pretending I’m a famous movie star…or a-”
“Andre Agassi.” The truth of the matter was that there was no need to pretend he was anyone other than himself. But she could not admit that to him.
“A tennis player, of course. I should’ve guessed.” He smiled. “You’re not what I expected, Lessa. I never thought that I would enjoy spending time with you.”
Her heart jumped into her throat. He was enjoying her company? “Is this part of your plan to convince Sabrina?” she joked. “You sweet talk me and I fall madly in love with you?”
“Do you think that would work?” he asked, flashing her his famous grin.
He was teasing and she knew it, yet she couldn’t stop herself from answering. “If that’s your plan,” she said, playing along, “I should warn you it might be more difficult than you think. I’ve never been in love before.”
“That’s too bad,” he said.
“I’m not so sure,” she replied. “I’ve seen the havoc it wreaked on some of my friends.”
“Not all love affairs end badly,” he said. “And even those that do…well, sometimes it’s still worth it.”
His eyes grew distant and she knew he was thinking about the woman he had loved all those years before. She was possessed by a sudden urge to comfort him. “I’m sorry,” she said quietly.
He did not speak but cupped her chin tenderly.
She closed her eyes, reveling in the touch. His arm slid around her as he pulled her closer. The act caught her off guard, taking away her breath. He leaned forward to kiss her, and her senses charged to life as a delicious shudder rippled through her body. He softly touched his lips to hers.
“There you are!” Sabrina said, interrupting. “I was wondering if I might be able to steal him away for a moment.” Looking at Rick, she said, “You promised me a dance.”
To Lessa, it almost looked as if he regretted leaving her. She stepped aside and Rick swept Sabrina into his arms. As Sabrina wrapped her arms around his neck and nestled her cheek against his, Lessa felt jealous. Real, honest-to-goodness jealous.
What was happening here? She wasn’t supposed to feel jealous. She wasn’t supposed to feel anything at all. It was all an act. He was Rick Parker, her nemesis, the man who’d stolen her father’s company. There was no possibility of anything happening between them, ever.
But she couldn’t help wishing things might be different. She couldn’t help her body from enjoying his kisses and hoping for more.
Sabrina put her arms around Rick’s neck. Lessa was once again the girl in the doorway, lusting after a man who did not even know she existed.
If she was going to storm out in a fit of jealousy, now would be the time. With one last glance, she made her way toward the door. Just as she got to it, she felt a hand on her arm. Rick spun her around and, pulling her close, kissed her once again.
Six
It was the velvet kiss Lessa had dreamed of, the one she had longed for all those years ago. She wrapped her arms around Rick’s neck, welcoming him. His arm slid around her as he pulled her closer. Her senses charged to life. It was as if time had stopped. Nothing else mattered. She wanted to feel him, all of him.
And then, just as suddenly as it had all started, it stopped. “Let’s get out of here,” he said, breaking away.
His words suggested an intimacy, a desire to be alone. But she knew better. She could tell by the look in his eyes that something was wrong. “But the contract…”
“She’s not signing the contract tonight. It was all a game.”
Accepting his hand, Lessa followed him out the door. Once outside, he stepped away from her.
“What did she say?” she asked as he led her down to the beach. It was a warm tropical night. The sky was littered with stars and a heavy, full moon that reflected off the glittering sea.
“She’s put us off until morning.” He stopped and let go of her hand. “I think she’s playing with us, Lessa. I don’t think she bought our story, unless our last-ditch effort convinced her. I don’t think she has any intention of signing that contract tomorrow.”
“I’m sorry. I’m afraid I wasn’t very convincing as the jealous girlfriend.”
“You did fine.” He smiled at her again. It was genuine and sincere, not like the patronizing grins to which she had grown accustomed.
“What are you suggesting we do?” she asked.
“We can go back to New York and try to come up with another way to fend off this takeover. Or,” he said, after hesitating, “we can give it another night.”
Another night. A night sharing the same room. She glanced toward the water slowly licking the shore. “I didn’t bring a change of clothes, or anything,” she said.
“I know how you feel about this, Lessa,” he said. “So if you want to go home tonight, I understand. I’ll stay and deal with Sabrina alone tomorrow morning.”
As she followed him back toward their bungalow. She felt the jealous whisper of uneasiness. She thought back to the way Sabrina had leaned into him, the way she had looked at him. Did he want Lessa to leave so that he could have a secret rendezvous with the enemy? Perhaps he had decided on a different way to convince Sabrina to abort the takeover. “She propositioned you, didn’t she?”
“How did you know that?” he replied in a tone that let her know her hunch was correct.
The thought of Sabrina propositioning the man Lessa was supposed to be with was infuriating, to say the least. The thought of him accepting was even more infuriating. “What did you say?” she asked, her voice cold.
“I don’t mix business and pleasure, Lessa,” he said, stopping in front of their bungalow.
“Not even with an old girlfriend?”
He unlocked their door and pushed it open. When she walked inside, he stepped in front of her. “Not even with an old girlfriend,” he said, his voice low and threatening. “Now make up your mind. Are you staying or not?”
She looked at the solitary bed. She could’ve sworn the room was even smaller than when they’d left it. “I’m staying,” she said.
He paused for a moment and then stepped away. He loosened his tie and closed the blinds. It was obvious he was angry with her for suggesting that perhaps he would have a liaison with Sabrina. But how could she not suspect the worst? After all, the image of him dancing with Sabrina was burned in her mind. The way he had held her in his arms. The way he had looked at her.
Lessa walked over to the bed and sat on the edge. “Did you love her?”
“Love her?” he asked, surprised. “No. I told you, we had a brief affair. I don’t think it lasted more than a week. That was all.” He sat down next to her and said, “You’re going to have to trust me on this one, Lessa.”
“I’m sorry, Rick. Regardless of what you say, I don’t think I can ever trust you. Actions are stronger than words.”
“I assume the action in my case is what happened to your father. And that doesn’t define me as anything but a businessman. I was given an offer and I took it. I did what I could to help him. I’m the one who put together his severance package. I’m the reason you inherited your stock.”
“Do you think I should thank you? Losing this company destroyed him.” It had literally broken his heart. He had suffered a fatal heart attack and died less than a month later.
“Lessa,” he said softly. “He was a good man who did a great job building this company-but he is the one who took it public and hired the board. And you know as well as I do that whenever you take a company public you lose some control.”
“He fought so hard to keep his job. I hardly saw him during that last year.”
“I’m sorry, Lessa,” Rick said quietly. “It’s not all about hard work. Sometimes people are simply outmatched.”
Was he talking about her father or her? “I realize that. But if you’re referring to me, I conceded, remember? And now we’re partners on the same team.”
He glanced away. Whatever may have transpired between them, it was obvious he still harbored doubt about
