Elusive Obsession

by Carole Mortimer

  And Reece wanted to strangle the man responsible for hurting her!

  ‘There was no emotion involved in my decision concerning Carlton Cosmetics,’ she told him now harshly, her cheeks still waxy-pale. ‘It was cut and dried from the onset. I only attended the meeting because my agent asked me to. You are Carlton Cosmetics.’ She looked at him unblinkingly.

  Reece returned that gaze searchingly, and saw, for all her pallor, that she was back in control again now. If she had ever lost it. Which he was no longer sure about.

  What he was sure of was that he was sick of the situation that existed between him and this woman. He would have his say where she was concerned once and for all, and then if necessary—God, how he hoped it wouldn’t be!—he would move on. He had always known in the past when to cut his losses and go on, and Diana Lamb had disrupted his well-ordered life enough already…!

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  DIANA could feel the nausea receding now, the waves of dizziness that had almost made her believe, for a few seconds, that she was going to totally disgrace herself and collapse in the middle of this crowded room!

  That remark about emotions had been so totally Reece Falcon, was the exact attitude that had destroyed her father, and it had shaken her to the very roots of her being. God, how she hated this man and all he stood for!

  She couldn’t carry on with this charade any longer; she had to get it over with.

  ‘I’m sorry, Reece.’ She put a hand up to her throbbing temple. ‘I’m afraid I’m suddenly not feeling well; if I make my excuses to Charles, would you mind driving me home?’

  She was too numbed of emotion at that moment to even mind the look of triumph that blazed in the glittering silver eyes at her request. God, she had to get over feeling this way before they reached her flat, otherwise these last painful weeks would all have been in vain. She would get over it—had to, had made a promise to herself and the memory of her father. And she had no intention of breaking it!

  ‘Unless, of course,’ she murmured with a frown as she saw Barbara Carlton enter the room, ‘I would be taking you away from anyone…?’ She should have realised he had arranged to meet someone at the party—if not Barbara then some other woman; after all, making up a threesome with his son and his son’s fiancée wasn’t usual for him! She arched speculative brows at him.

  He had seen Barbara too now, his eyes narrowing as his gaze returned to Diana. ‘No,’ he told her firmly. ‘You won’t be taking me away from anyone or anything. I’m ready to leave whenever you are,’ he added softly.

  So he really had been telling the truth when he claimed there was nothing but a professional relationship between himself and Barbara Carlton; he would hardly leave with her now if there was anything else between them. ‘I’ll just go and tell Charles we’re leaving,’ Diana nodded before looking at the young couple. ‘It was nice to meet you at last, Maddy,’ she said warmly.

  The other girl smiled. ‘Especially as Chris hadn’t told you a thing about me!’ she teased him.

  ‘Oh, come on, you two.’ Chris looked uncomfortable again now. ‘Give a man a break!’

  Madeleine put her hand in the crook of his arm as she smiled up at him sweetly. ‘I will, darling—if you ever decide to forget again that we’re engaged. And I doubt a broken nose would look as distinguished on you as it does on Reece!’

  Diana couldn’t help but join the general laughter at Chris’s expense. She admired Madeleine tremendously for the mature way she was handling Chris’s lapse, and she could see from Chris’s slightly dazed expression that he would be slightly wary in future of upsetting this kitten he seemed to have got by the tail, that he would think twice—three times!—before even considering forgetting he had a fiancée again. Diana doubted he would have got away with it the first time if Madeleine hadn’t been in Switzerland, and she was sure the younger girl would be keeping a closer eye on him in future.

  Charles raised his brows when Diana told him who was taking her home. ‘Take care, Diana,’ he frowned concernedly, glancing across the room to where Reece was now in conversation with Barbara. ‘The man has a reputation——’

  ‘I know.’ Diana squeezed his hand, grateful for his concern, all the more so because she knew it was of a paternal kind and not because of any interest in her himself; he and Joanna had been living together for years. ‘Don’t worry,’ she smiled. ‘I can take care of myself.’ Because she had been doing it for years, had had no one else there to take care of her. And she had Reece Falcon to thank for that.

