‘Are you sure this is what you want?’ His eyes were very dark as they looked into hers.
‘Yes. It feels right in a way that nothing has felt before. Does that make sense to you?’
‘It makes perfect sense to me,’ he said. ‘We were perhaps destined to find each other again. It was not the right time ten years ago, but now it is.’
‘Do you…’ she took a wobbly breath for courage ‘…do you feel something for me?’
He held her gaze for a lengthy moment. ‘I feel what I have always felt for you, Gemma; desire hot and strong and barely controllable. I have dreamed of this moment. I have ached for years to feel you beneath me, your breath inside my mouth, and my body inside yours.’
Gemma had no way of controlling her reaction to him. All of her senses were on fire at his touch. She felt the pounding between her thighs as soon as his erection brushed against her, the emptiness throbbing deep inside her that ached to be filled. She fought back her nervousness, but he must have noticed her hesitancy as he lifted his mouth from hers and began to kiss her neck in a series of hot little kisses that built her need for him to fever pitch. His hands gently unpeeled her bathrobe and nightwear from her; each part of her that he exposed he anointed with a kiss that felt to her just like worship.
Her memories of her last sexual encounter faded under the gentle exquisiteness of his touch. All she felt was her need for him, her love for him rising up from deep inside, a love he hadn’t said he returned, but his desire for her was compensation enough. She would hope and pray he would learn to love her as she loved him.
He ran his hand down the smooth, silky length of her thighs, trailing his fingers up and down until she was writhing with the need for more. He moved his fingers to the inner side of her thighs, moving up from her knees to the moist core that signalled her desire for him.
He parted her tenderly, his finger sliding inside with a gentleness that brought the glisten of tears to her eyes. She lifted her hips from the bed to access more of his touch, a sharp little gasp bursting from her lips when he brushed against the tender pearl of her that had swollen so delicately at his touch.
‘Oh…oh…oh-h-h-h…’
The waves of release crashed over her in a tumult of feeling that she had absolutely no control over. Her body writhed and shuddered until she was completely spent, the air in her lungs coming out in a long blissful sigh as she lay back, her limbs weak, her body totally boneless.
She looked at him with wonder in her dark blue eyes. ‘I didn’t think…that would happen…It’s never happened like that before.’
He smiled a smile that did serious damage to her insides. ‘Just wait until you see the encore.’
‘You mean there’s more?’ She tried a teasing smile, surprised at how comfortable it felt.
He brought his mouth down to hers. ‘Much, much more, cara.’
Gemma had not thought her body was capable of more delicious feeling after what she had already experienced, but she had seriously underestimated Andreas’s ability to incite her desire to even higher levels as he suckled on each of her breasts, his warm mouth a lighted taper to the smouldering fire inside her. He took his time, building her need for him to an almost intolerable level before he finally parted her thighs and prepared to enter her. She held her breath as he slid inside, gradually at first, waiting for her to grab at him, the liquid silk of her desire for him aiding his progress until he moved forward with a deep groan as if he could no longer keep control of his movements. He tried to set a gentle rhythm but it soon became more frantic and urgent in response to hers, their bodies grasping at each other with a hunger that knew no bounds. It was tender and wild at the same time, which made it all the more enthralling. It felt to her as if he was somehow intuitively aware of her vulnerability and was fighting with himself to keep check of his movements. But it was as if her body had somehow recognised his as the one to give her the freedom of pleasure she had been denied in the past and it urged him on without restraint.
Andreas heard her high cries just as his final plunge took him to the paradise he had dreamed of for a decade, his body exploding with the power of it, anointing her intimately with his life force.
He lay above her, unable to move, not wanting to break the union that he had craved so long.
He suddenly became aware of something wet dripping onto his arm where Gemma’s head was turned and realised with a shock she was silently crying.
‘Dio Mio!’ He lifted himself off her and tenderly brushed at the tears that were falling from her eyes. ‘I have hurt you?’
She shook her head, her bottom lip still trembling even though her teeth were once again trying to control it. ‘No…you didn’t hurt me.’ She gave a tiny movement of her mouth that looked like a smile and added, ‘You did the very opposite. You healed me.’
He frowned in puzzlement. ‘I do not understand.’
Gemma found his tone so soothing and compassionate she found herself spilling out the painful details of the night that had changed her life. He listened, his expression showing first his shock, then his anger and his empathy that she had suffered at the hands of an unscrupulous man who had not been served the justice he deserved.
‘I haven’t been able to…to…become intimate with anyone since,’ she confessed. ‘You’re the first man I’ve even kissed since…that night. It seems ironic in a way that it’s my birthday. Seven years ago almost to the hour I had just experienced the most degrading experience of my life and yet you have turned it around, making me feel as if that terrible thing has no power over me any more.’
Andreas felt as if his chest had been crushed with a heavy weight. Her dark blue eyes were full of pain at recalling the memory. How ironic that she had totally forgotten him but recalled the fiend who had degraded her so?
Andreas wasn’t a violent man, but he felt as if he wanted to find justice for her. To track down the man who had crushed her beyond recognition and beat him to a pulp for what he had done to her.
