‘No,’ she whispered, but he knew that denial was the furthest thing from the truth that had ever passed those sweet lips of hers.
He trailed a finger down her neck and saw her quiver and arch away from him, and he knew that he was pushing her over the edge, just as he was himself. ‘Why deny the inevitable?’
‘Because I have to.’
‘Why, when there is so much passion between us, so much desire? It is that very passion and desire that is keeping you here right now, when you could walk into the house and to your room. I wouldn’t follow you there. I meant what I said earlier. Nothing will happen unless you want it to.’
He slid his hands down her arms and he stepped closer still, until there was barely a whisper of air between them. He wanted her so much, but he had to be patient, had to wait for the right time.
‘Then you will accept that I can’t do this, can’t give in to whatever it is,’ she murmured.
‘But you admit it’s there? You feel it, don’t you, Bianca?’ He kissed a trail down her neck to her bare shoulders, breathing in the scent of her skin, tasting her and making staying in control all the harder for it.
* * *
Bianca closed her eyes and leant back against Liev’s strong body. Heat seared through her as his lips kissed her neck again and she knew she should stop it, knew it wasn’t what she needed, but it was so what she wanted.
‘Yes, I feel it too.’ The husky whisper which came from her was like no other sound she’d heard before. What was this power he had over her?
‘I can’t fight it much longer.’ The words, whispered into her hair, sent a shiver of excitement down her spine, and she bit down on her bottom lip trying to hold on to herself.
His hands slid down her arms and she turned to look at him over her shoulder, but his lips brushed hers and she closed her eyes, no longer able to resist this new pleasure. A soft sigh escaped her as he kissed her so gently and persuasively, coaxing more from her with the skill of an accomplished lover.
His hand splayed across her cheek, keeping her head where he wanted it as he deepened the kiss. Driven by a force she had no control over, she turned as his arms wrapped around her, pressing her body against the hardness of his.
His lips left hers and she dragged in air, searching the slate grey of his eyes, looking for reassurance, but all she saw was hungry desire. Desire she had no experience of dealing with.
Just as she was about to pull away, to tell him it couldn’t happen, he claimed her lips again in such a hard and demanding kiss she could no longer think. Heat which had been curling from a deep and secret place within her burst into flames, engulfing her so quickly she could hardly breathe.
She entwined her arms around his neck, pulling herself up against him, and the fire heated as she felt the evidence of his desire. This wasn’t just part of the deal. He really wanted her. Euphoria took her higher as his tongue plundered her mouth, coaxing and demanding more from her. Again those ever-present doubts surfaced. She couldn’t give more. Not to this man.
She pushed her hands against his chest and pulled back, breaking the kiss, but his arms held her firmly against him. She shook her head. ‘We shouldn’t be doing this, Liev.’
His eyes narrowed as he continued to hold her against him. Beneath the palms of her hands she could feel the rapid rise and fall of his hard and muscular chest. That in itself was almost enough to tip her over the edge.
‘Why not?’ His fierce words jolted her back to her senses and she pushed against him once more, thankful when he let her go. Quickly she moved away from him, away from temptation.
‘What we have isn’t real.’
‘Our engagement may not be, but this desire is. Are you so cold and hard you can ignore it and turn away from it that easily?’ He stalked past her back into the living room and poured himself a drink. The sound of the liquid filling the glass was almost too loud.
He thought her cold? Well, so much the better. ‘Yes, I am. We have a business arrangement and I am not in the habit of getting intimate with my clients.’
He took a big gulp and looked at her, icy coldness in his eyes. ‘That’s not how it seemed this afternoon, Bianca.’
She sighed softly. ‘Whatever you might think of me, I’m not used to this sort of arrangement.’
‘What sort is that? A lovers’ weekend away?’
‘It’s not something I’ve done before.’ If she told him she was inexperienced, would that dissuade him from looking for more than she could give?
‘You have never slipped away for a weekend of passion with your lover?’ The incredulity in his voice was clear.
‘No.’ She couldn’t quite tell him she had never had a lover. Maybe now was a good time to say goodnight. The incredulity in his voice left her in no doubt that he was more than used to such weekends. She just wasn’t ready for that yet. ‘Goodnight, Liev.’
THE NEXT MORNING Bianca had woken to the sounds of the ocean and had blushed as she’d recalled how she’d behaved with such wanton abandon the previous afternoon, lying on the beach as waves had washed over them. What was more shocking and harder to deal with was the fact that she’d wanted Liev in a way that had been almost impossible to resist. Her whole body had been on fire with need. So much that she’d almost given in to him last night.
As the morning had passed they had made polite conversation and after a while Liev had gone for another swim, but this time she’d declined his offer. As she’d watched him go, the feeling that she was making a mistake, letting something special slip by, wouldn’t leave her. She began to question why she’d stopped him last night, why she’d denied herself something every nerve in her body had demanded.
She didn’t know that answer, didn’t want to know it either. All she did know was if he ever kissed her again she wouldn’t be able to stop. Every nerve in her body was on high alert, the simmering attraction she’d felt from the beginning now a desire-driven madness.
What was it about Liev? Could she really be in love with him? Had she found the same love Lucia had written about in her letter all those years ago? The words she’d read so many times came back to her, strangely fitting what she felt right now.
For is that not what love does? I would not change a moment of it, even though you are not entirely mine and I not entirely yours.
She was not Liev’s fiancée. She had no right to feel anything for him, let alone this strange emotion that felt painfully like love. That thought was knife-like in her heart because, right now, cameras were being set up and her make-up was about to be done and she would be going out to face everyone as Liev’s fiancée.
‘Are you ready?’ Liev joined her, his firm stance as he looked at her one that would not take no for an answer. At least once this was over and the visit to her grandfather done, they could finally go their separate ways. She was sure the shelter interview and this photoshoot would achieve much more than he’d originally demanded of the deal.
‘Ready,’ she lied, and she followed him out to the beach where the first shoot was planned. Posing so boldly for the camera was not something she was used to. She’d never invited the attentions of the press or magazines like this, which was probably why they’d instantly jumped at the chance.
The cameras clicked and Bianca posed, her body pressed close against Liev. Every move she made intensified the fire of awareness within her. All she could think about was that kiss yesterday, the one which had left her yearning for more, needing to