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Greg sighed. ‘Such a shame you chose to wear that dull brown when I knew you. Maybe I’d have thought twice before taking the route I took.’
‘No, you wouldn’t have. Your slimy nature makes you interested in taking care of number one. Are you going to tell me what you want any time soon?’
‘You’re distressed so I’ll let that insult slide. But be careful now or I’ll forget my manners. Now, what do I want? It’s very simple: I want Pantelides Shipping. And you’re going to help me get it.’
You’re out of your mind was the first of many outraged responses that rushed into her head. She managed to stop herself before they spilled out. Slowly, she sank onto her sofa, the only piece of furniture in her living room aside from a lone coffee table, as her mind raced.
‘And why would I do that?’
‘To protect your dirty little secret, of course.’
She licked her lips as fear threatened to swamp any semblance of clear thinking. ‘What makes you think my boss doesn’t already know?’
‘Don’t take me for a fool, Anna.’
‘My name is Brianna.’ The woman Greg thought he knew no longer existed.
‘If you want to keep calling yourself that, you’ll give me what I want. And don’t bother telling me Pantelides knows about your past. He’s scrupulous when it comes to any hint of scandal. You’re the last person he’d employ if he knew your past was as shady as his father’s.’
This time her gasp was audible. It echoed around the room in tones of pain, shock and anger. ‘You know about his father?’
‘I do my homework, sweetheart. And if he’d bothered to do his he’d have discovered who you really were. But I’m glad he didn’t, because now you’re in the perfect position to help me.’
The vice tightened harder around her chest. ‘What exactly is it you want me to do?’
‘I need information. As much as you can get your hands on. Specifically, which of the board members hold the largest shares, aside from Pantelides. And which of the other members will be amenable to selling what shares they have.’
‘You know this will never work, don’t you? Sakis—Mr Pantelides—will crush you if you come within a whisper of his company.’
‘God, you haven’t gone and done it again, have you, Anna?’ came the soft taunt.
Brianna shivered. ‘Done what?’
‘Offered that foolish little heart of yours on a silver platter to another boss?’ he murmured in a pitying voice.
‘I don’t know what you’re talking about.’ But deep down there was no hiding from the truth. Her feelings for Sakis had morphed from purely professional to something else. Something she was vehemently unwilling to examine right now, when she needed all her wits about her to defend herself against what her grimy ex was intent on pulling her into.
‘You have four days, Anna. I’ll be in touch and I expect you to have the information I need.’
Her mouth went dry. Her heart hammered with sick fear and loathing and the unmistakeable, sinking feeling of inevitability. ‘And if I don’t?’
‘Then your boss will wake up to a most tantalising double-page spread of his treasured assistant in the tabloid press on Saturday morning. I’m pretty sure with very little effort I can get Pantelides Shipping to start trending again on all social media.’
Her belly quivered and she clenched her muscles hard. ‘Why are you doing this? Haven’t you done enough? Aren’t the millions you squirrelled away enough?’
‘Every Joe Bloggs knows how to make a million these days. No, sweetheart, my ambitions are set much higher than that. I’d hoped my association with Moorecroft would see me there but the fool folded at the first sign of adversity. Fortunately, I have you now.’
‘I haven’t agreed to anything.’
‘But you will. You covet your position almost as much as I covet the prospect of acquiring Pantelides Shipping. Make no mistake, I will have it.’
‘Greg—’
‘I’ll be in touch on Friday. Don’t disappoint me, Anna.’
He hung up before she could appeal to his better nature. Who was she kidding? Greg had no better nature. He was a vulture who ruthlessly fed on the weak.
The discovery that he’d engineered her to take the fall for his failing company over three years ago had rocked her to the core. When he’d pleasantly asked her to act as his co-director, she’d thought nothing of it, especially when he’d brought in a legal expert to explain things to her. Of course, it’d turned out the so-called legal expert had been in on the scheme to bleed his company dry before declaring bankruptcy and leaving her to take the fall.
She’d had time to dwell on her stupidity and gullibility in the maximum-security prison the judge had sentenced her to, to set an example.
Brianna staggered up from the sofa, swaying on shaky legs as her mind spun with the impossibility of her situation.
The very idea of betraying Sakis made her stomach turn over in revulsion.
He would never forgive her if she brought his company under unpalatable scrutiny so soon after his tanker’s crash and having the memory of his father resurrected.
She could resign with immediate effect. But what would stop Greg from spewing his vitriol purely out of spite?
Telling Sakis the truth was out of the question.
Betrayal is betrayal. The reason for it ceases to matter once the act is done.
Casting her gaze around the almost empty room, another shiver raked through her.
Run!
