Harlequin Presents January 2015 - Box Set 1 of 2: Sheikh's Desert Duty\Nine Months to Redeem Him\Fonseca's Fury\The Russian's Ultimatum (34 page)

“That's not what I want,” he said quietly, still on one knee. “What is your answer?”

I looked down at him. Looked at the rose petals, the candlelight. I took a deep breath. “You'll change your mind....”

“I won't.” He hesitated. “But if you love someone else...”

I shook my head.

“Then what?” he asked gently.

I took a deep breath, and met his eyes.

“I'm scared. I loved you once, and it nearly destroyed me.”

His hand seemed to tighten on the black velvet box. His voice was low. “You don't have to love me.”

Marriage without love? The thought was a jarring one. I licked my lips. “I'm afraid if I say yes, you'll soon regret it. You'll wish you could be single again, and date all those women....”

“I'll only regret it,” he said, “if you say no.”

“Where would we live?” A hysterical laugh bubbled to my lips. “You don't want to spend your life waiting for me, as I film commercials... Sooner or later you'll have to get back to work.”

He looked up at me, his dark eyes inscrutable in the fading twilight. “You're right.”

“I won't live in London. We were so unhappy there. Both of us.”

“There are other choices,” he said quietly.

“Like what?”

“The whole world.” Rising to his feet, he pulled my left hand against his chest, over his heart. “Just let me give it to you.”

I could feel his heart pounding beneath my hand. The strong rapid beat matched my own. My fingers curled against his warm skin.

“I won't let you break my heart again,” I choked out.

“I'll never hurt you, Diana. Ever.” Dropping the rose and the black velvet box to the end table, Edward pulled me into his arms. His hands stroked back my hair, down my bare back that was only covered with the crisscross lines of my sundress. “Let me show you....”

Lowering his head to mine, he kissed me.

And this time, I could not resist.

His lips were tender. They enticed me, lured me, soft and sensual as the whisper of a sigh. I exhaled. There could be no fighting this. It didn't just feel as if he were embracing my body. It felt like he was caressing my soul.

“Marry me, Diana,” he whispered, his lips brushing against mine.

All the reasons I couldn't marry him rose to my mind, but as he kissed me they dissipated into thin air like mist.

What was fear, against the incessant pull of his body against mine? His muscles were solid beneath my hands, his body powerful and strong. Something to cling to. Someone to believe in. And oh, how I wanted to believe.

I'd been keeping the secret for so long. Even from myself. But it had been right there all along. The real secret in my heart.

I loved Edward.

I'd never stopped loving him.

And all I'd ever wanted was for him to love me back....

“Say yes.” Edward kissed my cheeks, my lips, my eyelids. “Say it—”

“Yes,” I breathed.

He drew back. His handsome face looked vulnerable, his blue eyes caught between hope and doubt. “Do you mean it?”

Please let this be right. Please let this not be a mistake.

Unable to speak, I nodded.

Grabbing the black velvet box, Edward slid the obscenely huge diamond ring onto the fourth finger of my left hand. I felt its heavy weight for just a moment before he lifted my hand to his lips, kissing my palm.

In the candlelit bedroom, with the open window overlooking the twilight sea, the reverence of his gesture, like a private unspoken vow, lacerated my heart.

“You said yes,” he said in wonder. He shook his head. “I was starting to think...”

His voice trailed off. With an intake of breath, he lifted me in his arms, as if I weighed nothing at all. Gently setting me down on his bed, he pulled off my sandals one by one, kissing the tender hollow of each foot.

Leaning forward, he pulled off my sundress, leaving me stretched across the bed in only my white cotton panties and a bra that seemed barely adequate, trapped between my overflowing breasts and full pregnant belly. The enormous diamond ring on my left hand felt heavy as a shackle, making me suddenly afraid. After everything I knew about Edward's soul, was agreeing to marry him, giving him not just body and soul but offering up all my future, all my life, and my child's in the bargain—an act of insanity?

Edward cupped my face in his hands. His expression was tender, his eyes shining. “All I want is to take care of you forever....”

“I want to do the same for you.” I was in so deep now. I wanted desperately to believe the fantasy was true. Wrapping my arms around his shoulders, I kissed him with trembling lips. Twining his hands in my hair, he kissed me back, matching my passion, exceeding it. A fire roared through me, and I gasped.

