Page 69 of Modern Romance July 2025 #4-8
Various other rooms lay further down, but they were making their way to three broad steps that led to a balustraded area. She assumed the bedrooms were there… .nerve-wracking thought.
‘Hungry?’
He stopped, looked round at her and smiled, a smile that managed to ease some of her tension away.
‘Look, Cass,’ he said quietly, ‘I get that this is an unusual situation but don’t be nervous.’
‘I’m not.’
‘That’s not what your expression is telling me.’
‘Maybe it’s telling you that I’m exhausted after nearly a day on my feet and you’re confusing it with nerves. Don’t forget, I chose to come here.’
Brave words but, as he stepped towards her, she swallowed hard and just about managed to maintain eye contact. He reached out and stroked her bare arm. She shivered and gazed down at his long, brown fingers running up and down her much paler skin.
Of course, this was why she was here. Not to make chit chat or get to know the man he was now. For Leo, she was here for the sex.
And it was the same for her .
‘So you did. Okay, it’s been a hell of a day for you, but are you hungry? Thirsty? The place is fully stocked and I’ve had a private chef prepare a week’s worth of meals for us so that all we have to do is turn an oven on and stick one in.’
‘I’m a caterer. There was no need for that. I’m perfectly able to cook food.’
‘You’re not here to be a caterer, though, are you?’
‘No.’
He looked at her in silence for a few seconds.
‘Okay, come and I’ll show you to the bedroom. You can have a shower and refresh and then, if you decide you want something to eat or drink, that’s fine, or else you can just sleep it off.’
‘Thanks.’
He didn’t move. He hoisted her bag over one shoulder and continued to stare at her until she blushed.
‘Okay,’ Cassie admitted. ‘I’m nervous. I wasn’t sure what to expect and I guess now that I’m here, it all feels…very real.’
‘It’s not meant to be an ordeal,’ Leo told her wryly. ‘And, if it is, tell me and I’ll try and brush up on my seduction moves.’
‘You have seduction moves?’
‘Tried and tested.’
Cassie fell in behind him as he led her towards the bedroom …their bedroom.
The very thought set up a riot of butterflies in her tummy but she was going to play it as cool as he was. This was the very reason she wanted to do this, to sleep with him.
‘It’s a beautiful villa, Leo.’
‘It is.’
‘Does it get much use? Everything feels very new.’
‘I have someone come in twice a week to make sure everything’s in order.
To answer your question about how often it’s used?
’ He paused. ‘Not very. I’ve come a couple of times to unwind, and I’ve hosted a few meetings here with overseas clients when absolute privacy has been necessary because of the sensitivity of the deal being completed.
My father came once but told me that he didn’t care for the atmosphere—too quiet. ’
‘That’s what’s so wonderful about it. The roads were empty on the way here.’
‘Quiet only suits some people.’ Leo grinned. ‘Too few bars here for my father. I also don’t think he feels comfortable with the guest list.’
‘Why?’
‘Why do you think, Cass? He spent his entire life taking orders and obeying other people’s commands. He never learnt the valuable lesson that because someone has more money or power than you doesn’t make them a better person.’
‘You’ve always been so sure of yourself, Leo.’ She blushed because that felt like an overly personal remark. ‘Why did you buy this villa if you didn’t plan on making much use of it?’
‘Because I could,’ Leo drawled and shrugged as he pushed open one of the doors at the very end of the villa. ‘When you grow up with very little, the ability to treat yourself to a lot can be tempting.’
‘I guess it’s a good investment,’ Cassie murmured, half-smiling at that very human revelation of his, although a fanciful part of her wondered how much of his life had been put on hold as he’d climbed the ladder to success.
Had the ability to kick back been sacrificed to his thirst for success, to make his future better than his past?
He had been so much less icily controlled when she had known him.
Had her rejection helped to shape the block of granite that now seemed to enclose him?
She knew that this was pointless speculation that didn’t belong in their current situation. ‘I guess it would be a brilliant holiday place for when you have a family of your own.’
‘Oh, that’s not ever going to be on the cards. Those sorts of plans don’t figure in the present trajectory of my life. And, word to the wise: don’t bother going there.’
Well, that told her.
Cassie took the hint and fell silent as she stepped into a bedroom suite that took her breath away.
