A Weekend Temptation (4 page)

He nodded. In his cold, calculating win-everything voice, he said, “I propose we fly to my private island and spend one week together, exploring each other, so when the trip is finished, this minor fascination will burn out.”

She sighed. “You sure do know how to romance a girl. Good thing you have looks and money, because your silver tongue is completely tarnished.”

He smiled. “Think about it. I want to know what you’re like. You want to know what I’m like. So much so that we aren’t able to untangle ourselves from the attraction to find the right mates. We’re both obsessed with what’s been left undone.”

“You think this so-called obsession we have will go away after one week?”

“I guarantee it. At the end of the week, any naive fantasies we have about each other will die in the light of day. We’ll be free.”

“Free. Why do you want to get married, Joel? Do you want to pass on your empire? Do you want children?” She hugged her purse closer for protection. She wasn’t going to let Joel make love to her.
Shut up hormones
.

“No. I don’t want children.” He flexed his jaw.

For a second, she’d swear she read a flicker of pain deep in his eyes. But then he blinked it away, and she wasn’t so certain.

“I want good sex and good companionship, nothing more.” His tone was frozen, business-like.

“Sex, not love? Don’t you think sex would be better in the company of love?”

“No, I don’t. Once a man falls in love, he changes. He becomes controlled by emotion, and that leaves him open to making mistakes.”

Because of what she’d seen with her father, she believed the opposite. Before he’d died, her father had never allowed his family to control his emotions. Or any part of his life. Her father had abandoned her frazzled mother to raise three kids on her own, while he’d done exactly what he’d wanted when he wanted.

Just like Joel.

So if she knew Joel was just like her father, why was she obsessed with him? What if she did let him make love to her? Would that kill her need for him? Was his sexual allure just a fantasy propelled by unfinished business?

“We’re leaving in three days. At nine a.m., on Friday. Be on time.” He motioned for the waitress and slid her his credit card, paying for Ava’s entire bill.

If the waitress hadn’t been there, batting her eyes as she took the card, Ava would have tossed her purse at Joel’s perfect Roman nose. How dare he order her to be on time to the airport when she hadn’t even agreed to go in the first place.

“You’re attracted to me, therefore, you will come,” he said as if he could read her mind. Maybe her indignant thoughts were plastered on her face.

“You need help with your over inflated ego,” Ava snapped.

“I need help with one thing, and you’re the only woman I want to help me.”

Before she could find a suitable insult, the waitress returned with his credit card, and he towered to his feet.

As he left the restaurant, Ava’s gaze moved from his dark head, to his broad back, down to his perfect male butt. He was a gorgeous man, who wanted her to be his vacation fantasy.

The glass door closed behind him, and Ava was left alone at the table, her mind spinning. What the hell was she going to do? It wouldn’t be smart to go away with Joel. He only wanted to use her.

Unfortunately, for the first time in her life, she wanted to be used.

If she went and she started to care about him, he’d cut her heart to pieces. But only if she fell in love with him.

No, she wasn’t that stupid. He wasn’t a man who wanted any type of emotion, let alone love. He didn’t want children. And worst of all, he was a man like her father, with heart-stabbing secrets.

But even though she listed all the logical reasons to avoid him, her body craved Joel Stanfield. Did she really want to say no? Surely one week on an island with Joel wouldn’t do much to change her life-long plans.

Should she go?

No. No matter what her sizzling body thought. She would stop thinking about Joel. She just needed more time. Then she’d be able to find the right husband.

****

Ava’s sister opened her condo door on the first knock. Ava followed her into the dining room then fell into her favorite floral chair. Before her sister even finished pouring the coffee, Bethany asked, “What did Joel do this time? It must be good since you couldn’t wait until lunch to complain.”

Ava looked into Bethany’s condescending eyes and sighed. She was only a year-and-half older than Ava, but she acted like she was light years ahead of her. So did Ava’s older brother, but even though Bethany was a pain at times, Ava knew she only nagged and commanded because she wanted the best for her little sister. And she gave great advice.

“He wants to take me to his private island.” Ava said in a can-you-believe-it tone.

