‘That would be nice, and you can take your time. Feel free to be as descriptive as you like.’
‘You’re so egotistic, Gabriel.’
‘Don’t tell me you don’t like it.’ He kissed her and then settled his hand comfortably between her thighs. ‘In fact, you have to tell me that you like it. I’m your boss.’
A timely reminder. She rolled onto her back and stared up at the ornate ceiling.
In the act of making love, she had lost the ability to think, but she was thinking now, remembering what he had said to her, how he had warned her off involvement: his little ‘don’t get attached to me’ speech, the same little speech he would deliver to all his bed mates, of which she was now one.
Well, she might number among them, but she wasn’t about to join their ranks in wanting more than he could give. She wasn’t going to turn into another hysterical Georgia who had been silly enough to think that she could domesticate the jungle animal.
‘You are,’ she agreed lightly. ‘Which is why this is only going to last for the duration of Paris.’ Belatedly it occurred to her that she might have been a one-night stand. Had she jumped to the wrong conclusion?
‘Is that a fact?’ Gabriel murmured. He withdrew his hand to cup one breast instead and he gently stroked her until her nipple hardened.
‘Being here is like playing truant...time off from normality.’ Alice knew her body was reacting with wild abandon even though her voice was calm and controlled. She wanted him to flick his tongue over the tender nub of her nipple as he had done earlier; she wanted him to lick her between her legs until she couldn’t breathe properly and then she wanted him inside her all over again, thrusting hard and sending her into glorious orbit.
Four days with him wasn’t what she wanted but there was no way that she was going to lose control. She wasn’t going to become his puppet.
And she wasn’t going to let herself fall into the trap of thinking that, because maybe she had been harder to get than he was used to, he somehow was no longer the lazy guy who took what was on offer because he couldn’t be bothered with the tedium of pursuit. She wasn’t going to be another idiot who thought that he was capable of change.
‘Normality being...?’
‘Normality being London and the fact that I work for you. I’m being serious, Gabriel. I don’t want to jeopardise my job. I can’t think when you’re doing...that...’ He had slipped his fingers inside her and was absently teasing her tender, sensitive flesh.
‘That suits me,’ he drawled and Alice fought down the sudden flare of irrational disappointment. ‘You’re the best secretary I’ve ever had.’
‘And besides,’ she said drily, ‘you like a quick turnaround when it comes to women, don’t you?’
‘Always.’ Gabriel thought it best to remind her, although she was not like the other women he had been out with. She might be young, but she was cool, controlled, not in search of the inaccessible. Hadn’t she told him that he wasn’t her type? What, he wondered, was her type anyway?
It didn’t matter. He wasn’t risking anything. She wouldn’t get emotionally involved with him any more than he would get emotionally involved with her. They understood one another.
‘But while we’re here playing truant,’ he drawled huskily, ‘I might see fit to limit the amount of client entertaining we do. You’ve never been to Paris and I know this city like the back of my hand. You’re under orders to follow my lead...’
‘Yes, sir!’ Alice grinned. This was her big adventure and she was going to enjoy it while it lasted.
* * *
‘Where did you learn to speak French?’
They sat in the sunshine outside one of the smart cafés close to the Louvre, where they had spent a couple of hours admiring the great works of art. He had been true to his word and work had been minimal for the past two days. They had entertained Francois and Marie after the deal had been officially signed, and had had lunch with another prospective client who had been charming and informative. But mostly they had made love.
She felt vibrantly, wonderfully alive. She had been living life in the slow lane and now she had been pulled into a Ferrari and was speeding up a highway, enjoying every second of the ride. It was thrilling, frightening and she was dreading the end, the brick wall at the end of the highway.
‘Self-taught.’ Gabriel sipped his strong coffee and looked at her, admiring the purity of her skin, the sharp fall of her hair, the fullness of her pink lips.
She was a revelation. They were lovers, but that did not impact on her ability to focus and work. They made love, but she didn’t demand his constant attention. Neither did she give any hint that she intended what they had to last beyond Paris.