An Affair To Remember: A Ludlow Hall Christmas by CC MacKenzie Read Free Book Online Page A

he'd groaned, how he'd begged her to stop.
    She could smell him, taste him, hear him.
    Omigod.
    Unable to sit still a moment longer, Elena leapt out of bed and dragged open her curtains to find it snowing heavily beneath a leaden sky.
    But she couldn't see it because her mind was merciless as it poured memories on top of memories along with feelings of lust, of need, of desire, of secrets told that should never , ever be told.
    Dear god, had she really said those things to his face about her secret dreams, about him bending her over the sofa?
    Had she really knelt on her bed and offered him her bare bottom?
    Closing her eyes she shivered in reaction, torn between arousal and dismay and could feel the way his hands had trembled as he'd handled her as he'd stripped her dress, as he'd dressed her in her pyjamas, as he'd fought not to touch her.
    What on earth had she done?
    How could she look the man in the eye again?
    How could she face him at work?
    Elena whimpered, pressed her fingers to her mouth.
    Now she really did feel sick.
    But her heart wouldn't stop racing as she spun to look at her bed, to see the evidence of what she'd done. The way she'd stripped like a hooker. The stockings were on the floor, along with her panties, proof , and her dress. And now she stared down at her pyjama bottoms. The ones her best friend Lucy had bought her as a joke. Pink teddy bears and a huge pink T-shirt.
    Omigod.
    Now she raced into her bathroom to find a box of aspirin opened on the sink unit.
    He'd given her two little pills and told her drink all the water in the glass.
    And she'd done it.
    Panic gripped her lungs and squeezed hard.
    She stripped off her pyjamas, tossed them in the laundry basket and stepped into the shower.
    The first sting of water was so icy she cried out loud.
    Served her right, the voice of reason spoke.
    As the water warmed, grew hot, she adjusted the thermostat.
    And went through the motions of shampooing, conditioning, rinsing her hair. Then she slathered a foaming gel all over her body, avoiding her tingling nipples and the ache low in her belly. Even though mortification held her firmly in its grip, even though she'd no idea how she would ever look Marc in the eye again, she was incredibly aroused.
    Now Elena recalled his face, his eyes, as he'd looked at her.
    Maybe she'd imagined desire?
    Maybe she'd imagined lust?
    Maybe she'd imagined a mix of frustration and annoyance?
    Maybe she needed her head examined?
     
    Head spinning with too many hectic thoughts, she wrapped her hair in a warm towel, grabbed a large bath sheet, wound it around her body as she wandered into her bedroom and sank to the stool in front of her dressing table. She studied her face in the mirror and saw it all. Her eyes were too big for her face. She was too pale. And she was trembling with reaction.
    How on earth could a dinner date with Tom have turned into this?
    Her whole body was wound too tight, but she went through the motions of moisturising her face, of blow drying her short hair, of applying a little colour to her lips, her cheeks. God knew she needed it. It didn't take long. Like an automaton, she moved to her closet, dragged out ancient yoga pants, black, and an oversized sweatshirt, black, that had belonged to one of her brothers. In spite of the central heating her feet were freezing, so she pulled on thick socks and shoved her feet into ankle boots made of soft sheepskin, black.
    Her eye was drawn to her cell phone on the small table at the side of her bed.
    Elena bit her lip as she moved to pick it up, checked the number at the top and sure enough there was Marc's number.
    Sinking to the edge of the bed, she wondered what to do for the best.
    Should she phone him?
    Maybe thank him for looking after her?
    Maybe thank him for not taking advantage of her?
    Elena tossed the phone on her unmade bed and held her spinning head in her hands as all the things, the words she'd used, spun into her mind again and