Rion felt the yielding softness of her body and broke the kiss. Her head was tipped back, her eyes closed and her lips parted, and he knew with little effort he could have her here and now.
Selina opened her eyes and Rion’s mouth fastened over hers again. His hand moved to curve around her buttocks and involuntarily she pressed closer, felt the hard length of his arousal against her belly. His other hand cupped her breast, his long fingers teasing the burgeoning nipple through the silken fabric. The deep, searing kiss and the caress, the heat of his hard body, the scent of him—all so achingly familiar, and in seconds she was drowning in a sea of delight.
Rion heard her whimpering cry and felt her small hand stroke beneath his shirt. Stifling a groan, he knew he had to stop now or he wouldn’t be able to, and he eased away, linking his hands behind her back.
‘Ah, Selina.’ He looked into her passion-hazed eyes.
‘I think that is enough. Anna will have no trouble believing we are reconciled now.’
Enough? Reconciled? Selina came down to earth like a spent balloon, all the air knocked out of her, humiliatingly aware of how easily she had succumbed to Rion’s brand of lovemaking. No, not love … just sex, she reminded herself. Something she must never forget again. Her body might be weak and hot but her heart would forever remain a block of ice where Rion was concerned.
‘What do you mean, reconciled?’ she asked, and took a step back. His arms fell from her waist and she glanced up at him, noting the dull flush on his high cheekbones and realising he was nowhere near as cool as he acted—which was some slight consolation.
‘How else are you going to explain to Anna you are leaving with me tonight?’
‘Well, I am sure as hell not going to tell her we are reconciled. Anna is not an idiot—she would never believe that,’ she shot back, her mind spinning, searching for an answer. ‘I told her earlier I was fine with you being here. She was worried you might be up to something, as you hadn’t spoken to my grandfather in years.’ Thinking on her feet, she added, ‘I was due to leave tomorrow morning, but I have not booked a boat to the mainland yet. If I tell Anna you have offered to take me back to the mainland earlier, so I will have time to call on Mr Kadiekis to sign some legal documents and speed up the processing of the will before I fly out tomorrow night, I think she would quite easily believe me.’
‘My, my, Selina!’ Rion grinned. ‘So quick-thinking and so devious. You have certainly matured. But I agree.’ And, looping an arm around her shoulder, he led her out of the pavilion and back towards the house. She made no attempt to break free.
Selina’s mind was filling with the enormity of what she had agreed to with every step she took.
‘You’d better decide quickly exactly what you are going to give Anna before we reach the house, Selina. Anna is not going to be convinced she is mentioned in the will if you are indecisive.’
Rion’s businesslike comment was a timely reminder of why she had agreed with him—why she was strolling through the orchard with his arm around her—and it hardened her resolve to do the right thing by Anna.
‘Anna can have the villa. I doubt I’ll ever be back,’ she said with a hint of bitterness. At the same time she wondered how she would explain to Beth she was going to be delayed because she was going on a two-week holiday with her ex-husband …
‘Not a good idea. Anna would find it very hard to believe Stakis left her the house—and even if she did how could she possibly afford the upkeep of the place?’ Rion pointed out. ‘She would have to sell it, and the legal documentation would reveal you had owned it before you gave it to her, which would defeat your purpose of keeping Anna in the dark about the true contents of the will.’
‘Oh,’ she said, and it did not help realizing Rion was right.
‘As I see it, you can give Anna a lump sum—say fifty thousand or, being generous, a hundred thousand—which you will easily be able to afford. As a local islander Anna will be able to get a house in the village for that. You keep the villa, and keep on employing Anna for as long as she wants to work. You can visit whenever you like, and rent it out as a holiday let the rest of the time. That way the villa will still be an asset for you. One day you might marry again, have children and want to live here—after all, you are half Greek.’
‘I’m not in the least Greek, I will
never marry again and I have no intention of having a child. There are enough in the world already that need looking after,’ Selina said, finding her voice. ‘As for Anna—you are right. I’ll tell her she was left a hundred thousand.’ She glanced up at Rion and saw he was frowning—strange when she had agreed with him! ‘I need to make a few phone calls before I leave.’
She never lied, but now she was going to have to—three times in one day, she thought helplessly. Selina knew Beth would readily accept she had decided to take a holiday and booked a cruise around the Mediterranean, and would be happy for her. Beth was always telling her she worked too hard and should take a break and relax. If she told Beth the truth she would be outraged and beg her not to go with Rion. She knew what a wreck Selina had been after her ill-fated marriage. There was no reason to upset Beth unnecessarily, and the charity needed every penny it could get …
CHAPTER FIVE
ALMOST midnight—the witching hour, Selina thought fancifully as she stood on the deck, her hands gripping the ship’s rail as the luxury yacht slid smoothly out of the harbour of Letos. Thankfully it was a newer model than the one on which she had spent her ill-fated wedding night.
She was still stunned at how easily Rion had charmed Anna. He’d told her she had inherited a hundred thousand euros in the will, Selina had added that she wanted to continue to employ Anna to take care of the villa for as long as she wanted to work, and Anna had been so happy it was not surprising she’d believed everything Selina had said. She had accepted her story that it made sense to return to Athens with Rion so she would be there by the morning and have time to see Mr Kadiekis before flying out in the evening. So much so Anna had actually helped Selina to pack …
As soon as they’d come on board Rion had introduced her to the only other guest—Dimitri, a shaven-headed, fit-looking man in his fifties—telling her he would look after her for a while as Rion had to join the captain on the bridge and see the yacht safely out of harbour.
Dimitri had taken her bags and shown Selina to her cabin. He had explained how the computerised system worked and told her if she wanted anything to call. Then he’d told her Rion had the master cabin next door.
At least she had her own cabin, Selina thought with a sigh of relief. But even so, after unpacking her clothes and taking a quick shower, she had slipped on an old sweatsuit—enough to turn off any man, she thought. But five minutes later, unable to stand the confines of the cabin with its bed—a reminder of why she was there—she’d slipped on a pair of flip-flops and escaped to the deck.
But there was no escape for her, Selina realised. She must have been mad to agree to Rion’s demand. She was never going to be able to do it … He was expecting an experienced lover—he had said as much—and she was the opposite. She had been celibate since their divorce. True, she had dated a few men, shared a kiss, but had never been tempted into a sexual relationship. She had seen more than enough of what it did to people and wasn’t interested.
Rion descended the stairs to the main deck and stopped, drawing his black brows together in a frown. Selina was leaning over the rail, and even from this distance he could sense the tension in her. She did not want to be here, he knew, and felt a slight twitch of conscience. But she looked so gorgeous, with her long hair tied up in a ponytail dancing around in the sea breeze.
He noted she had changed the elegant dress for a baggy blue sweatshirt and pants, probably meant to put him off. But they were doing just the opposite. He felt his whole body respond and put his conscience aside. He had no need to feel guilty. Selina was getting what she wanted, like most women—money—and he was confident enough in his masculinity to know he could keep her satisfied and happy in his bed.
Selina smothered a cry of surprise as two strong arms folded around her waist. Lost in thought, she had not heard Rion approach. Letting go of the rail, she clasped his forearms, but the feel of his firm, warm skin against her palm made her catch her breath. The memory of another night and a different yacht, but with the same man doing exactly what he was doing now, flashed through her mind. And the memory of her avid response.