The Millionaire's Secret Baby. Crystal Green

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СКАЧАТЬ distance between them with a deft backstroke.

      “That was mighty assertive of you,” she said.

      He liked her sense of humor. From the moment she’d told him to fetch her water bottle, he’d been drawn to her spirit. “It runs in the family.”

      “Right. The Rhodes clan. Vicious oil tycoons. Claw-wielding corporate devils.”

      “Not straight out of the gate. Edward the First, Great-great-great Granddad, was quite the gentleman.”

      “Do tell.” She’d backed against a limestone cliff face to hold her up. The wet ends of her hair left dark trails near the snail fossils etched into the surface.

      “You want a history lesson?” he asked, relieved by the possibility of small talk.

      She raised her eyebrow and nodded. He’d bet that she was doing everything possible to cool the tension between them. But he couldn’t forget the feel of her leg clenching him against her, the sight of her breasts.

      Might as well humor her before she went running to daddy about the big bad wolf in the woods, just like she used to.

      “All right then. Edward the First was a third son of a duke, so of course he had no hope over in grand ol’ England. He ended up over here in Texas, right before the War Between the States, and managed to finagle some land. He did a pretty decent job of raising cattle. But when the Great Depression rolled around and William Rhodes had the honor of taking over the family business, they had to entertain ‘dudes’ to keep the ranch solvent. We got rid of the city folk about fifty years ago though. No more need for them.”

      “Aren’t we high and mighty?” She was too damned cute with her brow arched like that.

      “Why’re you offended? I’ll bet you could outclass any dude by being able to distinguish one end of a horse from the other. Or maybe you just have a yen for hay rides and sing-alongs.”

      “My sentimental side does cry out for a good square dance every so often, I have to admit.” She paused. “So your fortune wasn’t made off dudes.”

      He’d sidestroked away from her. “Right. Back in the day, we invested in land north of here, and we struck oil. Millions were made, and that’s when the family started acquiring businesses.”

      “And more businesses. And…”

      They both laughed knowingly, and he shook his head. “If I’d known you were so sociable, I’d have straightaway locked my office up tight and hurried back to Wycliffe to meet you again.”

      “Yeah, sure,” she said. “You’ve got the markings of a workaholic. See, you’re even thinking about your next takeover right now. The Stanhopes, right? It’s in your eyes.”

      “What?”

      “There’s a distance about you.” She glanced away. “But what do I know?”

      She’d seen it. His worst fear, hiding, dodging.

      Maybe he was becoming as ruthless as his father.

      Deston’s hands clenched at the water.

      He wouldn’t ever be like Edward Rhodes the Third: a hard man mired in family tradition. A man who would stop at nothing to get ahead.

      Even his marriage had been nothing more than another merger, and Deston could see how the arrangement ate away at the old guy.

      Lila started paddling toward her rock, glancing over her shoulder, pausing before getting out. Modest?

      Her shyness prodded him, made him way too damned impetuous—just like he’d been with Juliet Templeton.

      “Have dinner with me tonight,” he said. A tight laugh followed. “It’s one way to get me out of the office.”

      Lila merely stared at him, brown eyes saucer-like.

      “Lila?”

      She blinked. After a few seconds, she said, “I’ve got to go.”

      “That’s right. Your family’s leaving. But you could stay behind.”

      With a flutter of speed, she climbed out of the swimming hole. Then, with her back to him, she grabbed a towel and wrapped it around her body.

      Her absence already needled him, twisting in his belly. But why should he care?

      “There’s a gazebo about a half mile from the big house. I’ll have the cooks whip up something for us tonight. At, say, eight?”

      She stopped all movement, then retrieved her book and water bottle. “I—”

      “—will be there,” he finished for her. What the hell? As long as both of them understood that this would be a fling—he couldn’t tolerate anything more—no harm would be done.

      Lila was fumbling into a pair of threadbare Keds, ignoring him.

      “I’m going to wait for you,” he said, intrigued by her coyness.

      She stepped toward the trees, toward the path back to the main residence area. “Don’t wait for me.”

      “I will.”

      She shook her head. “Are you really that arrogant?”

      “That’s how I do business.”

      “I’m not business.” She opened her mouth again, then shut it. With a dismissive gesture, she traipsed into the woods, leaving him alone.

      But that was nothing new.

      Deston looked in her direction for a few seconds more, then submerged his body underwater again, giving himself to the silence.

      Chapter Two

      Even now, safely inside her quarters one hour later, Emmy’s pulse was still thudding in her ears.

      She donned the white baseball cap she usually wore in the kitchen, then blew out an anxious breath. What had she been thinking, leading Deston on like that? There’d been more than one chance to tell him who she was, but she hadn’t taken it. She’d been too caught up in all the fantastic possibilities, all the flattery and dreams come true. What girl wouldn’t love the opportunity to linger—even briefly—under the attentions of the perfect man?

      Not that it mattered anymore. The afternoon had almost burned itself out. She was back to her normal life, and Deston would go back to his after she didn’t show up for dinner tonight. After all, how serious could he be about the entire scenario?

      Even now she couldn’t believe it’d happened.

      Emmy found herself smiling like a fool. She’d captured one beautiful moment in time with him, and now she could preserve it, press it between the pages of all her silly romantic wishes.

      Really, she hadn’t felt so darn giddy since Italy, when she’d first met Paolo while taking a sunset walk along the village streets of Tocchi. СКАЧАТЬ