by Kim Lawrence
She had been unable to contain her disquiet as the drifts of shorn hair on the floor became a deep soft pile.
‘I don’t really think short hair suits me.’
We have kept most of the length, the man who called himself simply Anton had explained, conveying the strong impression as he did so that he was not accustomed to defending his artistic efforts.
When he had finished, the loose curls down her back did still reach her shoulder blades but it didn’t stop Beth feeling naked and exposed—though not, obviously, as exposed as this dress made her feel—with the heavy, long hair around her face reduced to feathery tendrils.
Both he and the make-up artist had raved about her cheekbones and said it was criminal that she had been hiding them.
Theo leaned his shoulders on the wall and consulted his watch. ‘What do you intend to do? Stay in there for ever?’
Beth turned on the tap to drown out his voice. She could think of worse ideas at that moment than never leaving the bathroom, and a person could actually live for a long time on water and she had plenty of that. She dabbed a wet tissue to her lips and scrubbed hard. The colour stubbornly stayed put; it didn’t even smudge.
Beth leaned on the wall and, close to panic, shut her eyes. She took a deep breath—this was ludicrous, but not life-threatening.
She walked over to the mirror and stared at her reflection. No, it’s not ludicrous, but I am, for getting sucked into this entire Cinderella scenario.
Theo had dangled a carrot and she had fallen for the bait.
The hair, the make-up, even the clothes, she thought, glancing down at the close-fitting black sheath that clung to her waist and hips like a second skin before flaring out from the knee—they had all been part of the bait.
‘Well…?’
Ignoring the impatient voice on the other side of the door, Beth turned her back on the person staring back at her from the mirror; it was bizarre to see a stranger looking back at her. What she needed was an industrial cleaner to get this stuff off her face and her own clothes.
Her clothes were in the other room. ‘I’m not coming out while you’re there.’
She heard him snap out an expletive before he finally said, ‘Fine. I have to go to meet them now; stay there if you want to.’
And, after a few moments, she heard the door open and then close. Beth listened, unable to believe it had been that easy…before she cautiously opened the bathroom door.
Other than the racks of designer garments and rows of shoes that the hit team from the exclusive department store had left behind, the room was empty. With a sigh of relief, she ran over to the bed to retrieve her own clothes.
Only they were not where she had left them. Instead, there was a crumpled shirt and tie that she would have sworn had not been there before.
‘Where on earth?’ she mumbled, pulling aside the quilt to look beneath it.
‘Looking for these?’
With a startled gasp, Beth swung around, straightening up just as a tall figure re-entered the room. He was holding the neat stack of her clothes, which he dropped on the floor before beginning to casually button the shirt that hung open to his waist, revealing the ridged muscles of his flat belly and a teasing glimpse of the light dusting of body hair on his golden chest.
Beth’s eyes made an unscheduled journey from his face to his waist as a silent shiver that began low in her pelvis rippled outwards until her entire body was involved.
She took a deep breath and dragged her eyes upwards. So Theo Kyriakis was in pretty good shape—this was not exactly news.
Actually, pretty good might, she conceded, be the understatement of the century. He had the sort of body fantasies were made of, though not, obviously, her own.
Theo had been annoyed his plan had gone pear-shaped but prepared to cut her some slack. It wasn’t her fault that things hadn’t worked and he was actually reasonably philosophical about the failure.
But he had been surprised. Theo considered himself a pretty good judge of such things and he had been sure that Elizabeth Farley would scrub up pretty well; of course he hadn’t been expecting miracles or a wow, stop-in-your-tracks moment.
His expectations had been much more realistic, but he had genuinely thought that getting her out of those drab clothes would be a vast improvement and a bit of gloss to draw attention to those lush, seductive lips would make any man forget her less than classical features.
An image of that mouth was drifting through his mind as she whipped around to face him, her newly styled hair fanning out like a silky cloud around her face before settling in silky waves down her back.
