Love's Portrait (17 page)

“Oh lord.” Her whisper was almost inaudible, but it was clear his words excited her. Their gazes locked, and he sucked in a sharp breath. The same hot need burning inside him was glowing in her beautiful eyes. She wanted him. Raising her wrist to his mouth, he pressed his lips to the small area of bare skin her evening glove revealed.

“Let me take you home.” He watched her struggle to make a decision, her expressive face conveying all too clearly the battle raging inside her.

“I…I..”

“Let me show you we’re meant for each other, Julia. Let me show you how much I love you.” The moment he said the words, he realized he’d pushed too hard. Julia paled then shook her head.

“You mustn’t say that…you’re…you’re confusing me.”

“Bloody hell,” he growled.

Frustration slammed into his stomach as he released her hand and reclined back into his seat with a grunt. At least she’d not rejected him outright. That was a good sign. He simply needed to be patient. With a sharp jerk of his head, he agreed to her request.

“I’m a patient man when I want something, Julia. I’m willing to give you time, but be forewarned. This is not the last you’ve heard in this matter.”

Her lips parted as if she were about to say something, when the sudden swish of the curtain behind him stopped her. Rising to his feet he turned and bowed as the woman he’d seen with Julia earlier entered the opera box. Julia quickly introduced him to her cousin in a manner that indicated she was clearly agitated by his promise. With the introductions complete, he bowed over Julia’s hand.

“Remember what I said, Julia,” he whispered against her fingers. With that, he excused himself and left the box. Despite his disappointment at having lost this particular battle, something told him it was possible to win the war.

Chapter 12

Julia frowned at the figures in front her. This was the second time she’d found something amiss with the Sea Witch’s logs. Nothing added up correctly, and it concerned her enough to bring it to Morgan’s attention. With a frown, she worried her lip with her teeth. It had been a week now since she’d seen him at the Lyceum Theatre.

No, that wasn’t quite true. She
had
seen him. He’d passed her several times in the shipping office either in the main workroom or in passing as one of them arrived or departed. Each time he’d greeted her with a courteous nod and nothing more. He was doing exactly what she’d asked him to do since the beginning of their relationship.

So why did the fact irritate her so much. For a man who professed to care for her, he was certainly not working very hard to change her mind. Dismayed by the notion, she pulled in a sharp breath. Had she gone mad? Every time the man was near her, what little self-control she possessed hovered on the edge of total collapse.

With one silk-edged word, Morgan could easily have her eating out of the palm of his hand. And it terrified her to admit that she wanted to do just that. She wanted to give herself over to him completely. The traitorous thought made her slam the ledger closed.

Glaring at the accounting book, she pressed her fingers into its cloth binding. The discrepancy in the Sea Witch’s log needed his attention. Prepared or not, she needed to prove to herself that she could control her emotions where he was concerned. Despite what Catherine had said about seeking happiness, she firmly believed her refusal to indulge in a continued liaison with Morgan was the best course of action.

With a quick step, she left the small office Morgan had provided for her use. A moment later, she was standing in front of his office door. Hesitation stayed her hand briefly before she rapped on the wood. Hearing his command to enter, she inhaled a deep breath, and stepped into the lion’s den with the ledger clutched tightly to her breast.

Morgan was standing at the window as she entered his office. A look of surprise darkened his blue eyes when he turned his head toward her. Abruptly, he wheeled about and strode to his desk. Picking up a sheaf of papers, he sorted through them in a manner that made her heart sink. He seemed almost annoyed at her presence, and her mouth went dry at the way her heart suddenly ached.

“What can I do for you, Julia?” The cold note in his voice made her wince.

The sharpness of his words cut deep. Had he given up on her? The question made her swallow a knot of fear in her throat. She had to stop thinking like this. If she weren’t careful, she’d be throwing herself into his arms.

