Billionaire's Second Chance (sam, bella and Kate Book 2) (2 page)

The whiplash voice behind saw the man drop his hand from hers, Bella turning quickly seeing Dante Durant stood glaring at the men who both instantly stepped back from the two girls.  Spoken to in angry Greek, the men seemed uncomfortable, throwing worried looks at each other before apologising profusely to the girls and turning quickly to hurriedly leave the disco, Bella giving a sigh of relief.  With a smile she watched as Dante’s eyes softened as he turned to them, his look resting on Samantha, Bella
seeing as her friend’s face flushed, her eyes shining brightly with gratitude and wonder, a small smile on her face.  Looking briefly at Bella, Dante made an apologetic sound, moving to reveal the man standing by his side.  Bella gave a nervous smile as the stranger made some funny comment about the two men’s behaviour, lightening the atmosphere. 

“Bella, Samantha
, I would like you to meet my good friend Philippe Tremour.”  Samantha gave him a warm grin, her attention quickly returning to Dante, Bella amused to see the obvious signs of attraction in her friend.  Her own attention however was on the stranger, Philippe, his eyes only on her, a sensual smile on his handsome face as she looked shyly up at him.  He was stunning.  Wearing jeans and a casual shirt which did not hide his broad shoulders and slim waist, he towered above Bella.  It was his face however that held her, handsome with chiseled features, his look penetrating, Bella aware as her breath stalled.  His thick glossy black hair was cut a little longer than his friend’s, with a large sensual mouth and piercing dark blue eyes framed by long black lashes, fixed steadily  on her, a small humorous smile on those wonderful lips.

Blushing, knowing that he
had caught her staring, she gave him a shy return smile, Philippe offering his hand to her, “Would you like to dance Bella?”

His voice held only a slight accent, the sound of it sending a small tremor down her spine, Bella holding back the small groan as wordlessly
she nodded gently before licking her lips she once more found her voice.  “I would like that”, moving with him to the dance floor.  As the slow dance began, Philippe pulled her gently into his arms, a mischievous glint in his eyes.

“I must have been very good in a previous life”, he chuckled as she looked up at him in surprise, his wide smile and those blue piercing eyes looking back at her. 

“And why is that?”, she queried softly.

“Well how else would I get to hold a beautiful woman like you in my arms within seconds of meeting her?”

Laughing back, Bella gave him a large grin, her voice full of fun, “I am still waiting to find out if I have been good or bad for the same reason.”

His deep laugh made her smile as he nodded back, his eyes twinkling warmly.  “Beautiful and smart...
A lethal combination.”

Bella felt her lips twitch.  “You do not strike me as the kind who scares easily Mr Tremour, but please feel free to run for the hills if you like
.”

Grinning, he shook his head.  “Run
?  Sounds like hard work.  I think I will just put up with holding you in my arms.”

Bella smiled, “OK
, but do not say you were not warned.”

For the rest of the dance, he asked her how the three were enjoying their holiday, surprised to hear that they had won the trip, a strange thoughtful look coming to his eyes as his gaze flicked over to Dante and Samantha.  “How lucky”, he mused softly, Bella sensing something behind his
words.  As the dance ended she made to move back to the table, Philippe taking her by the elbow as he leant in to ask if she would like a drink.

Pausing for a second, not one to usually get involved with a complete stranger, Bella looked up at Philippe, his face smiling and friendly.  “S...
Sure”, she replied, surprising herself as the two made their way to the bar.

She laughed as he was instantly served, joking that she had to wait for nearly ten minutes earlier, Philippe giving her a wink as he replied enigmatically
, “Not any more, you won’t.”

She gave him a small amused flicker.  “Did you work voodoo magic on him?”, as Philippe gave her a mysterious smile and a
nother quick wink.  Moving back to the table, the two brought drinks for Samantha and Dante also, Dante giving Philippe a surprised look, his eyes flicking briefly to Bella as his friend seemed bashful, the other man shaking his head as he grinned broadly.

