"Why do you look so happy?" Angelica asked, returning her infectious smile.

"I think Paul is going to ask me to dance!"

"He will if he has any good sense at all," said Sabine.

Before Angelica could reply, she heard, "Mademoiselle?"

A young man stood before her. She'd seen him before. He was a member of the crew and not a worker from the cane fields.

"My name is Yves. Would you care to dance?" He held out his hand.

The lively music beckoned her. Losing herself in it would be a delightful, much-needed distraction. She looked at Suzette and Sabine. They nodded, urging her to go.

"Thank you, Yves. That would be very nice."

"Angelica is quite a popular woman," Jules said, walking up with a big grin.

Simon tried to ignore his irritating friend.

"I believe that is her fifth dance in a row."

Seventh, Simon wanted to say.

"And I believe it must be her second with Yves."

Third. But who is counting?

"I don't think the lovely Angelica will be lacking in male company in any way tonight," Toussaint remarked.

Simon clenched his teeth. Watching as Angelica went from Yves to her next dance partner, he didn't need the obvious pointed out to him.

She was smiling, flushed from dancing, her b.r.e.a.s.t.s beautifully enhanced by her dropped neckline. The memory of how those same sweet b.r.e.a.s.t.s had looked and felt in his hands, filled his mind, and stiffened his unruly c.o.c.k. He could still taste her delicious, pert nipples on his tongue.

He found himself mourning the loss of the convent garb.

Claudine rubbed her thigh against his, again. He wished she'd chosen to sit elsewhere during the meal. "Wasn't she on your ship, Simon?" she purred annoyingly.

"Yes."

Jules leaned in and murmured in his ear. "You've omitted some delectable details of the voyage, by the way." Simon could hear the smile in Jules's voice. If he didn't have an enormous erection at the moment, he would stand up and toss Jules over the cliff.

"I heard that no one knows much about her, and that you found her in a convent," Claudine said with a laugh. Her friend Antoinette and Jules joined in. Toussaint simply smiled.

Simon glared darkly at Jules. His laughter died.

"I must admit I was a bit jealous when I learned she'd be living in your home, Simon," Claudine added. "But a convent?" Her laughter bubbled to the surface once more. "With her limited knowledge of men, I sincerely doubt she could hold your interest, cher."

That was just it. Angelica had held his interest from the moment he'd laid eyes on her.

Against his will, Simon watched the parade of her dance partners. Each man left looking love-struck or l.u.s.t-struck. She wove her magic on unsuspecting males with devastating proficiency.

When, at long last, Simon saw her step away from the dancing and walk over to the tables, he couldn't stop himself from approaching her.

Standing alone, she reached for a goblet of wine.

"Good evening," he said. "Are you enjoying yourself, chere?"

"Yes. Thank you." She looked past his shoulder at the small group he had left. "Are you?"

"Of course." This was the first real conversation he'd had with her since the day they had arrived. "Tell me, you didn't happen to mention your real name to any of the men you danced with, did you? It would bring our game to an end. I won't feel special anymore."

She stiffened. And there was a flare of anger in her eyes. Good. It was only part of what he felt after watching her moving from man to man.

For the life of him, he couldn't understand her. She was compa.s.sionate, gentle, and sometimes shy, yet she was also feisty, strong, and brave. She looked like an innocent, yet she was not. In bed, she'd been pa.s.sionate, yet virginal in manner. It was driving him mad. No matter what he did, no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't quash this d.a.m.ned fixation he had with her.

"I didn't tell them anything, Simon, but there is something I have been meaning to tell you."

"Oh? And what is that?"

She set the goblet down onto the table and stepped close to him. "I wanted to thank you for the tumble." She turned to go. He caught her arm and marched into the forest beyond the torches, pulling her with him. "Simon, what are you doing?"

He didn't stop until he reached a small clearing, secluded by trees and shadow.

He released her arm. "I want to know what it is you seek. Are you working up the men because you are looking for a tumble?"

"I am not a wh.o.r.e."

"I never said you were. And I don't think ill of women with, shall we say, a healthy s.e.xual appet.i.te. I consider those women to be among my personal favorites."

"Really? From the looks of it, you have a lot of 'personal favorites.' Tell me, Simon, are you working them up? Are you looking for a tumble?"

Her words pulled a smile from him. "Chere, you sound jealous."

