The Platinum Collection: An Australian Conquest: The Incorrigible Playboy / His Most Exquisite Conquest / His Bought Mistress

‘Bravo!’ he said admiringly.

It confused her. ‘Bravo what?’

He grinned at her. ‘The rule book rules. Almost forgot it there for a moment, didn’t you?’

She huffed to release some of the tension he’d raised, viewing him balefully. ‘I’d appreciate it if you didn’t forget it.’

‘I do apologise for the transgression.’ He made a wry grimace. ‘Curiosity slipped through my usual sense of discretion. However, it does give me a better understanding of you now that I know you’re a virgin. Head stuffed with romantic dreams...’

‘I am not a virgin!’ tripped out of her mouth before she could stop the wave of exasperation he’d whipped up.

He arched his eyebrows in surprise. ‘You’re not?’

She closed her eyes. Her mouth shut into a tight thin line. Quite clearly she hated herself for biting at his bait. Harry revelled in her discomfort. Serve her right for the discomfort she’d given him last night. And it was great to have that problem box ticked off. No virginity barrier.

Another big huff. Her eyes opened into hard, piercing slits. Shards of ice came off her tongue. ‘Can we please get down to work now?’

‘Jumping to it,’ he said obligingly, hitching himself off the desk and rounding it to view the computer screen. ‘Any bookings come in this morning?’

‘Yes.’ She swung her chair around to face the computer and started working the mouse. ‘I think I’ve dealt with them correctly. If you’ll check what I’ve done...?’

For the next half hour Harry kept strictly to business, giving Elizabeth no reason to complain about his behaviour. She had a good understanding of what was required of administration. Supply issues still had to be addressed but that could wait until later. She was so uptight he decided to give her a break, let her relax for a while.

‘Before the heat of the day sets in, I’m going to call Jack Pickard to take you around the resort, show you the practical aspects of how it runs. You need to be familiar with all of it,’ he said, reaching for the telephone. ‘I’ll stand in for you here.’

‘Okay,’ she answered levelly, but the relief he sensed coming from her told him exactly what she was thinking.

Escape.

Escape from the pressure of having to keep denying what was undeniable...the constant sizzle of sexual chemistry between them.

Harry told himself he could wait.

Sooner or later it would come to a head and boil over.

Then he would have her.

* * *

Elizabeth took an instant liking to Jack Pickard. She probably would have liked anyone who took her away from Harry this morning but Sarah’s husband was a chirpy kind of guy, nattering cheerfully about the island and his maintenance job—easy, relaxing company. He was short and wiry and his weather-beaten face had deep crow’s-feet at the corners of his eyes from smiling a lot. His hair looked wiry, too, a mass of unruly curls going an iron-grey.

‘Show you one of the vacant villas first.’ He grinned at her. ‘Before the new guests fly in this morning.’

‘Do they all come by helicopter?’ Elizabeth asked.

‘Uh-uh. Most come by motor launch. We meet them at the jetty and drive them around to administration. Those that fly in land on the back beach and take the wooden walkway that leads here.’

Wooden walkways led everywhere, with flights of steps wherever they were needed. The one they took to the vacant villa ran through rainforest, the lovely green canopy of foliage above it shading them from the direct heat of the sun. On either side of them were masses of tropical vegetation—palms, vines, bamboo, hibiscus, native flowers.

The villa was situated on a hillside overlooking the bay leading into the main beach. Its front porch had a lovely view and the breeze wafting in from the sea made it a very inviting place to sit in the deckchairs provided. Jack opened a sliding glass door and gestured for her to step inside.

The structure was split-level. Elizabeth entered a spacious living room—a comfortable lounge setting with coffee table facing a television set and CD player, a writing desk and chair, a counter along one wall containing a sink and a bar fridge. Above the counter were cupboards containing a selection of glasses for every kind of drink, bottles of spirits, plus tea and coffee-making facilities, a jar of home-made cookies and a selection of crackers to go with the cheese platter in the fridge, which also held a box of Belgian chocolates, fruit juice, beer, champagne, wine and plenty of drink mixers.

Up a few steps from the living area was a mezzanine bedroom containing a huge king-size bed, lots of pillows, plenty of cupboard space, bedside tables with lamps in the shape of dolphins. All the decor had a sea-and-beach theme, most of the furnishings in white and turquoise, knick-knacky things constructed from driftwood and coral and shells. White walls and polished floorboards completed the clean, airy look.

