‘No—Tony’s a baby.’ Her sleep obviously hadn’t made her forget about him. ‘Can I see your little boy, Velvet?’ she wanted to know.

  ‘I—Well—’

  ‘He’s in England, Vicki,’ Jerard interrupted her halting reply.

  ‘I know. I meant when we get back. Can I, Velvet?’

  Velvet didn’t know what to say. She couldn’t really see any real reason why Vicki and Tony shouldn’t meet. They would probably like each other, both full of mischief. But if Vicki and Tony met then she and Jerard would probably have to meet too, and she didn’t want to see him again once she returned home.

  He upset her, made her uncertain, both of her past and her future. Until she had met him she had been secure in her love for Anthony, in her marriage, and now he had made her doubt even that. Her secure little world seemed to be fast disappearing.

  And there was another reason she didn’t want to see him again, a reason that frightened her. She was attracted to him! When he had kissed her yesterday, touched her, she hadn’t wanted him to stop. Even now she still tingled from his caressing hands, the feel of his lips on hers, and she was frightened of the emotions he aroused within her. Her body remembered him even if she didn’t, and maybe the next time he kissed her she wouldn’t be able to call a halt to it. Not that he had since given her the impression that he wanted to kiss her again, the opposite in fact; his disgust with what he called her lies was more than obvious.

  ‘Velvet?’ Vicki prompted anxiously.

  ‘I—’ she looked at Jerard, but this time he didn’t appear to want to help her out. ‘I don’t see why not, Vicki,’ she finally answered. ‘I’m sure Tony would love to meet you.’

  ‘Oh, good!’ her face glowed.

  Velvet’s heart softened. What harm could it do to agree? Vicki might forget all about it by the time she got back to England.

  ‘My daughter never forgets,’ Jerard told her softly, obviously guessing her thoughts.

  ‘Then she must be like you,’ she snapped back resentfully.

  His mouth twisted. ‘We don’t all have your convenient lapses of memory.’

  She paled. ‘You think I enjoy having forgotten my own husband.’

  ‘I think you would enjoy having me think you had,’ he scorned.

  ‘And why would I enjoy that?’

  ‘Then you could be sure that I thought you’d forgotten how good we were together too. God,’ he groaned softly, his hands fiercely gripping the steering-wheel, ‘I used to wake up in a cold sweat remembering what it was like with you!’

  ‘Please, Jerard—Vicki!’ she reminded her tautly.

  ‘My daughter isn’t stupid, Velvet,’ he rasped. ‘She’s perfectly well well aware of the fact that there’s an—awareness between us.’

  ‘No!’ she gasped.

  ‘Yes,’ he insisted grimly. ‘Why do you think she likes to see the two of us together? And believe me, I’m no happier about it than you are.’

  His tone was so insulting that Velvet clammed up for the rest of the journey, talking solely to Vicki. Not that it seemed to bother Jerard, he chatted quite easily with both of them, not seeming to care that he received no answers from Velvet.

  ‘I’d forgotten that you sulk.’ he said with amusement as Vicki bounded ahead of them into the hotel and the Ferrari was taken to be parked by one of the hotel workers.

  She glared up at him. ‘I do not sulk!’

  ‘You do,’ Jerard grinned, carrying her overnight bag and another suitcase she presumed contained his and Vicki’s clothes. ‘I vividly remember one occasion when you sulked. I remember even more vividly the method I used to get you out of it.’

  By the sensuous curve of his lips, and the warmth in his eyes, it didn’t take much to guess that method. ‘Do you have to get so damned personal all the time!’ she snapped before walking on ahead, catching Vicki up, the two of them waiting at the desk for Jerard to join them, his strides leisurely.

  ‘Mr Daniels!’ the manager appeared as if from nowhere, shaking Jerard’s hand warmly. ‘It’s good to see you again. And you’ve brought your wife and daughter with you this time,’ he smiled at Velvet.

  ‘I’m not Mrs Daniels,’ she told him quietly, a high colour to her cheeks.

  ‘Oh. Oh, I see.’ His smile deepened. ‘Well, it’s nice to meet you, anyway.’

  Velvet looked appealing at Jerard. The manager had obviously assumed that she was Jerard’s live-in girl-friend, and she wanted that impression dispelled as soon as possible.

  With a mocking smile in her direction Jerard answered the other man. ‘Mrs Dale is a friend of my daughter,’ he drawled.

