There was only one thing he thought of when he looked at Libby, and it certainly wasn’t business.
‘I’m glad you slept well.’ His voice sounded husky and he wondered if she had any idea of the effect she had on him. Probably not or she wouldn’t have worn those shorts. ‘Come here.’
She walked towards him and he dragged her onto his lap, stroking her hair away from her face and kissing her urgently.
‘I love you.’ He groaned the words against her mouth and she pulled away, her blue eyes wary and more than a little frightened.
‘Stop saying that.’
‘It’s the truth. And you love me, too.’
Perhaps if he said the words often enough, eventually she’d find the courage to say them herself.
She slid off his lap and he saw the confusion in her eyes. ‘Andreas…’
‘Trust me, Libby.’
‘Let’s go to the beach.’
Andreas suppressed a sigh, wondering what it would take to break through the wall of self-protection that she’d built around herself.
They spent the days swimming and talking and making love, and the time passed too quickly for Libby. She could have stayed there for ever, locked in the tiny world they’d created, safe from outside influences.
There was something magical about the villa and the bay.
Something unreal.
It felt so far away from their real lives.
It was as if anything could happen here, but once they returned home life would just return to normal.
She was lying on a sun lounger with her eyes closed, trying to catch up on some lost sleep, when she felt the familiar tug in her stomach.
Her heart lurched.
Not wanting to believe the messages that her body was sending, she rushed to her room to discover that her period had started.
She’d been so wrapped up in the emotional high of being with Andreas that she’d temporarily forgotten that she might be pregnant.
Swamped by a feeling of desolation that she couldn’t comprehend, she went to the bathroom and burst into tears, sobbing against the tiled wall until her head started to ache.
She tried to analyse why she was crying but her head was pounding too hard to allow her access to her thoughts.
Surely she should have been relieved that she wasn’t pregnant?
Why did she feel so utterly devastated?
She didn’t even know that Andreas had followed her until she felt herself gathered against his hard chest.
For several minutes she just sobbed without speaking and then she took the tissue he handed her and blew her nose hard.
‘Why are you crying?’
She shook her head and scrunched the tissue into a ball, too upset to speak.
‘Libby.’ His tone was urgent and he put her away from him and cupped her face in his hands, forcing her to look at him. ‘Tell me.’
‘It’s nothing,’ she hiccoughed. ‘It’s my problem, not yours.’
His face darkened and his fingers bit into her scalp. ‘If this is what I think it is, then it’s very much my problem, too. Only actually I don’t see it as a problem.’
She closed her eyes and shook her head. He’d misunderstood, and who could blame him? ‘Just drop it Andreas—please…’
She needed some time on her own. Time to pull herself together. She was being ridiculous.
‘I thought I’d made it clear that I’m very traditional when it comes to certain things,’ he said softly, showing no signs of releasing her. ‘Tell me why you’re crying, because if you’re afraid that I won’t want you now you’re pregnant, you couldn’t be more wrong.’
Libby pulled away from him and scrubbed the palm of her hand over her cheeks to get rid of the tears.
‘I’m not crying because I’m pregnant,’ she gulped finally, her voice jumpy from too much crying. ‘I’m crying because I’m not pregnant. OK?’
She gave a massive sniff, aware that Andreas was unusually still.
‘You’re not pregnant?’
Just hearing the words upset her again and her face crumpled. ‘That’s right—I’m not pregnant. And now will you leave me alone?’
She turned away from him but he reached out and grabbed her, hauling her round so that she was facing him, his fingers biting into her upper arms.
‘If you’re not pregnant, Libby, why are you crying?’
She tried to glare at him but instead her face crumpled again and she gave another sob. ‘Because I wanted to be pregnant, you dummy! I wanted your baby.’ She was vaguely aware that she was shouting but she didn’t even care. ‘Which just goes to show how stupid I can be.’
Andreas stared at her, his dark gaze strangely intent. ‘And why did you want my baby, Libby?’ His voice was hoarse and she tried to focus on him through watery eyes.