eventually, staring straight at Bella and watching the flush in her cheeks deepen. ‘Don’t you?’
Something flickered in the depths of her eyes and she swallowed. And then she pulled her shoulders back, sat up a little straighter and flashed him a bright smile. ‘Not a bit of it,’ she said lightly. ‘I hate the heat.’
‘Really?’ He lifted his eyebrows and shot her a smouldering smile. ‘I’d have thought you’d have loved it.’
Her eyes widened. ‘I can’t imagine where you’d get that idea.’
‘You seem that kind of woman.’
For a moment, everything else ceased to exist. For a moment it was just the two of them, enveloped in a bubble of heat and electricity and vibrating tension. Will arched an eyebrow. Curved his lips into the barest hint of a smile all the time wondering who exactly she was trying to convince.
Bella caught her lip with her teeth, then blinked and looked away. ‘Well, I assure you, I’m not.’
The urge to push it, to carry on needling her until she was forced to acknowledge the chemistry between them was so strong, so insistent that it brought him slamming back to his senses. Hauling himself under control, Will shrugged and frowned and made himself back off. ‘My mistake.’
‘The Arctic’s my kind of thing,’ she said firmly. ‘The colder the better.’
‘I agree,’ said Sam, ‘which is why I’m taking her skiing in a few weeks. The Alps, I was thinking. Log fires and whisky macs. Sheepskin rugs and Bella.’ He smiled. ‘What more could a man want?’
Will’s jaw almost snapped. Skiing? Log fires and whisky macs? Sheepskin rugs? What the hell was going on? ‘What indeed?’ he muttered.
‘Personally I vastly prefer the heat,’ said Rosie, fluttering her eyelashes at Will. ‘I’d love to visit the Cayman Islands,’ she added wistfully, and planted a hand on his thigh.
He tensed, was about to remove it when he saw Bella’s gaze drop to it and a tiny frown pucker her forehead. Ha, he thought, and decided to leave it there.
‘Perhaps Will will take you,’ said Bella, lifting her eyes to his.
Not a chance. ‘Perhaps,’ he murmured and wondered if he might have accidentally stepped into some sort of parallel universe.
‘Have you known each other long?’ asked Rosie.
‘A couple of weeks,’ said Sam with a shrug. ‘Not long, I know, but it’s been pretty intense, hasn’t it, honey?’
At first the implication of Sam’s words didn’t register. Bella’s knee had bumped against his and a jolt of electricity was shooting straight to his groin, making his body tighten with need and his pulse race.
And then the words filtered through the hazy fog in his head and Will felt as if he’d been punched in the stomach. Desire vanished. Heat turned to ice.
Two weeks? His gut churned and a strange kind of numbness began to seep through him. Two weeks?
So she had lied.
For a few long moments a taut kind of silence descended over the table. Will stared at her, watching her expression fill with distress and her eyes cloud, and steeled himself against the unwelcome effect he suspected her reaction could have on him if he let it.
Of course she was distressed, he thought grimly. She’d been caught out.
And then, with a demonstration of self-control he might have admired had he not been so furious, Bella pulled her shoulders back, smoothly rose to her feet and cast them all a cool smile.
‘Please do excuse me,’ she said, and ran for the bathroom.
CHAPTER EIGHT
O H G OD , oh God, oh God.
Bella rested her burning forehead against the mirror but it did nothing to cool the heat and the turmoil churning through her body.
Gripping the edge of the vanity unit to stop herself from shaking quite so uncontrollably, she drew back and stared at her reflection. Her face was as white as the napkin she’d just thrown down, and her eyes looked huge and troubled.
Not that that was any surprise. Tonight was turning out to be the most horrendous night she’d
Something flickered in the depths of her eyes and she swallowed. And then she pulled her shoulders back, sat up a little straighter and flashed him a bright smile. ‘Not a bit of it,’ she said lightly. ‘I hate the heat.’
‘Really?’ He lifted his eyebrows and shot her a smouldering smile. ‘I’d have thought you’d have loved it.’
Her eyes widened. ‘I can’t imagine where you’d get that idea.’
‘You seem that kind of woman.’
For a moment, everything else ceased to exist. For a moment it was just the two of them, enveloped in a bubble of heat and electricity and vibrating tension. Will arched an eyebrow. Curved his lips into the barest hint of a smile all the time wondering who exactly she was trying to convince.
Bella caught her lip with her teeth, then blinked and looked away. ‘Well, I assure you, I’m not.’
The urge to push it, to carry on needling her until she was forced to acknowledge the chemistry between them was so strong, so insistent that it brought him slamming back to his senses. Hauling himself under control, Will shrugged and frowned and made himself back off. ‘My mistake.’
‘The Arctic’s my kind of thing,’ she said firmly. ‘The colder the better.’
‘I agree,’ said Sam, ‘which is why I’m taking her skiing in a few weeks. The Alps, I was thinking. Log fires and whisky macs. Sheepskin rugs and Bella.’ He smiled. ‘What more could a man want?’
Will’s jaw almost snapped. Skiing? Log fires and whisky macs? Sheepskin rugs? What the hell was going on? ‘What indeed?’ he muttered.
‘Personally I vastly prefer the heat,’ said Rosie, fluttering her eyelashes at Will. ‘I’d love to visit the Cayman Islands,’ she added wistfully, and planted a hand on his thigh.
He tensed, was about to remove it when he saw Bella’s gaze drop to it and a tiny frown pucker her forehead. Ha, he thought, and decided to leave it there.
‘Perhaps Will will take you,’ said Bella, lifting her eyes to his.
Not a chance. ‘Perhaps,’ he murmured and wondered if he might have accidentally stepped into some sort of parallel universe.
‘Have you known each other long?’ asked Rosie.
‘A couple of weeks,’ said Sam with a shrug. ‘Not long, I know, but it’s been pretty intense, hasn’t it, honey?’
At first the implication of Sam’s words didn’t register. Bella’s knee had bumped against his and a jolt of electricity was shooting straight to his groin, making his body tighten with need and his pulse race.
And then the words filtered through the hazy fog in his head and Will felt as if he’d been punched in the stomach. Desire vanished. Heat turned to ice.
Two weeks? His gut churned and a strange kind of numbness began to seep through him. Two weeks?
So she had lied.
For a few long moments a taut kind of silence descended over the table. Will stared at her, watching her expression fill with distress and her eyes cloud, and steeled himself against the unwelcome effect he suspected her reaction could have on him if he let it.
Of course she was distressed, he thought grimly. She’d been caught out.
And then, with a demonstration of self-control he might have admired had he not been so furious, Bella pulled her shoulders back, smoothly rose to her feet and cast them all a cool smile.
‘Please do excuse me,’ she said, and ran for the bathroom.
CHAPTER EIGHT
O H G OD , oh God, oh God.
Bella rested her burning forehead against the mirror but it did nothing to cool the heat and the turmoil churning through her body.
Gripping the edge of the vanity unit to stop herself from shaking quite so uncontrollably, she drew back and stared at her reflection. Her face was as white as the napkin she’d just thrown down, and her eyes looked huge and troubled.
Not that that was any surprise. Tonight was turning out to be the most horrendous night she’d
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