Theo got the wow moment he had not been anticipating—it hit him like a fist connecting with his solar plexus.
A husky expletive slipped unnoticed from his lips as he drew a deep breath; he had no more control over his body than an adolescent in the first grip of lust as he stood there, nailed to the spot, and stared.
He had, admittedly, thought she had potential but not this! Who knew that under the frumpy suits and high-buttoned collars was a body that any woman would trade her entire collection of designer handbags for, and any man…he shook his head slightly and exhaled the air that had been trapped in his lungs in one long sigh and thought…any man, including his brother, would want to possess.
The mystery was why any woman would hide a body like that.
And, despite his misgivings, the black had not turned out to be a mistake, he conceded, sending up a silent apology to the stylists who, it turned out, did know their job. The stark column of black brought out the opalescent sheen of her pale creamy skin and the loose, low cowl neckline of the dress revealed the beauty of her lovely neck and shoulders while offering tantalising little glimpses of her small high breasts when she moved.
‘You said you’d go,’ Beth accused, directing a bitter look at his face.
Theo didn’t respond. He just carried on staring at her with a fixed intensity that she found unnerving; if she had felt self-conscious and awkward previously in the unaccustomed finery, now his reaction made her feel a million times worse.
It wasn’t until she heard his startled exclamation of dismay—that Beth realised that she had still, in one stubbornly optimistic corner of her brain, nurtured a faint hope that she was overreacting. A man with an ounce of sensitivity would have hidden his disappointment, she reflected bitterly.
‘Well, now you know,’ she said, lifting her arms wide and performing a shaky twirl, the accompanying laugh emerging as a rusty croak. ‘Sorry.’
‘Sorry?’
There was an oddly blank look in his eyes as they connected with her own; they were so dark that it was impossible to tell where the pupil ended. The effect was strangely hypnotic.
The nerve-shredding awkward silence stretched.
What else was she meant to say? she wondered as she finally wrenched her eyes from his; she only made it as far as his sternly sensual mouth and the muscle that was clenching beside it.
He was clearly really aggravated that his plan had fallen apart at the first hurdle. It had not even occurred to him to consider how she might be feeling…No, of course it hadn’t. My God, he had to be the most egocentric and selfish man on the planet!
The resentment inside her suddenly exploded. ‘Don’t look at me like that—it’s not my fault!’ she yelled.
‘There is no need to raise your voice.’ His eyes slid to her heaving breasts. Andreas’s eyes were going to pop out of his head when he saw her.
This transformation worked on many levels. His brother was going to be kicking himself that this woman had been sitting a few feet away from him for years and he was going to be consumed with jealousy because she was with Theo.
‘Actually, there is a need. I told you it was a ridiculous idea, but you would have it your way, as usual…’ Breathing hard through flared nostrils, she planted her hands on her hips, unwittingly causing the fabric of her dress to pull tight across her breasts, and fixed him with a resentful gla
re. ‘Do you ever listen to anyone else? Silly question; of course you don’t. Well, for the record, I know I look ridiculous so I don’t need you to tell me.’ Or look at me as if I’ve grown a second head.
She wrapped her arms across her chest in a protective gesture and wished he’d stop staring. ‘And don’t you dare tell me to put a positive slant on it,’ she warned him darkly.
‘All right, I won’t,’ Theo agreed, adjusting the knot of his tie.
‘Because I’m up to here,’ she informed him, raising her hand a foot above her head, ‘with being positive and putting a brave face on it when life actually sucks.’ She paused to catch her breath and thought this was definitely one of those life-sucking moments. ‘A slutty dress,’ she observed bitterly, ‘is not going to change the fact I’m just not eye candy material.’
Hearing the self-pitying quiver in her voice, she lifted her chin and thought, live with it, Beth, you weren’t some sexy siren when you got out of bed this morning so, actually, nothing has changed.
‘The dress is not slutty.’
‘You mean I am?’ she queried sharply.
A shadow of impatience moved across Theo’s face. ‘Don’t be ridiculous.’