The evening was one of the best she could remember, Dante and Philippe wonderful company.  Both were polite and considerate, never overstepping their boundaries, Bella aware of the way Samantha watched Dante with eyes wide and bright.  Looking up at Philippe she again admired his good looks.  Not as
‘pretty’ as Dante, but more rugged, a strength to him along with a sensuality that even she was picking up on.  She dropped her look with embarrassment as he turned to smile at her.

As Kate moved over to inform them of her intentions to go back to the hotel of the
handsome blond Swedish tourist she met, Philippe chuckled, “Now you don’t see kindness like that these days.  That young man prepared to give a bed to total stranger.”

Unable to hold back, the four laughed, before the two girls
, ashamed of having laughed at Kate started to defend their friend.  “She is only having a good time”, Bella managed, Philippe smiling widely over at her.

“Well Bella
, if you really want...”  Her hand raised stopping him as she told him that if he valued his life he would not finish that sentence.

Dante and Samantha laughed loudly, Bella aware as Philippe chuckled too before looking
intently into her eyes, a strange light deep within them.  The call of last orders saw the two men look disappointed, both having enjoyed themselves so much with the two young women.  Leaning over Dante laughed,  “Maybe we should ask the owner if he would stay open a little later.”  Bella and Samantha laughed, thinking him kidding as he looked at Philippe.  “What do you say Phil?  Do you think you could stay open?”

Bella stared at him, her voice soft and surprised, “You own this place?”

His head nodded softly as he gave her a lopsided smile, “Yeah... Amongst other things, Dante and I both own businesses here”, his eyes moving over to his friend.  “In fact, I believe that you ate at one of Dante’s restaurants tonight.”

Both girls looked back at him with wide-eyed surprise, Samantha’s look suddenly a little uncomfortable.
  “Y... You never said”, she muttered as Dante looked at her with a shrug.

“I don’t like to brag...
Would have sounded too much like I was trying to impress you.”

Sam gave him a nervous smile back.  “So you work here?”, Bella asked Philippe politely
, confused by Sam’s attitude as was Dante, from the concerned frown he gave her.

“No”, Philippe’s voice full of warmth once more pulled her attention back to him.  “Dante and I both work abroad.
  But we came from here and having these businesses means that tourists come, locals have jobs.  It is our way of giving back, making sure the island prospers.” Dante nodded softly beside him. 

“That sounds pretty wonderful”,
Bella murmured gently, her voice full of sincerity.

Philippe star
ed deeply into the young woman’s eyes, his mouth suddenly dry, neither hearing the conversation of the other two until Dante stood up, his voice full of fun.  “OK my friend, we should escort these lovely ladies back home to their residence”, his eyes sparkled, full of mischief.  “Wouldn’t want them to get lost in the dark.”

Philippe looked
over at Bella, not understanding the statement, she chuckling leaning in to him to explain how Dante and Samantha met, his lips curling at the story.  “Ah, not often Dante is described as the white knight”, his eyes flashing with laughter as together the four moved from the club, the two men waving and shouting goodnight to the many different people who cried farewells to them.

Outside, giving her a large smile, Philippe held out his hand in invitation to Bella, “These cobbles can be very slippery
, and I would like the opportunity to be a white knight too.”  Bella chuckled as again she surprised herself by allowing her hand to be enveloped within his, their fingers entwining as the two moved behind Dante and Samantha. 

Walking slowly, he talked about the island, the love he held for the place obvious in his voice.  Bella listened in fascination, giving a disappointed sigh as they reached the corner before their villa.  “Nearly home”, she breathed softly, looking up questioningly at the man beside her as he stopped, moving her in front of him so that he could hold her free hand also.  With an expression full of such honesty he held Bella’s eyes, suddenly the air between them full of electricity as she cleared her throat nervously.  “Thank you for escorting me safely home”, a tinge of fun in her soft lilting voice, his mouth quirking at her words.

