Playing at Love Read online

  ‘If you’re going to be sick, then use one of the bags in the door pocket.’

  If she’d thought for a moment that he’d said that out of concern, then she might have appreciated it, but she wasn’t fool enough to think that! The anger rose again, hot and swift, and strangely comforting, as she turned to stare coldly at him. ‘Don’t worry. I wasn’t about to throw up all over your precious plane.’

  He adjusted the controls, his face set as he shot her a quick glance. ‘Then what is bothering you? Having second thoughts already?’ He smiled, his mouth curling contemptuously beneath the heavy black moustache, his eyes hidden behind the mirrored glasses. ‘I wouldn’t waste my time if I were you. We made a deal, Louise, and I have every intention of seeing that you stick to it.’

  ‘Second thoughts about earning myself ten thousand dollars?’ She pretended to make a few rapid calculations on her fingers, her expression as avaricious as she could make it. ‘What’s that, about five and a half thousand pounds in sterling?’ She laughed huskily, stretching her slender body like a cat who had been shown a saucer of cream, before settling back in the seat with a contented sigh. ‘An offer like that doesn’t come a girl’s way very often.’

  ‘But how long will the money last?’ He removed his glasses, studying the elegant lines of her beige silk shirt and trousers, the smooth leather of her neat flat shoes. ‘Clothes like those cost money, a lot of money. You’ll be through that cash in next to no time, and then what will you do? Start looking for some other poor man to keep you?’

  Louise ran a hand over the soft silk, smiling faintly to herself. The clothes she owned were expensive, but she hadn’t bought them; the salary she earned was adequate to live on, but would never have stretched to designer labels. She was fortunate enough to have a cousin who was a buyer for a large store in Manchester, who was a clothesaholic. Jessica bought more outfits than she could hope to wear, then passed them on to Louise for a fraction of their cost when she tired of them. It was an arrangement that suited them both, but one she had no intention of telling Wyatt Lord about!

  He slid the glasses back on, his jaw rigid as he banked the plane slowly then checked the panel before he spoke again. ‘I think that the thing that’s bothering you most is that someone has sussed your little game. It must be galling to have come so close then to lose out at the last moment.’

  ‘Lose out on what?’ She brushed a shiny dark curl from her eyes, then felt in her soft leather bag for her own sunglasses. Up here the sky was almost painfully bright, the sun blinding as it shone through the cockpit windscreen. She could feel the beginnings of a headache pressing at her temples, a sure sign that tiredness and anger had taken their toll.

  ‘Hooking yourself that guy back at the hotel.’ He laughed unpleasantly. ‘He seemed fairly well set up, although I imagine you could have found someone a lot richer if you’d gone further afield. Miami is full of men like that who would be flattered by the attentions of a beautiful woman like you, Louise. Perhaps I’ve done you a favour by persuading you to come on this trip. It means you can always go back once we’re through and try again for a bigger fish, one whose bank balance will last a while longer until you drain it dry.’

  She was glad of the glasses. They shielded her eyes, so that he could not see how much that hurt. How could she go through with this and spend the next week in the company of someone who despised her as much as he did?

  Unexpected tears stung her eyes, but she blinked them away, refusing to admit even to herself how much it hurt to hear him say such horrible things. However, he was relentless, seemingly taking pleasure out of being as unpleasant as possible to her. ‘Nothing to say? No girlish protestations about your innocence now? You disappoint me, Louise, you really do. I thought you’d be determined to keep on with the little charade you’ve been playing.’

  She didn’t bother turning to look at him, her voice slightly muffled as she held back a sob. ‘What would be the point? You’ve made up your mind about me, and that’s that. Why waste my breath?’

  He caught her chin, forcing her head round to study her before he let her go abruptly. Louise drew in a shaky breath, clenching her hands to stop herself from rubbing her fingers along her jaw to wipe away the burning, disturbing imprint he’d left on her skin. She felt shaken by the brief contact, but why? It didn’t make any sense.

