The Temptress

by C. J. Fallowfield

  ‘Hmmm,’ I managed to groan, making him chuckle. He carefully sat me up, one hand reaching up to grasp my chin, as his thumb swept back and forth over my lip.

  ‘So beautiful, even more beautiful than I remembered with this flush of sex on your cheeks. O how I have missed you, ma belle. If you come so easily with such a pitiful display of control on my part, imagine how good we will be together when I have regained my former legendary stamina.’

  I nodded, blinking a few times to focus my vision. Christ, we hadn’t even taken the time to get undressed. That was hot. He chuckled and released my chin, pulling a white cotton handkerchief out of his top jacket pocket, then lifted me up off him, sitting me back on his knees. While I clung to his shoulders for support, given the limo was gently swaying as we drove to our destination, he used his thumb to hold my string aside and gently wiped me clean. When he was done he kissed me, then sat me back down next to him, quickly wiping himself and shoving the piece of damp cotton in the bin in front of him.

  ‘Wow,’ I whispered.

  ‘Hmmm,’ he agreed, kissing me again as he reached past me to grab the seat belt buckle, quickly pulling it across my body and locking me in, then did his own. He picked up my hand, threading his fingers through mine as he lifted it to his lips and kissed it.

  ‘Hello,’ he grinned.

  ‘Hi,’ I smiled back. ‘That was quite the welcome.’

  ‘I have plenty more welcomes in me,’ he winked cheekily. I laughed.

  ‘I don’t doubt you do.’

  ‘I’m not selfish, for every time I come, I intend to give you many more in future,’ he nodded, rubbing his thumb back and forth across my hand.

  ‘Who says we’re doing that again? I came to talk, that’s very presumptuous and over confident of you.’

  ‘I told you many years ago, it is only over confidence if you feel the need to exaggerate your abilities. I do not. I am not confident, I am positive that we are going to spend the rest of our lives doing that.’

  ‘Has anyone ever told you you’re very romantic under this domineering exterior?’ I sighed as I looked up at him, sure that adoration was glowing in my eyes.

  ‘Non. I never have been.’

  ‘Well you are. You send me beautiful flowers, expensive lingerie and … and …’ I blew out a breath as I thought of my Chanel accessories.

  ‘You were happy to have them back?’ he murmured as he lifted my hand to his lips, reading my mind.

  ‘They’re not the same ones, surely?’ I enquired, searching his eyes for the truth.

  ‘Of course they are. I could not bring myself to part with them, they were all I had to remind me of you. I was distraught when the scent of you on the scarf faded.’

  ‘Luc,’ I whispered, squeezing his hand tightly, overcome with emotion at his depth of feelings for me. ‘Please tell me you weren’t sniffing my ripped knickers for days as well?’ I teased, trying to lighten this intensely deep moment.

  ‘No,’ he laughed. ‘Though I did regret throwing them out with the remains of our Cantonese.’

  Laying Foundations

  Lulu

  I gazed out of the window as we approached a set of ornate black gates, with a small set of thatched gatekeepers cottages either side. The gates swung open and we headed over a cattle grid, the vibrations rising up through the limo and rattling my bones. It was too dark to see much, other than a tree lined avenue that seemed to stretch on as far as the headlights would allow me to see. I was acutely aware of Luc next to me, even without looking directly at him I could feel him watching me, his thumb rubbing back and forth over my knuckles as he tightly held my hand, not helping my rapid heart rate, which had failed to calm down since that frantic fucking and intense orgasm. I blushed as I played it back in my mind. And to think an hour ago, or less, I’d been worried about our sexual compatibility. No, that definitely wasn’t an issue. I looked around as he lifted my hand and kissed it.

  ‘You are very quiet,’ he observed with a frown.

  ‘I’m still recovering and there’s a lot going on in my head.’

  ‘Which we will talk about over dinner. I need to know what she has said to upset you.’

  ‘Who says she upset me?’ I asked, as I broke his gaze. If I had to explain, it would mean revealing I had a son and I wasn’t sure yet if I was ready to tell him.

  ‘Do you want to be taken over my knee again? I’m sure that your bottom remembers that I don’t tolerate lies or deception. I can see it written all over your face, you are sad and nervous at the same time.’

