Page 19 of Journey to You

That’s exactly what she wanted, but in that one tiny moment the faintest hope in her heart there could ever be anything more between them snuffed out like a candle in the breeze.

“Yes,” she said on a sigh, wishing there could be another way, knowing there wasn’t.

She’d lost her mother, her husband, and her identity over the last few years, and she’d be damned if she lost the chance to make a new start.

Falling for Ethan would be beyond foolish, destined to shatter what little of her trust remained, and she couldn’t put herself through something like that again.

A new hardness turned his eyes to steely blue as he nodded. “Fine, have it your way. But know this. Pretending something doesn’t exist won’t make it disappear.”

He reached out and squeezed her arm gently, before heading back towards the palace, leaving her heart heaving and her soul reaching out an imaginary hand to him, before falling uselessly to her side.

Eight

Ethan never gave up.

A motto that had got him through a horror childhood, the nightmare of his teens, and had taken him to the top of the restaurateur game.

Right now, what was at stake was as important as scavenging for the next food scrap to fill his howling belly or opening a new restaurant in New York.

Tam had blossomed the last few days, becoming a woman who smiled and laughed and raised her face to a scorching Indian sun. She ran through ancient forts. She sampled the spiciest dishes and called for more chilli. She played with little children who dogged their steps when the train stopped, bestowing smiles and hugs and her last rupees.

He wanted this woman with an unrelenting fierceness that constantly clawed at him.

She’d let down her guard and their attraction escalated. He could see it in the newly sparkling eyes, the quick look-away when he captured her gaze, the smile never far from her lips. No matter how much she wanted to pretend they didn’t have a spark, this attraction wasn’t diminishing. Not if he had anything to do with it.

In the business arena, he was notorious for his ruthlessness; his take charge and take no prisoners attitude. He didn’t have much time left with Tam and he needed to make something happen—now.

He hoped she’d still talk to him after she discovered what he’d done to expedite their situation.

She stood at the bow of the boat, a vision in a white dress scattered with vivid pink and red flowers, her hair loose and flowing around her shoulders, fluttering in the breeze. He’d never seen anything so beautiful, so vibrant, and his desire for her slammed into him anew.

Yeah, he was through waiting. He’d waited years already and now there was nothing standing in his way.

She glanced up at that exact moment, her smile tentative, and he strode towards her.

“Are you sure we’ve got time to cruise the lake and check out the entertainment complex on the island?”

He glanced at his watch, noting the time with satisfaction. “Plenty of time.”

The glib lie slid from his lips and he didn’t regret it, not for a second. Udaipur’s Lake Palace was one of the most romantic hotels on earth and if he couldn’t convince her to confront their attraction here, it wouldn’t happen anywhere.

She smiled again and he quashed his yearning to slip a possessive arm around her waist, his heart slamming against his ribcage and his blood thickening with the drugging desire to make her his.

“I hope you’re right about the timing, because we wouldn’t want to miss the train and be stuck in this place.” She waved towards the tranquil lake, the Palace on the far shore. “I mean, staying in the hotel wouldn’t be a hardship but stuck with you? That would be tough.”

Ignoring the flicker of guilt he was instigating such an outcome despite her flippant joke, he propped his elbows on the railing and leaned back. “Are you actually teasing me?”

She glanced at him from beneath lowered lashes and he could’ve punched the air with elation that she’d lightened up enough to spar with him. “Maybe.”

“If this is the reaction I get for suggesting a simple boat ride, I’m going to do it more often.”

The light in her eyes faded as her gaze left his to sweep the horizon.

“I’ll be busy relaunching my career when we get back to Melbourne and you’ll be busy being the hotshot businessman, so I think any boat rides down the Yarra are wishful thinking.”

Was that her way of saying what happens in India stays in India? That if she eventually capitulated and acknowledged their attraction—or as he was hoping, did something about it—things would come to an abrupt end when they got home?

“In that case, let’s make the most of our time cruising here, huh?”

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