by Julia James
He stared at her with shock widening his eyes. ‘You’re surely not serious?’
‘Why not?’
‘Because he doesn’t love you, that’s why.’
‘Nor do you.’
‘That’s completely beside the point,’ he said. ‘You can’t possibly be thinking of tying yourself to a man who used you in such a despicable way.’
She gave him an ironic look. ‘You know, your brother Raymond said almost the very same thing about you.’
His eyes narrowed in anger. ‘I have at least been honest with you about my intentions,’ he said. ‘You knew the score when you agreed to marry me.’
‘I really had very little choice in the matter, if you remember,’ she said. ‘You made it pretty clear I would suffer some rather unpleasant financial circumstances if I didn’t agree to go along with your plans. I always knew you were a pretty ruthless sort of man but this time you took it to a whole new level.’
‘Don’t worry, you’ll be more than adequately compensated for your trouble,’ he said, turning to the mini bar and pouring himself a liqueur.
‘But Duncan Brocklehurst said no money was to change hands,’ she said. ‘You’re not supposed to pay me to be your wife.’
He tipped back his head and downed the contents of his glass before he turned back to face her. ‘There are other means of compensation other than money,’ he said.
Hayley couldn’t read his expression. It made her feel distinctly uneasy not knowing what he had planned.
‘I suppose that’s why you bought me such a flashy expensive engagement ring, was it?’ she asked, ‘A little consolation prize for agreeing to be your temporary wife, just like this expensive honeymoon, no doubt to make me think twice about asking for half of your assets when we divorce.’
His expression twisted in cynicism. ‘That’s really why you went ahead with it, wasn’t it, Hayley? It wasn’t about your finances at all. You could have got a temporary line of credit to tide you over if things had got tough. The truth is you wanted to marry me so you could take revenge for what happened when you were sixteen.’
Hayley felt her cheeks flame with shame as the memory of that night flooded her brain. He had humiliated her for attempting to seduce him, the dressing down he had given her had made her hate him for years. He was right in that she had agreed to marry him for revenge, but how could she tell him she had changed her mind?
‘I know how your mind works, Hayley,’ he continued. ‘You’re like a lot of other women I’ve had dealings with. One whiff of rejection and you’re immediately after blood.’
‘That’s not true,’ she said. ‘I don’t want anything from you, or at least not for myself.’
‘I suppose I won’t be able to test the truth of that statement until we file for divorce,’ he said.
‘You’ll just have to wait and see, then, won’t you?’ she tossed back. ‘But if I take anything off you I will give it straight to your son, who surely deserves it more than me.’
His expression became masklike. ‘Have you ever met him?’ he asked after a short but tense silence.
‘No.’
‘How well do you know Miriam Moorebank?’
She found it hard to hold his probing gaze. ‘Not that well,’ she admitted. ‘She was a few years ahead of me at school so we weren’t exactly close friends. I felt sorry for her after … after what happened. She was a bright student who had to give up everything because she chose to keep her baby.’
‘It was her choice.’
Hayley frowned at the cool detachment of his tone. ‘She could have done anything she liked, Jasper,’ she said. ‘She was a straight A student. Do you know what she does now?’
He didn’t answer, but his expression told her he wasn’t the least bit interested. That really annoyed her. How could he treat the mother of his child with such callousness?
‘She cleans at a cheap, sleazy motel in the suburbs,’ she informed him coldly. ‘She could have done medicine or law for God’s sake, and yet she cleans motel rooms for a living. Don’t you feel even the tiniest bit guilty about that?’
His brown-black eyes met hers without flinching. ‘No, I don’t.’
Hayley felt her chest tighten with anger. How could he be so shallow and unfeeling? And, more to the point, how could she have fallen in love with such a man?
‘How often do you see your son?’ she asked.
‘I see Daniel when he wants to see me,’ he answered.
‘How often is that?’
‘It depends.’
‘On what?’
‘On whether he wants me to see him.’