The stark reality of her harsh childhood had made it impossible for her to fully imbed herself in any one place, even this place she called her sanctuary. At least, if she had to run, she could be out of here in less than half an hour.
She pressed her lips together as a spike of rebellion clayed her feet. Why should she run? She’d done nothing wrong. Her only folly had been to delude herself into thinking Greg cared for her. But she’d paid the price for it.
No more. No more!
Throwing down the mobile phone, she went into her equally sparsely furnished bedroom. The bed lay on wooden slats on the floor. Aside from a super-sized papier-mâché cat she’d bought at a Sunday market months ago, only a tall, broad-leafed ficus plant graced the room. Her only indulgence was the luxury cashmere throw and the fluffy pillows on the bed. Even the built-in wardrobe held only the collection of designer suits Sakis had insisted she used her expense account for when she’d joined Pantelides Shipping. Her own clothes consisted of a few pairs of jeans and tops, one set of jogging bottoms and jumper and two pairs of trainers.
Those would be easy to pack.
No; she refused to think like a fugitive. She had nothing to be ashamed of.
With shaky fingers, she undressed and entered the en suite bathroom, suddenly eager to wash away the grime of her conversation with Greg. But his threat lingered in the air, in the water. No matter how much she scrubbed, she felt tainted by the thought that she had even contemplated betrayal to save her own skin.
The pounding at her door finally registered over the hammering of her heart and the rush of the shower. Twisting the tap shut, she heard the faint sound of her mobile just before another round of hammering made her lunge for her dressing down. With a quick sluice of a towel over her body, she went to her door and peered through the peephole.
The massive frame of Sakis looming through the distorted glass quickly eroded the relief that Greg hadn’t found his way to her flat.
It seemed the two people responsible for the angst in her life were determined to breach her sanctuary at all costs today.
Pulse skittering out of control, Brianna cracked open the door. ‘I...I didn’t know you knew where I lived.’ She looked into his clenched-jawed face and her words died on her lips. ‘Why are you here?’
‘I came here because...’ He stopped, then clawed a hand through his hair. ‘Hell, I’m not exactly sure why I came here. But I know I didn’t want to be at the penthouse by myself.’ He raked his hand through his hair again. The weariness she’d glimpsed on his face earlier seemed amplified a hundred-fold. The soft place inside her chest that had been expanding since their pancake episode this morning widened even further and she found herself stepping back.
‘I... Would you like to come in?’
Lips pursed, he nodded. Standing to one side in the narrow hallway, she held her breath as he entered her sanctuary.
Immediately, he dwarfed the space. She shut the door and entered the living room to find him pacing the space in short, jerky strides.
‘Can I get you a drink?’ She hadn’t touched the bottle of scotch that had come with her Christmas hamper last year. Now she was grateful for it as she produced the bottle and Sakis nodded.
She took out a glass, poured a healthy measure and passed it to him.
‘Aren’t you having one?’ Despite his question, his gaze was focused on the amber liquid in his hand.
‘I don’t really...’ She stopped. After what she’d been through already tonight, what she sensed was coming, perhaps a small drink wouldn’t hurt. She poured a single shot for herself, took a sip and nearly choked as the liquid burned a fiery path through her chest.
With a grim smile, Sakis tossed his own drink back in one unflinching gulp. He set his glass down on the coffee table and faced her.
‘Why did you leave?’
The reason for returning home blazed at the back of her mind. Although she’d done nothing wrong, guilt clawed through her nevertheless. She licked her lips then froze when his eyes darkened. ‘I haven’t been home in a while. I just wanted to touch base.’
‘And touching base precluded you from answering your phone?’
She glanced at the phone she’d abandoned on the sofa after her call with Greg. Picking it up, she activated it and saw twelve missed calls on the screen.
‘Sorry, I was in the shower.’
His agitated pacing brought him closer. He stopped a couple of feet from her. But the distance meant nothing because she could feel the heat of his body reaching out, caressing her, claiming her. Tendrils of damp hair that had escaped the knot clung to her nape, sending tiny rivulets of water down her back. Supremely conscious that she was naked beneath her gown, she tried to take a step back but her feet were frozen on the carpet.
His gaze traced over her and stopped at the rapid rise and fall of her chest. She watched his fists clench and release as stark hunger transformed his face into a mesmerising mask.
‘I’m sorry to have disturbed you,’ he rasped, but nothing in his tone or his face showed contrition. Instead, his stare intensified, whipping the air around her until a helpless moan escaped her lips.
Abandoning reason, Brianna stepped closer, bringing her body flush against his. Knowing she risked betraying her very soul, but unable to stop herself, she cupped his jaw. ‘You ordered me to stop working. I didn’t think you’d need me tonight.’
