Knight's Mistress (36 page)

She watched him as he proceeded to expound on the merits of his business investment in a company that would be mining rare earths in Greenland. He detailed the
progress of their sample drill sites, qualified the state of the market for rare earths with definitive historical and projected trend line charts, explained that the investment would likely generate enormous profits for those buying in at the beginning.

He dominated the room. He was larger, younger, stronger, more handsome – but then he was all that with most everyone. In a group like the one around the table, she couldn’t say he was more expensively dressed, but he was certainly more beautifully dressed, his dark, double-breasted, Savile Row suit tailored to perfection. He was lounging back in his chair, assured, commanding, one hand resting on the table, his strong wrist and vintage Cartier aviator watch visible below his crisp white shirt cuff.

She quickly looked away because all she could think about was how much she wanted him.

When he finished his presentation, he opened the discussion to questions, his answers succinct and technologically astute. He was civil to the witless, courteous to the venal and was in the process of offering everyone a tour of the drill sites when Kate gasped.

He and everyone else looked at her.

‘Excuse me,’ she murmured, and dropping her gaze, refocused on the picture on her laptop screen, her sudden paleness matching the ivory wool of her suit.

But Dominic had seen the tears in her eyes when she’d looked up. Quickly shoving his hand into his pocket, he pulled out his cell phone, glanced at the display. ‘Sorry,
gentlemen, I have to take this call.’ He nodded at Max. ‘Max will reschedule the meeting.’ He scanned the men at the table, smiled tightly. ‘It’s the Pentagon, gentlemen. I can’t keep them waiting.’

The moment the door closed on eight irate billionaires, Dominic dropped his phone, surged to his feet, closed the distance between himself and Kate and spun the laptop around.

‘Fuck.’ He dragged in air through his teeth, exhaled in a great rasp, kept his voice deliberately mild when he spoke. ‘It has nothing to do with you, with us. Nothing at all.’

‘I wish I hadn’t looked,’ she whispered. An email alert had come through while she was composing her idiotic list of demands and a window had popped up.

And there it suddenly was: another glossy beauty like the Principessa, spreadeagled on the red lacquer bed in the bedroom of the Garden House – nude, blindfolded, intricately tied in some bizarre rope pattern, clearly aroused; two other splendidly naked women were stroking her body, one with a feather fan, the other with the trailing ends of a silk braided whip. The email read:
Thought you might like to see the Christmas pictures
.

‘Pictures’ plural – several more had been taken in what Kate recognized – by the floor – as Dominic’s tai chi studio. Clearly the room had other uses; various apparatuses were featured in the photos. All with women bound to them.

‘I hadn’t met you then. I’m sorry you saw those.’ He
slowly exhaled. ‘That’s over now. I mean it. It was a distraction, nothing more – utterly meaningless.’ He wanted to grab her, crush her to him, tell her he was wrong then and she was now. But he knew better. He stopped himself by clenching his fingers so hard, his nails drew blood. ‘I’ll change my email address so they can’t reach me. Break off any contact. Jesus, don’t cry. Please.’

She wouldn’t look at him. ‘I’m not crying,’ she said, hiccupy and defensive, tears running down her cheeks.

Max stuck his head into the room, started to speak.

‘Out,’ Dominic barked.

‘I need a minute, Nick.’ Max’s voice was as abrasive as Dominic’s.

‘Jesus Christ,’ Dominic spat. ‘Can’t you see I’m busy?’

‘It’s important, Nick. Kate, would you mind?’

She kept her head down. ‘Go,’ she hissed.

‘Don’t leave,’ Dominic whispered.

She looked up then, her eyes chips of green ice. ‘Where the hell would I go?’

He felt an instant calm; he had time. ‘I’ll be right back. And turn that damned thing off.’ He started to touch her, jerked his hand back. ‘Don’t go anywhere.’

‘Let’s take this somewhere else,’ Dominic muttered as he entered the adjacent anteroom, glancing at the two wide-eyed secretaries who were new since he was here last. New or not, they’d heard whatever his angry colleagues had said.