‘There’s an extensive library of books, CDs and games in the bar-lounge adjacent to the restaurant,’ Jack told her. ‘Guests can help themselves to whatever they like. You, too, Elizabeth.’

She smiled at him. ‘That’s good to know.’

Should fill in some lonely hours, she thought, once Harry was gone and she could get him out of her mind. That virgin question still had her seething, as though that was the only possible reason for not getting her pants off for him. In hindsight, she probably should have said she was, put him right off his game. On the other hand, he might have fancied himself as teacher, giving her a first experience in sex. It was impossible to pin down anything with Harry. He could slide this way or that way at the blink of an eye. Which made him so infuriating and frustrating and...

Elizabeth clamped down on those feelings, forcing herself to focus on what she was seeing here. The bathroom was positively decadent, a shower for two, a spa bath, the walls tiled in a wavy white with turquoise feature tiles and turquoise towels. The long vanity bench held two wash basins and a pretty collection of shells. Everything in the villa was clearly designed to give guests pleasure.

‘This is all fantastic,’ she commented to Jack.

He nodded agreement. ‘Sarah and I reckon Harry did a great job of it.’

‘Harry? Surely he had an interior decorator fitting out the villas.’

‘Oh, he had a professional finding the stuff he wanted, but how the villas are all decked out was his idea. His dad had an architect design how they’re built. It was his vision in the first place, but after he died, Harry took on the whole project and saw it through to completion. Did a great job of marketing it, too.’

This information did not fit her view of Harry Finn as a playboy. It was disconcerting until she remembered that admirable work and talent had no relevance to how he dealt with women.

She and Jack moved on. He showed her the gym, which contained most of the popular work-out equipment, introducing her to staff she hadn’t met yet. A large shed near the beach where the helicopter landed contained a desalination plant that ultimately provided fresh water for the resort. The power generator was also housed there.

‘This beach faces west,’ Jack said, pointing to the hill above it. ‘Up there are the two pavilion villas, both of them occupied today so I can’t show them to you. Their porches lead out to infinity pools that catch the sunset. Feels like there’s just you and the water and the sky. They weren’t on the original plan. Harry’s idea to build them, make them really special.’

Elizabeth nodded. ‘I noticed it cost more to stay in them.’

Jack grinned. ‘Honeymoon paradise.’

As they continued the tour, chatting as they went along, Elizabeth realised her escort was extremely well skilled—electrician, plumber, carpenter, gardener—capable of turning his hand to any maintenance work.

She couldn’t help remarking, ‘How come you never started a business of your own, Jack? You’re so well qualified.’

He grinned. ‘Hated all the paperwork the government expects you to do. Reckon I got a plum job with Harry’s dad, maintaining the property he had overlooking Cairns. Free cottage, good pay, all the fun of creating and being in a beautiful environment. Got the same deal here on the island with Harry. We’ve got a good life, Sarah and me. Can’t think of anything better.’

‘Then you’re very lucky,’ she said warmly.

‘That we are.’

A contented man, Elizabeth thought, wondering if she would ever reach the same state of contentment. Not today. And not here with Harry waiting for her back at the office. It was awful to think of how tempted she had been last night to just let herself be swept up in physical sensation. It had been a long time—almost three years since her last semiserious relationship ended—but that was no reason to engage in casual sex.

She’d never been into bed-hopping. Trying guys out on a purely physical basis did not appeal to her. She needed to feel really connected to the person before taking the next step to absolute intimacy. If Harry considered that attitude a headful of romantic dreams it was because it didn’t suit his playboy mentality. Bending her principles for him was not on, though she had to admit he was the sexiest man she had ever met, which made everything wretchedly difficult when she was alone with him.

Just one hour in the office this morning had been exhausting, having to use so much energy blocking out his physical impact on her. Of course, last night’s wild interlude had made her even more sexually aware of him. She’d been out of her mind to let him go so far with her. Now she had to cope with that memory in his eyes as well as the memories he’d stamped on her consciousness.

On the walk back to administration, Jack started talking about Harry again, how good he had been at all sports in his teens—that was easy to imagine—and what a pity it was that the untimely death of his parents had caused him to drop them. ‘Could have been a champion on any playing field,’ was Jack’s opinion.