Bound by Their Love (2 page)

Everything in her wanted to accept his lunch invitation. She had no doubt they would indulge in more than lunch and her body was screaming at her to take him up on the offer. To say yes to lunch and yes to whatever else he wanted. She had to remain strong and resolute. Remember she was there to do a job so she could earn her promotion.

Not thinking, just reacting, she laid her hand on his cheek, instantly regretting it when electricity shot to life in her fingertips. ‘While that would be lovely, I'm afraid I have to decline.'

Before she could remove her hand, his quickly covered it, intensifying the sensations drumming to life inside of her. ‘Is there anything I can do to tempt you to change your mind?'

Just keep talking,
she wanted to tell him. If only they'd met under different circumstances. If it had been at a nightclub or bar she wouldn't hesitate to jump, not only on his suggestion of spending time together, but back to her hotel room. She was here to work, not to play.

She opened her mouth to tell him no again. ‘Yes.' The word popped out of its own volition.

At the triumphant gleam in his eyes, Greta knew she'd agreed to more than just lunch. She only hoped her impulsiveness didn't come back to bite her.

Chapter 2

Jeffrey Courteux smiled at the woman. He'd seen her the moment he'd walked into the gift shop at Fierro's Pearl Farm. Her long dark hair a perfect foil against her figure-hugging red dress. She was tall and her dress accentuated her long, lean legs. Her take-me-to-bed-now shoes completed the look. His fingers itched to design an ankle cuff to complement her shoes. As she'd turned her head he'd seen the smooth, clean line of her neck.

He almost hadn't approached her when he saw she was admiring some of his jewellery. But his feet had other ideas and he found himself standing behind her before he knew it.

Now she had agreed to lunch, or was at least curious enough to have lunch with him. He was pretty confident it wouldn't take much to invite her into more than just lunch. And that suited him fine. After being unwillingly talked into creating an exclusive collection for Luc's flagship hotel, the Palazzo Regent, he needed something to take his mind off what the new collection would lead to.

Jeffrey had no doubt Luc would want him to be more ‘visual'. His presence in Perth would be required on more than one occasion.

‘Don't tell me I've shocked you into silence?' she said.

He pushed thoughts of Luc's expectations to the far recesses of his mind. He would deal with it when it happened. Right now he had a beautiful woman in his reach and he was going to pay full attention to her.

‘Shall we go?' he asked. ‘I know of this nice little restaurant by the beach where we can talk and get to know each other a little better.'

Her body tensed beneath his touch and Jeffrey wondered if he'd said the wrong thing.

Her tongue swept over her lower lip. A nervous action and one that seemed out of character with the woman who'd been flirting with him. ‘I don't think this is a good idea after all.'

He wanted to sample those lips with the same desire he approached a blank page in a sketchbook. He gave into the need and leaned closer, pausing before taking her ruby red lips with his. ‘Thinking is overrated.'

He lightly touched his lips to hers and bit back a groan. She tasted like the sweetest wine. His body fired to life, urging him to deepen the kiss until she was aware of only him. He never acted this way. He never walked up to a woman and kissed her without knowing her name. Something about this woman called to him. But he wasn't looking for long-term. He didn't do long-term.

In the back of his mind he knew they were standing in the middle of a gift shop. It was the most inappropriate place for a PDA. The soft body in his arms tensed, pulling away from him.

‘Why did you do that?' she whispered, as her fingers reached up to touch the lips he wanted to taste again.

‘I was tempting you to have lunch with me.'

‘By kissing me? How is kissing a complete stranger a way to tempt anyone to have lunch with you?'

‘How about instead of my initial suggestion, we go into the restaurant next door to this gift shop and you can tell me how you'd tempt a person into having lunch with you.'

Jeffrey didn't give her a chance to respond, he cupped her elbow and led her toward the adjoining restaurant.

‘It's Greta, by the way,' she said as she pulled her arm out of his hold. He immediately wanted to take it back; instead he stopped, ensuring she stopped as well.

‘Pardon?'