‘Do you actively seek to see him?’ she asked. ‘I mean whenever your busy, shallow, self-serving life allows you the time to do so.’
A flickering pulse of anger appeared at the edge of his mouth. ‘If he wants to contact me he knows how to do so.’
‘So you leave it up to him?’
‘He’s fifteen years old,’ he said. ‘If he wants contact with me, then that’s surely up to him. I can’t force it on him.’
‘He’s your flesh and blood! The teenage years are the hardest of all, particularly for boys. He needs you now more than ever.’
‘I told you to stay out of my personal life, Hayley,’ he said. ‘My relationship with Daniel has nothing to do with you.’
‘I’m your wife, for God’s sake!’
His crooked smile had a hint of cruelty about it. ‘Not for long,’ he reminded her.
She drew herself up stiffly. ‘You’re counting, aren’t you? Every day, every minute you’re counting.’
‘And you aren’t?’
She sent him a furious glare. ‘I’m counting the days until I can rid myself of your presence—permanently.’
He ran his dark gaze over her indolently. ‘You seem to have enjoyed it so far.’ He stepped towards her and lifted her chin, his fingers as hot as a brand on her skin. ‘Who knows? You might even miss me when it’s over.’
‘I’m sure I won’t.’
His mouth came down to within a breath of hers. ‘I’d better make sure every minute of our marriage is truly memorable, then. What do you think, baby girl?’
Hayley couldn’t think. That was the whole trouble. Not with his mouth so close and the temptation of his hard body burning its sexual promise against hers. She felt her eyelids flutter and then finally close as his mouth came down and sealed hers in a blistering kiss of passion. She felt his arms lift her as if she weighed …? Well, a whole lot less than she weighed, she thought a little wryly as he carried her to the huge bed.
She sighed with deep pleasure as she sank into the soft as air mattress as his weight came down over her, his body pinning her beneath him, his mouth fused to hers, his hands already seeking the softness of her breasts. His warm palms shaped her through the thin fabric of her dress before he removed it over her head with an urgency that thrilled her, his dark, burning gaze feeding of her hungrily as she was finally naked before him. She sucked in her belly as his teeth surrounded her right nipple, the sexy graze arching her spine as he pulled on her almost savagely. She gave another ragged sigh of bliss as his head moved down her body until he came to the throbbing heart of her need, his tongue a hot, piercing sword of sensuality as he took her to heaven.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
HAYLEY WOKE TO the warm brush of sunshine on her face and the heated press of Jasper’s body at her back. She moved experimentally, not all that surprised when her inner muscles protested slightly when she shifted her legs against his.
His lovemaking of the night before had been breathtakingly satisfying. Her body felt as if it had been lifted to the heights of awareness, every nerve tingling in response to his mouth and hands and hard male presence. She had not thought herself capable of such wild abandonment. Even recalling his grunting pleasure as he took her from behind for the first time had her belly quivering all over again, especially now as she could feel him stirring between her legs.
‘Are you awa
ke?’ he asked, kissing her neck.
She turned her head to look over her shoulder at him. ‘Is that meant to be your idea of foreplay?’
He flipped her onto her back and, after quickly applying a condom, sank into her without preamble, his dark eyes glinting with amusement. ‘I could feel you twitching and rubbing up against me for the last half-hour,’ he said. ‘Haven’t you had enough of me yet?’
Never, Hayley thought as she looked into his smouldering gaze. She had given up denying her attraction towards him. There didn’t seem any point fighting it when all she wanted was to be in his arms for as long as he wanted her there.
‘Haven’t you had enough of me?’ she turned his question around.
He pressed a bruising kiss to her mouth as he sank even deeper into her silky warmth, moving in and out slowly but tantalisingly. ‘Not yet,’ he said. ‘I’m still discovering things about you.’
‘What things?’ she asked, running a fingertip over the arch of one of his dark brows, her body on fire as he thrust deeper.
