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asking the question gave her a hope that was painful in its intensity. ‘I want to,’ she whispered, her heart beating so hard now that it hurt, the thuds slamming her chest. ‘I want this to be real, Leo.’

      His lips twisted again, caught between a grimace and a smile. He bent his head, his lips a whisper away from hers. ‘This is real enough,’ he murmured, and then he kissed her.

      It was as different from the chaste kisses he’d pressed upon her for the sake of the cameras and the crowds as could be, as she could possibly want.

      His mouth slanted over hers with dark possession and he ran his tongue along the seam of her lips before he went deep into her mouth, and she gasped at the sensations scorching through her. Leo’s touch felt so intensely pleasurable it was painful, as painful as the hope that still burst through her and lit her on fire.

      Leo fastened his hands on her hips and fitted her against his arousal as he blazed a trail of kisses from her mouth to her cheek and jaw, and then down her neck to the vee between her breasts, his tongue licking the salt from her skin. Alyse shuddered and tilted her head back, allowing him greater access to her body, to everything in her.

      ‘Leo...’

      He lifted his head, gave her one of his cool smiles. ‘This has all got a bit out of control, hasn’t it? I don’t want to have our wedding night right here in the sea.’ He stepped away and Alyse felt a sudden rush of cold emptiness. ‘In any case, I only came to find you and tell you dinner will be served shortly. The staff of the resort are setting up a table here on the beach.’

      Alyse’s mind was spinning, the hope draining out of her, leaving nothing but that aching, pulsing need. Somehow she forced herself to sound as unconcerned, as unaffected as he seemed to be. ‘We could eat in the restaurant.’

      ‘Ah, but this is more romantic.’

      Alyse watched Leo swim back to the beach and with a deep, shuddering breath, willing her wayward body back under control, she dove underwater and started back towards the shore.

      * * *

      As soon as he reached their hut, Leo grabbed his clothes and headed for the shower. He needed a cold one. He hadn’t meant lust to overtake him quite so much when he’d joined Alyse in the water, but the sight of her barely clad body had driven all rational thought from his mind. He’d been waiting a long time for his body’s basic needs to be fulfilled, and the kiss he’d shared with her had been surprisingly sweet.

      No, not sweet—hungry, demanding and raw. It had awakened a deeper need in him than he’d ever acknowledged before, and it had taken nearly all of his willpower to step away from her. She was surely a virgin, and he knew she deserved more than a fumbled grope on the sand. He wanted to take his time, bring them both pleasure and not just release. That was one area of their marriage where, he hoped, they could both find some kind of happiness.

      Still, he didn’t like how close he’d come to losing control there in the water. He never lost control, never even let it slip—and the last person he wanted to weaken him in that area was his wife.

      By the time he’d spent ten minutes in an icy shower he felt his composure return and his libido calm down. He changed into a fresh pair of chinos and a dark green polo shirt, and headed back to their hut.

      Alyse had already showered in a separate bathroom and was sitting in a rattan chair, her hair damp and curling about her shoulders. She wore a floaty blue sundress that brought out the blue in her eyes, her legs tanned and endless, her feet bare.

      Every time he’d seen Alyse she’d been surrounded by stylists, her clothes carefully chosen, her make-up perfectly done, not a hair out of place. Now he saw her face was make-up-free and the sun had already caused a few freckles to appear on the bridge of her nose. She looked better like this, he decided. More natural. He wondered if she missed all the primping and attention, if she enjoyed the clothes, make-up and jewels.

      He didn’t know, and decided not to ask. He didn’t need to know. He didn’t want to care.

      Yet even so he couldn’t suppress the flicker of interest—and, yes, desire—this new, natural Alyse stirred within him.

      The sun was just starting to set, sending long, golden rays across the placid surface of the sea, and Leo could see the staff already setting up their romantic table for two there on the beach. He busied himself unpacking his things while Alyse read, conscious of her nearness, the warmth and softness of her, and even the subtle floral scent of her shampoo or perfume, something he’d never even noticed before.

      Even now he remembered the feel of her lips on his, the lush softness of her mouth, her breasts, the hunger of her response. His libido stirred insistently and he blew out an impatient breath. Control.

      ‘Dinner’s ready,’ he said more brusquely than he intended, and nodded towards the table now laid for two on the sand.

      Alyse looked up from her e-reader and, tossing it aside, rose from her chair. The sundress she wore clung to her figure, highlighting the small yet perfect roundness of her breasts, her tiny waist, her endless legs. Even though she was thinner than she probably should have been—no doubt due to the stress of the run-up to the wedding—she still had a lovely figure, an amazing figure, and Leo’s palms itched to touch her. His body stirred again, insistent, demanding.

      Tonight, he decided. They would make their marriage real tonight—real in the only way that mattered, the only way possible.

      In bed.

       CHAPTER FOUR

      ALYSE FOLLOWED LEO out onto the beach, a violet twilight settling all around them as the sun started to slip beneath the sea.

      The staff who had set up their table had all melted away, so they were alone with the flickering candlelight, a bucket on the sand with champagne chilling, the first course of crab salad already laid out on exquisite porcelain plates. It was the most romantic dinner Alyse ever could have imagined...and it felt like a minefield.

      She had no idea how to act with Leo, especially after that kiss. Already she’d spent far too long reliving it—surely the most wonderful kiss she’d ever known—and thrilling to the undeniable realisation that Leo desired her.

      How do you make something that’s been false, true? His words had buoyed her soul at that moment, because in all her naïve hope she’d thought he meant their relationship. Their marriage.

      This is real.

      Watching Leo stride along the shore away from her, Alyse had known then what he’d really meant: the only real thing between them was sexual attraction.

      Still, it’s something, she told herself as she followed Leo out onto the twilit beach. It might grow into more. But only if given a chance...a chance Leo seemed determined not to take.

      With a little bow, he pulled out her chair and Alyse sat down. ‘Wine?’ he asked, and she nodded.

      He poured them both glasses and then sat across from her, sipping his wine as he gazed out at the sea, its surface now the inky violet of twilight.

      He might not be willing to take that chance, she acknowledged, but she had to be. Taking a deep breath, Alyse gave him as bright a smile as she could manage. ‘So, what should we do tomorrow? Snorkel? Scuba? Hike?’

      His eyebrows rose, his expression freezing for a second, so she almost laughed. ‘Don’t look so terrified,’ she said dryly, parroting his words from last night back at him. ‘I might have suggested macramé.’

      ‘Macramé? I’m not even sure what that is.’

      ‘Weaving with knots,’ Alyse explained. ‘It’s one of my passions. I was hoping you might share it.’ Leo looked so nonplussed that this time she did laugh, and the release felt good. Even better was his answering rasp of a chuckle.

      ‘You’re having me on.’ He shook his head, taking