The Prince’s Forbidden Lover(27)
He looked down at her with a look that told her she was treading on thin ice. “I am allowed to walk. I’m also allowed to spank women who think they’re being smart.”
Joline laughed again, thinking it was nice to finally talk to the man without the threat of sex in the background. Not that it wasn’t in the background. Rais was one of those men that seemed to exude sex. There was always an intense awareness when he was close to her. But at this moment, she was relaxed, full and happy. A strange sensation when she was near to Rais.
“So why are you here in Manhattan?”
He looked down at her, feeling somehow victorious that she felt relaxed enough to tease him. Not to mention the lovely smile and her glowing, hazel eyes. “Why don’t you think that I’ve come to the city to seduce you?” he asked, which was the truth. He had business to tend to, but he’d removed enough meetings over the next few days so that he could focus more on capturing the elusive and amazing Joline into his arms. And his bed.
She snorted in disbelief. “No really. What’s your business here?”
“I have some meetings with diplomats over at the United Nations,” he told her, even though those meetings were more social than business related. “And I’m trying to discover the third partner in a fascinating business I’d like to invest in. But the beautiful partner is keeping the third partner a secret. Which only makes me more determined to find out who is holding the other thirty three percent ownership.”
Joline laughed, shaking her head. “Give it up. That’s knowledge that no one needs to know about.”
He pulled her closer, moving his arm around her waist. “Why is that? Can you at least tell me why the information is such an important secret?”
Joline was struggling to ignore the heat of his body and the touch of his hand on her waist. It felt good. Too good!
She started to pull away but he only captured her hands again. “What’s wrong?” he asked.
She looked out at the waters of Hudson Bay, shimmering in the moonlight, several large yachts floating on the water with their lights on, looking like toys bobbing along. “You’re going to make a move on me, aren’t you?” she asked him, not bothering to look at him.
“Yes,” he said, surprised by her boldness but impressed nevertheless. “Is that going to be a problem?”
She put her hands on the metal railing, thinking about what she wanted to tell him. “I think it is a problem.”
He leaned against the railing himself, needing to see her features. “Can you explain your reasons for wanting to ignore this attraction between us?”
Joline considered how to answer that. Deciding to be honest with him…well, to a point…she sighed and turned to face him. “Because I think that sex with you would be more than what I’m prepared for. I haven’t ever been intimate with a man before.”
“Why is that?” he asked gently, enjoying her refreshing honesty.
She hesitated for a moment. “Why have I never been with a man? Or why am I not prepared to be with you?”
“Both,” he replied quickly.
Looking back out to the dark water dancing in the moonlight, she answered his second question first. “I’ve never really had the time to date. In college, I was on a scholarship and I had to study a lot in order to maintain my status. So I didn’t really bother with guys.”
“But you’re busy now and you’re allowing me to distract you.”
Joline laughed and shook her head. “I’m not allowing you to do anything. You’re the kind of man who sort of bulldozes into a person’s life. Yes, you’re distracting me, but not with my permission.”
His hand tucked a wisp of hair behind her ear. “Perhaps ‘allow’ is the wrong word. You are distracted. My point is that if there was a man that you were sincerely attracted to during your school years, like you and I are, you might not still be untouched.”
She considered his words carefully. “I’ll concede that it is possible that you have a point.”
“Just a possibility?” he teased.
“I was pretty oblivious to men. To the world. That’s why I love Shantra so much. She pulled me out of my focus and reminded me to live. From the first moment we met, she was fun and exuberant, full of life.”
“In other words, she’s a chatterbox.”
His words made her temper bristle. “Don’t say things like that about Shantra. She’s smarter than you can possibly imagine. She’d brilliant, actually. And she’s my friend. I know that she’s your sister, but…” Joline was trying to calm down but he just made her so angry! “Just be nice to her! And respect her! You’d be surprised.”