Revenge and Redemption Read online

  Luke’s eyes bored into Penny’s. “No.” He stepped forward and grabbed her upper arms. He held her firmly, making her look up at him. In an instant her anger was gone and in its place was a heady combination of lust and fear. The unguarded look drove Luke wild. He closed his eyes for a moment and breathed deeply to calm himself, but only managed to inhale her perfume, further inciting his desire.

  “I need you, Penny,” he said as he opened his eyes, “and you need me.”

  Even as Luke said the words he wasn’t sure if he was talking about their deal, or them. Cassie was right, Luke wasn’t just infatuated this time.

  He was falling in love with her.

  Their talk last night only confirmed what he’d always hoped but never dreamed. Penny may be a Royale, but she was not Selina.

  She was so much better than that.

  “I don’t need you, Luke. I don’t care about my money. And I don’t care about you.”

  “Liar,” said Luke, the lack of conviction in Penny’s voice louder than her actual words. “You do care. You can’t help but care, Penny Royale. That’s just who you are.”

  “A pathetic sap,” she bit out.

  Luke chuckled and shook his head. “A good woman.”

  “You’re resorting to flattery now?”

  “Whatever works,” he said with a grin that disappeared all too quickly. “Look, I don’t want to blackmail you, but I will if you force my hand.”

  Penny jerked away from Luke and wrapped her arms around herself like a protective shield. She chewed on her bottom lip and frowned as she thought about what had happened. Was she overreacting?

  Luke sounded sincere when he told her about that rat reporter and the article, even about wanting her, but then he’d sounded sincere last night, too. Penny didn’t know if she could trust Luke, but she recognised the determination in his voice that said he most certainly would resort to blackmail again to get what he wanted.

  Penny had to make a choice.

  She could either take a leap of faith and trust Luke, or she could maintain her shrewish ways and widen the gap between her and the only man in the world who’d ever needed her for any reason. Either way she had little choice but to do as he wanted.

  “Promise me you had nothing to do with that article, that last night wasn’t just about revenge.”

  “I promise, Penny.”

  She took a deep breath. “Then maybe you should tell me about Plan B.”

  Luke grinned. “You already know what Plan B is, my little ‘bed bunny’.”

  Penny shot him a look of pure venom for that jibe and her pride jerked up in response. “How many times do I have to say it?” she gritted out. “I am not having sex with you.”

  “Why not?”

  If Penny wasn’t so cross with Luke she would have laughed at his childish whine and frustrated expression.

  “I’m not blackmailing you anymore.”

  “But you’re still using me to get what you want, and I will not let you take what little self-respect I have left by jumping into bed with you.”

  “Fine,” Luke conceded, “but thanks to Chris Marks, Selina isn’t going to believe our mentoring story anymore. So what do you suggest?”

  Penny pulled the newspaper article out of her pocket and smoothed it out.

  “That’s not going to go away, Pen.” Luke paused for a moment. “Listen, how about this? Be my mistress−” Penny began to protest but Luke clamped his hand over her mouth. “Let me finish. Be my mistress in public only. A little kissing, some cuddling, holding hands, that’s it. In private we’ll be purely platonic. I promise.

  “Let Selina think she’s in control by doing what she wants you to do, but when we’re alone, when no one’s watching us, I’ll let you take the lead. If you only want my friendship, fine, we’ll be friends.” He lifted his hand to stroke her cheek. “But if you change your mind, if you decide you do want more, you can have it.”

  Penny stared at Luke with a knit brow. The millionaire businessman, the head honcho of Hardcastle Construction, was willing to relinquish control—to her? He was either really horny and hoping she’d throw him a bone for his generosity, or he really was the good man she’d always thought he was.

  She shook her head, more from disbelief than denial. “But what about the media? I just know they’ll drag out the usual claptrap about my parents and my falling out with Selina and—”

  “And you won’t have to go through it alone this time. I’ll be here with you.”

  “You will?”

  “Yes. And you never know, hanging out with me might actually be fun. When I’m not blackmailing people I’m really very lovable.”

