mother and a convenient source of food and that was all he needed.
He didn’t have the slightest concern that the two of them had been abducted, spirited away in the night. Bundled first into a limousine that had driven them to an exclusive apartment block, then whisked up to a helipad on the roof, strapped into a waiting helicopter, piloted by Jaco himself, and finally landing several hours later at wherever on earth it was that she found herself now.
Exhausted by shock, she had dozed off on the flight, only waking as the helicopter had banked steeply in preparation for landing. Peering through the window, she hadn’t been able to make out anything at all in the darkness, and it had been clear that Jaco had no intention of telling her where they were, so she’d had to let herself and Gabriel be helped into a Jeep and just watch in stupefied silence as Jaco got into the driver’s seat and navigated the steep and twisty road that had led to the residence she now found herself in.
But at least now it was daylight. Once she had Gabriel settled she would take stock of her surroundings and work out where on earth she was. The GPS on her phone should tell her that—when she managed to find it, that was. She had searched everywhere for it last night, with no success.
From looking around her, all she had managed to ascertain was that they were staying in some sort of luxury single-storey dwelling. Her bedroom was all cool elegance, with exposed stone walls and polished hardwood flooring, and a bed big enough to accommodate a small family. The en suite bathroom was of grey marble and had a sunken tub and succulent cacti growing behind a glass wall, while the floor-to-ceiling windows offered a view of a carefully landscaped garden, with ancient olive trees and time-worn granite boulders left in situ, but not much else.
A sharp tap on the door made her jump.
‘Yes?’ She hugged Gabriel closer to her.
The door opened and Jaco strode in. Wearing faded jeans low on his hips and a sleeveless black vest, he was all masterful authority. That was until he caught sight of Leah holding Gabriel to her breast.
‘Oh...my apologies.’
Leah fixed him with a haughty stare. She wasn’t going to look away. Breastfeeding a baby was the most natural thing in the world. And besides, she was perfectly decent. ‘What do you want, Jaco?’
Jaco hesitated, then moved into the room, towards the chair where Leah sat with Gabriel. Leah noticed that his eyes did not quite meet hers, or move to the bundle of baby in her arms, but hovered somewhere over her shoulder.
‘I came to see if you had a comfortable night.’
‘Huh!’ Leah snorted. ‘Like you care.’
Her sharp voice made Gabriel’s eyes flicker beneath the paper-thin skin of his closed lids. When his mouth fell from her breast Leah adjusted her clothing, and then moved to settle him in the crib by the side of the bed.
She had no idea how that crib had got there. She couldn’t imagine it being the sort of thing Jaco would have had stashed away for the convenience of his guests, but miraculously it had been there when they had arrived last night, along with disposable nappies and other essential baby equipment.
‘I obviously care enough to be asking you now.’ A muscle twitched beneath his eye. ‘Do you have everything that you need?’
‘Oh, yes, everything.’ She flashed him a combative stare. ‘Everything apart from my freedom, of course.’
‘You will have your freedom.’ Jaco matched her glare. ‘All in good time.’
‘And when might that be?’
‘A couple of weeks.’
‘A couple of weeks?’ Leah advanced towards him like an impending storm. ‘You really think you can keep me and Gabriel hidden away here for two whole weeks?’
‘I don’t think—I know. I can keep you here as long as I like.’
‘And you believe that’s acceptable behaviour, do you?’ Leah inhaled a furious breath. ‘Gloating over the way you can hold us prisoner?’
Jaco shrugged. ‘I believe the bounds of acceptable behaviour have already been crossed. Not bothering to tell me I am a father, for example.’ His eyes held hers.
Leah scowled. ‘You are not fit to be called a father—not in the true sense of the word.’
A couple of angry steps brought her right in front of him, but her bare feet gave Jaco even more height advantage than usual.
She threw back her head to look up at him. ‘You try to make out that being a father is so important to you, and yet you haven’t even looked at Gabriel. Not once.’
Jaco ground down on his jaw. ‘I will make my son’s acquaintance when I feel the time is right.’
‘Make his acquaintance?’ Leah openly mocked him. ‘You don’t make your baby son’s acquaintance, Jaco, you pick him up, hold him—love him.’ Her voice quavered with unwanted emotion. ‘Something you know nothing about.’
‘Is that right?’
His fingers curled possessively under her chin, holding it firmly so she had no choice but to look into his eyes.
‘And what leads you to that conclusion?’
‘I...I just know.’ Caught in the spell of his gaze, Leah couldn’t think straight. All she knew was that no matter how badly Jaco behaved, how much she despised him, her heart still performed a crazy little dance whenever he touched her. ‘Call it instinct.’
‘Instinct be damned.’ Jaco dropped her chin in disgust, moving a step away. ‘You and I both know the real reason I am not at ease with my child is because up until a week ago I didn’t even know of his existence.’
‘And you still wouldn’t if I had any say in it.’
‘Esatto.’ Jaco’s voice fell to a deadly low tone. ‘Which is why you no longer have any say in it, mia cara. From now on I make the rules, and I call the shots. What I say goes.’
‘And I’m supposed to accept that, am I?’ She glared at him incredulously.
‘You have no choice.’ He was chillingly calm. ‘You can try and fight this all you like—kick and scream to your heart’s content. But the outcome will be the same. You will not be leaving this island until I say so.’
An island. They were on an island. Amid the bubbling rage Leah stored away that piece of information, though she had no idea what good it would do her.
She tried to steady the anger that was coursing its fiery path through her veins. No mean feat, given the outrageous barbaric behaviour of the man in front of her. Hot-headed by nature, her instinct was to do all the things that Jaco had just described so dismissively. Kick and scream and beat her fists against this heinous man’s chest. But she was also clever. And she was a fighter. If it was clear that raging against Jaco was going to get her nowhere she would have to try another tactic.
Squaring her shoulders, Leah met his gaze full-on, cursing the kick of desire that he still triggered in her, that refused to die, no matter how much she tried to
