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‘The obvious workings of biology aside, why is it so hard for you to believe this baby is yours, Neo?’ The question emerged before I could stop it.
‘Because I’m not a man who accepts things at face value. Not anymore,’ he said with cold precision. ‘And I caution you against attempting to change that. You’ll be wasting both your time and mine.’
That stark warning should have killed any softening towards him. Put me on the path back to unfeeling composure. Instead it mired me deeper in a quiet urgency to know why.
The urge was stemmed when Neo summoned a hovering staff member to clear away the tray. About to rise, I stopped, suppressing a shiver when his fingers brushed my inner arm.
‘You haven’t seen the sunset yet,’ he murmured. ‘Besides, I have something for you.’
I was torn between the stunning sunset unfolding outside and curiosity as to what he had for me. Neo won out. Only he was in no hurry. He nodded at the view.
I watched, awed, as the magnificent combination of orange, yellow and grey danced over the sparkling pool and the sea beyond, stretching across the horizon until it felt as if the whole world was bathed in splendid colour.
‘It’s breathtaking.’
‘Yes,’ he said simply.
The weight of his gaze remained as the minutes ticked by slowly and the sun dropped into the ocean. When I turned my head he was staring at me, that fierce light blazing in his eyes. My heart banged against my ribs.
To cover the flustering billowing inside, I cleared my throat. ‘You mentioned a tour?’
He nodded, but didn’t move. Simply reached into his breast pocket, extracted a small velvet box and prised it open. ‘I should’ve given this to you earlier.’
The magnificent ring consisted of a large square diamond, with a red hue I’d never seen before, surrounded by two sloping tiers of smaller pure gems. The band was platinum, a perfect match to my wedding ring.
I was aware my jaw had dropped with stunned surprise, but I couldn’t look away from the most beautiful piece of jewellery I’d ever seen.
‘Do you like it?’ he asked, his voice a little gruff.
I tore my gaze away to meet his, and was immediately trapped by a different sort of captivation. The scorching sort. ‘Can I say I hate it, just so I don’t have to wear it?’
One eyebrow rose. He was clearly surprised by my answer. ‘I fail to see the logic,’ he drawled.
‘Wearing something like that in public is just inviting a mugging. Or worse.’
His lips twitched a tiniest fraction. ‘Let me worry about that.’ He held out his hand in silent command.
I hesitated. ‘Neo...’
‘Wear it, Sadie. It will invite less speculation. And it will please me.’
Perhaps it was the beautiful sunset and the food that had mellowed me. Perhaps this particular fight wasn’t worth it because there was no downside to wearing one more ring when I’d already accepted another, binding me to this dynamic man who made my insides twist with forbidden yearning when I should have been shoring up my barriers at every turn.
I gave him my hand.
The act of Neo sliding another ring onto my finger felt vastly intimate, much too visceral. So much so, I’d stopped breathing by the time the band was tucked securely next to its counterpart. And was even more lightheaded when he wrapped his fingers possessively around mine and tugged me up.
‘You won’t need them,’ he rasped, when I went to slip my feet back in my shoes.
He led me to the south wing, where every bedroom and salon was a lavish masterpiece of white and silver and more stunning than the last, and where a private cinema, study and wine cellar were filled to the brim with extravagances only obscenely wealthy men like Neo could afford.
The north wing contained fewer rooms, mainly an immense private living room dividing two master suites. Both suites were bordered by a tennis-court-sized terrace which housed a smaller semi-enclosed version of the swimming pool downstairs.
The urge to dip my bare toes into the sparkling water was too irresistible. I gave in, gasping in delight, only to look up to find Neo’s gaze locked on my mouth.
He didn’t look away.
Slowly, heat built to an inferno between us. Until that breathlessness invaded again, threatening to drive me to the edge of my sanity.
