‘What were you doing in bed with my mummy?’ Robbie demanded accusingly,
‘Mummies and daddies always share beds, honey chile,’ Mama Case told him with a grin, winking at Rorke. ‘I think it’s time we found this young man a room of his own somewheres.’
‘Oh no,’ Lisa protested instinctively. ‘He’s always shared with me…’
‘Then he’m gonna have to get used to not doing,’ Mama Case retorted firmly. ‘Especially when you’ve got another little one to attend to—’
She had forgotten how earthy the islanders could be, Lisa reflected as Robbie protested and came back to the bed, climbing on to it and snuggling up to her. She had never made a particular thing about concealing her body from Robbie, but then neither had she deliberately drawn attention to her nakedness. She wanted Robbie to accept the differences between male and female naturally, but believed that, as yet, he was far too young to do so. He was already reaching the stage where he sometimes preferred privacy when he was undressing, and Lisa had wisely respected this need. However, when he pulled aside the bedclothes and snuggled up to her, she made no attempt to stop him. Robbie often came into bed with her at weekends for a special cuddle, and although admittedly she was always wearing a nightgown, she sensed that to reject him now because she was not would be something he wouldn’t understand. Robbie was, after all, only a little boy, and yet the dark head against her breast was far too reminiscent of his father’s not to be disturbing, and as Robbie dislodged the sheet she was intensely aware of Rorke’s eyes on her body. Her muscles tensed in remembered desire as she trembled with the memory of her wanton response to him.
‘Robbie—out,’ Rorke commanded curtly, while Lisa looked at him in surprise. He had never spoken so firmly to the little boy before, and even more surprisingly Robbie responded to him, sliding sulkily out of the bed and running across to Mama Case.
‘That Rorke, he think there is only room for one male in your bed,’ she chuckled to Lisa, ‘and that one him!’
‘Too damned right,’ Rorke agreed easily, apparently not in the slightest put out by her comment. He came round to Lisa’s side of the bed and leaned over her, kissing her lightly on the mouth.
‘Take Robbie downstairs and give him some breakfast,’ he murmured, without lifting his eyes from her dazed face. ‘And don’t bring him back for at least an hour.’
Lisa’s face was still hot when Mama Case closed the door behind her.
‘How could you say that?’ she accused bitterly. ‘You know what she’s going to think!’
‘That I want to make long, leisurely love to you,’ Rorke agreed calmly, ‘and why not? She’ll tell my father that we threw Robbie out so that we could be alone. He’ll think everything’s wonderful and start planning for the arrival of his granddaughter, and I can start making plans for his operation…’
‘And what if there isn’t a granddaughter?’ Lisa pressed bitterly, too furious to take him up on any of the other points. ‘What if…’
‘If that’s a roundabout way of saying you want me to make love to you, all you have to do is go right ahead and say it,’ Rorke murmured softly, never taking his eyes from her lips. ‘I don’t know how or where you’ve learned to make a man feel the way you do, Lisa—and part of me hates you because you can—but there’s no denying that I want you, even knowing how many others have wanted you—and possessed you—before me.’
‘Thanks a bunch!’ she spat out bitterly. ‘I suppose I’m expected to be thrilled by that admission. Well, I’m not, Rorke,’ she told him bitterly, ‘and as for providing Leigh with a granddaughter…’
‘You’re not going to co-operate? Never mind.’ Rorke was actually laughing at her. ‘Perhaps the damage is already done. I certainly wasn’t holding anything back last night, and neither were you—were you, Lisa?’
Another minute and he would be forcing her to admit again how much she still wanted him. Already she could feel her breasts swelling, but fortunately the bedclothes concealed their betrayal from Rorke.
‘You’re a very sensual lover,’ she told him. ‘Naturally I…’
‘Responded to me? Is that what you’re going to say?’ His mouth curled in a bitter sneer. ‘But then any water is nectar to a thirsty man, isn’t it, Lisa? And it must be hard for you to have to snatch the odd embrace here and there while keeping your needs a secret from Robbie. ‘What’s that?’ he demanded, as he caught her muttered, ‘Go to hell!’
‘One thing’s for sure,’ he drawled as he leaned over her, murmuring the words against her lips. ‘If I do, I’m going to take you with me, and we both know how I can do that, don’t we? Oh no, Lisa,’ he murmured softly as she flinched away from him, ‘I’m not playing games this time. Last night served its purpose, but there won’t be a repetition—at least, I’m not going to initiate one.’
He got up and walked away from her, pausing by the bathroom door, to toss over his shoulder coolly,
‘By the way, this room—we’re sharing it, Lisa. Understand?’
She had to wait until he had gone before she could give in to the luxury of tears, shed alone in the privacy of the bathroom and haunted by the memory of how he had kissed away the ones she had cried the previous night. But last night was something she had to forget—if she was going to keep her sanity!
CHAPTER NINE
RORKE disappeared shortly after breakfast. He was flying to St Lucia, he told Lisa, but would be back after lunch.
Lisa took Robbie up to the hospital for his injections as she had promised Doctor James. Visiting the small island hospital reminded her of Mike Peters, and Rorke. She glanced down at Robbie’s tousled head as Doctor James talked reassuringly to him, but Robbie wasn’t afraid. He was very much his father in that respect, Lisa thought wryly, noticing how Robbie ignored the comforting hand she held out for him.
He hadn’t forgiven her for allowing him to be banished from the bedroom this morning. She sighed. Her life seemed so fraught with problems she couldn’t envisage ever being solved.
‘Just a wee drop of blood now,’ Doctor James, was saying comfortably to a white-faced but determined Robbie. ‘Just to make sure there’s plenty there.
‘Do you know what blood group he is?’ he asked Lisa. ‘You’ll know that his father’s is extremely rare.’
‘Robbie’s too,’ Lisa admitted. She had always worried a little that Robbie should inherit Rorke’s rare blood group. She had only found out just after he was born, and she wondered what Rorke would say if she confronted him with it. She wasn’t likely to find out, she decided grimly. She was tired of trying to persuade Rorke to accept the truth—she no longer cared what he believed; if denying meant so much to his male pride then let him. It wasn’t the truth, but it went some way to bolstering her pride—something which had suffered considerably over the last few days. The truth was that, weakly, she didn’t want to hurt him—which was ridiculous when she remembered how much he had hurt her.