THREE
THE ground fell away as the plane took to the skies. Louise held her breath, only releasing it as the plane gained its correct altitude and started to level off. She’d never flown in anything smaller than a 747 before, so this was a whole new experience, one she wasn’t sure she liked.
She glanced sideways at Wyatt Lord, who was piloting the small Cessna, watching the way his hands moved confidently on the controls. It was obvious that he was as confident about flying as he appeared to be about everything else he did, and gradually she began to relax, although that did little to ease the knots in her stomach. She must have been mad to agree to this, stark, raving mad!
She looked away, shading her eyes against the glare from the vivid blue sky as she tried again to work out why she’d done such a crazy thing as to agree to this trip. Had it been merely those threats he’d uttered, threats that had made her feel more recklessly angry than she’d felt before in her life? She still wasn’t one hundred per cent certain, but suddenly all Carol’s dire warnings came rushing back to haunt her, and she had to bite her lip to stern the tiny moan.
‘If you’re going to be sick, then use one of the bags in the door pocket.’
If she’d thought for a moment that he’d said that out of concern, then she might have appreciated it, but she wasn’t fool enough to think that! The anger rose again, hot and swift, and strangely comforting, as she turned to stare coldly at him. ‘Don’t worry. I wasn’t about to throw up all over your precious plane.’
He adjusted the controls, his face set as he shot her a quick glance. ‘Then what is bothering you? Having second thoughts already?’ He smiled, his mouth curling contemptuously beneath the heavy black moustache, his eyes hidden behind the mirrored glasses. ‘I wouldn’t waste my time if I were you. We made a deal, Louise, and I have every intention of seeing that you stick to it.’
‘Second thoughts about earning myself ten thousand dollars?’ She pretended to make a few rapid calculations on her fingers, her expression as avaricious as she could make it. ‘What’s that, about five and a half thousand pounds in sterling?’ She laughed huskily, stretching her slender body like a cat who had been shown a saucer of cream, before settling back in the seat with a contented sigh. ‘An offer like that doesn’t come a girl’s way very often.’
‘But how long will the money last?’ He removed his glasses, studying the elegant lines of her beige silk shirt and trousers, the smooth leather of her neat flat shoes. ‘Clothes like those cost money, a lot of money. You’ll be through that cash in next to no time, and then what will you do? Start looking for some other poor man to keep you?’
Louise ran a hand over the soft silk, smiling faintly to herself. The clothes she owned were expensive, but she hadn’t bought them; the salary she earned was adequate to live on, but would never have stretched to designer labels. She was fortunate enough to have a cousin who was a buyer for a large store in Manchester, who was a clothesaholic. Jessica bought more outfits than she could hope to wear, then passed them on to Louise for a fraction of their cost when she tired of them. It was an arrangement that suited them both, but one she had no intention of telling Wyatt Lord about!
He slid the glasses back on, his jaw rigid as he banked the plane slowly then checked the panel before he spoke again. ‘I think that the thing that’s bothering you most is that someone has sussed your little game. It must be galling to have come so close then to lose out at the last moment.’
‘Lose out on what?’ She brushed a shiny dark curl from her eyes, then felt in her soft leather bag for her own sunglasses. Up here the sky was almost painfully bright, the sun blinding as it shone through the cockpit windscreen. She could feel the beginnings of a headache pressing at her temples, a sure sign that tiredness and anger had taken their toll.
‘Hooking yourself that guy back at the hotel.’ He laughed unpleasantly. ‘He seemed fairly well set up, although I imagine you could have found someone a lot richer if you’d gone further afield. Miami is full of men like that who would be flattered by the attentions of a beautiful woman like you, Louise. Perhaps I’ve done you a favour by persuading you to come on this trip. It means you can always go back once we’re through and try again for a bigger fish, one whose bank balance will last a while longer until you drain it dry.’
She was glad of the glasses. They shielded her eyes, so that he could not see how much that hurt. How could she go through with this and spend the next week in the company of someone who despised her as much as he did?
Unexpected tears stung her eyes, but she blinked them away, refusing to admit even to herself how much it hurt to hear him say such horrible things. However, he was relentless, seemingly taking pleasure out of being as unpleasant as possible to her. ‘Nothing to say? No girlish protestations about your innocence now? You disappoint me, Louise, you really do. I thought you’d be determined to keep on with the little charade you’ve been playing.’
She didn’t bother turning to look at him, her voice slightly muffled as she held back a sob. ‘What would be the point? You’ve made up your mind about me, and that’s that. Why waste my breath?’
He caught her chin, forcing her head round to study her before he let her go abruptly. Louise drew in a shaky breath, clenching her hands to stop herself from rubbing her fingers along her jaw to wipe away the burning, disturbing imprint he’d left on her skin. She felt shaken by the brief contact, but why? It didn’t make any sense.
‘What made you start this in the first place, Louise?’ His hands moved on the controls, firm and confident as. they steadied the small plane as it lifted on a current of warm air. Below them Louise could see the sea, turquoise-blue, glistening in the hot sunlight. It was like a picture-postcard view, and at another time she would have taken pleasure from it, but right now all she could concentrate on was coping with Wyatt Lord’s deliberate cruelty.
She shrugged dismissively, feigning a sophistication that was purely on the surface. Inside it felt as though tiny daggers were being stabbed one by one into her heart. ‘Why does anyone decide on a course of action? You weigh up the pros and cons, then make the decisions. It’s as simple as that.’
‘Simple?’ He laughed deeply, shaking his head as he glanced sideways at her. ‘You see this kind of life you’re leading as simple? Come on! You’re not a fool. You understand the risks, surely?’
‘What risks? From where I’m sitting it all looks fine to me. I find myself a rich...benefactor, then live the life I’ve always longed for. Isn’t that what I’m doing?’
‘And what about your family? Have they any idea what you’re up to?’
Definitely not! If her parents ever found out about this they’d be horrified, not because they’d believe that she was in America looking for a rich sugar-daddy, but because she’d gone off with a virtual stranger! The thought of their love strengthened the determination that had kept her going throughout the time she’d been packing at the hotel while fielding Carol’s protests. This man had insulted her in a way that no one had ever done before, and she was determined to make him pay for every unpleasant word! She would go through with this plan, even accept the money he paid her...then take great satisfaction from throwing it back in his arrogant face as she told him in terms he couldn’t doubt how very wrong he’d been. The thought of watching Wyatt Lord squirm as he was forced to apologise would see her through!
‘No,’ she said softly, just the faintest tremor of distress in her voice, which she felt quite proud of. ‘They...they’ve no idea what I’m doing right now.’
‘Then
