The Millionaire's Redemption (16 page)

In the lady’s boutique, she bought a pair of designer label jeans. The store obviously sold nothing else. She tried on a pair of tailored slacks and a couple of casual tops. Soft, silky underwear, it was criminal paying so much for flimsy scraps of material. Recklessly she splurged on an after five frock. “In case Justin takes us out somewhere nice for a meal,” she told Lilly who sat quite happily in the stroller.

You’re a fool. She castigated herself for being such an idiot even as she slid the black, bra-top dress on. It had thin, sequenced straps and matching side panels and she felt a million dollars in it. The smooth white skin of her shoulders and her blonde hair were a perfect foil, she decided, preening herself in the full-length, gilded mirror. She was Justin’s live-in lover, employed to share his bed and look after his creature comforts, but nothing else. A captive in a gilded cage until he got bored with her.

She wasn’t his wife and never would be, not even his girlfriend, but for once, she would indulge herself. In the shoe department, she selected a pair of soft, black leather high heels with a tiny wedge of diamantes on the toes to match the dress, and she picked up some low-healed shoes to wear with slacks and jeans.

Reckless with this new found, if only temporary, wealth, she sashayed into the grocery section and splurged out. The most expensive cuts of steak, a jar of caviar, pate, crayfish and prawns, Justin could afford the best and would expect it. She would make up seafood cocktails. On the spur of the moment, she bought bunches of red and yellow roses, and some black shiny vases to brighten up the stark, clinical looking apartment.

Piling all her purchasers into the stroller, she carried Lilly as they made their way back to the security guard post.

John greeted her with a smile. His companion nodded, but both of them stared at the bulging shopping bags in Lilly’s stroller. They probably think I’m a grasping, greedy bimbo squandering Justin’s money. She inwardly cringed but couldn’t let it show. Pride was all she possessed now. She had sold everything else to Justin Devereux.

She knew he enjoyed what they had shared last night even if he hadn’t said so, but how long would his interest hold?

What would Robbie think about her giving herself to another man so soon after his demise? Not just giving, but also enjoying the experience. I’ll always love you, Robbie. She almost doubled over with the pain of her loss. Their life together had been sweet and tender, the memories almost too poignant to bear.

Robbie would understand why she must do this thing for Lilly, but would he understand the feelings Justin aroused in her. The primitive raw desire. The sheer carnal need turning her into a wanton siren, a sex slave willing to do his bidding.

She caught the elevator up to the fiftieth floor and swiped the card to gain entry to the apartment without a hitch.

After feeding Lilly and putting her down for a nap, she made herself a cup of English tea and ate a piece of left over quiche from last night.

***

Justin glanced at his watch. Six o’clock. He had always been a creature of habit. He swiped his card and stepped inside the apartment, sniffing appreciably as he did so.

Holly came out to greet him. Her cheeks were pink, her hair pushed back showing off tiny shell-like ears. “Hi. Did you have a good day?” She took his brief case, stood on tiptoe and kissed him full on the mouth.

“Wow, what a welcome home.”  He laughed, feeling supremely happy. “Yes, I had a good day.” It’s getting better by the minute, he thought. “Something smells good.” He leaned down to rescue his leg from Lilly who clung to it like a limpet. “What have you been up to, little missie?”

“We went down to the department store and did some shopping.” Holly motioned him to a chair and handed him a glass of wine. He sat down, quirking his eyebrows in unspoken query. “It was the same brand we drank last night so I thought you must like it, but...”

“Hey, I like it. Don’t get yourself worked up.”

She came to stand beside him, resting her hand on his shoulder. “I hope I didn’t spend too much money. We didn’t buy much, but everything seemed expensive.”

“I told you to buy whatever you needed.” It touched him that she felt genuinely concerned about spending his money. This wasn’t the act of a gold-digger. So, why the hell had she offered herself to Owen? Her baby blue eyes had darkened to deep sapphire. The pupils were enlarged, luminous, and almost black.

“You don’t need to worry about spending my money. I trust you to be reasonable. Otherwise I wouldn’t have given you a free hand.”

She ran her fingertips across his cheek. “I don’t want to abuse your hospitality, I...”

He stared into her eyes, and what he saw there scared the hell out of him. It was more than desire. It was a desperate kind of wanting, a burning need.

“Damn it,” he flared, brushing her aside and standing up. “You earned it.”

He strode towards the bedroom, forcing himself not to turn around. What the hell was wrong with him? He loosened his tie and undid the top buttons on his shirt. Lilly crawled along after him.

“No you don’t.” He grabbed the straps of her overalls and gently pushed her away from the doorway, fully expecting Holly to dash up and grab her. She didn’t.

He glanced up, and she stood next to the chair, her shoulders slumped dispiritedly. She hadn’t moved an inch, but her whole body trembled. If he were close enough, he would see tears shimmering on her lashes.

Shit. He eased the door shut so as not to jam Lilly’s fingers and strode into the bedroom. The bed had been made up, nothing left lying around, but a vase of red and yellow roses stood on the dressing table, adding color to what he now realized had been a stark room. In the top right hand corner of his mirror, he noticed a small stick-on motif of a black cat, with bright green eyes and a pale green bow tied around its neck.

He rummaged around in his drawer for jeans and a T-shirt then strode into the bathroom to shower.

The table was already set for the two of them, but she checked everything again. She wanted it to be perfect for Justin, to welcome him home like she used to do with Robbie.

He strolled in about ten minutes later. Freshly showered he looked like some pagan warrior. Lilly made a beeline toward him. This time on her two feet. Justin laughed, putting out his hands to catch her when she staggered. “Hey, careful you don’t fall.” He supported her with his hands under her arms.