A few moments later, the two men were in an office with a view of the harbour, the door shut.

‘Say what you have to say,’ Dominic rapped out, wiping his palms with his handkerchief. ‘Make it brief.’

‘You’re the company, Nick. It doesn’t run without you. You don’t delegate or deputize anything major, there’s no board of directors. Knight Enterprises is your baby. And you just jeopardized a thirty billion dollar deal for a piece of ass … don’t scowl. You would have called it the same thing two weeks ago.’

‘But it’s not two weeks ago, this is different, so fucking different that I don’t care about thirty billion. He wanted to say
how dare you question me?
But Max was more than an employee, he was a friend. So Dominic got a grip on his temper, unclenched his jaw and kept his voice level. ‘Katherine makes me happy, Max, and I’d given up on the feeling. I know that sounds trite, but maybe you’d understand if I said she has the power to heal. As for taking time off, I’ve done that before. Climbing, skiing, sailing, trekking in the jungle. Almost dying in the jungles of Borneo. I was in the hospital for two weeks that time.’ He glanced at his lacerated palms, crumpled the handkerchief, shoved it in his pocket.

‘But you were still focused, Nick, on the phone right up until they wheeled you into surgery. And right after. Roscoe said you were even running things from your yacht that year you were sailing around the world. Not like now. Call it what you will –’ Max wasn’t buying the hearts and
flowers bullshit after having watched Dominic with women the last five years, ‘ – you’re acting like some horny kid, willing to throw away everything for –‘ he lifted his chin in the direction of the conference room ‘– her.’

‘Her name’s Katherine,’ Dominic said in quiet rebuff.

‘I’m just saying. Think about it.’

‘I will, thank you. We lost Ricci, I assume. Anyone else?’

‘I’m not sure. You’re lucky this is such a lucrative deal. Maybe none of them will punt away a chance at billions.’

Dominic smiled. ‘Good. Then it might not be such an expensive piece of ass after all. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have some apologizing to do. A helluva lot of apologizing. Give me a week at least before you reschedule. Katherine is agitated,’ he grimaced, ‘and with good reason. I’m going to need a few days to calm her down.’

An unmistakable pall lay over the evening, even though Dominic had abjectly apologized, Kate had politely accepted his apology and they’d dined in the turret room on An’s very best efforts. Seven courses, an appropriate wine for each course, two chocolate desserts for Kate and nothing but charming conversation from Dominic.

She’d taken off her jacket and shoes, he his jacket and tie, his shirt was open at the neck, the sleeves rolled up. But a tension hummed beneath the casualness of the scene and the well-mannered conversation.

After dinner, as they shared a priceless Napoleonic brandy, Dominic showed her the model of his rocket, offered her the short course in rocketry if she was interested.

She was. Because she liked to see him so animated and engaged, she liked to watch him, his fine mouth, the electric blue of his eyes, his long, slender hands as he ran through the stages of lift-off, his broad-shouldered body
as he leaned forward in his chair translating physics into simple terms.

Without a speck of pride she loved him even if he was the most shameless, amoral person in the world. Even if he’d only bring her grief. And she wanted him to touch her so much, she felt faint with longing.

‘You’re tired,’ he suddenly said, sitting back, smiling at her. ‘I get carried away. You should have stopped me.’

‘I like to hear you talk.’ She didn’t mean for it to come out a whisper. Her face flushed.

He understood. ‘May I touch you?’ He’d never asked that of a woman before, he’d never had to. When she didn’t answer, he said, ‘Forgive me, I shouldn’t have asked.’

‘I want more than just … sex. I want to know your thoughts, your feelings, how you—’

‘I know. You can have whatever you want. Ask me and I’ll tell you.’

‘Can you give up all … that? The women, the—’

‘Yes, of course. I said I would. It’s not a problem.’

She held out her hand, her eyes wet with unshed tears. ‘Hold me.’

He was out of his chair in a flash, she was in his arms a second later and a second after that, he kissed her gently, in apology and gratitude.

In joy.

