The Ruthless Magnate’s Virgin Mistress

presentation to give you,’ Abbey protested.

‘I’ll look at it in the limo,’ he promised.

‘But where are we going?’

‘A jeweller’s. I want you to wear diamonds at the premiere tomorrow night.’

Colour in her cheeks, violet eyes bright and her red-gold hair tied back at her nape with a green ribbon, she got into his limousine clutching her laptop PC. His dark eyes brilliant, Nikolai took in her brown trouser suit and green and white polka-dotted shirt with a frown. ‘You didn’t dress up,’ he noted.

‘I’m still in work mode. Time enough to get dressed up tomorrow,’ Abbey fielded, intimidated by his aura of unbridled energy and his immediate criticism. It was no consolation that he looked amazingly elegant and sexy in his tailored charcoal-grey business suit and blue silk tie. Her breath caught in her throat, her pulses starting to pound.

‘You must be the only woman I’ve ever met who wouldn’t dress up to try on diamonds.’

Abbey banged her laptop down on the space on the leather seat between them. ‘Look, do you want me to go and get changed?’ she asked in exasperation.

‘No, you’ll do.’

‘You got the wrong idea about me when you saw me in that fashion show. I’m an ordinary working woman. I don’t fuss about my appearance and change my clothes several times a day. I haven’t got the time or the interest- I’ll never be the kind of decorative woman you’re used to being around,’ Abbey warned him impatiently.

‘But you’re so beautiful that you will still outshine every woman around you,’ Nikolai murmured with an amount of conviction that astonished her. ‘Show me the properties you’ve selected.’

Abbey opened the laptop. It was soon obvious that he wasn’t impressed or interested in any of the properties and her professional pride took a battering as a result. She decided to consult Sveta again.

‘These properties lack the wow factor that you have in spades.’ Nikolai delivered that judgement while studying her with smouldering eyes that sent a veil of pink travelling up over her cheeks.

‘There will be a wow factor with the next batch,’ she promised.

‘It’s early days,’ he murmured soothingly as the limousine drew up outside an internationally renowned jeweller. ‘Take your time.’

They were ushered inside and the door was locked behind them. They were the only customers in the place and champagne was served in tall fluted glasses while a display of breathtaking diamond necklaces was laid out for Nikolai’s inspection. Cost never once entered the dialogue. Nikolai liked the best and only stones of the highest quality.

‘Take off your jacket,’ he urged her.

She removed it and undid a button on her shirt so that the neckline opened deeper to display the breathtaking sapphire-and-diamond pendant that was fastened round her neck.

‘The blue complements your eyes,’ Nikolai drawled softly.

Abbey stared at her reflection in the mirror arranged for her benefit. She was mesmerised by the white glittering brilliance of the diamonds against the velvet blue of the central stone. Matching earrings were brought out.

‘Do you like this set?’ Nikolai enquired lazily.

Abbey touched an uncertain hand to the magnificent necklace. In truth, she was so impressed that she couldn’t credit that she was actually wearing such magnificent jewels. ‘What woman wouldn’t?’ she whispered.

‘You’re not the average woman, lubimaya.’ Nikolai studied the sapphire lying in the valley between her creamy freckled breasts, drawing his attention to her gloriously feminine curves. He expelled his breath in a slow measured hiss, annoyed by the sexual craving that refused to give him a moment’s peace. Every time he looked at Abbey Carmichael he wanted to haul her into his arms and bury himself deep in her body. His desire was no less intense than it had been before he took her to bed and for him that was a notable first. Usually conquest and familiarity took the edge off his desire, but on this occasion it had signally failed to do so.

Abbey was relieved when the jewels were removed, packaged into cases and out of her sight. Her helpless fascination with the jewellery embarrassed and shamed her; she felt as though she had been tainted by temptation. It had never occurred to her that she might be susceptible to the corrupting power of his vast wealth, but a superficial part of her that she wasn’t very proud of was already looking forward to showing off such fantastic jewels in public.

