by Fiona Brand
She decided against telling him right away about her suspicion that the perpetrator could have been Ferris. If it was, and he had left prints, the police would soon know, anyway, and that meant she got to hold on to her privacy. Mario had been the only member of the family who had known the whole sad and sordid truth about her past, and she preferred to keep it that way.
If Ferris had broken in, his motive would likely be the same as last time. He wanted money, and he wasn’t averse to using blackmail to get it. Now that she was quite well known, thanks to her modeling career, he would no doubt threaten to release the details of her disorder and her past to the press.
After closing the door on the detectives, she walked through to the sitting room, where Kyle was examining the photo of her parents where it lay on the table. “Your mother and father?”
“Before they split up.” Before her twin had died. Before her father, after finding out about the disorder, had left for Australia and a new life. And before her mother had remarried twice, having children who died to other men who left. Before Eva had discovered that she carried the same rare gene as her mother, a disorder that was lethal for fifty percent of children born to a carrier. In Eva’s mother’s case, the odds had turned out to be even worse, because out of four children, Eva had been the only one who had survived.
Kyle rose to his feet. “Do you stay in touch with any of your old family?”
The way he said old family, as if he saw her as part of her new family, the Atraeus clan, was warming. “There was never much family to begin with. My mother was an only child.” And the distant family that had been left hadn’t wanted to know. “Why do you think I had to be adopted?”
Needing something to do, anything to take her mind off Kyle’s large, distracting presence in her house and the tension that seemed to be pulling tighter and tighter, Eva began picking up cushions and stacking them on couches. Given that the cushions were cotton and linen, she figured there was no possibility that they would retain fingerprints. “I haven’t seen or spoken with anyone from my mother’s family since Mario adopted me.”
Kyle began helping her clean up. Thirty minutes later, after picking up all of the loose clothes and underwear and putting them in a laundry basket so they didn’t smear any prints that might be on the drawers or closet doors, Eva was satisfied they had done everything they could. She probably should have left everything as it was, but she had needed to restore as much as she could to reclaim her space and counter the creepy knowledge that someone had gotten into her house, even with the alarm turned on.
Kyle checked that the rear door was locked, then extracted his car keys from his pocket. “You can’t stay here until you get the locks checked and your alarm upgraded. At a guess, the thief had a piece of equipment that could connect to your alarm wirelessly and give him the code—they’re common enough. It would have taken him seconds to break in and then disable the alarm.”
A shudder went down her spine at the brief description of how vulnerable she had been in her own home, even with the doors locked. Until she’d given the house a security upgrade, she wouldn’t be able to relax, let alone sleep here.
Eva found her cell in her bag. Her first impulse was to ring one of Kyle’s twin sisters, either Sophie or Francesca. Unfortunately, both of them had been out of town for a week or so. She checked through her contacts and found a number. “I’ve got a friend who helps me out at work occasionally. She’ll put me up for the night.” Annie had once had her own wedding event business, but had segued into special event planning for hotels and major corporations.
Her call went through to Annie’s answering service. She tried again, with the same result. She tried Jacinta’s number. Normally she never mixed business with her personal life, but she was desperate.
Jacinta’s breathless hello was cut off by a lazily amused masculine voice, informing her that Jacinta was busy. Cheeks burning, Eva terminated the call.
Kyle lifted a brow. “No luck?”
She reached for her laptop then remembered it had been stolen. Luckily, all of her carefully managed business systems and contact lists were stored remotely so she could retrieve them, but it was still a major inconvenience. She picked up her phone and began looking online for a motel. “I could get a motel.”
“Suit yourself. Or you could stay at my place. I’ve got a house just a couple of minutes from here. There’s a guest room.”
Tension zinged through her at the thought of staying with Kyle. And continuing on with what they had started at the beach. “I didn’t know you bought a house.” The last she’d heard, Kyle had lived in an ultraexpensive penthouse apartment in the Viaduct, an affluent waterfront area a stone’s throw from the center of the city. Although, with all of the frustration of Mario’s will and the times she’d had to spend trying to find a husband, she hadn’t exactly kept up with family news.
“I bought the old Huntington place. It came up for auction a few weeks back.”
Shock jerked Eva’s head up. The Huntington place wasn’t just a house. It was a fascinating Edwardian red brick folly situated on a rare acre of grounds that also ran down to a tiny private beach. She had caught glimpses of it from the road, through ornate wrought iron bars as she’d either jogged or walked past. But the ivy-festooned walls that glowed in the afternoon light and the lush garden possessed the kind of irresistible romantic charm that had drawn her like a moth to the flame. When she had seen that it was for sale, she had taken a risk and climbed through the gate. The overgrown gardens and the beach had been so beautiful that if she had been able to marry in time and obtain her inheritance, she would have bought it, regardless of what the house was like. “I can’t believe you bought that house.”
Especially since she had wanted it. From the first moment she had seen it, something had clutched at her heart. It was the most perfect family home she could imagine, even though she would not be requiring it for that, unless at some point she was able to adopt a child. Her most immediate purpose had been for her wedding business. It had everything for a perfect venue.
