Paradise Found (8 page)

‘Have some patience, Tony.'

‘I know . . . I know. It's just that you are so lovely. Sit here,' he said, patting the space beside his hip. ‘I want to kiss you properly.'

‘All right. But just bear in mind the lack of privacy,' she said, sitting beside him and winding her arms round his neck. Because he
was
in a reclining position his hands were free, and he slid them round her back, pulling her down onto his chest. Because it was unexpected, she went down harder than she would have done, and he yelped in pain. ‘See what I mean, Tony? That's what I was afraid of.'

‘Yes, damn it.'

‘Are you all right?'

‘I'm frustrated. Aren't you?'

‘Yes.' Not for the first time she wondered if she was as frustrated as she ought to have been. ‘I must go and get ready, otherwise I'll run the risk of being late for dinner, and you know that for this meal Hannah is a stickler for punctuality.

Not being able to argue with that undeniable truth, Tony reluctantly let her go.

Zoe luxuriated in a shower. Not only did it refresh, but it got rid of the stickiness of her sun cream. To her delight she noticed that she was beginning to acquire a tan. She would never be the color of teak, because of her fair skin, but she was extremely lucky that she didn't blister and go an unbecoming shade of red.

She hadn't worn the long dress yet. Because it was white, she had decided to save it until her skin began to brown. As she admired her new golden coloring, she realized that the time was now.

It had a bra-type top and shoestring
shoulder
straps. The front was quite modest by some standards, but the back scooped down to her waist and because of this she couldn't wear a strapless bra. Going bra-less made it seem quite daring. Her new and attractive coloring deepened the sapphire blue of her eyes, which she further enhanced with a smudge of sapphire eye shadow. She brushed her hair into a bright gleaming bell and let it swing freely about her shoulders. Her very high-heeled sandals were just a collection of straps. The fact that she decided to go barelegged didn't rob her appearance of elegance. She looked cool and summery. Then she pursed her full mouth quizzically. Something else was needed—and she knew what. The pendant with the bright sapphire stone would be the perfect finishing touch. The something blue for the wedding that hadn't taken place. She hesitated for a moment, then put it on. The cold feel of it chilled her flesh, or was it the memory of Matt's fingers brushing against her skin as he'd put it on for her? Or merely too much sun? She had sunbathed longer than normal, feeling that by this time she ought to be more acclimatized. As if to prove that this was not so, a headache was beginning to pinch at her temple.

Looking at her watch as she clasped it round her wrist, she saw that she was much earlier than she had anticipated being. She had time to take a gentle stroll outside, which she
felt
would be beneficial.

Hannah followed the Continental trend of dining late, and the light was fast fading from the sky. A sizable chunk of the garden lay in the shadow of the house; the trees made black swathes across her path. They plunged her deeper still into the soft, fragrant obscurity. The day had burned the essence from the heart of each flower and the curl of every leaf to make a headier odor. Evening carried a more gentle scent that was like cologne to her throbbing senses.

Through the arch she spied a car's headlights as it swung to follow the curve of the drive, spotlighting her for a brief moment before going on up to the house. Visitors? She couldn't remember Hannah mentioning that she was having guests. What kind of car could it be? The lights had seemed far brighter and positioned higher than normal. She must make sure she didn't stay out overlong and make herself late for dinner. On the other hand, if there was going to be company and chatter, it seemed more essential than ever for her to clear her head.

Somewhere in the house a radio was playing. A throaty baritone was pouring the tenderness of his heart out, not that she could understand the words; the only one she could make out was
chérie.
The voice was deep and sexy, the melody soft and hauntingly romantic; the way it played on her emotions told her that
it
had to be a love song.

A much nearer voice, even deeper and with seductive vibrations that squeezed her throat unbearably dry, said, ‘Good evening, Zoe.'

CHAPTER FOUR

‘Matt!' she gasped. In his dark clothes he merged with the shadows. She couldn't see his face, but surely that was Matt's voice? For a brief moment she contested this thought, wondering if her mind was playing tricks and it was Tony. But no! Tony's approach was always heralded by the thump of his crutches. ‘Matt,' she repeated weakly, and her heart began to thud. ‘You . . .you startled me.'

