by Miranda Lee
‘He raped her?’ Leo exclaimed, obvious distaste in his voice and on his face.
‘Well, no, he didn’t have to in the end. Lady Gwendaline decided to co-operate. Still, even if she hadn’t, I’m pretty sure it would have been more seduction than rape. The captain was very good in bed, you see.’
‘But of course,’ Leo said with an amused smile.
‘Oh, I know what you’re thinking,’ Violet said. ‘And, yes, I agree that it’s just a fantasy. But it wasn’t the romance part which interested me so much when I read the book again but Lady Gwendaline’s character. I finally saw how brave she was. Every time she was faced with a difficult situation, she didn’t faint or run away or hide. She met each crisis head-on. She wasn’t passive, she was proactive. I was sitting there in the plane thinking how terribly weak I was for the way I was leading my life when I was suddenly faced with a life-threatening crisis of my own.’
She stopped for a few seconds to take another fortifying swallow of wine.
‘Go on,’ Leo urged. ‘Don’t leave me dangling. What happened?’
‘The plane nearly crashed, that’s what happened! For a few seconds there I thought I might die. Trust me when I say there’s nothing like narrowly escaping death to inspire you to make some life-changing resolutions!’
‘I can believe that,’ Leo said sympathetically. ‘So what were they, these life-changing resolutions? Sounds like more than just your accepting social invitations from now on.’
Violet’s courage suddenly started to fail her. ‘Oh...just girl stuff mostly. You know—new hair. New wardrobe. Oh, and a new car. Not that I have an old one,’ she blathered on. ‘I usually just drive Joy’s. But if I’m going to be more social then I’ll need a car of my own.’
Leo looked somewhat sceptical. ‘That’s it? Come, now, Violet, you haven’t told me the whole truth, have you? What else have you resolved to do?’
Violet was about to deny that there was anything else when she thought of Lady Gwendaline. She wouldn’t have shrunk away from telling the truth. Not in a million years! So Violet squared her shoulders and sat up straight. ‘Very well. If you must know, my main New Year’s resolution is not to go back home next Christmas still a virgin.’
Leo’s head jerked back, his eyes narrowing as he stared hard at her for several seconds. When he finally broke his silence, his voice was clipped and hard.
‘So if I come back to visit Henry next Christmas, I will find a very different Violet to the one sitting opposite me tonight?’
Violet wasn’t sure why she blushed, but she did. And it annoyed the hell out of her. Leo’s obvious disapproval annoyed her as well. Who did he think he was to pass judgement on her? He was hardly a saint in the sex and relationship department, as he himself had pointed out to her the other night.
‘I certainly hope so,’ she bit out, lifting her chin as she stared defiantly across the table at him.
‘I hope you don’t intend to give yourself to just anyone.’
Violet bristled. ‘Of course not. He would have to be a very nice man, and I’d have to be very attracted to him.’
The waiter arrived just then to take their orders for dessert. Violet was totally taken aback when Leo announced brusquely that they would not be having dessert or coffee and could he just bring the bill.
‘We don’t have enough time for any of that,’ he told her when the waiter hurried off to do Leo’s bidding.
Violet glanced at her wristwatch which showed only seven-fifteen.
Though confused, she said nothing. Maybe he was one of those people who had to be early for everything. Besides, it wasn’t as though she was desperate for dessert. All that wine had supplied her with enough extra calories for one evening. Her head was spinning a little, a sure sign that she’d downed most of the bottle. She wasn’t drunk but she was not quite herself, as evidenced by the rather reckless feelings coursing through her veins.
Leo paid the bill in cash, the pleased look on the waiter’s face revealing that he’d been left a huge tip. Leo shepherded her out of the restaurant and towards the walkway with a speed which suggested they were running seriously late rather than forty minutes early.
‘The show doesn’t start till eight,’ she reminded him.
‘We’re not going to the show,’ he replied, his grip tightening on her elbow.
Violet ground to a slightly unsteady halt. Maybe she was drunk after all.
‘Where are we going, then?’