Kyle’s expression turned wary. “What’s wrong now?”
Jaw taut, Eva picked up the overnight bag she had packed and her clutch. Somehow, finding out that he was in possession of her house was upsetting. She couldn’t quite put her finger on why. Maybe she felt so knocked off balance because for years she had been used to forging her own path, making her own decisions and doing things her way. Now, for the first and only time in her life, she had made love—with Kyle. Added to that, Kyle held the balance of power for the two things she wanted: her inheritance and the dream house.
As much as she wanted to say no about something, she couldn’t deny the twisted desire to torture herself by looking around a house she knew would be beautiful and exactly what she wanted.
Seeing the house and knowing she could only have it on Kyle’s terms would reinforce all of the reasons she should squash the incomprehensible, fatal attraction that had sneaked up on her.
What was wrong now?
She gave Kyle a cool stare. “Nothing much.”
When Kyle tried to take her overnight bag, she kept a steely grip on it and marched to the door. “First you deprive me of my wedding. Now you’ve bought my house.”
Seven
The crowded suburbs of Auckland seemed to disappear as Eva drove her car through the gates of Huntington House, with its stone gateposts and aged and stately magnolias arching overhead. Security lights came on, illuminating the thick tangle of rhododendrons and old-fashioned roses planted cheek by jowl with native ponga ferns and drifts of reinga reinga lilies.
The house was two-storied and peak roofed, with an array of chimneys that poked up against the night sky, adding to the old-world charm. Apart from more security lights, which illuminated the circular piece of drive before the front porch, the house sat in darkness, enclosed and s
ecret with the thick press of overgrown trees and gardens.
Kyle drove into a garage off to the side. Since she was only here for the few hours that were left before she had to be at work, Eva parked near the front portico. By the time she had grabbed her things and locked the car, lights glowed softly in the downstairs area.
The scent of the sea and the sound of the waves hitting the shore nearby should have been relaxing after the tension of the break-in, except that it gave her another searing flashback of their passionate moments on the beach.
The portico lights came on and Kyle opened the front door wider, stepping out to take her bag from her.
Unwillingly loving Kyle’s manners, Eva walked into the foyer, her heels clicking on the marble floor. Directly ahead a stairway curved away in a graceful arc. To one side there was an elegant front parlor and what looked like a series of reception and family rooms. On the other side of the staircase she knew, because she had peered through the windows when she had snuck into the estate previously, that a hall led in the direction of the kitchen and what had probably originally been the servants’ quarters.
Eva let out a breath. “It’s perfect.” As a wedding venue. As a family home.
Kyle shrugged and indicated she should follow him. “At the moment it’s a museum.”
“You don’t like it?”
“I wouldn’t have bought it if I hadn’t liked it. It just needs updating.”
He walked into a huge kitchen, which was shabby and badly lit, but which already contained a selection of gleaming stainless steel appliances; fridge, cooktop, microwave and dishwasher. Kyle pointed out a kettle and toaster and a pantry that contained cereals and bread and a few food essentials if she needed to make a hot drink or get breakfast.
He indicated she should follow him up the stairs and showed her an array of bedrooms, finishing up with a large room with a king-size bed that was unmistakably his. He set her overnight bag down in the hallway.
Eva’s cell beeped. When she took it from her bag, she saw Hicks’s name flash up on the screen. When she answered the call, his voice was curt. Apparently they just had a call from a neighbor of hers to say that a man had been seen in her rear garden. They had just dispatched a cruiser to check it out. His main concern was that she was out of the house and safe.
When Kyle realized it was Hicks, he took the phone and had a terse conversation with the cop before terminating the call and handing her phone back, his expression grim. “You’re not going back until whoever broke in is in custody.”
“If they can catch him.” She’d reached her limit for the night. She felt cold and shaky and couldn’t seem to stop the tremor in her hands.
“Hicks is no slug. He’s a member of the Armed Offenders Squad—he knows what he’s doing.”
She rubbed at her arms, which suddenly felt chilled, and couldn’t keep the grumpiness out of her voice. “How do you know this stuff?”
“Quite a few former SAS end up in the AOS.” He stopped. “Are you all right?”
She tried for a smile. “Of course.”
“You don’t look it.”
A split second later she was in his arms, his hold loose enough that she could pull free if she wanted. As if sensing her tension, or more probably realizing that she was actually shaking, he wrapped her more tightly against him.
Eva took a deep breath, soaking in the burning heat that seemed to blast from Kyle as the horrible tension that had crept up on her finally began to unravel. “I guess that’s what they call delayed shock. Interesting.”
“You can be sure that whoever broke in to your house won’t do it again,” Kyle said coldly. “I’ll make sure of it.”
The soft, flat statement sent an electrifying shiver down her spine, and she had a moment to feel sorry for whoever it was who had broken into her house. She tilted her head back and met Kyle’s gaze, and just like that her decision was made. Kyle was a powerful, in-control kind of guy, and right now that was exactly what she needed. She would probably regret it, but for better or worse she was going to marry him.
Kyle loosened off his hold slightly. “What is it?”