Her breath caught as his gaze moved hungrily over her lips.
‘No, Brianna. Far from it. I need you. More now than I’ve ever needed you before. You’re the only one who makes the world make sense to me.’
‘I...I am?’
‘Ne. I didn’t like it when I couldn’t reach you.’ His head dropped a fraction until his forehead touched hers. ‘I can’t function without you by my side.’
‘I’m here now,’ she whispered, her throat clogged with emotions she couldn’t give name to. No, scratch that: it was desire, passion and compassion all rolled into one needful and relentless ache. That visceral need to connect with Sakis that she’d never felt with anyone else, not even her own mother. ‘Whatever you need, I’m here.’
One hand fisted her damp, precariously knotted hair, pulling it back almost roughly so her face was tilted up and exposed to his. ‘Are you?’ he enquired roughly.
She gave a shaky nod. ‘Yes.’
‘Be very sure, glikia mou. Because this time I won’t be able to stop. If you don’t want me to go any further, tell me now.’ His eyes searched her urgently, his need clearly displayed in the harsh whistle of breath that escaped his parted lips.
The hard body plastered to hers made thinking near impossible but Brianna knew one thing—this could be her one chance to be with Sakis. After Friday, she’d be out of a job—one she would be sacked from or have to resign from.
From a purely selfish point of view, this could be her last chance to experience the fervid promise of bliss she’d felt in the gym last night—to be bold enough to reach for something she’d once dared to crave.
‘Brianna?’ His fierce tone held a hint of vulnerability that struck deep.
Sakis needed her. And she...she needed to blank out the heartache the future held.
‘Yes, I want you...’
He swallowed the words with the savage demand of his kiss. The hand at her waist lowered to grasp her bottom and he pulled her into stinging contact with his groin, giving a low groan as the force of his erection probed her belly.
For an endless age, he devoured her mouth with a hunger born of desperation. Brianna gave as much as she got, her hunger just as maddeningly urgent. When his tongue curled around hers, she opened her mouth wider to feel even more of it.
Sakis groaned again and walked her back until the back of her legs touched her small sofa. He’d barely pushed her down before he covered her with his immense body. Searing heat engulfed her as they lay plastered from chest to thigh. Raising his head, his gaze scoured her face as if imprinting her features on his memory. When it touched her lips, the urge to lick them overcame her. She passed her tongue over them and watched in secret delight as his eyes darkened dramatically.
‘I suspected that underneath those severe business suits you were a seductress, Moneypenny.’
‘I’m sure I have no idea what you mean.’ She licked her lips again.
His growl was her first warning but she was too far gone to heed it.
Brianna quickly pulled his head down and brushed his lips with hers. She kissed him again and felt her heart leap with joy when he deepened it.
When he suddenly surged off her and stood, Brianna fought not to cry out in disappointment. But he merely shrugged out of his jacket and tie before plucking her off the seat. ‘I’m so lucky to have you. But my gratitude does not extend to making love to you on a sofa made for elves.’
‘Oh. I guess it is a little on the small side, isn’t it?’
‘Perhaps not, if you’re trying to be inventive. We’ll leave it for another time.’
The thrill that went through her escalated when he caught her up in his arms and took her lips in another searing kiss. ‘Which way to the bedroom?’
Brianna pointed and he immediately steered her in that direction. At the door, she hesitated. What would he think when he saw how sparsely decorated her room was? She was scrambling to think of excuses when he pulled her hips into his groin.
‘I don’t mind doing it standing up if that’s what you’d prefer, glikia mou. Just say the word,’ he breathed against her neck, one hand sneaking up to cup her bare breast where her gown had fallen open. With another groan, he squeezed before teasing the nub between his fingers. ‘But say it quickly before I combust from neglect.’
‘The...the bedroom is fine.’ She opened the door and held her breath. But Sakis was only interested in the bed, not the state of the near-empty room. He propelled her firmly towards it, shucking off his shoes, socks and shirt without letting go completely. With a firm hand he pushed her onto the bed and fell onto his knees behind her.
Pulling her back, he ground his hips into her. ‘You have no idea how many times I’ve imagined you in this position before me.’ Urgent hands slid up her dressing gown and he growled with ragged need as he bared her naked bottom to his heated gaze. ‘Theos, no knickers. This is even better than I imagined.’ Roughly, he reached for the sleeves of the gown and jerked it off her completely.
Brianna was thankful she wasn’t facing him so that she didn’t have to explain her tattoo to him just yet, especially since, with the depth of her need, she wasn’t sure she wouldn’t blurt out the truth behind it. The other thing was her scar. She couldn’t hide it for ever but she was grateful she didn’t have to explain it right this minute.