  ‘What made you start this in the first place, Louise?’ His hands moved on the controls, firm and confident as. they steadied the small plane as it lifted on a current of warm air. Below them Louise could see the sea, turquoise-blue, glistening in the hot sunlight. It was like a picture-postcard view, and at another time she would have taken pleasure from it, but right now all she could concentrate on was coping with Wyatt Lord’s deliberate cruelty.

  She shrugged dismissively, feigning a sophistication that was purely on the surface. Inside it felt as though tiny daggers were being stabbed one by one into her heart. ‘Why does anyone decide on a course of action? You weigh up the pros and cons, then make the decisions. It’s as simple as that.’

  ‘Simple?’ He laughed deeply, shaking his head as he glanced sideways at her. ‘You see this kind of life you’re leading as simple? Come on! You’re not a fool. You understand the risks, surely?’

  ‘What risks? From where I’m sitting it all looks fine to me. I find myself a rich...benefactor, then live the life I’ve always longed for. Isn’t that what I’m doing?’

  ‘And what about your family? Have they any idea what you’re up to?’

  Definitely not! If her parents ever found out about this they’d be horrified, not because they’d believe that she was in America looking for a rich sugar-daddy, but because she’d gone off with a virtual stranger! The thought of their love strengthened the determination that had kept her going throughout the time she’d been packing at the hotel while fielding Carol’s protests. This man had insulted her in a way that no one had ever done before, and she was determined to make him pay for every unpleasant word! She would go through with this plan, even accept the money he paid her...then take great satisfaction from throwing it back in his arrogant face as she told him in terms he couldn’t doubt how very wrong he’d been. The thought of watching Wyatt Lord squirm as he was forced to apologise would see her through!

  ‘No,’ she said softly, just the faintest tremor of distress in her voice, which she felt quite proud of. ‘They...they’ve no idea what I’m doing right now.’

  ‘Then why do it? You’re a beautiful and intelligent woman. You have other options, so why do something your family would feel ashamed of if they found out?’

  ‘Money. Isn’t that the key to understanding why, Mr Lord? You said it yourself only this morning, worked out very cleverly what I was doing in the hotel and why.’ She smiled airily, watching him through the tinted lenses, enjoying the way his big body stiffened at her open mockery.

  ‘Yes, I worked it out It wasn’t difficult. I’ve seen it happen before, watched men who make fools of themselves over women like you, women who don’t give a damn about anything as long as they get what they want. You should carry a health warning, Louise, because you destroy lives!’

  His anger was almost tangible, filling the confines of the small plane, adding a new dimension to the conversation that startled her.

  ‘That sounds as though you’re speaking from personal experience. Did some woman take you for a ride?’

  He laughed harshly, such contempt in the sound that it destroyed the last vestiges of amusement she felt ‘No. I’m not fool enough to let any woman do that to me. Oh, women have their uses, I’ll admit, but those are purely physical, and that’s all I’m interested in.’

  She felt suddenly cold, despite the heat from the sun, her skin tingling with an icy chill that stemmed from deep inside. How could anyone sound as totally devoid of feelings as he had? In some indefinable way, it shocked her almost as much as when he’d made those ridiculous accusations against her.

  Suddenly she didn’t want to c
ontinue with this disturbing conversation a moment longer, and cast round for something to say to fill the uncomfortable silence. ‘How long will it be before we land now?’

  ‘About twenty minutes or so, depending on how many other planes are due at the island.’ He checked his watch, a faint mocking curl to his mouth, as though he understood her reasons for wanting to move the conversation along different channels. ‘The airstrip at Paradise Island is purely that, a strip for the benefit of people who have houses there.’

  ‘I see.’ She turned to stare out of the side-window, forcing herself to push the unsettling. exchange to the back of her mind. She wasn’t interested in digging deeper, in trying to discover what had made Wyatt so cold and unfeeling. It wasn’t any of her business, and she had to remember that and not allow natural curiosity to draw her into something she might come to regret. ‘What are all those islands down there? There must be hundreds of them, some so tiny they’re little more than a few rocks, I imagine.’

  ‘They are. There are about seven hundred islands plus over two thousand cays down there that form the Bahamas, most of them so flat they are barely a hundred feet above sea-level at their highest points.’

