The Renegade Billionaire

“I’ll give you the benefit of the doubt like you gave me last night.”

He noticed she let that remark go. “Dad would enjoy seeing them.”

“You think?”

“I promise. He’s taken me to gold mining refineries all over the world, many of them old and needing a lot of work. Trust me. This is the most elegant plant I’ve ever seen in my life.” She lifted a beaming face to him. “You must be ecstatic. I want a couple of pictures of you too. Smile.”

He did her bidding, but his patience had worn thin. “I think that’s enough photos for now. Put your phone away.” Stavros had only one thing on his mind. Unable to resist, he cupped her flushed cheeks in his hands and kissed her warmly on that enticing mouth of hers. “Seeing this place through your eyes is my reward,” he whispered, then kissed her again, deeply this time.

A tiny moan escaped her throat as he pulled her into his body. She fit in his arms so perfectly, it was as if she were made for him. One kiss grew into more until he lost count. When he finally lifted his head so she could breathe, they were swaying together. “You have no idea how much I’ve wanted to do this. From the first moment we met, it’s all I’ve been able to think about.”

“Don’t say anything more.” He saw a tortured look enter those blue eyes as she eased out of his arms. “I was afraid this would happen if I flew to Thassos with you.”

“But you came with me anyway because you couldn’t help yourself, so don’t bother to deny it.”

She averted her eyes. “I’m not. But it scares me to have feelings like this so soon after meeting you. You’re the first man since Ferrante. Our relationship took time to grow. Where you’re concerned, I don’t know if I can trust what’s happening to me. I feel out of control.”

Andrea must have been reading his mind, but he could see it had cost her a lot to admit that. “I’m not going to apologize for kissing you. If you’re afraid of being with me, then I’ll ask my pilot to fly you back to Thessaloniki once we reach the house. I can’t blame you after what happened last night with Tina. Are you ready to go?”

Without looking at him, she nodded and started for the entrance. He let them out, then set the lock and they walked back to the Jeep. A few minutes ago he’d had a little taste of heaven, but only a taste before everything had changed. Stavros couldn’t put time back to the way it was before he’d given in to his desire and kissed her. Her passionate response had set him on fire. He was still burning. Out of control didn’t cover it.

They rode back to the villa in silence. Before he got out of the Jeep, he reached for his cell phone. She turned toward him with an anxious expression. “Who are you calling?”

“My pilot.”

“Please don’t, Stavros. I’m not afraid of you. You know I’m not.”

“Maybe you should be,” he bit out. “I can’t give you proof that I never made love to Tina.”

“I’ve chosen to believe you. What I think we should do is go to the beach for a good swim. I could use the exercise.”

Relief swept through him that she didn’t want to run away yet. “Then let’s hurry. Last one to make it back to the Jeep has to pay a penalty.”

“It won’t be me!” Stavros could almost hear a giggle as she darted toward the house in search of her swimsuit. He used his remote to unlock the door for her, then called out, “Want to make a bet?”

He’d come prepared and was already wearing his suit under his jeans. After bounding up the steps, he hurried into the kitchen and carried the hamper down to the Jeep. To his surprise, she wasn’t far behind.

After he put the hamper in the backseat, he caught her in his arms so she couldn’t climb in front. “I’m afraid you’ll have to pay me now.”

He could feel her trembling. “You don’t play fair.”

“I know,” he whispered. “Give me your mouth, Andrea. I’m aching for you.”

“Stavros—”

Her lips slowly opened to the pressure of his. In the next breath he was lost in sensation after sensation as she gave herself up to him. Never had he known hunger like this. She couldn’t seem to get enough either.

He braced his back against the door and lifted her closer so there was no air separating them. In another minute, he was going to carry her into the house and not come out again. But he had to slow down or he really would scare her away.

Forcing himself to come to his senses, he broke off kissing her and removed his hands from her arms. Like him, she fought for breath and backed away. He turned to open the front passenger door for her. “It’s a good thing one of us has to drive.” His voice sounded thick, even to him.

Andrea moved past him and climbed inside without saying anything. She didn’t have to. Her eyes had glazed over and he could see the pulse throbbing at the base of her throat. If he put his lips to it, he wouldn’t be able to stop. Summoning his willpower, he closed the door and walked around to his side of the Jeep.

“I’m glad it’s you at the wheel, Stavros.” Her tremulous voice gave her away even more. “I couldn’t possibly function the way I’m feeling.”

“I’m not

sure I can.” He locked the house with his remote, then turned on the ignition and they were off. “You realize we have Darren Lewis to thank for our condition.”