‘I’m simply not sexy,’ she added, unable to shake free of the self-pitying mode.
Any sexier and she would need to carry a government health warning. ‘The dress,’ he said, struggling for patience, ‘is not slutty; it is classy and sexy.’ And she was clearly certifiable if she truly had no inkling of how she looked.
‘Oh, I’m sure it cost a lot of money,’ she admitted, stretching out a leg to examine the effect as the folds of fabric pulled tight against her thigh. She pointed her toe and, thinking of the hand-sewn label she had spotted, admitted, ‘I’m sure it would look tremendous on someone who could carry it off.’ And someone with less in the breasts department; the lift effect of the boned bodice and loose cowl neckline was alarming, she decided, squinting down at of the amount of cleavage on display.
‘Why can you not carry it off?’ Theo asked.
Assuming he was joking, she gave a snort of laughter.
‘If you’re worried about the money…’ Beth grimaced. She wouldn’t blame him if he was; there hadn’t been a single price tag on any of the outfits hanging on the rail they’d wheeled in but she was pretty sure any one would have cost more than her yearly clothing budget ‘…I’m sure they’ll take the dress and the other things back.’
Which would leave her wearing very little. Without warning, a picture formed in his head to illustrate the point; he saw her standing there minus the slinky dress, and in his expert opinion, she was not wearing a bra.
It took him the space of several heartbeats before he could banish the steamy, distracting image.
‘Just what is your problem?’
Honesty prevented Beth from yelling I’m looking at it, because he hadn’t made her spend the day being pampered and primped. But it was tempting, really tempting.
What he had done was what he did best—he had exploited her weakness, made her do this.
Why would any woman hide a body like that? he wondered as his gaze moved over the slender female curves. Her breasts were surprisingly full, her hips narrow by contrast and her waist incredibly narrow; her slim hips had a deliciously feminine flare.
‘Or maybe you could get someone my size to take my place—’ Beth suggested hopefully.
‘Enough!’
The sharp command cut her off. Beth opened her mouth to protest, then, as her eyes moved from his sensually moulded mouth to his eyes, she stopped abruptly. Something kicked low in her belly, her eyes connected with his hooded stare and a little shiver trickled down her spine.
‘Thank you,’ he murmured ironically.
The silence between them ticked on for another few uncomfortable moments before he dragged a hand back and forth across his dark hair, rumpling it and making it stand up spikily at the front.
‘You should consider professional help with your body issues, but I am not a therapist.’
‘No, you’re the big boss.’
‘You don’t seem impressed?’
‘Of course I’m impressed. You sit at a big desk that is never untidy because you don’t do any work—you just make decisions. Which I am sure is very difficult,’ she jeered.
The breath whistled through his clenched teeth. ‘I have had a very trying day and my patience is limited. It might not be a good idea to wind me up, Elizabeth.’
Beth flung up her hands in an attitude of utter frustration. ‘You’ve had a trying day?’ My God, she had not credited him with a sympathetic nature but, even by his egocentric standards, this statement struck her as incredibly selfish. ‘Have you been sitting there all afternoon while people poke, prod, peel and act like you’re some sort of freak of nature? My skin is wrong, my hair is wrong, my…’
Without any warning, he took her chin between his thumb and forefinger and tilted her face up to him. Beth froze, her mouth half open, her pupils dilating as she lifted her eyes to meet his.
A slow insolent smile tugged at the corners of his sensual mouth but his dark eyes stayed sombre as he ran a finger slowly down the curve of her cheek.
Beth had no control over the shiver that ran through her body in response to the light touch. Mouth dry, she swallowed. Her heart was thudding, the charge in the air made it hard for her to catch her breath.
‘If they criticised your skin, they are fools,’ he pronounced, rubbing the pad of his thumb along her jaw. ‘It is perfect and flawless like silk.’ His lifted his hand and pushed his long fingers in her hair, an expression that had all the hallmarks of compulsion sliding into his eyes as his fingertips grazed her scalp.
