Still something was missing. She longed for the man she only barely glimpsed when they were alone in bed in the dark of night. The man who cradled her close to his body and whispered his plans for the future. The man who’d visited a graveyard at night and stood beside a century-old plot and held her like he was never going to let go. The man who’d been her first lover, and she had a feeling, would be her last. The man who’d conquered her body and soul.
“What are you still doing here?” Preston asked from the doorway.
“Working.” Fatigue lined his face, and he moved stiffly into the room. As if he’d been sitting down all day. He worked too hard. Always trying to increase his revenue and outdo his competition.
“Are you ready to knock off?” he asked, rubbing the back of his neck with one hand.
“Sit down on the settee.”
“Why?” He moved with ease through the room, and she congratulated herself on making him comfortable in the past. Something he’d never been before.
“I’m going to give you a neck rub.”
“I’d rather have a naked skin massage.”
“Not in your contract, bud.”
“I’m willing to renegotiate.”
“I’m listening.” She wanted to renegotiate, as well. Wanted to be more to him than a lover. Maybe he was ready to admit that they could make a life together. A life as husband and wife.
“How does an all-expense paid trip to Barbados sound?”
“A vacation?”
“More like an extended stay. I’ve finalized the property deal and I’m ready to begin work. What do you think?”
“It sounds complicated.” She’d love to travel to an island paradise with him, but she couldn’t live there with him for the months it would take to open a resort.
“Only if you make it,” he said, taking her hands and pulling her around to his lap.
She let herself rest against him, inhaling the clean, crisp scent of his cologne. It was easy to be lulled into believing that she and Preston were meant to be, when she sat close to him in the dark. But in her heart she knew that she couldn’t travel with him as his mistress. Honestly, she wouldn’t even follow him around the world as his wife.
Her life was in New Orleans with her shop on St. Charles Street and anything else would leave her feeling like a shell of a woman. She needed her family and her antiques and…Preston.
“Barbados is only complicated if you let it be.”
“I can’t go with you, Preston.”
He was silent for a minute. Only the sounds of their breathing filled the air. She was afraid of what he’d say next. Of what his actions would be. Both of them needed something the other couldn’t provide, and they were reaching the point where one of them would have to compromise. Lily didn’t know if she could.
“Why are you here so late?”
“My boss is a slave driver.”
“I’ll have the man’s job.”
“You already do.”
“Seriously, I was having a great fantasy of you in bed and me sneaking in and waking you up.”
“What would this waking up involve?”
“Every nerve in your body.”
“Ooo, I’m sorry I’m going to miss it.”
“You won’t. You’ll just be lucid when we get started.”
She smiled to herself. She’d given him a key to her house last week and he’d yet to use it. More than likely if she’d gone home he’d have woken her with the doorbell.
“I can’t wait,” she said, her heart heavy.
“You don’t have to,” he said. Picking her up in his arms, he carried her into the darkened bedroom and laid her on the bed.
Lily never seemed more out of reach to him than when she talked about love. He reinforced the bond he’d created between them by making love to her. Tonight he’d felt her slipping away. Knew that a woman like Lily wouldn’t be content to travel around the world as his mistress, but he had nothing else to offer her.
She’d eschewed the things that women in the past had clung to. Even the trinkets that advertisers promised would please women didn’t please Lily. She liked roses and chocolates and fancy dinners, but he knew she preferred quiet nights spent together in her home.
The navy-blue coverlet was plush. He wanted to see Lily’s skin against it. He’d purchased it with her in mind.
The spill of light from the other room illuminated the bed but also provided cover for him. He was torn between wanting to see every nuance of Lily’s face and body as he made love to her and not wanting her to see what he couldn’t hide any longer. He needed her with a quiet desperation that was making him doubt his beliefs.
And she was slipping away. He had to keep her tied to him. Had to find something to keep her close if only for the next few days, until he left Louisiana. She watched him with feminine awareness and something else. Something deeper. He figured she’d been telling herself that she was in love with him and when he looked into those deep-blue eyes, he almost believed she was.
He stripped off his clothing with impatient movements. Wanting to bond with Lily in the most elemental and satisfying way. Longing to feel her tender flesh under his. To be held tight in her embrace.
Naked, he approached the bed. Lily had kicked her shoes off and began disrobing as if sensing his urgency. The primal animal that lurked beneath the surface of his sophistication had been released. He had to bond with her. Had to mate with her. Had to make her his.
“I can’t wait,” he said. His voice guttural to his own ears.
Lily didn’t flinch away. Only opened her arms and welcomed him.
“Come to me,” she said, her voice that of the sirens.
He took her mouth in a deep, drugging kiss. Her taste assuaged a thirst he wasn’t conscious of having until she entered his life. He let his mouth leave hers and found the pulse at the base of her neck. Her life force flowed through his lips into his body.
He couldn’t wait another minute to touch her. All of her.
