Page 39 of A Diamond Deal
The sweep of her eyes beneath diamond-dusted lashes rose from his hand to his face. And he knew the anticipation feathering her flesh, making her skin hum in his hand, was not fear of what was behind him. Not the press documenting their walk along the red carpet to the main entrance of the Palais Garnier.
She wasn’t afraid of the dozens of black-suited security detail guarding the roads that were closed off for the night and blocked to the public. It was not the police on motorcycles barricading the steps to the metro.
It was the man holding her hand.
And she was right to be scared. Not of the press or their vindictiveness. But of him.
He pulled her to her feet. His hand slid to the naked dip of her spine. Her flesh shivered beneath his fingertips. He brought his head down low—brushing his lower lip against the lobe of her ear. ‘Smile,agape.’
Each of her perfectly square white teeth appeared.
He moved the flat of his hand to her waist and ushered her body into the curve of his. He pulled her into step beside him, and she matched his slow ascent along the red carpet.
Eyes forward, they made their way to the entrance.
The green copper dome shimmered. Illuminated façades showcased the elaborate Beaux-Arts architecture, the ornate details of each statue, every twisted column standing tall…
The Palais Garnier, lit up against the night sky, was a beacon of beauty.
And there, at the central arcade, beside the two-winged sculptures keeping guard, Konstantinos stopped.
There, with everyone watching them, he turned her to face him.
Behind her was all of Paris, the buzz of questions shouted from paparazzi, and the roll of tyres as other selected invitees arrived. But her eyes only watched him, and he only looked at her.
Triumph, it teased at his lips.
She would do all he’d asked of her. She could have her contract in return. Everything she’d demanded last night he’d had outlined by his lawyer in detail. She could have Léon. She could have her divorce. The papers were already being prepared. There was to be no sex between them, but she’d skimmed over the sex part this morning with blushed cheeks.
Now it was written in black and white. She’d signed it with the slope of her elegant scrawl. As had he.
There was to be no penetrative sex, butthatclause was to protect him. The protection they’d used was ninety-nine per cent effective, and it had failed them.
He wouldn’t take that risk again.
He had no intention of her accidentally conceiving another child.
There would be no more accidents.
He’d abide by her every rule. He’d give her everything she’d asked for.More.Because his plan had grown legs—arms. And he understood the game afoot. He understood now how he’d get under her skin, how he’d remove her from under his, and claim back his control.
Konstantinos would seduce his wife.
He’d use the contract against her. Every rule shehadn’twritten. And when she craved him as she craved air—when she needed him—he’d send her away.
He lifted her hand, dipped his head, brought her fingers to his mouth, and feathered his lips across her knuckles.
He’d let her go.
He wouldn’t look back.
He’d walk away.
Just as she had.
And what will you become without her? Will you fall back into your pit of despair?
His gut seized. The press had been right. Without her, searching for her, his world had been nothing but darkness.
