled, tearing her mouth from his, hating him so much that she was shaking from head to foot, and when he picked her up in his powerful arms and carried her over to the bed she started to make harsh noises in the back of her throat that sounded like a wild animal in the throes of passion.

  'You bastard!' she choked out hoarsely as he laid her on the bed. 'I hate you... hate you...!'

  He joined her, his eyes fierce, but her hands were already linking behind his strong head, pulling him down until his mouth met hers and she unleashed her hunger on him, her fingers tangling in his black hair as she kissed him with all the pent-up desire she had never dared release.

  He made a ragged sound of excitement under his breath
, his mouth possessing hers with absolute mastery, and, as he dominated her, so she moaned, her heart thudding out of control and she surrendered entirely to the waves of hot sensation flooding her veins.

  Blindly, she was tugging at his silk tie, her hands shaking on the buttons of his shirt, tearing it open, gasping in hot, shaking excitement as she found his chest, her fingers sliding over the tanned flesh and the thick black hair.

  'I hate you!' she moaned, practically tearing the last buttons in her need to release the tumult of emotion she felt. 'You swine...!'

  'Yes...!' he whispered thickly against her mouth. 'Oh, yes... take it out on me... let me have it all!'

  Alicia felt his strong hands move up to cover her breasts and gave a hoarse Cry of need, falling back, her head flung back on the pillow, breath coming in quick gasps as Jean-Marc closed in on her, his mouth a firm sensual line of determination as he pulled the white wrap open to bare her to the waist.

  With a harsh sound of need, he bent his dark head to her bare breast and she groaned, aching to feel his hot mouth take her nipple, arching slightly until she felt it slide into his mouth and the hot needles of excitement rushed through her as she went dizzy, body pulsing with hot blood, her mind completely lost in the sweet sensations he invoked.

  Suddenly, he raised his dark head, staring at her in silence. She stared back, eyes half-closed and fevered, her face deeply flushed.

  'You were jealous,' he asked shakingly, 'weren't you? Admit it! For God's sake,...'

  'Yes!' she said bitterly, eyes smouldering. 'Does that satisfy you, Jean-Marc? Does it make you feel like a man?'

  He looked at her grimly. 'I don't ask you for that reason. I need to know because I have so little else to go on. You have no need to be jealous of Isabelle. But I do have need to be jealous of your passionate nature, and wonder where it will lead if not to me.'

  Alicia frowned, not understanding, her pulses drumming as she tried to take the words in.

  'I've woken a sleeping tiger,' he said grimly. 'I don't want to find some other man being the recipient of your rediscovered passion, Alicia. Is that so unreasonable?'

  Bitterly, she said, 'Do you want more than one mistress, Jean-Marc? You have Isabelle. You certainly don't need me!'

  'Isabelle was once my mistress,' he admitted. 'But that was a long time ago. We're just friends now, Alicia, for all that you saw us kiss.'

  She gave a hoarse laugh. 'You really expect me to believe that?'

  'You know it already,' he said deeply, and pressed a strong hand below her left breast, above her heart. 'Here.'

  Staring into his grey eyes, she felt suddenly unsure,' breathless.

  'You were jealous,' he said thickly, 'because you know we belong together. You hated me for kissing Isabelle. Tell me what you thought when you left us.'

  Dazed, she heard her voice whisper, 'I thought "How dare he...?'"

  'How dare he kiss another woman?' A sardonic smile touched his hard mouth. 'You see? You know, Alicia, what really lies between us. But that makes you my property, too. Don't ever let me find you with another man, cherie, or you will see my jealousy, and it will be even more ferocious than yours.' His hard mouth closed over hers, taking possession with such blazing authority that she felt herself surrender immediately, her mouth sliding open with a soft moan as he kissed her deeply, his hard body pinning hers to the bed.

  His hands slowly stroked down her body, curving over hip and thigh, and she quivered at his touch, filled with warm, sensual, drugging sensation, her head dizzy again as the pulse grew louder and she could hear her heart beating audibly.

  When Jean-Marc lifted his head this time, there was the glitter of triumph in his grey eyes as he said thickly, 'You're mine! I could take you now and you wouldn't fight. Tell me that... tell me you surrender without conditions!'

  She opened her heavy eyelids, breathing erratically.

  'Tell me, Alicia,' he commanded, mouth hard.

  'Yes,' she whispered bitterly, hating him, 'I surrender!'

  A smile touched his hard mouth. He kissed her once, then released her, resting on one elbow as he looked into her surprised face. 'I have to go away tonight, Alicia,' he said. 'I won't be back for at least three weeks.'

  The colour drained from her face. 'You're kidding...!'

  He smiled, slid a hand possessively over her waist. 'You'll miss me, then?'

  'Where are you going?' she asked, ignoring his question.

  'Japan, Australia and America,' he said with a wry grimace. 'There's a whirlwind blowing up in my corporation, Alicia, and it's time I swooped in on those three headquarters. I'm starting with Tokyo, because they need the biggest rocket put under them.'

  'A week in each country?' she asked. 'You'll get terrible jet lag.'

