The Secret Spanish Love-Child - By Cathy Williams Page 0,38

‘I thought for a minute that you might have scuttled off to some far-flung corner of the house but then I spotted the cases on the floor and figured you had come here.’

Alex brushed past him and shut the door quietly behind her. The temptation to feast her eyes on that magnificent body was making her feel a little weak but she was heart-stoppingly aware of him as he fell into step alongside her and even more heart-stoppingly aware of their bedroom door closing behind them.

The room was big. In fact, vast by any standard. But not so vast that she could possibly direct her eyes to a safe spot. She reluctantly turned around and looked at him and her skin tingled and her pulses raced and she had to fight down the inappropriate desire to swoon. She wished he would just put something on but there was no way that she was going to repeat that simple request for fear of him jumping to the conclusion that she was affected by the sight of him. Which he would, in a heartbeat. Gabriel was anything but dim when it came to reading female responses.

Then another thought struck her. Did he even possess pyjamas? He never had when she had known him. Of course she had loved nothing more than that, back in those heady times, but, in their current situation, she could think of nothing worse for her peace of mind.

‘You’re staring,’ Gabriel drawled. ‘Should I feel flattered?’

Alex bristled. His behaviour had been exemplary over the past few days. She had demanded a businesslike approach to their situation and he had obliged. But this was his home turf and she suddenly felt very vulnerable.

‘I hope you brought something…decent…with you…’

‘Something decent?’ Gabriel’s brows knitted together in a perplexed frown. ‘What does that mean?’

‘Pyjamas. Long johns. Something of that nature.’

‘Why would I have done that? It’s not as though I was actually expecting my parents to put us in the same room.’

‘Which they wouldn’t have done if you had had the common sense to explain the situation to them.’

‘Old ground, Alex. We’ve been put in the same bedroom. Get over it.’

‘Fine!’ She folded her arms and glared at him belligerently. The naked torso was really getting under her skin. As was the way he was deliberately making no effort to conceal it. ‘But, just so that you understand the ground rules, I didn’t have to come here and sharing a room with you wasn’t my choice! I have no option but…but…’

‘But I’m to keep my wandering hands to myself. Is that it?’ Gabriel asked in a cool, amused voice. He strolled very slowly towards her and felt her exerting every ounce of willpower in her body not to cringe back. Cringe back in what?…he wondered. Fear? Repulsion? Did she think that he was going to do something to her against her will? He had had the foundations of his entire world thrown into chaos and yet he had risen to the occasion and done his utmost to make life easy for her. And his thanks? This.

Her silence confirmed her mute agreement with his question.

‘Let’s get one thing straight, Alex. I am not in the habit of making a nuisance of myself as far as women are concerned.’

‘I never said that…’

Gabriel held up one peremptory hand. ‘What gives you the idea that you are so fantastically irresistible that I wouldn’t be able to pass a few hours in the same bed as you without trying to make a pass?’

‘Nothing,’ Alex muttered, turning scarlet. ‘I just thought I should put down some boundaries.’

‘Have I given you any reason to think that I am not a man of honour?’

‘No, but…’

‘You presented me with a son years after the event. I did not question paternity. Nor did I threaten to take you to court to win custody. In fact, I did the opposite. I offered to legitimise our relationship for Luke’s sake. You turned me down because you felt your own needs and desires overrule the well-being of our child. Fine. You want a detached, amicable relationship. I have granted your request. Moreover, I have done my very best to protect you from aggressive and unwanted paparazzi by bringing you both over here, where I can offer seclusion of the highest order until our news becomes tomorrow’s fish and chips newspaper. My parents have not censured you. They have not asked questions. They, too, have accepted the fact of Luke’s appearance with grace and dignity and