She huffed out a breath and he bit back a smile. Yes, lunch with the beautiful Greta was going to be exciting. She lit a spark inside of him he thought long dead. But he wouldn't let it take too much of a hold. Sharing all aspects of his life wasn't an option.

‘My name is Greta Adamas, and you are?'

Jeffrey took a moment before answering. ‘Jeff Court.' He immediately fell back on the name he'd used when he'd lived in Europe. He wanted Greta to see him as a man, not as the jewellery designer whose work she had been admiring.

‘Right, let's have lunch.' Greta started walking toward the restaurant again. He followed her, enjoying the view of the gentle sway of her hips as she moved. He would hold those hips in his hands before the day was over. That he could guarantee.

At the entrance of the restaurant the hostess's eyes lit up in recognition when she saw Jeffrey. He cursed under his breath; he should've realised the people at Fierro's would recognise him. Jeffrey gave a subtle shake of his head and hoped the hostess got the message he was attempting to convey. The hostess responded with a nod of her own and Jeffrey relaxed slightly. One thing about supporting the town he lived in with his exclusive jewellery designs, people respected his need for privacy.

‘Good afternoon, Sir. Madam. Table for two?' The hostess asked—the epitome of professionalism.

‘Yes, please.' He responded to her question.

‘I have the perfect table for you, if you'd care to follow me.'

Jeffrey once again cupped Greta's arm, and followed the hostess through the restaurant. He was pleased when they were led to a quiet table in the corner, the perfect place to conduct a seduction over lunch. He held out Greta's chair. Once he saw her seated, he took his own.

‘Your server will be with you shortly,' the hostess said as she placed menus in front of them. ‘Enjoy your meal.'

Greta wanted to call the hostess back, requesting they be moved to a table in the middle of the room. Normally she had no problem being seated away from the main crowd. In fact, she preferred it, but this man ... This Jeff was creating havoc with her ability to keep her mind totally focused on her job. And she didn't like it one little bit.

Determined not to remember how his lips felt against hers. Or the way they still tingled long after the kiss had ended. She picked up the menu.

‘If you like seafood, the shrimp scampi is good.'

Jeff's voice washed over her like the water brushing up against the jetty. He should come with a warning—his lips and voice were lethal weapons. She wouldn't mind sampling his lips again. Or even letting them work their way all over her body. Work that shirt off those wide shoulders, run her hand over his chest to find out if it was as hard as it looked.

The temptation to fan herself with the menu was strong. It was either that or walk around to his side of the table and …

Stop it!
Greta slammed the door on the X-rated thoughts taking over her mind.

She was here to work, not sleep with a random stranger. This new account was the most important account of her career. She needed to come up with a kick-arse campaign to oust Graham. Fantasising about how much she'd like to get to know Jeff and everything hidden beneath his clothes wouldn't achieve that.

She perused the menu, not really reading what was listed. ‘Is there anything else you can recommend?'

Greta looked up and caught the gleam in his eyes. Somehow she knew his next recommendation wasn't going to be something from the menu. ‘Food-wise, I mean.'

He laughed. ‘Everything on the menu is good.'

The waiter returned at that moment and they placed their orders. Greta had decided to take Jeff's advice and have the shrimp dish. His sexy smile hit her right between the eyes and she grabbed the glass of iced water, taking a sip to try and cool herself down.

Once she felt more in control, she looked back at him. ‘So, Jeff, what do you do for a living?'

It was a nice neutral question. One she'd ask any lunch or dinner companion. She really wanted to know what he was doing in a gift shop at a pearl farm all by himself. Was he a guest at the Orchard Hill Resort like she was? The thought of taking him back to her room, or his, filled her mind. Visions of losing herself in his arms playing like a vivid motion picture in her mind.

‘This and that.'

His noncommittal reply surprised her. Her puzzlement increased when he reached into his pocket and pulled his sunglasses out and put them on.

‘Why did you do that?'

‘What?'

She huffed out a breath. ‘Really, you're going to go there? You're going to play dumb? You just put your sunglasses on
inside
a restaurant where the sun isn't exactly blazing through the windows. So I ask again—why did you do that?'

‘Habit.'

