Avoiding Mr Right

by Sophie Weston

His mouth tilted in acknowledgement of the hit. ‘I was rather unrealistic there, I admit. No, this time I’ll do the thing properly.’

  Christina did not ask what he meant. She was not sure she wanted to know. She sat very straight. ‘Just as long as you realise I am not going to talk about my employers—’

  ‘They are off the agenda for the rest of the day,’ Luc interrupted. She had the impression that he was laughing privately again. ‘It will be a relief, to be honest.’

  ‘I don’t know what you’re talking about,’ said Christina, annoyed.

  ‘No, you don’t. But you will.’

  She bit her lip. When he said ‘a relief’, did he mean a rest from work? That most of his day was spent following the Princess in the line of duty? Oh, she wished he would tell her the truth. She sighed and fell silent.

  Luc clearly knew the area better than she did. He took her to a beach further along the coast where you could take a car almost to the edge of the sand. And it was empty.

  She opened the car door with an effort that surprised her. ‘It’s heavy,’ she said as he came round to help her.

  He shrugged, not answering. Christina got out of the car and caught her breath, forgetting the unusual machine at once.

  The scenery was spectacular. The little inlet had been scooped out of a larger bay, so that everywhere you looked there were hills covered with chestnut trees on the higher slopes and silvery olive trees as the ground approached the sea. In front of them, beyond the shimmer of water, a great grey cliff rose up to the sky. But on this side of the bay the slope was gentle and covered in bushes. Bees hummed, the rock-roses bloomed, the air was full of the scent of thyme.

  ‘It’s beautiful,’ Christina breathed.

  Luc was watching her reaction.

  ‘Yes,’ he agreed. His mouth quirked. ‘Could I have uncovered another weakness?’

  She flushed. ‘The sea looks so wonderful,’ she said self-excusingly.

  ‘Don’t apologise. I appreciate a woman who savours her weaknesses as much as you do.’

  She knew that she was being teased. But there was nothing she could do about the flush that heated her cheeks, even though it amused him and the last thing she wanted to do was to amuse Luc Henri.

  Christina regarded him in considerable dudgeon. She mistrusted him. There was a distinct possibility that underneath that electric attraction she might even dislike him. He had certainly made no attempt to be conciliating. And it was all too obvious that he was used to getting his way without question.

  Yet, on the other hand, she reasoned, he was civilised as well as attractive. There was a spark—something between them which she had never felt before with anyone else. It made her feel thoroughly unsettled. She was not going to allow herself to get involved too deeply, of course, but ... surely she owed it to herself to explore the sensation a little? Purely in the interests of self-knowledge, naturally—so she would recognise it and know how to deal with it if it ever happened again.

  Her thoughts broke off there. Christina was too honest to lie to herself. Not allow herself to get too involved, indeed! Look how far she had come already, entirely contrary to normal habits or even her natural wariness of an evasive stranger!

  Get real, she told herself. She shook her head ruefully and chuckled. Luc flicked up an interrogative eyebrow.

  ‘Nothing,’ she said to him, still laughing at herself. ‘Perhaps I need to put a brake on those weaknesses of mine, though.’

  Luc grinned. ‘That would be a pity.’

  She laughed aloud at that, stretching her arms to the cloudless sky. ‘I’m inclined to agree with you. Especially in this heavenly place. The sea is probably a magic mirror.’ She moved her shoulders in delight. ‘Let’s swim.’

  Luc’s eyes were warm with appreciation. He entered into the spirit of her flight of fantasy, pretending amazement.

  ‘In a magic mirror?’ he mocked.

  Christina sent him a look from under her lashes. ‘I bet it makes everyone who swims in it tell the truth,’ she taunted pleasurably.

  Luc made a face. ‘Then I shall have my question ready,’ he threatened.

  But Christina was too busy twining her hair up on top of her head to be intimidated. She skewered it into place with a couple of pins and untied her shirt to reveal the bikini beneath. Luc watched her with amusement.

  ‘You look as if you haven’t swum for weeks.’

