‘I know you won’t.’ His head lowered and his mouth claimed hers, his hands on her spine arching her body to his. The kiss went on and on, Leonie’s head spinning, her hands up in the dark thickness of his hair. ‘I swear I’ll come looking for you if you aren’t here next Saturday when I arrive,’ he warned her as he put her away from him, then turned and left without a backward glance.
CHAPTER FOUR
‘TELEPHONE, Mrs Carter.’
Leonie looked up from the sketch she had been working on most of the afternoon, thanking Dorothy as she went to answer the telephone. She hoped Phil was going to invite her down to London for the weekend; she had to get away, if only for a couple of days. Going to stay with Phil couldn’t be classed as running away, not even by Giles Noble.
She snatched up the receiver. ‘Oh, Phil, it’s so nice to hear from you!’ There were tears in her eyes, the last week of worrying about Giles had made her an emotional wreck. ‘I hope you’ve called to ask me down to London with you.’ The silence on the line made her frown. ‘If it isn’t convenient,’ she babbled, realising that Phil had a life of his own to lead, ‘that’s all right, Phil, speak to me!’
‘You aren’t going to stay with Philip Trent or anyone else this weekend,’ a familiar icy voice told her.
Leonie swallowed hard, going deathly pale. ‘Giles…’
‘That’s right,’ his voice was clipped. ‘I called to tell you I’ll be there with you in a few hours.’
‘But it’s only Friday!’ Panic coursed through her, a feeling of time running out.
‘Maybe I couldn’t stay away from you another moment longer,’ he drawled.
She could just picture the derision on his face. ‘Your aunt will be pleased to see you,’ implying she wouldn’t! ‘She’s lying down at the moment, otherwise I’d get her for you.’
‘You aren’t going to escape me, Leonie, so you might as well accept the inevitable. Just think of me as one more man in your bed,’ he said insultingly.
‘One more—?’ she gasped.
‘Did your husband know of your other men?’ Giles managed to display his disgust even down a telephone line. ‘He must have known there was one man, anyway.’
‘He must?’ she asked dazedly.
‘Don’t be naïve, Leonie,’ he taunted harshly. ‘A man always knows when he’s the first.’
Of course he did! What an idiot she was! ‘Tom knew all about my past,’ she told him dully. ‘He knew because I told him.’
‘Very sensible,’ Giles derided. ‘So much better than him finding out after the marriage. Was your brother very disappointed about your plans concerning me not working out?’ he shot the question at her in the same way he had in court.
‘There was no plan.’ She frowned.
‘Maybe that was the trouble, maybe you would have been better changing your appearance more dramatically, although I still don’t think it would have worked. I never forgot you, and Jeremy hasn’t either,’ he added harshly.
She went white. ‘Jeremy? You’ve spoken to him about me?’
‘Plenty of times.’
‘What did he say about me? What—’
‘We’ll discuss it later tonight. I’ll look forward to seeing you, Leonie,’ and with that cryptic comment he put the telephone down.
She sat down in the chair next to the telephone, biting her lip worriedly. It sounded as if Jeremy had been stirring up even more trouble. She hadn’t seen him since the court case had ended, so what could he possibly have told Giles now?
‘Anything wrong, dear?’ Emily came down the stairs, the limp from her bruised hip hardly noticeable now, although she had been taking things at a slower pace this week.
Leonie took her into the lounge and rang for tea. ‘That was Giles,’ she managed to say brightly. ‘He’s going to be here a day early, won’t that be nice?’
Emily’s face lit up, making Leonie feel guilty about her own reluctance to have Giles here. ‘How lovely! But he isn’t bringing that dreadful Johnson woman with him, is he?’ she asked worriedly.
‘He didn’t mention it.’ But she felt sure the other woman wouldn’t be with him, she had definitely cramped his style last week.
‘Oh, I do hope he isn’t.’ Emily looked rueful. ‘She may be the first of his women friends he’s introduced to me, but I can’t say I liked her.’
She spluttered with laughter at Emily’s woebegone expression. ‘I don’t think he expected you to.’
The older woman brightened somewhat. ‘You don’t?’ she said hopefully.
