Summer Vows (Arabesque) (21 page)

Living on the private island as Mrs. Jacob Jones was nothing short of fantasy. Falling in love with him would become an emotional disaster. Ana knew everything would end, including her marriage, once she returned to the States. She and Jacob had been married three days, and even after they annulled the union it still would exceed Britney Spears’ celebrated fifty-five-hour nuptials.

“I want to go back now,” she whispered.

Needing no further prompting, Jacob swung her up into his arms, carefully navigating the rocks until he placed her on the seat in the golf cart. Reaching for a pair of shorts, he pulled them on over his swim trunks. Ana realized they’d spent most of their time outside their cottage to resist the temptation of making love. After hours in the sun, swimming in the ocean and walks along the beach they were too exhausted to do anything but sleep once they retired for bed. Other than breakfast, they’d taken their meals in the restaurant with the resort’s guests.

She didn’t know how long she would be able to hold out not asking Jacob to make love to her. How long she would be able to deal with her own battle of self-restraint and survive without a meltdown. She kept telling herself that Jacob was a stranger in her bed, one who’d vowed to protect her, but who was going to protect her heart if and when she found herself in too deep?

What Ana felt and was beginning to feel for Jacob had nothing to do with appreciation. He was a constant reminder of what she’d denied because of the two men who’d forced her to put up a barrier to keep all men at a distance. Even her ongoing excuse that she was too busy for a relationship was beginning to wear thin.

It was his body heat, the now familiar feel of his arm resting over her waist, and the clean masculine smell of his freshly showered body that lingered with her even in her sleep. The erotic dream hadn’t returned, because the man she wanted was her husband.

Her gaze shifted to the band on Jacob’s left hand. “How much is Diego paying you to pretend we’re married?”

Jacob maneuvered the cart over a grassy surface. Seconds ticked while he struggled not to lose his temper. “I thought we’d passed the stage where we’d no longer talk about money.”

“We have.”

“Then why did you bring it up, Ana?”

“I...it’s just that when Henri gave you the license and the rings it was if you were expecting them. I know you told me Diego wanted to explain my disappearance, but I never would’ve thought you’d agree to a marriage of convenience.”

“I couldn’t agree because I wasn’t asked. But if Diego feels this is the best way to deal with whatever is going on back in the States then I’m willing to go along with whatever he proposes. We are married, but that doesn’t mean we have to stay married.”

“You’re right.”

Jacob gave her a sidelong glance. “Thank you for agreeing with me. I never would’ve thought you would be an obedient wife.”

“I hope you’re not referring to obedient as in obey.”

“Maybe yes, maybe no.”

Ana rolled her eyes at him. “No wonder you’re not married.”

Jacob smiled. “That’s where you’re wrong, Mrs. Jones. We are married and I’m going to show you just how married we are.”

She leaned against his shoulder. “What do you propose to do?”

“What I should’ve done to you that morning in Key West.”

Ana knew he was talking about the shower incident. Jacob was right. If they’d made love that morning she wouldn’t be able to stop repressing her urges. Her moments were coming more frequently and becoming more intense. The only thing that saved her from embarrassment was, as a woman, she’d been able to conceal sexual arousal wherein it was much more difficult for Jacob.

Ana was saved from replying when Jacob maneuvered to the entrance of the resort and a bellhop came over to greet them. “I’ll take the cart back, Mr. Jones.”

Reaching for a T-shirt, she pulled it on over her swimsuit. Resting her hands on Jacob’s shoulders, she permitted him to assist her from the cart. Half a dozen couples sat at tables near the bar drinking and talking softly to one another. At night the area became an impromptu cabaret with a piano player taking requests while the bartender took drink orders. Accommodations at the main house contained ten one-bedroom suites and two two-bedroom suites. There were three private cottages set up as honeymoon retreats, each with a fully stocked refrigerator and pantry.

“Are you going to give me a hint what you’re going to do?” Ana whispered to Jacob as they walked along the path leading to their cottage.

Throwing back his head, he laughed. “Of course not.”

“Shouldn’t I know what to expect?”

“No,
m’ija.
Surprises are always more fun.”

Reaching in the pocket of his shorts, Jacob took out the card key and swiped it. Within seconds of the light turning green Ana felt her heart rate quicken. He opened the door, stepped inside and then beckoned her.