  ‘Say days and you’d be close.’ Christina kicked off her shoes and thrust her toes into the sand with enthusiasm. ‘I got away yesterday but that was the first time since we left Athens.’

  He raised his brows. ‘You don’t swim off the Lady Elaine?’

  Christina wasn’t going to tell him that she didn’t like the way the captain’s eyes followed her. It made her sound like a wimp. Though that was probably the real reason why she had limited her swimming and she knew it.

  ‘Have you seen the water in the harbour?’ she countered instead.

  Luc’s eyes narrowed. She was not sure he believed the implied excuse, but all he said was, ‘You can’t spend all your time in harbour.’

  Christina gave her bubbling laugh. ‘Very nearly,’ she said. ‘You should see the scrapes the Lady Elaine has had.’

  ‘Good grief,’ he said blankly.

  She wriggled out of her shorts and was ready. She folded her clothes neatly, put them on top of her shoes on a convenient rock and raced into the water. Then she turned back, the water surging gently up to her waist. She flung back her head with delight and saw him standing there with his hands on his hips, surveying her.

  ‘Come on,’ she teased. ‘Now, this is a weakness that is really worth having.’

  She scooped the water up in her palms and flung it high, sending up sprays of diamond droplets into the afternoon sun.

  Luc stood very still.

  Christina shook the brilliant water out of her eyes.

  ‘Come on. What are you waiting for? It’s warm,’ Christina called to him. She flung out her arms above her head, watching the water fountain off them. ‘Oh, this is heaven.’

  Luc seemed to shake himself. He gave her a sudden smile. It was, she saw, a dazzling one. Irresistible. Oh, well, for once she was not going to fight it. She flashed a smile back at him.

  ‘You could just be right,’ he said.

  Swiftly he discarded his clothes except for a pair of dark briefs and joined her in the water. Christina had a glimpse of muscular legs and tanned, powerful shoulders, before he plunged into a strong crawl towards the horizon. Laughing, she did a somersault dive in the water and started out after him.

  He was too fast for Christina to catch, somewhat to her chagrin. She was a strong swimmer and at the peak of fitness after her job with the diving boat. But Luc was in another class altogether. He could have been an Olympic athlete and in the end she had to admit it.

  She stopped at last and trod water, paddling round pleasurably in the buoyant water as she got her breath back.

  Eventually he returned. She watched him coming towards her, his long, easy strokes, his body a perfect aerodynamic curve in the water, and a strange shivery feeling started in the pit of her stomach. She had never thought of a man as beautiful before. But, in the sun-filled sea, Luc Henri was beautiful.

  What is happening to me? Christina thought, startled and sobered.

  He stopped a few yards away from her, shaking the salt water out of his eyes.

  ‘I’d forgotten how good it feels,’ he said. ‘You were right. Heaven, indeed.’

  ‘Forgotten?’ She was surprised in view of that perfect, economical crawl. ‘But you’re a serious athlete, aren’t you?’

  He grimaced. ‘I was once. These days I don’t have the time.’ He shook his head. ‘Correction. I don’t make the time.’

  Christina was regretful. ‘I still wouldn’t like to take you on.’

  His mouth tilted. ‘That’s a pity.’

  She flushed. ‘In a race,’ she said repressively.

 
‘Of course,’ he agreed. His expression was solemn but she knew he was laughing. And then he laughed out loud and it was an infectious, rueful sound. ‘Though I don’t see why not. You must get more exercise than I do. Want to try? Race you back.’

  He gave her a start and, Christina was almost sure, slowed his powerful strokes. She put all her effort into her own but they still arrived neck and neck.

  She stood up. ‘I concede. You’re too good for me.’

  She staggered a little under the gentle pull of the tide. He steadied her automatically.

  ‘I wouldn’t say that. I thought it was about equal.’

  Christina shook her head. ‘Only because you wanted it to be,’ she said drily.

  Luc laughed. ‘Then it was.’

  She frowned a little. ‘I don’t like cheating. Winning is no fun if you’re handed it on a plate.’

  ‘I didn’t say you won, just that we were about evenly matched.’

  Christina began to wade out of the water. ‘We’re not matched at all and you know it. You’re way out of my class. There’s no point in pretending anything else. I’m not a child. I don’t like pretence.’

