Imogene grabbed her beach wrap and tied it around her before letting herself out of her room and padding on bare feet over the tiled floor. The humidity was higher than usual tonight; the air felt thick and cloying against her skin, making her scalp prickle and her hair cling to her face. The pool was looking better and better.
Outside, she heard the patter of a gentle rain on the patio. The night sky was obscured by clouds. She unwrapped the sheet of fabric from her body and walked toward the pool, gasping a little as the rain hit her overheated skin. She stood there for a moment, lifting her face to the sky and simply letting the rain fall on her.
There was something elemental about the night, about standing here alone, naked. With nothing between her and the rest of the world. No secrets, no shadows.
She walked the rest of the distance to the pool and dived cleanly into the water, staying below the surface for as long as she could hold her breath. Eventually, she popped up and drew in some air. She felt fantastic. The water slid around her, caressing her skin and soothing her fractured nerves. Maybe she needed to do this every night. She struck out for the end of the pool, determined to do some laps and to wear herself out so she could sleep, but the sensation of the water against her body only served to heighten the tension that had kept her awake. Yes, it felt divine, but at the same time it teased and tantalized. In fact, right now she felt more aroused than she had lying in bed thinking about Valentin.
She pushed herself harder, completing the laps more quickly, and once her muscles began to burn she slowed down again. Each lap got slower until she flipped onto her back and simply floated there on the surface while her heart rate and her breathing returned to normal. A gap in the clouds above revealed the twinkle of stars, and for the first time in a long time, Imogene simply allowed herself to be present in the moment. To empty her mind and to listen to the night sounds around her, to feel the occasional drop of rain from the last of the stubborn clouds hanging overhead and to enjoy the steady shush of the waves on the beach not far away.
That was when she heard the shuffle of bare feet on the patio beside her. She looked across. It could only be one person. Valentin.
“Couldn’t sleep?” he asked, squatting down beside the pool for a moment before sitting on the edge and letting his legs dangle in the water.
“No,” she said, letting her feet drop down so her nakedness was not quite so obvious. “You, either?”
“Must be our night for it,” he said before lowering himself into the pool.
He dropped down until his head was covered and then bobbed back up again.
“I’ll, um, I’ll leave you to it, then,” she said, striking for the edge farthest from him.
“Don’t leave on my account,” he said. “In fact, stay. Please?”
It was the please that was her undoing. Even though every ounce of inner caution urged her to create distance between them, to avoid any chance of accidentally exposing her nakedness, she stayed right where she was. She knew it was risky but right now a part of her discovered that risk was looking pretty darned appealing.
“Sure, but could we turn off the pool lights?”
“Turn off...” Valentin’s voice trailed to a halt as understanding dawned. “Ah,” he said eventually. “I see. How about I even the stakes?”
Before she could answer she saw him reach for his swimming trunks and seconds later they flew through the air to land on the poolside with a wet slap. Excitement buzzed in her veins along with a fair serving of trepidation. She knew how this was going to end. It was like watching a train wreck that you knew you couldn’t halt. And in their case they already knew what the outcome would be like. They’d already traveled that road together. The one where passion ruled every waking moment of their lives, leading inexorably to their destruction. But they were better than that now, she told herself. They’d spent almost an entire week together without so much more than a chaste good-night kiss. They’d slept apart—well, sleep being a relative term given how many nights she’d tossed and turned alone in her bed.
Was this to be a turning point for them?
“Meet me halfway,” Valentin coaxed from his end of the pool.
“And then?” she asked, her voice suddenly husky as a surge of desire dragged through her body.
“And then we’ll see what happens next.”
She didn’t bother answering. In fact, she doubted she could form a cohesive sentence right now. Her blood fizzed in her veins as she pushed away from the edge of the pool and floated across to the middle. Valentin was already there, waiting with an expression on his face that drew the breath from her body. Even in the pool light she could see a flush of need on his cheeks, a glitter in his eyes that told her far more than words ever could. He wanted her as much as she wanted him.
Without another thought she slid straight into his arms, wrapped her legs around his waist and felt like she’d finally found home.
* * *
“I’ve missed you,” Valentin said as he supported Imogene in the water.
“Let’s not talk about it, not when we have so many better things to do,” Imogene said breathlessly before pressing her lips to his in a kiss that silenced them both.
She wasn’t subtle. There was a carnality in her kiss that quite simply took his breath away. She made her position abundantly clear by silencing him as she had, but even as his body erupted with heat, and lust threatened to cloud his mind, he knew he wanted more than a physical release. Yes, she’d come to him willingly, without any hesitation, but he found himself wanting more than that. They’d only just begun the journey to understanding each other better this week and he was no closer to knowing why she’d been so quick to believe he’d been the wrongdoer in their first marriage. Why she’d been so adamant about not listening to his side of the story.
