Turning away from the stunning view Cara went inside and took a shower in the massive ensuite bathroom and afterwards pulled on a pair of Navy dress jeans and a short sleeved white gloves she hadn't thought to ask Rosa about the dress code for dinner and she had never died with a billionaire in his home before so smart casual seems to be the safest option.After dying her hair into a loose not at her neighbor she checked the time and decided to make an appearance 10 minutes earlier than Rosa had recommended. If her host was a stickler for punctuality she would rather be early than be even a minute late.The villa was so big she took 2 wrong turns on her way to the formal dining room before she finally located it bossing in the hallway she touched a hand to her hair and took a deep breath and then walked into the room Rosa was there and then Cara smiled at her then shifted her girls to the long dining table and the single place setting at one end.Before she had fully processed the imp
Assuming Cara was travelling somewhere not far behind he didn’t slow his pace nor did he glance over his shoulder until he reached the doorway where he finally paused and looked back. Only to see that she was nowhere in sight.His mouth flattened.Infernal woman.He dumped his briefcase on the desk return to the hallway and cast an impatient look down its vast empty length.Finally just as he was beginning to consider the possibility that she had decided to defy him emerged around the corner at the far end of the hall when spotting him waiting hurried towards him on those long shapely legs.She stopped in front of him panting a little each breath moving her firm high breasts up and down.He gritted his teeth. don't look.“Did you get lost?” Xavier asked dryly.“Of course I got lost.”Her snapped response made him drawback a fraction. I was being sarcastic.she gave him a droll look. “Were you? I would never have guessed.”She jammed her hands on her hips and hacked out of breath blowi
So incendiary.Because even knowing Cara’s pride was at serious risk she couldn't pretend those little detonations of heat that occurred beneath her skin when she was near him weren't disturbingly real.It was all very well trying to ignore her bodies’ response to him but today she had stood in his office and found herself on the receiving end of a very frank and very masculine appraisal the inevitable flash of heat and awareness that had been so overpowering she had feared he would see some evidence of it.Even more disturbing had dreamed the trick her imagination had played on her. Or maybe it had been a trick of light reflecting in those cool grey eyes that had for a brief moment made them look blisteringly hot and molten.To unbalance her completely there had been movements when his hostility and surliness had abated and they kind of dry reluctant amusement had surfaced.It was all terribly confusing.And overwhelming.And no wonder her stomach was jumping with nerves as she made
Luckily the meat was exceptional unlike her floundering conversational skills full but how did one backpedal from loveless marriages and children to polite inconsequential small talk?“Why did you become a nurse?”Xavier’s deep voice carved through the heavy silence and Caraa lifted her eyes startled by the fact that he had spoken as much as by the question itself.“How do you know that I am a nurse?”“Rosa mentioned it.”So he had a conversation about her with his housekeeper? Or maybe Rosa had just mentioned it in her passing. Rosa had told her and Alphonso's only daughter was a nurse married and working in Berlin so Cara had naturally mentioned that she too was a qualified nurse.“It's the only job I ever wanted to do. Right from when I was a small child,” she said smiling because she couldn't not smile when she talked about her chosen profession.Taking care of people wasn't just what she did it was who she was. Who she had been from the day her mother had walked out and her bewil
Cara’s eyes widened although weather in surprise at the apology or the dominating touch of his hand he didn't know.Whatever the cause it didn't erase the look of stubborn pride from her face. “You only want me to stay because you don't trust me.”Xavier dropped his hand from her chin and before the urge to drag the pad of his thumb across her bottom lip to see if it felt as lush and soft as it looked grew too strong to resist.“That's not true.”It wasn't lie.She was an unexpected. From the moment she had turned up at his offices the other night spouting the outrageous claim that she was his stepsister through to today when he had come home and discovered her laughing and dancing with his staff he had felt as if his carefully controlled world was gradually shifting beneath him.And tonight somehow she had turned even the act of sharing a meal into an unpredictable affair. How the hell they had ended up talking about marriage and children and love of all things that singularly destru
The scenery along the stretch of coastline known as Costa Brava was breathtaking. Cara had grown up in a small coastal Township South of Melbourne so she was used to ocean and beaches but the glittering shores of the Mediterranean were in a different class altogether. Each time the sleep convertible powered around another bend and in new stunning vista open up before them she couldn't suppress little gasp of awe.Another one caught in her throat now and Xavier glanced over from the driver seat.“Spectacular, si?”He was spectacular. As riveting as the scenery infected jeans and a loose fitting white shirt with an open collar and rolled out sleeves stubble shaded lit his jaw and she liked this edgier look on him. He wore dark sunglasses and his thick black hair was roughly deliciously thanks to the cars open top.Every time she looked at him her breath went a little choppy but it was the moments when he smiled and his mouth loose end and those deep attractive grooves appeared in his le
“Look who is lecturing now,” she said lightly attempting to cover her silly over reaction to a couple of abrupt marks. “It's kind of nice though,” she added settling back against the seat and casting him a sideways glance. “You being all protective. When I was little I used to dream of having a Big Brother who would look out for me..”He's jaws tightened. “Cara.” He warned in a low gravelly rasp that should have deterred her but instead sent a hot quiver through her belly.Catching her tongue between her teeth she bit down literally on the reckless impulse to see how far she could push him in this mood. Chances where his ground was worse than his bite. But she was not brave enough to find out.An hour later Xavier leaned against the side of his car ankles crossed arms folded over his chest full his mind stuck on a single word like a turntable needle stuck on scratched vinyl. He clenched his jaw.If what Cara provoked in him was protectiveness it sure as hell wasn't of the brotherly va
Two hours later, Cara sat in the shade of a pergola in Miriam and Benito Gozalez’s quaint cottage garden, looking through the pile of photos that Miriam had brought to the table with a tray of coffee and sweet treats to finish their meal.The men had finished their coffee and disappeared 15 minutes earlier. Benito had asked if he could look in the Aston Martin having noticed the car through the shop window when they had first driven into the village full Xavier had gotten one better and offered to take him for a short spin.Cara’s insides had melted the tiny bit. She had always and almost wanted to hug him. For his kindness to the older man. For letting her do this. For keeping the scowl off his face and remembering to smile every now and then.“You all look so young,” she said looking and studying the old wedding photo. “And you and Matilda both look so beautiful, Miriam.”Sitting beside her table Miriam smile. “Tilda was beautiful and clever. She altered my mother's wedding dress fo