‘No,’ Leonie smiled.
‘Oh, good,’ Emily smiled too now. ‘I wouldn’t want to offend Giles by not liking someone he was particularly fond of. But Miss Johnson was rather—well, overwhelming. She treated me as if I were in my dotage,’ she added indignantly.
Treatment of that kind was guaranteed to annoy Emily. Leonie had never known such energy; Emily’s age had not seemed to prevent her doing anything she set her mind on.
Leonie was conveniently in her bedroom when the Rolls came to a halt outside the front door. She could hear Emily and Giles in the hallway, and then Giles’s firm tread as he came up the stairs, presumably with his overnight bag. She tensed as he seemed to hesitate outside her door, her breath releasing in a hiss as he passed on.
She quickly escaped out of her room before he came back, joining Emily in the lounge for a sherry before dinner.
‘Giles is so pleased you’re here,’ Emily informed her happily.
‘Is he?’ Leonie tensed.
‘Oh yes, very pleased. I’m so glad the two of you like each other. I’d so like—’ she broke off, biting her lip. ‘There I go interfering again. More sherry, Leonora?’
‘No, thank you,’ she frowned, her thoughts on the remark Emily hadn’t finished. It sounded as if Emily was doing a little matchmaking between Giles and herself. How he would laugh if he knew!
‘Ah, there you are, Giles.’ Emily was looking past Leonie towards the door. ‘And looking so handsome too. I’m sure that isn’t on my account,’ she added coyly.
Leonie had known he was there before Emily spoke, had felt an electric current shoot through her, an awareness of Giles’ eyes upon her. She turned slowly to face him, her eyes widening with shock as she took in the cream suit and brown shirt he wore. He registered her surprise, his eyes frankly mocking her as he came further into the room.
He moved with that slow languid grace Leonie remembered so well, the look in his eyes making her wonder how she had ever thought him cold. His warm gaze swept over her, stripping her naked, bringing an embarrassed flush to her cheeks.
That Emily was aware of this exchange she had no doubt; there was a satisfied smile on the other woman’s lips, a glint in her eyes. Yes, Emily was definitely matchmaking—and Giles was giving her the impression that she was succeeding.
He came to stand beside her, his eyes caressing. ‘You look charming, Leonie. Doesn’t she, Aunt?’
‘She looks beautiful,’ his aunt corrected. ‘But then she always does.’
‘Yes,’ he agreed dryly.
Leonie moved jerkily, moved away from the magnetism Giles exerted over her at will. He held a fascination for her that frightened her, and yet in a way she felt bound to him. Perhaps it was because he had stripped her to her soul, had laid bare her slightest emotion, whatever the reason, she felt as if he owned her, that when he decided to claim her she would have no choice but to go to him. In a way he had laid claim to her four years ago, and it seemed that he had now decided to make her his. And she just couldn’t fight him!
All through dinner she watched him beneath lowered lashes, and she knew that he watched her too. Emily watched both of them, a look of extreme pleasure on her face.
When she excused herself after dinner Leonie wasn’t in the least surprised, she had half expected it. Giles made a token show of stopping her, but it was obviously not meant, and Emily left with a satisfied smile curving her lips.
Giles was instantl
y beside Leonie on the sofa; soft music came from the stereo, the lights dimmed. ‘I thought I was never going to get you alone,’ he groaned, pushing her backwards, his body quickly covering hers, his thighs already hardened to passion.
She didn’t fight his mouth on hers, in fact she met him half way. This lightning passion between them was too strong to fight, flaring up whenever they met. And right now it was a blaze, their breathing ragged, their hands pushing frustratedly at the clothing that separated them.
‘I said you look charming, and you do, but right now I can think of a way you would be even more beautiful,’ his mouth moved restlessly over her throat, his hands in her hair. ‘You have too many clothes on, Leonie,’ he muttered.
‘Not too many,’ she murmured, slowly unbuttoning his shirt to touch the silky hair beneath, hearing him gasp as she playfully dug her nails into his flesh.
‘No, you don’t, do you?’ He had slipped her dress from her shoulder, baring her breasts, bending to run the tip of his tongue lightly over her rosy nipples.
