Free Destiny Unleashed by Sherryl Woods

a compliment, but as a subtle dig suggesting total insincerity.
    “Tell me, Destiny, how are your nephews?”
    For the first time, her smile came easily. “Wonderful. They’ve grown into extraordinary young men. I’m very proud of them.”
    “I shouldn’t be surprised. With your influence, how could they have turned out any other way?”
    She laughed at the continued flattery. “Oh, there are some who despaired at me being in charge of shaping their lives. They thought I’d ruin them. Whatsort of mother would a madcap, gadabout like me make, after all?”
    “An amazing one, I would think,” he said, his expression solemn. “Those boys couldn’t have been any luckier than to have you come to pick up the pieces after their parents died.”
    She didn’t want to feel anything at the total sincerity in his voice, but she did—another of those traitorous flutters in the region of her heart. To cover for it, she glanced around quickly for an escape. Better not to linger when her defenses were so clearly down. Better to escape while this first meeting was going so well. There was an art to captivating a man. It was essential to leave him wanting more.
    “Do you know everyone here?” she asked. “Let me introduce you around.”
    She hurriedly parked him with Chester, a safe-enough bet, then made her way to the balcony off the living room for a quick breath of air. All of the oxygen seemed to have been sucked from her lungs at the sight of William. It wasn’t fair that he could still affect her so deeply, not fair at all.
    The London night was raw and damp, but the air served its purpose. It wiped away the warm and fuzzy feelings that had resurfaced the instant she’d laid eyes on William. She’d told him the truth inside. The damn man had barely changed at all. Those few distinguishing streaks of gray in his thick hair, the laugh lines on his tanned face only added character.
    She had to keep reminding herself that he was a snake, a snake who meant to do her family harm. That wasn’t bitter resentment talking, but truth. He’d proved his intentions time and again. He hadn’t beentargeting a million and one different companies for acquisition in recent years, only those in which Carlton Industries had expressed an interest. There was no mistaking that his business actions were directed her way. It would take longer to figure out why he was so intent on creating problems for her family’s company. But she would, and no matter the lingering attraction she felt, she would make him pay.
    Still, it was hard, if not impossible, to keep the flood of other, kinder and gentler memories at bay.
    And so, forgiving herself in advance for the indulgence, she let them come.
    Provence, 1981
    The fields were alive with poppies, bright red flags waving against a sky of purest blue. Destiny had glimpsed the glorious sight from her window not ten minutes before. Captivated, she ran down the stairs, grabbed easel, canvas and paints and ran barefoot through the field across from her house to a vantage point that showed a tiny patch of sparkling sea in the distance. While the light was still exactly right, she set to work.
    “How many times are you going to paint this same scene?” William inquired, appearing behind her an hour later with a cup of coffee in hand, an amused expression on his face.
    Destiny barely spared him a glance. “It’s different every time. The light is never the same,” she murmured absently, already lost in her work. “I’ll never tire of it.”
    William sighed. “I suppose it’s the same way I feel about you.”
    Something in his voice caught her attention. She turned slowly and put down her brush. “Oh?”
    “I don’t think I shall ever tire of you,” he said, reaching for her, his hands skimming her breasts, covered only in the soft white cotton of the gown she wore to bed. “God, you’re gorgeous. You make me wish I could paint so I could capture you looking just as you do now, all rosy and