  Penny didn’t doubt for a second that Luke Hardcastle was lovable. She already felt the pull he had on her heartstrings, already felt despair at the thought of losing him, and all after only one week. Well, twelve years and one week, if you counted her hero-worship teenage crush.

  These new feelings she felt were the real reason she wouldn’t sleep with him. Penny knew she wouldn’t be able to bear the loss of him when all of this was over and they parted ways, for she knew they would part ways. It was inevitable.

  Men like Luke Hardcastle simply didn’t stay with women like Penny Royale.

  “What time do you finish work?” he asked, cutting into her thoughts. “Why don’t you have dinner with me and Cassie?”

  “No, I don’t want to intrude on your time with your sister, Luke.”

  “Nonsense. We’re just going to eat all the junk food they don’t let her eat at the hospital and watch movies. I’ll even drive you home when we’re done so there’ll be no repeat of the…misunderstandings from last night. Okay?”

  Penny eyed Luke and chewed her lip. She knew in her heart he was a good man, she knew she should trust him, and she really didn’t want to end their relationship just yet. Whatever that relationship might be. Besides, the prospect of kissing Luke Hardcastle on a frequent basis without the added pressure of sex did have a certain appeal.

  Penny forced herself to relax and willed away the doubts swimming in her mind. It was time to take that leap of faith. It was time to trust Luke.

  “Okay.”

  “Good. What time do we pick you up?”

  Chapter Eleven

  Two weeks sped past in a blur. Penny kept up an impossible pace as she continued to run her shop, liaise with Luke’s legal department about finalising the lease agreements, pretend to suck up to Selina with the false information Luke was providing, help Cassie organise a charity ball for the Cancer Foundation, and date millionaire playboy Luke Hardcastle.

  If it wasn’t for the fringe benefits of dating Luke—the kissing, mostly—Penny wasn’t sure she’d have the will to keep up.

  Her resolve to get through this with her dignity intact was slipping. Big time. Hell, it hadn’t been that strong to begin with, his declaration that he found her attractive putting a major crack in her shell of self-preservation. A big, whopping crack that every kiss on her lips and every playful squeeze of her sizable ass widened.

  “You look exhausted.”

  “Just what every girl wants to hear to make her feel loved,” said Penny wearily as she climbed into the car. “I’ll be fine. A long soak in a hot bath followed by a light supper and an early night, and I’ll be as good as new.”

  “I guess that means you won’t be joining me for our candlelit dinner tonight,” Luke said.

  Penny groaned. “That was tonight? Oh Luke, I’m sorry, I forgot about dinner.” She sighed and took a deep breath and a forced a smile. “Okay, take me home. I’ll have a quick shower and get changed, then romantic dinner, here we come.”

  Luke chuckled at her fake enthusiasm. The sound filled the car and enveloped Penny in a soothing embrace. “I have a better idea. Why don’t we cancel dinner, you can have your long, hot bath and I will make you that light supper?”

  “You? Cook?” Penny laughed. “Since when?”

  “I’ll have you know I’m quite a go
od cook, thank you very much.”

  “Sorry, it’s just hard to imagine the Take Away King in the kitchen. I’m going to have to see this for myself.”

  Luke grinned. “See? Honey, by the time I’m done with you, all of your senses will be satisfied.”

  For two weeks now Luke had kept his word and upheld his end of the deal. In public, Luke and Penny were the perfect couple. They dined out on a regular basis, went for walks through the parks, and even had a picnic in a secluded nook of the beautiful City Botanical Gardens, where Luke had been a perfect gentleman—until he pretended to trip over his own feet and pinned Penny beneath his massive frame. He’d crushed her breasts against his hard muscled chest and smashed his lips against hers in a slow burning kiss, all while his hand had made a leisurely exploration under her skirt and along her thigh.

  If she didn’t know any better she’d have thought he was trying to take advantage of their deal, push the boundaries of “a little kissing, some cuddling and holding hands,” but when his fingers had brushed against the cotton of her knickers where they wrapped around her hip, he stopped. Leaving her panting for more and knowing it was up to her to ask for it.