But then the heat of her body wiped thought from his mind. What was he doing thinking so darn hard when he had this beautiful, willing woman in his arms? A woman he’d once loved with a force that had frightened him so much that when she’d walked away he’d immured his emotions—throwing himself into his work with scant regard for his safety on several occasions. He’d never understood, until he’d been served with the divorce papers, that one human being could hurt another so deeply without actually causing a physical injury. It had been an eye-opening shock. One he hadn’t wanted to repeat, ever. His logical, quantitative mind had rejected the pain, told himself it wasn’t reasonable, but reason took a hike in the face of what he’d experienced.
Imogene’s tongue swept across his lips and reason took a hike all over again. His body responded in kind and tightened on a new energy that focused solely on the sensations that coursed through him, on the rightness of having her here in his arms, skin to skin, mouth fused to mouth, her inner heat poised over that part of him that ached with need. He kissed her back with a fervor that spoke of the years of denial he’d gone through, of how much he’d missed her, of how much he wanted her right here and now.
She shifted her body and the tip of his penis brushed the heated core of her. He shuddered and groaned, tightening his hold on her. In response her nails dug into his shoulders and she pressed her body more firmly against his, the tight points of her nipples imprinting on his chest. Valentin let one hand drift down her back, farther to the curve of her buttocks and farther still until he lightly caressed her opening. She moaned into his mouth and let her head drop back. Her long hair swirled around them in the water, the tendrils brushing against him and setting off small electric charges with each touch.
He lowered his mouth to the smooth, pale column of her neck, licked against the pulse that fluttered there, nipped at the hollow beneath her earlobe and felt a tremor run through her from tip to toe. As delightful as this was, it wasn’t enough. He wanted access to all of her and he couldn’t do that here. He propelled them across the pool to the edge where he lifted her from the water and too
k a moment to enjoy the sight of the water coursing off her body, relishing how it skimmed over her pert, high breasts and shimmered over the lean muscles of her stomach and thighs.
“Had enough already?” she teased from her superior vantage point.
“Never enough,” he growled and nudged her knees apart.
He heard her sharply indrawn breath as she realized his intentions. But she didn’t pull away. Valentin trailed his fingers softly along her inner thighs. She was trembling now as she anticipated his next move but he took his time, letting his fingers drift closer to their eventual goal before skimming back down toward her knees.
“You never used to be this mean to me,” she protested, as he let his fingers drift past her center again.
“This isn’t mean,” he assured her and bent his head to kiss her creamy skin and follow the path his fingers had just taken. “This is merely taking my time.”
Her legs tensed beneath his touch. He nuzzled against her, drawing in the scent that was a combination of her and the saltwater pool. And then he was there at her center. She leaned back and braced her arms behind her, spreading her legs wider to give him access to her sweet spot. He’d always loved this with her. Loved the taste of her, the sounds she made when he made love to her body the way he was doing now. He let his tongue trace around the bud he knew was supersensitive, not quite touching it but edging closer with each sweep. Her whole body shook now and he looked up, seeing her gaze on him, watching his every move. Without breaking their eye contact he pressed his lips to her clitoris and applied pressure with his tongue and his lips until her body grew so tightly strung he thought she might shatter into a million pieces. And then she did. Her climax hit in huge waves that left her limp with satisfaction.
So much had changed between them in the past seven years but this, this one incredibly special thing, remained the same. Valentin hauled himself out of the water and bent to lift Imogene into his arms. Holding her close to his body, he strode through to the house and into his bedroom. He took Imogene into his en suite, turned on the multihead shower and held her upright as water coursed over their bodies.
“You expect me to stand on my own after that?” she asked, with a light, teasing note to her voice that had been missing for much of the past week.
“You can always lean against the wall,” he said, smiling as he lathered up his hands and began to stroke them over her body.
She did as he suggested, murmuring her approval as he smoothed his hands over her breasts. He loved how neatly they fitted against the palms of his hands, how her pale pink nipples darkened as they tightened into peaks that begged to be kissed and sucked and lightly bitten. She let out a moan of pleasure as he did exactly that. Her hands came to rest on his shoulders, clinging as if he was all that stood between her remaining upright and collapsing into a heap on the floor of the shower. He finished washing her body, then rinsed her thoroughly. When her hands released their grip on his shoulders and began to move over his chest, he felt a swell of pleasure pour through him. If it was even possible, his erection grew harder, more demanding, as she stepped closer to him. His rigid flesh was trapped between them. The heat of her body on his sensitive skin was a delight and a torment.
Imogene reached for the shower gel and poured it over his chest, her free hand working it into a lather that slid down his body, teasing him further. She put the gel back on the shelf and then focused her attention on caressing his body. Across his chest, over his abdomen, then back up again to his shoulders, his arms, his back. Then finally, finally, she reached for his aching flesh. Her slender fingers curled around him, her thumb gently rubbing his sensitive tip. He dropped his head into the crook of her neck and shoulder, and groaned out loud as she increased the pressure of her fingers, stroking up and down. In the end he couldn’t take it anymore. He wrapped his fingers around hers to stop her.
