Seducing Phoebe (Crimson Romance)

by Nicole Flockton

  “I think we should start over.”

  “Start over?” Phoebe knew she was sounding like a parrot, repeating everything he was saying. “What exactly does that entail?”

  “That we start our relationship over. We can look on tonight as a first date.”

  “How can it be a first date when just last week we were engaged? You’re not making any sense.”

  He started walking again, and as he still had hold of her hand, she had no choice but to follow. He was leading her back to the house. They hadn’t gone very far with their walk. It almost represented their relationship — they only went a short distance before stopping. And now Marco wanted to start over. How was that going to help anything?

  “You said you felt you got caught up in everything that was happening around you. That you didn’t feel in control, and that you didn’t know me. What I’m suggesting is that we start again and get to know each other. I know what I want, and I want you.”

  She couldn’t fault his logic. It made some sort of sense to her, but the reason she’d come to this beach house was to think for herself. To get her mind sorted about what she wanted. To sort out what she really felt for Marco. How was she supposed to do that if he was constantly in her presence? She was afraid that after a couple of “dates” she’d be all ready to ring back the wedding planner and tell her to rebook all that she’d cancelled.

  The last thing she wanted was any regrets, and if she didn’t stand her ground and didn’t do what was right for her, she’d end up lost.

  “I’m not sure if it’s the right thing for me though.” She spoke softly, hoping that it would take some of the sting out of what she was saying. She was rejecting him again. Like she had when she’d handed back his ring.

  “I think it is. I think it’s the right thing for us.”

  “How can it possibly be the right thing for us?”

  “Because we have this.” Marco pulled her close and lowered his lips to hers. His touch wasn’t gentle, like the other kisses they’d shared since he’d turned up. This kiss was full of passion and it filled her soul. She moaned under the onslaught of his mouth on hers. His hand slipped under her jacket and caressed her back before sliding around to her breasts that were aching for his touch.

  Her knees buckled and together they fell to the soft sand. She didn’t care that she was going to get sand in her clothes and hair. All she cared about was feeling the heavy weight of Marco on top of her, his fingers stroking her breasts in soft, circular motions. She shifted her hips and came in contact with his hard length. She shivered as she remembered all the times they’d made love, the way Marco had been able to make her body come alive with his every touch. She reached down and grabbed his buttocks, pulling him into closer contact with her. It was madness. It was the last thing she should do but she wanted him. She wanted him to take her on the beach where no one could see them.

  In the next instant she found herself free of Marco’s weight. She slowly opened her eyes and saw the stars shining brightly down. Looking to her left she saw Marco sprawled out on the sand, with one arm flung over his eyes, his chest rising and falling rapidly as he was trying to get his breath back. From the way he looked, Phoebe was consumed with doubts that the feelings from the kiss had been one sided.

  “Are you okay?” she asked as she sat up and brushed the sand from her hair.

  “Yes.” His reply was muffled. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean for the kiss to get so out of hand.”

  Neither did she, but she couldn’t deny that she did enjoy being in his arms. Or that she’d enjoyed every encounter they’d had since he’d shown up that morning.

  What would she have done if John had been the one to turn up, instead of Marco? The thought sent a shiver coursing through her. No, she wouldn’t have been happy to see him at all. The night John had left her place, she had been glad to see the back of him. He had acted all creepy, and she hadn’t liked it one little bit. She knew that she wouldn’t contemplate a relationship again with John, but his reemergence in her life had made her take a good look at the relationship she and Marco had shared — and she had found it wanting.

  Now he was here, wanting to start over with her again. Could she do it? Could she let herself go and give one hundred percent to the relationship? She was still too scared. What if, this time, it was Marco who decided to end things? That after taking it slow and spending time and getting to know all of her little secrets, what if he, like John, found her lacking and walked away? As Sophie said, she would see him at any of the get-togethers they would have for Louisa. What would it feel like to see him turn up with another woman on his arm? To see him kiss her, laugh with her. Phoebe thought it might cripple her to see him with another woman.

  There’s your answer then, the little insidious voice inside of her head taunted her.

  “Is it really that hard to accept my apology?”

  Marco’s voice was close by her ear and as she turned, her cheek almost connected with his lips. She could smell the slight tang of his aftershave and it felt comforting.

  “No, I won’t accept your apology because you have nothing to apologize for.” Phoebe reached up and placed her hand on his cheek, copying the touch that she found so wonderful when he did it to her. “I enjoyed the kiss. I didn’t want it to end.”

  Marco turned his head and kissed her palm; for a moment there she thought that he was going to kiss her again. Instead he took her hand and stood. “Come on, it’s getting late and colder. I’ll make sure you’re safely ensconced in the house and all the doors are locked and then I’ll leave.”

  Everything in her wanted to ask if he was going to come back. But why would he? She’d told him she didn’t want to start over. But then they’d shared that kiss and it was like he’d forgotten that he’d kissed her to prove a point. That what they had was special and it was worth fighting for.