  A photo of the incident had graced the pages of the following day’s newspaper. But, Penny had to admit, the media attention wasn’t as great as she’d feared it would be. Although Chris Marks did report, and rather snidely at that, that Luke sent Penny roses every morning and picked her up from work every afternoon, but as yet there was very little about Penny’s parents or her horrid past.

  And for two weeks now, as soon as they were alone and out of the public eye, Luke kept his hands to himself and let Penny dictate their relationship. So far she had kept things friendly, even though since the beginning of this whole charade Luke had made her heart hammer and her toes curl with every single public display of affection he performed.

  It was a performance; none of it was real. Luke would never waste his time on a woman like her if he didn’t have something to gain from it all. Which was why she would never ask him for more. To him it would just be sex, just another notch on the old bedpost.

  For her it would be so much more.

  It wasn’t his fault she craved the sight of him walking around his apartment without a shirt on, displaying every powerful masculine rope of sinewy muscle and bronzed flesh that her fingers simply itched to touch, or that she longed for the taste of him, for the feel of his silken tongue pressed against hers—

  The fact was, she’d started delaying their retreats into the security and privacy of Luke’s apartment or office or her house just so she could keep touching him, so she could keep kissing him.

  So he’d keep kissing her.

  Yep, her dignity was fighting an uphill battle.

  Penny left Luke in the kitchen while she ran her bath. She went to her bedroom and grabbed up her pyjamas and a light robe, then returned to the bathroom and undressed. She stood in front of the mirror and looked at herself naked.

  Everything about Penny was big. Big bum, big breasts, big belly in between. But she wasn’t ashamed of her figure. She was curvy, that was certain, but she still had a waist that dipped where it should, and two of the longest legs in town. Penny always walked tall, proud of height. Not that that had always been the case.

  According to Selina, Penny was a freak. She was too big to ever attract men. She was too fat, she was too tall, her face was too plain, and her hair was too brown and her eyes were too dull, like her personality.

  Penny had believed her, until Matt asked her out.

  Matt Taylor, the first man to use Penny as a stepping stone at Royale Industries. Next was Colin Newland, then Doug Sands. Three times she fell for their lies. Three times she let her guard down and dreamed of happy endings. Three times she’d been disappointed.

  Penny didn’t want to go through that again. She’d never known love before but she had a pretty good hunch what she was feeling for Luke Hardcastle was it. And she didn’t want to go through the rejection she knew was inevitable. Not from him.

  No, Penny would keep her feelings, and her hands, to herself. Better to have Luke as a friend than as nothing at all. If she let herself succumb to her emotions, to her lust, it would only lead to more hurt. He would use her body for his own pleasure, then turn her away as soon as this was all over, just as he did with every other woman he dated.

  Penny had tolerated being cast aside by the other men because she’d never really had any true feelings for them, but she knew she wouldn’t survive being cast aside by the man she loved.

  Much better to keep her heart locked away, protected. Alone.

  She sighed heavily and slipped into the bathtub. She sank below the froth of bubbles and let the hot water soothe her aching muscles. She closed her eyes. She could hear music. Luke must have put on a CD. Penny could hear the soft crooning of one of her favourite singers drifting down the hall and it helped to calm her mind just as the bath was calming her body. Tthen something else drifted through her mind.

  Luke Hardcastle. Knight in Shining Armour.

  Penny sat at her desk filing daily reports and tallying quarterly totals. Where else would she be? No one remained in the building but her, but then no one else was chained to their desk like a dog. She tugged at the thick golden collar secured around her neck, trying to loosen it. It didn’t budge. It never did. It never would, not without the golden key. And the key was kept on a golden chain wrapped around Selina’s neck.

  She was never getting out of here.

  But then she heard footsteps. Heavy, muffled footsteps made their way along the carpeted corridor. Determined footsteps. Penny could do nothing but wait and see who or what approached. When she saw him, her heart skittered in her chest.