“Let’s take this to the bedroom,” he said unevenly.
He reached for a towel and roughly dried her before scraping it quickly across his body. Then he took Imogene by the hand and led her to the sheet-tossed bed he’d left not so long ago. He’d gone in search of surcease. Instead, he’d found his wife.
While Imogene lay down on the bed, he reached for the bedside table drawer and pulled out a condom. He sheathed himself and in seconds they lay on the bed together—hands reaching, legs tangling, mouths meshing until there was no clear delineation between where he ended and she began. He rolled her under his body. Her legs shifted to allow him to settle between them and then he was nudging at her entrance. The head of his penis bathed in the heat of her body. He surged forward, his rhythm uneven at first as he fought to stay in control. But then their synchronicity of old reasserted itself.
Valentin felt Imogene’s body tighten around him, heard the keening cry that spilled from her lips as her second orgasm flooded her body. Then and only then did he let go. Pleasure shot through every inch of his body and his mind. This perfection was what he’d been missing for far too long—this, and the incredible woman in his arms.
His woman.
Seven
Imogene sat next to Valentin in the Horvath jet as they flew back over the Pacific and away from their island paradise idyll. Waking in his bed this morning had felt all kinds of right and all kinds of wrong at the same time. Her entire body still hummed with the aftermath of his lovemaking. A part of her had wanted to start their day with a reenactment of their middle-of-the-night passion, but logic had dictated she slip from his bed and go to her room to shower and dress before their flight home.
They’d barely spoken. As if both of them were too lost in their thoughts about what they’d shared and where they should go next. Their physical compatibility was a given. He’d only had to touch her and she’d gone up in flames and, she suspected, it was much the same for him, too. Beneath all of that, however, was a deep sense of disappointment in herself. They’d both allowed physical needs to overwhelm the agreement they’d made to take things slowly. Oh, sure, they’d waited—what—six days before acting on the simmering tension that hovered between them? That was hardly admirable. And while she knew she could argue with herself until she was blue in the face about the fact that they were adults with needs and were perfectly entitled to have incredibly amazing sex if they wanted to, deep down she knew it was wrong.
There was still so much unresolved between them. So much left unsaid. And while they had no trouble communicating with their bodies, their ability to open up to each other verbally continued to be an issue. In this entire week together, they’d stuck to peripheral topics, barely skimming the surface of who they really were or what they each truly wanted—out of their remarriage or out of life in general. And she was mad at herself. This week had been her opportunity to reach out and discover if Valentin really had changed from the man she’d left back in Africa. Whether she honestly could trust him again. All she’d discovered was that she couldn’t trust herself around him. Hormones, it seemed, ruled over her head whenever she was around him.
Even now, seated next to him on the plane. The seats were large enough that they weren’t even touching and yet she could feel the imprint of his body next to her as if they were. The heat of him, his scent, the sound of his steady breathing. Every little thing about him. She shifted in her seat and looked out the window beside her. Nothing but clouds. A bit like how her brain felt right now. She sighed.
“Everything okay?” Valentin asked, leaning closer.
A gentle waft of his cologne invaded her senses and sent a shaft of longing through her body. She clenched her inner muscles on an involuntary wave of need and fought the urge to close the distance between them. To assure him with her lips and her hands that everything was just peachy.
“I’m fine,” she muttered through clenched teeth.
“Forgive me for saying this but you neither look nor sound fine.”
She turned to face him and caugh
t the twinkle of humor in his eyes. “It’s not a laughing matter,” she said sharply.
His humor dimmed immediately. “No, you’re right, it’s not. But it’s done. We went against our own edicts. I hope you’re not going to sulk about that all the way home.”
“Sulk? You think this is sulking?” Outrage fired every nerve in her body. “I’m angry, if you must know.”
“Thank you for communicating that,” he answered calmly.
His calm only served to fuel her irritation. “Angry at you,” she spit.
“I accept that.”
She rode the wave of tension in her body for a split second longer before it ran out of her in a rush of helplessness. Sagging into her seat, she added, “And angry at myself.”
“And that’s the problem, isn’t it?”
“Yes. What are we going to do, Valentin?”
He sighed. “Exercise more restraint in the future, I imagine. I’m equally annoyed with myself, but you can’t say it wasn’t a memorable experience. In fact, given the same opportunity, I would do it all again. Do you have any idea how alluring you looked swimming in the water naked?” His voice dropped, grew deeper, thicker. “Your hair spread out around you. The pool lights illuminating your ivory skin. You were otherworldly. A water nymph set to ensnare me. I was in your thrall. Seeing you like that brought back every memory of our life together before. Every kiss, every caress—every time we made love until we could barely breathe anymore. And I wanted you. I’m not ashamed of that. I still want you, Imogene.”
Imogene felt her eyes fill with tears at the depth of emotion in Valentin’s voice. He’d never spoken to her like this before. Never been this honest about his feelings for her.
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