Dangerous to Know by Barbara Taylor Bradford Read Free Book Online

what a sad ending to such a beautiful evening.”
    “I’m sorry, Sebastian,” I answered, sounding choked. “I’m so very sorry.”
    Wiping my damp cheeks with his hand, he murmured, “Hush, darling , hush, there’s nothing to be sorry about.”
    “I shouldn’t have listened to her.”
    “No, you shouldn’t,” he agreed. “And remember, don’t pay attention to a thing she says in the future. Or anything Jack says, for that matter.
    He’s not quite as bad as she is, and he’s not a liar, but he can be devious.”
    “I won’t listen to either of them,” I promised. I took a step forward, looked up into those bright blue eyes which were so carefully regarding me. My own expression was intense. “Please say it’s all right between us.”
    His sudden wide smile made his eyes crinkle at the corners.
    “Nothing will ever come between us, Vivienne. We’re far too close, and we always have been. We’re friends for life, you and I. There’s a very special bond there. Well, there is, isn’t there?”
    I nodded. I couldn’t speak. I was overwhelmed by him, by the insistency of his looks, his sexuality; and I was engulfed by my own erupting emotions. I wanted him to belong to me, I wanted to belong to him in the truest sense. I tried to say something but no words would come.
    Looking momentarily puzzled, he gave me a questioning glance, his eyes narrowing as he said, “You’ve got the most peculiar expression on your face. What are you thinking?”
    I took another step nearer, leaned into him and kissed him on the cheek.
    Finally finding my voice, I said, “I was thinking how wonderful you are, and how wonderful you’ve always been to me. And I want to thank you for my birthday party. My very special party.”
    “You’re very welcome,” he said.
    Holding my head on one side, I gazed up into his face. “I’m twenty one.
    I’m grown up.”
    “You are indeed,” he said with a faintly amused smile.
    “Sebastian?”
    “Yes?”
    “I’m a woman now.”
    There must have been something unusual in my expression, or perhaps it was the inflection in my voice. But whatever it was, he stared back at me in the oddest way and for the longest moment, that puzzled look more pronounced. Unexpectedly, he took a -step toward me, then he stopped abruptly.
    We exchanged a long look, one so deep, so knowing, so full of longing, I felt my breath catch in my throat. Before I could stop myself, and almost against my own volition, I began to move forward, drawing closer to him.
    It seemed to me that he watched every step I took, and then without uttering a word, Sebastian reached out for me. He pulled me into his arms with such fierceness, I was startled. And he held me so tightly I could scarcely breathe.
    And everything changed. I changed. Sebastian changed. Our lives changed irrevocably. The past was demolished. Only the present remained . The present and the future. Our future together. We were meant to be, he and I. At least, so I believed. It had always been so.
    Our course had long been set. Somehow I knew this. Moving his head slightly, Sebastian bent down and kissed me. When he moved his tongue lightly against my lips, I parted them quite naturally. Our tongues touched. My legs felt weak and I held onto him tighter than ever for support, as he continued to kiss me in this most intimate manner.
    Without warning, he stopped, held me away from him almost roughly and looked down into my face.
    Again our eyes locked. I knew he wanted me as much as I wanted him. He had already told me so without uttering a word. And yet I detected hesitation in him.
    I took hold of his hand and led him upstairs. Once inside the room, he let go of my hand and moved away from me, hovered in the center of the floor. I felt, rather than observed, his uncertainty.
    After a moment, he said in a strangled voice, “I came to take you back to your birthday party …” His voice trailed off.
    “No! I don’t want to go back. I want to be here.