A Devious Desire

His dark eyes became cold and assessing on her flushed face. 'Why fight it? You want me. Surely you're not going to pretend you're shy?' he said cynically. 'Massage is a pretty personal profession. Hundreds of men must have felt the gentle caress of your hands, Saffron, and ached for more. Did you demand marriage from ail of them before granting their wish? I think not..

One dark brow arched sardonically. 'Playing the innocent does not fool me for one second. No woman gets to your age without knowing the game. So don't try and make the stakes too high, or I might just decide the game isn't worth the candle.'

Saffron despised him at that moment more than she had thought possible. She had worked hard for her career and did not need this immoral, greedy pig sneering at her. She began to struggle, her small hands trying to prise his from her arms, hating the lazy strength with which he held her, but it was no use. . .

'You have an overrated belief in your charms, Mr Statis,' she spat. He honestly thought she would fall into his arms like a ripe plum; well, he was in for a very rude awakening. 'Let go of me.*

'You're hardly going to convince me to marry you with the hands-off technique.' His smile was without humour. 'I never buy without sampling first.'

'That I can believe,' she snorted disgustedly; knowing how low he would stoop to make money, she wouldn't put anything past him.

'So why the outrage?'

His gaze slid down the length of her body, lingering on her breast and thigh; she had to force herself not to flinch under his intense scrutiny, and when his eyes fixed on ha- flushe

d and furious face once more, her green eyes spitting hatred, his brows drew together in a thoughtful frown.

'You've changed since the yacht. On board you were flustered, embarrassed by my attentions maybe, but always receptive. Now—'

'Now we are virtually alone, and you're much more dangerous. . .' Saffron cut in. If she was going to go through with her plan for revenge, she was going to have to be a lot more careful. She couldn't let Alex suspect for an instant just how much she despised him.

He gave her a long, speculative look. 'So you're saying you're frightened of me, or is it of yourself?'

'Maybe a bit of both,' she said lightly. 'You're a fast worker, A—Alex.' She almost choked on his hateful name, but to her amazement he mistook her stammer for feminine emotion.

'Saffron, you sweet fool, I would never hurt you— quite the reverse. I only want to make love to you.' The last came out on a triumphant groan as his arms moved around her, moulding her body to his while his lips covered here.

Every instinct she possessed begged her to break free from the demand of his mouth moving over hers, his hard body pressed so close that she could feel the rapid pounding of his heart, the strength of his arms as he lifted and carried her across the room to deposit her gently on the sofa, his great size lowering over her. But she closed her eyes and fought the desire to shove him away and run screaming from the apartment.

No. She would suffer his kisses and caresses to a point and no further, and eventually, when he was desperate to possess her, she would reiterate her demand for marriage, if she had read his character right he was a man who never accepted defeat, and when she finally had his ring on her finger she would tell him the truth, and take him for every penny she could get. She didn't want it for herself, but there were plenty of charities is the world, and far too many orphanages, and if anyone deserved to pay it was Alex Statis.

'Saffron, where did you go?' She opened her ayes. Alex was staring down at her, a chagrined look on his harsh features. 'I must be losing my touch,' he said with a husky chuckle.

Saffron didn't believe him for one moment: his male ego was too huge for him to imagine that a woman might not find him irresistible. But not by a flicker of an eyelash did she betray her thoughts. Instead she wound her sleader arms around his neck and lifted her head for his mouth. 'You caught me by surprise, knocked the breath from my body,' she offered, her slender fingers tangling through fee dark hair at the back of his neck, when what she really wanted to do was strangle the devil. . .

She'd thought that it would be easy to suffer his kiss, but realised he was far too astute; she had to make some response, and, opening her mouth over his, she flicked her tongue against his lips. She felt his large body jerk at her tentative caress, and was congratulating herself on her acting ability when insidiously the kiss changed. She was so longer the instigator; Alex had taken over.

The slow kiss became a blazing statement of intent. His tongue plunged in the deep, moist interior of her mouth as his hand smoothed down between their two bodies. She trembled as heat suddenly ignited in her stomach, and his mouth moved down over her firm breast and began to suckle it through the fabric of ¡ser dress. She arched and gasped at the same time, mortified by the force of her reaction.

No! her mind screamed. This could not be happening; his touch revolted her. Unfortunately, however, her body seemed Incapable of absorbing the message.

Suddenly Alex's hand was on her thigh, the dress pushed up around her waist and then he was touching her intimately, urging her legs apart, his long fingers sliding beneath the edge of her briefs and stroking her soft feminine folds with devastating effect. Her eyes closed; she could sot fight the incredible tide of pleasure that his touch evoked. His teeth found the top of her dress where it left one shoulder bare and pulled it roughly down, exposing her firm, full breast to his hungry eyes.

'Alex, you can't.' She knew she had to stop him, but no man had ever touched her so intimately before, and she wanted to drown in the pleasure she was experiencing.

His hand moved to stroke across her thigh and slowly up over her hips, leaving her aching. His black eyes burst with triumphant masculine passion. 'Let me get you out of this and I'll show you I can,' he said arrogantly, holding her shocked eyes with his own as he stood and stripped, speedily down to his briefs, then, finding the gip of her dress, eased it down her body in one swift movement.

Defensively she crossed her arms over lier naked breasts. How had he got so far so fast? She didn't know, and fought to sit up, but Alex was too quick for her. Hs caught her hands and spread their; out from her sides while he lowered his hard, near-naked body back over her.

'You're beautiful, more beautiful than I remembered,' Alex husked, glancing down at her bare breasts.

'Stop,' she demanded harshly. This had gone far enough.

'No. I want to look at you,' he said, his dark gaze, hard and hot, flashing to her face, and colliding with her glittering green eyes. He moved slightly and she felt him swell against her. She looked down between their two bodies, a soft gasp escaping her,then her frantic gaze swept back to his face. His jaw tautened and she felt his body surge even more against the cradle of her womanhood. She trembled, her whole body flushing scarlet.

His hands lifted and covered the soft, creamy mounds of her breasts. 'So soft, so perfect.' He rolled his palms over the rosy peaks, bringing them to aching tips of taut arousal, and then gently he trailed his fingers around each dark aureole, 'You are so beautiful; your skin is like sun-brushed magnolia.' He took each burgeoning nipple between a finger and thumb and plucked gently, teasingly.

A line of fire shot from Saffron's breast to her groin and her body arched helplessly beneath his teasing caress. Then he leant forward, his hands curving her shoulders, and brought her up towards him, her hair flowing down her back in a riot of shimmering curls. Mindless, she lifted her face for his kiss. His night-black eyes held hers as, instead of kissing her, as she had expected, he slowly, delicately brushed his hair-roughened chest over the hard tips of her breasts and smiled a devilish, sensuous smile at her shuddering reaction.