Assuming a business-like manner, she rounded his large desk and laid the ledger she carried on the desktop in front of Morgan. Immediately, a frisson slid over her skin as the warmth of his body heated hers simply by standing next to him. To her dismay, his entire body went rigid. It was as if the man found her presence detestable.

The thought squeezed at her heart, and she opened the ledger with an abrupt movement. When she found the appropriate page, she pointed to the account lines she’d been working on for most of the morning. Her finger pressed against the paper, she uttered a noise of frustration.

“These figures aren’t adding up correctly.”

He didn’t answer for a moment as he leaned over the book and trailed his finger over the numbers. Trembling, she pulled her hand away to guard against his touch. She breathed in the warm spice scent of him. When she’d first met him, she’d thought that it was indecent for a man to smell so wonderful.

It had been wrong to think that. He smelled deliciously male. Strong and masculine. It was as dangerous a scent now as it had been then. Her heart skipped a beat as she studied his hand. A light dusting of dark hair covered the back of his hand, while a tapered finger tapped restlessly against the ledger page. He had beautiful hands. The memory of what those hands could do stirred her senses as a familiar heat curled in her stomach.

“Everything appears to be in order.”

Jerked out of her reverie, she shook her head with frustration. “You don’t understand, the Sea Witch was supposed to have a hundred more barrels of Madagascar oil than what she had when she arrived in port.”

“That’s because I had the captain stop at Gibraltar and hand over those barrels to the Bluebell for delivery to America.”

“Oh.” She frowned in puzzlement before turning to the Bluebell ledger page where the transaction had been noted. Feeling foolish, she shook her head. “I apologize.”

“It was an efficient measure recommended by one of my investors.” There was a slight trace of amusement in his voice.

The words took a moment to sink in before she realized she was the investor he’d referred too. Shortly after she’d invested her money with St. Claire Shipping, she’d suggested he should consider using foreign ports-of-call as a means of transferring cargo more efficiently. The thought that he might actually listen to her suggestions had never crossed her mind.

Startled by the fact, Julia looked up at him. For the first time she realized how close they were to each other. The heat of him encircled her, while her heart crashed into her chest at a frantic pace. She missed his touch, and standing so close to him created the pulsating need to reach out and touch him. It took every ounce of willpower Julia possessed to keep from pressing her hand against his chest to see if his heart was racing with excitement like hers.

Hunger burned in his eyes as he watched her. It was a look that devoured her with an intensity that filled her with a longing she wanted to give way to. The muscle in his jaw flexed and the tension in him was almost palpable. If she were to touch him, his body would be hard as a rock. Would he be hard everywhere? The erotic thought shocked her, and her breathing immediately became shallower.

It was a scandalous thought, but it surprised her how much the idea excited her. She’d never thought it possible that a man could make her feel desire as Morgan had done from the first moment they’d met. And as shocking as it was to think it, she wanted him to be hard with desire for her. Beneath his piercing gaze, her insides melted and she swayed into him. He didn’t look away from her as she saw his head start to descend. He was going to kiss her.

She shuddered at the desire speeding its way through her. She wanted him to kiss her until she couldn’t think. It had been so long since the last time she’d been in his arms. Her eyes fluttered shut as she tipped her head back and eagerly awaited his lips to sear hers. When the heat of his body left her, her eyes flew open to see him watching her from several feet away.

“Is there anything else?”

The formality in Morgan’s voice made her suppress a cry of frustration. Why was he addressing her with such polite civility? He’d held nothing back at other times, and especially not while they’d been in the throes of passion. Then he’d done everything he could to arouse her to a frenzied state.

An internal voice mocked her question. He was treating her exactly as she’d told him too. Even more disquieting was the knowledge that she didn’t want him to listen to her. She wanted him to be masterful and commanding. She wanted him to kiss her senseless. Disconcerted by her thoughts, Julia swallowed hard as she realized she didn’t want to leave Morgan’s office. She searched her mind for the first excuse she could think of that would allow her to remain in the room.

“I noticed you’ve been out of the office several days this week. Did you have another migraine attack?”