‘Sorry. My intention was to surprise, not startle. I spotted you in my headlights as I pulled into the drive.'

‘It was you in that car?'

‘Yes. Except that it isn't a car. It's a truck. I had a delivery to make in Marseilles. Mother is having a room prepared for me. You looked inviting standing there in your white dress. I thought I'd join you. What are you doing out here, all by yourself?'

‘I have a bit of a headache. I was hoping the fresh air would clear it.'

‘Been overdoing the sun?' he queried, taking a step forward, his hands going up to
her
neck. His thumbs rested in the hollows at her throat; his strong fingers curved to her neck and gently massaged, lifting the tight knots and taking the tension into his own fingertips. Then one hand went to the back of her neck and the other captured her chin, twisting it gently from side to side. Her neck gave a small protesting creak, then moved freely. ‘That better?'

‘Yes, thank you. It feels . . .wonderful.'

‘You know I'm going to kiss you, don't you?'

‘Please don't, Matt.'

‘You don't really mean that.'

‘I do. This isn't fair to Tony.'

‘Are you still persisting in that nonsense?'

‘If you mean am I still going to marry him, the answer is yes, as soon as it's possible. You only got the wedding delayed. You haven't put it off permanently.'

‘I? I had nothing to do with getting Tony drunk, so drunk he was incapable of looking after himself and behaved like an irresponsible fool.'

‘No? I know you didn't intend him to fall down those stairs, but you had a hand in the other. You encouraged him to drink more than was good for him. That's one accusation I will not withdraw. Because you did! The smirk on your face when I came round to see Tony and you told me that when you'd left him he looked as if he'd take a week to sober up is something I'll never forget. I'll never forgive
you.'

‘You have a vivid imagination.'

‘I know you, Matt.'

‘And I know you, apparently better than you know yourself. You idiot, you wouldn't be happy if you married Tony.'

‘
When
I find out, I'll let you know.'

‘Why you goading little . . .' The fingers still clutching her chin tightened their hold. Her chin wasn't released until his mouth was firmly planted on hers, forcing her head back with such ferocity that she thought her neck would have snapped but for the hand supporting it.

Even in the height of her indignation, she exhilarated in the sweet brutality of that kiss. No one could move her like this. She came alive for him.

When he finally released her, he said, ‘You wanted that as much as I did.'

To her deep chagrin and shame, that was the undeniable truth.

‘I think we'd better go in now,' he said. ‘I still have to change. But first, for what it's worth, this doesn't suit me any more than it does you. You're my weakness, Zoe. I don't like it.'

‘You found the strength to stay away from me for five years.'

‘That's not strictly true. I tried to look you up. I drew a blank. I discovered that you'd changed your address and your job.'

‘You didn't look very hard. You could have
found
me if your wanted to badly enough.'

‘Fair comment. It would be untrue to say I've spent all that time pining for you. But I've thought of you. That last time—well, you don't need me to tell you that things got steamy between us. I would have come back if circumstances had permitted. I admit that before that night I'd looked on you as a bit of a kid.'

‘Whose head was turned by the money you flung around,' she spat angrily.

‘I'm not used to people liking me for myself. I've often wondered if I would have got that far with you if I got my hands dirty by filling someone else's pocket.

‘I feel sorry for you. It must be horrible to have such a jaundiced outlook.'

‘Keep your sympathy. That's something I'd no intention of having then, and I won't tolerate it now.'

‘What's that supposed to mean?'

‘I fight fair. That's what,' he said bitterly, taking her elbow and turning her in the direction of the house.

He would have guided her straight into the room from which the sound of Hannah's and Tony's voices were coming had she not drawn away at the bottom of the stairs. ‘I'd better go up and check on my lipstick before going in. I'll be like lightning.'

She was true to her word and didn't dawdle. She merely ran a comb through her hair and a
lip
gloss across her mouth.

