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One G emma Allen was back.Forcing himself to snap out of the shock that held him rigid, Angelo Apollonides strode across the pale sand towards the woman who had betrayed him.His staff had not lied. The nasty truth was that his beautiful former mistress stood on his beach, on his island admiring one of his sleek, double-hulled catamarans. And Angelo intended to find out precisely why she had chosen to return.“What are you doing here?” Angelo fought to keep his voice even, to keep the string of ugly curses from escaping. “I never expected to see you again. Particularly not here on Strathmos.”She turned, her tawny eyes wide and startled. The first week of November had passed, the evenings on Strathmos had begun to cool. The sea wind caught at Gemma’s dark red hair, whipping it across her face, hiding her expression for a beat of time. When she brushed it back, she’d recovered her equilibrium and her eyes were wary.“Angelo.” Gemma’s voice was cool, composed. A world away from the alarm tha
Two G emma had stood him up!And she hadn’t even bothered to tell him herself, she’d sent a messenger to deliver the unwelcome news. The anger that had simmered within Angelo since he’d that discovered Gemma was on Strathmos, living and working in his resort, took on a new edge.Gemma claimed that she’d lost her memory. How had that happened and what did it have to do with him? And why had she returned to Strathmos?Angelo found himself glaring in the direction where the maddeningly capricious Gemma had vanished from the stage, while the bare skin of her back and that provocative red dress remained imprinted on his vision. He hated the sneaky realisation that he hadn’t stopped thinking about her since he’d arrived back on Strathmos. And now she’d deliberately left him cooling his heels.Angelo rose to his feet, abandoning the bottle of Bollinger he’d ordered—Gemma had always had a taste for champagne—and, jaw set, stalked out to find her.She was not in the dressing room. But a comprehensiv
Three G emma stared.Angelo’s shocking revelation was the last thing she’d expected. Yet, judging by his narrow-eyed expression, he clearly believed it to be true.She tested the discovery against her own belief. No, she couldn’t accept it. Angelo must’ve made some awful mistake.But before she could question him further, a mist of designer aftershave surrounded her. Then came a whisper of “Cherie, you are more beautiful than ever,” and male lips nudged her cheek.“Hello—” she tried frantically to remember his name “—Jean-Paul.”“I thought you were ignoring me, cherie. You stared straight through me earlier. I’m glad to know you remember your old friends.”Beside her Angelo snorted. Gemma shot him a warning look. She didn’t want Jean-Paul knowing about the amnesia.At least not yet.Coming face-to-face with a man Angelo considered her lover had taken her aback. Much as she disliked Angelo, he had no reason to lie to her about the past. She needed to learn more.With an extravagant flourish Jean
Four G emma tossed and turned for most of the night. Several times she jerked awake from confusing dreams of what had happened in her sister’s life. Beneath it all festered an uneasiness about the disturbing passion that had flared between herself and Angelo. Just before dawn the pitter-patter of rain against the window pane lulled her into a restless sleep.In the morning she clambered out of bed, crossed to the window and hitched the curtain back. No sun peeked through the cloud cover. The trees outside swayed in the wind. But at least the rain had subsided. With her morning free of rehearsals and her next show scheduled for later that evening, Gemma decided to make for the beach to go windsurfing. That was one place where wet and wind wouldn’t matter. And it would certainly shake the dark mood that gripped her and take her mind off Mandy, Jean-Paul and…Angelo.Pulling on a sleek black maillot, she called reception to check that no storms were forecasted, then grabbed her wet suit out
Five W hen Gemma hurried into the Dionysus bar later that night it was buzzing. She hesitated, scanning the press of people, until Angelo rose from a table near the window. Outside, the resort’s landscaped gardens were lit by floodlights. Beyond them she could see the lights of vessels winking out on the dark sea.“Sorry I’m late,” she gasped. “I had to shower and change.” She indicated to the shimmery wraparound dress that she’d slipped on.“No problem.” He pulled out a chair for her. “How did the performance go?”“Good. It never fails to put me on a high.”Angelo beckoned to a waiter. “What can I order for you to drink?”“A white-wine cooler would be good—with lots of sparkling water, ice and a little lime, please.”He gave her a long look. “Are you sure that’s what you want? Your performance is over. You can have something more…robust if you want.”The euphoria left her. She sagged into the chair. “I don’t drink much of the hard stuff. But thanks.”Gemma watched him as he spoke to the waite
Six T he ringing of the phone woke Gemma. Any plans she’d harboured to sleep late on Thursday—her day off—fell apart when Mark Lyme, the manager of the entertainment complex, told her that Lucie had come down with a flu-like virus. Immediately Gemma offered to take over some of Lucie’s performances and arranged a time to meet with Mark to discuss a suitable program.The Dionysus was a very different set-up to the Electra Theatre, and it had been years since she’d worked in a bar environment. Most of the day was spent putting together the program with Mark and Denny, another performer, for the first fill-in performance early that evening.The substitute show was rough and ready but it was enough to satisfy the crowd. They sang a couple of duets, Denny told some jokes and they invited some of tourists to sing along karaoke-style.Gemma caught a brief glimpse of Angelo in the back of the bar halfway through the evening. He was waiting for her and she found herself accepting his invitation to
