Susan Stephens - The Purest of Diamonds?

‘You make our innocent time together sound so bad.’

‘What fun would it be otherwise?’ he murmured.

She hummed as Raffa’s black gaze bored deep into hers.

‘Let the teasing begin,’ he said.

Had it already? she wondered as Raffa leaned in close. And was she the main target? If Britt and Eva had been suspicious before, seeing the two of them like this, so close they were practically kissing, would turn her sisters into tireless seekers after the truth. But she hadn’t done anything wrong. She was following the advice in her mother’s letter and being bold.

And even when Raffa smiled his slow, sexy smile, she asked herself, was it likely Britt and Eva would imagine she’d had hot monkey sex with Raffa Leon?

Absolutely not!

So what did she have to worry about?

She could relax.

Britt and Eva stared first at Raffa, and then at their sister. ‘Well,’ Britt said, smiling as they greeted her. ‘Here you are, Leila.’ She exchanged an arch-browed look with Eva.

‘I’m really sorry we missed the reception upstairs,’ Leila began, slipping easily back into the role of peacemaker, ‘but—’

‘But we got talking,’ Raffa intervened smoothly.

‘I’m sure you did,’ Eva agreed dryly.

‘We were in the lounge,’ Leila chipped in.

‘Of course you were,’ Britt agreed.

Raffa was right. They were never going to believe her. She glanced at him, only for Raffa to give her an amused and conspiratorial look. Let the teasing begin, he’d said. But let’s not overdo it, her eyes begged him as her sisters sat down. This was Eva’s special night, and she didn’t want anything to spoil it.

Raffa returned her look with a reassuring expression. She’d never had a co-conspirator before. And it was quite incredible to think she belonged with such a party of swans, Leila mused as everyone started talking at once. Eva looked off-the-scale stunning, with her long, flame-red hair caught back on either side of her beautiful face with glittering diamond combs, her fabulous figure displayed in a floor-length, body-hugging gown of flesh-coloured lace, embellished with tiny crystals. And the heat flying between Eva and Count Roman Quisvada, the man she would marry tomorrow, was off the scale.

Would a man ever look at her that way? Leila wondered as she turned her attention to Britt, whose husband, Sheikh Sharif, was currently shooting intensely personal messages into his wife’s eyes. With her icy Nordic looks, imposing height and slender figure, Britt was the perfect foil for her Arabian prince, and there was such closeness between them, Leila couldn’t help but feel wistful.

There was such an overload of glamour at their table they were the focus of the room. Three amazing-looking men, two fabulous-looking women...and Leila. Her sisters set a standard she couldn’t hope to compete with, but for one night, with Raffa at her side, she was going to give it a shot.

‘Would you like me to help you choose from the menu, Leila?’ Raffa murmured, leaning in close.

Britt and Eva were instantly on alert, but she felt obliged to point out, ‘It’s a fixed menu.’

‘So it is,’ Raffa agreed, not losing eye contact with her for a moment.

It was going to be hard remembering this was just pretence, but a glance at her sisters reassured her they were convinced.

‘Would you like me to read the menu out to you?’ Raffa now suggested.

‘Yes, please,’ she said, sitting back with the air of a woman for whom men peeled grapes.

Britt and Eva had designed the menu between them and Leila soon realised that her sisters had chosen food which was impossible to eat without appearing provocative—a look Leila was keen to avoid tonight, even if her intention was to tease them, as she had to balance the game with not taking things too far with Raffa.

The appetiser was a small baked cheese drizzled with truffle oil on a bed of salad leaves...

‘Don’t you like cheese, Leila?’

As Raffa asked the question Britt and Eva stared at her. She loved cheese and they knew it. Britt had probably designed this first course with Leila’s preferences in mind. But the thought of all that soft, warm cheese glistening on her lips—

‘Shall we swap plates?’ Raffa suggested.

She lifted the plate. He reached for it, and their fingers touched. Heat exploded inside her. Her gasp could probably be heard in the car park.

‘I love a man with a healthy appetite,’ Britt commented, flashing a look at Eva.

‘What’s the matter, baby sister?’ Eva contributed, picking up the virtual ball Britt had just lobbed across the net. ‘Not enough hot food for you around this table?’

‘I’ve got an enormous appetite,’ Raffa confessed with every appearance of innocence. ‘If any of you don’t want your food, please pass it my way.’

The other men registered small smiles at this, while Britt and Eva exchanged a knowing look.

Okay. She got it. Leila was Little Red Riding Hood paired with the big bad wolf for the night. She gave her sisters a warning look, but they just smiled and raised a brow. As long as she could handle it, they were okay with it. Now she just had to watch out that the joke didn’t end up on her.

The next course was asparagus, which was possibly Leila’s favourite food, but the way Eva was sucking the butter off the tip...

‘I can’t believe you’re not eating this,’ Raffa scolded when she again offered to exchange her plate with him, but his eyes were laughing, as if he knew exactly what she was thinking.

‘I don’t want to risk butter dripping down my dress.’ She raised a brow at him, conscious that her sisters were watching them closely. ‘This dress has been through enough adventures for one night, don’t you agree, Raffa?’

As Britt and Eva exchanged a look, Leila appeared to change her mind, and, lifting a buttery spear to her lips, she sucked on it thoughtfully.

‘Here—have another one if you’re hungry,’ he prompted in a way that made her breath catch.

Her sisters were transfixed by now, while the look in Raffa’s eyes wasn’t doing all that much for her own equilibrium. It was just an act, she told herself, until he captured some butter from her lips on his thumb and sucked it clean. She felt an answering pulse of pleasure with each lazy tug of his mouth. It was such a sexy, intimate thing for him to do.

And she should look away.

When it came to the entrée, a black pepper filet mignon with a blob of Gorgonzola on top, resting on a bed of wilted spinach, she was still watching Raffa eat.

‘Hmm, delicious,’ he murmured, savouring the delicious meat. ‘Why aren’t you eating, Leila?’

‘It’s chocolate fondue for pudding,’ Britt remarked innocently.

Okay, there was no leaving this game half played. ‘Chocolate fondue?’ She gazed deep into Raffa’s eyes. ‘My favourite...’

As Raffa paused, fork suspended, she tucked in with relish. This was easy. Where had she been hiding all these years?

‘Leila.’

Why was Raffa whispering?

She turned to look at him with confidence. ‘Yes? What is it? What’s wrong?’

She prickled with awareness as he leaned in close.

‘You’ve got spinach between your teeth...’

CHAPTER THREE

IT WAS INEVITABLE the conversation around the table would eventually return to the hottest topic of the night: where had Leila and Raffa been for such a long time? Britt and Eva clearly weren’t convinced by the hotel lounge story.

‘So, what did you two find to talk about up in Raffa’s suite?’ Britt asked casually.

‘We weren’t in Raffa’s suite,’ Leila said patiently. ‘We were chatting in the hotel lounge, surrounded by other guests—’ She was just getting into her stride when her eyes widened with surprise as Raffa’s warm, strong hand covered hers in a cautionary gesture.