‘It must have been a lesson I needed to learn,’ she said into the aching silence.
‘No!’ He held her close, his chin on the top of her head, her body cradled in the strength of his. ‘No woman deserves to be treated in such a way.’
‘I was drunk,’ she reminded him with another deep pang of shame. ‘I wasn’t in control of myself and I should have been. I had never been quite so drunk before.’
‘No matter. That is no excuse. No one should take advantage of anyone who is unable to give proper consent,’ he insisted.
Gemma shifted so she could look into his eyes. ‘I have never met anyone like you before.’
Andreas had shown emotion only twice in his adult life. The first time Gemma had missed it by mere seconds, the second had been at his father’s funeral where the weight of family responsibility combined with his loss had broken his normally steely control.
But somehow seeing the simple trust in Gemma’s eyes as she looked up at him now broke through to where he had sworn no one would ever go again.
He felt the ache behind his eyes and had to look away in case she saw how she had moved him.
He didn’t want her to move him.
He had no plans to allow her love to get under his guard. He wanted to stay emotionless, to teach her a lesson for her past behaviour. Besides, what if it was all an act? How could he be sure? He had been so certain of her attraction to him ten years ago and look how that had ended. With one barefaced lie she had ruined his chances of making it in Australia under the tutelage of her father. It had taken him years of back-breaking hard work to repay his family’s debts and to this day he couldn’t help blaming her for his father’s untimely death.
‘Andreas?’ Her voice was a soft whisper, but he resolutely ignored it as he moved off the bed and reached for his bathrobe, tying the ends with unnecessary force.
‘I need a shower,’ he said, moving towards the en suite. ‘I will leave you to sleep the rest of the night in peace.’
&n
bsp; Gemma frowned as the en suite door closed behind him, her spirits instantly plummeting. She couldn’t help wondering if he was disappointed in some way. She had shared her heart with him and it had repulsed him, maybe just as her body had done, just as it repulsed her every single day.
The scars on her leg and face were bad enough, but she was carrying less weight than was ideal for her height. He was probably used to women who had more to offer in terms of looks and personality, glamorous women who were happy with casual encounters without serious long term commitment.
She wondered if perhaps he was regretting their marriage now it had been consummated. The desire he’d said he’d felt for her for ten years was now finally slaked. After all, wasn’t that why he had married her in the first place; to seek revenge for how she had treated him in the past? To own her. To show her that she needed him. Her rejection of him had rankled so much he had married her to achieve that which he hadn’t been able to do before.
No doubt this was the price he had planned for her to pay. To get her to fall in love with him only to walk away as she had done to him, her crushed pride his final trophy.
She knew it was what she probably deserved but still she longed for a second chance. A chance to rewrite the past and show him the respect and love she should have shown him the first time around.
He was right—one kiss might very well have changed the course of her life.
She closed her eyes with a sigh.
One kiss and fate might have written another completely different path for her to follow…
CHAPTER TWELVE
WHEN Gemma woke the next morning Andreas was already up and about, showered and looking very fit after a strenuous workout in the gym. She could see the bunched muscles in his arms as he poured coffee from the pot as she came into the kitchen.
‘I have organised our flight for Naples,’ he informed her after a brief greeting that seemed to Gemma to be somewhat distant and formal. ‘We leave on Friday morning.’
‘So soon?’
He glanced at her as he put the coffee pot down on the bench. ‘Do not worry, Gemma. The money will be in your bank account by then.’
She frowned at the cynicism in his tone. ‘It’s not just about the money.’
His dark brows rose slightly. ‘Is it not?’
‘Of course not.’
‘It seems to me you have gone to extraordinary lengths to secure a veritable fortune, which you keep telling me is of no significance to you.’
‘I told you I need to pay some bills.’
His frown deepened. ‘So you are still keen to sell the hotel?’
‘Yes.’
‘For what price?’
She gave a dismissive shrug. ‘I have no idea what it is worth. I’ll leave it to you to decide.’
‘You are being very unwise in trusting someone you hardly know to handle such a large amount of money,’ he said. ‘How do you know I will not swindle you?’
Gemma met his gaze directly. ‘You’re not that sort of person. You’re a businessman with principles. If you weren’t you wouldn’t have achieved all that you have achieved.’
‘I still think you should think about this for a few days before you make your final decision.’
‘No,’ she insisted. ‘I’ve already made up my mind. The first instalment is not enough for what I want. I will need the proceeds of the hotel sale in six months to give me the financial security I desire.’
He gave her a dry look. ‘Just how many credit card bills have you got piled up?’
‘Enough to keep me awake at night,’ she answered.
‘Have you not heard of budgeting?’
‘Look, I don’t need a financial planning lecture, Andreas,’ she said. ‘I haven’t been able to work due to my injuries so don’t harp on at me about being useless with money. I haven’t bought a thing for myself in ages.’
‘I have noticed that about you,’ he said. ‘Your clothes are hardly what one would call fashionable.’
‘I’m not interested in being fashionable.’
‘You were noted for it in the past,’ he reminded her. ‘You only had to wear a certain colour or a certain style and it became de rigueur.’
