Andin felt her body grow tensed the second she heard his voice and Roberto must have felt it too as he let go of her hair and gave Sebastian a nod. "I was just chatting with your beautiful secretary," he said. "How was your flight here?"
She turned around and caught the stony look on her boss's face. His eyes lingered on her for several seconds before they moved to Roberto's as he replied, "It was fine."
"I'm guessing it was or else your brother will probably hear your complaints as soon as the plane lands or perhaps even before." Roberto chuckled.
Sebastian gave what might seem like a polite smile but Andin noticed the icy look in his blue eyes. He did not think that joke was funny. "Reed always makes sure the service for all of his customers is great and up to standards."
"Of course," Roberto nodded. "Maybe one day I'll get to buy an airplane from your brother. You'll help me get a sizeable discount, right?"
"I'll see what I can do," said Sebastian, not giving any promises yet the other man seemed to look quite pleased.
Roberto looked ostentatiously at his wristwatch. "Oh, Dio Mio! I'm running late. Sorry but I have to go. I have a meeting. I guess I'll see you tonight, Sebastian." He winked at Andin as he was walking past her then leaning towards her, he added, "And I'm certainly looking forward to seeing you again, Piccolina."
Once Roberto had left, she slowly looked at Sebastian. His expression was impossible to read. Clearly, he had put his wall back up again.
"Shall we get changed and do some sightseeing?"
"I think I'm exhausted from the swimming," answered Andin followed by a sigh. "I would rather rest for a few hours at the hotel. I'm still slightly tired from the plane ride."
"Fine by me." He shrugged then turned around and walked away. "I'll see you at the lobby at around six thirty before we have to go to the dinner."
"Do you need me to bring you anything, Sir?"
"No, thank you, Miss Williams," he said, cooly. "I'm going to town so I'll find what I need there."
Andin quickly changed into her jeans and blouse then returned to the hotel by herself. Although she was a bit curious about where he had gone to and with whom, she knew she had no right to so she shoved those troubling thoughts away and laid down on the bed after putting the bikinis away. She drew the curtain but kept the French windows open to admit a cooling breeze from the sea. Albeit she was trying her best to relax but her mind would not let her. Her body was aching with needs that she could not comprehend and this was all his fault.
No, no, no. There were two people there on that raft. She was as guilty as he was. With this revelation, she was angry at herself. How could she have permitted herself to respond to Sebastian like that? She despised herself for her collapse before his practiced techniques. He knew exactly how to arouse women. The sensuality of his lovemaking clearly had not been learned overnight. She had always been so determined not to let herself weaken towards him yet she had failed herself. Now there was nothing left of her pride. Why on earth had she done it? Was it truly impossible to control the treacherous impulses of the body with the calm reason of the mind? She was embarrassed by herself, ashamed of her behavior.
Whatever Sebastian offered was far from what she wanted in life and her relationship. She wanted a quiet affection of partnership, the undemanding warmth which could deepen in time to strong love. She had always believed such affection was more powerful and sane than her occasional anguished awareness of Sebastian.
Her eyes stared at the curtains blowing in the sea breeze and her mind brought her back to what had happened on the raft, to Sebastian and his kisses. Despite her attempt to sweep those thoughts away, it kept coming back and gradually she fell into a light doze, from which she awoke when a hand touched her shoulder.
She turned quickly, still half asleep, her lids flickering up the strong column of his lean body. "Tian?"
"I'm sorry but we should get ready," he said, his hand in his pockets.
For a moment, Andin lay there, as tense as a trapped animal with her eyes wide open. "I'll get dressed quickly," she said, waiting for him to leave. He looked like he was about to say something, but at last with a derisive smile he left, and she moved off the bed reluctantly to get ready.
The evening dress she had brought with her was new. It was a recent purchase that Damon had talked her into buying during one of their joint shopping expeditions. She had never worn it before, and now, staring at herself with dismay, she wished vainly she had brought one of the other two she owned. She often had to wear attractive evening dresses because her job entailed a good deal of entertaining, and in the past, she had always bought pretty, but demure gowns. She had been doubtful about this one when Damon persuaded her to buy it, but it looked even more revealing as she eyed her reflection.
