The Billionaire's Defiant Wife

Aimi was warmed by his caring, but he didn’t need to worry. ‘Don’t worry. Let’s go down to breakfast and afterwards you must show me the library.’ Working had always been a good way to distract her thoughts.

They followed in Jonas’s wake, entering the breakfast room together, to find it empty. Maisie Astin, the housekeeper, was just bringing in fresh coffee and hot croissants to set out on the sideboard.

‘Good morning!’ she greeted them brightly with a cheery smile. ‘Everyone has been eating outside today. Help yourselves, and let me know if you need anything else.’

‘Thanks, Maisie. What would you like, Aimi?’ Nick asked as he picked up a plate.

‘Some of Maisie’s melt-in-the-mouth croissants and coffee sounds perfect,’ she decided, exchanging smiles with the other woman, who disappeared back into the kitchen.

‘I’ll bring it out. You go find a shady spot,’ Nick ordered, leaving Aimi with nothing to do but wander outdoors.

Of course, then she wished she hadn’t because the only person at the table was Jonas. Had he not looked up, she just might have retreated indoors again, but, as if some invisible sensor had alerted him to her presence, his head came round and he looked directly at her.

‘Deciding whether it’s safe to join me or not?’ he challenged sardonically, and Aimi was compelled to walk forward.

‘Not at all,’ she denied blithely, smiling as if nothing had passed between them mere hours before. ‘I was just enjoying the view.’

His lips twitched. ‘Ditto,’ he responded, and the lazy meander his eyes took as they ran up and down her body told her his view had nothing to do with the garden. It caused her heart to skip a beat and her nerves to start tingling as if he had actually touched her.

Irritated by a reaction she currently seemed to have no control over, she favoured him with a long-suffering look. ‘You’re wasting your time, you know,’ she told him bluntly, keeping her voice down, not wanting Nick to hear. ‘I’m not going to take the bait, however attractive the lure.’

One eyebrow rose mockingly. ‘How many times did you have to tell yourself that last night?’ he taunted, and she drew in a sharp breath.

‘Once was enough. You’re not that irresistible,’ she shot back equally mockingly, and Jonas laughed appreciatively.

‘You know, you’re supposed to cross your fingers when you lie like that,’ he cautioned, never taking his eyes off her for a second as she approached. She was so conscious of it that breathing normally was no easy matter, and she wasn’t used to that.

Having reached the table, Aimi dropped on to a chair opposite him. ‘Contrary to what you might think, I’m not in the habit of telling lies,’ she corrected, feigning an ease she was far from feeling. Just being near him made her feel tense and unsettled.

Jonas raised that eyebrow again, to good effect. ‘Really? Now I would have said most women are natural born liars.’

‘That’s a huge sweeping statement. Your jaundiced view was caused by a bad experience, I presume,’ Aimi declared with heavy irony.

‘It’s a jungle out there,’ he returned with a wicked grin, and Aimi knew that she would never forget that particular look as long as she lived.

‘And men aren’t liars?’ she challenged scornfully, knowing she could name a dozen at least. ‘It would be easier to think the moon is made of cheese!’

Jonas relaxed back into his chair, crossing his legs at the ankles. ‘Now that sounds like the voice of experience talking. Is he the reason you dress the way you do?’

He was so far wide of the mark that Aimi almost laughed. ‘I dress to please myself, not a man,’ she was quick to point out.

He looked at her thoughtfully. ‘Is that so? Are you trying to tell me nobody ever gets to see the exotic lingerie you wear? That would be a crying shame!’

Memories of those moments in the kitchen last night made her wince inwardly. ‘My clothes are none of your business. I would not have gone downstairs had I known you were there.’

‘Then I would have had to spend the night down by the pool, and never have got to see you in that mind-blowing confection of silk and lace. It’s imprinted on my memory even now.’ Jonas shifted, bringing one leg up to prop his ankle over the other knee. ‘Seems to me, I know something about you that no other man does. Under that starchy exterior you like to wear satin and silk. What other secrets do you have, I wonder?’

‘None that you will ever know!’ Aimi shot back curtly but, instead of responding, Jonas merely smiled as he watched her.

‘What happened to your hair last night? You weren’t wearing it up in the kitchen,’ he observed, and her nerves gave a giant leap.

‘I don’t sleep with my hair pinned up,’ she explained calmly, only to see his smile broaden.

‘You know what I think, Aimi Carteret?’

‘Your thoughts couldn’t interest me less!’ she retorted witheringly, making him laugh.

‘I think you practice to deceive.’

That was too close to the truth for comfort. ‘Like I said, your thoughts are of no interest to me. You are of no interest to me!’

‘Whilst you are of considerable interest to me,’ Jonas countered smoothly. ‘I find myself thinking about you all the time.’

‘How boring for you!’ Aimi said, and he laughed—a sensual sound that sent goose-bumps down her spine.

‘Oh, I have the feeling that you will never bore me, darling Aimi.’

The unexpected endearment sent a shockwave through her system, and her breathing went awry. ‘I am not your darling.’

‘Not yet, I agree,’ he conceded, but his assertion didn’t make her feel any better.

Goaded, her temper rose. ‘Never!’

He looked her directly in the eyes before speaking. ‘Ah, you should never say never. I discovered that myself last night. I would have bet good money that I would never find it hard to sleep in my old bed, but last night proved me wrong. I was terribly restless,’ he explained with a wicked grin, mayhem in his eyes.

‘You can’t possibly blame me for that,’ Aimi argued, as her nerves responded with a now familiar skitter. It was as if her defences had totally vanished, leaving her open to react to everything he said or did. She didn’t understand how they could have abandoned her now, when she needed them most.

‘Can I not?’ Jonas countered, lips twitching with barely concealed humour. ‘You were the one who raised my blood pressure,’ he remarked sardonically, taking another mouthful of coffee from the cup on the table.

Somehow Aimi contrived to maintain her cool expression. ‘My blood pressure didn’t need lowering. I went to bed and slept dreamlessly,’ she added for good measure, mentally crossing her fingers at the lie.

‘Hmm,’ he murmured doubtfully, running his hand over his chin. ‘There’s more to you than meets the eye.’ Aimi merely raised her eyebrows. After a moment Jonas continued, ‘Did you know I was supposed to be in America this weekend? Fortunately, the meeting was called off at the last minute.’

‘Much to everyone’s delight,’ she remarked dryly, and something flashed in the recesses of his eyes.

He laughed. ‘Nicely done, Aimi. Very tactful. It’s no wonder Nick speaks so highly of you.’

‘I do my best,’ she replied smoothly, not bothered that he recognised what she was doing, just grateful she had the skill to draw upon.

‘Ah, here comes the cavalry,’ Jonas declared dryly, and Aimi glanced round to see that Nick had appeared with their breakfast. ‘Not a moment too soon, eh?’

Nick had overheard that remark and, as he placed her cup and plate before Aimi, he glanced at his brother. ‘What’s not too soon?’ he queried, frowning, and Jonas grinned at him.

‘Your arrival with the food. Aimi was getting ready to eat the table.’

‘Sorry I took so long,’ Nick apologised, and she shot Jonas a warning look.

‘You didn’t. Jonas is pulling your leg.’