Chapter Two

Tanya parked the car at the private airfield, stole a quick look in the rearview mirror and straightened the collar of her black suit jacket. She had braided her hair into a tight plait and was glad to see her unruly, wavy hair had stayed put with the mousse Jessie had lent her.

Switching off the ignition, she stepped out just as the Lear jet hit the runway. She walked around, straightened her shoulders, linked her hands together and waited.

Slowly, the thundering of the aircraft abated and the air stairs pulled out. An air hostess appeared first. Her arm extended, her face turned upward, she smiled at her tall passenger. The wide swathe of his black jacket was the first thing that Tanya noticed.

Her breath stuttered in her throat as the man turned and she caught his profile.

The tight cast of his face felt eerily familiar. She heard the gasp of disbelief that fell from her mouth as she noted the chiseled jawline, the familiar tilt of his head to one side.

Jet-black hair flopped in the breeze as he nodded at some comment the air hostess made and turned around, giving Tanya a view of his face. Wraparound shades sat on a distinctive nose. And the mouth…

It was a mouth that had been oohed and aaahed over by millions of women in India as it engaged in a shockingly erotic kiss that had startled and surprised and made him a fantasy lover to an entire generation of women.

She had been only sixteen, but she remembered the sensation it had caused in the Indian media and the discussion among her own family members. Tanya had been one of the millions who had adored him in that movie. God, she had watched the clip of him begging the heroine for a kiss and then touching his mouth to hers…

Something akin to a molten fire started in her belly and she bit her lip. Damn it, it had been a movie from a decade ago. It had been a manufactured moment, a kiss on demand. Nothing about it had been real.

And neither was he the perfect guy he had played in that movie.

His dark good looks just as compelling in real life as on the silver screen, John Patel looked so gorgeous that keeping her posture straight as he approached was hard. It was as if the wind could knock her down.

Suddenly, the twinkle in her cousin’s eyes, the barely hushed enthusiasm of her family, her brother Raj giving her a job after months of keeping hawk eyes on her, why, even after repeated questions from her, no one had told her the name of the client…

Everything made sense.

Glad that her star-struck expression was hidden by her shades, Tanya forced her shaking knees to move forward, one step at a time.

Her throat felt dry, her hands tingled as she neared him. A laugh bubbled up inside to accompany her anxiety. In her wildest dreams, she had never imagined she would one day see John Patel, stand close enough to touch him. Not that she was going to.

Six feet tall, with an imposing physique that neatly filled out the white dress shirt underneath the black jacket, he was incredibly real. She studied him greedily.

But that sexy mouth was twisted into the most ferocious scowl she had ever seen. It cut through the silly haze that shrouded her senses.

Her neatly manicured fingers staying his arm, the air hostess whispered something that Tanya, standing at the bottom of the steps, could not hear. Another air hostess, who seemed barely out of her teens, stood next to her, her excitement palpable in her twitching form.

‘Sorry, no pictures please,’ Mr Bollywood replied and goosebumps settled over Tanya’s skin, as if that deep, rasping timbre was embedded into her psyche to invoke only one kind of reaction.

God, she needed to forget about that kiss.

As Tanya watched with mounting anxiety, the second woman made a sudden movement, linked her arms around his neck and kissed him.

Or at least tried to.

Her mouth landed somewhere on his neck/jaw and instantly, the easy charm fell away like a mask. With a controlled violence that had Tanya’s heart ratcheting in her chest, he disengaged the woman from him and said something.

Her smile disappearing, the woman looked as if she had been slapped.

Without a backward glance, John stepped down.

Tanya was about to step forward and introduce herself when she heard an expletive fall from his lips. Straining to examine his neck, he tugged at his expensive shirt. And that’s when Tanya saw it. The blood red lipstick stain on the inside of his collar.

Instant heat crawled up her neck and by sheer will, she resisted the urge to look up.

Stepping forward, Tanya extended her arm. ‘Welcome to London, Mr Patel. I’m Tanya Singh, your chauffeur.’

If he was surprised at seeing a female chauffeur, he didn’t show it. His fingers resting on his collar, he gave her a quick once over and every square inch of her body tingled at the perusal that lasted barely two seconds. He finally took her extended hand and shook it.

His hands were rough, almost abrasive against her smooth palms. She fought to keep the curiosity, and the unbidden awareness flooding through, her at bay.

That was all he needed, his chauffeur making googly-eyes at him. Swallowing the rumble of shock flooding through her, Tanya quickly looked behind him and grabbed his small briefcase.

‘Let’s get one thing clear, Ms Singh,’ she heard him say in cutting tones, and slowly turned around.

He sounded gloriously annoyed. His shades were gone, and the brilliance of his brown gaze stilled her. ‘This trip to London is my escape after a year of acrimonious divorce proceedings. All I want is privacy tonight as I conduct my business. If there’s even a remote chance that you’re going to lose your sense around me, as that newly-fired air hostess up there just demonstrated, know that I’ve zero tolerance for being mauled just because women can’t keep their hormones in check.’