The material was a delicate silk in creamy nude color. Fragile strips of silk crossed her bare shoulders, suspending the tight bodice. There was practically no back to the dress. It clung to her body like a smooth glove, emphasizing every curve, forcing her to walk slowly, her hips swaying with the constriction placed upon her movements by the material.
She had dressed her hair to fall in a smooth black skein from the top of her head, an oval diamond clip keeping the hair in place. Irritably she fiddled for a moment with that one strand that would never stay where it was placed. At last, she managed to make it stay put, just as he lapped on her door. When she opened it he looked at her with narrowed eyes, a faintly grim expression on his face.
"I'm beginning to wonder if I know you at all," her boss said after a heartbeat.
She tried to answer lightly, forcing her voice to sound casual. "Well, I thought you wanted me to seduce Roberto and make him sign whatever contract you propose to him."
His brows drew together. "I did not say that," he said shortly.
"Is he not susceptible?" she asked, feeling totally out of character, but afraid of the true nature of her feelings as she stood next to him.
"Trust me, you would not have any issue there," he said drily. "Especially if he sees you in that dress." His face was set in aggressive determination, his blue eyes blazing a mocking triumph, and in a lightning-fast move, he reached out and fit his free hand in the curve of her waist. "Do you know what's missing?"
Refusing to feel intimidated, Andin looked up to meet his eyes and asked, "What?"
He gazed down at her from beneath heavy lids. He lowered his mouth to hers and smiled against her lips. "This." He kissed her long and hard. When she gasped in protest, he took the chance to slide his tongue inside her mouth, slick and welcome, and her mind went blank. He slid his fingers into her hair and held the side of her head in his hands.
A deep sensuous moan escaped her mouth and he pulled back. "We should go now, Miss Williams, unless we wish to be late for dinner."
* * * * * *
Andin closed her door, and searched through her purse to make sure she had her key, trying to stop the aching in the pit of her stomach as Sebastian took her arm and she felt the power of those strong fingers around her. They were walking in silence and after she could make sure that her heartbeat was steady and she was no longer out of breath, Andin pointed it out again, "You said you brought me to Sicily to help you persuade him to join us."
Close to her ear, Sebastian said softly, "I want to sign him up, not strangle him, love."
She felt a confused sensation of excitement and alarm, her ears drumming. Somehow she walked along the corridor beside him to the lift, trying to force her breathing to slow. In the lift she stood a foot away from him, her eyes lowered. They walked through the foyer to the car park in silence. Sebastian opened the door and she quickly slid into the passenger seat before he could touch her to assist her. As he took his own seat, she settled, far enough away to make sure his hand did not touch her thigh as he moved.
"So, have you called your brother?" she asked him quickly, as he drove out of the hotel car park, then realized that he had seven brothers so she added, "Um, the one who lives here in Italy."
His eyes moved sideways to her before he replied with a short "No." There was a faint frown on his face. "But my other brothers called."
"Oh, let me guess. Your oldest brother, Thornton?"
For a split second, she could see his eyes widen infinitesimally and lines were drawn on his forehead before they cleared up as if he had found answers to the questions he had in mind. "Did he call you asking for me?"
"No." Andin shook his head and caught his eyes and landed on her for a moment before they were back focusing on the road. "But he is the only one you are doing business with at the moment. With the expansion plan and everything. He came to the office a handful of times so I figured he would be the one looking for you, wanting to discuss."
"Actually Thornton did talk to me on the phone but for a very different topic."
"Oh."
"Maxon was the one who called first before he gave the phone to Tony." Sebastian took a deep breath and then released it with a sigh. "Piers had an accident."
"What?! Have you called him? How is he? Perhaps you could go to see him when you've finished your business with Roberto," Andin suggested. Her dark eyes were filled with concern. "You ought to see him especially since you are in the neighborhood."
