Moonflower (5 page)

Reuben’s
frown deepened. He shook his head, sighed and made a sweeping
gesture with his hand. ‘Knock yourself out.’

And
Sophie did just that. As Reuben seated himself, pulled a sheaf of
papers from his briefcase and began rifling through them, Sophie
got stuck into all the buttons and gadgets around her; there were
even temperature controls for individual seats—real bum warmers.
They were almost at the airport when she realised that the
paperwork had ceased beside her. She turned to find Reuben watching
her.

‘
Bit of a gadget junkie,’ she said, smiling
self-consciously.

He carried right on staring at her.
Please stop it!
Sophie wanted to tell
him. He made her uncomfortable when he looked at her that way. Why,
she didn’t know, because being five feet eleven and with her
vibrant colouring, she was used to turning heads when she walked
into a room. But this was different. It made her heart do
somersaults and her breath come in small dramatic puffs. It
happened too quickly; that was the nasty thing about it. She didn’t
see it coming, could do nothing to stop it. Worse, was that she
wanted more. Once that fizz hit her bloodstream it had a hint of
addiction about it.

Sophie
thought it best not to draw attention to herself, so she
straightened her suit, settled back in her seat and crossed her
arms in front of her chest as they left the freeway and turned in
at the airport.

Once
inside, she got to experience for the first time in her life the
kind of treatment doled out to tycoons and other privileged
passengers. Doors were held open for them and their bags left in
someone else’s capable hands as they were whisked into an executive
lounge. Then, with behinds resting on plush couches, they were
offered coffee by a pretty young woman in a beige suit.

‘
The real thing!’ Sophie said joyfully, as she took a sip of
the steaming brew.

Reuben’s
head snapped in her direction. He was frowning at her
again.

‘
Not instant,’ Sophie said, holding her cup up to
him.

Reuben
glanced around, as if checking that no one else had been privy to
Sophie’s latest bout of exuberance. Turning his deep blue orbs on
her, he said, ‘I take it you’ve never flown first
class.’

Sophie
chose to ignore the drollness in his voice. ‘Of course not. You
know how expensive it is?’

‘
No,’ Reuben said, looking down at the papers he’d just pulled
from his briefcase.

‘
Well, take my word for it. It’s expensive.’

Reuben
glared at her. ‘Tell you what, Sophie. Why don’t you go over your
purchase figures or your costings, then you might not find all this
so distracting.’

‘
No need,’ Sophie said. ‘They’ve been checked and double
checked.’

‘
Well, then. Do you think you could be quiet for just a minute
so I can get some work done before we board?’

Damn, the man’s got a near-terminal case of
grumpiness
. And she
could
be quiet. He made her out to be
a chatterbox, which she most certainly was not. In short, the man
made her feel like a complete klutz, which again just wasn’t her.
She was used to spending long hours in the bush, often alone,
without talking and without mishap.

How dull
life must be if you had all this money, so many wonderful
experiences, but couldn’t feel the joy in it.

The
thought dissolved her anger and Sophie suddenly felt sorry for the
man. Responsibility obviously weighed heavily on him.

Reuben
was finding Sophie’s naiveté a little annoying, even embarrassing
at times, he thought as he settled into his plane seat. But another
part of him had to admit that he found her fresh and enchanting. No
prizes for guessing which part of him that was. But even her
girlish behaviour and complete lack of finesse did nothing to
detract from her beauty. If anything, her unaffected behaviour and
that severe, body-hugging business suit had sent him into
overdrive. It was just as well he’d learned in the boardroom the
value of a poker face. He was having a hard time stopping himself
from staring at her like a wide-eyed schoolboy.

Reuben glanced sideways; watched her wriggle slightly into the
plush seat; run her hands over the armrests, back and forth, back
and forth, long fingers splayed. He could see them against his
chest, fingers moving across his belly, his hips…
Now that’s done it!
It was
his turn to squirm.

Just then
Sophie looked up at him; smiled. Her arm brushed his. But Reuben’s
brain was fried; he found it impossible to return her smile. He was
trying too hard to hold onto his sanity.

When
their plane landed two hours later, he’d failed miserably to get
any work done. Sophie was just too distracting with her fidgeting
and her questions. The woman was going to drive him mad.

They were
met by a chauffeur service at the airport and whisked away to Brits
to attend the game sale.

Enter Sophie’s world
, Reuben thought.
She was right at home there. All traces of gawkiness were gone. She
strode around, inspecting animals in pens, discussing the health,
history and status of herds. And there were khaki-clad, tanned
people everywhere. Many of whom stopped to greet Sophie by name. It
wasn’t lost on Reuben that all the accompanying bear hugs were
carried out with great enthusiasm by men, young and old.

Reuben
appreciated the way Sophie included him in everything. Introducing
him to acquaintances, explaining which animals they should buy and
why. He found himself getting caught up in it all. Not least
Sophie, who he found a very different creature in her natural
surroundings; knowledgeable and commanding.

Sophie
was thrilled that he’d booked them into The Palace of the Lost
City.

‘
Legend has it that a palace was built here for the king of an
ancient civilisation from the north of Africa, and he lived here in
the valley until it was destroyed by an earthquake,’ she told
Reuben as they sped along in their chauffeured Mercedes.

The
Palace was every bit as impressive as Sophie had hoped, with its
enormous facade of stone made to look ancient and weathered. Every
room was fronted by North African arches and wrought iron
balconies. Towers topped by green wrought iron cupolas rose into a
turquoise sky.

Sophie
had to remember to keep her jaw from hitting her chest as they
checked in.

Having
exchanged room numbers, she parted with Reuben in the lobby. He was
staying in the King Suite, which didn’t surprise her at
all.

