At The Sicilian Count's Command. Carole Mortimer
with two sisters and then sharing a house with three other girls while at university, it was lovely to at last have some space of her own. And she enjoyed her job far too much to even think about giving it up.
Just because she stayed with Stephen some weekends, it didn’t mean she had to be kept by him, too.
‘You’ve been a charming and attentive hostess this evening, darling. Thank you.’ The warmth of Stephen’s smile took away some of the sting of Wolf Gambrelli’s recent conversation.
‘You’re welcome.’ Angelica returned his smile, relieved that the evening was obviously coming to an end. ‘I think I’ll go up to bed now—if no one minds…?’
‘Not at all, darling,’ Stephen assured her. ‘I could do with an early night myself.’
She instantly frowned her concern. ‘Are you—?’
‘I’m fine, Angel. Just a little tired, that’s all,’ Stephen dismissed easily. ‘I hope you don’t mind the two of us making an early night of it, Wolf?’ he added ruefully to the other man.
Wolf’s elbows were resting on the table-top, his laced fingers having clenched tightly together as he listened to their conversation. At the same time he knew it was utterly ridiculous for him to take exception to the fact that Stephen and Angelica obviously couldn’t wait to be alone together.
Even if the vivid images that thought brought to his own mind were guaranteed to ensure that Wolf’s own night would be a sleepless one!
‘I’m not as young as I thought I was,’ Stephen added wryly.
‘None of us are,’ Wolf bit out tautly, sure that sharing a bed with the beautiful and sensuous Angelica couldn’t be in the least restful.
‘Goodnight, Wolf,’ Angelica murmured as she stood up. ‘I hope you sleep well.’
His eyes narrowed with suspicion as he searched the beauty of her face for some sign of mockery—some indication that she knew there was no way he was going to sleep at all tonight, when his mind would be full of images of her long silky legs wrapped around another man’s body as he took her to the heights of ecstasy.
Those misty grey eyes returned his gaze with steady regard, giving away none of Angelica Harper’s inner thoughts, and he could find no sign of mockery in the polite smile that curved the sensuality of her lips.
Which wasn’t to say there wasn’t any—Angelica Harper might just be a consummate actress!
‘I’m sure that I shall,’ he returned dryly. ‘It has been a—pleasure meeting you, Angelica,’ he added throatily, before he could stop himself.
She continued to look at him keenly for several seconds, before giving a slight inclination of her head. ‘Thank you. Coming, Stephen…?’ She turned to invite softly.
‘I’ll be right behind you,’ he promised warmly.
Wolf’s gaze remained intently on Angelica as he watched her leave, her long dark hair moving silkily down the length of her spine, emphasising the soft curve of her bottom as her hips moved gracefully, her legs smooth and shapely…
‘How much of a pleasure was it meeting Angel, Wolf…?’ Stephen murmured.
Wolf’s gaze returned sharply to the older man as Angelica closed the dining room door softly behind her, taking most of the warmth in the room with her. Wolf immediately masked his expression as he saw the searching curiosity in Stephen’s eyes.
‘As you said earlier, Stephen, Angelica is very beautiful,’ he replied tersely. ‘Where on earth did you find her?’ he prompted conversationally.
The older man shrugged. ‘I didn’t find her. She found me,’ he explained ruefully. ‘My lucky day, hmm?’ he added.
‘Indeed,’ Wolf acknowledged noncommittally.
‘I had better go up now, otherwise Angel will only worry,’ Stephen told him with an affectionate grimace. ‘But we’ll talk tomorrow, Wolf?’
Wolf’s brows quirked. ‘About your ulterior motive for inviting me here, perhaps…?’ he said speculatively, knowing he was no more in the mood for a business discussion now than Stephen obviously was.
Having always put his business life first and his personal life second, Wolf was very aware that his mind had been full of thoughts of Angelica Harper this evening—that images of her in Stephen’s bed later this evening had kept intruding. As they still were!
Did she sleep naked? Or did she perhaps wear something satiny and alluring with which to tempt her ageing lover?
Just thinking of that long swathe of silky dark hair being the only covering to those uptilted breasts, leaving her slender waist and curvaceous thighs bare, was enough to drive every other thought from Wolf’s mind.
‘Yes,’ Stephen confirmed with a sigh, now looking as weary as he had claimed he felt. ‘I’m sorry to keep putting it off like this, but I—’ He shook his head. ‘We’ll talk tomorrow,’ he promised.
Wolf was too restless to even bother undressing when he reached his own room a few minutes later, let alone attempting to go to bed, and decided to go back downstairs to the library and pour himself a glass of the brandy he would find in a decanter there. He might even get a little drunk. Anything to stop him from thinking of Angelica Harper in Stephen’s bed.
Not very likely, he acknowledged grimly as, quietly leaving his bedroom, he saw Angelica leaving a bedroom further down the hallway. Stephen’s bedroom? Wolf wondered as he stood transfixed. If so, she hadn’t stayed long with her lover, both men having come upstairs only ten minutes or so ago.
He had an almost immediate answer to his curiosity as Angelica, wearing a pale grey silk wrap that clung to the curves of her stunning body, paused outside a bedroom door across the hallway from the one she had just left, knocking softly.
Stephen opened the door almost instantly at the sound of that knock, had Angelica slipped past him into the bedroom before Stephen closed the door behind her.
Wolf’s breath left his lungs in a shaky sigh as he leant back against the wall, instantly tormented by thoughts of what was happening in Stephen’s bedroom, of Angelica in the other man’s arms.
And he knew that, brandy or not, there wasn’t a hope in hell that he would be able to sleep tonight!
CHAPTER TWO
‘AND to think I had stopped believing in mermaids long ago!’
Angelica gave a surprised start at the sound of that taunting voice—that familiar taunting voice. She instantly moved to tread water so she could turn and look at Wolf Gambrelli, who was standing by the edge of the swimming pool, looking down at her with broodingly dark eyes.
The luxury of having Stephen’s indoor pool to come down to at six-thirty in the morning had been one she hadn’t been able to resist when she’s begun staying here with him. An early-morning swim was part of her weekend daily routine now.
A swim that had always remained solitary until today. Stephen was usually already busy in his study at this time of the day, dealing with any e-mails or faxes that might have come in overnight.
The fact that she was only wearing a red bikini and her hair was slicked back wetly from her make-upless face after swimming her usual fifty lengths of the pool only increased her feelings of disadvantage. Wolf Gambrelli was dressed in a short-sleeved black shirt and tailored black trousers that did nothing to hide the powerful width of his shoulders, his tapered waist and long legs.
‘Count Gambrelli,’ she greeted politely.
‘Angel,’ he returned, the expression in those dark brown eyes unreadable.
Angelica’s cheeks flushed slightly at his easy use of Stephen’s name for her. ‘If you’re looking for Stephen—’
‘I’m