She drew a deep breath. “You were showing me to my room.”
“You can have your own room, or you can share mine. Your choice.”
She held his gaze unblinkingly. “Your room.”
A hot pang went through her as he cupped her chin and bent his head, giving her plenty of time to pull free if she didn’t want the kiss, and abruptly that was the final reassurance she needed. Kyle had already proved that he would never push her where she didn’t want to go. Her heart slammed against the wall of her chest as his mouth settled on hers.
Eleven years ago, kissing Kyle had been the angst-filled, desperate risk of a teenager. Now it was an adult reaching for something that had been missing for more years than she cared to count, a hunger for warmth and closeness and for the no-holds-barred intimacy of making love.
Another long, drugging kiss later and she found herself being maneuvered through the door to Kyle’s room and walked back in the direction of the bed. But when Kyle tried to pull free, she coiled her arms around his neck, lifted up and kissed him again.
With a groan he pulled her close. He kissed her, his mouth firm, the feel of his muscled body pressed against hers, the shape of his arousal, the taste of him making her head spin. Another long, heated kiss and she felt her zipper open and the straps of her dress slide from her shoulders. “I’m still sticky and grainy from the beach.”
“We can have a shower. Later.” As her bra released, she tugged at the buttons of his shirt, dragging it open, but had to stop when he bent and took one breast into his mouth.
Her breath caught in her throat as a heated, aching tension gathered in the pit of her stomach. Somewhere in the distance she heard the lonely sound of a night bird, almost swamped by the slow sound of rain starting on the roof. She arched restlessly against Kyle’s mouth, needing something more, but at that point he lifted his head and she felt the soft brush of the bed at the back of her knees. Sliding her hand down over the hard muscle of his abs, she found the top button of his pants, fumbled it open and dragged the zipper down.
Kyle’s breath caught audibly, his hand stayed hers. Gaze locked with his, she lifted up and kissed him again. Attempting to step out of her shoes mid-kiss, she wavered off balance and ended up tumbling back on the bed. Kyle sprawled heavily, half on top of her, but when he would have moved, she wound her arms around his neck, tangling her fingers in his dark, silky hair and pressed herself against him.
Acting on impulse, she closed her teeth over the lobe of his ear.
Kyle’s fingers closed around her wrists, his breath mingled with hers. “Babe, you don’t know what you’re—”
“Yes. I do.” Dizzy with delight at the feminine power she had over Kyle, stunned by the sensations cascading through her and the careful way he held her close as if he truly cared for her, she kissed him again.
She felt his swiftly indrawn breath. “This time we’re doing it right.”
He disentangled himself and obtained a foil packet from his bedside table. After sheathing himself, he returned to the bed. A split second later, his weight came down on hers.
He cupped her face. “Are you sure you want to do this again?”
She lifted up for his kiss. “Why would there be a problem?”
She felt the scrape of lace as he peeled her panties down her legs, then his thighs parted hers. “Correct me if I’m wrong, but I think it’s been a while since you’ve done this.”
She hesitated, on the brink of telling him that before tonight she had never “done this,” but then a quiet, instinctive caution gripped her. She had already given more of herself, and agreed to more, than she had planned. The urge to protect herself now was knee-jerk. Confessing that until tonight she had b
een a virgin would lay bare too much.
This time their lovemaking was more leisurely as he took his time kissing her, cupping her breasts and at the same time encouraging her to explore. Just when she thought she couldn’t take much more play, she felt the press of him between her legs. Automatically, she shifted to accommodate him.
This time their joining was smoother, easier. She heard his indrawn breath, then his mouth came down on hers and he began to move and the heated tension turned molten.
Long minutes later, Kyle gently disengaged himself and rolled to one side, taking her with him.
There was a small vibrating silence. “The condom slipped the first time, but that’s never happened before, so there’s no risk of STDs” He propped himself up on one elbow. “But you also should have told me you haven’t made love for a while.”
She studied the stubbled line of his jaw, and the resolve not to reveal just how vulnerable she was with all things sexual settled in. She ran her palm over the damp skin of his chest, and evaded his gaze. “There wasn’t exactly much time for conversation.”
He cupped one breast, the intimate touch sending a tingling thrill through her. “It would have been good to know. We could have done things...differently.”
She shivered as he dipped down and took her nipple in his mouth, her eyes closing as the heated, coiling tension started all over again. She tried to think, but her brain was fast becoming scrambled. “How, exactly?”
“I would have taken a whole lot more time.”
Her eyes flipped open at the way his voice cooled, as if he was remembering the mishap with the condom. She summoned as much confidence as she could. “There won’t be a baby.”
Although the gravity of what had happened came back to hit her full force. The plain fact was that because she hadn’t been sexually active, she didn’t know a lot about where in her cycle was the optimum time to get pregnant. She had never before needed to keep track of her ovulation. She knew roughly when her period was, but that was about it. If by some remote chance she did get pregnant... But that wouldn’t happen, she thought grimly, she would make sure of it. She would make an appointment to see her doctor tomorrow and get a morning-after pill.