But much later that night, after they’d made love, after Kate had fallen asleep, gratified and content, Dominic lay
awake – restless, something tight and urgent nudging the back of his brain, stealing his sleep.

He finally left the bed, walked next door to his study and stood at the window, silhouetted against the glow of the city, his powerfully built gladiator’s body, tense, coiled for battle. The full moon was like a tangerine-coloured mirror in the sky, the brightly lit city laid out at his feet, the silence so complete that the vague premonition that had been hovering at the back of his mind like some prophetic bird of prey broke cover.

Bleak and black and terrifying.

He wasn’t surprised. Or not very surprised. Perhaps he’d always known the question lay ahead.

Could he share his life?

Had he ever?

Even with Julia, he’d never let her into all the hidden rooms, the dark corners of his soul. Her death had come too soon; he’d never quite reached that deluded point before he’d been plunged back into the vast, anonymous world.

A world that wasn’t tepid or grey or equivocal. It was black or white, yes or no, win or lose. It was the only world he’d ever known.

And now he faced a different future – perhaps even children and real Christmases and acceptable emotions – nothing too raw or barbed or insulting. This brave new world had arrived after seven days, or eight depending how he counted the virginal hours and dislocating shock waves.

And now he found himself close to panic, feeling as though he had a target on his back and someone was about to pull the trigger.

He took a deep breath, exhaled, took another.

Then he abruptly turned from the window, quietly walked back into the bedroom, picked up his cell phone from the bedside table, entered his dressing room and threw on some clothes.

Dominic wasn’t in the bedroom when Kate woke in the morning. She was relieved. She had a letter to write and needed privacy. Sitting down at a small writing table set in front of one of the windows, she pulled out a sheet of monogrammed paper from a red leather tray, picked up an expensive pen from a red leather canister and began to pour out her heart to a man who might not even have a heart. Or if he did it was numbed by cold indifference. Or perhaps placed with loving care in his wife’s coffin. And what was left behind was an unblinking enigma of a man, ruthless, without borderlines, slippery as mist, beautiful, passionate, remote. And totally and irredeemably loveable.

It took her some time to decide on a salutation. Personal? Impersonal? Oozing her life’s blood? She finally settled on something short and sweet and true.

She just signed her name because she’d already handed over her heart on the page. Sliding the letter into a monogrammed envelope, she sealed it, put it into her messenger bag and went downstairs to find Dominic. She’d wait to give it to him. She wanted a last breakfast with him … so she could fill her memory bank against her melancholy future. She didn’t kid herself that leaving him wouldn’t break her heart.

Leo met her in the entrance to the breakfast room. ‘Good morning, Miss Hart.’

‘I’m looking for Dominic.’ She scanned the set table. ‘He hasn’t been down for breakfast? Is he in his office?’
The awkward pause should have been a clue, but she was so intent on her own revelation that she didn’t immediately take notice.

‘Dominic left Hong Kong early this morning, Miss Hart. He said you were welcome to stay here as long as you wish.’

She suddenly felt faint, her ribcage was pressing all the air out of her lungs. ‘Is he coming … back?’

‘He didn’t say, Miss. Please’ – Leo quickly pulled up a chair – ‘sit for a moment.’

She sat, took a deep breath, looked up. Leo’s face was expressionless, his gaze studiously blank, the perfect emissary. ‘When did Dominic leave?’ She wished she hadn’t sounded so plaintive.

‘Shortly after three. He left a plane at your disposal when and if you chose to go back to the States. May I get you something to drink?’ She was ashen. ‘Or some breakfast?’

‘Thank you, no. I’ll just sit for a moment.’

He tactfully withdrew.

It all made sense now, Kate sadly thought. Dominic had been incredibly tender last night, gentle, considerate, obliging her in all things, offering her pleasure in such full measure she felt as though she was lit from within, glowing with lust and love. He’d never once said, ‘No’, or ‘Wait’, or ‘Not just yet’. He’d given her everything she wanted, needed. Until she’d finally panted, ‘No, no more … I can’t.’