flashing him a warning. 'I don't have to put up with this,' she said. 'If you don't stop this I will pack my bags first thing in the morning to make way for Ms Henning.'
A nerve twitched at the side of his mouth, his eyes hardening to narrow chips of black ice. 'Are you blackmailing me, Emma?' he asked.
Emma lifted her chin. 'You bet I am,' she said. 'And you'd better not forget it.'
He looked at her for a long pulsing moment, his palm still on the nape of her neck. Emma tried not to show how unnerved she was by his closeness, but her heart was skipping every second beat with each drawn-out second that passed.
'You would walk away from a fortune such as this just to spite me?' he asked, dropping his hand.
Emma's neck was still tingling from the touch of his fingers. 'If I have to, yes. I refuse to be treated like a tramp. I do have some measure of pride, you know.'
'I am sure you do,' he said. 'But I wonder if you are calling my bluff.'
She gave him an arch look. 'There is only one way to find out.'
He smiled again, his dark eyes twinkling. 'Are you daring me to kiss you, Emma March?'
Her eyes widened in alarm. 'Of course not!'
'I am tempted,' he said, looking down at her mouth. 'In fact, I have never been quite so tempted.'
Emma spun on her bare feet to leave, but before she could take a single step he captured one of the ties of her bathrobe and towed her into his solid warmth like a wobbly dingy being drawn towards the safe harbour of a jetty. 'Thank you for fixing my hand,' he said. 'I really appreciate it.'
Emma had to fight against the overwhelming temptation to look at his mouth. 'It's fine...I hope it doesn't get infected.'
'If it does at least I will have you on hand to mop my feverish brow, will I not?'
She tugged her bathrobe tie out of his hold and gave him a testy glare. 'I'm sure your current mistress will do a much better job than me.'
His eyes moved over her face in a leisurely fashion, his quiet assessment of her features even more disturbing to her than his verbal taunts. 'As of earlier tonight I have dismissed her services,' he said. 'She was starting to bore me, in any case. I have no time for emotionally needy women. They are too much hard work.'
Emma wasn't sure what to say in response. She felt a pang of empathy for the woman he had discarded so cavalierly. She wondered if he had called her or texted her on his mobile, not even bothering to wait until he could speak to her face to face. Either way she couldn't help wondering if the woman had done the unthinkable and fallen in love with him. It was a sobering reminder of what she was in for if she dared to allow her own feelings to get out of control.
'It's very late,' she said. 'You should go to bed. You look exhausted.'
He cocked his head at her. 'How about you tuck me in? I am sure you are very good at it. After all, isn't that what my father paid you to do?'
'I would have looked after him without any payment,' she said, even though she knew it was going to annoy him. 'In my opinion he was worth two of you.'
A flicker of anger flashed in his dark gaze. 'Are you telling me you were in love with him?' he asked.
She held his glittering gaze with an effort. 'Everyone deserves love, Rafaele; even, dare I say, someone as odious as you.'
She gave him one last frosty look and stalked out with the sounds of his mocking laughter following her all the way upstairs.
CHAPTER THREE
WHEN Emma came downstairs the following morning Rafaele was leaning against the kitchen counter with a cup of coffee in one hand. He put the cup down and pushed himself away from the counter and came to stand in front of her. 'I believe I owe you an apology,' he said. 'I have no real excuse for my behaviour last night. I was not even drunk, not that it would have been any excuse even if I had been. It was a difficult day for me...coming back here after a long absence. I guess I had underestimated just how much of a strain it would be.'
'It's OK,' she said and, after a