"I know," he said, sounding a little defensive. He tapped his finger on the steering wheel and murmured, "I promised to be back on Saturday so—"
"Surely, your brother is more important than London Starr," she said accusingly. "Or Elsa Turner." She added the name of the female who was linked to him lately due to them being caught by paparazzi while smooching outside the opera house. Another alarm rang at the back of her mind, reminding her that he was bad news and she should not let him kiss her ever again.
Andin took a deep breath and calmed herself before the storm for she was about to cross the line by telling him that how important it was for him to pay his brother a visit. "Look, I know this is none of my business but I do not think you do, Sir. You have a lot of brothers thus you may not realize how important it is to give each of them your affection. People tend to be careless with these, then regret it when something happened. I may not have a sibling but if I do, I will love them and care for them dearly."
"Don't you think I know?" He said in a harsh tone and when he glanced at her, she felt her heart nearly stop after being the receiving end of the piercing, hurtful eyes. "I was just thinking about ways to rearrange my plan because if Piers was hurt, I would rather stay here until he gets better. But I'm not an irresponsible person who forgets that he has a business to run. Too many people are depending on our company and I'm not going to let their trust go ashtray."
"Sorry," she offered an apology but he seemed to have decided that the best course of action was to ignore her altogether.
They turned into the drive of Roberto Capaldi's villa some ten minutes later, through electronically operated gates controlled by the house, their tires crunching over the silvery gravel until they halted before the house. Isolated behind high walls, in a quiet, exclusive area of Sicily, the villa lay among beautifully maintained gardens which were just visible by the soft light flooding from the terrace which ran all the way along the front of the building. A line of cypress trees made an oblong shadow on one side. Lawns and dark shrubs occupied the main part of the garden. The sky was darkening to the soft purple of a plum. Stars pierced it at intervals, occasionally fading as the glow of an approaching aircraft lit the dark.
From a long way off they could hear the sad murmur of the sea. Roberto was quite different tonight. He had chosen to wear formal evening clothes, his white shirt lacily frilled, the smooth black velvet of his suit making him even thinner and emphasizing the shade of his white-blond hair. He looked older, less brash, and better looking, and as his eyes swept over her the admiration in them was unmistakable.
He bent his head to kiss Andin's hand, taking her by surprise and grinned when he noticed what he had caused. "Hello, Darling."
She flickered a glance at her boss nervously. There was a polite movement on his hard mouth, the presence of a smile, but no warmth in the blue eyes. Roberto took them into a room that was thirty feet long with shining woodblock floors reflecting bowls of scented spring flowers. They illuminated the room with beauty, the cool white and green of the color scheme carried through in every object; soft white leather upholstery, floor-length green curtains, lampshades, and cushions.
"This is lovely," she commented, admiring some cold green jade elephants standing along the stone fireplace.
Roberto moved to a table. "What would you like to drink?"
"Gin and tonic, please," she said. The only drink that would be safe for her. "Thank you."
"Whisky," Sebastian said briefly, sinking into a corner of the long couch, his dark sleeve resting along the leather. Roberto joined them, handing them glasses.
"Please have a sit, Andin," Roberto said, his ludicrously long dark lashes glinting at her.
She hesitantly sat down on the couch, at the other end from Sebastian, aware of the long stare he gave her, the lingering way his hard eyes moved over her body and fixed on the slender legs. Crossing them, she sipped her drink.
Roberto moved back to them with a glass in his hand and sat down between them, his velvet thigh was too close to her leg than what she would be comfortable with. He tilted his glass, smiling at her. "Cheers!"
Nervously she looked at the paintings hanging against his white walls. "You seem to like art."
"Yeah, I truly do," Roberto answered casually. "I collected them for my personal amusement. I particularly like this one," he pointed at a painting of a semi-naked woman. Her breasts were only half covered by a thin material while the rest of her was exposed, including her private area.
"And of course, something as vulgar as this is considered appropriate to be hung on the walls of the living room," said Sebastian rather tartly.
Over the back of the couch, Andin looked at him indignantly. He would ruin any chance of acquiring Roberto if he made digs at him like that. His eyes met her accusing glance wryly.
