Good Girl or Gold-Digger? (8 page)

‘Half-past seven, right?’

Her heart skipped a beat. ‘Half-past seven.’

On Sunday, Daisy was working in her office when there was a rap on the door.

She glanced up and saw Felix. He looked absolutely edible in black trousers, an open-necked shirt with the sleeves rolled up and a pair of dark glasses.

For one mad moment, she considered getting up and throwing herself into his arms, but she knew it would make him back off again, so she stayed where she was.
‘Hi. You look like—’
any woman’s dream come true
‘—a tourist.’

‘I am.’ He smiled at her. ‘Hello.’

‘Hello.’

‘It’s one o’clock,’ he said.

‘Uh-huh.’

‘And, knowing you, you haven’t had a break yet.’

‘I’m fine. I’ll grab a sandwich at my desk later.’

‘Wrong. You’re taking a break right now.’

‘Bossing me about now?’ she asked.

‘No, you have a choice. You can come with me quietly, or you can come with me kicking and screaming. Bottom line: you’re leaving this room for forty-five minutes.’

‘Thirty.’

‘Forty-five.’

He was utterly implacable, and Daisy judged it politic to give in. She let him shepherd her over to the cafe, where he collected sandwiches and fruit for them; she sat with him at the picnic tables while they ate, enjoying the sunshine, and she gave in to his suggestion to wander round the fairground. ‘It’s work,’ he said. ‘We’re checking that the customers are happy. Seeing what they like and what they don’t like.’

She’d told him that the gondola was her favourite ride, so she wasn’t surprised when he made her queue up there with him. The ride was really popular, so she had to sit next to him in the car rather than opposite him. And she felt his fingers lace through hers—discreetly, because their hands were hidden from sight, but he was holding her hand. Staking his claim.

‘We’ve been apart for three days,’ he said conversationally. ‘Which should have been long enough for us to get our common sense back.’

Yet he was right next to her, holding her hand. ‘So have you?’ she asked. ‘Got your common sense back, I mean?’

‘No.’ He gave her a wry smile. ‘Have you?’

‘No.’

‘Then maybe we should try the other way of getting it out of our system,’ he said.

She swallowed hard; her stomach was a knot of nerves. ‘So you’re suggesting an affair.’

‘I’m suggesting we explore this thing between us.’

‘For how long?’

He shrugged. ‘As long as it takes to get it out of our systems.’

‘And the fairground?’ she asked carefully.

‘Is a completely separate matter. This is just between you and me.’

She took a deep breath. ‘Starting when?’

‘This dinner you had planned for tonight…could we do it tomorrow?’

She nodded.

‘Then I’ll pick you up tonight. We’ll have dinner. Walk on the beach.’

It was what he hadn’t said that made a shiver of pure pleasure run down her spine: what would happen after they’d walked on the beach.

Though one thing bothered her. ‘So it starts at your hotel.’

‘Neutral territory,’ he said.

That made sense, but she still needed to know. ‘What’s wrong with my place?’

‘Nothing. But you live in a small village. People will notice if my car is parked outside your house all evening; they’ll start speculating, asking questions. And I’d rather this was just between us.’

She bit her lip. ‘What time?’

‘Half-past seven. If that gives you enough time to do whatever you need to do.’

Cycle home, shower, change, feed Titan. ‘Yes.’ She took a deep breath. ‘So, if we’re going to your hotel, I have to wear a dress.’

He smiled. ‘No. Wear whatever you like. We can walk first, then eat on my balcony, if you’d rather.’

His balcony.

Last time, they’d ended up kissing each other stupid, and they’d just about been able to stop.

This time, they didn’t have to stop. Adrenaline flooded through her at the thought. ‘That’s fine,’ she said, her voice very slightly cracked.

‘Then,’ he said softly, ‘it’s a date.’

A
T HALF-PAST
seven precisely, Felix rang the doorbell. Daisy answered, looking just a little flustered.

‘I can come back if you need more time,’ he said.

‘No, it’s fine.’

She’d changed, he noticed. Into smart black trousers, a black top and a bright red cardigan. ‘You look lovely,’ he said.

