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Marco had instinctively known the only way he could expunge the anger that gripped him when he realised how he’d been duped was to turn the tables on her. He would take her to bed on his own terms, for his own satisfaction—and then he would discard her.
He hadn’t been prepared for how badly he still wanted her. His desire for her had burned through his veins like wildfire—consuming every rational thought in his head.
Then, when Claudia’s mobile phone had rung and he’d seen that it was Primo Vasile, an overwhelming surge of possessiveness had stormed through him. He hated Vasile and was determined to thwart his plans in any way he could. But once again he had been shocked by the strength of his feeling towards Claudia.
He gritted his teeth and opened the bathroom door. He would control his emotions—just like he always had. And, when he had bedded Claudia one last time, she’d be out of his system. Then he would cast her aside.
Claudia sat on the sofa, looking into the fire. Her body was buzzing with unfulfilled desire, but she kept telling herself she’d had a lucky escape. She hadn’t answered the phone call—she’d been too lost in the moment with Marco to bear to talk to Primo Vasile—but it had given her a chance to get a hold of herself.
She stood up and walked across the room in agitation. What was wrong with her? Why would she even think of letting Marco make love to her?
He’d broken her heart and there was no reason to assume he would treat her any differently if she got involved with him again. Except, a little voice inside her said, apart from the terrible way he’d finished their relationship, he’d always treated her with incredible respect and tenderness.
But it didn’t matter anyway—because, even if she wanted to be with Marco again, she couldn’t.
Suddenly a heavy band of panic wrapped around her, constricting her throat, making it hard to breathe. She’d had no choice when she’d agreed to marry Primo, but she clung desperately to the fact that it was to be a marriage in name only. Later, after her father could no longer be hurt, she would leave him.
Suddenly tears welled up in her eyes and she knew she was about to burst into tears. It was awful—truly awful—to have to think about her escape from Primo at the same time as thinking about her father’s death.
She blinked desperately, determined not to let Marco see her cry again. That was what had made things so complicated in the first place. She didn’t want to talk about her father’s illness any more—she couldn’t bear it. And she also knew that if she got upset again she might end up telling Marco everything—about her stepmother and Vasile blackmailing her. That was the last thing she wanted.
Deep down inside she knew that someone as self assured and strong as Marco would never understand what she was doing for her father. He’d be convinced there must be another way to save him. He was used to being in control of his life and he had power and money.
But Claudia had no power. And the only way to get money was to marry and release her trust fund. There was nothing she could do to change that, without causing great distress to her father on his deathbed. And she would never, ever do that.
She turned and paced across the room, determined to think about something else. She went to the window and pressed her nose to the glass, cupped her hands round her face to block out the light from the lamp and stared out into the night.
Then a sound from behind her made her turn round.
‘Come and join me,’ Marco said, setting down two fresh glasses of wine on the coffee table.
‘I was looking at the fog,’ she said, reluctant to sit with him. As soon as she’d laid eyes on him, her earlier feelings of attraction had started to resurface. ‘It’s still so thick you can’t see a thing.’
Marco crossed the room and joined her at the window. He had not put his sweater back on and she couldn’t take her eyes off him. His movements were fluid and athletic, but everything about his stance made her think about the sheer strength contained within his powerful masculine form.
‘It’s as if the rest of the world doesn’t exist,’ Marco said. ‘The cottage is completely cut off. For a city dweller, that’s a strange feeling.’
As soon as he’d said the words a shiver ran through her. It truly was as if the rest of the world didn’t exist.
Then, to make matters worse, he lifted both hands to gently cradle her head, letting his fingers slip between the silky tresses of her hair. A whisper of electric desire tingled between them, but Claudia felt herself tense and she tried to step away.
‘It’s…it’s just that my life is so complicated,’ Claudia stammered. ‘I can’t do this…I mean I can’t get involved with you again.’
‘Everyone’s life is complicated,’ Marco said. ‘But there’s one simple fact that matters right now—tonight we are here, alone, unable to leave even if we wanted to.’
Claudia lifted her face to meet his gaze and, as she looked into his eyes, the familiar feeling that she was the only woman in the world came over her. And in a way that was true. Cut off from everything by the thick fog, they were alone. He was the only man, and she was the only woman.
CHAPTER SIX
MARCO stood by the window, watching Claudia walk away from him. Even dressed in her shapeless garments she still looked as hot as hell. When she bent down to pick up her glass of wine, a renewed blast of desire fired through his body.
He wanted her badly.
He frowned, his eyes following her as she walked over to the fireplace and started looking at the Christmas ornaments that had been arranged on the mantelpiece.
‘I can’t believe it,’ she said suddenly. She picked up a couple of little figures and carried them across the room to show him. ‘My grandmother had these exact same ornaments!’
Marco watched her walking towards him, captivated by the bewitching sway of her hips and the gentle bounce of her full breasts beneath the wool of her sweater as she moved.
