“No…I” she began before he took the bottle from her fingers and gently gathering her hair to place it over one shoulder had sprayed lotion onto her. Unlike him, the feel of his hands on her body gently caressing her shoulders and back had resulted in an instant response from her. She had bitten her tongue to stop the groan from escaping her lips as she had shivered with the feel of his firm hands caressing her so softly
At that moment Marc’s phone had rung. Looking at the caller ID he had frowned before remembering Kelly’s fleeting look at the party answered it as he had lain back down beside her on the towel, so that she was now looking down on him able to watch him.
“Olivia” he replied warmly
“What can I do for you?”
Kelly too had lain back down suddenly so aware of her insides as they knotted painfully deep within her stomach, her hands clenched tightly
Although she couldn’t hear the other side of the conversation she had listened as Marc flirted good humouredly with the beautiful woman, before unable to take it any longer she had risen to her feet biting her lip as he had laughed that deep yet soft sensual laugh of his. Suddenly feeling the need to get away she had moved back into the water, trying hard not to watch him as he talked with his mistress.
As she left Marc’s tone had became more business like
“Look Olivia, I don’t want to hurt you I really don’t, but you and I are never going to happen”
Olivia Prentiss had not taken that well, cursing him before hanging up the phone. However, he had continued to hold it to his ear for a few more minutes seeing as she tried not to watch him seemingly laughing at some shared joke with this other woman.
When he put the phone away she had returned
“You two seem to be getting along well” she stated innocently
“Oh you know” he had replied vaguely “we’re just friends”
Kelly had turned to look down on him contemplatively at his choice of words a small frown appearing on her brow.
They had only spent another hour at the beach after Max had woken having only slept for half an hour allowing him more time to happily splash in the water. Kelly had laughed as she watched Marc trying to get Max interested in the sand castle he was building only to have to give up as the small boy had crawled over it to get to a shell.
In the car home she reflected on how much fun the day had been, although the memory of the call from Olivia had made her frown. She had disliked the woman from the first time she had met her, and she longed to tell Marc that she was not the right woman for him, but she had kept silent remembering his talk with her that morning. If he could be happy for her then she could be happy for him. She also thought with a bitter smile that he no doubt wasn’t exactly planning on marry the woman – that wasn’t Marc De Santos style. Looking at him through half closed eyes she thought, no Marc was a love’em and leave’em kind of guy.
The rest of the week passed quickly, as Kelly had found that Marc seemed to be spending much more time at home, taking them to different places when he would return unexpectedly from work in the afternoons.
He had behaved in a friendly manner towards her and there had been no hint of his previous behaviour. Not once had he attempted to kiss her and any touches he had made were casual. He would sometimes disappear at nights, no doubt she was sure to meet Olivia, and while he would come home late he never stayed out all night, Kelly feeling relief knowing this, however, deep down her whole being was in turmoil.
She had expected the feelings she had for him to quickly disappear, all just there because of the physical attraction she felt towards him. However, in reality they were becoming stronger as she had watched each day the bond between father and son growing stronger and stronger, and was painfully aware of the way he kept her at arms length. At night she had dreamt of his kisses and his touch, the memory of how close they had come to being lovers making her groan with frustration. She had thought that returning to normal would make their situation easier for her and Max, but suddenly she realised that she wanted him even more, realising that Marc De Santo had crawled under her skin and into her heart and that every day living with him so closely was just deepening those feelings. Looking at Max she wondered what she was to do, knowing only that she was miserable.
That week-end Marc had told her that he would make good on the date he had paid handsomely for at the charity auction.
“Might be nice just to get out for a break” he had smiled
“Anything you want to do”
Kelly had shrugged her small shoulders
“Surprise me” she said
“OK,” he laughed, “you might regret that”, as she had chuckled back at him