Cassie,’ he said softly, and her breath snared in her throat.
Her heart, which had been pounding away like mad, had decelerated suddenly to a painful slam, so slow that she was afraid that it might stop altogether.
‘I…can’t,’ she whispered, unable to tear her eyes from his, and Jake lifted a gentle hand to run a finger down her cheek, searing her skin with its caress.
‘Shall we skip the flirting, then?’ His voice was very deep and very low. ‘Shall we just go straight to the kissing?’
Unable to speak, Cassie nodded dumbly. She had forgotten Rupert, forgotten Natasha, forgotten that they were surrounded by the whole of Portrevick. As far as she was concerned, they could sink right down onto the stone flags together and make love right there. But Jake, more aware of everyone around them, took her hand and pulled her out along the corridor and onto the side terrace, just as he had done ten years ago.
Like then, it was cold and drizzly, but neither of them noticed. The door banged behind them, and Jake was already sliding his fingers into Cassie’s hair the way he had fantasised about doing for so long. His mouth came down hungrily on hers and they kissed fiercely, almost desperately.
Cassie grabbed his shirt, holding on to it for dear life; suppressed excitement was unleashed by the touch of his lips and rocketed through her so powerfully that she could have sworn she felt her feet leave the ground.
God, it felt so good to be kissing him! He tasted wonderful, he felt wonderful, so hard, so strong, so gloriously, solidly male. She slid her arms around him to pull him tighter, her pulse roaring in her ears, as Jake backed her into the wall, his hands moving possessively, insistently, over her, making her dress ruck and slither, smoothing warm hands down her bare back.
‘I’ve wanted this for weeks,’ he whispered unevenly in her ear, when they broke for breath.
‘I think I’ve wanted it for ten years,’ she said, equally shaky.
‘Liar,’ Jake laughed softly, but his mouth was drifting down her throat, making her gasp and arch her head to one side. ‘You wanted Rupert.’
It was hard to think clearly with his lips teasing their way along her jaw and his fingers tracing wicked patterns on her skin. ‘I don’t want Rupert now,’ she managed raggedly, clutching her hands in his dark hair. ‘I want
Jake lifted his head at that and took her face between his hands, looking deep into her eyes. ‘Are you sure, Cassie?’
‘Oh yes,’ she said, reaching for him again. ‘I’m quite sure.’
Cassie drew a long, shuddering sigh of sheer pleasure and snuggled closer into Jake. Her head was on his shoulder, and his arm was around her, warm and strong, holding her securely as they waited for their heart rates to subside and their breathing to steady. She suspected Jake had fallen asleep, but her blood was still fizzing with a strange mixture of peace and exhilaration. She could feel herself glowing, radiating, shimmering with such contentment that she was surprised she wasn’t lighting the dark room. Plug her in and she could power a chandelier, if not a city full of street lights. They could keep her as an emergency backup for the energy crisis. Who needed a nuclear power-station when all Jake had to do was make love to her like that?
Somehow they had got themselves from the terrace to Jake’s room. Cassie had no idea whether anyone had seen them and she didn’t care. Nothing had mattered but Jake: the feel of him, the taste of him, the sureness of his hands, the delicious drift of his lips, the hard possession of his body.
Cassie felt giddy just thinking about that heady blur of sensation. They had lost all sense of time, of place. Nothing had existed except touch-
Downstairs, Cassie could hear the muted sounds of the Allantide Ball still in full swing without them, and felt sanity creeping back. It wasn’t entirely welcome, she realised, and wondered if Rupert was still down there.
And Natasha.
What was it Rupert had said?
He had. Cassie remembered him telling her about Natasha the first time they had driven down here together.
Which made her just someone to catch him on the rebound.
Cassie sighed and stroked the broad chest she was resting so comfortably against. What did she have to offer, after all? Look at her, the failure of her family. She wasn’t beautiful, wasn’t successful, wasn’t accomplished, wasn’t calm and sensible. She couldn’t begin to compare with Natasha.
On the other hand, she was here, lying next to Jake, and Natasha wasn’t.
She would have to keep her fantasies firmly under control for once, Cassie vowed. There was no point in getting carried away like she usually did. She wasn’t Jake’s dream, and she never would be. Best to face it now.
But she didn’t have to think about the future yet. She had the here and now. Cassie rested her palm over Jake’s heart and felt it beating steadily. For now that was enough.
‘We’d better get on.’ Cassie sighed and stretched reluctantly. November had dawned dark and dank, and she would have loved to stay snuggled up to Jake’s warm, solid body all day. ‘There’s lots to do.’
Lazily, Jake slid his hand from the curve of her hip to her breast, and she caught her breath at the heart- stopping intimacy of the gesture. ‘Like what?’ he asked, pulling her closer.
‘Like getting married,’ she reminded him, and laughed as he froze for a moment. ‘I can’t believe you’ve forgotten that Tina and Rob are coming tonight for another photo session!’
‘I’ve had other things on my mind,’ said Jake, rolling her beneath him, lips hot and wicked against her breast, making her arch beneath his hands. ‘More important things-like reminding you what you’ve been waiting ten years for…’
It was much later when she finally forced herself out of bed, and nearly had a fit when she saw the time. ‘There’s so much to do!’
Fortunately the caterers had cleared up most of the debris from the party the night before, but they still had to take down the Allantide decorations and make the great hall look as if it was Christmas instead.
‘Why don’t we leave it until it
‘Because I was trying to get everything over as soon as possible,’ she said. ‘I thought it made sense to do all the photos at once. Rob said he took some good ones last night, which we can use on the website, and I’ve arranged for him to come back tonight since you’d be down here anyway. I didn’t think you’d want to come down more than you had to.’
‘I don’t mind,’ said Jake, who couldn’t quite remember now why he had been so resistant to the idea. He couldn’t remember much about anything this morning except how warm, sweet and exciting Cassie had been the night before.
He felt as if he were walking along the edge of a cliff, knowing that a false step would send him tumbling out of control. Jake wasn’t sure how he had got himself there, but he couldn’t turn round and go back now. He had to keep going and not look down to see how far it was to fall.
They hadn’t talked about the future at all, and Jake was glad. He had a feeling that even thinking about a future that accommodated Cassie, and the chaos she took with her wherever she went, would send his careful life slipping over the edge of that cliff.
The sensible thing, of course, would have been to remember that before he had made love to her. But he was here now, and Cassie’s bright presence was lighting up the great hall. He could be sensible again when he got back to London.
‘If we left it until December, you could have a Christmas tree,’ he pointed out.
Cassie hesitated, picturing a tall tree in the corner by the staircase. ‘It would look lovely,’ she admitted. ‘But everything else is ready now. I’ve got my dress on loan, as it’s just going to be used for photographs, and Rob and Tina are all sorted too. We might as well go ahead,’ she decided reluctantly. A Christmas tree would have been the perfect finishing touch.