  In a blinding flash of insight she realized that she did want to fight for it too. She wanted to see if they could have a future. By coming to her today, he’d done the total opposite of what she thought she wanted — and it had been a pleasant surprise. She had to tell him before he left.

  They were approaching the house and she summoned up the courage to let him know her decision. “Before you go there’s something I want to say.”

  As he looked at her, Phoebe could see the wariness in his eyes, as if he wasn’t sure what she was about to say to him next. “I’ve been thinking, and I want to know if the offer is still open.”

  “What offer?” he asked as he quirked his eyebrow. Phoebe gritted her teeth. She knew he knew what offer she was talking about.

  “The one about starting over again.”

  “And?”

  “Is it still open?”

  A faint glimmer of something like satisfaction flared briefly in eyes before it was quickly masked. “Yes. Why?”

  “I’d like to take you up on it. I’d like us to start over again.”

  • • •

  Phoebe gave herself one last look over in the mirror and tried to quell the nerves that had taken up residence in her belly. She had been out numerous times with Marco and she hadn’t been nervous before. Why should she be nervous this time?

  It had been three days since he’d come to see her. He’d told her that night that he had to head back to the office the next day for an urgent meeting that had come up, but he would then free up his schedule so that he could spend time with her. In a moment of weakness she had told him that he didn’t have to book a hotel, he could stay with her at the house. It was big enough for the two of them to have their own separate wings.

  Now he would be arriving in about twenty minutes with a bag, and he would be staying for at least a week.

  She’d spent the day yesterday going through her phone looking at the text messages and voicemails John had left since she’d last seen him. With each message he’d left, he seemed to don a cloak of desperation and she couldn’t help but wonder why. In the end she’d sent him a text ba
ck saying he needed to leave her alone. There was no chance of them getting back together again.

  She needed to do that so she could go into this new agreement with Marco with an uncluttered mind. In a way, she should be thanking John for turning back up in her life. As much as it had hurt at the time, breaking the engagement and taking away the stress of the wedding had been the best thing for them. Now they had a chance to start over, and who knows, maybe in a year’s time they would be ready to walk down the aisle. Or maybe they wouldn’t. Her heart gave a little stutter at the thought of things not working out with Marco and all her doubts bombarded her again.

  No, she told herself sternly. She wasn’t going to let the fear of things not working cripple her. She would take a chance, and come what may, she knew she’d be a better person for it.

  The doorbell rang — he was early. With one last look she raced down the stairs and opened the door.

  “Hi,” she breathed out, taking in the sight of him once again dressed in the soft-touch jeans he’d worn before and a casual polo shirt. He looked the epitome of a man who was comfortable in his own skin and could fit in anywhere, whether it be at a casual barbeque or a five star event where evening dress was required.

  “Hi yourself. You ready?” he asked.

  “Yep, sure am. Do you have any bags you want to drop into your room before we head out?”

  “Sure, let me go grab it.” As he turned and walked back down to the car, Phoebe leaned against the door jam, enjoying the view of his denim-covered butt. He really did fill out a pair of jeans well. Marco turned in that instant and gave her a wink, telling her he’d known all along she was watching. Phoebe felt the blush start at the bottom of her neck and rise up to the top of her hairline. She turned around and walked back inside, wishing that the earth could swallow her up. Not because she regretted looking at him, but because she’d got caught looking.

  “Did you enjoy the view?” Phoebe jumped at the words whispered in her ear. Her skin came alive as his breath softly brushed the sensitive flesh of her neck.

  She closed her eyes, willing him to breach the hairbreadth’s distance between him and her skin, wanting to feel his lips touching her. As if reading her mind, he touched his lips briefly to her neck before pulling away. A shudder rippled through her, and Phoebe knew it wasn’t from the cold.

  Taking a deep breath she took a step away from him, in an attempt to get her raging hormones under control. It was going to take everything in her to keep her hands off him. But she had to remember that they were starting over. Taking things slow, getting to know one another again. There was no guarantee they would end up together again. She had to steel her heart and make sure she didn’t fall for him.

  Phoebe looked at him as he stood within touching distance of her, a bag in his hand. She gave a negligent lift of her shoulder, as if to say she didn’t have a care in the world. “The view was okay. Do you want me to show you which room you’ll be in?”

  “Sure, lead the way.” He laughed, and she knew he didn’t believe a word she’d said.

  She headed towards the staircase and as she made her way up she could feel his eyes following her every move. She put an extra sway into her step, smiling when she heard the muffled groan coming from the man behind her.

  After Marco dropped off his bag in his room, they changed into their swimsuits and got in the car.

  “Are you planning on telling me where we’re going?” Phoebe asked after they’d been driving for over half an hour, heading further up the coast. The ocean sparkled outside her passenger window and looked so inviting. If she hadn’t been with Marco, she’d have been sitting on the beach working on her tan, reading a good book.

  “We’ll be there shortly — and it will be worth the wait, believe me.”

  He turned his attention back to the road and Phoebe continued to gaze out the window. Marco made a turn, and her view of the ocean was momentarily lost. It was like they were in the middle of nowhere.