“Come inside, said the spider to the butterfly.”

It was Ana’s turn to laugh. She stared at the tall, bearded man with the intense dark eyes, amazed that she felt a closeness she hadn’t thought possible. When he extended his arms, she walked into his embrace.

Jacob buried his face in her damp hair. “I’m not going to do anything you don’t want me to do.”

Ana pressed her cheek to the crisp hair covering her husband’s chest.
Her husband
. That’s how she’d begun to think of Jacob. With or without her approval or participation she’d become Mrs. Jacob Stephen Jones.

“I’ll let you know when I don’t like something or I want you to stop,” she mumbled, pressing light kisses over his pectorals.

Bending slightly, Jacob picked her up. “I know you will.”

For a reason she couldn’t fathom, Ana felt making love with Jacob was the most natural thing in the world. It was as if they were destined to be together. She wasn’t going to delude herself into believing she was in love with him, because she wasn’t. However, with time she knew she could come to love him. Time—it had become her enemy. She didn’t know how long she would have to remain in exile, and she also didn’t know how long she would be able to enjoy the advantages of married life, which meant she didn’t have to go looking for a date; she didn’t have to deal with the pressure of trolling clubs to find a man for sex; she also wasn’t faced with the angst following a breakup.

Jacob carried Ana into the bedroom, pushing aside the mosquito netting and placing her on the neatly made bed. He’d called housekeeping to have them change the linen, clean the bathroom and vacuum. Sitting on the side of the mattress, he stared at the golden orbs staring back at him. He smiled. Ana’s expression was calm, serene. It was as if the day of reckoning had been in suspended animation until this time, and Jacob was astounded by a sense of self-realization that Ana possessed everything he sought in a woman. In the past he’d confused sex with companionship but their living together without the benefit of sex allowed him to appreciate his wife. His wife. He’d come to like the sound of the two words. He belonged to Ana and she belonged to him.

Jacob hadn’t exchanged vows, promising to love, honor, respect and care for her in sickness and in death, but then again no words were needed. He went to his knees and brushed his mouth over hers. “How long has it been, baby?”

Ana knew he was asking about her having sex.
“Un par de años, papacito.”

He smoothed back the raven strands curling over the top of her ears. “Well,
mamacita,
I’ll make certain to be gentle with you.” It had been a couple of years for Ana, while it hadn’t been that long for Jacob. Now, he was glad he’d waited. He rose from the bed, went into the bathroom and removed a supply of condoms from his toiletry bag.

Ana’s eyes followed his every move when he returned, placing a condom on his pillow and the others in the drawer of the nightstand on his side of the bed. The visible, rapidly beating pulse in her throat indicated she wasn’t as calm as her serene expression.

Smiling, he removed Ana’s T-shirt and then the black maillot, his gaze worshipping her compact, curvy body. Spending time in the sun had darkened her olive complexion to rich henna. Her lashes swept down across a pair of high cheekbones, the gesture charming and wanton, and Jacob wondered, who was she? This woman who claimed his name. Was she as innocent as she now appeared? Or was she the siren who’d unwittingly seduced him with her sassy attitude and uninhibited exhibition of provocative lingerie? He’d lied to Ana when he’d told her he wouldn’t make love to her when his body said differently. The first time she’d strolled into the kitchen in Long Key, Jacob realized then that living with her wasn’t going to be an easy endeavor. And within a week they’d traveled from Long Key as protector and protected, to Key West under the guise they were a couple, and now to an island in the Bahamas as husband and wife.

Jacob’s gaze never strayed from Ana as he pushed his shorts and swim trunks down in one smooth motion, stepping out of them. He lay down, closing his eyes and permitting his senses to take over. Although fully aroused, he wanted to slow down his respiration to prolong their eventual coming together. Not only had it been months since his last sexual encounter, he couldn’t forget that the woman beside him wasn’t just an acquaintance but his wife.

His declaration that he wouldn’t sleep with Ana came as much from his friendship with Diego as it did with his promise that he would protect and not take advantage of her. Now the circumstances were different because Diego had arranged their marriage in absentia and, as Ana’s husband, he could and would consummate their marriage.