Shock, dismay, fury, everything cycled through Tanya.

The nerve of the man! That woman had definitely crossed the boundaries of professional behaviour, but did he think all women were like that?

Of course he did.

A stinging retort rose to her lips but she forced herself to breathe through it. The first rule of etiquette for this job was that the client was always right, even if he was an arrogant, utterly gorgeous, privileged SOB who was used to having the world at his feet.

Biting her cheek, Tanya looked at him steadily. ‘I assure you, Mr Patel, you’re in no danger from me. I have more sense than to throw myself at a man who’s a fictionalised, fantasy sex symbol rather than anything real.’

The moment she heard those words, Tanya knew she had ended up breaking the rule anyway.

His mouth twitched, a curious light shining in his eyes.

Darn it, she didn’t want to get her brothers into trouble. They had poured blood and sweat to build their business into what it was today.

His gaze settled on her as if he’d just realized that she wasn’t just going to simper and smile.

‘So I take it fictionalised, fantasy sex symbols don’t puncture through that starched, repressed exterior?’

And again, she took the bait without blinking, astounded anew by the man’s arrogance. ‘I’m repressing nothing. Not every woman is overrun by hormones at the sight of you,’ she said through gritted teeth, ‘nor are you God’s gift to women, however much most of my sex has made you believe you are.’

This time, he laughed, throwing his head back. And under the glorious sound of it, she felt as if she had crawled out from a damp, dark hole into dazzling sunshine.

Fantasy or not, the man was breathtakingly gorgeous. And the way he laughed, with grooves in his cheeks, his brown eyes lighting up, there was nothing but humor and charm in it.

Shaking his head, he moved closer. The subtle scent of his cologne mingled with his own, infused the air she breathed. The heat from his body was like a silky stroke against her skin, a teasing hello. It tugged at her so tangibly that Tanya curled her toes in her leather shoes to keep balance.

‘Don’t worry, Ms Singh. I’m under no delusions as to my power over the opposite sex. I’ve just had my balls twisted in a vise this last year by my ex-wife. And you know what? I lost the one thing that mattered to me most.’

Regret crowing through her, Tanya opened the boot and put his briefcase inside. He had been arrogant in his presumption, but the unprofessional behavior of the air hostess had given him reason to be annoyed. And instead of reassuring him that she was nothing but professional, Tanya herself had gone on the defensive. Because, every word out of his mouth had been true. Even now, she felt a soft, simmering tingle in his presence. And it made her feel off balance.

It was not his fault that her dormant emotions had suddenly sprung to life.

She was about to say something banal when he rubbed at the lipstick on his collar again. ‘I have an important meeting within fifteen minutes of our arrival. Let’s hope the Chatsfield staff can find me a new shirt,’ he muttered, almost to himself.

And instantly, Tanya felt the awkwardness of her silence melt away. ‘I can take care of that stain for you, Mr Patel.’

Without waiting for his response, she walked to the boot and popped it open. Grabbing the leather bag she always carried with her when she was out on an assignment, she opened it and grinned triumphantly when she located the special makeup-removing wipes her brother had ordered a few months ago to be included in the utility kits for each of the vehicles the car service owned.

She grabbed one and turned around. When she reached Mr Bollywood however, Tanya stilled with her hand raised towards him.

Their eyes collided and held. The impact of his hot gaze was like a caress against her face, a subtle challenge glinting in it. Suddenly, she wished she hadn’t offered, had just left him to the mercies of the hotel staff. She wanted to turn around and walk away.

A hint of humour touched his mouth. ‘Go ahead, Ms Singh. I won’t bite. Or even growl.’

Tanya stared at him, unable to turn away. Her heart slammed against her ribcage. Her breath hitched. What was this? Why did her limbs feel so shaky?

Blinking, she shook her head. Moving closer to him, she grabbed his collar with her left hand and dabbed at the stain.

She could feel his pulse thunder beneath her fingers, feel the warmth from his body caress her. Her fingers, not as cooperative as she’d have liked, slipped and grazed his jaw.

His stubble rasped against her fingers, and Tanya jerked away, feeling as if she had been electrocuted. Her gaze flew to him, and she stumbled, tangling in her own feet. His hand instantly sprang out to grab her elbow.

Breathing hard, Tanya apologised, heat streaking through every muscle that pressed against his hard body.

She exhaled in relief when he let her go. Without looking at him, she pocketed the wipe and opened the door for him. Every nerve in her thrummed with hyper-awareness. Was this what came of hiding from life for so many months? Or was it this man’s effect on her?

Closing the door after her, Tanya started the engine and hoped the hours would pass quickly and that she would soon be done with John Patel.