For the first time that night, his eyes glittered down at her the way they had on New Year’s Eve. ‘If you’re as intelligent as Henry says you are, you already know the answer to that.’
Violet blinked up at him. ‘Not really.’
‘Wicked,’ he muttered. ‘But no matter. It’s too late. I can’t fight it any longer.’
‘Will you please stop talking in riddles?’
‘Do you think I’m a very nice man, Violet?’
‘Yes. Of course.’
‘And are you very attracted to me?’
‘Yes,’ she choked out, finally seeing what he was getting at. Good God!
‘Now you know where we’re going,’ he said thickly, his hand dropping her arm to lift to her face. His palm was hot against her cheek, his gaze just as hot. ‘Not to a show at the casino, but to one of their hotel rooms. A big room with a big bed and you naked between the sheets.’
Violet could no longer speak. Her mind was already in that room, in that bed, naked. A shiver rippled down her spine whilst her head tipped totally off its axis.
‘If I were a ruthless pirate I would not even ask your permission,’ he went on, his other hand lifting to take her entire face captive. ‘But I am not a pirate, or ruthless. I am, unfortunately, a nice man with a conscience. Though, damn it all, it’s been sorely tried since I met you. So, what’s it to be, Violet? Am I to be your first lover or not?’
What a silly question, she thought dazedly. As if she was going to knock him back. But it was still a nerve-wracking moment in her life. Her hesitation to answer was bound up with her own feelings of inadequacy, not her lack of desire for him. Lord, she wanted him like crazy. But she didn’t want to disappoint him, and she probably would. As much as he might want her back for whatever reason, she was what she was—a virgin.
‘I promise I won’t hurt you,’ he said in an impassioned voice. ‘I’ll be gentle. And I’ll give you pleasure. I’m good in bed. Maybe almost as good as your Captain Strongbow.’
But I’m nothing like Lady Gwendaline! she almost cried out. She could see that now. She wasn’t as brave or as bold. Or nearly as beautiful. The thought that Leo had been married to one of the most beautiful women in the world hardly helped her confidence. She could not hope to compare. Her body might be the best it had ever been but it was still far from perfect. Her breasts were too big; the same with her bum. And she was sure there were the remnants of cellulite still clinging to her thighs. The prospect of stripping naked in front of Leo had her stomach contracting and her heart doing somersaults.
Violet knew if she said no to him he would respect her wishes. But if she said no...
Her face twisted as she tried to picture how she would feel tomorrow if she did just that. She would hate herself. She had to seize this incredible opportunity with both hands. Had to!
Pushing aside all her qualms and doubts, Violet reached up on tip toe and pressed her lips to his. He stiffened for a moment, after which he took a firm hold of her shoulders and held her away from him, his face raw with emotion, his eyes dark and dangerous-looking.
‘I’ll take that to be a yes,’ he ground out. ‘Now, not another word. And definitely no more kisses. Not till we’re safely alone in that hotel room. I need to find some control if I’m to deliver all my promises of gentleness and pleasure. I don’t think you appreciate your power, lovely Violet.’
‘My power?’ she echoed blankly.
His smile was wry. ‘One day, you’ll know exactly what I’m talking about. And, when you do, G
od help the man you’re with.’
His comment was both telling and hurtful. For it meant that this was all there would ever be between them—this one night. Tomorrow, Leo would jet off back to England and that would be that.
For a split second, Violet baulked at this horrible thought, because of course she wanted more of him than one short night. Even before the event, she knew that. It came from deep within her feminine self, that knowledge, as did another inevitability: if she let Leo make love to her tonight, she would undoubtedly fall in love with him. Did she want to risk that?
Another silly question.
Her heart lurched when he took her hand in his, but she didn’t snatch it away. She steeled herself and willingly let him lead her over the bridge towards the brightly lit casino and the night ahead.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
‘HOTEL RECEPTION’S THIS way,’ Leo explained as he led her round the block to the back of the casino.
