In Need of a Wife

A sigh, mingled with regret and satisfaction, whispered from her lips when he ended the kiss. The pleasure of it still lingered in her mouth. She wanted to taste more, and very quickly.

‘Stolen kisses are the sweetest,’ he murmured against her ear.

She opened her eyes and stared dazedly at him, wondering if he had felt anything special. ‘You call that passion?’ she taunted, piqued that he was still in control of himself.

‘No. I ca

ll this passion.’

She saw the flare of desire in his eyes. Then his mouth claimed hers again, and his arms enfolded her, and his hands moulded her body to his, and there was no holding back. No control. Not for either of them.

Precisely how their passionate immersion in each other came to an end was a hazy area in Sasha’s mind afterwards. Had they both pulled back, not having expected to feel so much? A mutual inter-reaction? Or had Nathan sensed some hesitation on her part, and given her the benefit of any doubt in her mind?

She heard him say, ‘Tomorrow,’ in a deep husky voice. There was a gentle disengagement, his hands steadying her before slipping away. Then he was gone.

She headed for her bed, barely aware of what she was doing, automatically switching off lights. She stretched out luxuriously between the sheets, her body still tingling with the sensations Nathan had aroused. She ran her fingers lightly over her lips. They weren’t swollen, but they still felt highly sensitive.

Nathan Parnell had certainly delivered passion. She could very easily have ended up in bed with him. He had been fully aroused, urgently aroused, and the hard pressure of his need against her stomach had been like some wild aphrodisiac, triggering a sense of elation through her mind and a pounding excitement through her body. She had lost all track of any common sense in the dizzying pleasure of feeling wanted by such a desirable man. She had wanted him, too.

In retrospect, she was glad they had stopped where they had. Plunging into physical intimacy would have given her an involvement that had gone far too far, far too fast. Passion was not love. And it wouldn’t suffice to hold a marriage together, either. She would have to disabuse Nathan of that idea.

On the other hand, he was a very intriguing man, attractive on many levels, and Sasha didn’t want to discourage him completely from pursuing a relationship with her. It might lead to much more than passion, given time to get to know each other properly. Thanks to him, they were ideally placed to do precisely that.

A pleasurable little bubble of anticipation danced around Sasha’s mind. Seagrave Dunworthy was a marvellous man. Hester Wingate sounded as though she was an equally marvellous woman. Nathan Parnell might rearrange his ideas on what made a marvellous marriage. Who knew what tomorrow might bring?

CHAPTER FIVE

SASHA woke the next morning to what seemed like a different world. She could hear Bonnie babbling her contentment with whatever was in her line of vision in the nursery. A new home, a new job, and a new life, Sasha thought, and with a zest for getting on with it she sprang out of bed and headed for the bathroom.

Today she was going to look as good as she could. She would wash and blow-dry her hair into shiny sleekness. She would wear her fashionable, lipstick pink coat-dress and black patent high heels. She would dress Bonnie in her best clothes. There was a lot to do before she met up with Nathan at nine-thirty.

Time flew by. She had Bonnie strapped securely into her carrycot ready to carry downstairs when Nathan appeared at the nursery door. Sasha had left it open to facilitate her exit.

‘Need some assistance?’

‘I was just coming,’ she replied, quickly scanning his face to see how he felt about what had happened between them last night.

The look he gave her came from a man who knew what he liked and had no inhibitions about showing it. His eyes danced appreciatively over her face and the long gleaming tresses of her hair, then simmered reminiscently over the curves of her figure and the shapeliness of her stockinged legs. The pleasure and satisfaction in his smile spread a warm glow under Sasha’s skin.

‘I’ve never seen any woman look so superb in that colour,’ he said with flattering directness.

‘I’m glad you think so.’

Dressed in a silky three-piece blue-grey suit, with a blue and gold tie to set it off, Nathan Parnell looked a very distinguished man of considerable class, devastatingly handsome, and master of his world. But not master of hers, Sasha swiftly amended, not unless she could feel it was absolutely right.

‘Red might be more stunning on you,’ he said consideringly.

She laughed in self-conscious pleasure at his interest in her appearance. ‘I do have a red satin evening dress but I didn’t think it was appropriate for the occasion.’

‘I shall make sure an occasion arises.’

Excitement welled up in Sasha. He really meant to pursue a relationship with her. Or was he thinking she would make a suitably ornamental wife, as well as a desirable woman in his bed?

‘Where’s Matt this morning?’ she asked, remembering he didn’t come unattached.

‘At playschool. It gives him the chance to mix with other children.’

He stepped forward to bend over Bonnie in her carrycot, smiling down at Sasha’s baby and letting her curl her little fingers around one of his. Bonnie blew a few bubbles to show her appreciation of his attention.