  Charles had no reason to worry about her; she wasn’t the one in any danger…

  * * *

  Reece was genuinely sorry Diana wasn’t feeling well, and although it wasn’t the best circumstance to be alone with her he was grateful for the opportunity anyway. Maybe now wasn’t the best time to tell her how he felt about her, but God knew when would be the best time with this elusive woman!

  He inwardly thanked whatever impulse had made him bring his own car tonight, although he had originally done it because he wanted the means to leave any time he wanted to without being accused of inconveniencing Chris and Madeleine. And when he had set out this evening he had believed he would want to leave very soon after he arrived; now, with Diana seated beside him in the darkness of the car, he felt as elated as a young schoolboy on his first date. What had she done to him?

  They didn’t speak as he drove unerringly back to her flat, both seeming lost in their own thoughts. And Reece realised, as the miles quickly passed, he was as nervous as a young schoolboy on his first date too!

  * * *

  Diana was well aware of the elation in the man sitting beside her. But it didn’t bother her. He might think he had won this particular battle, but he still wasn’t about to win the war. There wasn’t going to be any victor in the war she was waging—they were all the losers.

  ‘Would you like to come in for coffee?’ she asked as he parked the car. ‘It’s the least I can offer you,’ she added huskily, ‘when I’ve dragged you away from the party.’

  Reece’s mouth twisted. ‘I happen to hate those chatty, everyone-trying-to-impress-each-other type of parties! I only went at all because Chris and Madeleine asked me to. But I thought you weren’t feeling well…?’ He tilted his head questioningly.

  Diana looked back at him in the glow given off by the street-lamp just outside the car. ‘So you don’t want coffee,’ she nodded.

  ‘I would love a coffee,’ he told her firmly. ‘If you’re feeling well enough…?’

  ‘I wouldn’t have offered if I didn’t,’ Diana drawled.

  ‘Then coffee it is,’ he agreed, quickly climbing out of the car to come round and open her door for her.

  Puddle, the traitor, twined himself in and out of Reece Falcon’s legs in greeting once he had recognised who their visitor was, leaving several black hairs on the dark grey trousers before wandering off again to settle himself back in the cosy bed Diana had made up for him near the window.

  Secretly Diana had wished Puddle might have taken a dislike to Reece, then he would have shown his displeasure by sinking his teeth into his leg the way he did to her when she had been away. Fickle cat!

  ‘There really is nothing between you and Oxley?’ Reece spoke suddenly into the silence.

  She met his gaze steadily. ‘Would it really bother you if there were?’

  Reece’s mouth tightened. ‘Is there?’ he grated.

  ‘No,’ she sighed. ‘Nothing at all. And there never has been either,’ she answered the question she knew would come next. ‘Reece, now who is playing games?’ She quirked dark brows pointedly.

  His eyes narrowed warily—like an animal that sensed it was being driven into a corner, Diana realised. And it was his own desire for her that was trapping him! Enigmatic didn’t even begin to describe this man; he wanted her, made no secret of the fact, and yet he still resented his involvement with her. Perhaps that attitude wasn’t so difficult to understand after all, not when she had told him so
bluntly how uninterested she was in him. It was the fact that her attitude now seemed so different that was bothering him, she could tell. Most men would just have been grateful for that apparent change, but then, Reece Falcon wasn’t ‘most men’!

  ‘Let me ask you something, Reece,’ she said slowly, moistening red painted lips, not with any intention of being provocative but because they suddenly felt dry. But as the intensity of his silver gaze became fixed on the movement Diana knew Reece had reacted to it anyway. He might be wary, but that certainly didn’t stop him wanting her! ‘What do you want from me?’ she asked softly.

  He drew in a sharp breath at the directness of her question, taking his time formulating an answer.

