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TWENTY
Despite her shock, it didn’t take Claudia’s heart—or hormones—long to betray her. Her senses filled up with him and she clung to his lapels, kissing him back, two weeks of sexual frustration bubbling up inside her.
It wasn’t until the racket of applause finally penetrated their passionate bubble that sense returned and Claudia pushed against his chest, struggling for release. He yanked her up and let her go to more applause from the crowd.
She smiled awkwardly for a moment, then glared at him before muttering, ‘Follow me.’
She marched ahead, furious with him and herself. She kicked her stilettos off as she hit the beach, leaving them where they were as she gathered the hem of her dress and made a beeline for the shoreline, conscious of him following more sedately behind.
‘How dare you?’ she said, turning on him when she was close enough to the water to drown him in it should the urge take over.
Luke held up his hands. ‘Claude.’
‘Don’t you Claude me,’ she snapped. ‘Don’t you come here acting all he-man. All...’ she took in his particular brand of delicious in his tuxedo and nearly swooned at his feet ‘...Captain Sexypants and act like a Neanderthal and expect me to drop at your feet.’
Captain Sexypants? ‘Okay.’
‘And don’t you okay me either,’ she seethed, completely oblivious to the romance of the stars overhead and the lapping waves. ‘You expect me to believe that you suddenly love me? That this isn’t about you being a horny, jealous, possessive jerk?’
Luke had to admit she made a good point. ‘Oh, no, it’s about all of those things as well,’ he admitted candidly. ‘When I saw you across the avenue before, it was absolutely about getting you into bed in the fastest possible way. To be honest, it was a relief to feel such a strong physical connection because then I didn’t have to think about anything deeper. And then Raoul showed...’
‘And you decided you’d come over all territorial and stake your claim?’
Luke wasn’t going to apologise for going after what he wanted. A decade in advertising had taught him to hold firm. ‘No. I realised what I feel for you goes way beyond the physical.’
Claudia snorted. She refused to let his pretty words sway her. ‘Really? Well, too bad. You can’t just waltz in here, throw the L word around and use me for three days before you waltz out again. I’m not going to be your little Aussie bonk-buddy.’
‘I’m not interested in something casual. I love you, Claudia Davis.’
Claudia shook her head, quashing the excited flutter in her chest. No. She wasn’t falling for that. ‘You told me two weeks ago that you couldn’t go there again after your divorce. You expect me to believe that’s all changed in just two weeks? That you’re suddenly over the most emotionally devastating experience of your life and that you’ve fallen in love with me? In two weeks?’
Luke shook his head. ‘Tonight, actually. I fell in love with you tonight.’
‘Oh, great. That’s so much better,’ Claudia said, folding her arms across her chest.
‘What happened with Philippa...the divorce...you’re right, it was devastating and I’ve been clinging to that as an excuse to focus on my career. But I looked across at you tonight and suddenly, all the hurt and humiliation, none of it mattered any more. Yes, I loved Philippa but the truth is, I didn’t fall in love with her. Not like just now.’
He took a step closer to Claudia because he needed her to hear him. ‘We fell into a relationship, we were a convenient couple. We were always at work together, we had a lot in common but I didn’t know her. Not like I know you. You’ve been part of the fabric of my life for ever. You’re in my DNA, Claude.’
Claudia glared at him, not sure she liked the biological comparison. ‘How romantic. I sound like a disease.’
Luke ignored her sarcasm. ‘I guess you are,’ he admitted. ‘You infected me a long time ago and you’ve been lying dormant inside me until today and now you’ve totally overrun me. I can’t believe it’s taken me so long to see what was right in front of me.’
Claudia wanted nothing more than to throw herself into his arms. To take his words at face value and make a grab for her happiness while it was standing right in front of her. But it all just seemed too good to be true. Could love between old friends ever be that simple?
He lived on the other side of the world, for crying out loud!
‘Oh, yeah, and how do you see it working between us?’ she demanded. ‘With you in London and me here?’