That was his answer? It was a habit to put his sunglasses on while he's having lunch with someone? He may be sexy and he may be mysterious but enough was enough. She didn't need to be treated like she was a bad smell and he didn't want to be around her anymore.

Was she overreacting? Possibly?

The whole situation was out of the ordinary. Usually she kept her emotions at bay. Any potential sexual encounter with a man she undertook in a logical manner. Never before had she experienced an attraction to a man be so intense and so instant. It scared her. She needed to get away.

She put her napkin on the table, pushed her chair back and stood. ‘I've changed my mind, I don't want to have lunch with you.'

Greta collected her purse and walked out. Not looking back, though she could feel his eyes on her back willing her to turn around. It was for the best. She had a feeling, deep in her soul, the longer she spent in Jeff's orbit the more inclined she'd be to forget all about the real reason she was visiting the resort. No man, no matter how good looking, had ever swayed her from her goals. There was no way Greta was going to allow Jeff Court to be the first.

Chapter 3

‘Mr Courteux, is everything all right? Will your companion be back?' The waiter rushed up to the table.

‘Yes, everything's fine and I'm afraid my companion won't be back.' He stood and threw some money down on the table. He needed to get out of the restaurant. ‘Can you cancel our lunch orders please?'

‘Certainly, sir.'

Grateful he had his glasses on, he walked out of the restaurant, ignoring the questioning glances from the other patrons. He'd never had a date walk out on him before. Then again, he didn't usually act like a jerk.

Damn, he had really wanted to get to know her; but when she asked him what he did for a living, he shut down. He usually led the conversation when he spent time with a woman. He made sure the conversation steered clear of his occupation. He never asked where they worked. It made it clear there was an understanding between them, that sharing personal information was out. None of the women seemed to mind.

But Greta, she came straight out and asked. He had no time to prepare and so he did what he always did when he wanted to keep his private life private. He put his glasses on. It wasn't a lie when he told Greta it was a habit. His glasses were a great foil for keeping people at a distance.

Jeff stepped out into the sunshine and contemplated where to go next. He could get into his car and drive back home, but the thought of being alone didn't appeal. Instead he headed toward the jetty that cut a path between the middle of the oyster farm. Maybe a walk would clear his head.

He looked up as he reached it. Standing about a third of the way down the jetty was Greta. She was leaning out over the railing, as if trying to see the magic of a pearl being formed below the surface.

There had to be a reason for him to keep crossing paths with her. This time he wouldn't be a jerk. This time he wouldn't shut down on her. This time he wouldn't let her go.

Jeff walked toward her slowly, thoughts of what he was going to say flowing through his mind.

‘Hi,' he said softly. A need to reach out and touch her dark hair, twirl the strands around his fingers to see if it was as soft and silky as it looked, nearly overwhelmed him.

She turned to face him. With her sunglasses on he couldn't see what was going on behind her eyes. Now he knew how annoying it was for her when he put the glasses. ‘What do you want?'

A chuckle escaped him at her response. Jeff didn't need to see her eyes. He knew they'd be firing sparks at him. Her reaction was exactly as he expected it to be. No way would she be excited to see him again.

‘I want to apologise for how I acted earlier. I'm sorry, Greta.'

‘Thanks,' she nodded and turned back to look out over the ocean. A soft breeze blew, lifting the strands, tempting him to give into his earlier impulse to touch them.

‘Can we start over?'

‘What would be the point? I'm leaving in a day or two. I don't need the complication in my life right now.'

Jeff took a couple of steps forward, until he was standing next to her. The wind, it seemed, knew what he wanted and blew a skein of her hair into his face. He softly looped it around his fingers. Just as he'd thought, it was soft and the subtle fragrance of flowers wafted up to him. He wanted to lean closer, until his mouth was touching her sweet skin.

‘I don't need complications in my life either.' Somehow he'd closed the distance and was so near her neck. Her scent was intoxicating. He wanted to nuzzle and nip the curve where her neck met her shoulders, hear her gasp, soothe with his tongue. ‘I don't know what's happening, Greta, but I don't think I can let you leave without having you.'