The door opened into a luxurious sitting area where the pastel shades had been left behind in favour of bursts of colour in the furnishings and local artwork on the walls.
Beyond the sitting room was a door which was ajar, leading to the bedroom, and she could just about make out an enormous bed and lots of wood.
Floor-to-ceiling doors opened out onto the deck where sofas and chairs sheltered under a sloping roof overlooking the lawns to the back.
‘Wow.’
‘Tomorrow you’ll see that there’s an uninterrupted view of the sea from out there,’ he told her as he followed the direction of her stare.
‘We can access the beach from here and, trust me, there will never be anyone there to interrupt us. Paths seldom cross here unless by arrangement. It’s a place where privacy is highly valued. ’
Cassie turned away and eyed the bed, soon to be the main focus of their carnal pleasure. Simmering excitement warred with nerves.
‘Maybe I could have a shower, like you suggested?’
‘Bathroom’s adjoining the bedroom. I’ll bring you something to eat…or drink? Tea, coffee, water…?’
‘You mean you’d shove something in the oven for me that’s already been prepared?’ She looked up at him and smiled, easing herself out of her nerves. ‘You used to complain about cooking.’
Leo laughed and this time there was genuine humour in his laughter.
‘My father could be very fussy for a mild-mannered guy. Not spicy enough…too spicy…did you remember salt?…too much salt… He hated cooking more than me and I had to do it because, if he did, I was never sure just how safe my stomach would be.’
‘How is he, Leo?’
‘Very contented, as it happens. I bought him a house in Spain close to many of his relatives and he’s busy in retirement. He deserves the best.’
They looked at each other for a heartbeat and then he turned away abruptly.
‘I’ll be half an hour. I’ll bring you some tea and toast. I can manage that, and I don’t suppose you want anything heavier.’
Cassie nodded, backing towards the bathroom.
Now that she was facing the inevitable part of the deal she had agreed to, all sorts of practical worries reared their heads, the biggest of which was, what was he going to expect from her in bed?
They’d had one time, one spectacular moment in time together, but her experience was limited beyond that. Her one short-lived relationship after Leo had been the opposite of a sexual adventure and she had retreated into work after the break-up.
When she’d looked up Leo online and plucked up the courage really to look at his profile, she had seen dozens of images of him with women; lots of leggy models clinging onto him for dear life.
Of course, now he possessed the trappings that would make him the most eligible man on the planet.
God knew how experienced he was in bed. Would he expect a similar level of experience from her—someone acrobatic, creative and maybe into weird stuff?
She quailed at the thought of that. Her nerves were all over the place when she emerged from having a quick shower and she was relieved when she realised that he wasn’t there in the bedroom waiting for her.
He’d brought in her case and she dressed quickly, sticking on some soft jogging bottoms and a tee-shirt and then, barefoot, she strolled outside and forgot everything.
The breeze was warm and she could smell the salty ocean in the air, tangy and fragrant. In the distance she could make out the view of the sea and hear the gentle rolling of the waves lapping on the shore.
Even where she lived, surrounded by nature, there were still the daily sights and sounds of life being lived to be heard: the far-away noise of cars interrupting the silence; the romantic, dull glow of street lamps switched on in winter; and in summer the pleasant background thrum of lawnmowers, kids playing and cars taking people here, there and everywhere.
Here, there was nothing but the breeze and the ocean. It was lulling and peaceful and she jumped when she realised that Leo had come to stand next to her. Cassie shivered and slid a sideways look at him. She dared let her imagination take flight.
What if…?
What if there had been no roadblocks? Would things have worked out between them? She’d been so deeply in love but had that been just a first, immature kind of love that wouldn’t have lasted anyway? Was he right when he’d said that she would have hindered his progress through life?
But if everything had worked out, wouldn’t it have been heaven to be here now, in this most romantic of places, with Leo by her side and the love between them not blighted?
‘Leo…’ She turned to him impulsively and gazed up at the dark shadows and angles of his face. ‘Do you ever think about…what might have happened if…if…?’
‘No.’
That flat answer sliced through her daydream and brought her swiftly back to reality.
‘And,’ he continued heavily, ‘Don’t let the romance of this place get to you, Cassie. What we had began and ended the day I left town. What’s happening now is a very different beast.’
‘I know. I just wondered…’
He moved to stand with his back to the wooden railing, leaning against it and looked at her steadily and coolly.