One Christmas Night In...: A Night in the Palace / A Christmas Night to Remember / Texas Tycoon's Christmas Fiancée

‘Hello?’

Dmitri’s head came up like a predator that had just scented prey as Lily finally found her mobile and took the call. Felix! It had to be him. Who else would telephone her at this time of night?

‘Hey!’ Lily protested as the phone was plucked out of her fingers before Dmitri placed it against his own ear.

‘Dmitri!’

‘Is that you, Barton?’ He raised his other hand with the obvious intention of silencing her as he listened briefly before speaking again. ‘Who is this?’ he demanded harshly.

‘Obviously not Felix,’ Lily snapped as she retrieved her mobile. ‘Yes. Sorry about that, Danny.’ She shot Dmitri a resentful glance. ‘Oh, just a … a friend of my brother’s. No, he doesn’t sound very friendly, does he?’ She gave a forced laugh and Dmitri glowered across at her as he slowly refastened his shirt. ‘Look, can I call you back tomorrow? Things are a little hectic here right now, and … Yes, of course I’ll be sure and call you back,’ she said lightly. ‘Okay. Bye, Danny.’

A loaded silence filled the kitchen once she had ended the call and put the mobile back in her bag. She felt too stunned by what had just happened and the way her body still tingled in the aftermath of their passion to speak. She wasn’t at all sure why he was suddenly silent.

It could be any number of things. Disappointment that the call hadn’t been from Felix. Or maybe he was just disgusted by what had happened between them. Or perhaps it was a combination of the two; Lily certainly felt less than proud of her own wanton behaviour.

‘Who is Danny?’

She gave Dmitri a startled look. ‘Sorry?’

‘Who is Danny?’ he repeated through gritted teeth. Or there could be a third reason for Dmitri’s accusatory silence …

Not that Lily thought for a moment that he was in the least jealous that she had received a telephone call from another man. It was more likely that he was merely contemptuous of the fact that she had allowed him to make love to her when she obviously already had a man in her life. Except she didn’t …

‘Just a friend,’ she dismissed.

Dmitri raised sceptical brows. ‘And do your male friends usually telephone you at …’ He glanced down at the plain gold watch on his wrist ‘… ten-thirty at night when you are away on your holidays?’

‘Obviously the answer to that is yes—because one just did!’ Lily said, giving an awkward shrug.

Dmitri studied her narrowly. ‘One? How many male friends do you have?’

Lily felt the colour warm her cheeks at the derision in his tone. ‘Dozens, actually,’ she snapped.

‘I see.’ His delicious mouth thinned disapprovingly.

‘Somehow I doubt that,’ she scorned, knowing that each of them meant something entirely different by the term ‘male friends’. But she had no intention of explaining herself to this man when he looked down at her so disdainfully!

He continued that look for several long seconds before turning away. ‘If you will excuse me, I have some papers in my study I need to look through before tomorrow.’

‘I’ll just clear away in here, then, shall I?’ she retorted, not in the least surprised that their romantic stroll in the moonlight now seemed to have been forgotten; apparently they didn’t need the inducement of the moonlight to feel romantic. If that explosion of the senses could be called anything as tame as romantic …

Dmitri glanced at the table where they had just eaten dinner. And where he had just kissed Lily so passionately, so intimately …

One of the wine glasses—thankfully his own empty one—had toppled over onto the plate of cheese, and several pieces of fruit had spilled onto the table. The plates they had been using were in complete disarray.

Unbelievable!

Dmitri closed his eyes briefly to shut out the scene. Such behaviour, such loss of control, was totally out of character for him. His commitments and responsibilities did not allow for such impulsive, highly reckless behaviour. That he had behaved like that with the sister of a man he no longer trusted made his lapse doubly unacceptable to him.

He drew in a deep breath before answering. ‘That would seem only fair, as I cooked the meal.’ He quirked one dark brow in challenge.

There was no arguing with that, Lily acknowledged ruefully; Dmitri had prepared and cooked their delicious meal. So it was a pity that the pasta and garlic bread now seemed to have settled like a heavy weight in the bottom of her stomach. ‘Fine,’ she accepted curtly. ‘I’ll see you in the morning, then.’

He nodded. ‘If you would care for a swim before breakfast there is a heated pool in the east wing of the palazzo.’

The palazzo had its own heated swimming pool?

Why was Lily surprised? The place was big enough to house an indoor football pitch if Dmitri had decided he wanted one! ‘As it’s December, I didn’t bother to bring my bathing costume with me,’ Lily admitted.

‘I have no problem with you skinny dipping …’ Those pale green eyes swept over Lily from her head to the tips of her toes, before settling back on her now slightly flushed face.

‘I have a problem with it!’ Lily said firmly.

Dmitri shrugged as he walked towards the doorway out into the hallway. ‘The offer is there if you should change your mind.’

‘I won’t,’ she stated flatly. She had already behaved in a reckless way with this man, she didn’t need to ask for trouble by swimming in the nude! More trouble, that was …

Heaven only knew what Dmitri thought of her after that wanton display—if it was anything like the things Lily had been thinking about herself then it wasn’t in the least complimentary.

‘Aren’t you going to take my mobile with you this time?’ Lily couldn’t resist calling after him—and then wished she hadn’t as she realised she had just reminded him that her mobile was her only means of contacting anyone outside the palazzo.

His shoulders tensed as he paused in the doorway before turning slowly to look at her speculatively. ‘Would you tell me if you were to receive a telephone call or text from your brother?’

‘Yes, of course I’d tell you.’ Lily didn’t even have to think about her answer. She knew that beneath Dmitri’s arrogance he was genuinely worried about his sister; it would be cruel of her not to tell him if she were to hear from the eloping pair.

He nodded. ‘Then you may keep the mobile.’

‘How kind of you to allow me to!’ Lily felt stung into retaliating.

A brief but humourless smile curved his lips. ‘I thought so, yes. Goodnight, Lily.’

‘Night, Dmitri,’ she mumbled in reply, waiting until she was sure he had definitely gone before sinking slowly down onto one of the kitchen chairs, her heated cheeks buried in her hands, as she was instantly bombarded with memories of every arousing moment of being in his arms …

Forty-eight.

Dmitri continued to count the number of lengths of the pool he had swum so far as he pushed away from the side and once again struck out powerfully for the opposite end.

Forty-nine.

Neither the exercise nor the refreshingly warm water had done anything to cool his ardour from an hour ago, when he had left Lily in the kitchen and, instead of going to his study as planned, decided to take up his own suggestion of going for a swim. Secure in the knowledge, of course, that Lily had no intention of taking up the offer; having her here too, with or without a bathing costume, would certainly negate his own reasons for being here! Fifty.

Not that this deliberately punishing exercise had in the least helped him in the least to understand—or accept—his unprecedented response to Lily.

Fifty-one.

She was beautiful, yes. But Dmitri had known and bedded many beautiful woman in his thirty-six years. So what was it about her, specifically, that now made it as impossible to put the touch of the silky softness of her skin from his mind as it had been for him to resist kissing her in the kitchen earlier? Dio mio—in the kitchen, on top of the table where they had just eaten dinner, of all things!

Fifty-two.