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TWO

      EATING humble pie had never been so painful. Later that evening, round the dining table, she deliberately avoided eye contact with Dominic.

      After making her stammering apology, Sophie had lapsed into a painful and angry silence. The man hadn’t even had the grace to accept her apology like a gentleman. Instead, he’d arrogantly replied, ‘I will accept your apology, Sophie…for Diana’s sake,’ then continued to talk to Freddie—Diana’s husband—as though Sophie no longer existed.

      Sophie had never felt more belittled or disgruntled in all her life. He had got the upper hand again, and it was clear he was going to make Sophie suffer as a consequence. Right then, as she studied his handsome, hard-jawed profile, she honestly despised the man. She was glad for Diana’s sake that he had relented and returned to the reception, but she almost would have preferred ex-communication from Diana’s friendship than endure the vehement discomfort that she was currently having to endure.

      When the guests moved into the bar area, where a tuxedo-attired pianist was entertaining the hotel residents with some gentle jazz, Sophie wondered how long in all conscience she should stay, before telling Diana she was leaving? Standing alone as she sipped the glass of wine she had brought with her from the table, Sophie glanced up startled as she suddenly found herself face to face with Dominic.

      For a long moment he just stared at her, saying nothing. Her spine prickling with resentment, Sophie remembered that she had promised Diana not to let her temper run away with her again. At least as far as this man was concerned. But, God, it was hard! Swallowing razorblades would surely be easier?

      ‘Having a nice time?’ she asked, then coloured as she realised he could easily interpret such a remark as facetious.

      ‘I can tell you are not happy that I came back, Sophie.’ One corner of his mouth curled back into his smooth cheek. She focused her gaze on the two black buttons on his jacket instead of being persuaded to look into his eyes, unreasonably annoyed that his eyes should be so disagreeably hypnotic and so unrelentingly green.

      ‘Whatever gave you that idea?’

      Now she did sound facetious. Dammit! It was nigh on impossible to be agreeable to this man when he clearly thought himself so much better than everyone else. Stealing a look over Dominic’s broad shoulder, in its perfectly tailored jacket, Sophie caught a pointed glimpse of Diana’s definitely raised eyebrow. It was as if she were silently saying to Sophie, Remember your promise? Don’t go ruining anything else!

      Sophie swallowed hard, and somehow managed to persuade her mostly uncooperative lips into a smile up at Dominic.

      For a moment he registered surprise. Then he glanced round, saw that she’d been looking at Diana, and turned back with a slight disapproving tilt of his jaw. She had to be the most difficult and argumentative woman he had ever come across, Dominic thought. But she had pretty eyes, and a torturously sexy mouth, and even though her ill manners exasperated him she stirred a surprising heat inside him that he couldn’t deny. In fact, as he took another careful sip of his wine Dominic let that heat sizzle a little in sudden concentrated anticipation that he might turn his verbal conflagration with Sophie into a conflagration of a very different but much more pleasurable sort. If she wasn’t passive by nature, there was no way that the woman would be passive in bed.

      Quite unexpectedly, the thought became urgent and goal-orientated, until Dominic found he could think of nothing he’d like more than getting Sophie between the sheets and indulging in the kind of sexual sparring that excited him most. Before the night was through, he vowed to have her purring rather than wanting to scratch his eyes out!

      ‘Your glass is almost empty, I see. How about some more champagne?’

      Before Sophie could even register his intention, Dominic had deftly removed her glass from her hand and, glancing round him, signalled a nearby waiter to give him her glass and an order for more drinks. When he turned back to Sophie, levelling his disturbing gaze on her eyes and then her mouth, as if he would devour her down to her very bones, her senses were suddenly besieged by a wave of desire so ignitable that for a moment she couldn’t think, let alone form words.

      Rocked to the very toes of her expensive cream sandals, she wondered what the hell was wrong with her? She disliked this smug, arrogant man intensely, never mind desired him! She must have had too much champagne and wine. That was the only logical conclusion she could come to right then. She had better slow things right down before she committed one more act of utter and complete folly, and so thoroughly made a fool of herself that she wouldn’t be able to live with herself again.

      ‘I really don’t think I ought to have any more alcohol,’ she confessed, aghast at the fact that her composure had been thrown so off kilter by his too-intimate cynosure. ‘I’m not really used to drinking.’

      ‘If not drinking, then surely you must have other vices, Sophie? I wonder what they might be?’

      Her attention trapped indisputably by the suggestive honeyed tones of his mesmerising voice, Sophie couldn’t look away. She wanted to make some clever or cutting little quip, to put a dent in his too-confident leer, but her throat and her thoughts seemed to dry up at the same time, and nothing sprang helpfully to mind.

      ‘Sophie? Are you all right?’

      He touched her; laid his hand on her bare arm and gave it a definite squeeze. There was no question in Sophie’s mind that he had somehow branded her. Now her senses were jumping around all over the place in utter and wild confusion, and the place where he had lain his fingers felt as if it were on fire. Why was it that when she looked into that intimidatingly handsome face of his she knew she hated him? Yet when he had touched her just now she had almost swayed with the sheer intoxicating pleasure of it? Today was turning out to be one of the most bizarre days in recent memory that was for sure!

      ‘I’m fine. I was just—I just felt a little cold…that’s all.’

      ‘Cold?’ A surprised eyebrow lifted towards Dominic’s crown of blond hair, accompanied by a very wry and disbelieving smile. The room was almost too hot. And he could plainly see that Sophie’s cheeks were burning. In that very moment Dominic knew without a doubt she was having trouble diverting her attraction towards him. Just as he was having trouble doing the same thing with her. In his mind there was only one solution to their mutual problem.

      ‘How were you planning on getting home this evening?’ he asked, his voice deceptively casual as his eyes met the startled blue of her anxious gaze.

      ‘Home?’ Good God! Now she had completely lost the ability to converse at all. She’d turned into a monosyllabic idiot! Determinedly Sophie made herself focus. Was he going to offer her a lift? she speculated.

      ‘Oh, I’ll probably cadge a lift off one of Diana’s friends, or get a taxi.’

      ‘I was wondering…as an alternative…’ Dominic moved closer, and his fingers found their way beneath Sophie’s chin and lifted it up a little. Her bones were so delicate and fine that she felt the strong imprint of his fingers acutely. Inside, her heart felt as if it was just about to go into cardiac arrest, and she waited for him to finish speaking all thoughts of Diana, Freddie, and their friends vanished as if they no longer existed. The only two people left in the room were herself and Dominic. ‘…whether you might like to stay the night in the hotel, with me?’

      ‘Sta—stay the night?’ she repeated, once more appalled at how this man could affect her so acutely with just one smooth, confident glance. Was he serious? The thought that he might be stringing her along, to pay her back for insulting him earlier, struck a very loud alarm bell in Sophie’s head. He had turned on the charm, reeled her in, and now he was going to dump her in an even bigger metaphorical puddle than the real one that had drenched her earlier!

      She circled her fingers around his wrist and threw his hand away. ‘You must think me completely stupid if you think I’m going to fall for that kind of obvious little ruse! I’m on to you, Mr Van Straten! I know all you’re trying to do is pay me back because I spoke my mind earlier, and didn’t bow and scrape like you usually

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