i 530d83f9160d5231 (21 page)

‘Look, ignore it.’ Blair tried to draw her away. ‘They’re just drunk and being stupid. You mustn’t...’ She broke off, as she realised Riona wasn’t

listening to her.

The loud woman was speaking again. ‘Come on, guys, get real. A pretty face with bastard in tow, against brains, beauty and a major stockholding in

HA. No contest.’

No contest.
The words echoed in Riona’s head as she final y walked away from the scene and made her way through the crowd. The Van Sykeses cal ed her back but she kept walking until she was out in the chequered hal . She meant to keep walking until she was in her room, but she heard other voices

—Melissa’s alternatively pleading and teasing, Cameron’s too gruff and low to catch. They came from the music-room.

Go on upstairs, her own inner voice told her, but she was compel ed to listen to the others.

The door was open. The scene didn’t need any explanation. Melissa had both arms round Cameron’s neck, her body pressed to his. He wasn’t

protesting. It was a surprise that they even noticed her—the nonentity standing in the doorway.

‘Riona.’ Cameron frowned at seeing her there, and, when she turned, he cal ed out, ‘Riona, wait!’

This time Riona didn’t walk. She ran. She ran until she reached the safety of her own room.

She sought privacy to break down, but had forgotten Gloria was stil there, listening out for Rory in case he waked. She managed to control her

emotions and thank Gloria, before ushering her out of the room.

Even then she didn’t get a chance to sort out her feelings, as Cameron walked into the room without knocking. He closed the door behind him and

leaned against the frame, blocking her exit.

‘Get out of my room!’ Riona whispered fiercely at him, unable to scream with Rory next door.

He ignored her. ‘We have to talk. I assume from your hurried departure you’ve jumped to a reasonable but quite wrong conclusion.’

He selected his words careful y. He was so calm that Riona wanted to spit.

‘Oh, real y,’ she threw back at him, ‘and what conclusion could I possibly have drawn from Melissa climbing al over you...? Don’t tel me. You had something in your eye.’

His jaw tightened at her sarcasm. ‘Look, I didn’t have to come up here. I don’t
have
to explain anything to you, either.’

‘Good! Then don’t!’ Riona didn’t want him to lie to her. She just wanted him to leave.

But he seemed in no hurry to go. ‘Do you know, Ree, if I didn’t know better, I’d say you were jealous.’

‘Jealous?’
Riona virtual y exploded. ‘Don’t flatter yourself. If you want Melissa, you have her, and may you both live happily ever after,’ she said, attempting indifference, but making it sound more like a curse.

‘Oh, that would suit you, wouldn’t it?’ He pushed away from the door and came towards her. ‘I jilt you for Melissa, but stil hand over Invergair to Rory... Wel , forget it. We get married as planned.’

‘This is absurd!’ Riona turned away from him and crossed to the window. She looked down to the courtyard and saw the first guests leaving.

‘Neither of us wants it, so who are we marrying for? The rest of the world? The rest of the world is downstairs and they think you’re crazy for marrying an nonentity like me. In fact, they probably agree with Melissa—that I’m after your money,’ she added, turning to face him once more.

He seemed unmoved. ‘So? It’s what
I
think that counts?’

‘And what
do
you think?’ Riona suspected he too saw her as a gold-digger, but he avoided a direct answer.

‘We marry as agreed,’ he said instead. ‘I’ve already made the arrangements. The ceremony is in three weeks at City Hal . We need blood tests

first, however.’

His tone was flat and factual, as if they were talking of a dental appointment or a visit to the doctor—something that was unpleasant but had to be faced.

She shook her head. ‘I won’t marry you, Cameron. I can’t. Not even for Invergair.’ She appealed for him to recognise what they were doing to each

other. ‘It isn’t right, Cameron. Don’t you see?’

‘Right?’ He growled the word at her, his indifference suddenly changed to anger, and, when she would have backed away from him, he grabbed at

her arms. ‘Since when have you worried about what’s right? You sleep with me. You sleep with your sailor boy. Then you have a baby, not knowing or

caring whose it is. Yet suddenly you’re an authority on what’s right.’