Normally, possessive feelings from a woman, such as jealousy, inspired him to turn and walk, but seeing it in her eyes, hearing it in her tone, oddly pleased him. He'd noticed that since he'd pulled her into the secluded spot, her breathing had hastened a little, and he was willing to wager that if he ran his fingers along her smooth neck, he would find her pulse racing. He was affecting her. And it wasn't anger that was causing the quickening in her body, but rather hot s.e.xual excitement, the same scorching heat that was rushing through him.

Dieu. There was no debate about it. The desire between them was an undeniable truth.

After all her toying, he should have had enough of her, but he knew down to his marrow he wasn't even close to sating himself with his moonlight angel.

He would break this mind-bending obsession for good. To that end, he was going to make himself available to her. But on his terms.

He wouldn't play by her rules any longer "Jealous?" Angelica scoffed. "That's ridiculous..."

She was alone with Simon under the stars, in a forest, with the scent of pine and the sounds of music and the ocean in the air. And he had the most seductive look in his eyes. The one she recognized as the usual prelude to her downfall. She tried to ignore how stimulated her senses were, while trying to deny the truth: yes, she was jealous! She hated to see him with other women, or worse, to imagine him giving them the same joy and pleasure he'd given her.

"Is it?" he pressed.

"It is." She turned to leave, needing to distance herself. His hand closed over her shoulder, halting her. With a sudden sweep, he picked her up in his arms and placed her bottom on a fallen log, her legs coming down on either side of it. Before she could pull her leg over and move into a more modest sitting position, he seated himself behind her, and slipped his arms around her. Holding her in place.

Her senses were already tingling, all too aware of the bulge in his breeches pressing against her lower back. He dipped his head, bringing his mouth near her ear.

"Angelica," he murmured. "I'm not with those other women. I'm here with you. I want you. Can you not feel how hard you make me?" How in heaven could she miss that? Just the feel of that delicious part of his male anatomy against her, knowing how masterfully he knew how to use it, made her s.e.x clench. "If you want a man, come to me. Day or night... Let me be your lover."

He cupped her breast. She fisted her skirts. Heat radiated from everywhere his body touched hers. She'd never felt so hot. Her nipples were hard, straining for him, anxious for his touch.

"There are carnal delights yet to explore. The last night of the voyage was but a small sampling. I want you to come to me and only me. Let me be the one to give you pleasure." He gave her nipple the lightest pinch through her gown. She jerked with a gasp. "I have yet to make love to you." He continued to tease the tip of her breast with tender twists and tugs, sending scintillating sensations quivering into her core. Moisture pooled between her legs. She couldn't catch her breath, her breathing now shallower. And sharper.

"We...did that on the ship," she managed to say. But the rest of her words caught in her throat the moment she felt his other hand slip under her skirts, moving steadily up along her inner thigh. She held her breath, waiting. Antic.i.p.ating. The bud between her legs pulsating in time with her frenzied heart.

"No, chere, we did not." He grazed his hot mouth along her neck. "When you offer up your body and nothing else, then it is but an anonymous encounter. Making love is far more intimate, and I know it would be oh so erotic and intense between us."

He cupped her s.e.x. A soft cry surged up her throat.

"Dieu... You're not wearing any drawers." He stroked his fingers along her wet cleft, lightly ma.s.saging her s.e.x. Her head fell back against his shoulder. She closed her eyes. She knew full well she lacked the will to stop any of this. Not when it was his hands on her. Not when it was his arms around her. His light caresses had her desperate and aching for more.

"The island...is very hot," she tried to explain, barely able to form words. She hadn't expected anyone to learn of her recently acquired practice.

She hadn't expected anything like this. What he was doing to her breast and her s.e.x was melting her mind.

"Always full of surprises, aren't you?" he said, his warm breath tickling her ear. She heard the smile in his tone. "I must say, this one is by far my favorite."

He slid a finger inside her. She whimpered.

"So warm...and soft... and wet.... Christ, you have the sweetest c.u.n.t." He withdrew his finger, maddeningly circled her needy nub, then slid two fingers back into her slick s.e.x. She arched, desperate for any kind of friction against that very bud between her legs he'd just teased, trying to grind up against his hand.

He chuckled softly. "You want your c.l.i.t rubbed? This sweet little bud right here..." He gave it a gentle pinch. She practically shot up off the log. He tightened his hold, keeping her in place. "We could take this to another level of intimacy, Angelica, but you are going to have to reveal yourself to me. Not just your body. You are going to have to tell me who you are."

His skillful hand was pumping her, hurling her closer and closer to a powerful release. She tightened around his fingers, so out of control, his thumb occasionally grazing her c.l.i.t, purposely giving her spikes of heightened sensations. "Your body is hungry for a release, isn't it, Angelica? You want to come for me, don't you?"

