Trust in Summer Madness

by Carole Mortimer

  ‘So she wasn’t stupid enough to marry him either.’

  Sian stiffened. ‘I believe it was Jarrett’s decision not to marry.’

  ‘He seems to make a habit of it!’

  ‘Yes.’ She didn’t dispute what was fact, she knew just how selfish Jarrett could be.

  ‘Do you still love him?’ Chris had calmed down a little now and was more his gentle self.

  ‘No,’ she answered with certainty. ‘My love for him died a long time ago.’

  Chris came over to put his arms about her, drawing her into the comfort of his arms. ‘Do you still love me?’ he asked teasingly.

  She gave him a warm smile. ‘You know I do.’

  He rested his forehead against hers; he was only a couple of inches taller than her. ‘I love you too. I just found it strange being confronted with your last fiancé.’

  ‘You make it sound as if I’ve had hundreds!’ she derided. ‘And as Jarrett said, we were never officially engaged. I doubt he ever meant to go through with marrying me, even if he and Nina hadn’t—well, if they hadn’t got back together.’ She rested against Chris’s shoulder. ‘I was young, and naïve, and easily impressed by his maturity and experience. A bit like hundreds of other girls of that age. You don’t realise until it’s too late that you were just another conquest, a conquest to be made in any way possible, even with an offer of marriage.’

  She spoke quietly, bitterly, aware that she wasn’t telling the whole truth, not to Chris or herself. Jarrett’s offer of marriage had been genuine, as had been his love for her; he couldn’t possibly have pretended the way he trembled with the emotion, he was usually a man of strength and determination. But she hadn’t been enough for him, and he had ultimately returned to the more sophisticated Nina. Finding out that the other woman still featured very much in his life had been a humiliating and painful experience, one she had never forgotten.

  ‘I’m sorry I put you through all that, darling,’ Chris smoothed her hair. ‘I was mad to think you could still think anything of him after the way he treated you.’

  Sian didn’t answer, aware that she would be telling a lie if she did. She wasn’t indifferent to Jarrett. She didn’t love him, but she wasn’t indifferent to him either. When he had touched her at the restaurant she had felt that familiar quicksilver excitement that had been a fundamental part of their relationship; she could feel it now if she closed her eyes and thought about him.

  But that was something she was trying not to do, and she returned Chris’s kiss with more than their usually restrained passion, seeking oblivion from the burning ache in her body, and knowing it wasn’t going to happen. She had no doubt of Chris’s desire for her, could feel that desire for her now, but they had agreed to wait until they were married before making love. She knew that no matter what the provocation Chris would never break that agreement.

  Although tonight he came very close to it! ‘Sian darling…!’ he groaned against her bared breasts, shuddering against her before refastening her clothes without haste or embarrassment. ‘I wish it were our wedding night,’ he said huskily, his dark curls ruffled from her caressing hands, his face still taut with desire. ‘Then I wouldn’t have to leave you like this—or myself either,’ he added ruefully.

  In a way Sian was glad he did have to leave, knowing that tonight his lovemaking, which she had always enjoyed, had been a substitute for more heated caresses, more experienced hands, hands that knew all the pleasure spots of her body as if by instinct.

  God, she wished Jarrett had never come back, wished she never had to see him again. But there was no reason why she should; she couldn’t be forced into meeting him. Although the determination in Jarrett’s eyes when he told her he wanted to talk to her seemed to deny that. Jarrett King had always been very adept at getting what he wanted from life. And for some reason he wanted to talk to her.

  Chris stood up, tucking his loosened shirt into his trousers before pulling on his jacket. ‘Try and talk some sense into Bethany, hmm?’ he said grimly. ‘She really shouldn’t get involved with a man like King.’

  ‘No.’ Sian stood up too, walking with him to the door.

  ‘I’m sorry, darling.’ Chris gently touched her cheek. ‘I’m sure that when you thought yourself in love with him that he wasn’t the hard bastard he seems now. But the way he was tonight he can only be bad for Bethany.’

  ‘I’ve already said I’ll talk to her,’ she said stiffly.

  ‘Sian—’

  ‘It’s very late, Chris,’ her voice softened, knowing he was only showing concern for her sister, ‘and I’m tired.’

