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But he got to his feet, his mouth set in the determined line she knew so well. He led her over to one of the full-length mirrors and swivelled her round to face it, his hands on her shoulders.
‘Look at yourself.’ His voice was low, terse. ‘Tell me what you see.’
Her bewildered gaze met his reflected silver eyes. Uncertainly, she circled her mouth with her tongue, and he said thickly, ‘Then I’ll tell you. Forget what you were programmed to believe. You’re looking at a beautiful woman. You have eyes like pools of liquid gold, a mouth that begs to be kissed, a body to die for—perfectly formed breasts, a tiny waist, flirty hips—’ His hands had dropped, long fingers moving to touch the parts of her body he was describing. Mattie felt too giddy to stay upright; blood was rushing ferociously through her veins, pounding in her head.
Self-consciousness dissipated, lost in the red-hot mist of all the things he was doing to her, all the new and wicked sensations he was making her feel. She leaned back against him and he buried his fingers in the mound of her femininity. She sucked in a sharp breath as she instinctively parted her thighs, almost swooning with atavistic desire as his fingers probed more deeply, her hazed eyes watching his reflected hands as they pleasured her body, his head coming down as his mouth found the side of her neck.
And when she felt the potent force of his arousal against her buttocks she squirmed round in his arms, lifting her hips and parting her thighs to accommodate him, all primitive woman meeting her mate.
‘Oh, God—Mattie—’ Her name was torn from him as he swept her onto the bed, smothering her face, her breasts, with fevered kisses, the silver of his eyes darkened to pewter when he finally positioned himself over her and plunged smoothly into the slick, receptive, willing core of her body. And the rapture came quickly, for both of them, and it was more than she had ever dreamed possible.
There had been no pain, not the slightest hint of it, just ecstasy, a soaring upwards flight to somewhere near the stars and a glimpse of heaven. This first time for her would be something she’d always remember, she thought dreamily, stroking the length of his back as he collapsed on the bed at her side, gathering her in his arms, tucking her head into the angle of his shoulder.
‘You are incredible.’ His voice, husky and deep, wasn’t altogether steady. ‘How could you even think you’d disappoint me when you’re so beautiful, so sexy?’
Mattie murmured incoherently, squirming closer. In all of her life she’d never been this happy, this fulfilled. Which made her think.
‘James—’ She levered herself up on one elbow, looking down into his adored face, her eyes soft with love. ‘Did you, I mean, have you changed your mind about having children?’ And at the sharp query in his eyes she explained, ‘We didn’t take precautions.’
It took a split second for it to sink in. He sat upright, swung his long legs over the edge of the bed. ‘Hell, no! Don’t get that into your head.’ He shot an unreadable look over his shoulder. ‘You made me lose all control, and, believe me, that was a first.’ His sudden smile was as wicked as sin, sending electrifying prickles right through her body. ‘You can take that as a compliment. It should boost your tottery self-confidence!’ He got to his feet, grinning down at her. ‘You’re quite something, Matts, do you know that? You blew away my intention to make your initiation slow, very thorough and entirely unforgettable.’
She reached out and too
k his hand. ‘It was unforgettable,’ she assured him softly. ‘And we’ve got a whole month to be as slow and thorough as we want to be.’
‘Correction.’ He bent forward to touch her parted lips with his. ‘We have the rest of our lives.’ His eyes suddenly sobered. ‘Matts—I’ll take precautions in future—but as for just now, is this a safe time for you? Or should we do something about it?’
He smiled softly at her look of total incomprehension and pulled her up into his arms, his hands locked loosely at her waist. ‘This island may be off the beaten track,’ he told her, ‘but it isn’t completely behind the times. There’s a pharmacy—we could get a morning-after pill.’
‘No.’ She felt her body stiffen with rejection. His suggestion might be practical but it wasn’t romantic. And she was determined to keep romance high on her agenda. Besides, she was hardly likely to get pregnant from making love just once. It took some couples years of trying before they were able to make a baby! ‘No, no need,’ she told him firmly. ‘It’s perfectly safe.’ For all she knew it was—how was she to know where the so-called safe time in her cycle came? She’d never thought about it, never had the need to.
But she felt a niggling twinge of guilt when he took her at her word. ‘If you say so, sweetheart, it’s good enough for me! Now, I guess we should shower and dress, otherwise we’re going to keep Mercy and her lunch waiting. Though, right now, eating’s the last thing on my mind. Coming?’
‘Be right with you.’ She wasn’t hungry for food, either. But as they’d suggested lunch at one it would be unforgivably rude if they failed to turn up. Following him through to the bathroom, she had a tiny flicker of sadness at the thought of never bearing a child of his. But he was so obviously and adamantly against starting a family. And if it came down to a choice between having him as her husband and having a whole brood of children by any other man on the planet, she’d choose him.
Every time.
CHAPTER EIGHT
‘DO WE really have to go to this thing tonight?’ Mattie asked.
She sounded slightly tense, James thought. She hadn’t sounded like that for months—not since they had been together on the island, anyway. So why this evening?
He closed the bedroom door behind him and started to unknot his tie. The warm glow that crept around his heart whenever he saw her was such a regular occurrence that he didn’t think about it, he just accepted it as part of their satisfactory life together.
‘Afraid so,’ he answered, brushing her cheek with the customary ‘Nice To See You Again’ kiss. Clad in a black silk slip, she looked delectable. As always, whatever she happened to be wearing. He tossed his tie onto the huge double bed they now shared with such enthusiasm. His suit jacket followed.
‘It’s one of the biggest charity thrashes in London and I’m on the committee, as you know.’ He unbuttoned his shirt and removed his trousers. ‘We have to put in an appearance.’
Puzzled, he noted the slight droop of her mouth as she sat in front of the mirror and reached for a pot of something or other. It wasn’t like Mattie to baulk at a cocktail do, something that would merely involve circulating for half an hour or so clutching a glass of wine, making small talk.
Socially, she had blossomed out of all recognition. The quiet academic who had never been happier than when shut away with her work had been consigned to the past, happily consigned on her part, he was sure of that.
His wife of three months—he didn’t count the couple of months or whatever when they’d been living a sham—had excelled in becoming the best hostess in London.
The very best, he thought, admiring the clean lines of her slender naked shoulders.
Naked himself now, ready to take a shower, he went to stand behind her. She’d already had hers. The tendrils of glossy chestnut hair that curved around her jawline were still slightly damp.