"That's not why I bought them," Roberto said, with touchy irritation. "I like them and it just so happened that other rooms are already occupied."
Andin heard her boss muttering something about how awkward it would be should Roberto invite his nephews and nieces over for Christmas with such a display. Luckily Roberto seemed to be too busy to catch Sebastian's comment.
Sebastian swallowed the rest of his amber drink and stood up. "Would you mind if I go to the restroom, Roberto? It won't take long."
"Do help yourself," Roberto invited at once pleasantly. "You may borrow the restroom in my bedroom."
"It's fine. I'll take the closest one in the room next door," said Sebastian, moving across the room and walking past the door.
"Shame," Roberto said, lowering his voice, swiveling to face Andin. "I would rather he uses the one in my bedroom. At least that would take fifteen minutes trip. I could do without him for a while."
Even though she was feeling very nervous inside, she smiled into Roberto's blue eyes. She took comfort knowing that Sebastian was just next door — in case Roberto was going to start anything.
"How long have you worked for Sebastian?" asked Roberto as he took her empty glass and fixed another drink for her.
"About four years. Nearly five," she answered then muttered a thank you when he handed her the glass.
They talked about the entertainment industry, and then the film world in general until she had an opportunity to ask naturally, "I heard that you had a fight with Lincoln."
Roberto gave her an understanding, teasing smile. "Yeah, I had although it probably wasn't as bad as how people talked about it."
"Most things were," said Andin agreeing with him. People tended to be quite hyperbolic and added more seasoning to make things more dramatic. "So what was the deal with him?"
"He knew I want things to be changed and when it was time to renew the contract, he ignored all of my wishes. Since we have been working for ten years, I decided to hear him out and discuss things. But he was being difficult." The shrewd blue eyes smiled at her. "Though I'm pretty sure you've heard all of the details, Darling, or Sebastian would not be here."
She admitted as much with her laughter. "Sebastian always thinks that you're very talented and he believes that we could help you with your current predicament." She began to outline Sebastian's ideas of his future to him and he listened, watching her face closely, occasionally asking her quick, shrewd questions.
Soon Andin realized that Roberto was under no illusions about his worth. His brash conceit was based on years of worship by the public, and he would not be an easy young man to work with unless one truly understood him. Under that glossy exterior, he was sharply intelligent, a tough, frank young man who believed in himself and understood his own ability. The sexual conceit he advertised was more for public consumption than from any particular leaning of his own. No doubt fans had pursued him for years. He knew he had the knack of pulling the birds as he bluntly told her with a grin that it was his success in music which was responsible rather than his own looks.
"But you are really good-looking," she said thoughtfully, looking at him with the eyes of a teenage girl. To young females, he must seem exciting, a rough, iconoclastic hero without inhibitions or boundaries. Sebastian had something of the same appeal to the women who fell for him. They both exuded sex appeal and the allure of the anti-hero.
Roberto grinned at her, leaning over to trail one finger over the parted softness of her mouth. "And so are you, Darling."
Behind his shoulder, she met Sebastian's narrowed eyes and drew back. Ignoring his piercing blue eyes, she quickly said, "And should you wish to know more of the details of the contract or negotiate some terms, my boss would be open to it."
Roberto's housekeeper announced dinner a few seconds later and they moved through to the dining room, Sebastian moving a few yards in front of Roberto and Andin, who were, to her amusement, hand in hand although Roberto's deftness in accomplishing this had taken her by surprise.
The meal was excellent, superbly cooked and served by flickering candlelight, around a table sufficiently large to leave them all comfortably apart yet small enough to be intimate. Andin had difficulty in persuading Roberto that she could not cope with the amount of wine he pressed upon her. Whenever she took her eyes off her glass he refilled it. He was a lively, entertaining host, refusing to discuss business while they ate, and talking instead about the beauty of Italy, painting, cars, and hobbies.
"I really want to be good at painting, you know. I tried but I guess my artistic talent is only for acting." Roberto shrugged one shoulder then put his hand over Andin's silken thigh, causing her to stiffen. "How about you, darling? Where does your artistic talent lie?"