  It wasn’t exactly the explanation Velvet had been expecting, although it was in fact the true one.

  ‘But Daddy likes her too,’ Vicki put in innocently, looking up affectionately at Velvet as she held her hand.

  ‘Out of the mouths of babes …’ Jerard murmured so that only Velvet should hear him. ‘It’s been a long drive, Mike,’ he told the other man briskly. ‘If you’ll excuse us?’

  ‘Of course,’ the manager nodded. ‘Everything has been done to make your stay with us enjoyable, but if there’s anything you need …’

  ‘We’ll ask for it,’ Jerard nodded.

  ‘Let me get someone to take up your luggage—’

  ‘It’s okay,’ Jerard dismissed, ‘I can manage.’ He strode over to the lift, Vicki and Velvet following behind him. ‘Bed for you, young lady,’ he told Vicki firmly as they travelled up in the lift.

  ‘Oh, but—’

  ‘Bed!’

  Vicki looked rebellious. ‘But it’s early yet. I thought we could all—’

  ‘We aren’t doing anything,’ she was told as they stepped out of the lift. ‘Hot milk for you, bath, and then bed.’

  ‘Can Velvet bath me?’ she asked as a compromise.

  He raised his dark eyebrows. ‘Velvet?’

  ‘I’d love to,’ she nodded.

  ‘Okay,’ Jerard shrugged. ‘But don’t blame me if you get soaked, this young lady likes to play games in the bath—like another young lady I know,’ he added softly.

  Vicki looked up at him. ‘What did you say, Daddy?’

  ‘Nothing important.’ He put their cases down, ruffling her hair before opening the door.

  Velvet’s cheeks were fiery red. Jerard’s implication was clear; she was the other ‘young lady’ who liked to play games in the bath—with him? God, what else could he have meant! The idea of it was—exhilarating!

  She picked up her small case. ‘If you’ll tell me where my room is …?’

  Jerard pushed the door open and went inside. ‘Step this way, Mrs Dale,’ he mocked. ‘And I’ll show it to you.’

  Her eyes widened. ‘I—I can’t stay in there with you!’

  ‘Why not?’ his eyes were narrowed. ‘It is a suite, after all. With four bedrooms,’ he added tauntingly.

  ‘Yes, but I—’ her hand tightened on the handle of her case. ‘I’d rather have a room of my own.’

  ‘We can talk this out later,’ he looked pointedly at the listening Vicki. ‘Come inside for now.’

  She went reluctantly. She couldn’t possibly stay the night here, even if it was a suite.

  * * *

  Jerard was right, she did get soaked helping Vicki with her bath, but she had a lot of fun too. Without her clothes Vicki was painfully thin, her hair secured on top of her head to keep it dry making her look even more so. And yet she was a robust child, with a healthy glow to her cheeks.

  It felt strange to be bathing a child of this size; she was only used to the tiny squirming bundle that Tony usually was. But Vicki looked angelic with her face newly washed and shiny, her hair glossily clean, her pink cotton nightgown reaching down to her ankles.

  She came out to the lounge to drink the warm milk her father had ordered for her, accepting demurely when he ordered her to bed once she had drunk it, evidence that she was tired, even though she wasn’t going to admit it.

  ‘I want you both to take me to bed,’ she requested shyly.

  Jerard looked at Velvet. ‘All right,’ he agreed as he saw her nod. ‘Just this once.’

  Vicki went quite happily into the bedroom, a hand in each of theirs, and climbed beneath the bedclothes. ‘Now you both have to tuck me in,’ she announced mischievously.

  ‘Vicki—’

  ‘Oh, please, Daddy,’ she pleaded. ‘Just for tonight!’

  He shrugged. ‘Okay,’ he agreed indulgently.

  ‘Right. You sit here,’ she ordered him to sit on one side of the bed, ‘and you here,’ she ordered Velvet to the other side. ‘Now I want you both to kiss me goodnight.’

  ‘You seem to have a lot of “I wants” tonight,’ her father said sternly.

  ‘Daddy!’

  He bent to kiss her on the forehead. ‘You’re very bossy tonight, young lady.’

  ‘I know,’ she grinned. ‘But it’s so nice having you both here, it’s almost like—’

  ‘Vicki, no!’ He moved back, standing up. ‘Behave yourself!’