“If you’re ready to eat, I’ll put the food out.”

Holly’s voice held no emotion now, just a dull flatness as if all the life had been squeezed out of her.

“I’m ready.” He came over and sat at the table. “Sorry about before, I can be surly sometimes.” It wasn’t only what he read in her eyes, but what she might have read in his that panicked him.

“It’s your apartment. You’ve paid for me, so be as rude as you like.”

“Damn it, I’ve apologized. What more do you want me to do?”

“Nothing, absolutely nothing.” She thrust the seafood cocktail at him before sitting opposite. She had worked hard all day preparing a nice meal for them, but it might as well be cardboard for all the taste it had. Why let him get to her? They had a deal. Being pleasant to her and appreciating what she tried to do for him didn’t come with the package. She was a fool to think they could ever share anything more than sex.

When they finished eating their entree, she gathered up the dishes and went to get the next course
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steak and salad, served with hot miniature rolls. It had been a labor of love, done because she had wanted to please him. It proved a wasted effort though. He had ruthlessly put her back in her place because he didn’t want her to make a home for him, only wanted her to share his bed.

They ate their meal in a fraught silence. The steak tasted succulent. It was the best that money could buy and cooked to perfection. The mixed salads had turned out even better than she anticipated.

Dessert was a masterpiece; light, fluffy crepes served with a sweet passion-fruit sauce. Even though Lilly had already eaten, Holly fed her some of the crepe off her spoon as the baby leaned against her knee.

“I enjoyed the meal, thank you,” he said quietly. “I’ve got some work I want to do in the study.” He stood up. “By the way, I normally use a cleaning service to keep the place tidy. Do you want me to still get them to come in?”

“No,” she shot back. “While I’m here I’ll attend to it as part of our arrangement. Call it a bonus.” She turned away from him and collected the dirty dishes. From the corner of her eye she watched him stalk off.

***

Justin, who had become engrossed in his work, heard the shower running. He glanced at his watch, ten o’clock. He yawned and stretched. He usually retired late but rose early, four or five hours sleep was enough for him to function, not that he had any intention of sleeping now. He wanted a long session of hot sex with Holly.

She was still in the shower when he stepped into the steamed-up bathroom, but he could see her wraithlike figure outlined against the frosted glass.

The temptation to rip off his clothes and join her under the water proved to be almost irresistible. Instead, he peeled off his T-shirt and unbuckled his belt. Fantasizing about what he wanted to do with Holly made his groin tighten. Watching her run the soap over her breasts, her flat stomach and the golden fluff between her thighs, made his flesh harden to such an extent he unbuttoned the fastening on his zipper to ease the pressure.

As she turned around and exposed her trim little backside, the breath caught in his throat, but it almost choked him when she bent over to pick up the face washer that lay on the shower cubicle floor.

He wanted to yell at her to hurry up. Unless she’d just gone blind, she would know he was watching. Was she deliberately tantalizing him, or prolonging the moment when she had to join him? He would have given up a huge chunk of his fortune to know for certain.

She turned the water off and stepped out of the shower. “Inspecting the merchandise?  Making sure you’re getting value for money?” The raw bitterness in her voice struck him with rib-cracking force.

Damn it, if that’s the way she wanted to carry on, he could live with that. “Yeah, I am.” He handed her a towel and she dried herself.

“Do you want me to wear the black nightie?”

“No,” he growled. “I want you naked.” Reaching across with one hand he loosened the ribbon tying back her hair. With his other hand he whipped away the towel and dropped it on the floor.

“For God’s sake, don’t keep me waiting any longer.” He swung her up in his arms and strode into the bedroom.

A long time later, she lay curled up in Justin’s arms as he slept soundly, completely satiated, and why shouldn’t he? She had given him everything he asked for and more. She turned herself into a sexual vamp to please him.

He was a master seducer, a talented lover. No, a sex expert. She would do well to remember love didn’t come into it for him. He knew exactly how to arouse her to the point of madness
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as she did to him. They played each other like some impassioned maestro conducting a rousing symphony.

Chapter Eleven

After Justin left for work early in the morning, Holly brought Lilly into bed and fed her. The man was a workaholic. It was Saturday, and he still couldn’t pry himself away from his business empire.

“What are we going to do today, Lilly Pilly?”

“Juju.” The baby eyes searched the room for Justin.

“He isn’t here, darling,” she soothed. “He’s gone to work.”

A large open-air market flourished not too far away. They would go there to while away a few hours. With plenty of people around, she felt safe. They would blend in and throw any English bloodhounds off their scent.

She dressed in jeans and a blue singlet top with lace trim around the neck and arms. It was going to be hot. She didn’t bother with a hat for herself but put a bonnet on Lilly even though the hood of the stroller would shelter her delicate baby skin from the burning rays of the sun.

Justin’s apartment was air-conditioned like the rest of the building, so the heat hit them as they ventured outside. It felt glorious having the sun on her bare skin. She inhaled the intoxicating smells of a thriving, busy city, petrol fumes and all, as she walked along pushing the stroller.

She loved the hustle and bustle of the market. Vendors yelled out about their wares as they tried to entice more customers over. The fruit and vegetables were fresh, a mere fraction of the price demanded by the department store. She didn’t have the benefit of using his account, but luckily did have some money in her purse.

Tropical fruit salad for dessert, she decided, splurging out on a pineapple, mangoes and watermelon. During a brief respite from their frantic sex when they were trying to regain their breath, he casually mentioned having a barbecue set up on his rooftop garden. Until then, she didn’t even know about his rooftop garden.

Passing a second-hand bookstall she stopped to browse for a moment. A yellow covered paperback with black writing on the front caught her eye. ‘Give your man sexual variety.”