‘Thank you.’

She also looked as nervous as he felt. Crazy. Tonight had been his idea: he was in control, so there was no reason why he should feel nervous. No reason why adrenaline should be skittering through his veins.

He waited for her to lock her front door, then opened the passenger door for her. Once they were back at the hotel, he shepherded her over to the beach. The sun had started to drop below the horizon and the sea was calm, the waves swishing gently onto the shore.

‘Want to paddle?’ he asked.

She shook her head. ‘I’m not really dressed for it.’

He could imagine her in bare feet and a pair of cut-off jeans. Or very, very short shorts. His mouth went dry. ‘Uh-huh.’

She gave him a sidelong look. ‘And I can’t see
you
paddling. You might get messy.’

That made him blink. ‘You think I’m scared of mess?’

‘You’re a control freak, Felix. Everything’s neat and tidy in your world.’

There was nothing tidy about the way he was feeling right now. Nothing compartmentalised. Just a ratcheting of tension. A mixture of urgent need and desire, combined with worry that this was going to be a huge mistake for both of them. But, for the life of him, he couldn’t think of another solution, any other way to get her out of his system. ‘Not everything,’ he said.

‘No?’ Her expression called him a big, fat liar. ‘Prove it.’

He stopped dead, spun her into his arms and kissed her. It was hot, open-mouthed and intense. And she kissed him back, as she had that night by her borrowed car, demanding and offering in equal measure.

When he finally broke the kiss, they were both quivering.

‘Was that untidy enough for you?’ he asked.

Her eyes had darkened to jade. ‘Yes.’

Now.

He could see it in her face, the same need that thrummed through him. He let his hands slide down her arms, twined his fingers through hers, and walked back to the hotel. Through the lobby. Into the lift. Neither of them said a word as the doors swished together and the lift glided up to the third floor. But Felix was looking at her mouth, and when he glanced up for a second he could see that she was staring at his mouth, too.

Wanting.

Needing.

It was getting harder and harder to breathe as the lift doors opened and he walked with her to his door. He slid the card key into the lock, making a huge effort not to let his hands shake, even though he was as tense as hell.

Then the door closed behind them and she was in his arms.

His mouth was jammed over hers, she was kissing him back as if she couldn’t slake her thirst for him. He had no idea who started undressing who, but somehow they were standing by his bed. Daisy was naked apart from a pair of white lacy knickers, his shirt was he didn’t care where, and she was struggling to undo the button of his trousers.

So much for his reputation as a lover with finesse.

He was behaving as if he were eighteen and making love for the first time.

Hell, he
felt
as if he were eighteen and making love for the first time.

He needed to slow this down. For both their sakes. But then Daisy trailed her fingers over his chest, forcing him to reciprocate by cupping her breasts, and the sheer perfection of her curves was just too much for him.

He dropped to his knees in front of her and drew one nipple into his mouth. Daisy gave a sigh of pleasure and tipped her head back, sliding her hands into his hair. She was so responsive to his touch, and Felix loved it. Loved the fact that he could turn this bright, sassy woman into pure mush. He kissed the soft undersides of her breasts, then moved lower over her midriff and skated kisses round her navel. He breathed in her scent; it reminded him of summer berries. Which was about right: she tasted like a lush, summer afternoon, and he wanted more. A lot more. He wanted to make her head spin, the
way she did his. He wanted to touch her and taste her and ease his body inside hers. He wanted to see her eyes all drowsy with pleasure, sated with his lovemaking.

And he wanted it all
now.

He slid one hand between her thighs, and she quivered. ‘Felix.’ His name was a hiss of pleasure.

He cupped her sex; he could feel heat radiating from her, the same heat that fizzed through his own body. Slowly, gently, he pushed the lacy material aside. Slid one finger along her sex. Brushed her clitoris once, twice. She whimpered and her fingers tightened in his hair. ‘Yes. Oh, yes.’ She widened her stance slightly, offering, and he took the hint, pushing a finger inside her and shifting his hand so the base of his thumb rubbed against her clitoris.

