Spetses was a playground of the rich, developed for just that purpose, an island of luxury hotels and even more luxurious private mansions and villas. Stefanos Evchenko owned one of the largest of these private luxuries, a many-roomed villa complete with expansive gardens, two pools, an outdoor bath-house and sauna, and his own stretch of private beach in which to moor his yachts. AJ and Meg - or rather, Jake and Sophie - had been welcomed to the estate by the butler when they had arrived after their flight by boat from the mainland, the master of the house being engaged in sailing around the island with a few friends who had arrived earlier in the day. They were shown to a luxurious bedroom, equipped with champagne for their pleasure, and told to take their time. Their presence was only required by Mr. Evchenko for dinner, dancing, and other entertainments as the evening came on.
Meg studied her appearance in the bathroom mirror, fighting down the butterflies proliferating in her stomach. "Is he always this extravagant?" she called through the door to where AJ was probably waiting impatiently for her to make her entrance.
"What's the point in having money if you can't live a little?" he countered, as he examined his own reflection in the bedroom mirror and adjusted the tie that just didn't want to stay straight. He was formally dressed for dinner in a black designer suit that probably cost more than his monthly salary, clean-shaven, with his hair carefully combed and parted on the side.
"There's living a little and there's showing off," she countered, giving herself a last once over before opening the bathroom door and stepping out. "Will I disgrace you, do you think?"
MI6's wardrobe department had done her proud. The dress was a mouth-watering red, clinging in all the right places, plunging in others, split to the thigh on one side. Sophie was definitely a more sultry creature than her creator could possibly have described, and not at all shy in the slightest. She twirled for his amusement, flicking her dark hair from her eyes.
He was still busy fixing his tie when she stepped out of the bathroom, and he glanced over, expecting to see her looking nice, but doing a double take when he saw just how nice. "Holy shit!" he exclaimed, his eyes practically popping out of his head at the sight of her. "You look gorgeous." Not only looked gorgeous, but was gorgeous. There were no two ways about it. She was easily going to turn heads as the most beautiful woman on the island. "Just remember, you're married to me," he teased, half seriously.
She laughed, moving over to finish his tie for him. "Like I could possibly forget," she answered affectionately. Even though they were pretty sure there were no bugs or cameras in the room, it was better to be safe than sorry. "You did say you wanted to show me off a little. Something about proving to your friend that money can buy a lot, but looks and money get better quality goods?"
"Something like that," he replied, wondering if she was just playing the part now or if there was some underlying message there that took a littler reading between the lines. "I'm not sure I want to share the view," he admitted, more AJ than Jake. Then again, Jake had brought her here to show her off, and they weren't going to get the job done if they hid in the room all weekend, no matter how much fun might be had there.
Smoothing her hands over his lapels, she met his gaze. "The view is for anyone," she pointed out. "But only one man gets to really enjoy it." She laughed, gently bopping the end of his nose with a fingertip before turning away. "Zip me, please?"
"I'd rather not, but we'll never get dinner if I don't, and not even this man can live on sex alone," he told her, easing the zipper up her back and trying hard not to get too distracted by the view. It wasn't like he hadn't seen her naked before, but there was something about a woman's bare back that was even more tantalizing than if she were fully nude. Whether it was for the sake of any cameras or just for his own enjoyment, he leaned in to brush his lips against the back of her neck, his breath warm and soft against her skin.
Her smile was half for his words and half for the way he was looking at her. Sophie, naturally, would preen under her husband's praise, but Meg was not used to seeing any man's eyes dilate quite that fast just because she was wearing a dress. That those eyes belonged to a man she had more than a passing attraction to simply drove the compliment home. So was it any surprise that, when he kissed her neck, she moaned softly, her skin flushing with gentle color. "You're not supposed to seduce me until after dinner," she pouted playfully, leaning back into him. "You made me promise to behave, I think you should promise, too." The words might have belonged to her alias, but there was no mistaking slightly breathless tone in which they were spoken. This weekend was looking more and more interesting all the time.