“You are most welcome Miss Smith”, his voice seductive as his eyes slowly flicked down her face, resting on her voluptuous mouth.  “I do however, have one request.”

Her
eyebrows rose in question.  “And what is that Mr Tremour?”, she whispered as he slowly pulled her in closer to him, Bella not resisting.

“May I kiss you?”

She gave him a large smile, her eyes dancing with his as they also dropped to his lips.  “I see nothing wrong with that”, the words hardly out before his hands moved to her waist and pulled her harder against him, his mouth dropping to barely rest on hers, their eyes still holding the other’s.

“Thank you”, the words reverberating on her lips as a small
shiver passed through Bella, her eyes slowly closing as his tongue slid against the velvety softness of her bottom lip, her mouth opening in welcome to it as his kiss deepened.  She was not even aware as her hands slid around his neck, Bella falling into his kiss, their tongues sliding against the other, the kiss the most perfect she had ever experienced as all sound around them ceased and the only thing that mattered was the touch of his mouth against hers.

Philippe felt himself sink into this woman
, this beautiful, gentle shy woman.  His hand moved to run through the silkiness of her long hair, holding the back of her head as his other pulled her in tighter against him, his body reacting instantly to having her there.  Moaning softly, he pulled back slightly watching as her eyes struggled to open, knowing that she, like he, had been affected in the same way, a large smile filling both their faces.

“Wow...
Did not expect that”, he whispered as she blushed, aware of the feel of his body hard against her, feeling the unmistakable sign of excitement from him, the knowledge intensifying her craving for this man – this stranger.  Pulling back nervously she seemed embarrassed, turning once more towards the cobbled road, Philippe allowing his arm to drape over her shoulder as the two once more began moving towards the villa to join the others.  With his mind racing, he wanted to see her again, wondering how he could persuade Bella to meet up with him the next day.

“Philippe!”
Dante’s voice interrupted his thoughts.  “Sam thinks that the girls would enjoy joining us on our fishing trip tomorrow... What do you think?” Philippe quickly looked down at Bella seeing the way she nodded her head, her lovely mouth curling into a large smile.

While a fishing trip was news to him, it offered the perfect solution as he grinned warmly back at Dante.  “Sounds like a great idea
.”

With that the two girls once more moved into the villa, both waving to the men who waited until they were safely inside.  Turning to Dante he gave his friend a broad smile.  “Fishing huh?”,
Dante laughing as they moved to the centre of the village where both had parked their cars.

“Well
, you seemed OK with it”, his laughing response as Philippe gave him a friendly punch, both growing silent as each relived the memories of the day.

“They seem young”,
Philippe finally broke the silence, his tone wary, Dante regarding him strangely.

“I didn’t think so.  I thought they both seemed older than their years
.”  Philippe gave an absent nod, his thoughts once more returning to Bella.  She did seem older, more mature, unlike her friend Kate.  With a chuckle, Dante looked sideways at him.  “Of course if you are not interested in Bella...”, his words lost as Philippe threw him a warm look before shaking his head.

“I never said that.
I just don’t want to break the poor girl’s heart.”

His friend laugh
ed loudly.  “Geez Phil, one of these days you are going to meet your match, and you will not see it coming.”

With a return grin the two reached their cars, Philippe opening his as he smiled at his friend.  “Look who is talking
.  I think you are well overdue meeting yours.”  The small ‘humph’ sound made him grin as the two waved goodnight, organising to meet at 7:30 to pick up the girls the following day.  As he drove to his villa – one of biggest on the island – his thoughts returned to the young blonde.  He was used to women throwing themselves at him, his playboy status well-known in the media, however she was different, frowning, wondering why he would think that.  She was beautiful that was true, a smile sitting on his lips remembering the way she stopped him finishing his offer of sleeping with her in the club.