living. No parents, either. Leaving her completely alone in the world.
Much as Markos’s flirtatious nature often annoyed him, and much as he sometimes grew concerned about his widowed mother spending months living alone in Athens, Drakon knew he couldn’t imagine being without either of them.
His hand seemed to move of its own volition to touch the softness of her hair. ‘I think that is a perfectly natural feeling in the circumstances,’ he said as he stroked that silkiness.
Those sea-green eyes widened as she breathed, ‘You do?’
‘Of course.’ Drakon nodded, entwining several of those silky strands about his long fingers. ‘I have considered Markos as my brother since I was ten years old, and we have always been close. To know that you could have had that same closeness with your own brother must be difficult sometimes. Especially this past six months, with both your parents now gone too.’
Gemini had no idea what she was doing, virtually spilling out her life history to Drakon Lyonedes of all people! Having only met him for the first time this morning, and having found him so remote and arrogantly sure of himself, she would have thought him the last person she would be confiding her inner emotions to only hours later!
Even more worrying was the fact that she was now completely physically aware of him…
Not that she hadn’t been aware of his dark and dangerous good looks from the moment she first looked at him—what woman wouldn’t be? But being this close to him…held tightly in his arms, with her body moulded against the lean and muscled hardness of his…every part of her, all her senses, seemed to be screaming with that awareness.
He smelled so good—clean and virile male, with a spicy and insidiously delicious cologne. And his body felt so warm and solid against her own. Those shoulders wide and muscled, his chest and stomach powerfully lean, his long legs placed solidly either side of hers, his thighs hard and—
Oh, help…!
Gemini tensed even as she looked up at Drakon through lowered lashes, barely breathing as she felt the press of his arousal against the softness of her stomach. She was only a few inches shorter than him in her heels, and their faces were even closer as the warmth of his breath brushed against her cheek. There was no doubting that Drakon was aware of that sudden sexual tension too. His jaw was clenched, a nerve pulsing in that tightness, his mouth was compressed and his cheekbones high and prominent. And those dark eyes—
Those dark eyes were burning with the same desire Gemini could feel pressing so insistently against her!
What did she do now? To act on the aching desire flooding her limbs and so desperately clamouring for her to close the distance that separated their parted lips would be asking for trouble. To pull away and run wasn’t really an option either, when they still had so much to talk about.
Drakon suddenly solved her dilemma by grasping the tops of her arms and putting her firmly away from him before stepping back.
‘Better now?’ he prompted coolly. The emotion in those coal-black eyes was now shielded behind hooded lids, his expression once again arrogantly remote as he lifted his glass and took a swallow of the white wine.
Well, Gemini could breathe again, at least! It remained to be seen whether or not she would be able to put that physical awareness behind her as thoroughly as he appeared to have done. ‘Much,’ she confirmed huskily. ‘Thank you.’
Drakon had no idea what Gemini was thanking him for. Allowing her to talk of her family, perhaps? Or the fact that he had decided not to act on the sexual tension that minutes ago had thickened the air in the room to an almost unbearable degree?
It was a sexual tension he would normally not have hesitated to act upon, but in Gemini’s case, here and now, it could only have seemed like taking advantage of her vulnerability…
Drakon knew himself to be many things—controlled, arrogant, ruthless—but until this moment he would not have thought self-denial to be a part of his nature. It was a self-denial he would no doubt live to regret if the throbbing ache of his erection was any indication!
He arched arrogant dark brows as he turned. ‘For what?’
Gemini shrugged. ‘Being a shoulder to lean on when I needed one.’
‘I did nothing except listen,’ he dismissed abruptly as he placed the empty wine glass back down on the table. ‘And I believe it is now time for me to listen to you, as you make your offer to me with regard to Bartholomew House. The same as that you made to your stepmother?’ he reminded her.
Gemini looked at him searchingly for several long seconds, but could see nothing of the compassionate and caring man of seconds ago in the harsh implacability of Drakon’s expression. The obviously aroused man who had held her in his arms only seconds ago had also gone.
She gave a rueful shake of her head. ‘My offer is to Lyonedes Enterprises rather than to Drakon Lyonedes…’
His mouth tightened. ‘It is one and the same thing.’
‘Not really,’ Gemini pointed out. ‘Lyonedes Enterprises doesn’t consist of just you, does it? There’s your cousin to consider, too.’
He looked down the length of his arrogant nose at her. ‘My cousin, I assure you, will be more than willing to accept my judgement, as I accept his, in all matters relating to Lyonedes Enterprises.’
Gemini would just bet he would! She had no doubt that not too many people ever went up against this man in any of his decisions—not even the cousin he was obviously so close to. Not in the way that she had done today.
Now that she had actually met and spoken with Drakon she realised she was lucky his Head of Security hadn’t decided to lock her in the basement this morning after all—and thrown away the key!
‘Okay.’ She drew in a deep breath. ‘My offer to Angela in buying Bartholomew House was that I’d pay over the interest from my trust fund for the next two years, and the remaining amount once the capital was released on my thirtieth birthday. I’m willing to make Lyonedes Enterprises the same offer once the property becomes yours.’
It was exactly the offer that Drakon had been expecting Gemini to make, after hearing the details of her trust fund.
And an offer he had no choice but to refuse on behalf of Lyonedes Enterprises.
GEMINI knew what Drakon’s answer to her offer was going to be even before he spoke—could see that answer as she looked into those remorseless black eyes.
‘Yes. Well. Obviously not.’ She moved quickly to pick up her clutch bag from the arm of the chair where she had left it earlier, her face pale in the lamplight. ‘I think it’s past time I was going, anyway. I’m sorry to have wasted your time.’ She turned away.
‘Gemini!’
She froze before turning slowly back to face Drakon. ‘Yes?’
Drakon scowled at the brief flash of hope he saw in those in those sea-green eyes. ‘I cannot let you leave when you are
