Three Rich Men: House of Midnight Fantasies / Forced to the Altar / The Millionaire's Pregnant Mistress. Michelle Celmer

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СКАЧАТЬ try, but I don’t know if I’ll make much headway.”

      “All I ask is that you try. The rest is up to him.” Ella patted Selene’s cheek. “Now see me to the door, then you can eat before it gets cold.”

      Silently they walked past the dining room where Adrien was still seated, then through the angel rotunda and into the vestibule. At the front door, Ella turned to Selene, concern calling out from her eyes. “Remember what I’ve told you. Stand your ground with Adrien. Don’t let him talk you into anything.”

      Selene clasped the hem of her blouse and held it tightly. “You don’t have to worry. I’m not one to do anything I don’t want to do.” Not in this lifetime. Not any longer.

      “And you don’t have to worry about Adrien doing you any harm.”

      “That’s good to know.” When Ella’s gaze drifted away, Selene’s worry increased. “What is it you’re not telling me, Ella?”

      “He is a very persuasive man, skâ. Many a woman could attest to that. But no one knows the real man behind that steel exterior. Take care to protect your heart.”

      Selene released a humorless laugh. “Believe me, Ella, falling in love is the last thing on my mind. Let’s just say I’m rather jaded when it comes to that sort of thing.”

      “Falling in love isn’t always a terrible thing.” Ella studied Selene a moment longer, looking thoughtful. “But now that I think about it, you could be the one.”

      “The one?”

      “The one who saves him from his isolation. Saves him from himself, in a manner of speaking. It will take a strong woman, but you could be that woman.”

      After a brief hug, Ella walked out the door, leaving Selene to analyze her assertions. She’d never seen herself as being all that tough, at least not in recent years. Yet it had taken a good deal of strength to walk away from the only home she’d known and set out on her own. But was she strong enough to prevent her emotions from overtaking good sense if she did become further involved with Adrien?

       He is a very persuasive man…. Many a woman could attest to that ….

      All along, Selene had acknowledged she would be only another conquest. Another woman among heaven only knew how many more. But then, if she viewed it logically, he could be her conquest, too. Her ticket to the adventure of a lifetime. For that reason, she intended to explore all the possibilities with him, beginning tonight. She could play it safe and always wonder what she might be missing, or she could gain firsthand knowledge of his skill as a lover. She wanted that firsthand knowledge. She wanted to know what it would be like to have a man pay complete attention to her needs, as she knew he would.

      Driven by anticipation and adrenaline, Selene made her way back through the house at a fast clip. She only paused to take a brief look at Grace’s portrait, questioning again if the young woman had been, in fact, the journal’s author. If so, Selene could definitely relate to how Grace had felt when she’d met her mysterious lover—excited, winded and somewhat wicked. Which would make Selene a “wanton,” she supposed. Well, not yet anyway, but possibly before the night was over, if all went as planned.

      When she reached the dining room, Selene discovered Adrien had waited to begin eating. She took her designated place at the opposite end of the table and draped the napkin in her lap.

      “Looks great,” she said as she inspected the food—blackened fish, a vegetable medley and rice. Unfortunately, she wasn’t at all hungry, even though she probably should be.

      “Did you and Ella have a nice chat?”

      Selene looked up from the plate to find Adrien staring at her. “We didn’t really have a chat. I told her to have a nice time and she told me to make you eat.” She picked up her fork and gestured toward his plate. “So eat, otherwise I might be out of a job if she comes back and finds you’ve totally wasted away.”

      “I won’t be wasting away. In fact, I’ve had an increase in my appetites in the past few days.”

      Selene concentrated on eating while considering he’d said “appetites,” meaning those not only having to do with sustenance. Needless to say, hers had improved as well, but not when it came to this particular meal. The fish was a bit too spicy for her taste and, although the vegetables were good, the rice seemed to stick in her parched throat. For the most part, she pushed the food around on her plate while the silence continued.

      “I’m finished,” Adrien said after a time, drawing her attention to find his plate absent of any food.

      Selene nudged her plate away and dabbed at her mouth with the napkin before setting it aside. “I’m finished, too.”

      He leaned forward and studied her half-full dish. “You didn’t eat much at all.”

      “It’s the hot weather,” she said. “I’m never that hungry in the summer.”

      Without saying a word, he pushed back from the table, stood and strolled toward her, his gaze fastened firmly on hers.

      Selene braced for what he might do next until he picked up her plate and said, “I’ll be back in a minute. Don’t go anywhere.”

      She wasn’t sure she could move even if she’d wanted to.

      Adrien grabbed his own plate, headed for the kitchen, then returned a few moments later with an open bottle of red wine. He came back to her, filled the glasses he’d brought with him and set one before her.

      She waved it away. “No thanks.”

      He nudged the wine closer. “Take it. You look like you could use a drink.”

      Selene decided not to argue since a little libation might not be such a bad idea. Maybe it might even untangle the nervous knots in her belly. “Okay, I guess I could have a glass.” Or two or three should she decide she needed to find courage in a bottle. Ridiculous. She didn’t have to get drunk to enjoy Adrien’s attention. He was already intoxicating enough, particularly the way he filled out his slacks, something she couldn’t help but notice when he turned away to reclaim his place at the opposite end of the table.

      After he settled back into his seat, he took a long drink of the port before he asked, “What were you like as a child?”

      She wasn’t expecting that at all. “Serious, I guess you could say. An above-average student. I was fairly reserved.” And different, something she’d recognized at a very young age, thanks to the “gift.”

      He rubbed a hand along his jaw. “Interesting. I had you pegged as a social butterfly.”

      She’d never quite left her cocoon, the one she’d weaved for self-protection. “Not really. Now my baby sister, on the other hand, was quite the hellion. Someone had to keep her in line.”

      That seemed to pique his interest. “Are you and your sister still close?”

      “Yes. Very close. She’s back in Georgia and about to have her first baby. Do you have any siblings?”

      He drank the last of his wine and set the glass down hard. “No.”

      Selene sensed that СКАЧАТЬ