He was gloriously aroused. All male and rigid muscle encased in warm satin. She slipped her hand around him and caressed him, loving the sound of the ragged groan he gave.
“Witch.”
“You want me to stop?” she said, arching a provocative eyebrow.
“What do you think?” he growled.
She smiled. “What I think is that I’m going to have my way with you.”
“Yes.”
She looked down to where her hand held him. And her head lowered. And then for long minutes she made love to him with her hands and her mouth, tasting him with her lips and tongue, breathing him in, loving him, until he put her from him with a sharp hiss as he pulled her upward.
He caught her face between his hands and gave her a brief hard kiss. “I need you nak*d against me.”
Her pulse was already racing through her veins, and his words sent it skyrocketing. “Then let me do the honors,” she whispered, stepping back and undressing for him, quick not slow, wanting him now, too much tension between them.
She gasped in delight when he pulled her to him and his erection pressed up against her, hard and demanding. She savored the feel of his hot skin next to hers, the touch of his hands sliding up and down her bare back, the way the hair of his chest brushed against her aching n**ples.
And then he swung her up in his arms and headed into the bedroom, tumbling her down on the comforter. “I thought I was supposed to be in charge here,” she reminded him huskily.
He ignored that as he quickly protected himself with a condom before joining her on the bed.
Then he lifted her on top of him. “There.” Adjusting them both, he eased her down on his thick shaft. “Take charge,” he muttered as she took him into her.
An hour and a half later they were sitting on a blanket under the coconut palms on Mindil Beach, eating pizza and watching the glorious sunset. She was famished after another round of lovemaking in the shower before they’d dressed again and left the apartment.
But she still felt as if she was on sensation overload by just having him next to her, watching her with a speculative look in his eyes that belied his casual appearance.
“So, how did it go at the office today?” he said in a conversational tone, just like they were the usual married couple.
She winced inwardly. The usual married couple were in love. Neither did the usual married couple have a cousin blackmailing the wife, threatening to destroy every thing she held dear.
“Um…it was a challenge.”
He nodded, and there was a pause as he took a bite of the pizza and looked out to sea. He would have no idea just how much of a “challenge” Keiran had been today.
All at once he turned his head to look at her, studying her thoughtfully for a moment. Then, “I want you to go back to university and finish your degree.”
She almost dropped her food. “What!”
Amusement briefly twinkled in his eyes, before he grew serious again. “When I first met you, you were at university studying for your Bachelor of Nutrition and Dietetics. Your eyes used to light up whenever you talked about it, so I’m assuming you regret not finishing it. Am I right?”
“I guess so but—”
“Finish it, Gabrielle.”
She dropped her gaze to the pizza in her hand. “I…I can’t.”
“Why not?”
How could she tell him that soon she had to go back to making a living? Eileen would have her back, but there wouldn’t be time leftover for study.
She shrugged. “It’s not something I ever think about.”
“Then promise me you will think about it.”
She looked over at him. “I promise,” she said truthfully. She’d already thought about it, but that’s all she could do.
“Good.”
She tilted her head and watched the soft breeze ruffle his dark hair. Suddenly she was greedy. She wanted to know everything she could about this man before she set him free.
“What are your dreams, Damien? You never told me.”
He took a sip from his can of cola and swallowed the liquid, then his lips curved in a wry smile. “What every man wants. To be rich, successful and have any woman he desires.”
She grimaced. It was typical of him not to share his dreams with her, yet he expected her to tell him everything. “I’m serious.”
His smile disappeared. “Seriously, then. I’m rich. I’m successful. And I’ve got the woman I desire.”
Her heart turned all aquiver. “Oh.”
His eyes assessed hers. “Is that all you’ve got to say?”
“Three out of three ain’t bad,” she joked, but felt far from laughing. A man like Damien would never truly admit to actually feeling something for a woman, other than lust. And that was just as well. She wanted no complications. He would survive without her as he always had done, and that would make it easier for her to walk away when the time came.
At the reminder of her departure, she dropped her remaining pizza in the box and jumped to her feet. “We’d better be going. I want to see my father before he falls asleep.”
“Whoa!” Damien stood up and moved in close, frowning. “You still don’t believe you’re enough for me, do you?”
Her gaze darted away, then back. “Of course I do,” she said, but even to her own ears she sounded less than convincing. Not that it mattered. Actually, it worked out better. If Damien thought she was upset over this, he wouldn’t suspect she was upset over her upcoming departure.
A dark shadow crossed his features, but just as he opened his mouth to speak, some squealing children and a dog ran past them, kicking up the sand.