Because the sensation of Sakis touching her naked bottom, caressing and decadently moulding it, made her senses melt.
‘Theos, I love your ass,’ he growled with dirty reverence.
Pure feminine delight fizzed through her. ‘I can tell,’ she responded breathily.
His laugh was low and deep, doing nothing to disguise his hunger. She jerked with surprise and delight when she felt his mouth touch each globe in an open-mouthed kiss before biting lightly on her flesh.
He continued to knead her with his large hands, massaging down to her hips before returning to fondle her with both hands. The eroticism of the act made her breath catch. But it was when he pushed her forward and spread apart her thighs that she stopped breathing.
Sakis blew a hot breath on her parted folds, making her thighs quiver in anticipation of what was to come. When it came, when the tip of his tongue flicked over her most sensitive place, Brianna couldn’t stop the cry of pleasure that spilled from her throat. Hands shaking in a monumental effort to keep her from collapsing onto the bed, she clamped her eyes shut and held her breath for another burn of sensation.
Another flick, then several more, then Sakis opened her wider, baring her to his gaze. He muttered something in Greek before he placed the most shocking, open-mouthed kiss on her. He devoured her as if she was his favourite meal. Sensation built upon sensation until Brianna wasn’t sure which move pleased her more—his teeth grazing her clitoris or his relentlessly probing tongue inside her.
All she knew was that the majestic peak that promised both exquisite torture and intense pleasure loomed closer. Fire burned behind her closed lids. Her fingers spasmed into a death grip on her sheets. With one long, merciless pull of his mouth on her clitoris, he sent her over the edge.
He gave a long, satisfied groan as he drank her in. For endless minutes, he lapped her with his tongue until her convulsions ceased. Vaguely, she heard him leave the bed and shuck off his trousers. Limp and breathless, she started to sag.
One hand caught her around the waist. ‘Stay right there; I’m not finished with you yet.’
Brianna clawed back reason enough to demand huskily, ‘Um...condom?’
‘Taken care of.’ His hand caressed up her stomach to cup one breast before teasing her nipple. She felt the other fumble for the loose knot in her hair. ‘You know I’ve never seen your hair down?’
‘Hmm...yes.’
He pulled her up and released the knot, then groaned as his fingers weaved through the heavy blonde tresses that went all the way down her back. ‘Theos, it’s a travesty to keep this gorgeous hair tied up day after day. You deserve punishment for that, Moneypenny.’
The sharp tap on her rump sent excitement sizzling along her nerves. She bit her lip when she felt the thick evidence of his desire lying between the crease of her bottom, a relentless reminder that there was another experience to be celebrated.
‘You don’t think you’ve tortured me enough?’ she asked.
His thumbs flicked over her nipples. ‘Not nearly enough, pethi mou. Open your legs wider.’
She obeyed because she wanted this more than she wanted her next breath. At the first probe of his erection, she held her breath. He used one hand to hold her still and fed another inch inside her.
Stars burst across her vision. ‘Sa—’ How could it be that she was bared to him in the most intimate of ways and yet the taste of his name on her lips felt a touch too far?
‘Say it,’ he commanded.
‘I can’t...’
He started to withdraw. Her body clenched in fierce denial. ‘No!’
‘Say my name, Brianna.’
‘Sa...Sakis,’ she gasped. He pushed back in with a deep groan. ‘Oh God.’
‘Again!’
‘S...Sakis!’
‘Good girl.’ He plunged in until he was fully embedded, then held still. ‘Now, tell me how you want this to go. Fast or slow. Either way will be torture for me but I want to please you.’
Brianna wanted to tell him he’d already pleased her, a thousand times more than she’d ever imagined possible.
‘Now, glikia mou, while my brain still functions...’ Pushing her forward, he covered her with his body and trapped her splayed hands under his on the bed.
The first signs of her climax clawed at her. ‘Fast, Sakis. I want it fast. And hard.’
‘Theos!’ His response through clenched teeth was a hot breath in her ear. ‘Your wish is my command.’ With a loud groan, he pulled out and surged back in, then proceeded to set a blistering pace that made her die a little each time her orgasm drew closer.
When he rocked back on his knees, Brianna’s chest collapsed onto the bed, her feeble arms unable to sustain the barrage of sensations that rippled through her. Taking one last, gasping breath, she screamed as blissful convulsions seized her. Dimly, she heard Sakis’s long, drawn-out growl as his pleasure overtook him. Deep within her, she felt his thickness pump his pleasure over and over until he was spent.
He collapsed sideways onto the bed and took her with him. In the dark room, he tucked her back against his chest, their harsh breaths gradually slowing until only the occasional spasm raked through them.
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