"I'm just doing what you asked me to do," he replied, his lips sliding against her neck, doing a lot more than just zipping up her dress. Would it really hurt to be a few minutes late to dinner" After all, they were supposed to be newlyweds. "No promises, Mrs. Wright," he whispered against her neck. "What fun is there in behaving?" Maybe it was a little over the top, but it wasn't entirely a ruse.
Whether he had doubts about how real her reactions were, Meg, at least, knew he had her full attention. It was easy to give in while she was pretending to be Sophie, easy to twist against him and demand kisses that were definitely not suitable for public consumption. All right, so they were supposed to be schmoozing with the schemers downstairs, but being late never hurt anyone. Did it"
Then again, he didn't want to mess her hair or smudge her lipstick or make her undress when he'd just zipped her up, but there were other ways to indulge or to appear as if they'd been indulging in each other's company. She was wearing a dress, after all, and no pantyhose, which allowed him easy access. By the time they arrived downstairs, he was hoping to have mussed her hair just a little and brought a little flush to her cheeks. It wouldn't take much effort on his part, and it might help her relax.
If there were any bugs in the room, the men listening in were going to have trouble walking comfortably for a little while. There are few things in the world more difficult to ignore than a couple truly enjoying one another, even if it is only for a few minutes, and by the time he was done, Meg was definitely mussed. There was no way in hell their host was going to miss the fact that Jake Wright just didn't seem to be able to keep his hands off his new wife, that much was for certain. Breathless, she leaned against him, half-giggling as he let her come back down. "What a first impression to make, hmm?"
"I do have a reputation to uphold," he replied with a grin. He'd never had any complaints, and he figured neither had Jake. He smoothed his hands down her hips to straighten her dress and touched an almost tender kiss to her lips. "We probably shouldn't keep our host waiting any longer."
"And here was I, thinking you'd left that reputation behind when you married me," she pointed out, answering his kiss in kind. It took more effort than Meg was willing to admit to step away, but they had a job to do here. Seizing his hand, she pulled him toward the door. "Now come on. I'm starving."
Hopefully, that little display would not only relax her, but would satisfy anyone watching that they were who they said they were. "You can return the favor later," he told her, offering a cheeky wink, once again, only half serious. He let her lead him from the room, admiring the view of her in that red dress. He only hoped she didn't prove to be too much of a distraction as they did have a job to do.
Meg studied her appearance in the bathroom mirror, fighting down the butterflies proliferating in her stomach. "Is he always this extravagant?" she called through the door to where AJ was probably waiting impatiently for her to make her entrance.
"What's the point in having money if you can't live a little?" he countered, as he examined his own reflection in the bedroom mirror and adjusted the tie that just didn't want to stay straight. He was formally dressed for dinner in a black designer suit that probably cost more than his monthly salary, clean-shaven, with his hair carefully combed and parted on the side.
"There's living a little and there's showing off," she countered, giving herself a last once over before opening the bathroom door and stepping out. "Will I disgrace you, do you think?"
MI6's wardrobe department had done her proud. The dress was a mouth-watering red, clinging in all the right places, plunging in others, split to the thigh on one side. Sophie was definitely a more sultry creature than her creator could possibly have described, and not at all shy in the slightest. She twirled for his amusement, flicking her dark hair from her eyes.
He was still busy fixing his tie when she stepped out of the bathroom, and he glanced over, expecting to see her looking nice, but doing a double take when he saw just how nice. "Holy shit!" he exclaimed, his eyes practically popping out of his head at the sight of her. "You look gorgeous." Not only looked gorgeous, but was gorgeous. There were no two ways about it. She was easily going to turn heads as the most beautiful woman on the island. "Just remember, you're married to me," he teased, half seriously.
She laughed, moving over to finish his tie for him. "Like I could possibly forget," she answered affectionately. Even though they were pretty sure there were no bugs or cameras in the room, it was better to be safe than sorry. "You did say you wanted to show me off a little. Something about proving to your friend that money can buy a lot, but looks and money get better quality goods?"
