milling around, talking and laughing as a jazz band played softly from an elevated
platform.
Alannis stood at his side, her hand resting on his arm. Sophia stood on Alannis’s
other side, her pride in her daughter evident.
He ducked his head to hear what Alannis was trying to tell him and nodded
appropriately though his concentration was shot. When he stood to his full height again,
his gaze went to the doorway, and his breath caught in his throat.
She was here.
Isabella stood as she gazed nervously over the room. Theron swallowed when he
took in her attire. The term little black dress could have been coined for this occasion.
The material molded to her every curve and settled a few inches above her knees.
She wore her hair up, drawing attention to the shape of her neck. Stray tendrils escaped
the elegant knot and whispered against her skin.
His fingers itched to let her hair down and watch it fall to her shoulders. He
wanted to run his hands through the silken mass, feel it twine around his knuckles.
“Oh, look, there’s Isabella,” Sophia exclaimed.
As if he wouldn’t be aware the moment she stepped into the room.
“Excuse me,” he murmured to Alannis.
She let him go with a smile, and he made his way to where Isabella stood.
There wasn’t an easy way to address the awareness between them, so he chose to
ignore it—and the fact that he’d kissed her just hours before.
“Bella,” he greeted as he stopped in front of her.
She gazed up at him with wide green eyes, her mouth curving into a smile of
welcome.
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THE TYCOON’S REBEL BRIDE
42
MAYA BANKS
SILHOUETTE DESIRE 1944
THE ANETAKIS TYCOONS
“Sorry I’m late,” she said in a breathy voice. “I don’t suppose you saved me a
dance?”
He nearly groaned. The thought of having her pressed that close to his body was
torture.
“The dancing hasn’t begun yet,” he said as he turned to look at the band. “Perhaps
we can kick it off together, and then I’ll introduce you around.”
He motioned to the pianist who nodded in return. A slow, sultry melody started,
and Theron offered his hand to Isabella. Her fingers trembled slightly in his grip, and he
squeezed to reassure her.
When they reached the middle of the area that was the designated dance floor, he
turned, and she went willingly into his arms. The moment she melted against him, he
went completely rigid.
Her scent surrounded him as the warmth from her touch invaded his body. There
wasn’t a single inch that wasn’t aware of her feminine form. He glanced down as they
made a slow turn and swallowed hard. She wasn’t wearing a bra and the lush mounds
were pressed tightly against his chest, thrusting upward, straining against the neckline of
her dress.
It was all he could do not to haul her out of the room so that no one else could see
her.
He blew out his breath as inconspicuously as possible and reminded himself that
she wasn’t his, and he had no right to be possessive.
It still didn’t help the rise of irritation when he saw how many men were staring
avidly at Isabella. No, she wouldn’t have any shortage of suitors after tonight. He should
have been relieved, but he was anything but.
It was all he could do to keep the scowl from his face.
“The party is lovely,” Isabella said with a smile as she gazed over his shoulder.
“Thank you for putting it on.”
“You’re quite welcome, pethi mou. I want you to enjoy yourself.”
“How are your guests settling in?” she asked innocently.
His eyes narrowed. Did she know of his plans for Alannis? It wasn’t as if she
wouldn’t know in a short time, but for some reason he was reluctant to tell her of his
impending engagement. Or maybe he was a first-class slimeball who’d kissed another
woman within days of asking another woman to marry him.
“They’re settling in quite well,” he muttered as he swung her around so that she
wasn’t facing Alannis and her mother.
Guilt filled him. What kind of a man took advantage of a young woman when he
had an agreement with another? Even Piers, who was never without a woman, would
frown on seducing his ward when he had a soon-to-be fiancée waiting in the wings.
Chrysander wouldn’t hesitate to kick his ass all the way back to Greece for
pulling this kind of stunt with Isabella.
“So which ones are my potential husbands?” she asked as she craned to see
around him.
She wore a mischievous smile that only made her sparkle all the brighter.
“I’ll introduce you as soon as our dance is over,” he said.