Felix loved the way her breathing changed, becoming quicker and more shallow as her arousal grew. He teased her until he could feel her body quivering with tension. Then, and only then, he stood up, picked her up and laid her against the pillows. Stripped off the rest of his clothing in two seconds flat. Slowly, slowly he peeled down her knickers, maintaining eye contact the whole time. Daisy blushed deeply, but her eyes were pure jade, telling him she was just as turned on as he was.

He lifted her leg and kissed the hollows of her ankle, still looking straight into her eyes, then nibbled his way down her calf to the back of her knee. Her hands had fisted in his sheets, and he could see how uneven her breathing was. Just to prolong the torment, he made his way very, very slowly along her thigh. And then he shifted so he could draw his tongue along the length of her sex. So very, very slowly.

Daisy moaned aloud and tipped her head back against his pillows, arching her body to give him better access. He teased her clitoris with the tip of his tongue until she was starting to quiver, then pushed a finger inside her. He felt her fingers slide into his hair, urging him on, and then he heard her give a surprised, ‘Oh!’ of pleasure and felt her body ripple round him.

He kissed his way back up to her mouth. ‘That was for you,’ he said quietly.

‘Felix, I…’ She stroked his face, clearly near to tears. ‘Thank you.’

‘My pleasure.’ He kissed her lightly. ‘But I haven’t finished yet. Not by a long way. This time’s for both of us.’ He retrieved his wallet from his trousers and removed a condom; he ripped the foil packet open and rolled it on before kneeling between her thighs again.

‘OK?’ he asked softly, checking; even though it would be hell for him to stop now, he needed to be sure she wanted this as much as he did.

When she nodded, he fitted the tip of his penis against her and slowly, slowly eased inside. Deeper and deeper. Until he was completely sheathed inside her and her legs were wrapped round his waist.

Pure, unadulterated bliss.

Daisy had guessed that Felix would be good at this, but she’d also underestimated him. She really hadn’t expected him to be such a generous lover, thinking of her pleasure first. Making her feel cherished. Special.

She arched her back and drew him deeper.

‘That’s good,’ Felix said, his voice deeper and huskier than she remembered. ‘You feel so good, Daisy.’

‘So do you,’ she whispered shakily. The perfect fit.
It shouldn’t be like this, the first time. It should be awkward and a bit ungainly, with neither of them knowing how to please the other and having to work on a best-guess scenario.

But this was amazing. As if they were already in tune.

Either Felix was extremely practised, or this was something special. Right at that moment, she couldn’t tell which.

He kissed her hard, and then he began to move, varying the pace and pressure of his thrusts until he found a rhythm that made her breathing quicken. Unbelievably, she felt warmth coil tighter and tighter within her. No way had she ever come twice, so close together before.

She was at the point of hyperventilating when her climax hit her. ‘Felix.’ His name was a sigh of sheer delight.

Then he stilled, focused and completely lost in pleasure, before giving her a sweet kiss that felt as if it touched her somewhere deep inside.

He dealt with the condom, then drew her back into his arms.

Odd how it felt so comfortable to be with him, not needing words. She enjoyed sparring with him, yet being quiet with him was good, too. Right now, there was no need to fill the silence.

Then her stomach rumbled.

She closed her eyes, feeling embarrassed colour flood into her face. ‘I’m sorry.’

‘My fault. I was supposed to feed you first.’

‘We can’t go down to dinner. I don’t know where my clothes are.’

He laughed and propped himself on his elbow, looking down at her. ‘I don’t know where most of mine
are, either.’ He stole a kiss. ‘I’ll go hunt them down. And you can think about what you’d like to eat so I can order room-service.’

‘Felix, I can’t believe we just…’ She bit her lip. ‘And we hardly said a word to each other.’

He stroked her face. ‘Talking wasn’t exactly upper most in my mind. And I don’t think it was in yours, either.’

‘No,’ she admitted.

‘Is it a problem?’

She wasn’t sure. They were going to have to talk about this at some point. Decide where they were going from here.

‘Look, there’s a menu in the drawer. Choose whatever you like. But may I suggest you choose something cold?’

‘Cold?’

‘In case,’ he told her, his voice deepening, ‘we get a little bit distracted.’

