But satisfaction was short lived as she realised his wide shoulders virtually filled the hallway. Sexual awareness and a cloying, dangerous heat spread through her cosy cottage. Trapping a man like Alekos in this confined space was like putting a tiger in a small cage: fine if you were on the other side of the wire.
Frightened by how quickly her composure was deserting her, Kelly dumped her keys on a pile of unopened letters, wondering why being with him instantly made her think of sex. Their relationship hadn’t just been about sex, so why was she suddenly thinking about nothing but it?
Probably because her sex life had been so unfulfilling since they had parted, she thought wistfully. Suddenly she wished she hadn’t been so choosy over the last few years. If she’d had an active sex life, maybe she wouldn’t be feeling this way.
Maybe that nagging ache wouldn’t be present.
The truth was she’d poured her energies into her teaching, ignoring that other side of herself, pretending that it didn’t exist.
But it did exist.
It was as if just seeing him had flicked a switch inside her, reminded her what she was missing.
Too aware of his physical presence in her tiny hallway, Kelly walked through to the kitchen.
Alekos followed, this time bending his head to avoid the threat of the low beam. ‘This house is a death trap.’
‘For some, maybe. Perhaps it senses who is welcome and who isn’t. It presents no threat to me whatsoever.’
But he did. Oh yes, he did. Just by being within a metre of her, he presented a threat.
It had always been like this between them. That searing awareness, an almost primal reaction that neither of them had ever felt before. The connection had created a fierce maelstrom of emotion from which neither of them had escaped unscathed. It had been scary, she admitted, to realise that such passion existed. Even now it was there, simmering between them like the precursor to a deadly storm. It didn’t matter what had happened; she was learning to her cost that sexual attraction was no respecter of logic. ‘Wait here. I’ll get the ring.’
He glanced around the tiny room. ‘Are you going to offer me coffee?’
‘Why?’
His smile was barely discernible. ‘Because it would be hospitable?’
‘And hospitality is so important to you Greeks, isn’t it? You’ll leave a girl standing alone on her wedding day, but if you turn up uninvited in her home four years later you expect a cup of coffee and a slice of baklava.’
‘I’ve never seen you angry before.’
‘Stick around.’ Kelly filled the kettle violently, squirting water down her front. ‘On second thoughts, don’t stick around.’
‘Greek coffee, please.’
‘I hate Greek coffee. You can have tea.’
He eyed the pot she’d abandoned on the work surface that morning. ‘If you hate Greek coffee, why are you drinking it?’
Kelly stared at the offending pot, feeling her face redden. She could hardly tell him that she’d started drinking it because it had reminded her of the happy times they’d spent in Corfu, and that now she actually liked it. ‘I—I—’
‘It pleases me that you haven’t turned your back on everything Greek.’
Making a point, Kelly turned her back on him; maybe it was childish but she didn’t care. Pulling open a cupboard, she winced as a packet of rice fell on her head. Replacing it, she reached up and gingerly pulled out a jar of instant. ‘This is what I usually drink,’ she lied, removing the top with a twist of her wrist. She hadn’t opened the jar for at least six months and the granules were stuck together. Gritting her teeth, she chipped at them with a spoon and then tipped them into a mug.
Observing this performance from beneath lustrous dark lashes, Alekos removed his jacket and slung it over the back of a kitchen chair. ‘You always were a terrible liar.’
His arms were strong and muscled, and made her think about all the times she’d lain against his hard body, marvelling that this man was with her.
‘Whereas you were a master of deceit. You could make love to a woman as if she was the only thing in your world, and then walk away the day of our wedding without so much as a goodbye.’
‘Why did you sell the ring?’
Her mind was so firmly locked in the past that it took her a moment to shift to the present. They were having two different conversations, and she could feel the heat boiling under the surface of his bronzed skin. The same passion that had characterised their relationship now had a different focus. He simmered like a volcano waiting to erupt, his attention focused on her in a way that made her heart pound.
He was so physical, she thought weakly. The most physical man she’d ever met.