chair and a much more interested glint came into his eyes. ‘If you genuinely prefer all those things then you are indeed a unique woman in our consumer-driven day and age.’
‘I don’t think so. If you haven’t met other women like me it doesn’t mean that they’re not around. You just move in a very elite sphere where perhaps the women’s focus is more on the material. I’m not unusual or special in any way. Besides, it’s not in my nature to crave lots of new clothes and jewellery. At the end of the day whatever small pleasure they give you is only ephemeral. Too many possessions—whether clothes, jewellery or anything else—just make a person dissatisfied, because whatever they have it’s never enough, and they always end up wanting more.’
Linking his long fingers together, Marco leant across the desk towards her, close enough that the scent of his arresting spicy cologne made her insides knot. ‘If you agree to spend your holiday with me, what if buying you nice things makes me feel good?’ he asked, his rich voice pitched intimately low.
She frowned. ‘Marco …?’
‘Yes, Grace?’
‘You said you wanted a—a companion to join you on your break from work …’
‘Specifically, a pleasant and attractive one … in your case a very beautiful one.’
Another woman would no doubt find such a lavish compliment coming from a man as extremely attractive and influential man as Marco a huge boost to her self-esteem … but not Grace. Ever since that frightening incident with her ex-boyfriend Chris she had deliberately steered clear of interested men. The truth was she was understandably nervous about giving them the wrong signals, and consequently about what they would expect if she inadvertently did so. There were times in the past when she might have been worryingly naive, but not any more. One of the most handsome and admired entrepreneurs in the world wouldn’t ask a woman to be his companion for even a short time and not want something a bit more than her company she realised. Hadn’t he already alluded to similar arrangements with women?
The shocking heat that suddenly suffused her at the idea made her nipples tingle and tighten beneath the flimsy silk of her camisole and she crossed her arms over her chest to prevent Marco from noting the fact. ‘Is my company all that you want of me?’ She blushed hard as she waited for his answer, in a state of tension in case he said, No, that’s not all that I want.
Could she agree to his incredible offer to spend the rest of her holiday with him if it entailed something far more intimate and compromising than simply being a companion?
Resting his elbows on the desktop, Marco knew his hungry gaze was drinking her in like intoxicating wine—a wine that went immediately to his head. It simply wasn’t possible for him to disguise the fact that he wanted her … If possible he wanted her even more after her assertion that she preferred the natural things in life—in particular the joy on the faces of children when an adult paid them some proper attention. Inwardly he had rejoiced with every fibre of his being when Grace had said that. Her words had acted like a salve on some of the desperate hurt he’d experienced as a child, and to be honest had knocked him sideways.
‘You have asked me a straight question and I will give you a straight answer,’ he replied. ‘Yes I do want something other than your company. You are very different from most of the women I come into contact with, and that has an irresistible appeal for me. If, in the course of our time together, it should transpire that you share a similar fascination for me, then yes … of course I want to take you to bed.’
He shrugged a shoulder, as if it was a foregone conclusion. Her cheeks flushed as prettily as a wild rose in response, making his heart pound at even the mere idea of her slim but curvaceous body entwined with his in an embrace, let alone sharing the eroticism of
‘I don’t think so. If you haven’t met other women like me it doesn’t mean that they’re not around. You just move in a very elite sphere where perhaps the women’s focus is more on the material. I’m not unusual or special in any way. Besides, it’s not in my nature to crave lots of new clothes and jewellery. At the end of the day whatever small pleasure they give you is only ephemeral. Too many possessions—whether clothes, jewellery or anything else—just make a person dissatisfied, because whatever they have it’s never enough, and they always end up wanting more.’
Linking his long fingers together, Marco leant across the desk towards her, close enough that the scent of his arresting spicy cologne made her insides knot. ‘If you agree to spend your holiday with me, what if buying you nice things makes me feel good?’ he asked, his rich voice pitched intimately low.
She frowned. ‘Marco …?’
‘Yes, Grace?’
‘You said you wanted a—a companion to join you on your break from work …’
‘Specifically, a pleasant and attractive one … in your case a very beautiful one.’
Another woman would no doubt find such a lavish compliment coming from a man as extremely attractive and influential man as Marco a huge boost to her self-esteem … but not Grace. Ever since that frightening incident with her ex-boyfriend Chris she had deliberately steered clear of interested men. The truth was she was understandably nervous about giving them the wrong signals, and consequently about what they would expect if she inadvertently did so. There were times in the past when she might have been worryingly naive, but not any more. One of the most handsome and admired entrepreneurs in the world wouldn’t ask a woman to be his companion for even a short time and not want something a bit more than her company she realised. Hadn’t he already alluded to similar arrangements with women?
The shocking heat that suddenly suffused her at the idea made her nipples tingle and tighten beneath the flimsy silk of her camisole and she crossed her arms over her chest to prevent Marco from noting the fact. ‘Is my company all that you want of me?’ She blushed hard as she waited for his answer, in a state of tension in case he said, No, that’s not all that I want.
Could she agree to his incredible offer to spend the rest of her holiday with him if it entailed something far more intimate and compromising than simply being a companion?
Resting his elbows on the desktop, Marco knew his hungry gaze was drinking her in like intoxicating wine—a wine that went immediately to his head. It simply wasn’t possible for him to disguise the fact that he wanted her … If possible he wanted her even more after her assertion that she preferred the natural things in life—in particular the joy on the faces of children when an adult paid them some proper attention. Inwardly he had rejoiced with every fibre of his being when Grace had said that. Her words had acted like a salve on some of the desperate hurt he’d experienced as a child, and to be honest had knocked him sideways.
‘You have asked me a straight question and I will give you a straight answer,’ he replied. ‘Yes I do want something other than your company. You are very different from most of the women I come into contact with, and that has an irresistible appeal for me. If, in the course of our time together, it should transpire that you share a similar fascination for me, then yes … of course I want to take you to bed.’
He shrugged a shoulder, as if it was a foregone conclusion. Her cheeks flushed as prettily as a wild rose in response, making his heart pound at even the mere idea of her slim but curvaceous body entwined with his in an embrace, let alone sharing the eroticism of
Similar Books