Violet’s eyes widened as they passed a whole line of very expensive cars pulling into the kerb. When a black stretch limousine drove past slowly, Leo’s head didn’t even turn. Clearly, he was used to this kind of lifestyle. No doubt he’d stayed at a lot of top hotels all over the world. She’d never stayed at one. Or any hotel at all!
Not that she said so. Violet wasn’t about to underline her lack of experience. She did her best to look suitably sophisticated as Leo drew her inside the huge, marble-tiled foyer where he deposited her in a plush chair whilst he went up to the reception desk. There was a small queue so he didn’t get served straight away; the delay contracted her stomach into even tighter knots of tension.
Several of the male patrons walking past stared at her almost lewdly as she sat there all alone, bringing home to Violet how vulnerable women were when out on their own in a city. At last Leo returned, taking her hand and steering her over to a bank of lifts.
They didn’t speak; there were other people waiting for lifts also. They didn’t speak during the lift ride as they were still not alone. Another couple exited the lift on the same floor as theirs, so once again there was no talk between them as Leo led her along the carpeted corridor. Finally, Leo stopped at a door, using a key card to enter.
At least I know about key cards, Violet thought. Henry’s old apartment—and now his office—used that kind of security. And of course she’d seen hotel rooms in countless movies and television shows. So there were no real surprises when she entered the room.
Everything was pretty much as she expected in a hotel of this calibre. The decor was sleek and modern, the colour palate warm and rich without being over-the-top. The walls were the colour of milk chocolate, the carpet a deep, plush cream, the furniture wooden—not light, yet not dark. Possibly teak. Her mother had a teak table about that colour. The soft furnishings came in various shades of gold, the brightest being the bedspread which covered what was really a very large bed.
For a long moment, Violet just stood there, staring at the bed whilst Leo walked over and drew back the curtains from the plate-glass window which covered one entire wall.
‘Great view,’ he said, and she glanced over at it. Indeed, it was pretty spectacular, especially now that night was falling and all the lights of the city had come on. You could see way beyond Darling Harbour to the bridge and beyond.
It was impossible, however, for Violet to care about the view, no matter how great it was. All she could think about was what they were going to be doing shortly, right there, in that decadent-looking bed.
Suddenly, she wanted Leo to close those curtains again. After all, there were tall buildings across the way, all with windows and some with balconies. What if there was someone there with a telescope, or a camera with one of those new powerful lenses which could zoom in on things hundreds of metres away? Gavin had been given one such camera for Christmas so she knew first-hand what they were capable of.
‘Please, Leo,’ she said in a shaky voice. ‘Could we possibly shut the curtains?’
He frowned, then moved over, to close not the opaque gold curtains but a set of gauzy curtains which she hadn’t noticed and which was obviously used by guests who wanted privacy without totally destroying the view.
‘Will this do?’ he asked once he’d drawn them into place.
‘I...I suppose so.’
‘Try not to be nervous.’
She let out a great rush of air. ‘That’s easy for you to say.’
Leo smiled. He couldn’t help it. Did she have any idea how nervous he was? How conflicted? He’d promised her gentleness, yet all he wanted to do was rip off that sexy black dress right now and ravage her silly for hours on end. He’d promised her pleasure. But it was the prospect of his own pleasure which was firing his blood up at this moment. It would take a supreme effort of will to suppress his own driving needs and concentrate instead on hers.
But it would be worth it in the end, Leo believed as he crossed the room, confident that giving Violet pleasure and satisfaction would ultimately increase his. Taking her bag from where it was clutched tightly between both her hands, he threw it aside then drew her trembling body into his arms. Her eyes were wide on his, closing when his head began to dip.
He kept the kiss soft, not wanting to rush or frighten her. He didn’t crush her lips as he secretly wanted to. He sipped at them. Licked them. Nibbled. Patience was the key to success here; Leo constantly reminded himself it was imperative that he didn’t unleash the passion which had been building up in him all day, not till she was ready for it.
Which could take some time.
