She softly trod back through the palms and sat down where she and Luc had sat before. The impressions of their bodies lay there, betraying far too much of what had happened. Lissa quickly dragged a fallen palm leaf over the marks and began to draw a battlemented castle in the sand. Her hand shook, but she kept on drawing.
She heard the movements behind her and turned her head to look at Chris calmly, forcing every sign of guilt or fear out of her face. He stood there and behind him she heard the advance of his men.
For a moment Chris was totally silent. His narrowed hard eyes shot over her face, trying to read her expression.
He looked around. She had never noticed it before, but now she saw the raw violence which Chris held contained when she was around. His jaw was taut and his eyes flamed like hot metal.
The men stood, waiting, poised and dangerous. They were black shadows on the edge of the whispering palm, but the threat emanating from them was very real.
'What are you doing down here?' Chris asked softly. His eyes dropped to the sand around her, studied the disturbed surface.
'Drawing pictures,' she said, and she made her voice sound sulky and cold.
'Who's been here with you?' Chris asked, and she saw the flick of his eyes over the beach and realised with a shudder that the print of Luc's feet was only too visible.
'Mr Ferrier was down here,' she said, and felt Chris stiffen. He threw her a searching look.
'Oh?'
'He was talking to someone,' she said. 'They went off ten minutes ago.'
'Who was he talking to?' Chris demanded, and she knew he did not believe a word.
'I don't know her name. She was wearing a red dress,'
Max moved and whispered in Chris's ear. Chris half turned his head and listened and the moonlight struck a medallion of his profile, turning it to the brutal harshness of a war leader. She had never seen cruelty and greed and violence in Chris before, but she saw them now.
He turned and looked back at her. She went on drawing her castle, making arrow slits in the walls, adding a flag on the top. Chris jerked his head silently and his men melted away.
He walked forward and stood there, his feet near her moving hand. Lissa did not look up.
'Why are you out here? What do you think you're doing?' he asked sharply.
Lissa had been searching her mind desperately for something to put him off the scent. She kept her eyes on her hand. In a low, angry voice she said: 'Why did you listen to Rebecca about me? Why do you encourage her to spy on me? Is she in love with you?'
Whatever Chris had been expecting her to say it had not been that, and the accusation took him by surprise.
'What?' he asked, shifting his feet.
She looked up, realising she had taken him off guard and pressing her advantage. 'Have you been flirting with her?' She stood up and glared at him. 'I hate you!' She used a furious, child's voice, letting it tremble, her lips quivering too.
'Honey,' Chris began, his body softening. ‘Darling…’
She pushed him away as he tried to put his arm round her. 'Don't call me darling, tell me the truth. What have you been doing with Rebecca? She hates me-she showed it to me today. Why should she hate me?' Even as she made the accusation she was registering with surprise that it had already been in the back of her mind. Rebecca had looked at her with hostility. She often had in the past. Was she interested in Chris?
Chris was smiling. His voice was gentle and soothing. 'Baby, don't be silly.'
'I'm not silly!' Lissa retorted in the most childish voice she could manage. Her eyes stayed wide and bright, glazed with unshed tears. The tears were there already, tears of fear and disturbed realisation that she had never known Chris. But she used them ruthlessly, letting them slip from her trembling lashes. 'I'm not a baby, either. I didn't sing like a baby tonight. Pierre said I was very good. Don't patronise me any more. I won't be called a baby!'
Chris gave a little groan, half of laughter, half of passion, 'Darling Liss,' he said, looking at her with what she recognised now as a blatant, hungry desire for her. 'You certainly didn't sing like a baby. You turned me on so hard I've got to have you, darling. Liss…,'
She slapped his hands away. 'Don't touch me, you… you Lothario!' she shouted and ran.
Chris came after her, but she managed to reach the hotel first and bolted out of sight. She heard some guests halt him with eager, excited words. Chris hovered, trying to get away, and Lissa had time to get to her room. She locked the door and stood there, shaking.
'Liss,' he whispered a few moments later. 'Darling, let me in-I must talk to you. You're wrong-I've never laid a finger on Rebecca. She doesn't do a thing to me. God, Liss, don't you know I'm mad about you? Darling, open the door. Let me talk to you.'
'Go away!' she said in a high, cross voice.
'Liss!'
'Go away or I'll scream,' she promised.
Chris stood there. She could hear him breathing fast and hard. Waves of emotion, came through the door and Lissa was frightened.
'You're frightening me,' she whispered unsteadily, and it was so true, the irony of it almost made her laugh.
Chris sighed. 'Okay, baby.'
'Don't call me that!'
'Oh, Liss.' he said wryly. 'Prove you're not. Open the door and let me love you.'
She didn't answer.
She beard other steps, a voice muttering. 'I've got to go, darling,' Chris said huskily. 'We'll talk tomorrow.
Tomorrow we'll fix our wedding day, Liss, and I won't take no for an answer.'
She heard him move away and slowly sank down on to a chair, her body huddled in fear and misery.
What was she going to do?
CHAPTER FIVE
She did not sleep for hours. Luc's accusations about Chris went on sounding inside her head and she swung between angrily dismissing them and being forced to believe part of what he had said. She should have used her brain before. She should have looked more closely at the life around her. Now that she was looking she was finding disturbing hints of a truth she had bitterly ignored until now.
Chris had hidden too many things from her. She had seen the unveiled nature to which she had been blind for so long and, seeing him in that light, had felt the pattern of her vision shift into a new perspective.
Next morning, Luc was on the beach when she arrived. He turned and the first ray of sunlight struck across his broad, smooth shoulders and gave his skin a liquid, golden sheen that took her breath away.
'All right?' he asked tersely, moving to meet her, and she sensed anxiety in him.
She nodded, softened by the intent look of the blue eyes. 'Luc, I told Chris last night that you were on the beach with someone,' she said hurriedly.
'I know,' he nodded. 'I was listening.'
Lissa stared in disbelief. 'Listening? You didn't go?'
'I wasn't leaving you alone with him. I hung around in- the palms and caught most of what was said.'
Lissa felt a pink colour creeping up her face. Luc had waited in the palm trees to make sure she was safe.
As soon as I was sure Brandon wouldn't harm you, I shot off to see Joanne,' he said.
'Joanne?' Lissa stiffened, her glance shooting to his face.
His eyes mocked. 'The lady in the red dress, remember?'
'Oh,' Lissa said coldly.
He grinned. 'I suspected Brandon would check on your story, and I was right.'
Lissa felt a shock of alarm. 'What?'
'The charming and murderous Max knocked on Joanne's door with a cock-and-bull story about a phone call for her husband. Lucas was in the gaming rooms. He rarely leaves them when they're open. Max knew that. Joanne viciously told him where he could find her husband and Max left.'