Mediterranean Tycoons

She resented the way a simple touch set her pulse racing, and, glancing up at him, she resented even more the way he knew exactly how she felt. She wanted to rage at him, demand to know about his deal with Nigel. She needed to know the truth. But she could not bring herself to ask.

‘You look angry,’ he observed with narrowed eyes. ‘And there is no need. My father is perfectly able to look after himself.’ Lifting his glass to his mouth, he drained it, then placed it on the table. ‘But perhaps it is not my father’s wedding that has angered you. Perhaps something else,’ he mused. ‘You’re not still thinking of last night’s farce? I thought we had settled that,’ he declared, eyeing her speculatively.

‘No,’ she swiftly denied, and in truth Nigel, not Margot, was behind her simmering anger. ‘I’m simply amazed you can dismiss your father’s marriage so lightly.’ Tossing back her head, she swallowed the cognac in one go.’ Leaning forward, she deposited her glass on the table. Straightening up, she realised he had moved closer. But he made no attempt to touch her.

‘Somehow, I don’t think my father is the real reason for all the latent anger that shimmers in your expressive eyes, nor do I think it is because of Margot’s untimely intrusion into our life. So, I have to ask myself, what exactly is it that you are hiding?’ he queried silkily.

He was too close, in more ways than one. The ease with which he had seen through her attempts to hide the real reason for her anger was worrying. ‘I’m not hiding anything.’ Lisa paused, then added with a flash of inspiration, ‘Unless you consider a conversation with your future stepmother in the rest room a secret.’

He tipped his arrogant head back, a dangerous gleam lighting his dark eyes. ‘Fiona? Explain,’ he commanded hardly.

‘Well, according to Fiona, she and I are very alike, and if she hadn’t had to go on a modelling assignment after your father’s sixtieth birthday party she would now be your girlfriend. Fiona congratulated me on how quickly I nipped in and…’ She hesitated delicately, the beginnings of a smile twitching her lips. She could see Alex detested the idea of women discussing him in the ladies’ room, and she began to enjoy herself.

‘Now, let me think. I believe “hooked” was the term she used. Apparently Fiona sensed you were growing tired of Margot and looking for a replacement.’

His snort of disgust was music to Lisa’s ears. ‘And you’ll be glad to know Fiona wants us to be chums. In fact, she said I was almost as good as she at snagging a man, and she bears me no ill will. Mainly because she has hooked your father, and the money is all in the family.’

‘It’s no more than I expected from her,’ Alex declared.

‘Yes, well, I have often been mistaken for a bimbo, but if she were blonde Fiona would certainly take first prize. She quite happily admitted she doesn’t love Leo, but his money.’ Saying it out loud, Lisa couldn’t keep her own personal sense of outrage out of her voice.

‘Lisa.’ He caught her wrist, his thumb idly stroking up her palm. She gave him a stormy look, and tried to pull her hand free. He smiled wryly and let go of her hand, but slid his arm around her waist, pulling her against his length. ‘Forget Fiona. I will make sure she never bothers you. Now let’s go to bed.’

Lisa’s teeth ground together in frustration; her blue eyes flashed with temper. She did not want to go to bed, in fact she hated the idea, but she really had no choice. She supposed she should be thankful he had swallowed the reason for her anger without digging deeper, but she didn’t feel grateful, just trapped. ‘I suppose so,’ she muttered.

Gleaming black eyes held hers and he laughed softly as though he knew exactly what was going through her mind. ‘You’re very young, Lisa. You still see everything in black and white. Unfortunately, life teaches one there are a dozen shades of grey in between. Don’t worry about Leo; he knows exactly what he is paying for,’ he assured her with cynical amusement.

She shrugged out of his embrace. ‘I’m not that young, and I don’t find it in the least amusing, and I bet your mother didn’t either, the first time it happened.’

Alex winced. Her barb had hit home. ‘All right.’ He held his hands up in a gesture of surrender. ‘I will say no more. Run along to bed. You’ve just reminded me, I have a call to make. My mother has to be told before Leo’s latest escapade appears in the press.’

Lisa did not hesitate; she spun on her heel and headed for the dressing room.

Quickly selecting a plain white cotton tee shirt, she shot into the bathroom and stripped off her clothes. She completed her bedtime ritual in five minutes flat and walked into the adjoining bedroom. She stopped and stared at the huge bed and a vivid image of Margot standing in the exact same spot last night filled her mind.