Beth flinched and pulled back, shocked clear of the creeping paralysis that had nailed her to the spot by the shock of the electric surge that tingled along her nerve endings.
‘Nothing I say will convince you that you look fantastic, will it?’ His questioning gaze swept across her flushed upturned features.
She shook her head and watched the annoyance and frustration flash in his eyes. Breathing fast and uncomfortably conscious of the heat low in her belly, Beth ran her tongue across her lips, unwittingly drawing his attention to the soft curve.
Unable to explain the physical effect he had on her, she lifted her chin and took a casual step backwards.
Foiling her attempt to regain some personal space, he shadowed her action and then took another step, standing way too close. She couldn’t think; she couldn’t breathe.
‘I thought not.’ His thumb skimmed lightly over the curve of her cheek before he slid his fingers down the pale column of her neck; he could feel the vibration of the pulse at the base of her throat through his fingertips.
His touch was light. There was nothing stopping her just stepping away, but she didn’t; the powerful aura of raw sexuality he radiated froze her to the spot. She had never been physically aware of a man the way she was of Theo.
The seething intensity in his stare made her shiver. His dark sensual gaze sealed to her face, he curved a hand across her behind and pulled her into his body. Beth lifted her hands to push him away but somehow they stayed where they were against his chest. Palms flat, she spread her fingers, conscious as she did so of the hard solidity of his chest, the heat of his skin and the vibration of his strong beating heart.
Her own heart was acting like a captured bird throwing itself against her ribcage.
The corners of his sensual mouth tugged upwards in a smile that spelt danger as Theo reached his other hand to cup the back of her head.
She swallowed past the emotional thickness aching in her throat and opened her mouth a split second before Theo covered it with his own.
Shock held her immobile.
Eyes wide, she stood there while his lips settled against her own, then, as his tongue slid between her parted lips, her eyes drifted shut. Without knowing how it happened, she was kissing him back, her arms curved around his neck as he
r feet left the floor. Above the roaring in her ears she heard a soft fractured moan but did not associate it with herself.
When he released her Beth took a staggering step backwards, batting away the steadying hand he extended as she wiped a hand across her trembling mouth. The seductive mixture of passion and dazed shock in her glazed eyes made Theo want to kiss her again.
‘Was that actually necessary?’ she asked, even as she asked herself how she had come to be kissing him back. He wasn’t Andreas; she didn’t even like him.
‘I think so,’ he responded calmly. ‘Do you believe me now that you look incredible?’
She blinked. ‘You kissed me to—’ It was an explanation, but not one that explained the raw driving need she had glimpsed in his face.
‘I kissed you because you weren’t listening.’ It did not seem necessary to add that he had wanted to kiss her, that the idea of doing so had been growing all day until it had become a constant distraction.
It had been a two birds with one stone situation—satisfy his curiosity and remove the distraction.
In theory, at least.
‘The only thing you proved is that you know how to kiss, though, frankly, given your press, I was expecting better.’
There was a short startled silence before he burst out laughing. ‘Andreas will spontaneously combust when he sees you in that dress.’
She stared at him, her frown morphing into a wary smile. ‘Seriously?’
‘Seriously,’ he agreed drily.
Beth gazed at him in amazement and said cautiously. ‘You really like the way I look?’
He dragged a brown hand over his dark hair and looked exasperated. ‘I thought I had already demonstrated that. Perhaps I am losing my knack.’
‘Oh, no, you’re not.’ Blushing fierily the moment the uncensored and heartfelt words left her lips, Beth willed the floor at her feet to open up.
‘It is not me you need to drive wild with lust.’ Wild was a slight overstatement, he told himself, because he was still in control.
Control was not a problem for him.
The derision in his tone brought a mortified flush to her cheeks. ‘That would be a nightmare.’ Not to mention about as probable as her being offered the lead in a West End musical—she was tone deaf.