It also reminded her that although she had been almost naked Gabriel had remained completely dressed throughout their earlier—Their earlier what? Sexual encounter? Lovemaking? It could hardly be called the latter when there was no love for each other, on either side.
Sexual encounter, then.
How awful did that sound?
‘Thank you,’ she accepted with polite dismissal.
Gabriel scowled across the cabin at Bella for several long seconds. Knowing her as he did, he hadn’t been expecting her to fall lovingly into his arms when she awoke, but her coldness, her accusation that he had come here to gloat over her earlier capitulation, was unforgivable.
His expression was grim as he crossed the cabin in three long strides to stand beside the bed and look down at her. ‘It is not me you are angry with, Isabella—’
‘Don’t presume to tell me what I’m feeling,’ she said resentfully, her eyes glittering with suppressed emotion as she glowered up at him.
Gabriel sat down on the side of the bed, trapping her beneath the bedclothes as he put a hand either side of her to lean over her. ‘We are husband and wife, Isabella; there is absolutely no reason for you to feel embarrassed because of what happened between us earlier—’
‘I’m not embarrassed, Gabriel—I’m disgusted. With myself as much as with you!’ she added, her expression defiant as she met his gaze squarely.
Gabriel wanted to reach out and shake her out of this mood of self-recrimination. But if he were to touch her again now, even in anger, he knew that he wouldn’t be able to stop himself from making love with her again.
Just looking at Bella, her hair a cloud of darkness against the gold colour of the pillows, her mouth a sensual pout, and knowing her body was almost completely naked beneath the bedclothes was enough to make Gabriel shift uncomfortably as his thighs became engorged with arousal. His own lack of release earlier had become an aching throb he’d remained totally aware of while Bella slept.
He stood up abruptly, needing to put some distance between himself and Bella before speaking again, but before he could do so she got in first. ‘Just don’t count on a repeat performance, Gabriel,’ she snapped.
Where Bella was concerned Gabriel didn’t take anything for granted. Not one single thing. ‘We will be landing in ten minutes, Isabella, so I suggest that before we do you get some clothes on,’ he bit out tersely.
She kept the covers pulled up against her as she sat up, her hair falling silkily about her shoulders. ‘I thought you said it was a small Caribbean island?’
‘It is,’ Gabriel confirmed. ‘We will complete the rest of our journey by helicopter.’
Bella had never been in a helicopter before, and wasn’t sure how she was going to respond to being in such a small aircraft.
She was even less comfortable when she realised that Gabriel intended piloting the small black wasp-looking craft himself!
She looked at him uncertainly as he climbed into the seat beside her after stowing their cases in the back. ‘Are you sure you know how to fly one of these things?’
‘Very sure,’ he drawled. ‘I assure you, Isabella, you will be completely safe in my hands,’ he added mockingly as she still didn’t look convinced.
Bella shot him a narrow-eyed glare before turning away to look out of the window beside her at the bright sunshine reflecting on the beautiful blue-green ocean beyond a beach of white-gold sand.
A relaxed pose that didn’t last any longer than it took for Gabriel to start the engine and move the controls to lift the helicopter from the ground!
Bella reached out to clutch at Gabriel’s arm as the helicopter bucked and swayed as it rose into the air. ‘I think I’m going to be sick!’ she cried frantically.
‘You will not be sick if you look out at the sea and not down at the ground,’ he instructed.
Easy enough for him to say, Bella groaned inwardly as her stomach continued to heave in protest for several long minutes, only settling down to a slight queasiness as the helicopter levelled out and she could finally appreciate the beauty of the scenery.
The sun was bright and very hot, the sea so blue and clear that Bella could see the sandy bottom in several places, even more so as they began to approach a small island edged by unspoilt beautiful beaches and covered in lush green foliage and trees.
Gabriel flew the helicopter over the beach, almost but not quite touching the tops of the trees, Bella’s eyes widening as she saw he was heading towards a white-painted villa on top of a hill, only slightly inland and surrounded by more trees and huge brightly coloured flowers.
‘Home.’ Gabriel nodded in answer to Bella’s questioning look as he began to lower the helicopter onto the patch of flat green grass next to the villa. ‘What did you expect, Bella?’ He turned to her once they were down on the ground. ‘That I was bringing you to a shack in the middle of nowhere?’
Bella hadn’t really given a lot of thought as to where they would stay once they reached the island. The fact that Gabriel had given her an island as a wedding gift had seemed fantastic enough!
‘It is slightly primitive in that there are no servants here to wait on us,’ Gabriel warned.
Bella smiled wryly. ‘I won’t miss what I’ve never had, Gabriel.’
‘A Frenchman owned the island previously, and he had the villa built several years ago,’ Gabriel told her as he climbed out of the helicopter. ‘Obviously, if you want to change the décor then you must do so.’
‘It’s beautiful as it is,’ Bella murmured as she took her sunglasses off to follow him inside the villa.
The floors were cool cream-and-terracotta-coloured marble, the cream furniture in the sitting-room kept to a minimum, with several glass-topped tables placed conveniently beside the armchairs and sofa. The kitchen was even more surprising, everything white, including the cooker and huge refrigerator and freezer.
‘We have our own generator and fresh water supply,’ Gabriel told her as she moved slowly about the room. ‘Or rather, you have your own generator and fresh water supply,’ he corrected ruefully.
Bella blinked, totally overwhelmed now that she was actually here. ‘This really is all mine?’
Gabriel nodded. ‘Do you like it?’ His expression was guarded.
Almost as if he expected her to throw his gift back in his face. Not literally, of course, but verbally at least. Not surprising considering her remarks when Gabriel had first told her about the island!
‘I love it!’ Bella assured him emotionally. ‘I—thank you, Gabriel,’ she added slightly breathlessly.
Gabriel stood across the kitchen, his own sunglasses pushed up into the darkness of his hair. Hair that he hadn’t bothered to have cut the last five weeks, its longer length making him look more like the man Bella had met and briefly fallen for five years ago.
She turned away abruptly. ‘How on earth did everything get here? The materials to build the villa? The furniture?’ she quickly asked to cover her sudden and complete awareness of Gabriel as he stood there so still and yet so lethally attractive.
Gabriel shrugged. ‘The same way that the food in the freezer and refrigerator got here.’ He opened the fridge door to show her all the food stored on the shelves. ‘By boat,’ he supplied ruefully as Bella still looked puzzled.
Bella eyes narrowed. ‘Are you telling me that I didn’t have to suffer that helicopter flight at all? That we could have come here by boat, instead?’
Gabriel