Into the Night

Though the notion of flying off with a handsome stranger was the stuff of fantasies, she still had to rationalize her decision. Maybe this was the female equivalent of a bachelor party, that one last chance to sow her wild oats, before committing herself to Jeffrey. Besides, though the kiss was wonderful and she’d been a willing participant, Tess hadn’t initiated it.

It wasn’t the best rationalization, but she had time to work on something better. From now on, she was going to hold Derek to his promise—no expectations. And no more kisses.

The facade of the stucco plantation house was lit up in the dark and she could see it from the long winding driveway. As they approached, Tess realized that it wasn’t just a house, but an estate. The main house at Beresford Farms was nice, but this house was truly impressive.

“Wow,” she murmured.

“I know,” Derek said. “My grandfather started building and he couldn’t seem to stop. It’s big, but comfortable. You can have a room in the main house or you can have one of the cottages.”

“I’m afraid the cottages are all rented, Mr. Nolan,” the driver said.

“Then it’s the house,” Derek replied.

When the Range Rover pulled to a stop, he hopped out and helped her from the car, resting his arm on the small of her back as they approached the wide verandah that circled the building.

The front door burst open and a young woman came running out. She threw herself into Derek’s arms. “Oh, you’re here! God, I thought I’d have to spend New Year’s Eve all alone. Chris couldn’t fly in with me and Daddy said I couldn’t send one of our pretty little jets to pick him up, so now he’s stuck in New York and I’m stuck here. But now I have a jet.” She glanced over at Jeremy. “And a pilot, I see.” She looked at Tess. Pulling away from Derek, she held out her hand. “I’m Chloe. Derek’s sister.”

“Chloe, this is Tess. Tess Roberts.”

“Robertson,” Tess said.

“Right. Robertson. Tess.”

“Are you Jeremy’s girlfriend?” she asked, looking over at the pilot.

“She’s here with me,” Derek said.

“Really? Derek never brings company to the island. You must be pretty special.” With that, she turned and walked back inside the house. “Come on, Jeremy, I’ll feed you and then we’re going to get my boyfriend in New York.”

“I bet she’s a handful,” Jeremy muttered, climbing the front steps. When he reached the top, he turned. “Good night. It was a pleasure flying you both.” He disappeared through the open front door, leaving Tess and Derek alone.

“Sorry about this,” Derek said. “I didn’t know she’d be here. I thought we’d have the place to ourselves. But she’ll be gone soon enough.”

In truth, Tess was glad for the company. Having a chaperone around would keep her from tossing all caution to the wind and behaving badly. “She’s your sister,” Tess said. “And I don’t mind.”

He reached out and ran his hands up and down her arms, causing a tremor to race through her. They’d known each other for only four hours, yet she’d already begun to crave his touch. His hands were strong, his caress sure, as if he was used to taking what he wanted when he wanted it.

Tess swayed a bit, her knees slowly turning to jelly. As if sensing her thoughts, he pulled her into his arms, letting her body mold to his. Derek’s mouth came down on hers in a long, delicious kiss.

No, this wasn’t supposed to happen again, she thought to herself as she frantically tried to find a way to stop him. But as the kiss grew more intense, Tess knew that denying their attraction was an exercise in futility. How could she ever have been satisfied with Jeffrey, she wondered. This was real passion.

When he finally drew back, she looked up at him. “We shouldn’t do that,” Tess murmured.

He blinked as if surprised by her statement. “But I thought you enjoyed—”

“That’s not the point,” Tess explained. “I’m … engaged. Or almost engaged.”

“But you did enjoy it,” he said, leaning close to whisper the words into her ear.

“Yes,” she replied in a strangled voice. “But I don’t want you to think that there will be more.” Oh, who was she kidding? She couldn’t deny the desire that welled up inside of her every time their mouths met. Alison was right. She’d been crazy to accept his invitation. Every minute she spent in Derek Nolan’s arms just made it more impossible for her to consider marriage to Jeffrey.

“All right,” he said, smoothing his hand along her hip. “No more kissing.”

“No more touching,” Tess said.

He pulled his hand away. “All right. But if you kiss me, I can’t be held responsible for enjoying it.” He grabbed her hand and pulled her along into the house, already ignoring her request. “I promised you sand between your toes. Come on. I’ll show you your room and then we’ll go down to the beach.”

As they hurried through the house, Tess took in the luxurious surroundings. This evening was becoming more and more surreal. She was just an ordinary girl, used to spending her nights with her nose buried in paperwork and her days with her feet buried in straw. She knew people lived like this and had even witnessed it from the sidelines, but she’d never realized how alluring it all was.

The house was like something out of a travel magazine. It was built in a French plantation style, a U-shaped structure with a courtyard garden in the middle, complete with fountain. All of the rooms opened onto the courtyard with tall French doors replacing windows, which were thrown open to catch the ocean breeze. Tess could smell the sea in the air and hear the distant waves.

They walked along a wide verandah, chairs and tables scattered between huge potted palms. She passed a hanging basket, draped with some type of exotic flower and the scent was like perfume. Tess drew another deep breath, trying to memorize every aspect of this night. She half expected to open her eyes and find out she was dreaming.

When they reached the end of the verandah, they climbed the stairs to the second story and Derek led her through a set of French doors into a dimly lit room. It was dominated by a huge four-poster bed, which had been draped in mosquito netting and covered in expensive bed linens.

“I hope this is all right,” he said, shrugging out of his jacket and tossing it over the arm of an overstuffed chair. He pulled his loosened tie over his head and yanked his shirttails out of his pants. “The bathroom is over there. If you need anything, you can dial ‘seven’ and the concierge at the resort will take care of you. I’ll make sure that Chloe finds you something to wear before she leaves.”

Tess watched him as he unbuttoned the front of his shirt, revealing deeply tanned and muscular chest. This was going to be so much more difficult than she ever expected. Her fingers twitched and she imagined the feel of his skin beneath her fingers. What she was contemplating could be considered infidelity. Could? It was