Master of Her Virtue - By Miranda Lee Page 0,37

ever finds out I’ve deflowered his precious assistant.’

Violet shrugged. ‘I’m sure you could think of something plausible. Henry’s always going on about how brilliant you are.’

He glowered at her for a split second, then laughed. ‘Whatever am I going to do with you?’

‘Lots of things, I hope,’ she said, her boldness no longer bothering her one bit.

He shook his head at her. ‘Might I remind you that I only had that one condom?’

‘That’s not an...er...insurmountable problem.’

His eyebrows arched. ‘Really? And what are you suggesting?’

‘I’m on the pill.’

His mouth fell open, his eyes rounding with shock—or was it outrage?

‘What in God’s name do you think you’re doing, telling me that?’ he roared at her. ‘I thought you were an intelligent girl!’

‘I am intelligent.’ Violet defended herself, her face flushing as her chin lifted in defiance.

‘Really? You think it’s intelligent to tell me you’re on the pill at this precise moment? A truly intelligent girl would already have realised that I am having the devil of a time resisting you as it is. Now you’re giving me carte blanche to ravage you silly, when for all you know I’ve been having unsafe sex all over the world.’

‘Have you?’

‘No, of course not!’

‘I didn’t think so.’

‘And you’re just going to believe me?’

‘You wouldn’t lie to me.’

He threw his hands up in the air. ‘Lord protect me from twenty-five-year-old virgins!’

‘Might I remind you that I’m no longer a virgin?’ she stated coolly. ‘So, are you coming back to bed or not?’

The look on his face was priceless.

‘You are incorrigible!’

‘I’ll take that as a yes.’

‘Not yet, missy. Why are you on the pill?’

‘I told you over dinner—being on the pill cured my pimples.’

‘But that was years ago!’

She didn’t want to tell him that the fear of her acne coming back never went away. Instead, she shrugged. ‘I guess it became a habit. Why? Do you think I’m lying to you?’ she threw at him, stung by the thought. ‘If you do then I’ll get dressed and we’ll go down to the show.’

‘I don’t for one minute think you’re lying,’ he said. ‘And I definitely don’t want you to get dressed again.’

Violet had never felt anything as powerful as the emotion this last admission evoked. But she dared not let it show in her face. Inside, however, a dazzling sense of triumph made her head pound and her heart sing. Leo was going to stay. He was going to make love to her again. But, even as he was undoing the first button of his shirt, his fingers stilled and his eyes narrowed.

‘One last thing,’ he bit out.

Violet’s galloping heartbeat became suspended in her chest.

‘No matter what I do to you tonight—no matter what I say or what you feel—this has nothing to do with love. Please tell me right here and now that you understand that.’

Violet didn’t like deceiving him. But sometimes a girl had to do what a girl had to do. Because what was the alternative—she confessed her love for him and he walked out the door? No way! He was hers, for tonight at least, and nothing and no one was going to be allowed to spoil that.

‘For pity’s sake, Leo, you don’t have to keep spelling things out for me. I understand. Truly. We’re not making love. We’re just having sex. Okay?’

‘No, it’s not okay. None of this is okay. But there’s no going back now,’ he growled as he went back to undressing. ‘Not for either of us, it seems. Lust has us in its grip—which is another thing you should learn by tonight’s experiences, Violet. Lust is just as powerful as love. Sometimes even more powerful. Because lust bypasses one’s conscience and focuses on nothing but the most selfish forms of sexual pleasure.

‘Remember that tomorrow when you’re tempted to think of tonight through rose-coloured glasses. If you can be honest with yourself about this, I will have taught you something infinitely more valuable than how to turn on a man’s body.’

Violet stared at his naked body, seeing that he didn’t need turning on. He was already stunningly erect.

A shudder ran through her when he walked over and yanked the sheet from her body.

‘Now, no more of that pretend shyness, Violet,’ he snapped. ‘And no more futile chit-chat. We have limited time together and I don’t intend to waste a single moment of it.’

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

VIOLET WOKE TO the sound of knocking. It took her a second or two to realise she was alone, in her bed at Joy’s place, and it