taken.”
The director called it a wrap and Ella started to wander back to the tents. Blaise followed.
“Haven’t you got…somewhere to be?” she asked.
“No. I’m through with my business for the day.”
“And what did that business include?” she asked, in spite of the fact that she should be trying to get rid of him, not continuing a conversation with him.
“Discussing the drilling of more wells in some of the outlying villages. And getting more ambulances, mobile care units, something to help the people who live far out of the cities in a medical crisis.”
Ella stared at him. “You carry a lot of weight on your shoulders.” She heard herself say it, and realized how true it was at the same time.
Piercing eyes appraised her. “So do you, I think.”
A crushing amount. “Not really.” She shrugged, trying to remove the heavy feeling. It was impossible. “I wanted to thank you,” she said, clinging to her water bottle like it was her life support, keeping her focus on the bright blue label, and away from Blaise.
“For?”
“Not for—” she felt her cheeks get hot “—I just wanted to thank you for this. All of this. I know that our working relationship has been…rocky. But I’m grateful for it now. This has helped.” She still planned on paying him back as quickly as possible, but what he had done for her in such a short space of time simply wasn’t something she could have accomplished on her own.
“It is business, Ella. Nothing more.”
“But there’s more to you than that,” she said. She didn’t know why she said it, why she wanted him to admit it.
“Not really.”
“What you do here, in Malawi, that’s not just business.”
“Don’t be fooled by a few charitable acts, Ella. A tax write-off is a tax write-off.”
Her heart tightened. She didn’t believe him for a moment, but watching his face get hard, seeing his walls come up around him, that hurt.
Her defenses seemed permanently crippled, and his remained as high as ever. Blaise was perfectly happy playing the bastard, even as it became abundantly clear there was more to him.
The way he had treated her last night was an example of that. He didn’t plunder, or take. He had given to her. His lips had been both gentle and firm, demanding and generous. And when she had withdrawn, he had respected her.
It wasn’t only his response that offered her the window into him. It was the fact that he was using the same methods she had used for the past eleven years. Don’t let anyone in. Don’t betray any emotion.
He was better at it than she was, though. Something she’d envied at first. Something she wasn’t sure she envied anymore. She felt like she had one foot behind her own emotional walls, one foot testing out the other side.
She was afraid. Last night she’d been too afraid, and today she’d tried to resurrect her defenses to no avail.
She looked at Blaise, at his profile, his body held so strong and masculine, his posture so straight a military officer would be envious. He was a sinner, it was widely known. But he also built hospitals and dug wells.
And he had shown her things about herself, unlocked things in her she hadn’t imagined were in there.
She had stepped into the fashion industry, a woman with scars, a woman who had been tormented by the fashionable girls in high school. And she had done it without fear, without hesitation, because it was her dream.
Last night, she’d wanted a man. She’d wanted Blaise, so much she trembled with it. And she had let her fear have dominion over her. She had seized control in her professional life, had set out to achieve her goals with single-minded focus. Why should any other area of her life be different?
It was time for her to stop being afraid.
He had been up half the night, his body aching, unfulfilled. He wanted Ella. His mind had been plagued by images of her, naked, her nipples, pink and tight, begging for his touch, her lips, soft and moist on his
The director called it a wrap and Ella started to wander back to the tents. Blaise followed.
“Haven’t you got…somewhere to be?” she asked.
“No. I’m through with my business for the day.”
“And what did that business include?” she asked, in spite of the fact that she should be trying to get rid of him, not continuing a conversation with him.
“Discussing the drilling of more wells in some of the outlying villages. And getting more ambulances, mobile care units, something to help the people who live far out of the cities in a medical crisis.”
Ella stared at him. “You carry a lot of weight on your shoulders.” She heard herself say it, and realized how true it was at the same time.
Piercing eyes appraised her. “So do you, I think.”
A crushing amount. “Not really.” She shrugged, trying to remove the heavy feeling. It was impossible. “I wanted to thank you,” she said, clinging to her water bottle like it was her life support, keeping her focus on the bright blue label, and away from Blaise.
“For?”
“Not for—” she felt her cheeks get hot “—I just wanted to thank you for this. All of this. I know that our working relationship has been…rocky. But I’m grateful for it now. This has helped.” She still planned on paying him back as quickly as possible, but what he had done for her in such a short space of time simply wasn’t something she could have accomplished on her own.
“It is business, Ella. Nothing more.”
“But there’s more to you than that,” she said. She didn’t know why she said it, why she wanted him to admit it.
“Not really.”
“What you do here, in Malawi, that’s not just business.”
“Don’t be fooled by a few charitable acts, Ella. A tax write-off is a tax write-off.”
Her heart tightened. She didn’t believe him for a moment, but watching his face get hard, seeing his walls come up around him, that hurt.
Her defenses seemed permanently crippled, and his remained as high as ever. Blaise was perfectly happy playing the bastard, even as it became abundantly clear there was more to him.
The way he had treated her last night was an example of that. He didn’t plunder, or take. He had given to her. His lips had been both gentle and firm, demanding and generous. And when she had withdrawn, he had respected her.
It wasn’t only his response that offered her the window into him. It was the fact that he was using the same methods she had used for the past eleven years. Don’t let anyone in. Don’t betray any emotion.
He was better at it than she was, though. Something she’d envied at first. Something she wasn’t sure she envied anymore. She felt like she had one foot behind her own emotional walls, one foot testing out the other side.
She was afraid. Last night she’d been too afraid, and today she’d tried to resurrect her defenses to no avail.
She looked at Blaise, at his profile, his body held so strong and masculine, his posture so straight a military officer would be envious. He was a sinner, it was widely known. But he also built hospitals and dug wells.
And he had shown her things about herself, unlocked things in her she hadn’t imagined were in there.
She had stepped into the fashion industry, a woman with scars, a woman who had been tormented by the fashionable girls in high school. And she had done it without fear, without hesitation, because it was her dream.
Last night, she’d wanted a man. She’d wanted Blaise, so much she trembled with it. And she had let her fear have dominion over her. She had seized control in her professional life, had set out to achieve her goals with single-minded focus. Why should any other area of her life be different?
It was time for her to stop being afraid.
He had been up half the night, his body aching, unfulfilled. He wanted Ella. His mind had been plagued by images of her, naked, her nipples, pink and tight, begging for his touch, her lips, soft and moist on his
Similar Books