  His brows twitched together.

  ‘You’re very austere,’ he said, an edge to his voice.

  Christina shook her head, making the droplets fly. ‘Just accurate,’ she said, mimicking his own words back to him.

  He looked startled. ‘And dangerously acute,’ he said, but he said it under his breath.

  Christina made her way to the little hollow shaded by rocks where she had left her clothes. She dropped onto the silky sand and stretched her legs out in front of her. Bending forward, she pulled the confining pins out of her hair. The wet mass toppled onto her shoulders. She shook it out.

  Luc followed more slowly. He stood looking down at her.

  ‘So you never pretend, Christina?’ he asked mockingly. ‘No polite evasions? No white lies?’

  Christina squinted up at him. She made a decisive negative movement. ‘Never. Too complicated.’

  His eyes flickered. ‘You’re right there.’

  He dropped down beside her and sat frowning at the empty silver sea. Christina rubbed her hands through her hair. She did not look at him but she was aware of his every small movement, every breath, it seemed.

  What is wrong with me? she thought again. She wondered if he could sense it, but a quick sideways look told her that he was wholly preoccupied, a heavy frown between his dark brows.

  ‘So you never lie. It must make you a difficult lover,’ he said abruptly.

  Christina jumped as if one of the bees buzzing among the olive trees had darted onto the beach and stung her.

  ‘What?’ she said blankly.

  Luc sent her an unsmiling look. ‘How much truth can the average love affair bear?’

  She was half-bewildered, half-offended. ‘I wouldn’t know.’

  The dark eyes narrowed. ‘No love affairs?’

  Christina realised that she had been manoeuvred by a master without even noticing what he was doing. She bit her lip and set about recovering the position. Without telling lies, either.

  ‘Enough,’ she said carefully. She paused. ‘But none of them were average.’

  Luc’s eyebrows flew up. Christina smiled, well pleased to have disconcerted him. It proved that she had not entirely succumbed to mindless attraction, she thought.

  ‘Touché,’ he said after a pause. He sent her a measuring look. ‘So when do they take place, these far from average love affairs? During the winter? Is that why you’re so reticent about what you do between sailing seasons? Do you live with someone?’ There was more than an edge to his voice.

  Christina was sorely tempted to tell him she did, that there was a man in her life right now. But she had promised herself no lies. She sighed.

  ‘No.’

  ‘So they’re in the past?’ Luc persisted, oddly urgent.

  She shifted her shoulders, annoyed. ‘And the future.’

  He laughed then—a harsh sound in the warm air. ‘That’s what you’re into? Any adventure, anywhere, any time?’

  ‘Of course not.’

  Christina was affronted. She turned her shoulder on him. Luc put out a powerful hand and wrenched her back to face him.

  ‘Why not? A free spirit like you?’

  She had not seen him look like that before. His mouth had thinned, his jaw tensed. A muscle worked in his cheek. His eyes were black with some suppressed emotion that looked remarkably like rage.

  What have I done to make him look like that? Christina thought, bewildered. But anger swamped her bewilderment as he shook her.

  ‘Tell me,’ Luc said between his teeth.

  ‘I don’t have to tell you a thing,’ Christina flashed.

  She tried to twitch her shoulder out of his grasp. She met with no success. Instead his fingers tightened almost cruelly.

  ‘Let me go,’ she said furiously.

  For answer, he pulled her back onto the sand and bent over her. Christina’s hands flew to push him away. He caught them in his own and held them down on the sand above her. He bent closer, searching her face. His eyes gleamed.

  ‘All right. Don’t tell me. Show me,’ Luc said roughly.

  She watched as his mouth descended. It seemed to take an age. Her breathing came quick and shallow. Her whole body seemed to vibrate from its core. Her eyes went out of focus and she gave up the fight to keep them open as his lips touched hers, very lightly.

  Christina gave a small sob. For a moment the whole world seemed to hesitate in its turning. Then she arched her throat, offering her mouth blindly for his sweet invasion.