  But time was something Diana knew she could no longer give him. ‘No more games from either of us, Reece.’ She shook her head. ‘I’m sure you must have realised by now that it isn’t something I enjoy indulging in.’ She gave a slightly derisive smile.

  He shrugged. ‘I’m not sure I know anything about you at all.’ His eyes were narrowed. ‘Who are you, Diana Lamb?’

  Now it was her turn to catch her breath in her throat. ‘What do you mean?’ she finally managed to say, every nerve in her body tensed now.

  He ran a hand over his brow in weary acceptance. ‘Why do I find myself thinking about you all the time? Why do I want you so damned much?’ he said harshly.

  She was filled with elation at his admission, and didn’t even protest when he swept her up into his arms and began to kiss her with a fierceness that bordered on savagery.

  But it was such total and raw desire, beyond either of their control, Diana’s head spinning at Reece’s closeness, the hard lines of his body pressed against hers.

  What happened next was totally out of her control, her arms moving up about Reece’s neck, seemingly of their own volition, her lips flowering beneath his as they gentled to searching passion, sipping, tasting, drinking thirstily, his tongue a warm caress against her lips before venturing further, telling her of his need of her. And it was a need she could feel echoed in her own body, her back arching, a low groan escaping her throat as one of Reece’s hands moved in a slow caress across her breast, the tip hardening instantly, a thumb-pad seeking, and immediately finding, that response.

  Diana’s legs felt weak, her body filled with sensations she had never even dreamt of experiencing for herself, a burning ache within her that she had no idea how to assuage. And it felt almost as if she would faint away completely as Reece’s mouth left hers and his head lowered to gently draw her pulsing nipple into the warm cavern of his mouth through the thin material of her dress. For a fleeting moment—very fleeting!—she vaguely registered that Charles would be furious with her if his gown was damaged in any way, and then she didn’t care how he felt as warmth and longing coursed through her limbs, couldn’t have cared less if the gown had been ripped to shreds at her feet.

  This wasn’t the way it was meant to be—she wasn’t supposed to respond to this man in this way!

  But she couldn’t stop her feelings, and knew she was lost completely as Reece’s mouth returned searchingly to hers, revelling in that passionate intensity.

  ‘This is what I want!’ he finally groaned low in his throat. ‘You. Beside me. In bed. On the floor! Any damn where!’ he rasped self-derisively.

  That voice. Always it was the sound of that voice that brought her back to her senses, that reminded her of exactly who he was!

  Diana looked at him with darkly bewildered eyes, knowing as she did so that she was falling in love with him, that it was only when he spoke, and she remembered who he was, that she knew it could never be between them.

  She couldn’t allow herself to fall in love with this man—to do so would destroy her!

  * * *

  She was going away from him again—Reece could sense it, even though physically she was still close to him, her body moulded against his. And he couldn’t let her go away from him this time; he wanted the warmth and passion she had shown him a few minutes ago.

  ‘Diana!’ He shook her gently. ‘Don’t look at me like that. I want to make love to you, nothing more, but nothing less either!’ he told her bluntly, knowing she had to be aware of his desire, the hardness of his body giving him away.

  Damn, he had come so close, only to feel her withdrawing into herself once again. And he couldn’t stand yet more weeks of hell, of denying himself this woman he wanted so much. Not when he knew she wanted him too. And she did want him. Reece knew that her response had been completely spontaneous a short time ago, that even she had been taken aback at the depth of her feeling.

  ‘Diana!’ He shook her again, his gaze fierce on the paleness of her face.

  She swallowed hard. ‘I—I’ve never had an affair, Reece,’ she told him huskily.

  He frowned his puzzlement at the statement. She couldn’t mean——‘What are you saying?’ he demanded harshly.

  She met his gaze unflinchingly. ‘That I’m a virgin.’

