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Ten minutes later, her arms aching from reaching behind her back to try and undo the fiddly buttons on her dress, Eleanor conceded defeat. She spun round when the connecting door opened and Jace lounged in the doorway.
‘I thought the door was locked,’ she said in a breathless voice quite unlike her own. ‘I usually check it, but I forgot tonight.’
‘Perhaps one of the staff unlocked it. Or perhaps you left it unlocked on purpose,’ he drawled.
‘I assure you I didn’t.’
He strolled further into her room. ‘So you say, but your body is sending out a different message,pouláki mou.’
‘Don’tcall me that. It’s unflattering.’
‘It’s not meant to be.’
‘You think I am a drab sparrow.’ She took a step backwards and banged her hip on the corner of the dressing table.
Jace shook his head as he came closer. He had discarded his jacket and tie and the sleeves of his shirt were pushed up to his elbows. Wiry black chest hairs and an expanse of olive-tanned skin were visible where the top of his shirt was open. Eleanor hated how her heart leapt when his mouth curved upwards in a meltingly sexy smile.
‘I think you are beautiful. When I saw you in your wedding dress you blew my mind,’ he said gruffly.
‘Stop right there.’ Eleanor held out her hand to ward him off. She had been down this path once before, and she was determined not to fall for his husky voice and the seductive gleam in his dark eyes. ‘You said you wouldn’t force me to sleep with you.’
‘Theé mou!’he exploded. ‘Of course not. Do you really think that of me?’ His jaw clenched. ‘No, don’t answer. I have a feeling I won’t like your reply.’
He raked his hand through his hair. ‘I wanted to thank you for marrying me and making my mother the happiest I can remember seeing her. She learned a few days ago that the treatment for her cancer has been unsuccessful, and there are no more options. It’s simply a matter of time now.’
‘I’m so sorry to hear that.’ Eleanor bit her lip. ‘But I feel terrible for lying to your mother, and my sister, and everyone who came to our wedding and wished us well, unaware that our marriage is a...a farce.’
‘Is it?’ Jace murmured. Somehow, he had moved without her realising and he was too close and yet not close enough.
‘What else can it be?’ she asked helplessly, mesmerised by his potent masculinity.
‘Whatever we want it to be.’ He slipped his hand beneath her chin and tilted her face. She felt as if she were drowning in his liquid gaze and her lips parted of their own volition when he brushed his mouth over hers in a featherlight caress. He kissed her again, taking little sips of her lips, tantalising, teasing. Not enough.
‘This is not a lie. Our desire for each other is real and we are both enslaved by it,’ he growled, his warm breath grazing her cheek before he kissed his way down her neck to the edge of her wedding dress.
CHAPTER SIX
JACETURNEDHERin his arms so that he was standing behind her and pushed her hair aside to gently nip her earlobe with his teeth, sending starbursts of sensation shooting through her. His chest rumbled as he made a sound somewhere between a laugh and a groan. ‘That’s a lot of buttons. I’ll try to be patient while I undo them.’
His words chilled Eleanor’s blood. If he unfastened her dress he would see her scar. His hands moved from her shoulders and she felt him release the top button.‘No.’She was galvanised to action and jerked away from him. ‘I don’t want you...’
He stared at her and sounded puzzled rather than frustrated by her apparent change of heart. ‘I would never do anything you did not want. But I know you want me, Eleanor.’ His Greek accent was thick when he spoke her name.
She shook her head and the room whirled alarmingly. ‘I don’t... I don’t feel very well.’ Her stomach churned, and she gasped and fled into the en suite bathroom, just managing to turn the key in the lock before she leaned over the basin and was horribly sick.
When she’d finished and had brushed her teeth, Eleanor grimaced at her reflection in the mirror. Her face was as white as her wedding dress and her mascara was smudged, making her look like a panda. But she couldn’t stay in the bathroom all night. As she stepped into the bedroom Jace came towards her carrying a glass of water and a plate.
‘I had one of the staff bring you a sandwich.’ He frowned when she shuddered. ‘You need to eat something. How many glasses of champagnedidyou drink today?’
‘I lost count,’ she admitted. ‘I didn’t notice its effect while I was talking to the guests, but now I feel terrible.’
‘I should have realised,’ Jace said shortly. ‘You are my wife and I am responsible for your welfare.’
His words sparked Eleanor’s temper. ‘I don’t want to be a responsibility. I’m not a child.’
‘You act like one sometimes. Why did you run away in Paris instead of talking to me and having an adult discussion about what you had overheard me say on the phone?’
‘You told Takis that your engagement to me was not a love match. What was there to discuss?’ Hurt throbbed in her voice. She lifted her hand to her pounding head. ‘Why is the room spinning?’