Jacob smiled when Ana held his hand, her thumb moving back and forth over his knuckle. “Are you all right,
mi amor?
”

“I’m wonderful,” she replied in a breathless whisper.

Ana opened her eyes, staring up at the gossamer fabric shrouding the large bed. It was as if she and Jacob had escaped to an ethereal world where any and everything they could want was available to them. Cannamore Cay was a private paradise with exotic birds, flowers and fruit everywhere. Pristine white sand, blue-green ocean waters, lush mountains with waterfalls spilling into crystal-clear pools and lagoons and warm trade winds offsetting the tropical heat.

Ana hadn’t lied to Jacob when she’d said she was wonderful. The reason she was hiding on a private island in the Bahamas was never far from her mind. Nor was the reality that it was she and not Tyler who’d been the target of an alleged hit.

If someone had predicted her life would take the turn it had Ana would’ve vehemently protested, calling them a liar. In no way could she have imagined having to flee her home and family because of a business deal. She and Basil Irvine weren’t drug dealers fighting over turf, or heads of organized crime negotiating territory and/or who would control gambling, prostitution or drugs.

As if choreographed in advance, they turned and faced each other. A gentle smile lit up her eyes when she gazed into those of her husband. Even being addressed as Mrs. Jones didn’t sound as strange as it had three days ago. If given a choice she would’ve hyphenated her last name. But that was beyond her control, and she realized Diego had her listed as Ana Jones instead Ana Cole-Jones because the name Cole would’ve raised a red flag.

Jacob ran a finger down the length of her nose. “You know this is going to change everything.”

“The only thing that’s going to change is our having sex. Everything else will remain the same.”

Unconsciously his brow furrowed. “What about our marriage?”

A sweep of lashes concealed Ana’s innermost thoughts. “There will be no marriage once we go back. I’ve accepted why Diego wanted us married, but I refuse to let him or anyone else determine my destiny. I will marry whomever I want whenever I want, not because someone else deems it.”

“Even if your life depends on it?”

Ana’s eyelids fluttered. “Yes. As the youngest of four I spent years fighting to be my own person. It was never Jason and Ana, but always the twins. Do you have any idea how aggravating that can be?”

“No, baby, I don’t. I’m not a twin.”

She rested a leg over Jacob’s. “Please don’t get me wrong. I love Jason, but it gets a little tired when we’re lumped together in the same breath.”

“Like peanut butter and jelly, ham and eggs, and mac and cheese?”

“Exactly.”

Jacob pressed a kiss to her forehead. “Don’t worry about it. You’ve proven you can roll with the best of them. A lot of men can’t do what you do and become successful.”

“Why does it always come down to gender? If I were Clive Davis or David Foster no one would bat an eye, but because I’m a woman the spotlight is always there. As long as we’re in the kitchen or bedroom, barefoot and pregnant, all is right with the world. But, if we dare step out of place or get out of pocket we’re nothing more than a bitch.”

Jacob’s mouth touched hers. “That’s enough beating up on yourself, baby. You’re an incredible woman and if a man doesn’t recognize that then he’s a fool.”

Ana kissed him, the touch of her lips as light as the brush of a butterfly’s wing. “You’re so good for my ego,
m’ijo.
”

“I don’t want to be good for your ego, but good to you.”

She smiled. “You are. You turned out to be a much better husband than I would’ve imagined.”

His eyebrows lifted. “You had your doubts?”

“Initially I did. You were such a grouch.”

“No!”

Ana giggled like a little girl. “Yes. But you managed to redeem yourself once I became Mrs. Jones.”

“I told you the Jones men make good husbands. We support our women, protect them and remain faithful.”

“I suppose I couldn’t ask for more. We should—” Ana’s words died on her tongue when Jacob flipped her over on her back, straddling her.

“No, you can’t.”

The sunlight coming in through the specially made glass and the sheer netting draping the bed wouldn’t permit Ana to see Jacob’s eyes clearly when he stared down at her. He’d awakened her mind and body to a rushing, heated desire that intensified whenever they shared the same space. The reality that he was a stranger, a stranger with whom she’d shared a bed and married had kept her from opening her heart to him. Always the realist, she knew they were playing a game that would end the moment the person responsible for wanting her dead was apprehended. There would be just right now for her and Jacob rather than a happily ever after.