Bride by Design 2: Manchala on the Mind (5 page)

"No, I don't. You're not using me and leaving me by the wayside like you do with the rest of your girls."

He smiled and tried to say something, but I cut him off and found some headphones to pull over my ears
. I wasn't letting him make me feel anything for him. Well, ok, maybe I felt a bit of desire, but I was going to squash that, power through this week and then hopefully move on with my life.

I didn't talk to him for the rest of the flight. I found a tablet tucked into a shelf on the wall, and I watched episodes of American Dad,
one after the other,
trying to get my mind off Colin.

The plane landed and pulled up to a small airport. I saw the pilot and the stewardess rush around and try to align the narrow staircase we'd have to walk down, and then they went down to the tarmac to wait for us.

"Come on," said Colin, as got out of our seats, "We can't go to Manchala mad at each other."

I nodded. "Don't worry, I'll be professional."

"I don't need you to be professional, I need you to be my horny new wife."

Before I knew it, his hands were around my waist, and he was pressing me forwards against him. His lips were hot and demanding against mine, his teeth pressing against mine as his tongue explored my mouth. I felt his hard chest, my breasts pressed up against him, and his hands moved down slowly.

I felt my annoyance dissipating, and his hands finally found my ass. They groped my soft cheeks and squeezed me tight, before moving back up again.

Colin pulled away. "There. We’re all ready now."

I felt myself blushing and cursed
my foolishness
silently. Next time, I'd push him away as soon as he touched me. Trouble was,
he was just to
o magnetic. I couldn't get the taste of his minty breath out of my mind, even as we crossed through the airport and boarded a smaller plane.

Chapter
F
ive

I love flying, but not like this.

I grabbed the sides of my seat, and closed my eyes. This felt like flying on a kite. We were buffeted by the winds as the pilot reassured me that it was all very safe.

Yeah, right.

I began to say my prayers under my breath, begging God to forgive me and not send me to Hell
i
n this tiny
aircraft
.

I felt Colin's arm around my shoulders, but it didn't help. If the plane was going down, his being nice to me wouldn't make a difference.

After what seemed like ages, the pilot announced, "We're almost there."

I was near tears, but I opened my eyes and looked down.
The
island
of
Manchala
lay beneath us, its aquamarine coasts shimmering in the light, the dark green forests glinting mysteriously.

I almost gasped out loud
. It was so beautiful and unexpected, it took my breath away. But in the next minute, we started to descend, and I groaned and closed my eyes again.

Finally, it was all over. My stomach felt like it
was about to explode and my ears had a strange ringing sound in them. I remembered that we'd have to do this again on the way back and I almost fainted with fear.

I knew I must
have looked
like a ghost, but I let Colin help me out of the horrible aircraft.

My legs were shaky, and he held me tight as the pilot got our bags out. I was thankful for his presence and I tried to regain my composure. I was surprised Colin was unfazed by it all and even seemed to enjoy it - he was like a rock, I decided. 

A jeep was driving towards us, blowing up a cloud of dust.

"That must be Sir D.," Colin murmured, giving me a soft kiss. "Remember, we're newlyweds and you love me heaps."

I smiled and tried to prepare for my charade, when I felt Colin's grip around my waist loosen. He cursed softly, and I peered closely at the jeep.

It
was
unmistakable -
George was sitting beside the driver, grinning and waving at us.

I saw a mask of politeness descend on Colin's face, and decided that I should do the same and not let my surprise show.

Sir Donald came ar
ound and shook hands with Colin.

"Colin! Great to see you again." He turned to me, "And this must be your lovely bride?"

Colin beamed with pride and said, "Sir Donald, this is Lisa. We decided to elope a few weeks ago, I couldn't wait to introduce her to you."

George had come out of the jeep and stood beside Sir Donald. "How surprising you're married," he remarked snidely, but Colin took it in stride, as if he was expecting the question.

"Yes, of course, it took me a while to settle down - but I do believe in waiting for the right person." He pulled me closer to him and looked deep into my eyes.
Although I knew it was all a game,
I felt myself sinking into those green depths. "I knew, the minute I saw Lisa, that she was the
O
ne."

Sir Donald nodded with pleasure. "Of course! Love is the ultimate goal of our lives, and I can see you two are deeply in love."

I couldn't miss
the
look of
disbelief on George's face, but I smiled and moved out of Colin's grasp to embrace Sir Donald. "It's lovely to meet you, Sir Donald."

"Please, just call me Don, all my friends do. I think you'll have a good time here, allow me to drive you two back and introduce you to the rest of our guests.
"

The pilot was already arranging our bags, and I followed Don into the jeep and climbed up.

George, however, was not ready to let us get off so easily. "So, Colin, how come we didn't hear about your wedding in the tabloids? You appear so often with so many different girls, after all."

Connor chuckled. "Oh, you shouldn't believe everything they say in those rags. And yeah, they're actually the reason why Lisa and I decided to elope - we didn't want any attention, we just want to spend some time with each other, so we're both keeping our heads low and maintaining the secret."

Don nodded. "Yes, of course. I believe every newlywed couple deserves some privacy and time alone." He turned to me, "I'm sorry to be interrupting your honeymoon period."

"Oh, not at all!" I gushed, "This is like a honeymoon itself! The island is so beautiful, I really felt breathless when I saw it from the air…"

Don chuckled happily, and proceeded to tell me about the history of the island. I tried to pay attention,
and admired the views as we drove along the dusty roads, until the house could finally be seen in the distance.

I could tell that Colin was unnerved by George's presence, even though he tried not to show it. The man clearly knew a lot about Colin, and he was out for vengeance. I wondered what the other couples would be like, and how the week would turn out for us
.

…
Continued in Bride By Design 3: Manchala Nights (coming soon).

Keira's Punishment: The Billionaire's Submissive

Keira's Visit: The Billionaire's Submissive 2

Keira's Past: The Billionaire's Submissive 3

The Billionaire's Contract: Proposals

The Billionaire's Contract 2: Considerations

The Billionaire's Contract 3: Aftermath

Bride By Design: Flights of Fancy (Taken By The Billionaire)

Bride By Design 2: Manchala On The Mind (Taken By The Billionaire)

(Coming Soon) Bride By Design 3: Manchala Nights (Taken By The Billionaire)

She is available on twitter; her username is @AliciaRRoberts

She blogs at
http://aliciarroberts.wordpress.com

Her email address is [email protected]

Excerpt
From
The Billionaire's Contract: Proposals

Description:

Sparks
fly when Brad and Alexis meet. Brad is the new heir to Reinehart Industries, and Alexis is a cynical college drop-out.
They live in completely different worlds, and under normal circumstances, their passionate encounters might have been shelved as "mistakes". But circumstances are far from normal, and Brad has plans that could change both their lives - if only he can convince Alexis to come along for the ride.

Extract:

"What do you think?" he asked at the end, his
dark
blue eyes piercing mine.

"It's a bit
spooky without people," I said, and
though I didn't think it was that funny
he laughed, a surprising low, belly laugh.

A
strand
of his hair fell over his forehead, and I wondered again if he was single. His face was square and muscular, his lips thin and delicate.

He took the folder and bag from my hands, and placed them on an empty shelf. "Well, we're here, aren't we?" he asked, tilting his head.

I
gulped and
wondered what to say. My work was over, but he seemed to be expecting something more. Come to think of it, why was he here to begin with, why hadn't he sent some lowly office peon, the way Mr. Neilson had sent me?

His hands were on
my face now, tilting my head back so that I met his eyes.