Dream Wedding

No wonder he was so cool and contained, so sure of himself; he must have women following him in droves. He was shatteringly, devastatingly good at this. She knew all that but it didn't stop her wanting him, needing more.

'Please…' She could hear her voice moaning, but couldn't have said what it was she was asking for. Reece seemed to know, moulding her into the powerful contours of his body as his fingers began an erotic massage over her taut back muscles that had her mouth opening in a silent gasp.

She had to stop this. The thought reverberated through the whirl of sensation. She had known this man barely twenty-four hours and she was allowing… 'Please stop.' She struggled slightly, her voice breathless. 'Please…'

He released her instantly, moving back into his own seat and raking his hand through his hair before turning to face her. Just for a moment she thought that he was as shaken as she was, but in the next instant, as she blinked, the look was gone from his face and, shockingly, the ice man was back, looking at her with cool, narrowed eyes.

'I'm sorry, Miriam.' He shook his head slightly as he turned to look out of the windscreen at the cold, bare world outside, the trees naked and black against the afternoon sky. 'I didn't intend that to happen. I didn't expect—' He stopped abruptly. 'I'm sorry,' he said again.

'I…' There was a lump in her throat constricting her breath, but it was the burning humiliation she felt that made speech impossible. He could sit there, cool and unmoved, while she was a shivering wreck? And she had thrown herself at him. She shut her eyes but the thought was still there.

She had sensed his surprise at her response even as he had kissed her, but she had wanted— She shook her head at her own thoughts. She had wanted him to make love to her. It was as simple as that. He would think that she was a tease, the sort of girl who egged a man on and then stopped at just the right moment.

'Look, I know you're inexperienced—'

'Please don't say anything,' she interrupted fiercely, her eyes burning with unshed tears. Inexperienced? So she hadn't even measured up to his other women anyway? Women like Sharon, maybe? Cool, sophisticated, blasé about their love affairs and life in general. She remembered her unskilled, raw response to his caresses and her skin burnt painfully. She had let him think that she was his for the taking and she had been—nearly.

'Listen—'

'Look, I don't normally act like this, Reece.' She spoke quickly, her face flaming. 'I don't know what came over me really. Too much alcohol, I think.' She tried a light laugh but it emerged as a strangled cough.

'You've had a hell of a da

y. I understand that.' His voice was soft with something. Pity? she thought frantically. Please, not pity. He didn't feel sorry for her, did he? 'I shouldn't have…'

'Yes, it must be the wine.' As he turned towards her she looked quickly out of the window. If she saw pity on his face that would be the last straw. Of course she couldn't begin to compare with the lovelies he normally associated with; he had probably only meant that kiss as a comforting gesture, knowing that she was all at sea from the incident before lunch. And she had practically eaten him! She must have embarrassed him horribly… Oh, hell.

'Miriam, I understand,' he said softly. 'listen to me; I didn't expect—'

This was getting worse. 'Can we just go now?' she asked tightly.

'Not before I explain—'

'I don't want you to explain!' Did his other women scream at him like a fishwife too? she wondered helplessly as he flinched at her shrill tone. 'I just want to go back now. I can walk if you like; it's only a few yards anyway.'

'Miriam…'

As he growled her name, the tone a warning that he had come to the end of his tether, she flung open the door before she had time to think and leapt out of the car, only to find herself ankle-deep in thick red mud.

'You crazy female!' He glared at her as she stood hesitating in the sticky dirt. 'Get back in this damn car. What the hell do you think you're doing anyway?'

'I—' She stared at him as her thought processes spluttered and then died.

'Give me strength.' He put his hand to his brow as he switched on the ignition. 'Satisfied? Now, get in.' He was swearing softly under his breath as she rejoined him in the car, and immediately her feet were off the ground he reversed the Bentley violently across the few feet of space into the gateway before she could even shut the door properly, jerking to a halt as he checked his mirrors. 'I don't believe this is happening. I've never had a woman react to me like this in all my life. What the hell do you think I'm going to do to you anyway?'

She stared at him helplessly. He'd got it wrong; he'd got it all wrong, but she couldn't find words to tell him through the turmoil in her mind.

It took no mote than a minute or two to reach the office where he screeched to a halt, the tyres protesting loudly. 'OK?' he snarled softly.

'Thank you,' she replied, with as much dignity as she could muster, clambering awkwardly out of the car, aware that she had left half the field on the pale gold carpet where her feet had rested.

'Haven't you forgotten something?' She turned at the sound of his voice. 'Again?'

'Thank you.' She took the briefcase he was holding out to her with a scathing nod, hating him and hating herself for the ridiculous position that she was in. And it was all her fault. She could hardly believe that she, Miriam Bennett, had all but begged for him to take her out there in the open! And then to say no. And then to— She ground her teeth together in an agony of embarrassment as she turned and walked towards the office. The man's ego was jumbo size as it was, and she'd done nothing to deflate it. How he must be laughing at her.

The two vans were back and the Bentley had only been able to position itself in the entrance to the car park, but as she turned before stepping through the office she saw Mitch appear in the factory doorway and Reece leave the car where it was and walk across to him. She entered the office and shut the door firmly, walking across to the chair and collapsing on it before kicking off her mud-stained shoes.

What a day. What a day. And unless he was cancelling the contract with Mitch at this moment, and somehow she didn't think that Reece Vance was the sort of man to cut off his nose to spite his face, she was going to have to see him again at least a few times over the next two weeks. She shut her eyes tight against the thought.