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Chapter One
Sebastian
Sebastian Rafeli sat back in the hot tub built into the large balcony and looked out over the jungle. The humidity in Thailand in January was comfortable, it was the perfect place for this vacation.
The gentle push of the wind through the bright green foliage seemed particularly beautiful, as Sebastian reflected that he’d never in his life felt as happy as he did right now.
He lounged back, his arms spread wide. He never thought that this would happen to him. He’d always thought love was for idiots, for sentimental fools who let themselves be swayed from their goals and ambitions. Now, he knew better.
The sound of the French windows opening behind him made him turn. It didn’t annoy him to admit that he was so smitten he couldn’t bear to take his eyes off her. Louisa stepped onto the balcony, a thick white robe wrapped around her and belted closed. In her hands she carried a large bottle of champagne and two glasses.
She undid her robe and shrugged it off, letting it drop to the floor. Underneath she was wearing a white bikini, the white of it standing against her tanned skin.
Sebastian thought she looked glorious like that, and he knew he would remember these moments for the rest of his life. He stood and offered her hand to help her into the water.
Louisa took it, although they both knew she didn’t need the help. After the conversation they’d just had, both of them were eager to touch each other.
“Here,” Louisa said, handing him the champagne bottle. “You can open it.”
Sebastian took it and started to peel back the foil label. “You know, my sweet, I never thought it’d come to this.”
“Opening your own champagne?” she teased. “I can do it for you, if you like?”
He caught her eye and smiled softly. “Engaged.”
Sebastian had brought her to Thailand for one purpose. He’d had an idea that this would be the perfect place to propose to her. It was the most romantic place he could think of. He hadn’t been certain she’d accept him, the two hadn’t known each other long; their whirlwind romance had started only a few months before. That didn’t matter though, he could imagine their life together, stretching out in front of him, the life that the two of them would make together, and the thought of that filled him with happiness he’d never experienced before.
“It’s funny,” he said, “When I was younger I thought I’d never get married. Now I can't wait to spend the rest of my life with you.”
He’d barely touched the champagne cork but it popped out with a bang, flying out into the jungle. A flock of startled birds rose from the trees, squawking their displeasure at being disturbed. The champagne bubbled out, spilling down the bottle’s neck. Louisa let out a shriek of laughter, moving quicklyto sit on his lap and putting her lips on the bottle to drink the escaping champagne.
After catching all the champagne that was running down the neck, she took the bottle from him and took a drink straight from the bottle. Sebastian watched the line of her neck and the bob of her throat as she swallowed. Her damp hair was held up in a messy bun; it was a relaxed style that she’d never wear in public. He knew Louisa only let him see her like this, without the armor of elegance that she put on in front of everyone else.
Louisa handed him the champagne and he took a deep sip.
“You’re not going to miss your bachelor days?” Louisa asked him as he was mid-drink. Her tone was light, but Sebastian thought he saw concern in her expression.
Sebastian shook his head with a chuckle. He had not exactly been living the exciting lifestyle of globetrotting and womanizing that tabloids assumed all billionaires lived. He’d definitely never been a playboy.
“Not for a second,” he said, pressing a kiss to her lips. “Pass me the glasses.”
Still on his lap, she reached past him so that her breasts were just in front of his face. She leaned back, holding the glasses up and he poured out two glasses.
“To my delightful fiancee,” he said, raising his glass to her.
“To my lovely fiance,” she said, mirroring him. It was possibly the first time in his life he’d been called lovely. No-one else but Louisa would have dared. Louisa brought out a side of him that he never knew he had. He’d been so content with his solitude, and now he knew it would destroy him if she ever left him.
She understood him, who he really was in his heart of hearts, with a clarity that no-one else in his life had. It was for that reason alone that he could be honest about his only qualm about getting engaged.
“There is,” Sebastian said, savoring the taste of the champagne before putting his glass down by the edge of the hot tub, “one thing.”
Louisa raised an eyebrow. “Just one?”
He put a hand around her waist under the water, his thumb stroking her side.
“When I was a teenager my parents sent me away to boarding school,” he began.
Louisa nodded slightly. This was a topic they’d talked about before, her parents had sent her away to boarding school too.