She gasped, pleasure shooting uncontrollably through her body. She clutched him to her, her hands in the thickness of his hair, increasing the pressure of his mouth on her breast, his teeth gently biting.
When his lips came back to claim hers she met the demand of his passion, easing his jacket from his shoulders, completely unbuttoning his shirt. As their bare torsos met their skin seemed to sear together, her breasts were crushed beneath Giles’s weight, and yet it was a pleasurable pain, causing an ache that seemed to be growing and growing.
‘Giles,’ she groaned breathlessly. ‘Oh God, Giles!’ She was trembling, her whole body shaking.
‘Make love to me, Leonie,’ he encouraged.
No man had ever invited her to love him in this way, allowing her hands and lips to go where they would; Giles’s desire was unhidden from her. She kissed and caressed him, feeling him quiver against her as she bit his taut flesh, loving every hard curve of his chest.
He watched her every move, his breathing shallow. Suddenly he shuddered, a dark flush rising in his cheeks. His hand clasped about her wrist and pulled her away from him. ‘No more, Leonie,’ he moaned, his eyes momentarily closing. ‘I can’t control this situation any more.’
‘Do you want to?’ Her voice was husky, a provocative pout to her lips, her eyes love-drugged.
‘No,’ he replied softly. ‘But I have to. We can’t make love here, Leonie. I’ve waited this long for you, I can wait a few days longer.’
She stiffened, pulling her dress back over her shoulders. ‘What do you mean?’
Giles slowly sat up, the tension ebbing from his body. ‘We can’t conduct an affair here, not under my aunt’s roof.’
‘Affair…?’ she echoed dully.
‘Yes, affair. I have to have you, despite the fact that I despise you and the methods you use to trap your men. This affair will be on my terms, with no interference from your brother, and when I’ve finished with you there will be no blackmail attempts made on me,’ he told her harshly. ‘In the meantime you can stop seeing Trent.’
‘Stop seeing him—?’ Leonie gasped, staring at him as if he were mad. ‘But he’s my brother!’
Giles stood up. ‘He’s absolutely no relation to you, and I’m sure you’ve both remembered that on occasion. Have you slept with him since he came out of prison?’ He tucked his buttoned shirt back into the waistband of his trousers.
All her old resentment of him bubbled to the surface, her eyes flashing with burning anger. Seconds after making love to her, after seeming as aroused as she had been, he was insulting her again.
‘Leonie?’ he prompted an answer from her.
She pushed back her tangled hair. ‘I’ll see Phil any time I damn well want to,’ she snapped.
His hand went around her throat, tightening threateningly. ‘Not when you belong to me you won’t,’ he said tightly.
‘Belong—?’ She moved out of his grasp, rubbing her bruised flesh. ‘I have no intention of belonging to you!’ She turned to glare at him. ‘And Phil and I have never slept together.’
‘That isn’t what your friend Jeremy said.’ Giles straightened his ruffled hair, pulling on his jacket, looking for all the world as if that passionate scene between them had never happened. ‘He told me the two of you slept together all the time.’
‘Jeremy again!’ she said fiercely, her hands clenched into fists. ‘Why do you believe everything he says?’
‘Because,’ he came to stand beside her, ‘these lie,’ he gently tapped her lips, his hands running insolently down her body, ‘but this doesn’t,’ he laughed as she shuddered against his touch. ‘You like a man’s hands on your body, in fact you love it.’
She loved his hands on her, no other man’s. But she hated him! He would pay for his treatment of her. It was time someone paid for the wrong done to her four years ago, and Giles was it.
‘You think I want you, Giles?’ she asked in a subdued voice, her lids lowered to cover her blazing blue eyes.
He gave a husky laugh. ‘I know you do.’
She put her hand daringly on his thigh, instantly feeling the surge of desire that shot through his body. ‘And do you want me?’
His amusement had faded, his breathing again ragged. He pressed her hand against him. ‘You know I do,’ his voice was rough with desire.
‘How long have you wanted me, Giles?’
‘Since you walked into that courtroom four years ago. That’s a hell of a long time to wait for any woman,’ he added ruefully.