It was no good; she could not get into bed with Alex and pretend nothing had happened. She simply could not do it. Turning, she headed for the door.

‘I need a shower and shave, but I won’t be long.’ Alex strolled in from the dressing room, casually rubbing his jaw with his hand.

Lisa stopped at the sound of his voice and glanced at him, her eyes widening on his virtually naked body. Hot colour flooded her cheeks and she was helpless to look away. He was all tanned satin skin, sheathing rippling, hard-packed muscle and sinew, with a smattering of curling black body hair arrowing down over his flat belly to disappear beneath the band of a pair of black briefs that enhanced his masculine attributes rather than concealed them. She breathed in deeply and looked up, her wide blue eyes meeting deep brown.

In one lithe stride he was at her side. ‘Why the blush? I am covered, and you have seen me naked before,’ he teased.

‘Yes, me and countless other women, I’m sure,’ she snapped, brushing past him.

‘Not so fast.’ Alex’s hand curved around her arm in a grip of steel. ‘Now what is eating you?’ he demanded, his eyes narrowing angrily on her furious face.

‘Nothing, nothing at all. But I am not sleeping in that bed with you,’ she told him bluntly. ‘I suddenly realised there is not room on your bedpost for another notch, and I have no intention of being one of the multitude again,’ she said with biting sarcasm.

‘For heaven’s sake, Lisa, it is only a bed.’

‘Yes, I can see that, but somehow I had this weird idea the marital bed was something special. You, on the other hand, have shared that one with so many women I doubt you even know the score.’ To her intense satisfaction she saw a dull tide of red darken his chiselled features. She realised she had actually managed to get through his arrogant exterior and embarrass him.

‘You are far too sensitive for your own good,’ Alex snapped, and, dropping her hand, he continued, ‘But I take your point. Though for your information I can keep count, and it is nowhere near as many as you imagine.’

‘That’s the problem, I don’t have to imagine,’ Lisa responded, her eyes blazing up at him in hurt and anger. ‘It’s one thing to know your husband has had lovers in the past, but it’s quite another to be presented with one of them naked, and by your bed.

‘Our bed, Lisa,’ he replied with silken emphasis. ‘Margot and her ilk belong in the past. Accept it.’

His arrogant command made her blood boil. ‘As Margot had to,’ she sneered. Why she was defending the other woman, she had no idea, but he made her so mad. ‘That woman loved you; I could see it in her eyes.’

‘Love.’ Alex lifted a shoulder in an infinitesimal shrug. ‘Whatever that means, it was not something Margot was ever afflicted with.’ His dark eyes mocked her. ‘Now money, yes.’

A chill ran over Lisa’s flesh and extinguished her anger at a stroke. She felt curiously calm. ‘You don’t believe in love,’ she said softly, the effect of his ‘Whatever that means’ slicing at the very heart of her.

Alex snorted in disgust. ‘With a father like mine, what do you think?’ he drawled. ‘The man falls in love at the drop of a hat, or maybe the drop of a dress would be more appropriate.’ His harsh laugh sounded the death knell of Lisa’s hope. ‘He compounds his stupidity by marrying them. Substitute sex for love, then you’ll be nearer the truth.’

Appalled, she stood glued to the spot. Alex meant what he said; he really did not believe in love. It was several seconds before she could speak. ‘Why did you marry me, Alex?’ she asked quietly, her blue eyes holding his.

Apparently surprised, he raised his eyebrows sharply above his dark eyes, and, catching her by the shoulders, he drew her against him. ‘I married you, Lisa, because I wanted you on sight.’ He lifted a strong brown hand and let his fingertip trace the bow of her top lip in a fleeting gesture that made her body tense. ‘After spending only one day with you I knew I had to have you. You are all I ever wanted in a wife,’ he said softly, his dark eyes smiling into hers. ‘Believe me.’

If his words were meant to reassure her, they failed miserably. Something deep down in Lisa shrivelled up under his charming smile. He didn’t even realise his answer was an insult, she recognised sadly. Shrugging her shoulder free of his hand, she stepped back. ‘Why me, and not Margot?’ she asked quietly.

‘Really, Lisa.’ His dark gaze scanned over her stiff figure, a frown pleating his brow. ‘You are not that naive. Margot is an actress.’ He said it as if he was talking to a child, the exasperation in his tone clearly evident.