  ‘But I was only going to say it’s almost like having a mummy and a daddy.’ Her arms came up lovingly about Velvet’s neck. ‘I was thinking—’

  ‘When you start thinking it usually means trouble,’ her father said grimly.

  She looked appealingly at Velvet. ‘It’s just that your little boy doesn’t have a daddy, and I don’t have a mummy, and I wondered—’

  ‘Vicki, for God’s sake!’ her father exploded.

  Her mouth set rebelliously, her arms tightening about Velvet’s neck. ‘Will you be my mummy, Velvet?’ she asked shyly.

  CHAPTER FIVE

  VELVET didn’t know what to do, what to say. The question had been so unexpected that she was just speechless. Looked at from Vicki’s point of view it would seem a perfectly natural request, even a logical one, so much so that Velvet didn’t have an answer to it.

  ‘It’s time you were asleep, Vicki,’ Jerard said briskly.

  She pouted. ‘But Velvet hasn’t answered me.’

  ‘And she isn’t going to,’ he told her firmly. ‘I’ve warned you once today about asking questions like this, I’m not going to tell you again.’ He tucked the covers about her. ‘Now get to sleep,’ he switched off the main light, leaving the night-lamp on. ‘It’s going to be a long exciting day tomorrow.’ He took hold of Velvet’s arm and led her over to the door. “Night, darling,’ he said huskily to his daughter.

  "Night, Daddy,’ she yawned. ‘Velvet, you—you aren’t cross with me, are you?’ she asked uncertainly.

  Velvet came out of her stupor. ‘No, of course I’m not, Vicki,’ she said with forced brightness.

  ‘Good. Because I like you very, very much.’ She closed her eyes sleepily.

  ‘Hell!’ Jerard swore as soon as they were in the lounge and Vicki’s bedroom door was firmly closed. ‘Hell and damnation!’ He paced the room angrily.

  Velvet pushed her tousled hair back from her face. ‘I heard you the first time,’ she said shakily.

  He turned on her fiercely. ‘I warned you about this. I—’

  ‘Yes, you warned me!’ she snapped. ‘How like you to turn around and say “I told you so"!’

  ‘How would you know it was like me?’ his mouth twisted. ‘When you say you don’t even know me?’

  ‘I—’

  ‘I’ll tell you how well you know me,’ his fingers dug into her shoulders as he shook her. ‘You know me so well that you only used to say one word and I’d be in bed with you.’

  ‘Jerard—’

  ‘That’s the word!’ he said grimly, his mouth coming down forcefully on hers.

  She hadn’t wanted him to kiss her, had been afraid that he would. She melted against him at the first touch of his lips, her body arching against the hard contours of his, her fingers entangled in the dark thickness of his hair.

  Lips met lips, exploringly, Jerard’s body hardening to arousal against her, his hands moving feverishly across her back. He swung her up in his arms and carried her over to the sofa, his mouth not leaving hers as he lay down beside her, his lips continuing their exploration.

  Jerard was the one to finally break the kiss, his eyes dark as he looked down at her, his breathing ragged. ‘Are you sure this is what you want, Velvet? he asked huskily.

  ‘Oh yes,’ her hands clung about his throat, ‘this is what I want.’ It was what her body cried out for, what she hungered for.

  She had been too long denied this male warmth, the feel and smell of Jerard invading her senses, making her head spin. She pressed herself against him, instantly feeling the surge of passion in his body.

  ‘And God knows I want you,’ he groaned, his tongue tracing the outline of her lips, daring further intimacies as they parted to that sensual caress. ‘God, Velvet!’ His mouth once more claimed hers, moving hungrily against her.

  So much for her assertion that this would never happen again! But she didn’t care. As long as Jerard went on touching her, kissing her, she didn’t care about anything else. Not even her baby waiting at home for her in England mattered at this moment.

  She offered no resistance as Jerard pushed up the tee-shirt she had worn for travelling; in fact she helped him, slipping her arms out of her bra-straps as he unfastened the clasp. She gasped as his mouth claimed one aroused nipple, his teeth biting erotically, shooting waves of pleasure through her body, from the tips of her toes to her tingling scalp.

  That feeling of familiarity washed over her once again, and she acted instinctively, unbuttoning his shirt, her hands going to his back, her nails digging into his skin.

