Playing by the Greek's Rules (Puffin Island 0.50)

The door behind her opened and she stiffened but kept her back to him. ‘I’m about to lie down.’

‘I upset you,’ he said quietly, ‘and that was not my intention. You were generous enough to come here with me, the least I can do is respond to your questions in a civil tone. I apologise.’

‘I’m not upset because you didn’t want to talk. I understand you don’t find it helpful.’

‘Then what’s wrong?’ When she didn’t reply he cursed softly. ‘Talk to me, Lily.’

‘No. I’m having lots of feelings of my own and you hate talking about feelings. And no doubt you’ll find some way to interpret what I’m feeling in a bad way, because that seems to be your special gift. You twist everything beautiful into something dark and ugly. You really should leave now. I need to self-soothe.’

She expected to hear the pounding of feet and the sound of a door closing behind him, but instead felt the warm strength of his hands curve over her shoulders.

‘I do not twist things.’

‘Yes, you do. But that’s your problem. I can’t deal with it right now.’

‘I don’t want you to self-soothe.’ The words sounded as if they were dragged from him. ‘I want you to tell me what’s wrong. My father asked you a lot of personal questions over lunch.’

‘I don’t mind that.’

‘Then what? Is this about Chloe?’

She took a juddering breath. ‘It’s a little upsetting when adults don’t consider how a child might feel. It’s lovely that she has a loving father, but one day that little girl is going to wonder why her mother gave her away. She’s going to ask herself whether she cried too much or did something wrong. Not that I expect you to understand.’

There was a long pulsing silence and his grip on her arms tightened. ‘I do understand.’ His voice was low. ‘I was nine when my mother left and I asked myself all those questions and more.’

She stood still, absorbing both the enormity and the implications of that revelation. ‘I didn’t know.’

‘I don’t talk about it.’

But he’d talked about it now, with her. Warmth spread through her. ‘Did seeing Chloe stir it all up for you?’

‘This whole place stirs it up,’ he said wearily. ‘Let’s hope Chloe doesn’t ask herself those same questions when she’s older.’

‘I was a baby and I still ask myself those questions.’ And she had questions for him, so many questions, but she knew they wouldn’t be welcome.

‘I appreciate you listening to me, but I know you don’t really want to talk about this so you should probably leave now.’

‘Seeing as I am indirectly responsible for the fact you’re upset by bringing you here in the first place, I have no intention of leaving.’

‘You should.’ Her voice was thickened. ‘It’s the situation, not you. You’ve never even met your half-sister so you can’t be expected to love her and your father is obviously pleased, but a toddler is a lot of work and he’s about to be married. W

hat if he decides he doesn’t want Chloe either?’

‘He won’t decide that.’ His hands firm, he turned her to face him. ‘He has wanted her from the first day, but Callie did everything she could to keep the child from him. I have no idea what my father will say when Chloe is old enough to ask, but he is a sensitive man—much more sensitive than I am as you have discovered—and he will say the right thing, I’m sure.’ His hands stroked her bare arms and she gave a little shiver.

She could see the droplets of water clinging to dark hair that shadowed his bare chest.

Unable to help herself, she lifted her hand to his chest and then caught herself and pulled back.

‘Sorry—’ She took a step backwards but he muttered something under his breath in Greek and hauled her back against him. Her brain blurred as she was flattened against the heat and power of his body, his arm holding her trapped. He used his other hand to tilt her face to his and she drowned in the heated burn of his eyes in the few seconds before he bent his head and kissed her. And then there was nothing but the hunger of his mouth and the erotic slide of his tongue and it felt every bit as good as it had the first time. So good that she forgot everything except the pounding of her pulse and the desperate squirming heat low in her pelvis.

Pressed against his hard, powerful chest she forgot about feeling miserable and unsettled.

She forgot all the reasons this wasn’t a good idea.

She forgot everything except the breathtaking excitement he generated with his mouth and hands. His kiss was unmistakably sexual, his tongue tangling with hers, his gaze locked on hers as he silently challenged her.

‘Yes, yes.’ With a soft murmur of acquiescence, she wrapped her arms round his neck, feeling the damp ends of his hair brush her wrists.