“Hallelujah! So why are you here? A clothing emergency? My guess is you won’t be wearing much.”

“I expected more of a lecture from you. You’re the one who was so concerned about what would happen if Joel came after me.”

“I was worried that you would hurt one of my clients. But you don’t date them long enough for that to happen.” Bethany grinned.

“This is serious. I’m tempted to go, but I can’t. You have to help me find the strength to resist him. Tell me you have a more suitable match for me. I need a shot of reality and will power.”

“Are you kidding me?” Bethany laughed. “You want your boss so much you ignore every perfect man I set you up with. I think going away with Joel is a great idea.”

Ava leaned back as far as the chair allowed and stared at her crazed sister. She started to speak, but her sister’s cook ambled in with a platter of warm croissants and breakfast meats, then disappeared, leaving only the scent of bread and crispy bacon.

Ava rubbed her jaw. “What if I fell in love?”

“With Joel?” Bethany shook head. “Not going to happen. You’re smarter than that. He’s exactly what you don’t want in a man—a cold workaholic who wouldn’t know feeling if it bit him in his butt. He’d never lose his heart, so yours is safe.”

Ava scrunched her nose. “He’s exactly like Dad. Why can’t I get him out of my mind?”

“Because you’re making sex with him a bigger deal than it is.” Bethany licked croissant crumbs from her lips. “Maybe if you’d never been with Jason, you’d be more sexually adventurous, and you’d know what I’m saying is true.”

Ava cringed. She’d only had a couple of lovers, back when she’d thought she’d fallen in love. Both times had been mistakes, especially being in Jason’s bed. “No. I just—”

“Go to Joel’s private island. A man like Joel, a playboy billionaire, should be used for what he’s best at—thrilling you in bed. Afterward, you’ll be able to let him go. Trust me on this one.”

Chapter Four

By the time Ava arrived at the private airstrip, she was a mass of quivering nerves and clammy palms. She was so late she wondered if Joel had already left without her.

But there it was. Joel’s shiny private jet, which meant he had waited. Her heart jump-started.

All night, all morning, she’d thought about whether to come or not. She’d weighed the risks. Even though Bethany had assured her she was too smart to fall in love, it still didn’t stall her fear that she would. That being in Joel’s bed would lead her to loving him.

How could she be sure? She’d never allowed a man she didn’t love into her bed. And being with Joel wasn’t part of the plan.

But her whole life had been planned out. Go to school, find a good career, work for a while, then marry a man and have his babies. Then when the babies were big enough, go back to a promising career. But she’d never met a man like Joel before. One she wanted more than her plan.

She shouldn’t be here, Ava thought, as she gave her keys to one of Joel’s staff to park her car. She should be dating Bethany’s next prospect and making love to her future fiancé.

But she didn’t want to. She wanted Joel, and she wanted to be free of her obsession.

As Ava clicked up the plane’s steps, Joel moved to meet her halfway. On the middle step, he grabbed her hand and threaded his long fingers through hers. His palm was dry, strong, and warm. Zaps of electric sensation fired over her senses, making her breath catch.

Joel stopped and motioned for her to sit in a leather captain’s chair next to his, by the window. Then he leaned over to buckle her in, and she inhaled the intoxicating scent of his cologne. When he gazed down at her and smiled a carnal smile, butterflies bombarded her stomach.

Oh god!

She was going to do it. She was going to escape into Joel’s world, be his woman for one delicious week. What had she been thinking?

The jet’s engine roared to life and she started to shake. Was it too late to yell stop?

Yes, it was, and she’d made her decision. And after being in Joel’s bed, she would be able to get on with her life and her plans. One week would be enough. It was all she would allow herself, all he was going to allow her too.

“Just how secluded is this island?” Ava asked as his plane pulled away from the tarmac.

“Private enough that we won’t be disturbed unless we want to be.”

His deep sensual voice slid over her like a hot shower. Again she wondered if coming on this jet was such a good idea. A man like Joel Stanfield had the best of everything—that included the best lovers, the most sophisticated ones. Ones so out of her skill-set, they made her feel like a child wearing her mother’s high heels.