Seven A ngelo and his family all left Strathmos on Sunday. Gemma heard the beat of the blades of the helicopter departing just after noon, but didn’t realise that Angelo had gone until she found the note in the backstage pigeon hole where her mail was delivered.Back next Sunday. See you then. That was all. He hadn’t even signed it. But she knew without doubt who had sent it.Later she heard that he’d gone to Athens, that he’d be flying on to the resort at Kalos for a series of hush-hush meetings about a new opportunity he was investigating. Gemma had expected to feel relief at his absence, a cessation of the tension that twisted within her. But instead there was only an unfamiliar emptiness inside her.Gemma suspected she was headed for heartbreak. Angelo had made it clear last night that there was no chance that he would ever love her. So she’d better take care to guard her hollow heart.Gemma took one of the bicycles that the resort made available to the staff and guests and cycled down
Eight H e carried Gemma through to the bedroom, laid her down on his bed. “My turn,” he growled.He stripped the thong off and started to stroke her with fingers that possessed a magic touch. A fine tension tightened in Gemma’s belly. She shifted, the raw silk of the bedcover creating a delicious friction against her back, her thighs.He touched the little button, her knees came off the cover. She moaned. He moved his fingers and her breath left her. Closing her eyes, she shut out everything. Nothing existed, except this room, this man…and his touch.And then the heat of his mouth was against her. Slick. Teasing. His tongue probed. She gasped. He licked again. Gemma locked her fingers in his golden hair and pulled him away.“I can’t…”He lifted his head. His eyes gleamed. “You can.”“I want…more.”He must’ve understood her incoherent mumbles. There was the sound of foil tearing and a moment later he’d crawled over her, his chest hard and sleek against her taut, aching breasts. Then his mouth
Nine S tanding outside one of the boardrooms in the high-tech conference centre, Angelo shook hands with Basil Makrides. “I am pleased you are satisfied with our agreement.”The older man nodded. “I want to spend time with Daphne, with our sons. Too much of my life has been lost on building an empire.” There was sadness in his eyes.Angelo was privy to the tragic situation of Basil’s younger son. “I am sorry about Chris. I hope he will recover.”Basil sighed. “We will give him all the support we can. At present he’s getting the best care in the world. And Daphne and I will be there at his side when he comes out.”Angelo’s step was light as he went to find Gemma. The negotiations with Makrides had ended sooner than he’d expected. He now owned a group of small but exclusive resorts in Australia that he was keen to bring in line with the rest of the Poseidon ventures. He was looking forward to taking a couple of days off and relaxing with Gemma.She delighted him, enthralled him.Each day, he g
Ten I n the bedroom they undressed quickly and collapsed onto the bed in a tangle of limbs. A lamp in the corner of the room, between the wide bed and the wall of drawn drapes, cast a pale glow over them.Angelo moved a little closer. “How did I ever let you go?”A moment of darkness disturbed the passion that had overtaken her. He thought she was her sister. And she had to set him right.“Angelo—”His hand trailed across her breast, across the curve, brushing the delicate tip. Gemma sighed as frissons of delight followed beneath his fingertips. She lost track of what she had to say.Then his tongue came out, probing, tasting the dark nipple and heat splintered in her belly. Gemma fought a groan as that maddening mouth feasted on her.He paid homage to the other breast, and when he’d finished Gemma stared at her taut quivering nipples with a sense of shock.What was it about Angelo that stripped her of all her inhibitions? She wanted him…but there was more. There was a sense of belonging toge
Eleven I t was humid in Auckland in December. Gemma returned to her parents’ home after a morning’s Christmas shopping with her mother and made for the bathroom clutching the box she’d bought at the pharmacy. In less than five minutes she had the answer she’d dreaded.“Mum,” she staggered out the bathroom. “This is going to be a shock.”“What’s wrong, darling?”“I’m pregnant.”“Are you sure?”Gemma nodded and held up the indicator stick.“Oh.” Her mother looked like she wanted to say something. Finally she asked, “Do you know who the father is?”“Of course I do.”“But you’re not telling?”Gemma gave a laugh. To her own ears it sounded hysterical. “I will when I’m ready.” She wrapped her arms around her mother. “You shouldn’t be so understanding.”Her mother hugged her back. “How can I not be? Do you know how far along you are?”“Not far at all. I missed a period, that’s what clued me in. I’ve always been so regular.”“Go see your doctor. You may not be pregnant at all. Perhaps your body is just pl
Twelve “W hat?” Gemma didn’t try to hide her shock.Angelo’s handsome features could have been carved out of marble. “Is this your idea of revenge? Your way of punishing me for your belief that I’d caused your sister’s death? Did you plan all along to fall into my bed, to get pregnant?”“No.” His tension uncoiled infinitesimally. “So why did you let me make love to you, knowing I thought you were Mandy?”Oh, dear God, this was the one question she could not answer. Not without giving herself away. Irretrievably.So she said with a touch of mockery, “Because you turn me on. More than any man I’ve ever met.”His voice held an edge. “Oh, that’s the only reason?”She shrugged. “Well, yes. What more could there be?”“What more could there be?” he repeated savagely. Then he landed on the arm of the sofa and slid in behind her. “What more could there be?” A feather light kiss landed on her cheek. “This…” He pulled her across his lap, angled his head and his tongue stroked across her bottom lip, igni
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