‘Did Jeremy give such a good account of my—abilities?’ How she kept her voice seductively soft she never knew. She just wanted to hit him. Well, any moment now she was going to hit him, and with something more than her hand.
‘Not good enough,’ he drawled. ‘You’re better, much better than he said you were. But then,’ he shrugged dismissively, ‘you’re four years older, and you’ve also been married. What was your husband like?’
Her mouth tightened. She wouldn’t discuss Tom with him, not ever! ‘Nothing like you,’ she made herself smile invitingly. ‘Tell me some more about how you’re attracted to me.’
He laughed. ‘It’s enough that you know about it.’ He frowned. ‘That first night here, why were you ill?’
She thought fast, forcing a bright smile to her lips. ‘It was the shock,’ she gave a breathless laugh. ‘I hadn’t realised I was—attracted to you, and—and that surprised me when I’d been hating you all this time.’
‘And now?’ His gaze was fixed on her parted lips.
Her hand caressed where it lay, watching the tautening of his features with inner satisfaction. ‘How do you think I feel?’ she murmured throatily.
His smile was supremely confident. ‘You have to come to London as soon as possible. I can’t keep coming here, I don’t have the time.’
‘Not even for me?’
‘Not even for you, Leonie. Besides, we don’t exactly have—privacy here. My aunt seems to think it’s the romance of the century, instead of which it’s just—’
‘Good old-fashioned sex,’ she finished. ‘What happens in London? The apartment, the car, the allowance?’ Her voice had become brittle.
Giles mouth tightened. ‘If that’s what you want.’
She took a deep breath. ‘No, no, that isn’t what I want.’
The steely eyes narrowed. ‘You want more?’
Now was her chance, now she could allow her emotions full rein. ‘Yes, I want more! I want marriage, Giles,’ she told him triumphantly. ‘Marriage!’ she repeated shrilly.
His eyes had widened incredulously. ‘You expect me to marry you? To make you my wife?’
Her expression was calmly innocent, enjoying herself at his expense. ‘Yes,’ she told him with a calmness she was far from feeling.
He gave her another look of disbelief, starting to pace the room. ‘Marriage?’ He kept darting her those looks of incredulity. ‘You have to be joking, Leonie.’
�
�Do you see anyone laughing?’ She met his gaze unflinchingly.
‘Well, I’m certainly not!’ He sounded furious.
‘Neither am I.’
‘Are you really serious about this?’ He stopped pacing to stare at her.
‘Very serious,’ she nodded.
‘You don’t expect me to agree, do you?’
She knew he wouldn’t, that was why she had suggested it. Giles would never allow himself to marry a woman like he believed her to be, his pride just wouldn’t allow it, no matter how much his body clamoured for hers. She knew that, and he knew it too.
‘Are you going to?’ she challenged.
‘You know damn well I’m not,’ he said fiercely, his eyes alive with anger.
‘Then this finishes here and now.’
‘Is this how you got your last husband?’ he demanded angrily. ‘Don’t you give it away free any more?’
Her face blazed with colour and then went deathly white. ‘We’ll leave my husband out of this,’ she said tautly. ‘And I’ve never given it away free!’
‘No, you haven’t, have you?’ His tone was savage. ‘Why such a high price this time?’
‘A mistress is at such a disadvantage,’ she told him with feigned nonchalance. ‘She has no rights at all, as I learnt with Jeremy.’
‘She does now.’ His mouth twisted. ‘The law now recognises her rights.’
‘Only if you live together openly, and I’m sure we wouldn’t be doing that.’
‘You’ve certainly done your homework on the subject,’ Giles said disgustedly, his hands thrust into his trousers pockets, as if he might hit her if they weren’t.
She hadn’t at all, it was just that there had been a case in the newspapers a few months ago about a similar situation, and it was only because the woman had lived openly with her lover for a number of years that she was able to claim a settlement from him. Giles would keep any affair between them very much a secret, she knew that.
‘A woman has to take care of her interests,’ she told Giles calmly. ‘Even in this enlightened age.’
‘Well, you aren’t taking care of your interests with me,’ he rasped.
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