She knew he meant if they ended up making love again before they ate. Daisy felt her blush deepening. ‘Felix!’

‘You asked.’ He shrugged, and gave her a wicked grin. ‘And meanwhile I’ll find our clothes.’ He slid off the bed, still naked, completely unselfconscious.

Daisy couldn’t take her eyes off him. Clothed, he was beautiful. Naked, he was magnificent. Broad shoulders and flat abs that told her he worked out regularly, and a truly delectable backside.

She was still thinking about him, not even having retrieved the menu, when he walked in with a pile of clothes—his and hers, tangled together.

Just as their bodies had been.

‘Have you decided what you’d like yet?’ he asked.

You.
‘Urn…sorry.’

He gave her a truly wicked smile, dropped the clothes on the bed and fished the room-service menu out of a drawer. ‘Here. Have a read.’

Except she couldn’t resist watching him as he folded their clothes neatly and put them on a chair. She was still very aware that they were both naked. That they’d made love. And once wasn’t nearly enough.

When he’d finished, he sat down beside her. ‘So, what would you like?’

‘What would you suggest?’ she fenced, not wanting to admit that her concentration had failed her yet again.

He kissed the spot just behind her ear. ‘Lots of things. But I promised to feed you first. How about I order us a chicken salad and we take a shower while we’re waiting?’

‘Sounds good.’

Showering with Felix was sheer pleasure. Daisy enjoyed soaping him all over, learning the curves of his body and just where he liked being touched. And she enjoyed it even more when he explored her in turn.

They’d just started dressing when there was a knock at the door.

Felix grabbed a cashmere sweater from his wardrobe and pulled it on, zipping up his trousers as he walked out of the bedroom door and closed it behind him. By the time he rapped on the door and peered round it, she’d finished dressing.

‘Dinner is served, madam,’ he said with a smile, and ushered her out to his balcony.

There was even a vanilla-scented candle burning in the centre of the table; sitting watching the sky as it faded into darkness was just wonderful.

‘This is lovely, Felix,’ she said.

‘Sorry, I should have asked you—did you want some wine?’

‘No, but don’t let me stop you.’

‘I’m driving you home,’ he said.

Oh. So he wasn’t going to ask her to stay. She was annoyed with herself for feeling disappointed; what had she expected? This was a mad fling, designed to get it out of their systems. It wasn’t the beginning of a relationship. So she should be feeling relieved. This was an affair with defined limits, and neither of them was going to get hurt.

The food was fabulous, but best of all was the pudding: white chocolate and raspberry crème brûlée, one of the nicest she’d ever tasted. ‘Felix Gisbourne, you’re such a hedonist,’ she said.

‘You finished yours first,’ he pointed out.

His eyes were very dark, and his expression was unfathomable. She had no idea what he was thinking, what he was feeling.

Nothing for it but to bite the bullet.

‘So, the crazy stuff,’ she said, lifting her chin and trying to be brave. ‘All OK now?’

‘That depends what you mean by OK,’ he said.

‘Is it out of your system?’

‘Is it out of yours?’

No. But she didn’t want to sound needy. ‘I asked first.’

He smiled wryly. ‘Not quite.’

Time to compromise. ‘Me, neither. So what happens now?’

‘Up to you. We can stop. Or…’

Her chest felt tight. ‘Or?’

‘We explore this. See where it takes us. But it’s just between you and me.’

She knew it was the sensible thing; neither of them was ready to share this with the outside world. Neither of them knew where it was going. Keeping it to themselves would avoid any pressure. Yet part of her still hurt. Part of her still wondered: was it going to be like it had been with her exes, with him thinking she wasn’t feminine enough?

She let out a yelp of surprise as Felix scooped her out of her chair and settled her on his lap, wrapping his arms round her waist. ‘Felix!’

‘You’re brooding. What’s the problem?’

‘Nothing.’

He coughed. ‘Like to rephrase that?’

‘It’s…’ She sighed. ‘No, it’s nothing. You’re right. This takes all the pressure off. It saves my family grilling you about your intentions.’

‘Your family would grill me?’