  ‘It didn’t go as well as I’d hoped. Please don’t let it ruin your plans, we can talk after dinner, on the way home, so we don’t upset the other diners if you’re going to get mad.’

  ‘If you think I will get mad, then we are definitely talking over dinner. Bon, nous sommes ici,’ he advised, as I felt the limo come to a standstill. Luc let go of my hand and hopped out, before Mike had a chance to go and open the door for him. I watched him button his jacket, before he ducked his head and offered me his hand. ‘Come.’

  ‘Been there, done that,’ I winked, making him chuckle.

  ‘And you will again before you return home,’ he winked in return, flashing me one of his sexy dimpled smiles. I stepped out of the car and straightened up. We were on a gravel drive, with a fountain set in the centre and a large old grey stone double fronted Georgian house confronted me. It was magnificent and had creeping ivy clinging to its walls, stretching up to the slate tiled roof.

  ‘I’ll see you at work on Wednesday,’ came Mike’s voice, startling me. I looked around to see he’d lowered his window and had his elbow jutting out as he peered up at us.

  ‘You’re not taking me home?’ I asked, confused.

  ‘Non. I am,’ advised Luc.

  ‘That’s really not necessary and it’s also ill advised, what if she’s watching my house still?’

  ‘Merde! She knows where you live?’ he asked with deep frown.

  ‘One of the things we need to discuss,’ I sighed, but honestly I was more worried about him asking to come in, of seeing children’s toys and paintings, or turning up in future on spec. ‘I’d really prefer Mike take me home.’

  ‘Non, I am seeking a divorce, she is doing the same, why should I not drive my girlfriend home? I am not ashamed of what we are doing. You are trying to tell me that you are?’

  ‘Girlfriend?’ I repeated, looking up at him shyly through my lashes as my stomach did a series of backflips. I thought that we were going to discuss what we were and where he saw this heading over dinner, I thought that was the whole purpose of this evening, but it wasn’t like I needed another few hours to know that I wanted him, still.

  ‘Oui, girlfriend,’ he smiled, his deep brown eyes glistening happily, ‘ça va?’

  ‘Oui,’ I replied, confirming it was ok, more than ok, as I bit my lower lip, feeling the flush in my cheeks brighten as he squeezed my hand and beamed.

  ‘Bon. Then it is decided, Mike has the rest of the evening off. Thank you,’ he nodded and I watched him dip into his pocket and pull out some notes to hand to him.

  ‘No need, Mr. Le Grand, Miss McQueen pays me well enough for what I do.’

  ‘I insist, I have not made your life easy with all this cloak and dagger routine,’ Luc replied firmly. Mike looked up at me for support and I shrugged with a shake of my head.

  ‘Trust me, he’s not a man to be argued with, I’d just accept.’

  ‘Thank you then,’ Mike nodded as Luc passed over the notes. ‘Have a great night.’

  ‘Thanks, Mike,’ I waved him off and looked around again, surprised to see no other cars. ‘It’s a very quiet looking hotel,’ I observed.

  ‘Hotel?’ Luc laughed. ‘This is not a hotel. This is my house.’

  ‘It’s what?’ I looked up at him stunned.

  ‘I purchased it last year, I have grown sick of living in the hotel every weekend. I’ve been slowly doing it up with the intention of moving in, but this last
week I’ve had a couple of rooms done a bit faster, so I could bring you here to see what you think.’

  ‘I think it looks beautiful. It has its own grounds? That was a long drive.’

  ‘Just a few acres,’ he shrugged, his cocky smile telling me that he was totally underplaying it. ‘I will bring you next weekend to stay with me so you can see it in daylight, you may even see some of the deer down by the lake.’

  ‘You have deer and a lake?’ I asked, wondering what possible excuse I could give for not spending next Saturday and Sunday with him too. He wasn’t going to be happy, not when weekends were the only time he had in England to see me.

  ‘It’s sizeable, with a helicopter pad too. Come, dinner will be ready, I had my new housekeeper start today and she has cooked for us.’