  It was him! Sir Luke of the Tower. Tall, dark, and exquisitely muscled, his helmet missing, his handsome face set with the same determination of his gait. His surcoat was ripped asunder, his chainmail pants dripping in sweat and blood. In one hand he held a blood-soaked sword, in the other a golden key.

  “I have slain the fire-breathing bitch and have come to rescue you. Never again need you fear her.”

  He slotted the key into the lock and the collar fell from her neck.

  “However may I repay you, Sir Luke?”

  He looked her up and down with a sly grin writ across his face. “This key fits another lock, does it not?”

  Penny smiled and bit her lip as she raised her skirt and revealed a shining golden chastity belt. Sir Luke fell to his knees and unlocked it, casting it aside. “You will be my slave now,” he said, his breath caressing her thighs.

  “You wish to keep me in chains as the fire-breathing bitch did?”

  “Not as she did. Never again will you work your fingers to the bone and sit alone in the dark. No, honey, I will chain you to my bed and there you will stay, my pampered pet, my cherished slave, my bringer of love and light.”

  Then he leaned forward and pressed a kiss between her legs, a kiss that lingered, a kiss that deepened. A kiss that did indeed fill her mind to overflowing with white light and happiness.

  Penny sank further under the bubbles and smiled as her orgasm washed through her.

  If only it were that simple, she thought.

  * * * *

  Luke wandered around Penny’s little house while he waited for her to finish her bath. He put on a CD he found hidden away with Penny’s miniature stereo, he searched the kitchen for ingredients for dinner, then strolled down the hall with his hands in his pockets, imagining Penny naked and wet in the bath. Imagining her hands lathering soap all over her body. Imagining his hands lathering soap all over her body.

  He let out a gentle sigh and wondered how much longer he’d have to wait for Penny to come to her senses and admit she wanted to be more than just friends. He kissed her senseless every chance he got, but it just wasn’t enough. He wanted more. So did she, if her recent behaviour held true. Did she think he wouldn’t notice? Did she think he’d mind? As if he would. If she wan
ted to expand on their public relationship, who was he to say no?

  Just then he passed by her bedroom door. It was slightly ajar. Luke backed up and nudged the door with his foot so that it swung open and he could see inside. He glanced down the hall towards the sounds of sloshing water. Penny would be a while yet. Luke grinned and stepped into the forbidden zone.

  It was a very comfortable room, feminine without being girly. It definitely had touches of Penny’s personality, a warmth and a subtle sensuality that made Luke want to walk straight into that bathroom down the hall and take full advantage of the beautiful woman he knew he would find.

  Her bed was a direct reflection of her, big and inviting. It was a restored antique four-poster with fine indigo-coloured Indian cotton curtains hanging all around it. The light from a garland of fairy lights shone from inside the canopy.

  Luke hooked back one curtain and breathed deeply. Penny’s scent filled his nostrils and made his cock twitch. The bed was unmade, the sheets pooled at the bottom, the feather pillows askew, and clothes had been tossed carelessly on the mattress. Luke looked again. Not just clothes—lingerie.

  He glanced cautiously at the door again before picking up a very sexy pair of black silk and lace knickers and matching strapless bra.

  “Oh honey, when are you going to let me see you in these?” He groaned.

  Luke tossed them back on the bed and stared longingly at Penny’s pillow. He wondered not for the first time how she would look stretched out beside him in bed, her hair spread across the pillows in chestnut coloured cascades, her blue-grey eyes soft on his face after making love.

  And with Penny, it would be making love. He wouldn’t use her the way he’d used all the others—as a means to satisfy his lustful nature. Penny needed more than that, and Luke wanted nothing more than to give her what she needed, to love her. If only she would let him.

  He moved to the old pine dresser and nosed around. He picked up a crystal perfume vaporiser and squeezed the little pink rubber ball. A squirt of fragrance filled the air in front of him and made him smile. Gardenias. Penny’s scent. His body twitched with lust again.