She explored further, loving the feel of his hard body beneath her caressing hands. She felt devastated when he moved away from her to switch out the harsh overhead lighting, leaving them caressed by the warm glow given off by the fire. She sighed her pleasure as he came back to her side.
‘You’re beautiful,’ he groaned. ‘Your body is—God, it’s lovely! I want to possess you, Helen.’
She moaned her willingness as his tongue continued to drive her wild, running back and forth across her hardened nipples. Her body arched as she felt his hands move beneath the waistband of her corduroys, caressing her hips and holding her firmly against him. She was hardly aware of him releasing the single button at her waist sliding the zip down and removing her trousers completely.
It was only as her bare thighs met other bare flesh that she realised they were both naked. And the knowledge threw her into a complete panic, panic that held her immobile for several timeless seconds. Leon seemed unaware of her changed attitude, his lips exploring the hollows of her creamy throat and the fast rise and fall of her breasts.
‘Oh, Helen,’ he cried his own arousal out loud, his mouth moving back to take possession of hers. ‘Surrender, darling,’ he encouraged. ‘Surrender to me,’ he muttered in a feverish voice.
‘Leon…’ Nausea was rising up inside her, nausea for the violation of her body.
‘Yes, my darling?’ He looked down at her with glazed eyes, all desire fading as he saw her white face and wild desperate eyes. He rolled away from her with a groan. ‘Get away from me!’ he rasped.
‘Leon…’
‘Get out of here, Helen,’ he ordered in a savage voice. ‘And lock your door this time. I—I can’t be held responsible for what I may do in the next few minutes.’
‘I’m sorry…’
‘Don’t sit there apologising,’ he snapped, his arm thrown across his eyes to block out the sight of her. ‘Not unless you want to be raped for the second time in your life!’
Helen ran, locking the door as he had ordered. Leon looked desperate just now, desperate enough to invade her bedroom if he couldn’t get himself under control.
She broke into loud sobs, flinging herself down on the bed and burying her face in the pillows. It wasn’t fair! It just wasn’t fair! She had wanted Leon as much as he wanted her, and if he was suffering half the let-down agony she was going through then he probably hated her. But she hadn’t been able to go through with it, hadn’t been able to make herself that vulnerable to a man, and to let Leon make love to her she had to be totally vulnerable.
But it had almost happened, almost, and the next time…Would there ever be a next time? Leon wouldn’t be in too much of a hurry to repeat the experience, she felt sure.
She put on her nightgown and crawled beneath the bedclothes, knowing that she would never sleep after what had occurred with Leon tonight.
The connecting door between her room and the bathroom suddenly swung open and Leon came into her bedroom, his nakedness now covered by a brown towelling robe. Helen switched on her bedside lamp, blushing as he threw her clothes on to the bedroom chair. How stupid she was—she had locked her bedroom door and completely forgotten the bathroom one. Luckily Leon didn’t seem to have her violation in mind.
‘You forgot these,’ he rasped, his face very pale beneath his tan, giving him a haggard look. ‘I wouldn’t like Max to find them in the morning and jump to all the wrong conclusions.’
‘Of course.’ She looked at him almost pleadingly. ‘Leon, I—I—’
‘Yes?’ he snapped, his face rigid and forbidding.
‘I’m so sorry. I didn’t want that to happen,’ she choked. ‘I tried—I really tried.’
‘So you did,’ he said coldly. ‘But we both know what you did to me just now—and it wasn’t pleasant,’ he told her grimly.
‘I didn’t do it on purpose, Leon. Please try to understand. I couldn’t—’
‘No, you couldn’t, could you?’ he grated. ‘But I’m warning you now, Helen, don’t ever to that to me again.’ He strode angrily to the door. ‘The next time I may not be able to stop myself.’
‘But—’
‘You’ve been warned, Helen. Just don’t try experimenting with me again.’
‘Experimenting…?’ she repeated dully. ‘I wasn’t—’
‘Yes, you were, damn you!’ he exploded, all his pent-up emotion coming to the fore. ‘But if you ever do that again I’ll take you anyway, whether you want me to or not!’ He slammed the door so hard the whole room seemed to vibrate with his anger.
CHAPTER EIGHT
HELEN was in no hurry to leave her bedroom the next morning, having no wish to see Leon before he left for work. Tonight was quite soon enough
for them to meet again. Besides, she looked terrible, dark shadows under her eyes, her face pale from lack of sleep.