  ‘Of course you are,’ he nodded, bending to kiss her lightly on the lips. ‘I’ll see you in the morning, darling.’

  She went back to the lounge after he had left and cleared away the coffee tray, washing the cups and saucers as a way of occupying herself while she waited for Bethany to come home. The talk with her sister would be better taking place tonight, even though she wasn’t looking forward to it. Bethany could be very determined when she set her mind on something, and her attraction to Jarrett seemed to be very strong.

  Chris had been wrong about one thing. Jarrett had been a hard bastard three years ago too, although at the time, like Bethany now, she had been too fascinated by him to realise what he was like.

  A few days before her wedding to him she had learnt exactly what sort of man he was; she had refused to even think of marrying him then and going to America with him. And yet she had still clung to some stupid belief that what she had seen had been a mistake, that her own eyes had deceived her. The day Jarrett left Swannell with Nina Marshall she had known it was the end as far as they were concerned.

  And now Bethany was out with him. Her young sister couldn’t have forgotten their father’s fury when Jarrett had let Sian down so selfishly, or the pain he had caused Sian. She had to be made to see that he would only hurt her too. And preferably before their father learnt that she was seeing him!

  It was almost twelve when she heard the sound of a powerful engine roaring to a stop outside the house, guessing Jarrett still had a liking for fast cars; he had had a Jaguar sports-car three years ago. He had been rich enough in those days, the firm he ran for his uncle was very successful, but being head of the King Construction Company had made him into a multi-millionaire; he probably drove a Ferrari or Lamborghini now!

  The front door closed softly as Bethany let herself into the house, and Sian was drying her hands from washing up as she went out to meet her young sister, her voice a soft whisper so that they didn’t disturb their father. ‘Bethany, I—’ the words lodged in her throat as she saw the man standing confidently at Bethany’s side. Jarrett!

  She was sure her face lost some of its colour. To see him here in her home again, after all this time! She glanced nervously up the stairs, although there was no sound from her father’s room.

  Jarrett’s mouth twisted derisively as he saw that worried glance. ‘Shall we go into the lounge?’ He led the way with a confidence that spoke of past familiarity, his welcome assured then.

  But it wasn’t now! Dear God, did Bethany have no sense? It seemed not; her sister still had that dreamy enthralled look in her eyes.

  Jarrett seated himself in an armchair with a confidence that knew no limits, resting the ankle of one leg on the knee of the other, his gaze steady and assured as he looked up at the two standing women.

  ‘I—er—I invited Jarrett in for coffee.’ Bethany at least seemed compelled to talk.

  ‘Really?’ Sian said stiffly, having no intention of going to bed and leaving Jarrett alone down here with her sister. She remembered too many occasions in the past when she and Jarrett had been stretched out side by side on that sofa, their lovemaking silent but impassioned while her father and sister slept on unaware upstairs.

  Jarrett’s gaze was narrowed on her face, his brows raised questioningly as her thoughts made her blush. ‘I suggest you go and make that coffee, Bethany,’ he said deeply. ‘For three.
’

  ‘None for me,’ Sian refused abruptly. ‘It’s getting rather late, Bethany,’ she added pointedly.

  Her sister flushed resentfully. ‘Jarrett?’

  ‘I’d like coffee,’ he drawled challengingly.

  With a defiant look in Sian’s direction Bethany went off to the kitchen.

  Sian was very conscious of being completely alone with Jarrett, of him sitting only a few feet away. And she didn’t like it, she had a feeling of being manoeuvred.

  ‘Your fiancé has gone?’ he asked softly.

  She kept her face stiffly averted. ‘Yes.’

  ‘He knew about us.’ It was a statement, not a question.

  ‘Yes.’

  Jarrett stood up, at once seeming predatory, and Sian took a wary step backwards. His mouth twisted derisively. ‘I never needed to use force on you, Sian,’ he drawled mockingly.

  ‘You would now,’ she snapped.

  ‘If I were interested,’ he watched with satisfaction as she paled, ‘and I am,’ he added softly. ‘I telephoned you earlier tonight, as soon as I got to town, but you weren’t at home,’ he told her huskily, suddenly very near, the heat of his body, the seduction of his aftershave, reaching out to her.