Alone in
her own suite at last, she kicked off her shoes, unbuttoned her
shirt and raced to the balcony. It was recessed for complete
privacy and had a superb view of jungle vegetation; carefully
cultivated, Sophie knew, but she was more than willing to go along
with the fantasy.

Rushing
back inside, she moved around the room inspecting the beautiful
furnishings. Just a couple of days ago she was envying her friends
their carefree days on the beach. Now she would have a story or two
of her own to tell.

Sophie
stripped off her clothes, had a cool shower and pulled on a pair of
linen shorts and a white t-shirt. Then she ordered a glass of
passion fruit juice and set her laptop on the small table near the
balcony. Enjoying the cool breeze on her bare legs, she set about
reconciling her projected figures for game purchases with the
actual costs of their day’s activities. She was so into what she
was doing that it took her a while to realise someone was knocking
at the door. Must be her passion fruit.

Passion yes, but fruit, no. It was Reuben, looking delicious
in a pair of chinos and a loose-fitting linen shirt. His hair was
still damp from the shower.
Better not
think about that
.

‘
Can I come in?’ Reuben asked.

‘
Oh.’ Sophie realised she’d been staring. Her cheeks flushed.
‘Sorry. I’m… come in.’

She did
the only thing she knew would break the spell—turned her back on
him and strode back into the room. But when she turned, Reuben’s
eyes were fixed on her long, tanned legs. They started a slow
journey along her bare thighs to her small linen shorts, lingered
on the sliver of golden midriff that peeked between t-shirt and
shorts. He frowned, but didn’t turn away. His gaze moved slowly
towards her breasts and it was then she knew that this magnificent
man was every bit as affected by her as she was by him.

There was
no mistaking it. Arousal sparked in her stomach, racing along her
spine and tingling to the roots of her hair, making the tiny hairs
stand to attention on her arms. Her chest rose, nipples erect,
suddenly sensitive against her t-shirt. In the back of her mind she
knew that if he took one step towards her, just the smallest of
steps, she’d do absolutely anything he, really only a stranger to
her, wanted her to do.

‘
Miss Kyle? Excuse me.’

They both
spun towards the door. Room service.

‘
Yes!’ Sophie headed for the bellboy. ‘Thank you.’

She
waited for him to place her drink on the table, signed the docket
and walked him back to the door. She did all these things without
thinking. All she was truly aware of was Reuben standing in the
middle of the carpet, watching her every move. She was aware of how
bare her legs were, a current of air playing across her thighs. She
was not wearing a bra. She hadn’t thought he would come to her like
this.

What was
happening to her? This just wasn’t like her. She’d so far avoided
losing her head the way so many of her friends had. Clever girls
that had dropped out of university for men they couldn’t resist;
intelligent women who’d given up promising careers to go off and
have babies. She had simply never understood it—that uncontrollable
urge they’d spoken of, awoken in them by some special man. But now,
every time she was alone with Reuben Manning, everything, the most
mundane words and gestures, felt like foreplay. And this was her
boss. He was the wrong man; it was the worst possible
timing.

She had
to diffuse the situation. Get them back onto a professional
footing. She went to the table, sipped her passion fruit. ‘I was
just updating our costings,’ she said, indicating her laptop, well
aware of an almost unbearable tension in the room. Her voice was
deep, husky. She cleared her throat.

‘
You’ll let me have a copy.’

His voice
was low; she did not turn to look at him.

‘
Yes, of course. As soon as I’ve finished.’

There was
a moment’s silence before Reuben cleared his throat. ‘I came to ask
you to join me for dinner this evening. It’ll give us a chance to
discuss the farm. I still have many questions.’

A
business dinner. ‘Yes, of course,’ she said, still looking at the
screen of her laptop.

‘
The Crystal Court at eight.’

‘
Eight o’clock,’ Sophie confirmed to his retreating
back.

Almost as
soon as he’d left the room, she realised she had nothing to wear to
a dinner at the Crystal Court; one of the Lost City’s dining rooms,
no doubt, that sounded splendid and ridiculously
expensive.

It wasn’t
Sophie’s habit to travel with an evening gown in her beat-up canvas
holdall. There was nothing to be done but call Reuben and tell him
she couldn’t make it.

‘
Why?’ he asked. The question sounded flat on the phone, as if
he weren’t really interested.

Sophie
imagined him with a pile of papers in front of him. She hesitated
before deciding to be totally honest with him. After all, she
didn’t have anything to be ashamed of. ‘I didn’t pack anything that
would be, you know… appropriate to wear to dinner at the Crystal
Court.’

‘
The hotel’s full of boutiques, Sophie.’ Again, sounding
exasperated.

‘
A conservationist’s salary doesn’t exactly stretch to
haute couture
,
Reuben.’

‘
I’ll handle it,’ he said, and put the phone down.

Sophie shook her head, got up from the desk, paced. Of all the
people to buy game farms in the country, she just
had
to end up working for
Reuben Manning. ‘Tell me how
that
happened?’ Sophie asked the empty room.

You’re here to do a job
, her voice of
reason piped back.
So do it and in next to
no time he’ll be back in the UK, you’ll have made a bit of a dent
in those student loans and added another reference to your
résumé
.

A knock
at the door broke into Sophie’s musings. She opened it to find a
porter standing there.

‘
Ms Kyle, arrangements have been made by Mr Manning for you to
buy whatever you need at any of the Palace’s boutiques.’

‘
Thank you,’ she said, but she did not smile. In fact, she felt
no gratitude at all. Only alarm, unease, agitation.

She
closed the door; went back to her laptop and sat down.