  Reece felt himself sway dizzily with elation. It was incredible to believe this beautiful woman-child, with her hauntingly lovely face and body, had never known a lover’s touch, and never—despite all his agonising imaginings to the contrary—lain in the warmth of a man’s arms in the aftermath of lovemaking. And yet he didn’t doubt her words, was sure now that this was the reason she always seemed so elusive—because she was!

  And as he looked into that coolly beautiful face, down the length of that sensually lovely body, he knew he didn’t want any other man to possess her. Ever. He wanted her for himself.

  That she wanted him too he didn’t doubt now, but many men must have wanted her in the past, and it was inconceivable that she hadn’t wanted any of them. Why hadn’t she taken any of them as her lover? And then he berated himself for being so damned suspicious. Maybe it was because he had finally found everything he had ever wanted wrapped up in this hauntingly lovely woman—beauty, brains, no complicated past for him to accept and contend with, so that he just couldn’t believe his luck in having found her at all.

  ‘Marry me,’ he heard himself say—to his own stunned surprise. Because until the words actually left his lips he hadn’t even been aware he had been thinking of saying them. And maybe he hadn’t—he didn’t seem able to think straight at all when he was close to Diana!

  He wasn’t sure which one of them was the more shocked when she whispered, ‘Yes!’

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  THE idea would probably never even have come to her if she hadn’t been introduced to Christopher Falcon at a promotional dinner three months ago, hadn’t seen how different the last twelve years had been for him, with his father’s wealth behind him.

  During her eight years at school after her father died Diana had felt only numb hatred for the man who was responsible for his death, the hatred becoming a gnawing ache when she left school and found a job and then constantly found herself looking at photographs of ‘the successful Reece Falcon’ in newspapers. But even then it had been a detached sort of hatred, her chances of meeting the man himself being very remote, even when her modelling career became so well established. Being introduced to Chris had changed all that, and she had realised that she finally had a chance to avenge her father’s death, and in a way that would hit Reece Falcon the hardest.

  She knew, from what she had read, and from what Chris had now told her of his father, that Reece loved his son very much. But still she didn’t want to hurt Chris; her argument was with Reece Falcon. And it was the older man she had deliberately set out to captivate; she wanted him to know the same helplessness that her father had, to know how it felt to lose the person you loved above all things, as she had when her father had died.

  Chris, she was sorry to say, had merely been her bait to attract Reece Falcon’s attention to her. Because once she had his attention she had been sure her very elusiveness would act as a lure to a man who was accustomed to taking whatever and whoever he wanted.

  Even now she couldn’t b
elieve how well she had succeeded, that Reece Falcon had actually proposed to her—and that she had accepted!

  Reece gave a shaky laugh as he recovered slightly, his hands moving caressingly down her arms to clasp hers. ‘I can’t believe I just did that!’ he said shakily.

  Diana’s eyes widened in alarm. Was he changing his mind already, regretting his impulsiveness?

  God, wouldn’t it be better if he did? Because all of this was backfiring on her, and she realised how poorly she had actually thought out what she was doing. Meeting Chris had been the catalyst to a set of moves she now realised would result in her subjecting herself to a living hell too as Reece’s wife. She had to be slightly mad to have even thought of doing such a thing.

  And then she had a vision of her father, his pain and anguish, the way she had last seen him, the blood—oh, God, the blood!

  That silent scream after she had seen him dead had gone on for months and months, the deep emotional trauma of what she had seen meaning she couldn’t have spoken even if she had wanted to. But she hadn’t wanted to. It was easier to stay cocooned inside herself rather than be expected to talk about her father, about seeing him dead. And all that had happened because of Reece Falcon.

  But she was falling in love with the man! How could that be? She didn’t have any answer to that anguished question; she only knew it was happening.

  ‘Hey, I didn’t say I regretted it,’ Reece cajoled as he saw the paleness of her cheeks. ‘Only that I can’t believe it.’

  She shook her head, frightened of her own emotions now. How could she possibly think of marrying this man, loving him and hating him at the same time?