Scandalous Sins. Tara Pammi

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СКАЧАТЬ the close-fitting sweater showcased the superb musculature of his upper body. His hair was still damp from a shower and it looked like his fingers had been its most recent combing tool, for she could see the finger-spaced grooves between the dark brown strands.

      ‘What would you like for breakfast?’ he said, turning from the fridge. ‘I’m afraid I can’t match your mother’s famous breakfast spreads but I can do cereal, toast and fruit and yoghurt.’

      ‘Sounds lovely.’ Violet perched on the stool opposite him. ‘Can I ask a favour?’

      His gaze met hers. ‘Look, we had this discussion last night and the answer is—’

      ‘It’s not about...that.’ Violet captured her lip between her teeth. Did he have to rub it in? So he didn’t want to sleep with her. Fine. She wasn’t going to drag him kicking and screaming to the nearest bedroom. ‘It’s about my clothes. I need to get new ones. I can’t bear wearing any of mine from the flat, not even the ones I brought with me, and I don’t want to wear my cocktail dress because I’ll look like I’ve been out all night.’

      A frown pulled at his forehead. ‘You want me to go...shopping for you?’

      Did he have to make it sound like she’d asked him to dance naked in Trafalgar Square? ‘I’ll give you my credit card. I just need some basics and then I can do the rest myself once you bring those couple of things back.’

      He blew out a breath and reached for a pen and a slip of paper, pushing it across the bench. ‘Write me a list.’

      * * *

      Cam had never shopped for women’s clothing before. Who knew there was so much to choose from? But choosing a pair of jeans and a warm sweater wasn’t too much of a problem. The problem was he kept looking at the lingerie section and imagining Violet in the sexy little lacy numbers. He had to walk out before he was tempted to buy her the black lace teddy with the hot pink feathers. Or the red corset one with black silk lacing. Once he’d completed his mission, he was making his way back to his house when he walked past a jewellery store. He’d walked past that store hundreds, if not thousands, of times and never looked in the window, let alone gone in. But for some reason he found himself pushing the door open, going inside and standing next to the ring counter.

      It’s just a prop.

      Violet’s office party was tonight and what sort of cheap fiancé would he look if he hadn’t bought her a decent ring? No need to mortgage the house on a diamond but that one at the back there looked perfect for Violet’s hand. He didn’t have too much trouble guessing her ring size; he had thought of her hands—holding them, feeling them on his skin—enough times to know the exact dimensions. Actually, he knew pretty much the exact dimensions of her whole body. They were imprinted on his brain and kept him awake at night.

      Cam paid for the ring, placed it in his pocket and walked out of the store. Just as he was about to turn the corner for home, he got a call from Fraser. He couldn’t avoid the conversation any longer, but something about lying to his best mate didn’t sit too comfortably. ‘Hey, sorry I haven’t returned your calls,’ he said. ‘Things have been happening so fast I—’

      Fraser gave a light laugh. ‘You don’t have to apologise to me, buddy. I saw the way you were looking at Vivi at Easter. Is that why you skived off to Greece? So you wouldn’t be tempted to act on it?’

      Maybe it had been, now that he thought about it. Cam often had to travel abroad at short notice in order to meet with a client, but the chance to go to Greece for a few months had been exactly the escape hatch he’d needed. He’d felt the need to clear his head, to get some perspective, to have a little talk to himself about stepping over boundaries that couldn’t be undone. But the whole time he’d been away, Violet had been on his mind. ‘Yeah, well, now that you mention it.’

      ‘Great news, man,’ Fraser said. ‘Couldn’t be more delighted. Zoe reckons this is going to be the best Christmas ever. Did you hear about Grandad? Talk about a turnaround. He’s so excited for your wedding.’

      The wedding that wasn’t going to happen... Cam sidestepped the thought like someone avoiding a puddle. ‘Yeah, your mum told me. It’s great he’s feeling better.’

      ‘So when’s the big day? Am I going to be best man? No pressure or anything.’

      Cam affected a light laugh. ‘I’ve got to get my father’s fifth wedding out of the way first. We’ll set a date after that.’

      ‘What’s your new stepmother like?’

      ‘Don’t ask.’

      ‘Like that, huh?’

      ‘Yep,’ Cam said. ‘Like that.’

      * * *

      Violet looked around Cam’s house while he was out. It was a stunningly beautiful home with gorgeous touches everywhere but on closer inspection it didn’t have a personal touch, nothing to hint at the private life of its only occupant. There were no family photos or childhood memorabilia. Unlike her family home in Scotland, where her mother had framed and documented and scrapbooked each of her children’s milestones, Cam’s house was bare of anything to do with his childhood. There were no photos of him with his parents. None of him as a child. It was as if he didn’t want to be reminded of that part of his life.

      Violet turned from looking at one of the paintings on the wall in the study when Cam came in carrying shopping bags. ‘You’ve been ages,’ she said. ‘Was it frightfully busy? The shops can be a nightmare at this time of year. I shouldn’t have asked you. I’m sorry but I—’

      ‘It was fine.’ He handed her the bags. ‘You’d better check I’ve got the right size.’

      Violet took the bags and set them on the cedar desk. She took out the tissue-wrapped sweater and held it against her body. It was the most gorgeous baby-blue cashmere and felt soft as a cloud. The other wrapped parcel was a pair of jeans. But there was another tiny parcel at the bottom of the second shopping bag. Her heart gave a stumble when she picked it up and saw the high-end jewellery store label on the ribbon that was tied in a neat bow on top. ‘What’s this?’

      ‘An engagement ring.’

      Violet’s eyes rounded. Her heart pounded. Her hopes sounded. Did this mean...? Was he...? ‘You bought a ring? For me?’

      His expression was as blank as his house was of his past. ‘It’s just for show. I figured everyone would be asking to see it at your office party tonight.’

      Violet carefully unpeeled the ribbon, her heart feeling like a hummingbird was trapped in one of its chambers. She opened the velvet box to find a beautiful diamond in a classic setting in a white gold ring. It was more than beautiful—it was perfect. How had he known she wasn’t the big flashy diamond sort? She took it out of the box and pushed it onto her ring finger. It winked up at her as if in conspiracy. I might be just a prop but don’t I look fabulous on your hand? She looked up at Cam’s unreadable expression. ‘It’s gorgeous. But I’ll give it back after Christmas, okay?’

      ‘No.’ There was a note of implacability to his tone. ‘I want you to keep it. Think of it as a gift for your help with the Nicolaides contract.’

      Violet held up her hand, looking at the light dancing off the diamond. She didn’t like to think it might be the only engagement ring she ever got. She lowered her СКАЧАТЬ