‘Falling in love with me,’ she scoffed at him, ‘was a villainous lie.’
‘Undeniable fact.’ He swung her into his arms as they reached the dance floor. ‘Feel my heart. It’s almost bursting with the excitement of holding you close to me.’
She declined the invitation, her eyes flashing dark scorn. ‘Why didn’t you ask me to dance with you?’
‘I was respecting your wishes regarding freedom of action.’
‘What wishes?’
‘Not to be with me. To enjoy yourself with others,’ he answered blandly.
‘I didn’t say that.’
The blue eyes lit with hope and devilish desire. ‘You mean I misunderstood? You wanted to enjoy yourself with me? I could have danced all night with you? You wouldn’t have refused if I asked?’
The arm around her waist pressed her closer. He executed a turn that frotted their thighs together in a highly intimate manner. A dangerous current of warmth raced through Sasha.
‘The only reason I’m dancing with you now is to show your ex-wife I can have you any time I want,’ she gritted.
‘You can,’ he assured her with fervour. ‘I can’t sleep at night for thinking of how it would be between us. I want you so much...’
Sasha stamped on his foot to concentrate his mind on the real burning issue. ‘She’s here! And you knew she was going to be here, didn’t you?’
‘Who?’
‘Elizabeth!’
‘Do you know how tantalising it is when your breasts heave like that? Irresistible. I feel...’
‘Your ex-wife is watching us,’ Sasha almost yelled at him in frustration.
‘Put your arms around my neck. Let’s give her some dirty dancing. I can do it with you. Elizabeth won’t be left in any doubt about how deeply you stir me.’
She glowered at him as she followed his suggestion. ‘Not too dirty. I don’t want you getting pleasure out of your trickery, Nathan Parnell.’
‘I promise that whatever happens, I won’t be pleased. I also swear to you I didn’t know Elizabeth would be here,’ he said solemnly, his eyes burning into hers. ‘I do know she wasn’t invited. She must be with another guest.’
Sasha cogitated on that statement for several moments. Nathan made it very difficult for her to concentrate. Full body contact, and the way he was making the most of it, was extremely distracting. His expertise in dancing not only left nothing to be desired, it flowed and pulsed with a sexuality that was stimulating a lot of other desires.
Surely he would have been doing this before if he’d known Elizabeth was here. Being a stand-offish escort didn’t fit the scenario of trying to keep the wool pulled over his ex-wife’s eyes. Sasha had to concede it was more probable that she had leapt to a false conclusion. Nathan Parnell was not guilty as she had charged him.
‘Elizabeth thinks I’m your Polish woman,’ she said. ‘She knows about Urszula Budna.’
‘Marriage application forms. She’d do a check to make sure we’re really getting married.’
‘But I’m not Urszula Budna.’
He gave her a heart-melting smile. ‘I know. Thank you, Sasha.’
She struggled against melting. ‘What for?’
‘Thumbing your nose at Elizabeth. Sticking by me again in spite of your reservations.’
‘I can’t abide people like her,’ she defended.
‘You have great principles. An admirable mind. A generous heart. A beautiful body.’
He was screwing them all up with what he was doing in this dance, Sasha thought, torn between the need to keep fighting him and the need to give in to the pleasure of simply feeling him and the feelings he stirred in her.