‘It wasn’t like that!’ Riona struggled hopelessly to free herself. ‘I knew whose baby he was. I knew from the beginning. I just wanted—’

‘Rory to be his,’ he concluded wildly. ‘I know that. Do you think I don’t? But he’s my son, just as you’re going to be my wife. And Fergus Ross wil never have you again.’

‘Cameron!’ She stared up at him, hearing the bitter passion in his voice, and saw it reflected in his eyes. ‘You’re al wrong. I—’

She began to reason with him, but he cut across her. ‘I’d kil you first, Ree. Do you understand? I’d kil you.’ His hands tightened on her arms, tel ing her he meant every word.

‘I—I...’ Riona tried to find a response, but her mouth went dry. She felt her heart beating dangerously fast, and told herself it was fear of his

jealousy.

But she real y knew better. She wasn’t an innocent young girl any more. She recognised his arousal just as she recognised her own. She felt physical desire as sharp as any pain and knew he felt the same. He didn’t want to kil her, he wanted...

‘No.’ She breathed the word and tried to back away from him.

‘Yes.’ His fingers relaxed their hurting hold, but he wouldn’t let her go. ‘This is what’s right, Ree. The rest means nothing.’

Riona shut her eyes so she couldn’t see his face, couldn’t mistake the sudden intensity of desire for love. It couldn’t be right that he should want her like this, even as he hated her with every word he’d uttered. He touched her cheek and she trembled. He pressed his lips to her brow with al the old tenderness and al the old longing came back in a wave. ‘Just once more.’ He spoke with the urgency of need. ‘I have to, Ree... Just once more...’

She could have pretended not to understand. She could have pretended not to feel the same way. But she couldn’t help herself. Though she pleaded,

‘Don’t do this to me, Cam,’ she made no move to avoid the mouth seeking hers.

She knew it was the road to more pain, yet she had to walk down it. The moment his lips touched hers, her head began to swim, and if she cried in

protest, ‘Not again,’ the words came out as a moan, betraying her. He kissed her, soft and persuasive, then harder, until the rush of desire fil ed her head and she opened her mouth to him in surrender.

But it wasn’t enough. It had never been enough as, stil kissing her, he pushed her back against the wal and lifted a hand to the ful ness of her breast.

His fingers moved over the silk of her dress, remembering, wanting, needing the warm silk of her skin.

He pul ed her body to his and, with a rough urgency, dragged down the zip of her dress. She felt it slipping and held the silk to her, ashamed of how easily he could seduce her. He started to kiss her again, his hand in her hair, gently pul ing her head back, softly touching his lips to her throat until she was weak with longing for him.

She moaned aloud and sought his mouth with hers, need overcoming shame. He kissed her hard, as if he wanted to leave an imprint on her mouth for

ever, but his hands were gentle, sliding over her bare arms, slowly pushing away the thin straps of her dress until the silk fel from her body.

Then he stood back from her, holding her arms so she could not hide herself. The black basque she wore underneath scarcely covered her breasts

and was more provocative than if she’d been naked.

‘You’re so beautiful.’ He spoke the words in a whisper and a pain gripped her heart, as she heard echoes of the love he’d once felt for her.

She told herself this was just sex, but it made no difference. When he reached out a hand to slowly unfasten the silk ties of the basque, she stood there, trembling. When he pushed the silk apart, she shut her eyes at the old familiar wanting she felt for him. She kept them shut as he stripped away the basque, his fingers barely brushing, her skin.

She was his once more and he knew it. He saw the sensual curve of her mouth, bruised by his kiss, the half-drugged look in her eyes. He said

nothing, perhaps fearing words might bring her back to her senses, and, pul ing off his tie, began to unbutton his shirt.

She frowned slightly and lifted her arms to cover her breasts. He reached for her again, and turned her round to kiss the soft downy skin at her neck and shoulders. She shivered a little, but did not pul away as his arms encircled her waist, drawing her naked back against his chest.

He held her there, to the warmth of his skin, and she closed her eyes to reality. Cameron was her lover. He would always be her lover. The rest was the dream. How could it be otherwise when they’d been made for each other?