‘Yes, well, that was then, this is now. I’m not comfortable in bright colours and flashy designs.’
‘Because of what happened the night of your twenty-first birthday party?’
Gemma’s eyes shifted away from his. ‘Don’t make me regret telling you about that night. I would prefer it if you would not refer to it again. It has taken me many years to ease the pain of it. It won’t help me if you keep bringing it up.’
‘I am sorry.’ His tone immediately softened. ‘I will not mention it again.’
‘Thank you.’
‘I have some work to see to before we leave on Friday,’ he said into the little silence. ‘Will you be all right here on your own for the rest of the day? I am sorry, but there are things I have to tie up with my business manager in order to take ten days’ leave.’
‘I am used to being alone. Please don’t worry about me, I prefer my own company anyway.’
Andreas looked at the downward turn of her mouth and fought against his sudden need to haul her into his arms and offer her the comfort it was clear she needed, but he knew by doing so he would be drifting into dangerous territory.
He still didn’t quite trust her.
His instincts told him to keep her at a distance even as his heart struggled with the cost to him personally.
He could feel the gradual reawakening of the feelings he’d had for her ten years ago even though he had done everything he could to ignore them. Sleeping with her had only made it a hundred times worse.
He did not want to fall in love with her again. For all he knew she could be setting him up for the destruction of his pride all over again.
Gemma had taught him well.
He had not felt a thing for any of his previous lovers, always keeping himself at a safe distance, responding physically but without the complication of emotion.
Gemma stirred him in a way he had not expected after all this time. Her fragility and vulnerability had triggered his instinctive need to protect and guard those under his care. She was under his care and protection for the time being, but it didn’t mean he had to fall in love with her.
That was for fools who were unable to learn from their previous mistakes.
He was not a fool.
And he was not going to give her another chance to make him one.
Gemma decided to visit Rachel and Isabella rather than spend the morning alone. But when she arrived at her friend’s house she was shocked to see how upset Rachel was when she opened the door to Gemma’s call.
‘What on earth’s the matter?’ she asked as she took the fractious Isabella from Rachel’s arms.
Rachel scrubbed at her cheeks, her hands visibly shaking. ‘I think someone’s been following me.’
Gemma felt her stomach drop. ‘Oh, no! Have you called the police?’
Rachel shook her head. ‘No, I don’t want to draw attention to myself. If a cop car turns up here what will the neighbours think?’
Gemma frowned at her friend’s skewed reasoning even though she could understand why Rachel felt the way she did. Rachel had had a difficult time convincing the authorities in the past about her partner’s behaviour; even some of her neighbours had denied hearing any of the violent episodes that had gone on until she had finally found the courage to leave.
‘Look, the money should be processed in the next few days,’ Gemma did her best to reassure her. ‘You’ll soon be safely in the States away from all of this before you know it.’
‘I know.’ Rachel rubbed at her arms agitatedly. ‘I just can’t help feeling as if something or someone is going to snatch this chance away from Isabella.’
Gemma gave Rachel a fiercely determined look as Isabella snuggled close to her neck, the little sobs now reduced to soft little hiccups as she stroked the little tot
’s back. ‘Nothing is going to take away Isabella’s chance,’ she said. ‘Nothing. I won’t allow anything or anyone to stand in her way. I can book the tickets for you to save time, then all you have to do is pack and get on that plane.’
Rachel bit her lip. ‘I’m probably being paranoid. I know Brett is locked away but I felt sure someone was watching me when I came out of the post office yesterday.’
‘Maybe they were looking at how cute Isabella is,’ Gemma suggested, trying to allay her friend’s fears. ‘Isn’t that right, gorgeous?’ she cooed to the little child in her arms. ‘Who could walk past you and not want to pick you up and cuddle you?’
Rachel smiled, her tense shoulders beginning to relax. ‘She is adorable, isn’t she?’
Gemma smiled over the top of Isabella’s head. ‘She’s the most precious little girl in the world.’
Rachel reached out a hand to touch Gemma’s arm. ‘Thank you, Gemma. I know I said it the other day, but even if I say it every day for the rest of my life it’s never going to be enough to thank you for what you’ve done for us.’
Gemma concentrated on Isabella’s little fist, which was doing serious damage to one of her earrings. ‘I don’t want to be thanked. All I want is for Isabella to get well.’
Rachel reached for her daughter and cuddled her close. ‘Then that’s what we’ll aim for and God help anyone who stands in our way.’
When Gemma returned to Andreas’s house she was surprised at how slowly the rest of the day passed without him around. She filled in the time the best she could, but she was restless and bored for the greater part of the afternoon.
She spent a short time in the pool, testing her strength, enjoying the exercise and the comfort it offered to her damaged leg. She wondered if she was imagining it, but each lap she did she felt a little stronger, the muscles responding with an energy and vigour they hadn’t felt in years.
The sun was fiercely hot and finally forced her indoors, where she spent a miserable hour or two trying to read a book she really had no interest in, in spite of its best-selling status. She eventually tossed it aside and wandered into the kitchen where she lost herself in preparing a meal.
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