Robyn Donald - One Passionate Night

‘Makes Gary look lukewarm.’

‘Oho, he’s not the only one who’s smitten. I always said you didn’t love Gary. And vice versa.’

‘Yes, I know. But this isn’t love, Louise.’

‘Don’t tell you’ve finally fallen in lust with a man?’

Louise had a way of cutting to the chase about things, especially on the subject of sex. Lust was not a word Charlotte liked but lustful certainly described most of the thoughts Daniel engendered in her.

‘Possibly.’

‘About time too. Look, we’ll talk more tonight. Alvira is looking daggers at me, so I’d better go. You will be coming home some time tonight, won’t you?’

‘Yes, of course,’ Charlotte said, and meant it.

Daniel was going to have to wait till tomorrow night to have his wicked way with her. No way was she going to jump into bed with him tonight, no matter how much she might want to. A girl had to have some pride!

Her return to the table was greeted by a questioning glance from Daniel. But she could hardly tell him anything till the lunch was over and her parents had checked into their room in the hotel.

Fortunately, after lunch her mum and dad were happy enough to look after themselves for the rest of the day.

Charlotte sighed a rather weary sigh as soon as the lift doors shut on her parents.

‘You sound tired,’ Daniel said.

‘I am tired.’

‘In that case I’ll let you off dinner tonight. Far better you go home and have a good night’s rest.’

‘I never said I’d have dinner with you tonight,’ she reminded him tartly.

‘The girl who kissed me in the lobby would have come to dinner with me if I’d asked again.’

‘ You kissed me !’

‘Don’t be pedantic. You liked me kissing you. A lot.’

‘Good grief, you’re impossible!’

‘And you’re irresistible.’

She laughed. ‘Not according to my last two boyfriends.’

‘They were fools. I’m not.’

‘I only have your word for that. So why are you doing this for me tomorrow, Daniel?’ she asked him, determined to have him put his cards on the table. ‘Or perhaps more to the point, why did you chase after me the way you did? The truth, please. I’ve had enough of men telling me lies.’

He shrugged. ‘Impossible to analyse some things. When I first saw you this morning, it was like being struck by a bolt of lightning. I’ve never felt that way about a woman before, especially a blonde.’

Charlotte was both flattered and taken aback. ‘You don’t like blondes?’

‘Let’s just say they usually set off bad memories for me. After my father left my mother, his subsequent wives have all been blondes.’

‘His wives ! How many has he had?’

‘Five, including my mother, at last count. But what the heck? He’s only sixty-five. Plenty of time yet for a few more.’

The bitterness in Daniel’s voice brought some understanding as to why he might be allergic to marriage, whereas Charlotte had had nothing but good examples of people being married. Her parents. Her aunts and uncles. Her sisters. All happy with their partners. Divorce was unheard-of in her family.

Suddenly she wanted to know more about the man who was going to pretend to marry her tomorrow. A whole lot more.

‘How about we go for a cup of coffee somewhere?’ she suggested. ‘We really need to talk.’

He smiled that sexy smile of his. ‘We really need to do a whole lot of things. But you’re right. Talking would be a good idea for now. But somewhere very public, please. So that I can keep my hands off you. Kissing you before did dreadful things to me. If I hadn’t been able to distract myself with food I don’t know what I would have done.’

Charlotte found herself laughing again. ‘You’re a wicked man, do you know that?’

Daniel didn’t know that. He had his shortcomings but he’d never thought of himself as wicked. Still, her comment made him try to do what he’d just said couldn’t be done. Analyse his feelings for Charlotte.

Was it just sexual desire for her which had propelled and compelled his actions today? Was he going through with this pretend wedding, just to get her into bed?

Absolutely not. He could have got her into bed anyway. The way she’d responded to his kiss had told him that. He was doing what he was doing because he genuinely liked her. And genuinely liked her folks. They were the warmest, nicest family he’d ever met and he hated to think of them in distress.

But perhaps it was for the best if he didn’t tell her that. Best she think he was wicked. The thought seemed to amuse her. And turn her on. Turning her on was good. Having her fall in love with him on the rebound was not.

Daniel didn’t want to take up where Gary had left off.

That would be cruel.

Charlotte had to be extra-vulnerable right now. Still, she wasn’t some young naive girl. She was a woman, a beautiful sexy woman with needs. It had been eight months since she’d been with a man. Daniel had been without a woman in his bed too.

High time they both had some comfort.

The prospect of spending their ‘wedding night’ together tomorrow was going to keep him awake tonight, that was for sure. Thinking of their wedding night, however, brought another idea, one which he would attend to before leaving the hotel.

‘Where do you want to go for coffee?’ he asked.

‘We could walk down to one of the cafés on the quay. Then I could take you to the clothes-hire place on the way. It’s not far from here. We need to rent a tux for you.’

‘No need. I have a tux. Never go anywhere without one.’ He’d been caught short once when he’d gone to Boston to visit friends.

Charlotte frowned. ‘What kind?’

‘Black. Single-breasted. Satin lapels. A white dress shirt and a black bow-tie. Will that do?’

‘Perfect,’ she said. ‘That’s one less expense. And one less job to do. Now all I have to do is let the florist know the wedding’s back on, plus the celebrant.’

‘You can call the florist but forget the celebrant. We can’t have a real one, Charlotte. Too risky, legally. I’ll get someone to stand in and play the part. My brother-in-law will do it. The bridal suite can be real, though.’

‘The bridal suite?’ she choked out.

Their eyes locked, hers wide, his narrowed.

Daniel was momentarily thrown by the sudden panic he glimpsed there. Surely she must have realised that was where tomorrow would end.

‘You said you’d cancelled it,’ he reminded her.

‘I… I didn’t actually book one of the bridal suites,’ she said, clearly flustered. ‘They have several here in the hotel, each one decorated with a different theme. They’re all terribly expensive. I couldn’t afford any of them so I booked one of the ordinary suites.’

‘I see. Well, you don’t have to worry about the expense any more. My treat. You ring the florist whilst I go organise one of those suites. Then we’ll have that coffee. I think a walk in the fresh air would do us both good.’

Ten minutes later they were walking together down George Street towards the quay. The day had become a little hotter, but not unpleasantly so. Charlotte had had no trouble re-booking the florist, with Daniel looking similarly pleased.

She didn’t dare ask him what suite he’d booked. She didn’t want to think about tomorrow night. She would think about that tomorrow.

‘You handled the situation with your parents very well,’ Daniel complimented when they stopped at a corner for a red light. ‘No one would have known you were upset. Which you must be. I’m not that insensitive that I don’t realise today has been very difficult for you.’

Difficult in more ways than one. How often did one man dump you and another bewitch you within the space of a few hours?