Her predinner sherry was waiting for her when she got back down. She saw with relief that Hannah and Tony had only just started theirs.

‘I hope I'm not holding things up?' she inquired stupidly. Obviously she wasn't. Matt wouldn't have had time to get back after changing into something more formal than the clothes he'd traveled in. Because what had happened out there in the garden was burning in her brain, she wondered how Hannah and Tony could
not
know. Which was equally ridiculous.

‘Not at all. We're waiting for Matt. Even though I half expected it, it was still a wonderful surprise when he walked in, unannounced—just as I said it would be.' Hannah's quizzical eyes lifted briefly from Zoe's to look beyond her head, lighting up with affection as they did so. ‘Here he is now.'

Casting Matt a cool look, Zoe crossed the room to sit by Tony's side. Somehow she had to establish her allegiance.

‘Did you have a good trip down?' Tony asked. Although it was a civil enough inquiry, Zoe detected a slight edge to his voice.

‘He had company,' Hannah supplied.

‘That's right,' Matt verified. He seemed to be looking straight at Zoe, but she supposed that he could have been looking at Tony. ‘I brought Camille with me. When I mentioned
that
I was coming, she asked me if I'd give her a lift.'

Zoe registered that. So he was seeing Camille.

‘In the cab of the truck, mind,' Hannah said with a laugh. ‘That crazy girl would ride on a shovel for Matt.'

What girl wouldn't? Zoe speculated, looking unhappily down at her hands, but not before she'd seen the amused lift of Matt's mouth, which cruelly mocked her.

As the evening progressed she wondered if either Hannah or Tony knew of the beneath-the-surface crosscurrents. The tide of feeling between her and Matt was such that it pulled her eyes until they ached in their sockets; she couldn't seem to drag her gaze from his face for any reasonable length of time. She hoped the others weren't aware of that. Hannah was full of joy at having her son there. Tony was back in top garrulous form. Strange, she had never noticed before that he talked a lot but said little. Not like Matt, who used words economically, so that when he opened his mouth everyone listened.

For what it was worth, she saw that the thing between her and Matt wasn't one way. She was conscious of Matt's eyes shifting back to her again and again. She didn't like the concentration on her lips, as if to remind her of that recent forbidden kiss. She wanted to scrub her hand across her mouth to rub out
the
torrid memory. It didn't help her to know that his mocking amusement increased on a par with her discomfort.

It was Hannah who said, ‘You're unusually quiet this evening, Zoe. Are you not feeling well?'

‘Truthfully, I'm not my normal self. I think I'm paying the price of vanity.'

‘You?' her hostess queried in disbelief.

‘I wanted to quicken up the tanning process, so I might have sunbathed too long.'

‘Ah, most unwise. You must be more careful in future.'

‘One learns by one's mistakes. I intend to be.' She averted her gaze from Hannah's face to meet those compelling black eyes again. ‘Will anyone mind if I break up the party? I think I'll go to bed.'

‘Of course not, Zoe. I don't intend to wait too long before I turn in myself. Run along, child,' Hannah said.

‘Goodnight, Hannah. Goodnight, Matt.' Zoe bent to kiss Tony. He let her and then grinned impishly as he said, ‘An early night wouldn't come amiss for me, either.' He scooped up his crutches and accompanied her out of the room.

Zoe carefully closed the door behind them, glad to be out of range of Matt's vision. At the bottom of the stairs she turned. ‘Goodnight again, Tony.'

‘Don't go straight up. Come and look at the
stars
from my bedroom window.'

He had already hinted at something like this, but this was the first time he'd come out with the direct suggestion. Odd that he'd waited until Matt's arrival to do so.

‘Have you forgotten that your room happens to be right next to your grandmother's?'

‘No. And neither have I forgotten that we're engaged.'

‘Tony . . . I. . .'

‘I know. You're feeling wretched. That's obvious just from looking at you. I can tell that you're not putting it on. I'm being inconsiderate, aren't I?'