She shook her head in disbelief. The arrogant conceit of the man was absolutely unbelievable, and, raising her eyes to his, she prompted. ‘Well, I’m a working girl.’ She could not let it go. She was so vulnerable where he was concerned, loving him as she did. She had to know the worst, then maybe she could begin to get over him.

‘Don’t be so obtuse.’ His deep brown eyes clashed with her brilliant blue ones. ‘There is a world of difference between a thirty-something ambitious actress, and an intelligent, pure young woman who works and is protected by her family.’ Alex’s sensual mouth slanted sardonically. ‘The first is strictly mistress material, and you, my darling Lisa, are the type men marry.’

‘I see,’ Lisa murmured, and closed her eyes for a second, fighting back the tears. She had fallen in love with a man who did not believe in the emotion.

‘No, you don’t see.’ His voice tickled her ear and her eyes flew open. Alex had moved, and she stiffened as he slid a large hand around her waist and pulled her in to the hard heat of him. ‘I married you because I was desperate with wanting you. No woman has ever affected me the way you do. And, much to my delight, I have discovered you have an endless capacity for enjoyment that perfectly matches my own,’ he opined huskily. Lisa shivered as he pressed his lips to the pulse beating frantically in her throat. ‘Now, let’s go to bed, hmm.’

Afterwards, she would decide it was the softly drawled ‘hmm’ that had finally caused her to flip her lid…

Lisa curled her fingers into a fist, and swung with all her might, catching Alex a glancing blow on the side of his head. His arm fell from her waist and she turned on him like a mad thing. ‘You have the most enormous ego of any man in the world, and you are deaf to boot,’ she snarled.

Alex’s hand came down on her slender shoulders and held her slightly away from him. ‘What the hell was that for?’ he demanded harshly.

‘I am not sleeping with you in that bed. Got it?’ she yelled. How he had dared to suggest it after what he had just revealed beggared belief.

‘Enough!’ Alex held up his hands, setting her free. ‘Sleep in the guest room tonight, if you must. I will have the bed replaced tomorrow.’ And with a last grim look at her red, furious face, he strode across the room into the bathroom.

Lisa slipped into the room she had occupied the night before and climbed into bed. She was exhausted, but the thoughts crowding her mind would not let her sleep. For a deliriously happy bride returning from her honeymoon only a few short days ago, confident in herself and the love of her husband, the past two days seemed like a horror story. But they were all too real and she had to face up to reality. Alex had his own reason for marrying her and it was not love.

Alex had taught her a hard lesson. To show one’s innermost feelings with total honesty was damaging to one’s health. Her marriage was over before it had really begun, though it broke her heart to have to admit it. She remembered all the times they had made love and she had spilled her heart out to him, declaring her undying love; it had never once occurred to her that Alex did not feel the same. More fool her…

She turned restlessly on the bed. Being brutally honest with herself, she admitted, it seemed huge and empty without Alex to share it with her. But she was not going to give in, she vowed. Alex had blackmailed her into staying with him. He had said his earlier threat to keep her with him had been a joke, but she was not so sure. She didn’t know what to believe any more. All she knew for certain was she must keep Alex sweet until she found out exactly what he was up to with regard to Lawson’s.

With her mind made up, she tried to sleep, but it was no good, she was wide awake. Slipping out of bed, she crossed over to her computer and switched it on. She had never felt so alone in her whole life, but blinking back the tears, she refused to cry. She E-mailed Jed. She needed to talk to someone, and the lonely hours before dawn in England were late evening in Montana; he might be on-line.

To her relief he was there. Within a very short space of time, Lisa was confiding to Jed the whole sorry story of her hasty marriage.

Jed listened and consoled, and his advice was optimistic. He pointed out she had not given the marriage much of a chance. Alex probably did love her, but was not capable of saying the words. She did not know for sure that he meant to take over her company. Why didn’t she ask him? There might be a simple explanation. Anyway, she was his wife and was entitled to half of everything he owned. So was she being totally reasonable?

She replied. Was he simply sticking up for his own sex? Jed denied the accusation and reminded her she had been married in church, before God, and her vows were not something to dismiss lightly. They chatted for over an hour and Lisa, completely absorbed in what she was doing, didn’t see the bedroom door open, or the tall dark figure of the man watching her. Nor did she see the tenderness in the gleaming black eyes that lingered on her slender body crouched over the machine…

CHAPTER SIX

ALEX manoeuvred his red Ferrari between two massive stone pillars crowned by Lions, past open gates, and gunned the car up a long winding drive.