  It was more than an invasion. It was a whirlwind. When he raised his head she was pliant and trembling. As her eyes opened slowly she saw his face. It looked tormented. Christina was shaken to the core.

  ‘Who are you?’ he said hoarsely.

  She shook her dazed head, trying to collect her thoughts. ‘Shouldn’t that be my line?’

  But Luc was not listening. He was kissing her throat, her heated collar-bone, the vulnerable softness of her inner elbow. He slipped a hand under her to unclip her bikini top. Lost, Christina arched her spine. The soaked material fell away and she felt his tongue-tip trace the sensitive contours of her breast. She moaned.

  His hand spread across the small of her back, spanning it as he raised her from the sand to mould her to the length of his body. Released, Christina’s arms went round him in a hard embrace. Fiercely she sought his mouth in her turn. One leg twined round his. Luc gave a gasping laugh and they collapsed onto the sand again.

  At once he rolled over, taking her with him, so she lay across his hard, warm body. His hand moved with casual possessiveness over her hips. He laughed up into her startled blue eyes.

  ‘Burn, fire,’ he said softly.

  Christina realised that the possessive hand was getting rid of her last scrap of swimwear. She stiffened. At once he pulled her head down to his, demanding her kiss.

  For a moment she surrendered to that blazing magnetism, but at once she was pulling away. She realised that he had grilled her, subtly and effectively, while telling her nothing at all about himself, that what he had told her was almost certainly misleading. Above all, with deep discomfort, she remembered what he had said before they’d set out: ‘Somewhere shady and private’!

  Had he been planning this seduction even then? Was that why he had not been concerned when she’d refused to discuss the Princess, because he intended to start a summer affair which would give him all the time he needed to get whatever information he wanted out of her? To say nothing of the hold he would have over her if she let that happen.

  Christina did not allow men to get a hold over her, ever. Oh, she had plenty of men friends. But she had never wanted serious affairs. Her mother had had too many and they had always ended in tears.

  Luc’s arms tightened. ‘Come back,’ he said.

  But Christina was already disengaging herself. She rolled a
way. After an instinctive moment’s resistance, Luc did not try to stop her. He lay on the sand, for a moment watching her, and put up a hand to shade his eyes.

  The bronzed chest still lifted and fell as if they had been racing each other through the water again. He did not try to disguise his arousal. Christina looked away, conscience-stricken.

  ‘I’m—sorry,’ she said with difficulty. ‘I shouldn’t have—’

  He could have been furious. Frustration took people that way. And if she was honest Christina had to admit that he had every reason to believe that she was as aroused as he was, that she would take that arousal to its logical conclusion.

  But all he said was a wry, ‘You sail in dangerous seas, lady.’ Then, more roughly, ‘Don’t look like that. We both got carried away. Both of us. Do you understand? It was entirely mutual. And that doesn’t make you a tease for calling a halt, either.’

  Christina flushed. She looked round for her bikini top in some confusion. Luc sat up and reached across her. She could not prevent her slight withdrawal from that muscular arm but all he was doing was retrieving the little scrap of material.

  ‘Here,’ he said levelly. ‘Do you want a hand?’

  Christina clutched the bikini top to her and turned her back on him. Silently he stretched it across her sandy back and clipped the fastenings.

  ‘There. Respectable again.’

  The trouble was that she did not feel respectable. Not with that small, deep shivering still reverberating through her.

  At her shoulder Luc said quietly, ‘Stop shaking. Nothing happened.’

  Unseen, Christina bit her lip. Nothing happened? Oh, but it had, to her. Obviously not to him, now that the immediate moment of temptation was past. But she felt as if she had been dipped in that magic mirror and come out made of some new material.

  Could this be love? Surely not. Not for a man she didn’t know. A man she didn’t trust.

  ‘Oh, Lord,’ she said under her breath.

  He came lightly to his feet and moved to the water’s edge while she scrambled into her shorts and shirt again.

  ‘I’m beginning to see why you’re not used to compliments,’ he remarked.

  Christina was grateful for this return to normal. She looked down at herself and did her best to brush the sand off the cotton garments. She even gave a slightly uncertain laugh.