She turned in his arms, or he turned her. It didn’t matter. She was wil ing. She let him look at her and his eyes travel ed over the pale translucent skin of her shoulders down to her naked breasts, stil ful and beautiful, seemingly untouched by child-bearing. He stared hard at her, making love to her in his mind, and the breath caught in her throat. Slowly he unpinned her hair and let it fal down her back. Then he came closer again and bowed his head and, before she realised his intention, took the hard aching peak of her breast in his mouth.

She cried out, in shock and pain and pleasure, as he began to play and bite and suck on her yielding flesh, and Cameron groaned his own need of her, as he recal ed the soft, sensual girl with whom he’d once thought himself in love. He remembered it al —the days and nights spent together, loving—and past and present fused so easily. He slipped an arm under her knees and carried her to the bed. He laid her down and just held her for a moment.

With a last shred of sanity Riona realised they were on the point of no return. She saw her future repeating itself in the same terrible cycle—her love going on and on, while his loving proved a transitory thing. Did she want this—one more vivid memory to try and forget?

‘No, I can’t!’ The words came in a breathless rush, almost inaudible, but he was so close that he must have heard. He chose not to listen.

Instead he responded to his own compulsion, and, as his lips fastened on hers, stil ed any further cry. Riona felt herself drowning in the fierce tide of his desire and tried to save herself. She pushed at his naked shoulders, curled nailed fingers into his back, but it was no use. Even as she sought to hurt him, her mouth opened to his and accepted the thrusting intimacy of his tongue.

He kissed her and touched her and made her want him in al the ways he knew how, until it was she who arched to him, who offered her body, her

love. It was she who groaned as his mouth left hers, once more seeking her breasts, licking and teasing each nipple until she grasped his dark head and wordlessly begged him to suck harder her aching flesh.

Cameron pleasured her until he could stand her smal , sweet moans of desire no longer, and rose from the bed to strip off the rest of his clothing. Al the time he held her eyes, and she held his, imagining she saw love in their warm blue gaze. She always had before. It helped her now to shut out doubts and accept what was happening—what she wanted to happen—without the shame of thinking herself used.

He came to her, and they lay for a moment, side by side, in wonder at being like this again. Then they kissed with a sweetness that seemed to go

beyond sex, before desire took over once more. His mouth trailed downwards, touching her throat, her breasts, every curve of her body, before it reached the most intimate part of her and shocked her with this half-forgotten pleasure. She cried aloud again, but he continued to make love to her in this way until she moaned her need and slid down the bed to wrap her body round his.

Cameron felt his own control slipping and, pressing her back down on the bed, lifted himself above her. Their eyes met for a moment, and he

savoured it—having her beneath him once more. Then he thrust himself inside her with a passion that was almost anger.

She flinched and, aware of every movement of her body, he went stil . ‘I hurt you.’

Riona shook her head, but he knew she was lying.

‘The baby... our baby... perhaps...’ He voiced half-formed ideas of why she might hurt and started to withdraw.

Riona shook her head and held him to her, wanting him more than ever, for the words ‘our baby’ melted her heart. It was the first time he’d cal ed

Rory that. Maybe things could be different, maybe...

The thought trailed off as he moved inside her and this time brought desire rather than pain. She reached out for him, tel ing him with her body that everything was al right.

She’d never wanted him so much—the heat of him, the smel of him, him inside her, only him. She clutched at him, cried for him, drowned in him,

gave herself so completely that he cal ed out his need for her even as his seed spil ed inside her.

God, I need you. Need you. Need you... The words echoed inside Riona’s head, as she too left reality for dreams, dreamt that this could be reality, Cameron and her together, bound by passion, bound by love, bound for a lifetime, because how could it be otherwise?

It was a beautiful dream. She wanted it to go on for ever, but hearts slowed and bodies cooled, and dreams faded al too easily. Reality was Riona

Macleod, a misfit in this sophisticated world. And Cameron Adams—rich, successful, needing her only in one way.

Riona faced it and accepted it and grew proud on the humiliation of it. She forced herself to pul away from the arm stil round her and, holding the sheet to her breasts, sat up in the narrow bed.

‘You’d better go,’ she said almost coldly. ‘Someone might be looking for you.’

‘So?’ He seemed indifferent to his family as he lay where he was and stretched out a lazy hand to touch her back.