‘Are you sure this is the right house?’ Lisa queried irritably. She had overslept this morning, mainly because it had been five in the morning before she had got to sleep. Alex had awakened her with a cup of coffee, looking disgustingly fit in blue jeans and a blue knit polo shirt, ready to go. She had forgotten all about their house-hunting and, glancing at him now, in the close confines of the sports car, she wished he had done the same. But no such luck. Alex pursued everything with a ruthless determination that was impossible to ignore.

Within half an hour of waking up Lisa had washed and dressed in white pleated trousers with a white and blue cropped top to match. She’d grabbed a piece of toast and had only taken one bite before Alex had marched into the kitchen. ‘Mrs Blaydon, I have ordered a new bed for the master bedroom. Someone will ring and tell you what time it is arriving. Be here.’ And, grasping Lisa’s free hand, he had hurried her out of the apartment and into the car.

Alex’s voice broke into her troubled thoughts. ‘Of course I am sure. I am a brilliant navigator.’ His dark eyes flicked her a smiling glance.

The car had breasted the top of a hill, and fifty yards on was the most impressive Georgian mansion Lisa had ever seen.

Alex stopped the car at the foot of stone steps that led to the entrance door, and turned to Lisa. ‘You, my darling, should have eaten some breakfast, it might have improved your disposition,’ he opined mockingly.

‘And whose fault was that?’ she prompted. ‘You dragged me out of the apartment like you were taking a dog for a walk.’

Alex burst out laughing, his white teeth flashing ‘You’re certainly no dog!’ His gleaming gaze slid over her mutinous face with genuine amusement, dropping to the proud thrust of her breasts against the soft cotton of her top, the slight glimpse of tanned midriff, and came back to her face. ‘Though you have been acting like a dog in the manger for the past couple of days.’ His dark eyes studied her intently for a long moment. ‘I presume it is simply the effect of your period?’ he asked quietly.

Lisa felt his intimate glance like a caress, and she trembled inside, but it was what he was not saying that worried her. A cynical angry Alex she could handle, but a questioning, analytical Alex was far too dangerous. She was trying to discover what deviousness he was up to, not the other way around. So she responded carefully, ‘Yes, probably.’ She managed a rueful smile. ‘Sorry.’ She had to get her act together and try to behave normally around him.

He leaned forward, his lips hovering within inches of hers. ‘You’re forgiven.’ And he kissed her softly. The warmth of his breath brushed her cheek as he straightened up. She inhaled his clean, masculine scent and knew she would remember it to her dying day. Whatever happened between them.

‘Come on, Lisa,’ Alex commanded as he climbed out of the car. ‘I want your opinion on Stoneborough Manor.’

Lisa slid out of the low seat and followed Alex to the stone steps, squinting her eyes slightly to look up at the house. At the same time she smoothed her pants down over her hips, then tugged at her cotton top. ‘It’s a bit big.’

‘The house, maybe. But that top is a bit small.’ Alex grunted, eyeing the band of bare flesh between her top and pants, and the tantalising indent of her belly button.

‘It’s perfect for summer. You must be getting old,’ she quipped with a grin. ‘And you have to admit, it is a glorious summer day.’ Weather-wise, at least, she thought privately. In every other respect she wished she was anywhere else than looking over prospective houses with Alex. Jed had tried to convince her to give her marriage a chance, but she was not so sure…

She had not changed her mind an hour later, after wandering around the magnificent Georgian mansion. It was the ideal family home. The interior had been tastefully restored and decorated quite recently. A large elegant hall, with a polished hardwood floor and a magnificent staircase as its centre point, made an immediate impression. The study and five reception rooms were equally as impressive, from the formal dining room to the drawing room, library, and the cosier sitting room at the rear, that opened out into a marvellous conservatory.

Six bedrooms, all with ensuite bathrooms took up the first floor. The attic had been converted into an apartment for staff. The master suite was a triumph in interior design. The huge bedroom was dominated by an elegant but massive four-poster bed. A door on one side of the room led to a small sitting room. On the other side, there were his and her bathrooms, and a dressing room. Whoever owned the house had spared no expense; that much was obvious to Lisa’s admiring gaze as she walked across the deep-pile carpet and stood at the tall window, staring out at the view. It was breathtaking, like a secret valley, she thought fancifully.

