Lia cursed herself for not guessing that he had an office in London, or checking.
He leaned forward then. ‘But, more importantly, I want to get to know you better, Lia. That’s really why I’m here.’
Her silly heart hitched as trepidation warred with that illicit sense of hope. She’d run from this in Bahia and he’d chased her down. She was afraid that she wasn’t strong enough to walk away again. And he knew it.
* * *
Ben felt a surge of triumph when Lia didn’t immediately jump up from the table at his declaration that he wanted to spend time with her, and tried to hide it from his expression.
Even though she’d acquiesced to him last night, he’d known she’d be prickly in the morning—no doubt lambasting herself for her weakness. And he knew that a large part of why she’d succumbed had been because he’d all but ambushed her.
He was still reeling from the effects of seeing her again after a week. He had intended to come to London, find Lia at the charity function where he knew she’d be, and woo her. Show her how determined he was to get to know her. But he’d taken one look at her across that crowded room and something inside him had turned feral. He’d had to have her. And then he’d morphed into some kind of caveman, all but dragging her into that lift, and if she hadn’t stopped them when she had...
But he could see now that her expression was closing off, becoming shuttered. Those beautiful eyes becoming unreadable.
He shook his head, ‘Don’t do that, Lia.’
She looked slightly alarmed. ‘Do what?’
‘Retreat behind that prim wall you put up.’
He reached for her, taking her hand and pulling her ou
t of her seat and over to him before she could object. He tugged her down into his lap and stifled a groan when she came into contact with a still sensitive part of his anatomy. The hunger he felt for her was alarming...he was used to it diminishing with a lover. But what he felt for Lia was getting stronger.
Ben knew that if he hadn’t been there because he wanted to woo her into considering a very long-term arrangement with him, then he would most likely be running from the intensity he felt when he was around her.
He assured himself that it was all part of the plan. Lia was important to him because of what she represented. The fact that they were combustible in bed was a bonus he had every intention of exploiting to its full potential.
She looked at him, with a wary expression on her face that made Ben wonder if she was reading his mind.
‘What are we doing here, Ben?’
If any other woman had asked him that question Ben would definitely be running. But right now the last thing he felt was an urge to leave.
‘Well, for a start, we’re not leaving this hotel room for the whole weekend.’ He could see Lia’s immediate reaction to that—rejection—and he said quickly, ‘Look, neither of us is what the other expected—would you agree?’
Slowly, she nodded her head. ‘I guess so.’
Ben started moving his hand in small circles on her back. His other hand was on her thigh and he exerted slight pressure, seeing how her eyes flared with heat. He would use everything in his arsenal if he had to—unashamedly.
‘I want to know more about you. And there’s too much heat between us to walk away yet. Spend the weekend with me.’ Ben mentally assured himself that by the end of the weekend Lia would be his—in more ways than one. Didn’t women find whirlwind affairs romantic?
His hand explored underneath her robe to find the silky skin of her bare thigh. He felt the immediate reaction of her body.
She put her hands on his chest. When she spoke again, her voice was breathy. ‘Look, I—’
She stopped and bit her lip when Ben’s hand delved between her thighs, opening them slightly. She tried to glare at him, but it didn’t entirely work as her cheeks had gone pink.
‘Damn you, Ben.’
He smiled, feeling wicked. ‘So, what do you say?’
His hand was moving higher now, closer to the hot juncture between her legs. He was ruthless—but she wasn’t stopping him from pushing her legs further apart.
He could feel her heat and smell her sweet, musky arousal, and the friction against her pert bottom only made things more acute. He shifted slightly, so that she could feel what she was doing to him.
By now her breath was choppy. He could feel the tension in her body as she fought not to give in to him. ‘Just the weekend, you say?’