Look at me, Raoul Zesiger willed Sirena Abbott.
He had to lean back in his chair to see her past the
three men between them. He should have been looking at the
judge, but he couldn’t take his eyes off Sirena.
She sat very still, face forward, her profile somber.
Her absurdly long, gypsy lashes had stayed down-swept as his
lawyer had risen to speak. She didn’t even flick a glance
his direction when her own lawyer stood to plead that jail
time was counter-productive since she needed to work to pay
back the stolen funds.
Raoul’s lawyers had warned him this wouldn’t result in
incarceration, but Raoul had pressed hard for it. He would
see this treacherously innocent-looking woman, with her
mouth pouted in grave tension and her thick brunette locks
pulled into a deceptively respectful knot, go to jail for
betraying him. For stealing.
His stepfather had been a thief. He had never expected
to be taken advantage of again, especially by his reliable
PA, a woman he’d come to see as someone he could trust to be
there, always, but she had dipped her fingers into his
personal account.
Then she had tried to manipulate him into going easy by
being easy.
He didn’t want the flash of memory to strike. His ears
were waiting for the judge to state that this would progress
to a sentence, but his body prickled with heat as he
recalled the feel of those plump lips softening under his.
Her breasts, a lush handful, had smelled of summer. Her
nipples were sun-warmed berries against his tongue,
succulent and sweet. The heart-shaped backside he’d watched
too often as it retreated from his office had been both taut
and smooth as he had lifted her skirt and peeled lace down.
Thighs like powdered sugar, an enticing musky perfume
between that pulled him to hard attention as he remembered
how tight—almost virginal—she’d been. But so hot and
welcoming.
Because she’d known her criminal act was about to come to
light.
His gut clenched in a mixture of fury and unparalleled
carnal hunger. For two years he’d managed to keep his
desire contained, but now that he’d had her, all he could
think about was having her again. He hated her for having
such power over him. He could swear under oath that he’d
never hurt a woman, but he wanted to crush Sirena Abbott.
Eradicate her. Destroy her.
The clap of a gavel snapped him back to the courtroom.
It was empty save for the five of them behind two tables,
both facing the judge. His lawyer gave Raoul a resigned
that’s-how-it-goes tilt of his head and Raoul realized with
sick disgust that the decision had gone in Sirena’s favor.
At the other table, partly obscured by her lawyer, Sirena’s
spine softened in relief. Her wide eyes lifted to the
heavens, shining with gratitude. Her lawyer thanked the
judge and set a hand under Sirena’s elbow to help her rise,
leaning in to say something to her.
Raoul felt a clench of possessiveness as he watched the
solicitous middle-aged lawyer hover over her. He told
himself it was anger, nothing else. He loathed being a
victim again. She shouldn’t get away with a repayment plan
of six hundred pounds a month. That wasn’t reparation.
That was a joke.
Why wouldn’t she look at him? It was the least she could
do: look him in the eye and acknowledge they both knew she
was getting away with a crime. But she murmured something
to her lawyer and left the man packing his briefcase as she
circled to the aisle. Her sexy curves were downplayed by
one of her sleek jackets and pencil skirts, but she was
still alluring as hell. Her step slowed as she came to the
gate into the gallery.
Look at me, Raoul silently commanded again, holding his
breath as she hesitated, sensing she was about to swing her
gaze to his.
Her lips drained of color and her hand trembled where she
outstretched it, trying to find the gate. She stared
straight ahead, eyes blinking and blinking—
“She’s fainting!” He shoved past his two lawyers and
toppled chairs to reach her even as her own lawyer turned
and reacted. They caught her together.
Raoul hated the man anew for touching her as they both
eased her to the floor. She was dead weight. He had to
catch her head as it lolled. She hadn’t been this
insubstantial the last time he’d held her. She hadn’t been
fragile.
Raoul barked for first aid.
Someone appeared with oxygen in blessedly short time. He
let himself be pushed back a half-step, but he couldn’t take
his eyes off the way Sirena’s cheeks had gone hollow, her
skin gray. Everything in him, breath, blood, thought,
ground to a halt as he waited for a new verdict: that she
would be okay.
It was his father all over again. The lack of response,
the wild panic rising in him as he fought against
helplessness and brutal reality. Was she breathing? She
couldn’t be dead. Open your eyes, Sirena.
Distantly he heard the attendant asking after pre-
existing conditions and Raoul racked his brain. She wasn’t
diabetic; had never taken medication that he’d seen. He
reached for the phone he’d turned off while court was in
session, intent on accessing her personnel file when he
heard her lawyer answer in a low murmur.
“She’s pregnant.”
The words burst like shattered glass in his ears.