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CHAPTER 26
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IN THE ARMS OF LOVE CHAPTER 27
One week later, Harley stood in the nursery, struggling to hold back her tears as she stared into the crib. Raphaël was now sleeping peacefully, his long eyelashes feathering his cheeks that were now flushed with healthy color once more. The hours after they had arrived at the hospital, had been fraught with tension as the little boy underwent a series of tests, and the eventual diagnosis that he did not have meningitis had only been a partial relief. Raphaël had been suffering from a virus that had taken a hold on his young body. For the next three days, he had lain in his hospital bed attached to wires and monitors and despite the efforts of the excellent medical team, had shown no signs of recovery. But on the fourth day, his high temperature had gradually dropped back to normal and when he’d woken from a long nap, he had sat up, demanded some apple juice, wolfed down a banana, and only been persuaded to remain in bed because his teddy bear w
IN THE ARMS OF LOVE CHAPTER 28
It was still dark when Harley awoke. Not the inky blackness of midnight, but a soft, shadowy darkness as dawn crept closer. ‘This is Armel’s room,’ she realized as her eyes slowly adjusted to the lack of light. She was in Armel’s bed and it had been his arms holding her close throughout the night. He was still holding her, Harley amended when she turned her head and met a wall of warm, satin skin. The rhythmic rise and fall of his chest told her he was sound asleep. She shouldn’t be here and now was the ideal opportunity to slip back to her own room. But the temptation to remain close to him, cocooned in this twilight world with the man she loved, was too strong to resist. With a small sigh, Harley closed her eyes and inhaled his clean, masculine scent. Slowly, inexorably, her senses stirred until she was conscious of each separate nerve ending tingling in illicit anticipation. Common sense warned her to flee before Armel ope
IN THE ARMS OF LOVE CHAPTER 29
For a long while, neither of them spoke and only the steady tick-tock of the clock broke the intimate silence. Armel had rolled onto his back, taking Harley with him, keeping her wrapped in the circle of his strong arms.“It was mind-blowing,” he whispered. “Your body, how it responded to me was like… never before. I don’t know how to put it in words… It left me speechless.” She lifted her head and met his slumberous gaze. Maybe it had been different because she didn’t have sex with him, but she made love to him. And maybe this was the right time to tell him that she was in love with him. That her heart was still his. That staying there, right in his arms, exhausted and sated, was all she wanted to do for the rest of her life.“Armel…”“Oui, chérie (Yes, darling),” he said looking at her with a bright smile on his lips.“I… I need to thank you for everything you’ve done this last week,” Harley murmured huskily. “The way you cared for Raphi… The way you cared for m
IN THE ARMS OF LOVE CHAPTER 30
Three weeks later, Harley was still questioning her sanity at her decision to marry Armel. Undoubtedly it would be best for Raphaël, but could she ever be happy, married to a man who was only proposed to her just to give their son a home? The only thing she was absolutely certain of was their physical compatibility, Harley acknowledged ruefully. The long hours of loving in his bed each night proved irrefutably that her body had been exclusively created for Armel, for his hands, for his lips... The way he was making her body sing every single time he touched her, or kissed her was out of this world. When Armel reached for her, Harley went immediately into his arms, her heart pounding with anticipation of the delight to come when he caressed every inch of her. His hands and mouth were instruments of sensual torture that he used without mercy, exploring each sensitive dip and crevasse of her body before gently parting her and stroking her until she hovered
IN THE ARMS OF LOVE CHAPTER 31
For those few unguarded seconds, Armel had been unable to disguise his look of dismay at the idea of them having another child, and her little flame of hope that their marriage could work flickered and died right there, on the spot. The band struck up a popular tune and people began to drift onto the dance floor. Armel seemed to have regained his composure and glanced down at her.“Would you like to dance, chérie?” His eyes gleamed wickedly.“I have vivid memories of the last time we danced together.” Harley blushed at the shaming recollection of how he had brought her to the peak of sexual pleasure simply by holding her close and hastily shook her head.“Oh, I… Ehm… I just need to go to the ladies’ room… But perhaps Mireille would care to join you on the dancefloor… With Stéphane’s approval, of course…” Armel’s eyes narrowed on her flushed face and she turned and hurried away before he could stop her, desperate to be alone for a few mi
IN THE ARMS OF LOVE CHAPTER 32
The truth… The truth was that loving him was tearing her apart, and that was a truth impossible to reveal.“Nothing’s wrong, Armel,” she lied. “I’d just rather sleep on my own tonight.” Her pride refused to allow her to confront him about Chantal’s allegations. If he suspected she was jealous of the glamour model, Armel might realize that she was in love with him and she would rather die than have him feel sorry for her. Armel briefly considered hauling her into his arms and kissing her until he broke through the barriers she had erected, but Harley looked achingly vulnerable and he accepted that, for once, making love to her was not the answer. Instead, he gave an angry shrug of his shoulders.“Très bien… (Very well),” he snapped, “If this is what you want, go ahead… Sleep on your own. But a week from now you will be my wife and you’ll share my bed every night. There will be no separate rooms, c’est clair? (Do you understand?)”“Oh, yes,” Harle
IN THE ARMS OF LOVE CHAPTER 33
For a few seconds, the floor beneath Harley’s feet seemed to sway and she inhaled sharply.“Postpone the wedding… I see,” she managed at last, past the constriction in her throat.“I doubt it,” Armel murmured, and his light, almost casual tone opened the floodgates of sheer agonizing pain.“You’re right, Armel… I don’t see, and I certainly don’t understand this whole situation… I don’t understand you…” She flew across the remaining few feet that separated them and halted in front of him, bewilderment, hurt, and sheer fury blazing in her emerald eyes.“Marrying you was never my intention… This whole thing was your idea and I went on with it. After we talked about it last time, I thought we’d agreed that we could make our marriage work, for Raphi’s sake, at least.”“Well, I thought so too, but I realize that I can’t go through with it… Not right now, anyway,” Armel said grimly, a nerve jumping in his cheek as he stared down at her. The patio lights cast long
IN THE ARMS OF LOVE CHAPTER 34
She looked up at him and caught the flare of pain in his eyes before he quickly masked his thoughts. He’d said that he loved her and he adored their little blonde angel…“Armel… I understand everything you’ve told me, but… I still can’t understand why you want to postpone the wedding…” she murmured. “If you love me…”“More than life, mon coeur,” he vowed fiercely. “I love you more than you can ever know.” He slid his hands up her arms to cup her face and she could have died at the expression in his brilliant blue gaze, the faint sheen of moisture that revealed his vulnerability and his deep, abiding love for her.“So, if you love me, then why?” Harley asked in a desperate tone.“When I received the results of the paternity test, I was desperate to know if I carry the gene and the likelihood that I had passed it on to Raphi. I contacted medical experts who specialize in genetics and discovered that in the last two years, a reliable test has been developed, which mea
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