The Magnate's Baby Promise / Having The Billionaire's Baby. Sandra Hyatt

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СКАЧАТЬ don’t mind,” Ava said truthfully. The woman’s enthusiasm had been appealing when she’d gifted her with a bunch of current bridal magazines in the car. Cosmopolitan Bride, Vogue Bride, Australian Bridal Directory, The Bride’s Diary…the sheer volume of what Ava had assumed was a narrow topic made her head spin. At first it had taken all her acting skills, pitiful as they were, to smile and thank her for the gift. But Isabelle had sensed her less than enthusiastic response and had clamped a lid on her excitement, instead changing the topic to their day ahead.

      And as the day passed, Ava had managed to banish the heavy reality that had settled like cement in her chest and instead found herself enjoying the outing. The subversive shine of the city had already begun to leach in, the bustle and movement exciting her in a way she’d not felt in ages.

      “We have two formal functions Thursday and Friday night,” Cal said, bringing her back to the present. “I assume those dresses you bought are appropriate?”

      She took exception at his tone. “Cal, I’m not completely clueless. I do know how to dress.”

      “Yes.” His eyes ran over her, warming her more thoroughly than the tea ever could. “I believe you do.” Then he glanced away. “It’ll be your first public appearance as my fiancée, so be prepared. There’ll be cameras, as well as questions.”

      “What kind of questions?”

      “Ones you’ll be expected to know as my fiancée.”

      “Like what?”

      “Well, what would you want to know?”

      That threw her for a second and she scrambled. “Umm…why don’t you have a computer at home?”

      He shook his head. “Don’t need one when I have this.” He pulled the phone from his pocket and handed it to her. “The new V-Fone. It’s a computer, scheduler, GPS and phone in one, all operating with One-Click software. It integrates with my work computer so I’m always contactable. We’ve had a one-hundred-percent customer satisfaction rating since its launch three months ago.”

      She ran her hand over the smooth, cold surface, marvelling at the power in such a tiny device, before handing it back. “What are your working hours like?”

      He made an offhand gesture. “Long and filled with meetings, budget reports, investment strategies.”

      “Do you like what you do?”

      “I get to travel the world and make million-dollar decisions.”

      “But do you like it?” She probed. “I’m assuming one day you’ll be doing Victor’s job. That’s pretty different than developing software.”

      His smile was brief and humourless. “I’ve worked damn hard to earn the right. VP Tech has been my goal since I was seventeen.”

      “I see.” He still hadn’t answered her. And was it her imagination or did she sense hesitation in that smooth reply?

      “I work twelve- to fourteen-hour days, Monday to Saturday,” he added, almost as if trying to justify his non-answer.

      “Not Sunday?”

      “Sundays are for…relaxing.”

      She flushed at the deep timbre of his voice. “What’s your favourite meal?”

      “Lamb roast.” The muscles in his face relaxed. “My turn.” He paused, assessing her, and for a moment Ava’s insides twisted at his complete and utter focus.

      “What is…” he paused, “your favourite childhood movie?”

      Her mouth tilted. “The Sound of Music. Yours?”

      “The Great Escape. What did you want to be when you grew up?”

      “A ballerina—but I wasn’t skinny enough.”

      His eyes grazed her and even beneath the throw rug, she felt her body leap in response. “You look perfectly fine to me.”

      He was flirting with her. But why? He’d made it perfectly clear she wasn’t to be trusted, yet here he was, handing out little snippets of his inner self like party favours. It wasn’t in her to question why the sudden good fortune. She just went with the flow.

      As the hour ticked by into the next, they shared personal likes and dislikes—he liked action movies, she romantic comedies, they both hated cabbage and pumpkin but loved tropical fruit. After retouching on Cal’s career highlights, they landed on the topic of exes.

      “I’ve dated, no one serious,” Cal said, swirling the dregs of coffee around in his mug.

      “Your mother mentioned Melissa…” She paused at his sharp look.

      “What did she say?”

      “Just that you were engaged but called it off.”

      “I see.” He placed his cup on the table and leaned forward, elbows resting on his knees. His face became stony and she wondered what the other woman had done to make him so defensive. “And what about you?”

      Ava shrugged. “A boyfriend in high school, a couple more when I was working in Jillian’s coffee shop. Since I moved back home there’s been no one. Gum Tree Falls isn’t exactly teeming with eligible bachelors, not like…” She snapped off, too late.

      “Like Sydney.”

      When his eyes narrowed, she could’ve kicked herself. That’s a record for you, Ava. Undoing all that good work in two seconds flat.

      Cal did not trust her. The sooner she realized that, the easier this would be. Yet pride couldn’t let her escape without clearing this ridiculous preconception.

      “I came to Sydney for a girlfriend’s birthday,” she said stiffly. “It was my first time in the city. We had dinner at the Shangri-La then went on to their cocktail lounge. I wasn’t looking for a boyfriend or a one-night stand or anything else that night.”

      “But you found me.”

      She rose, her face warm. “You approached me.”

      “True. But you didn’t say no.”

      Cal watched the way her face flushed as she threw off the rug then folded it with swift efficiency.

      “So now it’s a crime to be flattered by a man’s attentions? I just wanted one weekend, one night to forget about the money, the pressure, the responsibility. For one night I wasn’t Will Reilly’s daughter, the disappointment, the screwup. The reason for—” She bit off the rest of that sentence, as if realizing she’d said too much. Her eyes, panicky and wide, met his for one fleeting moment, then away.

      “It’s late,” she finally mumbled, refusing to meet his gaze as she reached for the door. “I’m off to bed.”

      “Ava.”

      His command fell on deaf ears because with one small click, he was suddenly alone.

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