  His breath caught in his throat. ‘I always liked that,’ he moaned. ‘Let’s see what else you can remember that I like.’

  She was a willing pupil to his teaching, and their caresses became even more intimate as she helped Jerard remove his shirt, her own tee-shirt soon joining the silky material on the carpeted floor, their torsos searing together in heated passion.

  The tips of her breasts ached from contact with Jerard’s hair-roughened chest, their legs were entwined as they moved together for even closer contact. Velvet knew that the two of them were going to make love fully, knew it and craved for it.

  But the sudden knock on the door took that final commitment out of their hands, and Jerard broke away from her reluctantly.

  ‘God, no!’ he groaned, his face in her throat.

  ‘Who can it be?’ she whispered.

  ‘Dinner,’ he said ruefully, standing up to pull on his shirt.

  ‘Dinner …?’ she grimaced.

  ‘Mm,’ he picked up her bra and tee-shirt, handing them to her. ‘I ordered it while you were bathing Vicki. I wish now that I hadn’t bothered.’ His eyes still blazed with desire.

  Velvet sat up, hastily pulling on her clothes as the knock was repeated. ‘I—I didn’t realise.’

  Reaction was starting to set in, embarrassment, but not shame, washing over her. She had no reason to feel shame, and she didn’t. As Carly had already pointed out, she was free, over twenty-one, and perfectly capable of deciding whether or not she wanted to go to bed with a man. And she did want to go to bed with Jerard.

  ‘Later, Velvet,’ he correctly read the hunger in her eyes. ‘I don’t welcome this interruption any more than you do,’ his thumb caressed the pulsing swell of her bottom lip. ‘Later,’ he repeated huskily, his word a promise.

  Her breathing was shallow, she was still deeply affected by what had just happened between them. ‘I—I’m presentable now,’ she told him softly, pulling the tee-shirt down over her lacy-covered breasts.

  ‘You’re always presentable, Velvet,’ he murmured throatily. ‘But when you’re naked, then you’re—breathtaking.’

  She flushed. ‘The door,’ she reminded him, his reference to her nakedness only seeming to remind her of all she couldn’t remember. Oh, how she wished she could remember loving and being loved by this man, it must have been the most fantastic experience of her life.

  No! Loving and being loved by Anthony had been that! She paled as she remembered her husband, the man she had loved since she was nineteen.

  ‘Velvet?’ Jerard queried sharply.

  She looked up at him dazedly, frowning. ‘Yes?’ Her voice was hesitant, bewildered.

  ‘I—Oh damn!’ he swore as the knock sounded again, walking over angrily to answer it.

  It was indeed their dinner, and Velvet had time to regain her composure while the waiter set it out on the dining-room table. She wasn’t free at all, she had a husband and son she owed her loyalty to. She might feel like making love with Jerard, but she couldn’t do it, couldn’t betray Anthony’s memory in that way, or his son that she was bringing up so lovingly.

  ‘It’s gone, isn’t it?’ Jerard said once they were alone, the waiter having silently left.

  She blinked hard. ‘I’m sorry?’ she shook her head in puzzlement. ‘What’s gone?’

  He shrugged resignedly. ‘The moment—it’s gone.’

  She bit her lip. ‘I—’

  ‘Don’t bother to explain, Velvet,’ his voice was harsh. ‘Come and eat your food,’ he ordered curtly.

  She looked at him pleadingly. ‘Jerard—’

  ‘Eat!’

  ‘I’m not hungry,’ she muttered. ‘It isn’t long since I last ate.’

  ‘It’s over four hours ago, and as I remember you didn’t eat at all. You’ll eat now.’ He attacked his steak as if it had done him some personal harm.

  She sat down, picking up her knife and fork. She even managed to raise a piece of steak to her lips, but she couldn’t quite bring herself to put it in her mouth. ‘I can’t!’ Her fork landed back on her plate with a clatter. ‘I just can’t!’ She pushed back her chair and ran into the bedroom Jerard had put her case into earlier, shutting the door behind her to lean weakly back against it.

  She was pushed forward as the door jerked open, would have fallen if Jerard’s arm hadn’t come about her waist, pulling her back against him, his face in her hair.

  ‘I’m not going to force you.’ His breath ruffled her red-gold hair. Velvet licked her dry lips. ‘I—I didn’t think you would.’

  ‘Didn’t you?’ He sounded amused.