she had grown comfortable with over that time? It made her feel all the more on edge around Javier. He knew far more about her than she knew about him. And yet she could sense in her body a growing recognition that flickered a little more each time they were together.
‘Aldana told me you had a visitor while I was away,’ Javier said.
Emelia kept her expression masked. ‘Yes. Izabella called in. She’s gone to stay with friends in Valencia before she goes back to Paris.’
‘Did you recognise her?’
She shook her head. ‘No, but I soon figured out who she was. She is very like you. It is obvious you are related. You have the same hair and eyes.’
‘I hope you refrained from getting into an argument with her,’ he said, still holding her gaze. ‘I would not want either of you upset.’
‘No, we didn’t argue,’ Emelia said. ‘I found her to be friendly and pleasant and not in the least hostile. She’s a very beautiful and poised young woman. You must be very proud of her.’
He frowned as he studied her through narrowed eyes. ‘What did you talk about?’
‘The usual girl stuff,’ she said. ‘We have a lot in common, actually.’
‘She is a little headstrong at times,’ he admitted. ‘But then she is still young.’
Emelia went to move to the steps leading out of the pool but he placed a hand on her arm, stopping her from moving away from him. ‘Where are you going?’ he asked.
‘I’m getting cold,’ she said. ‘I want to have a shower.’
He cupped both of her shoulders with his hands. ‘No kiss for my return?’
Emelia felt her eyes widen and her stomach did another flip turn. ‘It’s not as if things are the same…as before,’ she said. ‘I need more time.’
Something moved at the back of his eyes. ‘I think the sooner we slip back into our previous routine the better,’ he said. ‘I am convinced it will help you remember.’
‘You’re assuming I will remember,’ she said. ‘I had no such assurance from any of the doctors or therapists at the hospital.’
His hands tightened as soon as he felt her try to escape again. ‘It doesn’t matter if you remember or not. It doesn’t change the fact that we are married.’
Emelia straightened her spine in defiance but, by doing so, it brought her pelvis into direct contact with his. The hot hard heat of him was like being zapped with a thousand volts of electricity. She felt the tingles shoot through her from head to foot. His eyes dropped to the startled ‘O’ of her mouth and then, as if in slow motion, gradually lowered his head until his lips sealed hers.
It was a slow burn of a kiss, heating her to her core as each pulsing second passed. His tongue probed the seam of her mouth for entry and she gave it on a whimper of pleasure. The rasp of his tongue as it mated with hers sent a cascading shiver down the backs of her legs and up again, right to the back of her neck. She felt her toes curl on the tiled floor of the pool as his kiss deepened. His arms had gone from the tops of her shoulders down the slim length of her arms to settle about her waist, holding her against his pelvis, leaving her acutely aware of his rock-hard arousal. Her body responded automatically, the ache between her thighs becoming more insistent the firmer he held her against him. She moved against him, a slight nudge at first and then a blatant rub to feel the pleasure his body offered.
He slowly but surely walked her backwards, his thighs brushing hers with each step, his mouth still locked on her mouth, his body jammed tight against her. His hands moved up from her waist to deftly untie the strings of her bikini. It fell away, leaving her breasts free for his touch. She drew in a sharp breath as his hands cupped her, his thumb gently stroking over each nipple, making her flesh cry out for more. His mouth left hers and went on a leisurely mission, exploring every dip and curve on the way down to her breasts: the sensitive pleasure spots behind each of her earlobes, the hollows above her collarbone and the super-reactive skin of her neck. She tilted her head to one side as he nibbled and nipped in turn, her belly turning over in delight as he finally made his way to her breasts. He left her nipples alone this time and concentrated instead on the sensitive under curves of each breast, first with his fingers and then with the heat and fire of his mouth. She arched up against him, wanting more, wanting it all, wanting to feel whatever he had made her feel in the past.
His mouth came back to her searching, hungry one, his hands going to the strings holding her bikini bottom in place. Emelia’s hands moved from around his neck to the small of his back, delighting in the way he groaned deeply as he surged against her. Casting inhibition aside, she peeled away his briefs, freeing him into her hands. She felt a hitch in her breath as she shaped his steely length, the throb of his blood pounding against her fingers. He was so thick with desire it made her own blood race at the thought of him moving inside her.
He tore his mouth off hers, looking down at her with eyes glittering with desire. ‘You have certainly not forgotten how to drive me wild with wanting you,’ he said. ‘How about it, querida? Shall we finish this here and now, or wait for later?’
Emelia felt the cold slap of shock bring her back to reality. What was she doing allowing him such liberties and outside where anyone could see if they put their mind to it? And what was she doing touching him as if she wanted him to finish what he had started? What was wrong with her? Surely she had not become such a slave of the flesh? She had always abhorred such irresponsible behaviour amongst her peers; the casual approach to sex was something she had never gone in for. She put up her chin, working hard to maintain her composure when she was stark naked. ‘What makes you so sure I would give my consent, here or anywhere?’
His smile was on the edge of mocking. ‘Because I know you, Emelia. I know how you respond to me. A couple of minutes more and you would have been begging for it.’
There was nothing figurative about the slap Emelia landed on the side of Javier’s face. It jerked his head back, made his nostrils flare and his mouth tighten to a flat line of tension. ‘You know, you really shouldn’t have done that,’ he said with a coolness she was sure he was nowhere near feeling.
Emelia refused to wilt under his hard black gaze. ‘You insulted me. You practically called me a wanton tramp.’
One of his hands rubbed at the red hand-sized mark on his jaw. ‘So if someone allegedly insults you it’s OK to use violence?’ he asked.
She bit the inside of her mouth, suddenly ashamed of how she had reacted, but there was no way she was going to apologise to him. She turned and searched for her bikini, struggling to put it back on while still in the water. She was conscious of Javier’s eyes following her every movement and her resentment and anger hardened like a golf ball-sized lump in the middle of her chest. Once she was covered, she stomped up the pool steps, snatching up her towel on the way past the sun lounger where she had left it.
The moment Emelia came out of the en suite bathroom after a lengthy shower she knew something was amiss. Her eyes went to the bed where a black leather briefcase was lying at the foot of it. She heard the sound of someone moving about in the walk-in wardrobe and, clutching her bathrobe a little tighter, spun around to find Aldana coming out with some spare coat hangers.
‘What’s going on?’ Emelia asked in Spanish.
The housekeeper gave her a pursed-lipped look. ‘Señor Mélendez
