The CEO Takes a Wife / The Throw-Away Bride. Maxine Sullivan

in her eyes because he stiffened. “And I definitely won’t sleep around on my wife.”

      An odd thrill raced through her, but she still couldn’t let her anxiety go. “Yes, but women must throw themselves at you all the time.”

      His brows drew together, then understanding dawned. “I’m not like your ex-husband, Olivia. Just because women offer doesn’t mean I accept.”

      Still, she couldn’t let it be. “Yes, but you must have accepted sometimes.”

      Suddenly his eyes hardened. “There’s only room in this bed for two people. You and me. Not your ex. Whatever happened between you two shouldn’t be brought here.”

      His words were the mental slap she needed. “Yes, you’re right.”

      He held her gaze for a few heartbeats, then his eyes softened. “Let him go, Olivia. Don’t let him spoil what we have.”

      Her stomach quivered. “I don’t know that we have anything.”

      “You don’t?” He gave a throaty chuckle and the sound slithered down her spine like warm silk. “Maybe I need to refresh your memory.”

      Without giving her a chance to argue he slid her across the sheet and pulled her under him. Their bodies touched and that’s all it took for flames to spark between them.

      And then he took her higher and higher, out of control, until she went up in smoke, leaving an afterburn that continued to glow long after he’d brought her to fulfillment.

      When she next awoke she found herself alone amongst the sheets, all that was left of their night together. Then she moved her legs and winced a little.

      All?

      No, there was this reminder, she thought, thankful Alex wasn’t there to see her blush. Her body was so pleasurably sore, so very conscious of their lovemaking. She’d used muscles she hadn’t used for years.

      Remembering, she threw back the sheet and hurried to the bathroom. If she stayed in bed she’d be thinking about last night, and right now she didn’t need that. Alex might have made her forget all about Eric during their lovemaking, and he might have made her forget herself, but now it was time to keep moving. Otherwise she could be tempted to lie in bed and wait for Alex to come back and join her.

      And if he saw her like this then he’d think he held her in the palm of his hands.

      No way.

      She’d given him a year of her life. She wasn’t giving him her soul, too.

      After showering, she went downstairs and found her way to a huge sunroom which ran the full length of one side of the house. A table was set for a late breakfast, but there was still no sign of Alex.

      Then Harriet appeared, clicking her tongue. “He’s in the study catching up on some paperwork, though what paperwork there is to do on the first day of his honeymoon is beyond me.” She showed Olivia her seat then started fussing around the table.

      As a businesswoman herself, Olivia knew the paperwork never ended, honeymoon or not. And she was rather grateful that Alex was busy, even if she couldn’t say that to the other woman. She was supposed to be a blushing bride, after all.

      Oh heck. She was a blushing bride. She just wasn’t a blushing bride in love with her husband.

      “That’s okay, Harriet. I’m not feeling neglected.” She gave a smile. “Not with all the attention I’m getting from you.”

      Harriet stopped her fussing and smiled at Olivia. “We’re so happy that you married Alex. He needs someone of his own.”

      This was news to Olivia.Alex had family—a father, a mother, two brothers. He must have plenty of friends.

       Of his own.

      Yes, there was a difference, she silently admitted. Apart from her mother she had no one of her own. Oh, she’d thought she’d found that special person when she’d married Eric, and for a short while she’d believed it. She sighed. Ignorance was sometimes bliss.

      Of course, she wasn’t ignorant about this marriage. This time she had gone into it with eyes wide open. This was a marriage of convenience. Their work came first and rightly so.

      The housekeeper offered to cook up some eggs but Olivia declined and said that cereal was fine. Harriet nodded and left the room.

      For the first time Olivia got to look at her surroundings. The room was decorated in soft yellows, pale greens and creamy whites. A fountain stood in one corner, close to wicker chairs and a sofa—a place to sit and relax. Potted plants and paintings filled the room. The large glass dining table she was sitting at was no doubt where Alex had enjoyed many a meal. The view of the ocean from here was unsurpassed.

      Just as she finished eating and was drinking her coffee, Alex appeared. She ignored the fact that his sheer presence took her breath away as he walked straight over to her, cradled her face in his hands and brought his lips down to hers.

      What a kiss!

      Then he eased away, the look in his eyes filled with complete satisfaction before he walked around the other side of the table and sat down.

      “Sorry I’m late,” he said casually, as if he hadn’t just made her tremble. “I got caught up on a telephone call.”

      His casualness made her elation disappear. No doubt he was used to women being accommodating—to both his kisses and his work demands.

      Couldn’t he be a little considerate of her sensibilities? What if she had really been in love with him? His treatment would crush her. It was just as well she was a working woman, and could give as good as she got.

      She placed her napkin on the table and stood. “That’s okay, Alex. I’ve got a couple of business calls to make myself.” She started to leave the room.

      “Olivia?”

      She stopped to look at him. “Yes?”

      “The study’s the fourth door on the right.”

      Was that a gleam of humor in his eyes? Had his mouth just twitched? She inclined her head. “I’ll find it.”

      Once in the study she sat down at the desk, feeling quite proud of herself. Even if he had found her little protest silently amusing, she’d still scored a point.

      Then she picked up the telephone, but felt rather silly when she realized she had no one to call. Having cleared the decks at work for the week, and with Lianne insisting she only call under dire circumstances, who else was there to phone?

      Her mother.

      Felicia wouldn’t think it strange for her daughter to call and see how she was. Only, when she called the Valente estate in Sydney, the housekeeper said her mother had gone out for the day with Alex’s parents.

      Sigh. There was no one else she dared call. She knew a lot of people in the States, but they’d think her mad checking in on the day after her marriage.

      “Finished your calls yet?”

      She looked up to see Alex standing in the study doorway. For a moment she suspected he was being sarcastic, but then she saw that he was serious.

      Okay, so he may well have been amused by her antics when she’d left him in the sunroom, but he hadn’t actually been disparaging of her work ethic.

      “Yes, I have.”

      “Then let’s go for a walk down to the beach.”

      All at once she realized he’d changed from trousers and a polo shirt into something much more informal. Her eyes slowly slid down the length of his lean body, now clothed in a white T-shirt and tan-colored board shorts, with leather sandals on his feet. He looked like a sun-worshipping surfer ready to tackle the waves.

      “Where’s your surfboard?” she quipped, not