Wrapped In Pleasure - Brenda Jackson [125]
Now he was faced with the problem of what to do. Tomorrow they would leave Vanuatu to spend their remaining days on his Greek island, then they would return to New York. He would not be completely satisfied until he watched her get on a plane headed for the Middle East and then later get a call from Jamal informing him she was safely back in Tahran.
Chapter 13
“Your secret is out, Monty. I know where you are from now.”
Monty’s hands paused in midair. He lifted his head and glanced into Johari’s eyes. She was lying on her stomach on a blanket as he leaned over her and rubbed lotion onto her back. They had arrived at his oceanfront villa on the Greek island yesterday and had spent most of today outside on the beach. He had requested that none of his staff be present when he arrived so he and Johari would have the small island to themselves.
She was smiling and his breath caught as he inhaled deeply before moving his hand again, his fingers coming into contact with the smoothness of her skin. He loved touching her. He loved kissing her. He loved making love to her. But most importantly, he loved being with her.
“And where do you think I’m from?” he asked, his eyes never leaving hers as he continued to stroke her back.
“From here. I heard how you converse with the people at the airport. You were comfortable with them. Comfortable in being here. You are from here. You speak Greek too fluently not to be.”
The tenseness flowed from his body and he couldn’t help but chuckle at her reasoning. “I speak several languages fluently,” he said honestly.
She shifted her body, flipping onto her back to stare directly into his face. “Are you saying you are not Greek?”
Was that disappointment he heard in her voice? “Do you want me to be Greek for some reason, Jo?” he asked, and then held his breath awaiting her response.
He watched as a smile touched her lips, beginning at the corners and then spreading before she said, “It doesn’t matter to me, Monty. I enjoy being with you. Your nationality is of no concern. What matters is that you are a good person, someone I trust. Someone I love being with. I’ve had such an amazing time with you.”
She lowered her head and he watched as she then lifted it back up while drawing in a slow, deep breath. “And I don’t look forward to my time ending with you. I will think of you every day of my remaining time here on earth.”
He could feel his heart pumping fast and furious and knew he needed to help her understand why she couldn’t feel that way about him—especially not as the stranger who had entered her life, swept her off her feet, seduced her mercilessly and had somehow captured her heart. He had to make it real for her now. Allow reality to set back in. They had only three more days to spend together.
“And how do you think your fiancée will feel about that?” he asked, staring deeply into her eyes. “Will you ever tell him about the time you’ve spent here with me?”
Holding her gaze, he saw how her entire body responded to the reminder that she was engaged to marry another. “No, I won’t tell him,” she answered somberly. “I’m sure he will come to our marriage with secrets of his own. Secrets he won’t have any qualms about not sharing with me. So it will only be fair that I keep a few of my own, as well.”
He nodded, thinking he could accept her reasoning considering her ingrained rebellious nature, a trait that was beginning to grow on him. It kept him on his toes and his body aroused. “And after you are married,” he ventured on to say, “if our paths cross and the opportunity presents itself, will you become my lover again if I can discreetly make it possible?”
He watched as pain settled into the depths of her eyes before she shifted her body to sit up. She then reached out and touched his face. “Please, Monty, don’t ask that of me, for I cannot. I am here with you now, but this is