"Something like that," he replied, wondering if she was just playing the part now or if there was some underlying message there that took a littler reading between the lines. "I'm not sure I want to share the view," he admitted, more AJ than Jake. Then again, Jake had brought her here to show her off, and they weren't going to get the job done if they hid in the room all weekend, no matter how much fun might be had there.
Smoothing her hands over his lapels, she met his gaze. "The view is for anyone," she pointed out. "But only one man gets to really enjoy it." She laughed, gently bopping the end of his nose with a fingertip before turning away. "Zip me, please?"
"I'd rather not, but we'll never get dinner if I don't, and not even this man can live on sex alone," he told her, easing the zipper up her back and trying hard not to get too distracted by the view. It wasn't like he hadn't seen her naked before, but there was something about a woman's bare back that was even more tantalizing than if she were fully nude. Whether it was for the sake of any cameras or just for his own enjoyment, he leaned in to brush his lips against the back of her neck, his breath warm and soft against her skin.
Her smile was half for his words and half for the way he was looking at her. Sophie, naturally, would preen under her husband's praise, but Meg was not used to seeing any man's eyes dilate quite that fast just because she was wearing a dress. That those eyes belonged to a man she had more than a passing attraction to simply drove the compliment home. So was it any surprise that, when he kissed her neck, she moaned softly, her skin flushing with gentle color. "You're not supposed to seduce me until after dinner," she pouted playfully, leaning back into him. "You made me promise to behave, I think you should promise, too." The words might have belonged to her alias, but there was no mistaking slightly breathless tone in which they were spoken. This weekend was looking more and more interesting all the time.
"I'm just doing what you asked me to do," he replied, his lips sliding against her neck, doing a lot more than just zipping up her dress. Would it really hurt to be a few minutes late to dinner" After all, they were supposed to be newlyweds. "No promises, Mrs. Wright," he whispered against her neck. "What fun is there in behaving?" Maybe it was a little over the top, but it wasn't entirely a ruse.
Whether he had doubts about how real her reactions were, Meg, at least, knew he had her full attention. It was easy to give in while she was pretending to be Sophie, easy to twist against him and demand kisses that were definitely not suitable for public consumption. All right, so they were supposed to be schmoozing with the schemers downstairs, but being late never hurt anyone. Did it"
Then again, he didn't want to mess her hair or smudge her lipstick or make her undress when he'd just zipped her up, but there were other ways to indulge or to appear as if they'd been indulging in each other's company. She was wearing a dress, after all, and no pantyhose, which allowed him easy access. By the time they arrived downstairs, he was hoping to have mussed her hair just a little and brought a little flush to her cheeks. It wouldn't take much effort on his part, and it might help her relax.
If there were any bugs in the room, the men listening in were going to have trouble walking comfortably for a little while. There are few things in the world more difficult to ignore than a couple truly enjoying one another, even if it is only for a few minutes, and by the time he was done, Meg was definitely mussed. There was no way in hell their host was going to miss the fact that Jake Wright just didn't seem to be able to keep his hands off his new wife, that much was for certain. Breathless, she leaned against him, half-giggling as he let her come back down. "What a first impression to make, hmm?"
"I do have a reputation to uphold," he replied with a grin. He'd never had any complaints, and he figured neither had Jake. He smoothed his hands down her hips to straighten her dress and touched an almost tender kiss to her lips. "We probably shouldn't keep our host waiting any longer."
"And here was I, thinking you'd left that reputation behind when you married me," she pointed out, answering his kiss in kind. It took more effort than Meg was willing to admit to step away, but they had a job to do here. Seizing his hand, she pulled him toward the door. "Now come on. I'm starving."
Hopefully, that little display would not only relax her, but would satisfy anyone watching that they were who they said they were. "You can return the favor later," he told her, offering a cheeky wink, once again, only half serious. He let her lead him from the room, admiring the view of her in that red dress. He only hoped she didn't prove to be too much of a distraction as they did have a job to do.