The Forever Dream by Iris Johansen

"Hello," he murmured. There was no surprise in his face. "I thought you'd be here a long time ago. Kevin must have been more eloquent than I'd thought possible to keep you from venting your righteous rage on me before this. Come and sit down."
    His manner was as calm as if he were inviting a chance acquaintance out for a sociable drink! The swift indignation that surged through her immediately dispersed the odd shakiness that had afflicted her at the sight of him. She strode swiftly to stand before him. "It would take more than McCords 'eloquence' to do that," she said, her voice trembling with anger. "How can you sit there so calmly after what you've done to me? Don't you have the least notion of right and wrong?"
    His eyes were regarding her gravely. "I'm sure Kevin made it plain to you that I had no prior knowledge that you were being brought here. It was a complete surprise to me to find you in that bed this morning."
    "But it didn't stop you from taking advantage of the situation," she said hotly. She bit her lip vexedly as she saw his mouth curve in an amused smile. She hadn't meant to mention those blindingly sensual hours she had spent in his arms. She'd wanted to confine their conversation to a straight demand for her immediate release. Yet she hadn't been in the man's presence for two minutes before her unruly tongue had placed them both on exactly the terms of intimacy she'd wished to avoid.
    "I didn't take advantage of you, little Piper," he drawled. "As Betz would say, I did what was necessary.
    And I hope to God I never have to do anything that painful again. I must have walked ten miles after I left you, just to forget the taste of your breasts and the way you felt cuddled against me."
    "Necessary?" She felt her cheeks burn with shock at the casualness with which he referred to those intimacies. "I'm afraid I can't agree with you. I don't think many people would regard taking sexual license with an unwilling woman as necessary."
    "Sit down." He reached up, grasped her hand, and pulled her to her knees beside him. "That's better. All I could see from that angle was the pert little thrust of your breasts beneath your oversized sweater. I assume the sweater was meant to discourage my lust? I'm still in no condition to withstand any provocation, intentional or otherwise." His glance lingered on her breasts before returning to her face. "The whole point is that you weren't unwilling, sweet. That was what made the whole episode so damnable." His expression became grim. "That idiot Betz had you injected with paradynoline."
    "Paradynoline?"
    "A drug whose side effects are like an aphrodisiac," he supplied tersely. "Betz wanted to make sure you kept me happy and eminently satisfied while he was away from the chateau."
    To her amazement her first reaction to this disclosure wasn't anger, but relief. She hadn't wanted to admit even to herself that the needs of her body could turn her into the voluptuary whom she remembered with uncomfortable clarity. The knowledge of her physical dependence on Ryker during those hours chafed unbearably at her sense of independence. It was much easier to accept the fact it had been a chemical, rather than the man himself, that was responsible for that sensual enslavement. It even served to lessen her anger toward him.
    "Charming," she said caustically. "Is that his usual method of assuring you of your mistresses' compliance?"
    "No, he usually finds money to be the most potent aphrodisiac. I understand he tried that first with you." She nodded. "I thought you were some rich, perverted old recluse." She tossed her head. "Two out of four isn't bad."
    "Actually, you did better than that," he drawled. "Though not in the same class as Corbett, I'm considered moderately wealthy." There was a glint in the icy gray of his eyes that might have been a twinkle. "As for be other designations, many scientists have a tendency to be recluses, and I certainly can't deny I've had any number of lewd thoughts