  “If I didn’t know better I’d almost think you were going to take me to some secluded cabin and have your wicked way with me.”

  “Would you let me, if that was my plan?”

  Phoebe turned to look at him to check his expression to see if she could work out if he was joking or serious. After the kisses they’d shared the other day, and the way he’d made her feel when he’d arrived today, it probably wouldn’t take much for her to succumb to his advances.

  “I guess you’ll just have to wait and see.”

  “Now that sounds like a challenge.”

  The atmosphere in the car had gone from relaxed and casual to highly charged, with a sexual tension that was new between them. She wanted to reach over and turn the air-conditioning fan up higher to cool her down. But if she did, she’d let him know just how his words had affected her.

  “We’re here.”

  She gazed out the window and gasped. They were situated on top of a rise and the ocean was laid out in all its sparkling glory for as far as the eye could see. It was the most amazing place, and she wondered how on earth Marco had found it.

  She released her seatbelt, eager to get outside and get a better look at the view. She reached for the door handle but a hand on her other arm stopped her. She turned and was about to ask what the problem was when Marco closed the distance and kissed her, fulfilling the desire that had been coursing through her since the moment he’d arrived at the house.

  She leaned further into the kiss, wanting to get closer, but the center console of the car inhibited her movements. She pulled away reluctantly.

  “This is where the good old fashioned front bench seat comes in mighty handy,” Marco muttered as he wiped a hand down his face. “Shall we take a walk?”

  Phoebe felt his frustration and more. “Sounds good.”

  They got out of the car and walked the short distance to look at the view. She was surprised to see that it wasn’t as high as she’d thought and there was a path that led down to the beach. Now she was itching to get to the water.

  “Are we heading down there?” she asked pointing down the path.

  “Yep. I know we could’ve just stayed at the house and had lunch and swam but this little piece of paradise is quiet and even if the wind picks up we won’t get huge waves rolling in.”

  A little part of her was disappointed that their date was a simple swim on the beach. She had been expecting something more. Something romantic. There was nothing romantic about having salt-water-encrusted hair. Although he’d already seen her like that the day he arrived and he hadn’t seemed too worried about it. So why should she worry now? She knew he would still look like a god, even after a swim in the ocean.

  She made a move to trek down the path when Marco once again stopped her.

  “Wait, I need to get some things from the car.”

  She followed him as he walked back to the car and she wondered what he had to get out. She hadn’t seen him put anything in except her bag, which he had placed on the back seat. She got a surprise when he opened the trunk and pulled out an ice chest and a picnic basket. He placed them on the ground before he pulled out another bag, which she guessed held a blanket and his towel.

  “When did you organize all of this?”

  “Before I got to your place. Don’t worry, I think you’ll enjoy what I’ve got planned.”

  “I’m sure I will.” She retrieved her bag from the back seat. “Do you want me to take your bag?”

  At his nod she picked it up and tried not to let Marco know how seeing his muscles flex as he bent to pick up the ice chest caused her breath to come out in short, sharp gasps.

  She followed him down the path, towards the beach. The lower they went the more the slight breeze that she had felt on top of the cliff seemed to die down, confirming his earlier assertions that the beach was protected from the wind.

  Once they reached the bottom, Phoebe was ready to dive headlong into the water. She set down the bags and pulled her hair away from her sweaty neck, wishing
she had a band so she could tie it up.

  Marco came up and stood behind her, wrapping his arms around her waist, pulling her so she rested against his chest. Heat of a different kind flowed through her.

  They stood there together for a few minutes, not saying anything, just savoring the view. Phoebe was relishing being held in his arms again.

  “Why don’t you take a swim? There’s something else I need to get from the car.”

  His words washed over her. There was something about the way he spoke that set her nerve endings on fire. They had become more heightened since she’d broken off their engagement. It seemed so strange that his voice hadn’t affected her before as much as it did now.

  “Sure.” The word whispered out and she cleared her throat to attempt speaking once again. “A dip in the water sounds great, but do you need help?”

  She turned in his arms and stretched her neck back to look at him. His eyes were hidden behind his dark sunglasses and she wished she could see what he was thinking.

  He lowered his head and gave her another kiss, a brief touch of lips that promised so much. It was over too soon and left her wanting more.

  “No, I don’t need help. I’ll be back before you know it.” With a brief touch to her cheek he wandered back up the path.

  Phoebe’s breath whooshed out as she watched his retreating back. When he was halfway up the path she tore her gaze away and stripped down to her bikini. A swim in the water was what she needed to cool off. If she didn’t, she was afraid that the moment Marco returned to the beach she would push him down on the soft sand and kiss him until they were naked and finding release in each other’s bodies.

  She groaned at the image and ran down to the water, gasping as the cold water met her heated flesh.

  As she swam away from the shore, thoughts swirled round her mind. They were taking things slowly, trying to get to know each other better. Why was her body so on fire now for Marco, even more than it had been before? Why did she want him so much now?