you might be softening a little.'
She felt her breathing quicken. What had she let him see? she wondered. 'Well, think again, Mr Brant,' she returned with all the calmness she could muster. 'Do you really expect me to believe that you just happen to have been invited here at this particular time?'
'No,' he said. 'That would be stretching coincidence too far. But Carlo is an old friend, and he owes me one, so when I suggested it would be useful for the book if I sat in on the preliminary discussions for this film, he was happy to agree.'
'And do you imagine for one moment that Bianca will be—happy to agree?'
'On the contrary,' he said, 'if the way she studiously avoided all mention of the trip is anything to go by. But as I think I already hinted to you, while I'd prefer her co-operation, it isn't essential.'
'Well, I think you're being most unfair,' she said hotly. 'This film is an important one, and Bianca doesn't need your kind of hassle.'
'I think we can leave fairness out of the discussion. If it comes to it, she hasn't been altogether fair to me. She tried to pull the wool over my eyes in London, only it didn't work. I was ahead of her all the way.' His voice was cold suddenly, and in spite of the sun's heat, she shivered, wrapping the towel which had slipped slightly more closely round her slender body.
Liam noticed the gesture, and smiled mockingly. 'Don't be coy,' he advised lazily. 'If you don't want to be looked at, you shouldn't put the goods in the window.'
'I wasn't aware I had done so.'
'No? Then obviously you also don't know how provocative your current cover-up tactics are.'
Before she could stir or make a move to prevent him he reached out and pulled the towel away from her, tossing it behind him.
'How dare you!' Alix choked.
'Oh, don't be such a fool,' he said impatiently. 'You don't need the towel. You can't be cold in this heat, and if you're damp, the sun will soon dry you. The only other arguments are that you're ashamed of your body, which can't be true, or that you're super-modest, which doesn't fit with your choice of swim-wear.'
'It doesn't happen to be my choice,' she said. 'I borrowed it because my own luggage hadn't arrived.'
'And of course, this was the only one available,' he said silkily. 'I think you've made another Freudian slip, secretary bird. Or did you think your borrowed plumes would turn you into a bird of paradise for a while?'
She wanted to protest, to say that she had assumed she would be alone at the swimming pool, but the words wouldn't come suddenly, and if they had, she doubted whether her dry mouth could have uttered them.
With total awareness, she was watching him watching her, and she knew she was afraid. Knew also that beneath the fear was growing and unquenchable excitement. Found she couldn't explain either the fear or the excitement, and as he took one long irrevocable step towards her, knew that she didn't even want to.
His hands closed on her waist, but lightly so that she could have pulled free, but she didn't His hands moved on her gently, silk against velvet, travelling downwards until they rested on the smooth curve of her hips, and when she did move, it was towards him. His gaze touched hers, held it, then dropped slowly to her lips, and down to her breasts, barely concealed by the tiny silken jade triangles, with all the potency of a caress.
A voice inside her head was whispering feverishly, '
Kiss me. Oh God, please kiss me
!'
But as her lips parted, the only sound she uttered was a long quivering sigh, and her lashes fluttered down on to her cheeks, helplessly, submissively as the dark head bent towards her.
At first, his mouth brushed hers gently as a butterfly's wing, as tantalising as a summer breeze, and it was not enough—she wanted more as she swayed forward until the tips of her breasts touched the hard muscular wall of his body in an almost intolerable friction.
Liam must have been aware of her arousal, yet he made no apparent
She felt her breathing quicken. What had she let him see? she wondered. 'Well, think again, Mr Brant,' she returned with all the calmness she could muster. 'Do you really expect me to believe that you just happen to have been invited here at this particular time?'
'No,' he said. 'That would be stretching coincidence too far. But Carlo is an old friend, and he owes me one, so when I suggested it would be useful for the book if I sat in on the preliminary discussions for this film, he was happy to agree.'
'And do you imagine for one moment that Bianca will be—happy to agree?'
'On the contrary,' he said, 'if the way she studiously avoided all mention of the trip is anything to go by. But as I think I already hinted to you, while I'd prefer her co-operation, it isn't essential.'
'Well, I think you're being most unfair,' she said hotly. 'This film is an important one, and Bianca doesn't need your kind of hassle.'
'I think we can leave fairness out of the discussion. If it comes to it, she hasn't been altogether fair to me. She tried to pull the wool over my eyes in London, only it didn't work. I was ahead of her all the way.' His voice was cold suddenly, and in spite of the sun's heat, she shivered, wrapping the towel which had slipped slightly more closely round her slender body.
Liam noticed the gesture, and smiled mockingly. 'Don't be coy,' he advised lazily. 'If you don't want to be looked at, you shouldn't put the goods in the window.'
'I wasn't aware I had done so.'
'No? Then obviously you also don't know how provocative your current cover-up tactics are.'
Before she could stir or make a move to prevent him he reached out and pulled the towel away from her, tossing it behind him.
'How dare you!' Alix choked.
'Oh, don't be such a fool,' he said impatiently. 'You don't need the towel. You can't be cold in this heat, and if you're damp, the sun will soon dry you. The only other arguments are that you're ashamed of your body, which can't be true, or that you're super-modest, which doesn't fit with your choice of swim-wear.'
'It doesn't happen to be my choice,' she said. 'I borrowed it because my own luggage hadn't arrived.'
'And of course, this was the only one available,' he said silkily. 'I think you've made another Freudian slip, secretary bird. Or did you think your borrowed plumes would turn you into a bird of paradise for a while?'
She wanted to protest, to say that she had assumed she would be alone at the swimming pool, but the words wouldn't come suddenly, and if they had, she doubted whether her dry mouth could have uttered them.
With total awareness, she was watching him watching her, and she knew she was afraid. Knew also that beneath the fear was growing and unquenchable excitement. Found she couldn't explain either the fear or the excitement, and as he took one long irrevocable step towards her, knew that she didn't even want to.
His hands closed on her waist, but lightly so that she could have pulled free, but she didn't His hands moved on her gently, silk against velvet, travelling downwards until they rested on the smooth curve of her hips, and when she did move, it was towards him. His gaze touched hers, held it, then dropped slowly to her lips, and down to her breasts, barely concealed by the tiny silken jade triangles, with all the potency of a caress.
A voice inside her head was whispering feverishly, '
Kiss me. Oh God, please kiss me
!'
But as her lips parted, the only sound she uttered was a long quivering sigh, and her lashes fluttered down on to her cheeks, helplessly, submissively as the dark head bent towards her.
At first, his mouth brushed hers gently as a butterfly's wing, as tantalising as a summer breeze, and it was not enough—she wanted more as she swayed forward until the tips of her breasts touched the hard muscular wall of his body in an almost intolerable friction.
Liam must have been aware of her arousal, yet he made no apparent
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