  Sian refused to look at him. ‘Why on earth would you telephone me?’ she asked jerkily.

  Suddenly he was more than just close, he was dangerously so, the lean length of his body curving into the back of her as his arms came about her waist and pulled her into him. ‘Guess,’ he murmured throatily against her earlobe.

  CHAPTER THREE

  SHE couldn’t stand it, couldn’t bear his proximity. Her legs felt weak, her heart was beating a wild tattoo against her rib-cage, her breathing so shallow she hardly breathed at all.

  She felt his hands slowly start to move towards her breasts, and with a strong tug she moved quickly away from him, putting some distance between them as she stood behind a chair, seeing Jarrett’s eyes gleam with mockery at the gesture; no chair would save her from him if he wanted her back in his arms. He made no effort to do so.

  ‘I can guess all too easily,’ she snapped.

  ‘I doubt it.’ His eyes were narrowed.

  ‘Oh, but I can,’ Sian scorned. ‘You wanted a woman to keep you company your first evening back in Swannell. I’m only too pleased Bethany could accommodate you.’

  ‘You aren’t pleased at all,’ he mocked. ‘And it would have been you I took out to dinner if you’d been at home when I telephoned.’

  ‘How fortunate for me that I wasn’t here! And for you too. You see, I would have refused to go anywhere with you.’ And she had a sneaking suspicion that she had been at home for at least part of Jarrett’s conversation with Bethany, remembering the haste with which her sister had ended her telephone call when Sian had got in from work.

  Her sister needn’t have worried, she certainly wouldn’t have accepted an invitation from Jarrett. But if she had known Bethany had she would have tried to prevent her seeing him. Maybe her sister had known that, and felt it wiser to keep silent about the call. She had a feeling that was nearer the truth.

  ‘I trust my sister has been suitably impressed,’ she said contemptuously. ‘But of course she has—you made sure of that. You can switch your charm on and off like a tap when it suits you to,’ she recalled bitterly. ‘Only I have no intention of standing back and letting you hurt my sister.’

  ‘The way I hurt you,’ he finished hardly.

  ‘Exactly,’ she snapped, gold flecks shining deeply in her hazel eyes.

  ‘And how about the way you hurt me?’ he rasped coldly. ‘Or don’t we talk about that?’

  ‘Hurt you?’ she derided scornfully. ‘You can’t be hurt, Jarrett. Only people with feelings and emotions can be hurt. And you don’t have either!’

  His face showed he was blazingly angry, his mouth a thin taut line. ‘And you don’t have an ounce of trust in your body,’ he ground out. ‘If you had you would have believed me about Nina Marshall three years ago!’

  She turned away. ‘I don’t want to talk about it.’

  ‘You never did,’ he wrenched her round roughly. ‘And because of my damned pride I didn’t see why I should keep explaining myself to you.’ His eyes glittered down at her like twin jewels. ‘Has your distrust kept you warm at night, Sian? Has it told you it loves you? Has it made love to you until your head spins? Has it done any of that?’

  She paled more with each groaned taunt, and turned away, refusing to listen to any more of this torture.

  But Jarrett would have none of that, his fingers biting into her arm as he made her listen to him. ‘Because my pride hasn’t given me any of that, Sian—’

  ‘I’m sure your women have!’ she dismissed coldly. ‘As Chris has me.’

  Jarrett’s face darkened with an ugliness she had thought never to see again, his mouth twisted with fury, his eyes two shafts of burning light as they blazed down at her in total anger. ‘Is he your lover?’ he ground out.

  She flushed. ‘I don’t see what that has to do with you,’ she challenged.

  ‘Don’t you?’ he returned softly, dangerously. ‘If his body has mated with yours—and I refuse to call it making love,’ he added harshly at her gasp of outrage. ‘I made love to you,’ he claimed arrogantly. ‘No other man could ever do that.’

  ‘You arrogant—’

  He sighed, shaking his head at her vehemence. ‘A person can only find that true oneness with another person once in a lifetime. We both know that we were that for each other, and no amount of denial on your part can change that.’

  ‘Then it’s a pity you didn’t realise it at the time!’