Thankful for the interruption, Gabrielle broke away from him and began collecting their things. After a moment he helped, too, but she was grateful he said nothing further on the way to her parents’ house. For once, his running true to form like this…keeping his thoughts to himself…was working in her favor.
Yet just how she was going to achieve leaving him she wasn’t sure. If she left without warning like last time, she’d have to leave all her belongings here. She wouldn’t be able to pick up the threads of her old life. She’d been fooling herself to think that. Damien would be on her doorstep this time for sure. Pride would insist his wife come back to him.
But how could she start afresh somewhere and not tell her parents if she were to cut all ties? Could she really do that to them? If she only had herself to worry about, perhaps. But it was all so complicated. God, why had she ever agreed to come back here in the first place? She should have refused. It would have saved a great deal of heartache in the long run.
Fifteen minutes later she had to put her thoughts aside as she and Damien entered her old home. The front door had been left unlocked for them, and now they found her father lying in bed in the main bedroom, her mother reading one of the latest novels to him.
“What’s this, Russell?” Damien said in a joking tone. “You getting soft in your old age?”
Russell chuckled. “It seems so.”
Caroline closed the book and put it on the bedside table. “He tells me his days of reading the Financial Review are over.”
Damien’s glance sharpened. “So you’re retiring?”
“Yes, son, I am. I want to enjoy the more important things in my life.” His eyes encompassed Caroline and Gabrielle. “That’s all that matters to me now.”
Gabrielle’s heart thudded. So many times she’d longed to hear such words, but now they only caused her more anguish and despair.
All at once her mother smiled a nice bright smile that went nowhere. “So, darling. When are you two going to have that proper ceremony? I’ll need to put it in my calendar. I’m not sure where I’ll be then but—”
Russell’s eyes sharpened. “What on earth are you talking about?”
Caroline glanced at him, then away. “Um, I said I’m not sure where—”
“I heard what you said,” he growled. “I’m just not sure why you said it. You’re not going anywhere. At least not without me.”
She flushed but held herself stiffly. “Russell, I came back because you had a stroke. Now that you’re getting better you don’t need me anymore.”
“Wrong. I need you more than ever, Caroline,” he said brusquely.
A tremor touched her mother’s lips. “Russell, I—”
“Do you love me?”
Caroline’s chin lifted as she met his gaze head on. “Why do you ask?”
“Because I love you,” he said, the rough edge of emotion in her father’s voice. “More than ever.”
Her mother looked hesitant. “You do?”
“Of course I do.” His gaze swept over them all, an arrogant tilt to his head that reminded her of Damien. “And I don’t care who knows it.”
Caroline bit her lip. “But…I didn’t think you cared anymore. You’ve been acting so…polite at times.”
“Only because I wanted to recover fully before convincing you to stay with me. As it is—” he looked down at himself on the bed, then up again “—I’m still not well enough, but I want you to stay with me anyway.”
Caroline’s eyes lit with hope. “You do?”
“Yes,” he said on a broken whisper, holding out his hand toward her.
“Oh, Russell.” She went into his arms.
Gabrielle’s despair lessened at their avowal of love. Her parents would be okay without her. They loved each other after all. Love would get them through it.
As it would her.
Something pulled her tear-filled gaze away from her parents to the window. Damien stood, looking at her, his gaze penetrating and oddly watchful.
“Well, well, Russell,” a male voice interrupted from the doorway behind them. “This is quite a development.”
Gabrielle spun around and found Keiran standing there with a smile that oozed false charm. The torment of his presence sent sudden desolation sweeping over her.
“Keiran,” Russell said, sounding pleased. “Come in. Come in. I’ve got some news. I intend to renew my vows to Caroline just as soon as it can be arranged.”
Keiran stepped forward into the room. “That’s fantastic news. I always knew you two belonged together.” He stopped beside Gabrielle and smiled across the room at Damien. “Just like I knew these two belonged together.”
“Oh, so you saw it, too,” Russell said, leaning back on the pillow with the air of a man who had everything now.
“I sure did. And it makes my heart glad for them both.” He smiled at her, but his eyes were cold. “I’m sure nothing can come between them now. Don’t you agree, Gabrielle?”
Her nerves tensed. “I—”
“You got that right,” Damien cut across her from his position at the window.
Keiran inclined his head, but the smug smile stayed on his lips. He was in control of her and Damien’s future, and he knew it.
Then Keiran looked down at Gabrielle beside him, making her jump when he lifted her wrist and turned it over. “Oh my, coz. How on earth did you get this nasty bruise?”