When She Fell for the Billionaire(17)
She took in his shirt, slightly opened at the throat, a patch of olive skin peeking through. She kept her eyes riveted on it as she gave her answer. “I could do with some company.” Her voice had gone husky with nervousness.
“Not some, strega,” his eyes blazed with heat and something else that thrilled and frightened her, “but only. I will be the only company you’ll keep while we are on the island.”
She couldn’t look away. His gaze trapped hers.
“There will be no other men for you while we’re together, Sabrina Connelly.”
The absolute possessiveness of the statement made a shiver run down Sabrina’s spine. “No other men?” He had also mentioned her “lovers” this morning down by the beach. The realization lodged in her chest like a stone.
She couldn’t run away from her reputation. Just as she had looked him up, Luca would have had, too. And he would have read about all those men whom had been “linked” to her. But they had only met this morning…
He must have made assumptions; a woman alone was on the prowl. She shouldn’t let it bother her. What he thought of her, it didn’t matter. They were just going to use each other after all. It was just a holiday hook-up. Luca was physically attracted to her just as she was to him. No need to let him know though how hugely attracted to him she was. That by just being beside him, her body felt like it was when she was working on a rare piece of sea glass–her breathing suspended, all her nerves taut, until she was sure she had successfully wrapped the metal wire around it and the delicate shard had not broken.
He leaned back and regarded her with a hooded expression. Sabrina realized he was still a stranger, gorgeous and sexy but still a stranger. “You have a timetable to follow? Other men to slot in your schedule?”
His voice was flat, but there was an undercurrent of something else, an edge of anger she couldn’t understand. She opened her mouth to vocalize how offended she was by his accusations then shut it, realizing how futile it was. If he hadn’t read about the stories on the tabloid, then it was only a matter of time when he’d be “enlightened.”
“You can be honest with me, Sabrina. I know why you came to Seirenada.”
The cream on the pasta was congealing. It had gone cold.
“Of course you do.” She laughed uncertainly. “A beautiful island and a royal wedding? It’s the in place to be.”
“You’re after Markos Konstantinos.”
Her blood froze. She must have misheard. “Wh-what?”
“Don’t bother denying it, strega.”
“I don’t even know the man,” she denied truthfully. There was only that one unanswered email and unreturned telephone call that the Greek billionaire’s secretary fielded. They had not even spoken in person, and that’s why it was imperative she make contact, why she had taken the chance to come here.
Had she been that obvious in her interest?
“You can deny it all you want, but Markos told me himself about your,” he paused, his eyes narrowing, then he gritted out, “inconvenient pursuit. He doesn’t want you anywhere near him, strega.”
Sabrina paled. She had wanted to take Konstantinos by surprise to show him the evidence in person then make him believe, but apparently he had been one step ahead of her. She didn’t know how the Greek knew she was on the island but now that she knew the billionaire was on to her, it would make her task more difficult.
“I usually don’t like picking up where another man has left off. But for you, I’d make the exception.”
“What are you talking about?”
“You’re different from his usual type of lovers.”
“Lovers?” Sabrina felt like someone had pushed the language button on a movie she was watching and had set it to Mandarin. The actors were the same but she couldn’t understand the dialogue. “You think Markos Konstantinos and I were lovers?” she exclaimed in shock.
The man dining at the other table glanced at her curiously.
“I know how my friend works, strega. He doesn’t do the reconciliation thing. Once he’s done with a relationship, he’s done.”
Done with a relationship? She and Konstantinos haven’t even established one. That’s why she was in the principality.
Luca must have misunderstood his friend. There was no other explanation for his crazy assumptions. She wanted to laugh hysterically at how he had gotten it all wrong and set him straight so he would lose that arrogant, self-assured expression on his gorgeous face. But all that was secondary to the realization that Konstantinos knew she was here in the principality. That he was keeping an eye on her.