Drawing back, he pulled off his clothes and gently lay me back against the bed. My hair tumbled over the pillows. I shivered, closing my eyes as he kissed down my neck. His lips were warm beneath the cool ocean breeze blowing through the window. I breathed in the scent of him, clean and masculine, with the sea air and the rose petals scattered around us.

He unhooked my bra. I gasped as I felt his lips nuzzle my breast before he drew my full nipple gently into his mouth. Pregnancy had made my breasts so big, he had to hold each with both hands in its turn. I gripped his shoulders tightly.

Pulling back, he looked down at me. “You're in your third trimester,” he murmured wickedly. “The doctor said you shouldn't spend too long on your back....”

Before I knew what was happening, he rolled me over, so I was on top of him. He pulled my knees apart, so I straddled his hips. My belly was huge between us, my breasts hanging almost to his face as I leaned forward to kiss him. I felt the size of him, hard and huge between my legs and the pregnancy hormones I'd tried to ignore for months suddenly rocketed uncontrollably through me, leaving me weak with lust. Pulling up, I came down hard, impaling myself, drawing him deep and thick inside me. He gasped, putting his hands on my hips. Not stopping, not waiting, I rocked back and forth, riding him with increasing speed until he was stretching me to the limit, filling me to the core, and with a loud cry, I exploded, and so did he. We both soared amid the fading purple shadows of the night.

Afterward, he drew me close, holding me in his arms. He kissed my sweaty temple. “I never want to let you go.”

“So don't,” I whispered. My body felt illuminated, glowing with happiness. I pressed my cheek against the warmth of his bare skin, glorying in the feel of his arm wrapped snugly around me in bed.

“Let's go to Las Vegas,” he said suddenly.

Blinking, I lifted my head to look at him. “You want to elope?”

I thought I saw a shadow cross his eyes. Then he gave me a lazy smile. “I don't want to give you the chance to change your mind.”

“I won't.” I looked down at my engagement ring. “Though this thing is so heavy, I feel lopsided. What is it, ten carats?”

He grinned. “Twenty.”

“What! I think you might have overdone it!”

“I'll get you a ring for your other hand. Then it won't be a problem.” He stroked my cheek. “Just say you'll run away with me tomorrow.”

It sounded like a dream. But... I bit my lip. “Without my family?”

He gave a low laugh. “I should have known you wouldn't like that thought. Bring Howard with us, then. And whomever else you want. Plenty of room on the jet.” He stroked his jaw ruefully. “Though I'm still waiting for him to hit me on the jaw.”

I snorted. “Howard would never go through with it. He loves you too much now.” Then my smile faded. “Madison is coming home tonight....”

“From Mongolia? Is it the first time you've seen her since Penryth Hall?”

“Yeah. I need to try to work things out.” I sighed. Rising to my feet, I started to pull on my clothes.

“Don't go.” He held out his arm. “Stay with me tonight.”

I looked at him longingly, then shook my head. “I need to talk to Madison. But then...” I looked at him. “If she forgives me for breaking up her engagement, and Howard can come, then...”

“Then?” he said, his voice filled with rising hope.

I smiled at him. I felt so happy, there were tears in my eyes. “Then I'll elope with you in the morning.”

With an intake of breath, he rose to his feet. Taking me in his arms, he kissed me softly. “Go home. See your family tonight.” He gave me a smile that was brighter than the sun. “And I'll see you tomorrow.”

It felt so good in his arms, so warm, so right. It felt—like home. I bit my lip, suddenly reluctant to leave. “On second thought, maybe I could stay here tonight. I'll see Madison tomorrow....”

With a low laugh, he shook his head. “No. Go. Talk to them. Then we can start our new lives tomorrow.” Drawing back, Edward looked thoughtful. “Anyway, I think there's something else I need to do tonight.”

I frowned. “What?”

“Just something,” he said evasively.

“Bachelor party?” I half joked. He didn't even crack a smile.

“It's nothing.” Turning away, he pulled on his jeans. His face was hidden in shadow. “Just one last thing I want to do before I say my marriage vows.”

“Oh?” I stared at him, waiting for him to explain.

He suddenly wouldn't meet my gaze. “I'll walk you out.”