When her lips gasped apart on a raw, sensual moan, he almost lost it for a moment, almost plunged his tongue deep into her mouth without thought or care. His arms did tighten around her as he battled the urge to just let rip, fighting with all his might to contain the wild urge to ravage her mouth as he wanted to ravage her.
Finally, he dared to let his tongue slide forward, moaning himself when he encountered the delicious heat of her mouth. Perhaps if she’d remained passive in his arms he might have been able to sustain his promised gentleness. But she was anything but passive, her own tongue snaking around his, her arms doing the same to his body as she pressed herself hard against his already painful erection.
To keep on kissing her would be courting disaster, Leo quickly realised. He had to radically change his seduction technique, at the same time giving himself a much-needed breather.
Violet could have cried when Leo suddenly stopped kissing her.
‘Sorry, sweetness,’ he said, something like regret in his beautiful blue eyes. ‘But we need to slow things down here or you might not enjoy your first sexual experience as much as you deserve to.’
Relief swamped Violet that she hadn’t done anything wrong.
‘Now, first things first,’ he went on, having disentangled himself from her embrace. ‘Do you need to freshen up? The bathroom is just that way.’
Now that she thought about it, she did need to use the bathroom. Quite badly. How come she hadn’t felt that a moment ago when he was kissing her? Violet swallowed, then nodded.
‘I’ll make us some coffee.’
Violet scuttled off to the en suite bathroom, shocked when she discovered how wet her new black lace panties were. Best she leave them off. But how could she possibly go back to Leo without her panties on? Would it be better to take everything off, the way Lady Gwendaline had after Captain Strongbow had made it clear he was going to take her that night? Violet had been startled but thrilled when her heroine had done that.
Dared she do the same?
Violet doubted it. To walk out of here stark naked was not within the realms of her capabilities or courage. Maybe if she had something to cover herself with...
Her gaze lifted to the shelf where two white towelling bathrobes sat, neatly folded.
Leo was just about to go and knock on the bathroom door to find out what was keeping her when it opened and Violet emerged, wrapped in a white towelling bathrobe. Now he knew what had taken her
so long: she’d been undressing. Her bravery touched him, as did the fear which still lurked in her wonderfully expressive eyes. Leo could not remember the last time he’d been with a woman who was worried about showing him her body. Shyness was old hat these days. And old-fashioned. As were twenty-five-year-old virgins.
Leo could be forgiven for feeling enchanted. He would not forgive himself, however, if he ever hurt this lovely young girl. Which meant it was vital for him to protect her from her own possibly foolish self. He hadn’t forgotten how easy it was to mistake lust for love when you were young. Okay, so Violet wasn’t all that young in years, as she’d pointed out. But she was still a novice in her head when it came to sexual relationships. He had to make sure she didn’t start imagining she was in love with him afterwards. And she might, if he let her delude herself in that fashion.
‘Good thinking,’ he said, quickly deciding to keep the tone of things pragmatic rather than romantic. ‘Didn’t know how you took your coffee but everything’s there you could possibly want,’ he said, nodding towards the mini-bar before striding into the bathroom and shutting the door behind him.
Violet just stood there, stunned. She’d imagined an entirely different scenario when she’d finally plucked up the courage to come out here and face Leo. Not in her wildest dreams had she imagined him leaving her alone like this. Her disappointment was acute, so was her frustration. She’d wanted him to pull her into his arms again and kiss her, not gently, but wildly, passionately. She didn’t want time to think. She wanted him to throw her onto that bed and just do it!
Sighing, she walked over and made herself a mug of coffee, black, with no sugar.
He hadn’t made himself any, she noted as she took a small sip and, carrying her mug, she walked over to stand in the middle of the plate-glass window, staring through the semi-transparent curtains at the buildings opposite and wondering if people could see her.
Perhaps. Probably. This last thought had her putting down the coffee on a nearby desk and hurrying around the room, turning on the bedside lamps and turning off the much brighter overhead lights. That done, she picked up her coffee again and returned to the window, confident now that nothing could be seen of her except perhaps a hazy outline. She could be walking around stark naked and no one in the building opposite would know.