“No. And while your concern is touching, it’s unnecessary,” he said tersely without giving her a reason for his absence.

This was not going well at all. Nibbling at her lip, she sent him a wary look. “I saw Colonel Beresford the other day. He mentioned he was hosting a dinner party for you and your investors, but I’ve not received my invitation.”

“I told Beresford not to invite you.”

His curt response sliced through her as she watched him stride back to the window and look out at the docks. Not invited. He’d deliberately had her excluded from a dinner party where business would most likely be discussed. Irritated, she glared at his back.

“So because
I
was the one to end…our liaison, you feel it necessary to bar me from business meetings.”

“I do
not
base my business decisions on my personal affairs, Julia. You were not invited simply because attending the dinner would compromise you.”

“What do you mean compromised?”

“It’s more than likely you’d find the dinner party unsavory when it comes to some of the other guests Beresford invited.” He kept his gaze focused on the busy docks outside his window as if bored with the conversation.

“You mean there will be women there who are…who specialize in entertaining men.”

“Exactly, which is precisely
why
I told Beresford he wasn’t to invite you.”

The icy emphasis on each of his words was almost a physical blow. Jealousy bit into Julia with the force of a wild animal at the thought of Morgan with another woman. Was he really trying to spare her or was it a way to control her? She quickly crossed the floor to his side, and with one hand, she forced him to face her.

“You can’t do this,” she said angrily. “This prevents Lady Falkenhouse and me from being privy to any business conducted at the dinner.”

“Actually, you’re the only investor who wasn’t invited. Although Lady Falkenhouse
has
offered her regrets.”

“So you gave her ladyship the choice to refuse attending, but not me,” she snapped with outrage. “I never gave you permission to speak for me.”

“In matters such as these I can, and
will
, speak for you, Julia.” His response made her gasp with anger.

“You don’t control me, Morgan St. Claire.” She sent him a contemptuous glare. “I should have
known
that after one night in your bed you would consider me yours to command.”

In a lightening move, Morgan jerked her into his arms. Startled by the action, she froze as tension drew her muscles up taut before the warmth of his body seeped into hers. Without thinking, she allowed herself to sink into him as desire wrapped its pleasurable sensation around her limbs.
This
was what she’d been craving since she entered his office. His mouth brushed past her forehead, almost as if he were breathing in the scent of her hair. In the next instant, his mouth brushed over her ear lobe.

“Hear me, and hear me well, Julia. When it comes to protecting you from the advances of men like Beresford, I’ll speak for you whenever I want. Do we understand each other?” There was an edge to his voice she’d not heard before.

“I don’t need your protection,” she said as she tried to push her way out of his arms. A pointless effort.

“What you need is protection from yourself,” he said fiercely. “Beresford only mentioned the dinner in hopes that you’d stubbornly insist on attending even though I’d informed him otherwise.”

“Don’t be absurd.”

While it was true she found the Colonel’s effusive compliments uncomfortable whenever she saw him, she’d never thought that the man might be interested in furthering his acquaintance with her.

“It’s not a laughing matter.” Morgan glared down at her. “The only reason the man’s not called on you is because I made it clear to him some time ago that he’s to stay away from you. His interest in you has
nothing
to do with St. Claire shipping. “

There was a possessive note in his voice that sent a tremor through her. Dark emotion glittered in his eyes, and she wasn’t sure whether to be irritated by his masterful behavior or take pleasure in the fact that he wasn’t about to let something unpleasant happen to her. Something in his expression made her decide against being irritated. He had the look of a man determined to protect her at any cost.

Instinct guided her hand upward to brush her fingertips over his firm mouth. The sharp hiss of his breath against her skin sent a small thrill skimming down her back. Her gaze locked with his, and the hunger in his eyes stole her breath away. A fraction of a second later, and the emotion died a quick death. With a slight jerk, he released her and strode back to his desk. His departure left her vulnerable to the full impact of losing his warmth against her body.