  I looked around in awe as he led me into the reception hall, which was larger than my open plan lounge, dining room and kitchen. It had stripped back bare plaster walls, an enormous granite fireplace and high ceilings, with all the original coving and ceiling roses in place, with two magnificent chandeliers dangling from them. We walked past a sweeping mahogany staircase and Luc opened a door, gesturing for me to go in first. I stepped onto polished travertine floor tiles and into the most enormous kitchen diner I’d ever seen. It had a shaker style new white kitchen, with black granite worktops, a range and an Aga set into the fireplace at one end of the room. There was a roaring fire in the one at the other end of the room, where a large solid oak dining table had been set for two at one end, with a vase of orange and yellow roses. Luc had a real soft side, buried deep under that hard domineering exterior, it made me smile.

  ‘Mr. Le Grand, you made it,’ came a woman’s voice. I looked around to see a petite blonde, in her mid-forties I’d guess, appear from a door over by the Aga.

  ‘Mrs. Pattison. This is Lulu McQueen my girlfriend, Lulu, my housekeeper Mrs. Pattison.’

  ‘Pleased to meet you,’ I smiled, extending my hand, trying to ignore the fluttering in my stomach at hearing Luc call me his girlfriend again. Honestly, I was thirty years of age, not thirteen.

  ‘The pleasure’s all mine,’ she smiled, giving me a firm handshake. I liked her already. ‘Please be seated, everything’s ready. I’ll serve up and be out of your hair. I’ll be back Friday morning unless you need me sooner, Mr. Le Grand?’

  ‘Please, call me Luc, and no Friday would be perfect. Lulu and I will be coming to spend the weekend, we should arrive at a similar time on Friday night,’ he advised. I went to open my mouth to protest, given he hadn’t actually even discussed this with me, let alone asked if I had other plans, which I did with Tristan, Dom and Coco, but I decided to bite my tongue for now. Mrs. Pattison didn’t need to see the two of us having our first heated row in front of her and I knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that it would be heated. Luc led me to the table and pulled out a chair for me, with me smiling my thanks as I sat. He quickly poured me a glass of red wine, from the bottle that was already open and breathing on the table and poured himself half a glass, before sitting next to me.

  ‘It’s a beautiful room,’ I nodded as I looked around.

  ‘The first I had done up. A Frenchman can live without anything but good food, wine and of course passion. There’s a pantry through there as well and these French doors behind us lead out onto the patio,’ he nodded, gesturing to the glass doors behind us. ‘The patio overlooks the orangery which houses the pool and the gym.’

  ‘O my God. How big is this place?’

  ‘Substantial. Through these old sliding wood doors is the formal dining room which seats twenty, but it’s not finished yet. Through those sliding wood doors is the family room, which I’ve finished so I have somewhere to relax when I come and stay. At the front of the house are another two large rooms, one will be a formal lounge, which I’ve yet to finish, the other which is nearly done, my home office. Upstairs on the first floor are four very large bedrooms, all with en-suites, then on the top floor is the master suite and another guest room with en-suite and a final bedroom that could be used as an office or hobbies room.’

  ‘Nothing over the top then,’ I teased with a roll of my eyes and he laughed.

  ‘I forgot the basement. I have a wine cellar, cinema room, laundry and an … extra room. We’ll explore later.’

  ‘Does Mrs. Pattison live here too then?’ I asked.

  ‘Not in the house. I had the gatekeepers houses modernised. She lives in the one with her husband Ron, he’ll be tending to the grounds, with additional help from one of the villagers.’

  ‘Here you are,’ Mrs Pattison interrupted, as she deposited a black pot on an oil burner in front of us and a plate of French bread, carefully cut into cubes. ‘Pudding is ready in the fridge. Would you like me to do anything else Mr. Le … sorry, Luc?’

  ‘No thank you, it smells delicious, I’ll see you on Friday.’

  ‘Good night, nice to meet you again, Miss McQueen.’

  ‘Please, just Lulu,’ I smiled. She nodded with a smile in return and scurried off. ‘Something does smell good,’ I confirmed as I looked back at the table. I gasped as Luc handed me a long silver prong and lifted the lid to show a cheese fondue bubbling away in the pot. ‘You remembered our first meal,’ I whispered, as I blinked back some tears.

