Elusive as the Unicorn

She just stood there in the cavernous hallway, a lonely figure. And at that moment she did feel very alone.

‘The course of true love not running smoothly again?’ mocked a voice that was fast becoming her own personal torment.

Eve turned around slowly. ‘Don’t you have anything better to do than spy on me?’

One brow raised questioningly at her lack of anger. ‘I wasn’t spying on you,’ he said softly. ‘I was on my way to bed.’

Eve frowned. ‘Why?’

He shrugged. ‘There didn’t seem anything to stay up for.’

Her eyes widened. ‘But you and Marina were getting on so well …’

‘I’m not even going to acknowledge the stupidity of that remark by answering it,’ Adam rasped disparagingly. ‘Did you and Paul have an argument?’

She stiffened defensively. ‘Why on earth should you think that?’

He gave another shrug. ‘The speed with which he appears to have left.’

She gave an exasperated sigh. ‘We left the drawing-room over fifteen minutes ago.’

‘I know exactly how long ago it was,’ he drawled, his gaze softening, becoming sensual. ‘If I had been the one saying goodnight to you, I wouldn’t have left until morning.’

He said the most outrageous things … But oh, what a picture of heady delight his words evoked.

Everything about this man exuded sensuality, and his complete confidence in his ability to keep the lady of his choice happy in his arms. Unfortunately, Eve seemed to be that lady at that moment!

‘You are the one saying goodnight to me, Mr Gardener,’ she pointed out coldly. ‘And even if you have the wish to remain standing in the hallway all night, I certainly don’t!’ She turned on her heel and began walking up the wide staircase.

Adam caught up with her after she had taken only a few steps, grasping her arm to turn her to face him. Eve was totally disconcerted as she found herself on eye-level with him as he stood a couple of steps down from her, mesmerised by the gold flecks she could see in the darkness of his eyes as they stood closer than they ever had before.

‘I don’t want to stand in a hallway all night, Eve,’ he grated with soft intensity. ‘Elegant as this one is. I want to be with you, make love with you, lie with you until morning comes. I ache with wanting that!’

Eve felt a quivering heat down her spine at his evocative words.

‘But no matter what you think of me,’ he ground out harshly, a nerve pulsing in his cheek, ‘I wouldn’t even attempt to make that longing a fact while you’re still deceiving Paul Lester into thinking you’re going to marry him.’

Eve gasped, as much at his apparent anger with her as with what he was actually saying. ‘I’m not deceiving Paul,’ she defended breathlessly when she found her voice again.

‘You’re deceiving everyone—but most of all yourself.’ Adam shook his head dismissively. ‘You’re in love with love, not Paul. But until you can see that, I can’t do a damned thing to change the situation.’

There could be no doubting his anger with her now, and Eve bristled indignantly. ‘This so-called morality doesn’t seem to stop you having conversations like this one!’

His fingers tightened on her arm. ‘It’s my “morality”, as you call it,’ he bit out, ‘that stops me from taking you up those stairs and showing you the truth of what I’m saying!’ His eyes glittered furiously.

‘There’s nothing wrong with your ego, is there?’ she scorned.

‘It isn’t my damned ego talking, for heaven’s sake,’ he rasped impatiently.

‘Stop swearing.’ She frowned at his vehemence.

‘Stop changing the subject,’ Adam returned forcefully.

‘I’m not changing the subject, I’m ending it.’ She moved abruptly away from him, looking at him with wide eyes for several seconds before turning and running up the stairs.

There was only one place for her to go, the one place she had to go, and she ran to her studio as if it were a refuge.

Tears squeezed between her tightly closed lids as she stood in the centre of the room, feeling totally desolate. Her whole world seemed to have been put into a turmoil. She and Paul had argued, something unheard of before. And, much as she wished it weren’t true, she knew that most of the reason for that had been because parts of her conversations with Adam kept coming into her mind at the most inopportune times, fuelling the tension between Paul and herself.