He captured her hand and sucked on her fingertip for a moment before answering. ‘I had no idea you talked in your sleep,’ he said, his thumb rolling over the underside of her wrist as he held her gaze.
Hayley felt her stomach drop in alarm. What had she said? Had she inadvertently revealed her feelings towards him? ‘What did I talk about?’ she asked, trying her best not to sound too concerned.
‘I’m not sure I should tell you.’ His dark eyes twinkled. ‘It might embarrass you.’
Twin pools of colour began to heat her cheeks. ‘I was probably having a nightmare or something.’
He didn’t elaborate, instead he picked up his pace until she was breathlessly trying to keep up, her body tightening around him, her senses spinning as he took her on a rollercoaster ride to paradise.
She floated back down to earth a few minutes later, her body slick with sweat.
Jasper eased himself away and, brushing back her hair off her face, pressed a kiss to the tip of her nose. ‘Do you feel like going on a picnic?’ he asked.
‘Where to?’
‘To a private beach,’ he said. ‘I’ve organised a gourmet picnic hamper. I’ll pick it up while you have the first shower.’
Hayley soaped her body a few minutes later as the water cascaded down, her flesh tingling all over as she saw the bruise-like fingerprints on her thighs where Jasper had held her to receive his driving force. She shivered all over as she recalled the almost primal possession of his mouth on their tenderness. Her hands drifted to the seam of her body, the flesh still tender and swollen from his demanding lovemaking, her awareness of her femininity an awakening in itself. She felt like a priceless musical instrument that only his hands could play with such exquisite harmony.
She was dressed in a bikini and sarong and sandals when he came back with the picnic and they spent a glorious afternoon lazing on one of the private beaches, sipping wine and sharing the sumptuous feast.
Jasper had even stopped to pick up two stinger suits so they could swim and snorkel in the tropical water without fear of being stung by the deadly box jellyfish.
The afternoon drifted into evening, where after a fabulous dinner they sat together in the private spa, sipping even more champagne as they looked over the silver ocean below, its surface wrinkled by a light warm breeze.
Hayley gave a contented sigh as she stretched out her legs. ‘I wish I could stay here for ever.’
His feet began to toy with hers beneath the bubbling water. ‘With me?’ he asked with a sexy smile.
She smiled back at him coyly. ‘I suppose there could be worse people I could get stranded on a tropical island with.’
‘I must have moved up on that list of yours,’ he said, stroking her inner thigh with his foot. ‘Wasn’t I the last person on earth or something?’
She splashed some water at him, but he captured her hands and pulled her towards him so she was straddling him. Her breath halted when she felt the hot probe of his erection, her body instantly on fire.
His eyes locked down on hers. ‘You know something, Hayley?’
‘What?’ she breathed raggedly as she gazed at his mouth as it came towards hers.
‘I think it’s been far too long since we last made love,’ he said, brushing her mouth with his before adding, ‘It’s been about three hours at least.’
‘You’re right,’ she said, her tongue darting out to flicker teasingly against his lips. ‘So what do you suggest we do about it?’
His dark eyes glinted as he cupped her face in his hands. ‘I was thinking something along the lines of this,’ he said as he covered her mouth with his.
The next six days passed in a blur of blissful contentment as Hayley lapped up the luxury of the island paradise and the heady magic of being in Jasper’s arms. Her body sang to the tune of his touch, her senses leaping whenever he looked at her with one of his lazy I-know-what-you’re-thinking-about smiles. She couldn’t help shivering with delight when she thought of the sensual heights she had scaled under his expert tuition, and in her darker moments wondered how she would live without such breathtaking excitement in the days to come. He hadn’t mentioned the end of their marriage again; she didn’t dare hope it was because he was having second thoughts about ending it at the agreed time. And in an effort to prolong the harmony they were sharing she mostly stayed clear of touchy subjects, trying to make the most of the time together so she could have some memories to keep that weren’t tainted by their usual bitter bickering.