  ‘Good heavens! I never realised there were so many!’ Astonished by the information, Louise turned back to the view, following the scattering of land in the deep turquoise sea, like jewels glistening against satin. ‘Are they all inhabited?’

  ‘No. Some of the smaller cays are privately owned, but most of them are uninhabited. There are no rivers or streams on any of the islands, so fresh water can be a problem. What little there is is usually found close to the surface, resting on salt water, so if wells are dug too deeply it can taste brackish and be quite unpalatable.

  ‘If you look down there to your right you’ll see New Providence Island, where the capital of the Bahamas, Nassau, is situated.’

  Louise followed his directions, leaning over so that she could see better, but it was hard to distinguish the island through the haze of sun bouncing off the water. ‘Do you mean there?’ she queried, pointing to a spot to their right, then nearly jumped out of her skin when he caught her hand in his and moved it a fraction further, holding it steady as he guided her pointing finger. Heat ran along her veins so swiftly, so fiercely, that she caught her breath at the sheer unexpectedness of the sensation. Just for a moment her eyes lifted to meet his, and she wished that she could see the expression in them, but with the mirrored glasses firmly in place that was impossible.

  ‘Can you see where I mean?’ Was it her imagination, or had that deep voice softened slightly, the cutting note dulled just a fraction? Louise almost held her breath as she nodded quickly, afraid to speak and break this fragile moment of truce. How would it feel to have Wyatt Lord speak to her in that tone all the time, to hear warmth not ice in those deep rich tones, to see those pale eyes filled with something other than contempt?

  ‘Paradise Island is just across the bay from Nassau Town. In fact it’s linked to it by a bridge.’ He let her hand drop abruptly as he focused his attention once more on the instrument panel. Louise let out the pent-up breath, feeling the heat slowly fading, leaving behind it a strange ache of regret. Wyatt Lord would never change his opinion of her; he would never look at her and see her for what she was. He’d made up his mind, and no matter if she did finally make him apologise for his mistake; it would be too late.

  Somehow it seemed imperative that he shouldn’t guess how she felt, so she forced herself to continue with the conversation, unaware that her soft voice held a note of pain it was impossible to disguise. ‘Is Paradise Island as big as New Providence?’

  He glanced at her, studying her face for a few seconds that made her feel strangely vulnerable, before he answered. ‘No. It’s barely seven-hundred-odd acres, mainly given over to tourism now, although years ago the settlers of New Providence used it to keep their pigs on.’

  ‘Pigs?’

  ‘Mmm, it was called Hog Island way back then, until it started to be developed in the 1950s as a resort. Now it boasts some fine hotels and a casino, plus quite a number of privately owned properties.’

  ‘You seem to know an awful lot about the area. Do you have a house here?’ It was just an innocent question, meant more to keep the conversation flowing along impersonal lines. It surprised her to see the way his hands tightened on the column, the way a nerve ticked heavily in his jaw.

  ‘Not any longer. That went many years ago.’

  The icy note was back with a vengeance, chilling her so that she unconsciously huddled deeper into the seat. ‘Went? You mean it was sold?’

  ‘Yes. My father sold it.’ He paused, and Louise had the feeling that he was lost in some bitter thoughts of the past, before he made an obvious effort to draw himself back to the present. ‘Does that disappoint you, Louise?’

  She shook her head, making the silky curls dance around her head. ‘No, why should it?’

  ‘Oh, I just thought that you might be weighing up your prospects here.’

  ‘What prospects? Why do you always talk in riddles?’ She sat up, a warning frisson tingling along her veins.

  ‘They are only riddles to those who don’t want to admit the truth. Be honest for once in your life, Louise, and admit that you’ve been sitting there wondering if you could turn this enforced trip to your advantage.’

  ‘I thought it already was to my advantage.’ She sounded husky, a strange unease knotting her throat. ‘I’m getting a free holiday in this tropical paradise, plus several thousand pounds in my pocket when I leave.’