Was she on her way to embarrassing herself? Was Joel expecting a seductress who knew how to pleasure him?

Probably. Most women were more experienced by the age of twenty-seven. Of course he’d expect her to know her way around the bedroom. When she didn’t, he’d be disappointed, like Jason had been. Maybe Joel would even forgo the rest of the week and send her packing after the first night. Her hands turned to ice.

“Are you okay? You look pale.”

“I haven’t eaten yet.” That much was true. She hadn’t been able to eat since breakfast with her sister yesterday morning. All because her stomach had been jumping while she’d been deciding whether or not to come meet Joel.

Joel immediately instructed his flight staff to make her a gourmet breakfast and freshly squeezed juice.

In spite of everything, Ava managed to eat a little, only because it tasted divine. Her favorite, Belgian waffles with warm, maple syrup.

To Ava’s relief, Joel flipped open his laptop and started to work the minute they reached cruising altitude. With Joel working, it allowed her to relax and feel normal, to quit worrying if he was going to start their sexual vacation in the plane’s bedroom, in the back.

It also allowed her to pretend Joel was still her boss, and that they weren’t on their way to his island.

****

After they landed, Joel unbuckled Ava and helped her as she wobbled down the stairs of his plane. Her leg muscles had cramped, and her feet were numb from the long journey and lack of movement.

When she reached the ground, her eyes scanned the dark horizon. The full moon Joel had mentioned on the plane was swallowed by a cloud, so she couldn’t make out the landscape. But the extreme quiet told her they were light years from city crowds, from parties, from ringing cell phones. A 180 degree turn from her life. A shiver crept up her spine.

Her body should just relax. It should understand. She was in control, she’d made this decision, and she was happy with it. She wanted Joel and this time to explore sensuality with him. And maybe she’d even come out of this experience more sexually confident.

This trip had become part of her new plan, and it made sense.

The jitters would go away once he kissed her. She hadn’t felt nervous when he’d kissed her seven months ago. In his arms, she hadn’t been able to do anything but feel and moan for more. It would be the same, making love to him.

No, it would be better. Joel wasn’t some fumbling college boy, like Jason had been. She had no doubt Joel Stanfield knew how to please a woman.

“Where are we?” she asked.

He lifted an arm and made a sweeping gesture from the jungle on one side to the ocean on the other. “Stanfield Cay, my private island.”

A Land Rover pulled up, crunching over the gravel road before it stopped on the cement runway. Holding her elbow, Joel helped her into the car while his driver loaded their luggage. Joel took every opportunity to touch her, and her body responded with a dazzling heat that had nothing to do with the summery, island climate.

“You even have a driver here, in the middle of nowhere? If you didn’t race cars for fun, I’d say you couldn’t drive, Joel,” she teased.

He smiled as he poured her a glass of wine from the car’s custom fridge. “What can I say? Racing’s in my blood. In his youth, my father won the Targa Florio, an Italian car race.”

“Racing’s expensive. I thought you were a self-made man.”

“Pretty much. My father raced with corporate sponsor money before he met my mother and gave up his dangerous hobby to pursue a safe, business career.”

“I didn’t know Stanfield International was your father’s business. I thought you started it from scratch.”

“In a way. When my father died, his company almost died along with him. I brought it back to life.”

“What happened to your mother?”

He paused. His eyes darkened for a moment. “We’re not here to talk about my mother or my past. We’re here so I can explore your body, every beautiful satin inch of it.” He pressed her hand to his mouth, making her heart thud, her knees weak.

She wasn’t ready for her reaction or to let go and make love with him. She was too annoyed that he’d shut her out, and his solid fortress of protection was back in place.

Why was she getting ticked? She rubbed at the tension in her jaw. She wasn’t here to get close to him. She knew she’d never penetrate his emotional armor. She should be glad, because if he let her in, the danger of falling in love would be so much greater.

A moment later, the car turned and headed up a dirt and gravel road. Ava grunted as the car bumped over the numerous gaping potholes. The moon broke free from its cloud and shined through the front windshield. She could see thick, dark vegetation on either side of them.