She found it surprising how much she enjoyed his company when she wasn’t trying to score points off him. He seemed to relax as well, the shadows that lurked in his dark eyes gradually fading and the tension she’d grown used to seeing in his body visibly easing.
But to her dismay they had only just landed in Cairns to pick up the connecting flight back to Sydney when Hayley noticed a change in him. He had briefly turned his mobile on to check for messages and as he scrolled through them she saw a dark curtain come down over his features.
‘Is everything all right?’ she asked as he pocketed his phone with a frown.
‘What?’ he asked with an irritated edge to his tone as he looked down at her, as if he’d never seen her before and couldn’t work out why she was standing there beside him.
‘There’s no need to bite my head off,’ she said with an affronted toss of her head.
His hand scored a jagged pathway through his hair as he let out a sigh. ‘Sorry, sweetheart,’ he said with a quick on-off smile that didn’t involve his eyes. ‘I have some unexpected business to see to when I get back.’
‘Do you want to talk to me about it?’ she asked, linking her arm through his. ‘Maybe I can help in some way.’
He looked down at her arm and gently but firmly removed it from his. ‘Thanks, but no, thanks. I can manage. You have your own business to run without becoming involved in mine.’
Hayley felt her shoulders sag with disappointment. He was already shutting her out of his life. She followed him to the boarding gate but he was silent all the way back to Sydney, barely addressing a single comment to her, his expression pulled tight as if something deep inside him was gnawing at him.
His mood was no better when they arrived at his house. He prowled about like a caged lion, even snapping at her when she asked him what he wanted to do about dinner.
‘For God’s sake, Hayley, will you stop it with the loving-wife routine? You’re driving me nuts being so nice.’
‘Well, perhaps you’d like to move out now?’ she said, folding her arms across her body. ‘Why drag this out another three weeks when it’s obvious you’re already sick to death of me.’
He let out a hard-bitten expletive and reached for his keys. ‘I’m going out,’ he informed her tersely.
‘Where are you going?’
‘To see someone. Don’t wait up.’
‘I probably won’t even be here when you get back,’ she clipped out, desperately fighting b
ack tears.
‘That’s entirely up to you, of course,’ he said, and without another backward glance closed the door behind him.
Hayley seriously considered leaving right then and there, but she was tired and hungry and the thought of traipsing back to her flat with her things was suddenly all too difficult.
Instead she unpacked her things and did a load of washing before having a shower and a bite to eat … well, perhaps more than just a bite, she thought with a rueful grimace at the empty ice-cream tub as she stuffed it into the bin.
She watched television until her eyes began to glaze over, and looking at her watch, felt her insides twist when she saw it was almost three a.m. Jasper hadn’t returned and, recalling the text message he’d received, she couldn’t help wondering if one of his many lovers had arranged a late night assignation with him. Her blood boiled at the thought of him cavorting with another woman so soon after marrying her. In spite of the temporary nature of their marriage, it still hurt unbearably to think he cared so little for her feelings that he would openly betray the intimacy they had shared over the last week.
She trudged despondently off to bed, choosing to sleep in the spare room to send him a very clear message of what she thought of his behaviour, but in the end her message went unnoticed as he didn’t return at all.
Hayley came downstairs bleary-eyed the next morning to find a tiny middle-aged Filipino woman bustling about the kitchen, her enthusiastic greeting when she saw Hayley doing a power of good to her battered self-esteem, even though the housekeeper’s rapid speech left some things lost in translation.
‘My name is Rosario,’ she said. ‘You his wife, ah so beautiful! You happy girl, eh? He very good in the bedroom, yes?’ Her eyes twinkled mischievously.
‘Um … er …’ Hayley faltered, trying not to blush.
‘Would you like breakfast? I make good breakfast for you. Sit down. Would you like cup of coffee?’
Hayley sat down and lapped up the attention. Rosario chatted non-stop but she didn’t mind—it was a relief not to have to contribute more than a ‘yes’ or ‘no’ or ‘oh, really’ now and again.