A moment later, I backed my car down the small driveway of the Malibu cottage, and soon eased onto the Pacific Coast Highway. As I looked out at the moonlight flickering over the Pacific, in the flashes of flat beach between the tightly packed million-dollar houses clinging to the strip of shore, I'd suddenly felt I'd never been so happy. Or so terrified.

Because I loved him.

He'd never once said he loved me.

I gripped the steering wheel.
It'll be fine,
I told myself. Edward didn't need to love me. We could still be happy together. Friends. Parents. Lovers. Partners.

But what was he so anxious to do tonight, “before we spoke our vows”?

It didn't matter. He'd promised he'd never break my heart again. It couldn't be another woman or anything like that. He was probably just planning a surprise for me. Like a wedding gift. When I saw it in the morning, I'd have a good laugh at my own fears. Getting married should mean that I could trust him. I never needed to feel insecure again. Right?

It's nothing. Just one last thing I want to do before I say my marriage vows.

Oh, this was ridiculous. I was only four blocks away from my stepfather's house in Beverly Hills when I banged on the steering wheel in irritation, then yelped as the big diamond cut sharply into my hand. Sucking my finger, I pulled over.

Forget this. I was going back to Malibu to find out what he was hiding from me. If it was some awesome wedding gift, I'd hate myself later for wrecking the surprise.

I flipped my car around, heading back west, toward Malibu.

Thirty minutes later, I was turning down Edward's small street, when I saw an expensive SUV pull ahead of me. It was going way too fast down the lane. Idiot, I thought. Then to my shock, it pulled haphazardly into Edward's driveway. A woman leapt out of the driver's seat. But not just any woman.

It was Victoria. The beautiful, vicious wife of Edward's cousin, Rupert. Dressed in a tight, sexy red cocktail dress and six-inch high heels.

I forced myself to keep driving slowly, past the cottage without stopping. But in my rearview mirror, I saw the cottage door open. Edward welcomed her swiftly inside.

Then the door closed behind them.

A horn honked ahead of me, and I swerved just in time to avoid crashing into opposing traffic. Cold sweat covered my body. This was what he wanted to do before he spoke marriage vows?

A bachelor party for two?

I remembered Victoria's earlier words:
I wanted him so badly, I would have done anything to get into his bed. Anything.

Numbly, I turned back on the highway, back toward Los Angeles.

There had to be some rational reason for Victoria to be with Edward tonight. Something beyond the obvious. But as I tried to come up with a reason, all I could think about was that Edward had never claimed to love me. Not in all this time. He'd said he wanted us to marry for the baby's sake. And that he wanted me in his bed.

He hadn't yet promised fidelity. So it wasn't like he'd broken any vows. No. The only promise he'd broken was when he'd said he would never break my heart.

Why was Victoria there, alone with him in the house? Why would she visit him so late at night, wearing a skintight red dress? Why was she even in California at all?

I wiped my eyes savagely.

Traffic was light, late as it was, and I soon pulled past the gate of Howard's white colonial house. I saw Madison's expensive red convertible parked in the driveway. A car as red and wicked and expensive as Victoria St. Cyr's dress as she'd snuck in for a private tête-à-tête with the man I was supposed to marry tomorrow.

My legs trembled as I walked inside the house. Inside the large, lavish kitchen, I saw Howard and Madison sitting at the table, smiling and talking. But in this moment, I couldn't deal with it. I started to walk past the kitchen, but she saw me. She rose to her feet, her face serious.

“Diana,” she said quietly. “It's good to see you again.”

I stopped, clenching my hands at my sides. Madison looked tanner, a little weathered, her cheeks a little fuller. No makeup. No false eyelashes. Her blond hair was lightened by sun. She was wearing a white cotton T-shirt, jeans and flip-flops.

“You look—different,” I said slowly.

“And you look pregnant.” She smiled. “Dad told me you and Edward are back together....”

Tears rose to my eyes. “I'm tired,” I choked out. “Excuse me. I have to go—to bed....”

I made it to my bedroom just in time, before the sobs started. Even with the air conditioning, the air felt oppressively hot. I stripped down to a tank top and tiny shorts and collapsed on the bed. Posters on the walls that I'd put up as a hopeful teenager, of places I'd hoped to see and the life I'd hoped to live, stared down at me mournfully. It felt like the walls were closing in.