Suddenly Alex’s arms slipped around her waist, and the shock of his touch made her jump. She was keenly aware of his casual embrace, of his hands locked across her bare midriff, of his long legs pressing against her thighs, the way their bodies fitted together so naturally. His dark head bent forward, his cheek brushed against her hair, and she could not prevent the trembling in her limbs.

‘What do you think?’ he prompted softly.

‘I think it must cost a fortune. And even more to furnish,’ Lisa said jerkily, intensely aware of his powerful body enfolding her and reminding her they were alone in the house. Alex evoked a mixture of hate and love inside her in equal measures, but in the intimacy of a bedroom designed for lovers it was the latter that was threatening her self-control.

Alex’s hands tightened on the side of her waist and he spun her round. ‘Never mind the price; and as it happens the furniture is included—a lot of it was made for the house.’ Cool dark eyes scanned her wary face. ‘Do you like it?’

The thought crossed Lisa’s mind that he seemed to know a lot about the place. Personally she loved the house. It was perfect, from the magnificent swimming pool and hot tub at the rear of the building, to the more practical kitchen and utilities, and the five acres of beautifully sculptured garden that surrounded the house, with a paddock beyond. But she was not about to admit as much to Alex. Two days ago she would have flung her arms around his neck and begged him to buy it. Not now…

Her blue eyes guarded, she held his gaze. The betrayal of trust in a relationship, she realised sadly, was probably the worst crime, and she formed her answer accordingly. ‘Yes, it is a nice house, but it is the first one we have viewed. I don’t think we should rush into anything. It is rather a long way from my work, plus it’s rather isolated.’

‘Hardly isolated,’ Alex drawled sarcastically, his hands dropping from her waist, much to her relief. ‘Oxford is a mere fifteen minutes away, and it is barely an hour to Stratford-upon-Avon. I would have said it was in a great position, being almost mid-way between London and Lawson’s. But—’ he gave a slight shrug of his broad shoulders ‘—if it does not appeal to you, so be it.’

‘I just feel we should wait,’ she insisted, glancing cautiously from beneath lowered lashes, wondering how he would take her less than enthusiastic response.

‘In that case, shall we go?’ he slanted mockingly.

‘Yes,’ Lisa agreed, and preceded him down the stairs and out of the house. She glanced over the building as he locked the huge doors. It would make some lucky family a wonderful home.

During the drive back to London Alex revealed that he had to go to New York on Monday, for a few days, and asked her if she wished to accompany him. Lisa swallowed back a sigh of relief as she refused, with the genuine excuse that she had to go to the office on Monday to begin interviewing prospective candidates for Mary’s job.

On their return to the apartment, Mrs Blaydon met them with the information that the new bed had been delivered, and she had left a meal prepared in the kitchen.

Alex glanced at Lisa, a devilish gleam in his eyes. ‘Thank you, Mrs B. You can leave now. Lisa and I want to check out the new bed.’

Lisa blushed to the roots of her hair. ‘What did you have to say that for?’ she demanded as the housekeeper left in a rush. ‘You embarrassed the poor woman.’

‘Mrs B was not the one who was embarrassed,’ Alex came back in amusement as he studied her scarlet cheeks.

‘Oh you’re impossible!’ she burst out. She had spent all day in his company and she felt as if she had been walking on eggshells. ‘And I am not sharing the new bed. I want my own room,’ she demanded furiously.

Brilliant dark eyes rested on her defiant face. ‘No way, Lisa. This foolishness has gone on long enough. Now, get into the kitchen and see what Mrs B has left for dinner. I am starving.’

Flinching from his blunt statement, and furious at his ordering her into the kitchen, she wanted to slap him. Instead she marched off and set about warming the chicken, mushroom and herb casserole the housekeeper had left.

The meal was a silent affair; Lisa had not the heart to talk, and, picking up on her mood, Alex ate in brooding silence too. When she occasionally caught his eye, she quickly looked away.

Lisa felt the swirling currents of tension building, and finally she could stand it no longer. Pushing back her chair, she stood up. ‘I have some work to do on my computer. If you will excuse me.’ She spoke to somewhere over his left shoulder.