He pushed her skirt to her waist and her panties down her legs. He palmed her breasts through the layer of her bra and shirt. Her nipples hardened and he needed to taste her. Not through a barrier of cloth but mouth to flesh.
“Open your blouse.”
She followed his command. Her fingers working quickly on the buttons that lined the front of that white shirt. The one she wore when she had a meeting. The one she thought made her look professional but only made him want to peel it away.
Once her pretty breasts were bare, he bent and suckled her gently, knowing the kind of touch she liked. She writhed under him, and he took her nipple deeper in his mouth, scraping his teeth along her aroused flesh.
She was always so responsive. She made him feel like the only man in the world.
“I need you now, Preston.”
The words sliced through him, fueling the desire already careening out of control in his veins. He couldn’t wait a minute longer, had to make her his own. Sliding his hands up her thighs, he caressed the hidden secrets of her body. She was warm and wet.
He stretched her carefully open with two fingers and positioned himself at the portal of her body.
“Hurry, Pres.”
He lifted her hips and slid home. She tightened around him and he plunged faster and deeper taking her into his soul. He reached between their bodies and stroked the center of her desire until she made that high keening sound that signaled her climax. Preston grabbed her hips and plunged one last time. The release spread throughout his body, and he let himself rest cradled in her arms.
Knowing he’d found the home he’d always searched for. Knowing he’d found a woman to match him on every level. Knowing he’d finally met the one woman who couldn’t be bought.
Twelve
Lily had looked forward to the evening of the grand opening. She felt like Cinderella finally going to the ball. It had taken her two weeks of shopping, but she’d finally found a dress as magical as she hoped the evening would be. It
was only a simple sheath, but it was made of a light-green, almost see-through, chiffon and covered in sequins and beads. She’d splurged and spent time in the tanning salon to make sure her back was tanned so that the deep vee in her dress wasn’t wasted.
She’d had a pedicure and manicure and felt feminine from the top of her coifed hair to the tip of her painted toenails. Standing in front of the mirror in only her underpants and high heels she thought that later on Preston would enjoy what was underneath the sexy dress as much as the dress. She spritzed perfume on her body and then wiggled into her dress.
Her hair fell around her face in sassy curls and she applied just a little blue highlight to her eyelids. She wanted everything to be perfect tonight because she was going to present Preston with the perfect couple. The one he denied existed. A man and woman who were together for one reason and one reason alone—love.
She’d had her doubts that Preston would believe in love, but after Christmas morning when he’d held her tight and told her he never wanted to let go—the first time he’d ever come close to confessing what he was feeling—she’d known he loved her. He didn’t have any practice saying the words or identifying the emotion but once he realized how perfect they were together, he’d understand.
She’d softened him up by writing another love quote in a card decorated with a picture of Bourbon Street in the rain. She wanted him to see it tonight before she confessed her love. She’d added candles around the room. And put her favorite Miles Davis CD in the player. Next to the quote she laid a specially wrapped gift she’d made for Preston.
He had everything money could buy so she’d thought long and hard to find something that he couldn’t buy for himself. She’d decided on a collage on a red heart of their time together. A picture of the two of them at her cousin Marti’s wedding was situated in the center, and around it she’d added the matchbook cover from Van Benthuysen-Elms Mansion where he’d first asked her about love. A post card from Rockefeller Center and a shell she’d collected when they’d spent their weekend together on his yacht. She’d added a bunch of other little mementos, but those held center stage.
She wanted Preston to see the love she’d showered on him. To realize how important they were together and how deeply their lives had become entwined.
Someone knocked on the bedroom door of the suite she’d decorated for Preston. She knew it had to be him. She took one last glance at herself in the mirror before crossing to let him in.
“Hello, angel.”
Preston was born to wear a tuxedo. He made her feel underdressed in her flashy eveningwear. It had something to do with the ease in which he moved. However, the intensity in his gaze assured her he didn’t find her apparel offensive.
“Turn around,” he ordered.
She pivoted slowly, feeling every inch a woman and proud of her female body. And when she felt the brush of his lips against her neck, she melted back against him. Only with Preston did she feel this complete.
“Gorgeous. Want to skip the party and stay here?”
“No. I spent a lot of money on this dress.”
“It’s a shame none of it went toward fabric.”
“Ha.”
He continued to watch her with an intensity she found unnerving. Was the dress not right? “It’s okay, isn’t it?”
“What?”
“My dress.”
“If it were any more okay, I’d spend the evening fighting off every man at the party, to keep them from trying to steal you away from me.”
She smiled at him. Her heart melting. “No one could steal me from you.”
A darkness entered his eyes. She knew he didn’t believe that any emotion could last. Even lust ended. Success and the flush of victory were short-term. How could love last? she knew he was asking himself.
“I would fight to the death for you, Preston.”
“Let’s hope it doesn’t come to that. We’re not dressed for battle.”
He turned them so they were reflected in the mirror. He was strong and solid behind her. The man of her dreams, the one she’d hadn’t realized she’d been searching for until she found him.