  He laughed softly. 'I wish you could be there to soothe me to sleep every night.' His grey gaze flickered over her face, then he said on impulse, 'Come with me.'

  She caught her breath, tempted beyond endurance, just the thought of spending so much time with him in such fabulous cities more than she could bear.

  But she refused. 'You know very well that I won't.'

  'Because of work?' He was teasing her, his smile lazily mocking.

  'No, because of you!' she said, a half-smile on her mouth.

  He laughed, and then his face grew serious as he said deeply, 'Alicia, although I enjoy this war, I did believe we had come to an understanding that might lead to an armed truce.'

  'While you continue to try and seduce me?' she asked huskily. 'That's not an armed truce, Jean-Marc.'

  'But you did give me an unconditional surrender,' he reminded her, his mouth hard. 'And I accepted it without forcing you to live up to it. Surely in those circumstances you could come with me on this trip?'

  A shiver ran through her. 'If I went abroad with you for three weeks, Jean-Marc', I would be without defence.'

  His face lit suddenly with a smile so charming that it took her breath away as he leaned closer and kissed her mouth. 'That's the nicest thing you've ever said to me, cherie.'

  Alicia's heart stopped beating, and when he drew away she said huskily, 'I know what you're asking me, Jean-Marc. I know what this war is being fought for.'

  'Oh?' His dark brows rose as he studied her.

  'You want me to be your mistress,' she said bitterly, dark eyes flashing. 'And that's a surrender I'll never give! '

  His eyes narrowed on her face. Brutally, he said, 'We'll see about that, Alicia!' and then suddenly slid away, standing up, thrusting his hands in the pockets of that power suit, every inch the chairman of the board, the multi-millionaire tycoon with that hard, ruthless face and the determination in those steely, narrowed eyes. 'While I'm away, I expect you to carry on with your work, both here and in London.'

  'Oh, do you?' she said angrily, sitting up, dragging her wrap back into a semblance of respectability, her hair love-tousled in a cloud around her slim shoulders, her mouth bruised with his kisses and her eyes flaming pools of dark gypsy passion. 'Well, just you remember that this is my decision! My choice! And it has been all the way down the line!'

  'Well, quite!' he drawled softly, lifting dark arrogant brows.

  Her face flamed. 'Very clever, Jean-Marc! You're trying to imply that I took this job because I wanted you! But that's about what I would expect from an arrogant, conceited --'

  'I know you hate me, darling!' he drawled coolly, eyes mocking. 'But try to miss me while I'm away!' He bent his dark head, kissed her mouth before she could pull away, and studied her oddly before saying, 'I'll miss you.' Then he turned and strode to the door, opening it.

  Alicia leapt off the bed, eyes blazing and ran to him, stopping him in the open doorway. 'I took this job because it was a superb opportunity!' she said fiercely. 'But you're making it too personal! While you're away, Jean-Marc, I shall continue to see myself as a free woman—and, if I wish to exercise my power of choice, I shall!'

  His grey eyes flashed with sudden fury and he caught her arm, bi
ting out, 'You'll take another man? Is that what you're saying, Alicia?'

  'I was talking about my power of choice in life!' she said shakily, staring up at his hard, angry face with a thudding heart. 'But if that includes finding a new boyfriend, then that again is my prerogative!'

  'No, it damned well isn't!' he said thickly, his mouth suddenly white. 'You're mine, Alicia, and I won't have another man coming near you! Is that understood?'

  She was furious, dark eyes flaming. 'But you feel free to amuse yourself with Isabelle Janvier!'

  'Leave her out of this!' he bit out forcefully. 'If I come back to find you've become involved with another man, I'll --' He broke off suddenly, his grey eyes flashing to a movement at the end of the corridor.

  Alicia turned, saw Dominique standing there staring at them with round eyes, and realised what she must think, her face flooding with hot colour and her eyes closing in appalled bitter fury.

  Dominique walked slowly into her bedroom and closed the door.

  'Oh, God...!' Alicia said hoarsely, eyes flickering open to stare in accusation at Jean-Marc. 'She'll think I'm already your mistress!'

  He looked at her, his eyes flint-like. 'Does that upset you, Alicia?'

  'Of course it upsets me!' she flared, hating him bitterly. 'It makes me feel cheap and tacky! What on earth do you expect? You're the Last of the Great French Lovers and she's known you all your legendary life! To her, I'll just look like the latest in a long line of foolish women who fell for your legendary sex appeal!'

  'Is that what you think lies between us, Alicia?' he asked grimly, and released her arm, his face hard. 'Perhaps it's best that I'm going away for three weeks. It will give you time to reflect on my actions.'

  'I don't need to reflect on them!' she said shakily. 'I'm more than familiar with your technique!'

  His eyes flashed with sudden grey fire. 'If I'd wanted you as my mistress,' he bit out under his breath, 'I could have had you by now!'

  Her breath caught. 'You conceited swine!'

  'You wouldn't have stopped me, Alicia!' he said tightly. 'You have been mine to take for a long time! Reflect on that while I am away!'