sensing the sudden rigidity of her slim frame. ‘You do want this. . .?’ Silvery moonlight shone through the landing window, illuminating the rugged planes of his face. ‘Olivia?’ His dark eyes were questioning.
She looked up at him, her eyes scanning every angle, every contour of his face. She knew what she wanted. Rational thought tried to spoil the way she felt, but she thrust it away. Why should she follow her old rules? Why should she? She ached with wanting him. Never before had she experienced such passionate need, such desperate, intense longing.
‘Yes,’ she murmured unsteadily. ‘Yes, I do.’
She clung to him as he caressed her body, gasping with pleasure as his powerful hands took control. Waiting for the right moment. . .wanting her first experience to mean something, to be special. . . All those months of rebuffing Paul’s impatient advances. . . it had all been justified. She had waited for this moment, this man for all of her life.
He took sudden and full possession of her then and Olivia found herself crying aloud, tensing a little in spite of everything.
‘Olivia?’ She heard the ragged incredulity in his voice, the sharp intake of breath as Jake fought his own physical needs and desires. ‘You’re a—!’
‘Please!’ Olivia whispered imploringly, acutely aware that her world would fall apart if he rejected her now. ‘It’s all right.’ She gripped his body tightly, moved against him, pressed her lips against the bronzed skin of his shoulder, working to convince him anyway she knew how. ‘I want this!’
There was a split-second of hesitation, then a faint groan as will-power vanished. ‘So do I,’ he confessed, his voice gruff with desire, ‘so do I. . .’
He was a magnificent lover. Better than Olivia had imagined even in her wildest dreams; strong and powerful, ruthlessly in control, but with kisses that were tender as well as passionate, a touch that possessed silk as well as steel. . .
Olivia found herself crying aloud many times, but there was no pain involved once that special moment had been passed. Only pleasure—pleasure for them both.
It took some time for their desire to diminish; they made love, they kissed and touched and then they wanted each other again. The evening slipped into night and eventually their passion was satisfied.
In the darkness Olivia could hear Jake’s ragged breathing. She felt replete, wonderful, oozing with a happiness that she didn’t wish to analyse.
And Jake?
Olivia moved to look at him. Her head had been resting on the firm, hard chest, but as she moved so did he, lifting her from him, slipping away from her, accompanied by a sharp, almost angry release of breath until there was no longer any physical contact.
‘Jake?’ Olivia’s voice was tentative, uncertain in the half-light. She reached across and cautiously touched the muscular hair-roughened arm that lay a distance from hers. ‘Jake?’
‘Yes?’ His tone was enigmatic, flat almost. Olivia felt the sharp stab of rejection, like a knife through her body. What had she expected? A declaration of love? Some word that would indicate he felt as moved as she?
Destiny. The word reverberated in her mind. They were meant to be lovers. She knew it. She felt it with her whole being. This had not been a mistake. Knowing it filled her mind. The future stretched ahead, bright and full of meaning now that she had met this man.
But she didn’t like this silence; it frightened her.
A shaft of despair ran through Olivia’s body. Surely he wasn’t regretting all that had just taken place? Surely not. ‘It. . .it was OK, wasn’t it?’
‘Yes.’
Olivia swallowed and closed her eyes. What was wrong? Why was he being so. . .so distant? She felt movement beside her and saw in the half-light that he had raised himself to a sitting position.
‘It was more than OK,’ he asserted roughly, as if the admission was being dragged out of him. ‘You know that.’
‘Do I?’ She sounded like a child; young and immensely vulnerable.
‘The seduction...’ There was a pause. She could feel him searching for words in the darkness. ‘It wasn’t planned, it wasn’t premeditated...’ His voice was deep, rough-edged. ‘I don’t want you to think that I wander the countryside seducing lone women! It took me as much by surprise as it did you.’
‘I know that,’ Olivia replied unsteadily, watching his outline as he dragged strong fingers through sweat-slicked hair. He sounded bewildered, as if already regretting his indulgence in the pleasures of the flesh.
‘How do you know?’ He looked down at her, silvery moonlight flashing like steel in his eyes. ‘We’ve just met, Olivia, remember?’ he reminded her unsteadily. ‘You know as little about me as I do about you! You were a virgin, for God’s sake!’ He flung the word at her like an accusation. ‘Why didn’t you tell me?’
‘It didn’t seem important,’ Olivia replied quietly.
‘Not important?’
‘You know what I mean!’ Olivia hated the way he was making her feel. She tried desperately to find the right words that would make him understand. ‘I wanted you to make love to me.’
She heard him release a taut breath. ‘I know.’
Olivia tried to swallow but her throat felt tight. She shivered in the chill room. ‘You’re regretting what’s happened, aren’t you?’
‘No.’ His voice was flat. He looked across at Olivia and she felt rather than saw the intensity of his gaze. ‘How could I regret any of what’s just taken place?’ he added quietly. ‘But we’re strangers. . .’
Was that all it was? Olivia felt a sense of relief wash over her. ‘We could change that,’ she replied simply.
‘What?’
Was he being deliberately cruel? His voice sounded harsh and scornful suddenly, amazed, outraged even, as if she had suggested something dreadful. Surely not. Jake had been so sensitive, so caring during their lovemaking.
Everything was going wrong. Tears welled in Olivia’s eyes and she shut them tight, glad of the virtual darkness of the room. ‘I just thought—’
‘Well, don’t!’ He released a heavy sigh. ‘Please, don’t think! Look, Olivia. It was good. Hell, it was better than good, but don’t go getting the wrong idea.’ Jake reached over and for a fleeting moment she felt the warmth of his touch on her face. ‘I don’t regret what’s taken place between us, I’ve told you that, but I’m not interested in involvement, or emotional ties or anything that even remotely resembles a relationship.’ He released a taut breath and swung away from her. ‘So if you’re under the illusion that—’
‘I’m not!’ Olivia’s voice was sharp. She was having to think fast and talk even faster. Such humiliation! She could hardly bear it. She had given this man everything. She had followed her true feelings, been guided by the deepest of emotions, only to have it all thrown back in her face. She hardened her voice. ‘You’ve obviously got the wrong impression. Don’t worry, Jake, I’m not the clinging type!’
She