  ‘I remember everything about that weekend,’ he replied, as he clutched my chin and kissed me. ‘I’m starving, let’s eat and have small talk. On reflection we can save the big discussion for when I show you around before I get you home. I’d prefer for us to have some quality time together before we argue.’

  ‘Who says we’ll argue?’ I questioned, as he speared a piece of bread, swirled it in the mixture and offered it to me. I delicately took it between my teeth, savouring the strong flavour of Gruyère and kirsch.

  ‘You have that look in your eye, the one that says you have strong opinions and as you already know, I am not a man to back down from my convictions. We will argue, of this I am sure. For now, eat.’

  I tried to relax and we spent the next hour feeding each other and discussing his plans for the house and grounds. He told me that he’d like to try and spend more time in London and was already looking for a permanent office base to work from on a Friday and Monday, seeing his clients in Paris from Tuesday to Thursday. I filled him in on Dom, Coco and my parents, given they were the most important people in my life. We rounded off our meal with a delicious tarte au citron, just as we had in Paris. Luc had switched to drinking water and I hadn’t noticed that he’d been topping up my glass, so it was a shock when he rose up and offered me his hand, to find myself unsteady on my feet. He chuckled as he pulled me against him.

  ‘It seems my recollection that you could not hold your alcohol was also true. Good, you lose some of your inhibitions with drink, maybe you will be more inclined to discuss what weighs so heavy on your mind.’

  ‘Luc, I …’ I went to protest, but he silenced me with a passionate kiss.

  ‘Sssshhhh, ma belle. All in good time, watching you eating has stirred my appetite again. The tour and talk can wait. Come, I want to christen my bed.’ He stooped down and made me squeal and giggle as he hauled me up into his strong arms.

  ‘Watching me dribble cheese down my chin was sexy?’

  ‘Watching you do anything is sexy, you have a direct hotline to my cock no matter what you do.’ He dipped his head and kissed me again, before carrying me effortlessly up the two sets of stairs into the eaves. I was sure my heart was thudding louder than his footsteps on the bare wood floors as he crossed the landing and toed open a door. I gasped to see a totally white interior, with just a large white four poster bed in the middle of the room, with two white bedside tables, but everywhere I looked fairy lights were twinkling, it was magical. He carefully lay me down and smiled as he reached to undo his shirt cuffs. ‘I do not want it said that Luc Le Grand is all about fucking. For you I am prepared to do romance and the making of the love.’

  ‘Making love, not “the making of the love,”’
I giggled, as I propped myself up on my elbows and shook my hair behind my shoulders. ‘Though it sounds as sexy as hell the way you say it, so actually yes, let’s stick with the making of the love,’ I teased, doing my best to mimic his strong, yet soft and delicious accent.

  ‘You mock me!’ he scowled, his smiling lips betraying his teasing, as I heard him kicking off his shoes.

  ‘Moi? Non, monsieur!’

  ‘Tu parle un peau français, eh?’

  ‘Juste un peu,’ I replied, indicating with my fingers that I spoke a small amount of French. I actually spoke it quite well, every night after dinner Tristan and I would practice, I wanted him fluent given he was half-French. I swallowed hard, suddenly overtaken with an overwhelming bout of guilt that his father was right in front of me, totally unaware of the existence of his son.

  ‘What’s wrong?’ Luc asked, genuine concern settling on his face as he unbuttoned his shirt. I shook my head and took a deep breath as he shrugged his shirt off, the sight of his magnificent body blinding me to everything else that was going on. I’d never seen anyone built like Luc, such a masculine broad chest, high firm pecs, abs that would rival the ridges of the Pyrenees and Jesus, that dip over his hip bones and the faint smattering of hair from his navel down to that erection. The rush of arousal between my thighs had the rest of my body feeling seriously dehydrated. He reached down and grabbed my hand, yanking me back up against him, wrapping my hair around his fist and pulling to tilt my face up to his. ‘No lies. What’s wrong?’

  ‘You … you take my breath away,’ I whimpered, delighting in grasping his strong bare rounded biceps, all thoughts of his wife, of dilemmas, of guilt suddenly pushed to the back of my mind. I was right here in the zone, the steaming Luc Le Grand zone and I was liable to get a parking fine for exceeding my allocated stay. ‘Talk after, make love to me first. I need you, Luc, so badly.’