believe you do," he said. "That's only the physical aspect. If that was all there was, I might have given in to temptation this morning and taken everything I wanted from you." His slender finger reached out to touch one winged brow with great delicacy. "This isn't just a yen, little Piper. This is a full-fledged obsession."
She tried to laugh, but the sound came out as a rush of breathlessness. "Impossible. We only met the one time, even if you've seen me perform more than that. What you feel can't be more than a fleeting desire."
"I didn't think so either at first," he said quietly. "I thought it was because I was so damned bored that you had such an effect on me. I told myself that a few weeks in the sack with you was all I wanted." The tips of his fingers were now tracing the other brow with equal
gentleness. "I tried to persuade myself I was only curious when I ordered Kevin to get me every article and story ever written about you." He smiled. "And of course I wanted the video tapes merely because I appreciate your skill as a dancer, as an artist."
"I didn't know about the articles," she said dazedly. The gentle stroking of her brows had a mesmeric effect on her. The action was almost totally sexless, as if he were stroking the plumage of a bird that might take fright and fly away any second.
"It didn't satisfy me for very long," he continued, as if she hadn't spoken. "I found myself trying to find out everything I could about you. I even compiled a list of your actual quotes so that I could build a picture in my mind of what lay behind that pixie face." He shrugged. "It wasn't enough. I began to leave the chateau and fly down to New York to watch you perform in person." His lips twisted. "It made Betz more than a little nervous."
"Just what are you trying to tell me? If you don't believe this is a passing fancy, what the devil do you believe it is?"
"I wish I knew," he said. "All I know is that it's not going to go away soon. It's going to be a long time before I'm going to be willing to let you leave me even for a little while." His smile was curiously bittersweet. "As I said, it's an obsession."
"But you can't do that," she protested, brushing his hand away from her face. "You can't keep me here against my will."
"From what they tell me, there's very little that I can't do," he said cynically. Then, as she would have spoken, he held up his hand. "But that doesn't mean I'm about to pressure you into anything. I've always believed that the only efficient method of wielding power is to persuade rather than bludgeon."
"How very condescending of you," she said tartly.
"And I assume that I'm to be 'persuaded' to occupy your bed?"
A smile that was surprisingly boyish warmed his dark face. "God, I hope so, sweetheart. I'm certainly going to make every effort to have it happen." Then the smile slowly faded. "Hell, yes, I'm going to try to seduce you. I want you so much I'm aching from it. But that's not all I want by a long shot. In the next weeks I'm going to learn you inside out. How you think, what foods you like, the memories and experiences that make you what you are." He grimaced. "Who knows? You may get lucky. Perhaps after I know everything about you, the fascination will fade a little and I'll be willing to let you go. It would probably be better for both of us if I did."
"And if it doesn't?"
"Then I hope I can make you want to stay with me until it does," he said quietly. "I know you want me. Those particular physical signals are pretty unmistakable. I can build on that. By the time it's safe to let you go, I have every intention of making very sure you have no desire to do so." There was a flicker of sadness in the depths of his eyes. "And if the charm of my company doesn't do the trick, I have a wild card that most assuredly will. You might say it's an offer that you can't refuse."
"You expect me to just sit still while you try to seduce me, after the way I've been treated?" Her dark eyes were
She tried to laugh, but the sound came out as a rush of breathlessness. "Impossible. We only met the one time, even if you've seen me perform more than that. What you feel can't be more than a fleeting desire."
"I didn't think so either at first," he said quietly. "I thought it was because I was so damned bored that you had such an effect on me. I told myself that a few weeks in the sack with you was all I wanted." The tips of his fingers were now tracing the other brow with equal
gentleness. "I tried to persuade myself I was only curious when I ordered Kevin to get me every article and story ever written about you." He smiled. "And of course I wanted the video tapes merely because I appreciate your skill as a dancer, as an artist."
"I didn't know about the articles," she said dazedly. The gentle stroking of her brows had a mesmeric effect on her. The action was almost totally sexless, as if he were stroking the plumage of a bird that might take fright and fly away any second.
"It didn't satisfy me for very long," he continued, as if she hadn't spoken. "I found myself trying to find out everything I could about you. I even compiled a list of your actual quotes so that I could build a picture in my mind of what lay behind that pixie face." He shrugged. "It wasn't enough. I began to leave the chateau and fly down to New York to watch you perform in person." His lips twisted. "It made Betz more than a little nervous."
"Just what are you trying to tell me? If you don't believe this is a passing fancy, what the devil do you believe it is?"
"I wish I knew," he said. "All I know is that it's not going to go away soon. It's going to be a long time before I'm going to be willing to let you leave me even for a little while." His smile was curiously bittersweet. "As I said, it's an obsession."
"But you can't do that," she protested, brushing his hand away from her face. "You can't keep me here against my will."
"From what they tell me, there's very little that I can't do," he said cynically. Then, as she would have spoken, he held up his hand. "But that doesn't mean I'm about to pressure you into anything. I've always believed that the only efficient method of wielding power is to persuade rather than bludgeon."
"How very condescending of you," she said tartly.
"And I assume that I'm to be 'persuaded' to occupy your bed?"
A smile that was surprisingly boyish warmed his dark face. "God, I hope so, sweetheart. I'm certainly going to make every effort to have it happen." Then the smile slowly faded. "Hell, yes, I'm going to try to seduce you. I want you so much I'm aching from it. But that's not all I want by a long shot. In the next weeks I'm going to learn you inside out. How you think, what foods you like, the memories and experiences that make you what you are." He grimaced. "Who knows? You may get lucky. Perhaps after I know everything about you, the fascination will fade a little and I'll be willing to let you go. It would probably be better for both of us if I did."
"And if it doesn't?"
"Then I hope I can make you want to stay with me until it does," he said quietly. "I know you want me. Those particular physical signals are pretty unmistakable. I can build on that. By the time it's safe to let you go, I have every intention of making very sure you have no desire to do so." There was a flicker of sadness in the depths of his eyes. "And if the charm of my company doesn't do the trick, I have a wild card that most assuredly will. You might say it's an offer that you can't refuse."
"You expect me to just sit still while you try to seduce me, after the way I've been treated?" Her dark eyes were
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