  ‘But how much better would it be if you managed to make a real killing while you’re here?’ He raised one thick dark brow as he slipped the glasses off and studied her closely, a faint question in the depth of his pale eyes. ‘I’m not a vain man, Louise, but I’m not unaware of my own attractions.’ He paused deliberately, letting the words lie between them like a barrier that it seemed impossible for her to cross. ‘Shall I list them for you? Do I have to? I’ve seen the way you’ve been watching me while we’ve been flying down here, and it doesn’t take much to understand what’s behind all those looks.’

  How she longed to find something cutting to say, something so sharply witty that he would shrivel at her feet! But typically she couldn’t find anything apart from a rather wobbly, ‘No!’

  ‘I’m glad you’re being sensible and admitting it. It will make life that much simpler for both of us if we lay our cards on the table.’

  ‘I meant, no, you’re wrong! I wasn’t watching you.’ The words came out in a rush as she tried to convince him, but she failed miserably.

  He laughed, the sound echoing above the throbbing note of the engine. ‘You don’t back down, I’ll give you that much. You’re determined to play the innocent until the bitter end, but we shall be coming in to land soon and I want this sorted out.

  ‘I am a rich man, Louise, a great deal richer than that guy you’d set your sights on in the hotel However, I brought you with me for one reason only and, while I wouldn’t be averse to you practising your seductive little wiles on me, I may as well make it plain that I have no intention of falling into your clutches.’ He picked up the glasses, but just held them as he watched her steadily, watching the soft flush of colour running up her cheeks. ‘To be blunt, honey, I’m quite willing to take you into my bed, but I don’t intend to pay for the honour by becoming your next meal-ticket.’

  ‘I... Don’t flatter yourself! I wouldn’t have you in my bed if you came gift-wrapped!’

  He smiled almost gently at her shocked denial, but there was nothing gentle about his expression as he leant over and caught her chin while he took her mouth in a bruising kiss that left her shaking.

  ‘Gift-wrapped or stark naked, you’d have me, Louise. I’ve known that from the first moment I saw you watching me back at the hotel. I’ve seen that look in a woman’s eyes often enough to recognise it, so why deny it now? I might abhor your morals, just as you hate me for seeing through what you
are, but neither of us can deny that there is a certain chemistry between us. Just don’t make the mistake of thinking that you can use it to your advantage.’

  He let her go, and Louise fell back against the seat and turned away to stare blankly out of the window through eyes misted with tears of rage. She hated him! Hated and despised everything he stood for. He was cold and ruthless and arrogant and...and disturbingly attractive, awakening feelings inside her that she’d never experienced before!

  She groaned silently, ruing a malicious fate. Why did she have to come halfway across the world to find a man who made her knees feel like butter and her blood burn like liquid fire? And why in the name of all the saints did it have to be him, the most cold-hearted, infuriating man any woman could have the misfortune to meet? It really wasn’t fair!

  The huge ceiling fans hummed lazily, stirring the warmly scented air. Louise rested her head against the cushions on the rattan chair and watched the hypnotically rotating blades. She felt so tired, as though half a lifetime had passed since that morning when she’d woken to find herself in Wyatt Lord’s bedroom. Was it really only a matter of hours? It was hard to believe it when so much had happened.

  ‘Are you feeling all right, darling?’

  The softly voiced question echoed with concern, but Louise wasn’t fool enough to be taken in by it. Since they’d arrived at the house on Paradise Island Wyatt had acted the part of the loving fiancé, but now Louise couldn’t bear to go along with the pretence a moment longer.

  She turned to glare at him, her eyes filled with loathing as they skimmed his handsome face, the strong lines of his body. Dressed in a deep blue shirt and white trousers, with his dark hair lying smoothly against his well-shaped head, his tanned skin gleaming with health and vitality, he looked far more handsome than any man had a right to look. She had taken pains with her own appearance before she’d come down to dinner, dressing in a soft peach voile dress that enhanced the creamy gold of her skin and clung enticingly to the soft curves of her body. To the rest of the group gathered to dine at the Hutton home they must look like the perfect couple on the surface, and for some reason the thought stung.