  ‘I did,’ he bit out. ‘You didn’t. Has Newman been to bed with you? If he has I’ll kill him!’

  Sian gasped at the coldness of the statement. Jarrett’s face was devoid of expression—and she knew that he meant every word. This man was dangerous. ‘You—’

  ‘Sorry I was so long with the coffee.’ Bethany came into the room. ‘The percolator broke down, and it took me ages to realise the fuse had gone. I—’ she had looked up from carrying the tray, her chatter coming to a stop as she saw the tension on the faces of the two people in front of her.

  Sian saw her sister’s face tighten with suspicion, the blue eyes narrowing, and she forced her own expression to be her one of usual cool confidence. ‘Did you find another fuse?’ She went forward to take the tray out of Bethany’s hands, putting it down on the coffee-table.

  ‘Eventually.’ Bethany was still a little uncertain about what had been going on in her absence, frowning slightly.

  ‘You didn’t take the one out of the iron again, did you?’ Sian teased, aware that Jarrett’s hands were slowly unclenching at his sides as he regained control, his face relaxing into its usual lazy amusement.

  ‘No.’ Bethany still watched them intently. ‘I found the new ones you’d put in the drawer.’

  ‘Good,’ Sian smiled. ‘Are you going to pour the coffee, Bethany?’ she asked lightly. ‘I’m sure Jarrett is dying for a cup.’

  He was completely under control now, smiling his most charming smile at the more susceptible Bethany. ‘Black, no sugar,’ he requested huskily.

  Bethany gave him a provocative smile. ‘The same for me. I brought you a cup too, Sian,’ she looked at her. ‘Would you like some?’

  Sian wanted to go to bed, to forget all about Jarrett King for a few hours of oblivion, and most of all she wanted to forget the conversation she had just had with him. He had seemed to be implying that she was part of the reason he was back in Swannell, that he wanted to continue their relationship where it had left off three years ago.

  Never! It had taken her two years to pick up the pieces of her life the last time he had destroyed her; she wasn’t going to let him do it again. And he would do it; he was the type of man who needed more than one woman in his life. He already had Bethany and the absent Arlette, and now he wanted her too!

  ‘Yes, please,’ she accepted the
coffee, determined to stay down here as long as she could and so lessen the time Jarrett and Bethany spent alone together.

  Jarrett’s gaze moved to the sofa in silent mockery as he seemed to read her thoughts, and she gave him a look of cold dislike. This man forgot nothing!

  ‘Will you be in Swannell long, Jarrett?’ she asked as they all sipped their coffee.

  He shrugged. ‘That depends.’

  ‘On what?’ Her eyes narrowed.

  ‘Jarrett has put in a bid to build the new shopping centre and hotel,’ Bethany told her smugly. ‘So if he’s the one to get the building contract—’

  ‘Oh, I will be,’ he drawled confidently.

  ‘Then he’ll be here for some time,’ Bethany beamed her satisfaction of that idea.

  ‘Yes,’ Sian realised hollowly, having no idea Jarrett’s was one of the three companies to put in for that contract. No one had mentioned it before now. Or perhaps none of the town council had actually realised King Construction Company was Jarrett King. Most of them were too old to know their own name! ‘Surely a contract like that is rather small to deal with yourself, Jarrett? I thought you had gone on to bigger and better things.’ Her sarcasm was unmistakeable.

  ‘I have,’ he snapped. ‘But I couldn’t resist the idea of coming back here. It’s nice to see old friends again,’ he taunted softly. ‘And make new ones,’ he smiled at Bethany.

  Bethany gave a coy smile as he openly flirted with her. ‘You knew me before, Jarrett.’

  ‘But you weren’t a friend then, were you?’ he said throatily.

  God, the man was a monster! He was deliberately attracting Bethany, and Sian wasn’t naïve enough to think he was doing it to spite her. He was enjoying the flirtation, damn him!

  ‘So you intend building one of those concrete monstrosities in town,’ she heard herself scorn.

  The green eyes frosted over, his jaw suddenly rigid with anger. ‘My company doesn’t build concrete monstrosities,’ he rasped.

  ‘No?’ she arched a brow mockingly.