‘Don’t be such a puritan,’ Nikolai castigated, watching her shy away from the cases. ‘Don’t you like beautiful things?’

Abbey couldn’t help glancing at him, for she had been denying herself that pleasure since he had picked her up and the desire to wallow in visual appreciation of his stunning dark good looks and mesmeric attraction was nagging at her like a sore tooth. When he looked down at her, his black lashes rimmed his stunning eyes like silk fans and she couldn’t dredge her attention from him. ‘Of course I do.’

‘By the way, don’t wear your wedding ring tomorrow evening when you’re out with me,’ Nikolai told her flatly in an abrupt change of subject as they crossed the pavement to the limousine.

‘It’s my business whether I wear it or not,’ Abbey argued, furious at that demand, which had been delivered exactly like a non-negotiable command.

‘You’re single. A black jet mourning ring would be more appropriate than an item of jewellery that suggests you’re still married,’ Nikolai responded very drily, swinging into the passenger seat beside her.

‘I’ll do as I like.’

Long brown fingers curled to her chin and turned her back to look at him. ‘Not around me, you won’t. You will do as I ask,’ Nikolai asserted soft and low, dark eyes black as ice and uniquely chilling. ‘I won’t accept anything less than one-hundred-per-cent commitment from you.’

Abbey was outraged, but daunted by the sombre aspect to his lean, dark, handsome face. He was fighting her every step of the way, refusing to back off politely from a topic that made other people uncomfortable. Since she had already slept with Nikolai, she reasoned unhappily, her habit of wearing her wedding ring could no longer be seen as the pledge of loyalty to Jeffrey that it had once felt like.

‘I’ll do what I feel like doing,’ Abbey countered doggedly, tossing back her head in emphasis of her power of independent thought.

‘Even if it’s stupid to defy me?’ Nikolai demanded in a low-timbred growl of disbelief.

‘Even if it’s stupid,’ Abbey confirmed, refusing to surrender, even though her knees were knocking together with nervous stress.

‘Just for the sheer hell of it?’ Nikolai queried.

Abbey nodded vigorously, pleased that he understood. She was still struggling to dampen down her anger.

‘But that’s illogical,’ Nikolai pointed out.

Abbey knew it was and she wasn’t proud of the fact. She went home with the conviction that he was teaching her things she would sooner not have known about herself. Not only was she catching herself deliberately fighting with him for the thrill of it, but she also had to face that she was not the morally upstanding and sensible person she had always believed she was. She was no more indifferent to the appeal of wonderful diamonds than any other woman. She had also managed to make a total fool of herself over a man and the knowledge stung her painfully, even though now all her energy was aimed at ensuring that she didn’t repeat her mistake.

The next morning she met with Sveta at the Arlov building and showed the Russian woman the same preview of properties she’d revealed to Nikolai. Sveta mentioned a house in central London that Nikolai had often admired and advised contacting the owner with a generous offer. Abbey was taken aback by that bold suggestion, until it occurred to her that an aggressive pursuit of a spectacular property that wasn’t even on the market was probably exactly the kind of approach that Nikolai would most admire. She was beginning to learn that the phrase ‘thinking out of the box’ might have been coined specifically to describe the Russian billionaire’s high expectations.

The owner of that particular property was a Middle Eastern banker and Abbey arranged a meeting with him. Armed with a breathtakingly good offer which had been suggested by Sveta, Abbey went into action and won the startled owner’s assurance that he would consider the proposition. She left him to keep an appointment at the beauty salon where she was getting her hair done because it was the night of the premiere.

Thirty minutes after she got home in a breathless rush, the diamonds and the blue gown were delivered by one of Nikolai’s security men, who announced that he would wait and travel with her as a bodyguard. She was amused by the second offering of the blue gown: Nikolai really did like to get his own way. This