The Heat Of Passion

'And even less over your temper.' He withdrew a silk handkerchief and calmly wiped the drops from his cheekbones. 'In fact you are quite appallingly juvenile in your reactions when you do lose your head. Like a child hitting out blindly in a tantrum,' he mused reflectively. 'Almost as though you haven't allowed yourself the luxury of freely letting go of your anger very often... so you really can't handle it, can you?'

The insight inherent in that careless stab dismayed her and she stepped hurriedly back from him. 'Has the game-playing moved into the field of therapy now?' she asked with sarcasm dripping from every syllable.

'One,' Carlo itemised, 'this is not a game for me. And two, I'm more into shock treatment than therapy. I lack the necessary patience. When I want something, I want it yesterday.'

Frustration currented through her. She needed to fight back but was now too afraid that hi anger she might be guilty of revealing too much. Disturbingly, Carlo smiled, his cool composure untouched. 'You should go and lie down for a while. I'll wake you up before we land on Grand lurk.'

'I don't want to lie down.' Every fibre rebelled from the concept of retreat. 'Is Grand Turk where your father lives?'

'He lives on Paradiso Cay which he owns.'

With determination, Jessica took a seat again. If she talked, she would not be required to think about Carlo's unashamed lust for revenge. 'And how long has he lived there?'

'Five years. He bought Paradiso when ill-health became a feature of his life,' Carlo said unemotionally.

'You are so filled with compassion,’

'He is not a man who inspires compassion,' Carlo

fielded drily. 'And he would be furious if he was given

it. He has lived his life exactly as he wanted to live it.

He has never followed medical advice. He smokes, he

drinks, he loves the richest of foods and his sexual ap

petite was once legendary. He would tell you that

childhood deprivation made him greedy for the luxuries

but the reality is that Lukas has never seen the need for

temperance in any field and never, to my knowledge,

considered any human being's needs above his

own '

Jessica swallowed hard. 'You're describing a monster, Carlo.'

Quite spontaneously, Carlo laughed. 'To you, perhaps, for restraint in all things is your holy icon, isn't it? Everything neat and tidy, nothing unpredictable...'

She dredged her startled gaze from him. 'You were

talking about your father '

'He's volatile, fiercely proud, and no doubt bitterly resents his failing strength. He will fight for life to the very last moment and will probably die cursing all who survive him.'

'Does that include you?'

'I would hope not.' Carlo's strong features shadowed

and then he shrugged with Latin acceptance. 'But I would

not like to make a career out of second-guessing Lukas.

He loves surprising people. A pussycat one moment, a