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He was surprised to find that the driving urge that had ridden him like a demon for so much of his life was strangely absent. He hadn’t really noticed it until that moment. He’d not thought of work beyond a few emails that his assistant had forwarded requiring his input or authorisation. He’d received only one phone call from Aleksander, regarding the next meeting of the exclusive and highly secretive charitable organisation he was part of. The King of Svardia had assured Javier that the event in Öström would run smoothly in his absence.
He smiled, wondering what Emily would make of the fact that he now rubbed shoulders with Kings and billionaires alike. So much had changed in six years, but they were still bound by the same thing that had brought them together in the first place. He wassureof it. Which was why he turned back to the idea that had needled its way into his post-orgasmic blackout.
He could definitely make it work. And fairly easily too, he figured, as he mentally sorted through what projects he had on the go and where they were at development-wise. In this instance he’d only need a couple more weeks off if he wanted to execute his plan. But the desire to think longer term was pulling at the edges of his mind.
Dusk had fallen, the moon rising into an attractive blue-grey sky, and stars were inking their way onto the canvas above the patio, but there was still half a bottle of champagne in the ice bucket tucked under the table, protecting it from the earlier heat.
He retrieved two clean glasses from the kitchen before returning to the patio, happy to find Emily leaning against the railings looking out at the gorge. The ends of her hair were a little damp from the shower she had taken. She was dressed in his shirt, which was far too big for her and covered all the things that would tempt him to take her right back to where they had been only an hour earlier. Even just the thought of it pulsed through him, hardening an arousal that was still shockingly swift and intense.
Raw. Primal.
There had always been a sense of that insatiability between them, but never so...carnal. It had surprised him at first. He’d been fearful of intimidating Emily, shocking her, but instead she’d welcomed it, matched it, demanded it and more from him and he’d gloried in it. And more than a little of him was ready to indulge in her all over again.
As if sensing his thoughts, Emily cut him a narrow-eyed gaze and he shrugged and smiled. ‘This is what you do to me,cariño.’
He paused only to pour them each a glass of champagne before joining her. He couldn’t help but press a kiss to the juncture of her neck and shoulder, his chest mere inches away from her back in a chaste imitation of what had passed before, and offered her a glass.
‘Now it is you who are thinking too loudly,’ he chided. ‘Care to share?’
Emily took the glass he offered, her gaze catching on the deep brown of his eyes, delighting in the invitation she found there.
‘I was thinking about how much I want this to last.’
‘Then let’s make it last. Come away with me?’
‘Away?’ she repeated, buying time to cover the fact that he had misinterpreted her meaning. She hadn’t changed her mind. She really did want to stay, to make a go of it. The thought of divorce turned her stomach and salted her tongue. But she couldn’t help but wonder if they were just falling into the same pattern they had before. Rushing into things without taking the time to think them through. Talk things through.
But neither could she ignore how she’d felt seeing Mariana’s pregnant belly, bursting with the children she and her husband were bringing into this world. The way she had glowed with the love binding her to Santi and to their future. Envious, Emily had realised that she wanted that so much, because then she might believe that Javier wouldn’t one day grow bored of her like her mother had, wouldn’t one day find something or someone else to love, leaving her lonely and wondering what she had done wrong all over again.
‘Yes,’ he said, guiding her over to the table, unaware of her thoughts. He sat without taking his eyes from her and pulled her into his lap. ‘I want us to go away. Somewhere we won’t be interrupted. Somewhere—’ he nuzzled that spot on her neck he couldn’t seem to get enough of ‘—I can do all the things I promised I’d do to you.’
A shiver ran through her body, the pulse at her sex throbbing wantonly all over again. Desire hazed her brain, fogging her mind. ‘Where and for how long?’ she asked half-heartedly, wondering about her projects and the workload that was racking up in her absence.
‘I want to take you to Istanbul.’
Something in her heart turned. He remembered. After all this time, he actually remembered.
‘We were supposed to go on our honeymoon,’ she said, the words a little sad.
‘Santi’s movie came up and I had to work to cover the investment,’ he said, cupping her cheek and gazing at her solemnly. ‘And I regret that bitterly. So, let’s do it properly this time. Andextravagantly!’ he said. Effervescent fizz and sparkle filled her bloodstream and a longing so deep and sure Emily was surprised by it. ‘We will stay in the finest hotels, travel in the most luxurious style!’ he promised dramatically.
‘I don’t need all that—I just need you,’ she said, getting a little lost in the depths of that rich dark brown gaze staring back at her. ‘But I’d really love to go to Istanbul,’ she said truthfully, thinking—hoping—that she could juggle her workload to make it happen. There was a tendril curling in the back of her mind, unfurling with discomfort, with a wordless warning—but it was so quiet, it was easy to ignore. ‘But what about Diabla?’ she asked, realising that she was a new responsibility that couldn’t be shirked.
Javier frowned and shrugged. ‘She comes with us, of course.’
Emily couldn’t help but throw her head back and laugh. ‘You can’t just bring her along,’ she said, looking at him as if he’d lost his mind—over a cat that had hissed, spat, scratched and ruined at least six thousand euros’ worth of clothing and property in the first two days of her stay here.
‘Yes, I can,’ he said determinedly. And, just like that, she supposed, yes. He really could.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
THENEXTFEWdays were a whirlwind of activity that struck her almost as frantically as the explosion of feelings and passion between her and Javi. They could hardly keep their hands off each other—and the way that it reminded her of how it had been in the beginning made her feel young and fun and deliriously happy.
Javier brought down his tablet and showed her the plans for their journey. They would take his plane directly to Istanbul. They would stay at a private members’ club that he belonged to, once owned by a king, which sat regally on the banks of the Bosphorus. The pictures on the screen showed some of the most opulent, sumptuous luxury Emily had ever seen—a beautifully carved wooden bed, intricate tiling and mosaics that reminded her of the Alhambra, gold, marble and rich deep walnut. Her designer’s mind went into overdrive and she had to stop herself from reaching for the tablet to pore over the images igniting creative fireworks in her brain. Javier only laughed, telling her that she’d be there in person soon enough.
They would spend three days there before travelling on to the Princes’ Islands, where he had leased a sprawling Ottoman villa that looked more like a palace to Emily. It had staff and a private chef, and a private beach with water that looked like liquid turquoise. She’d never seen anything like it.
Her shock must have shown on her face because Javier asked her if she was okay.