She was panting now. Delirious with desire. "Yes! Don't stop..."

"I won't. Trust me. I know what you want. And I know how to make it better..." Curling his buried fingers, he stroked over an ultrasensitive spot inside her slick walls.

She thrust back against him with a strangled cry, the sensation stunningly sharp. But he held her fast, not allowing her to escape the fierce pleasure from each stroke he gave that oversensitive spot.

"It feels intense, doesn't it?" He delivered three stronger strokes, s.n.a.t.c.hing a cry from her lungs. She shuddered, the sensations overwhelming. "Just ride through them," he coaxed in her ear. "The release is going to be so strong...Let go, mon ange. I have you."

She bit her lip, her o.r.g.a.s.m imminent. Straining hard, she dug her fingers into his thighs, barreling toward a shattering release, she could neither contain nor control.

"That's right. I love how strongly you're tightening and quivering around my fingers. You're so close. Come for me," he groaned.

Ecstasy exploded inside her. A cry burst from her lips, her inner muscles clenching and unclenching wildly around his busy fingers, each strong spasm sending waves of pleasure cresting over her.

He didn't stop until the last spasm faded, until she was boneless and slumped against him.

He eased his fingers from her and held her until her breathing calmed, until she found the strength to pull her leaden leg over the fallen tree so that she could face him. She met his gaze. Desire burned in his beautiful light-colored eyes.

Sliding his arms away from her, he leaned his elbows on his thighs and folded his hands. Unable to stop herself, she cupped his face and kissed him, slowly, softly. He returned her kiss but did not reach for her.

Make love...Those words flitted through her mind. From his lips, they held such appeal. Her heart cried out to him, welling with the desire to tell him all, to connect with him on a deeper level.

She silenced the foolish thing. He wouldn't offer to make love to her if he knew the truth about her. How could anyone know about the soiling and not feel disgust. He could never see her as a whole woman the way he did now. How could anyone?

She refused to risk lessening herself in his eyes that way. Her feelings for him ran too deep.

Even though he'd been angry with her, he still wanted her. Maybe her happiness would have to be limited to his touch if not his heart. Would that be so bad? Would it be enough?

She broke the kiss. "Simon, if you want to... If you are interested..."

"Yes, I want to. Yes, I am interested. Are you prepared to reveal yourself? Are you going to tell me who you are?"

Her hands fell away from his face. "Why is this so important to you?"

He sighed and shook his head. "It just is, mon ange. It's best you return to the celebration. You will be missed soon."

It was the second time he'd called her my angel, and he'd said it so softly, it made her heart ache. "What about you?"

He gave her a rueful smile. "After watching you come, I'm going to need a few minutes." His smile faded. "I want you to come to me, Angelica. I want you, but I'm going to need to know who you are. The door is open and the invitation has been extended. You decide if you are going to accept it or decline it."

Two days later, Simon sat in his library. She hadn't come to him, still. For two nights he'd waited, expectant, hopeful. Nothing. Merde. Enough. He had work to do.

He picked up the drawings for the new sugar mill and reviewed them. While some of the islands in the West Indies were importing slaves from Africa to work on the cane estates, he wanted nothing to do with slavery. Bringing peasants from France and providing them with shelter and fair wages not only fostered self-dignity but also loyalty and a desire to work and remain.

Since his return, he'd made a thorough inspection of the island's structures. Walls and lookout towers that protected the island from invaders needed attention. There were also construction plans he had in mind that would require further meetings and planning with his architect, Xavier.

He'd hoped by keeping himself occupied, it would take his mind off Angelica. It had not.

There was a knock at the door.

"Enter," he bid.

Jules entered, sporting his usual smile, and closed the door.

"You brought the ledgers," Simon stated, eyeing them in Jules's hand.

"Good morning to you too." Jules handed them to Simon and seated himself comfortably on the opposite side of the desk. "No need to ask how you are. Tell me, what of the beautiful Angelica? How is she?"

Simon purposely engrossed himself in the ledgers before responding, "How would I know?"

"She lives in your home. By the way, is this going to be a permanent arrangement?"

Without looking up from the ledgers, Simon stated, "You can cease your grinning, Jules. I will find a place for her. Until then, she's fine staying where she is." He didn't add that it was killing him to have her there every night.

He was responsible for her, and Domenico wanted his bride all to himself. Simon wasn't about to place Angelica in the shared accommodations where the field workers lived. The other islanders had their own homes. In essence, there was nowhere else for her to go.