“I feel like I’m a fairy princess.”
“Tonight you are.”
“What happens at midnight?” she asked, unable to help herself.
“The prince will fulfill your every desire.”
“You already do.”
“Well, tonight I have something important to ask you,” he said, and led her out of the room.
Preston had decided to formalize his request for Lily to come and live with him in Barbados. He knew she’d never settle for a marriage to someone who couldn’t love her. He’d tried to convince himself that lying about love would be okay, but it hadn’t worked. Relationships based on falsehoods never survived. Even he knew that.
But he was convinced he could persuade her to become his companion. To call Lily a mistress would be a slur on her character and on what she meant to him. He watched her charm her way through the crowded ballroom as the clock came closer to midnight. Instead of jealousy a certain sense of pride flooded him.
She was the perfect balance to his personality even in a social setting. She was charming and friendly and knew details about the people who surrounded him that Preston had never bothered to learn.
He’d never noticed the distance he kept between himself and others until Lily had entered his life. He waved at some friends but didn’t stop to chat. He wanted to spirit Lily away from the ball.
Even though he’d scheduled the gala to take place on New Year’s Eve, he didn’t want to be in the middle of the crowds at the beginning of the New Year. He wanted Lily to himself so he could ask her to spend the next year traveling and working with him. They could renew their agreement every year at midnight. He kind of fancied the idea, especially when Lily had made her reference to fairy tales.
He’d even had a diamond-slipper charm made for Lily to wear once she’d agreed. It was a trifle, but she wasn’t the type who expected expensive jewels, clothes and cars.
He pushed his way through the throng of men surrounding her. She smiled when she saw him and reached for his hand as he approached. She never broke her attention to the man speaking, but she’d let Preston know she’d been aware of him.
He claimed her for a slow dance. Needing to feel her close to him. Closer than this public place would allow. He wanted to carry her from this place but he couldn’t leave yet.
“Everything going smoothly?” she asked, her fingers toyed with the hair at the back of his neck. Heat surged through his body. He hardened in a rush as if he’d never known the paradise of taking Lily into his arms and loving her deep in the night.
He forced himself to answer her question. “Yes. Several of my colleagues have complimented the decor. I gave them your business address.”
“Thanks. I did do a good job here.”
She flushed. He’d noticed that she could accept a challenge with finesse but a compliment always knocked her off guard. And while he’d take any advantage he could get with this feisty woman, she should be more confident of herself and her skills.
“You’re too modest.”
“No one likes a braggart.”
“It’s not ego when you acknowledge the hard work involved.”
“I don’t see you strutting around the room.”
“Would you like to?”
“Oh, yes. But only if we’re alone.”
“You think I should strut.”
“Yes, I do.”
An uncomfortable emotion flooded him, and he changed the subject. He didn’t mind wanting Lily with a desire that made him want her by his side, but he couldn’t admit to caring for her.
“This resort is going to be the crown jewel in the Dexter Resort Hotel chain.”
“It will always be special to me.”
He cleared his throat and looked away. He was uncomfortable for Lily when she let her heart show. He figured she thought she was in love with him. He
knew she couldn’t be. He’d given her nothing of value. A few trips and some trinkets, but she genuinely cared about him.
“Well my dress blended very well with this crowd.”
“You were concerned about your dress?”
“A little, but I’ve had more offers than you’d care to know.”
“Any of them indecent?”
“More than a few.”
“Should I call anyone out?”
“No.”
He would do it, he realized, for Lily. She stirred his blood in a primal way that made him react at the gut level. “Are you ready to leave?”
“Your party isn’t over yet.”
“Ours is just beginning.”
He kissed her. She moaned deep in her throat and clutched at his shoulders. That primal scream echoed in his body, urging him to pull her close. To never let go of her until he was hilt deep inside her welcoming warmth and home.
Home.
He hadn’t realized he’d been searching for it, but there it was. She offered him something no one else could. The chance to be who he really was without the pressure of worrying about the image.
A discreet cough interrupted them. Rohr stood a few steps away with his very pregnant wife. “Excuse me, sir.”
He left Lily talking with Mrs. Rohr while he and Jay discussed a minor problem the kitchen was having. By the time he’d put out that emergency and found Lily they had five minutes until midnight.
“Come on,” he said, none of his usual flair.
“Where are we going?”
“I told you I want to have our own party.”
“Cinderella got to stay at the ball until the ninth stroke of midnight.”
“I’ll give you at least nine strokes at midnight.”
She blushed but patted his backside. “I’ll take you up on that.”
He hurried her through the lobby and into the elevator, impatiently waiting until they reached the penthouse floor. He swept her up in his arms and carried her down the hallway. For the first time in his life he almost believed he’d found something that could last. Someone who’d stay with him forever. And though he would never admit it, that scared him to the bottom of his soul.
The Tycoon's Temptation (HQR Silhouette Desire) Page 12
