LITMIR.BIZ

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a tight-lipped smile. ‘Two standard drinks is all I’ll serve. Just so you know.’

      He took the glass, only just restraining himself from draining it dry. Mixing one glass of wine with Holly Perez was like drinking five tequilas and expecting to remain sober. It was impossible to remain sober and sensible in her company. He could already feel the tightening of his groin; the stirring of lust her presence triggered was like someone flicking a switch inside him.

      For all that he’d wanted to get rid of her, she had turned things around with her concern for Sophia. But was it concern...or conniving behaviour to serve her own ends? He wanted to know more about her. He wanted to know why she was so determined to make trouble for him. It didn’t add up. If she made too much trouble, she would be sent to jail. Why then sabotage her last chance at making something of her life? She seemed intent on destroying any hope of a positive future. If he sent in a bad report to her caseworker, it would be disastrous for her. She knew that. He knew that. Why then was she so determined to ruin everything for herself? It didn’t make sense. It wasn’t logical.

      If there was one thing in life Julius demanded, it was sense and logic.

      ‘I thought I told you not to wear jeans to dinner,’ he said.

      A flash of defiance—or was it pride?—sparked in her caramel-brown gaze. ‘I don’t have any dresses. I could’ve come in shorts or my underwear. I can go upstairs and change or I could strip off here. You choose. I’m easy.’

      ‘Undoubtedly.’

      She gave him a withering look. ‘Not as easy as your old man, according to the news I heard just now.’ She sat on the edge of the sofa opposite him. ‘He’s quite a cad, isn’t he? Nothing like you, or so you say.’

      Julius forcibly had to relax his hold on the stem of his glass in case he snapped it. ‘I would appreciate it if you would refrain from discussing my father’s affairs with anyone. If you say one word to the press, I’ll send you packing so fast you won’t know what hit you.’

      ‘Are you going to fly home to England to meet your new sister?’

      He tightened his jaw. ‘I’m not planning to.’

      ‘It’s not her fault your old man’s her father,’ Holly said. ‘You shouldn’t judge her for something she had no control over.’

      Julius took another mouthful of wine. She was right and he wanted to hate her for pointing it out to him. But he needed time to get used to the idea of having a half-sibling. He thought he was used to his father’s scandals but this one took the prize. The press had been still banging on about it last time he’d looked. Katherine Winwood might be gorgeous to look at but who knew what her motives were in coming forward? Money, most probably. That she might be entitled to some compensation for how his father had treated her mother was not something he wanted to comment on. He was sick to the stomach over his family’s dramas. What or who would turn up next?

      Julius decided a change of subject was called for. ‘I’ll order some clothes for you. Let me know your size and I’ll make sure you have what you need.’

      Holly’s eyes danced. ‘So you’re going to be like a sugar daddy to me or something?’

      He ground his teeth until his jaw ached. ‘No.’

      She picked up a canapé and bit into it. ‘Pity.’

      ‘It’s rude to speak with your mouth full.’

      ‘I’ll make sure I remember that when we’re in the bedroom,’ she said with a naughty smile.

      Julius kept his gaze locked on hers but he wondered if she could sense the fireball of lust that hit him. He was suddenly so erect he could feel it pressing against his trouser zip. The thought of her hot little mouth on him made his blood pound in excitement.

      He distracted himself by leaning forward to take one of the canapés off the platter. ‘Where did you learn to cook?’

      ‘Picked it up along the way.’

      He sat back and crossed his right ankle over his left thigh in the most casual and relaxed pose he could manage while his erection still throbbed. Painfully. ‘Along the way where?’

      ‘Here and there and everywhere.’

      It seemed he wasn’t the only one keen to avoid discussing family issues, Julius thought. ‘What are your plans once you leave here?’

      She gave a loose little shrug before taking another appetiser. ‘I want to get a job and save up enough money to go to England.’

      ‘To holiday?’

      ‘To live.’ She took a noisy bite and munched away, like a bunny rabbit chewing a crunchy carrot.

      Julius knew she was doing it to annoy him. Her rebellious streak was kind of cute, when he thought about it. It reminded him a bit of Jasmine Connolly, the gardener’s daughter, who liked to have a bit of fun at times—mostly with Jake, who for some reason didn’t see the funny side.

       Cute?

      What was he thinking? Holly wasn’t cute. She was as cunning as a vixen. She was out to prove he was unable to resist her. He was out to prove he could. He had the edge on her. She might be doing all she could to get thrown out of his house but without him as her guardian she would find herself doing time. Why then was she pushing him to evict her? Was it deliberate or a knee-jerk thing? Was her behaviour a pattern she had developed in order to survive? From the scant details she’d given him, her childhood clearly hadn’t been a picnic. Did she push people away before they pushed her?

      And why did he give a damn?

      ‘Do you have relatives in England?’ Julius asked.

      ‘My mum was an orphan. My dad was, too. An English couple adopted him, which is how he met my mum over there. It’s why they hit it off so well. They were two lonely people who found true love.’ Her mouth took a sudden downturn and she looked at the remaining piece of her canapé as if it had personally offended her. ‘Pity they didn’t get the happy ending they deserved.’

      ‘How did your father die?’

      ‘He was killed in an accident at work.’

      ‘What sort of accident?’ Julius pressed a little further.

      ‘A fatal one.’

      He gave her a look. ‘I realise it’s probably painful to talk about but I—’

      ‘It happened a long time ago,’ Holly said, interrupting. ‘Anyway, I only remember what I’ve been told.’

      ‘What were you told?’

      ‘That he died in a work-place accident.’

      She was a stubborn little thing, Julius thought. She would only reveal what she wanted to reveal. ‘Did your mother ever remarry?’

      Holly got up abruptly from the corner of the sofa and dusted her fingers on the front of her jeans. ‘You want to make your way to the dining room? I’ll only be a minute or two. I promised I’d take Sophia’s meal up to her.’

      Julius sat back and sipped his wine, a thoughtful frown pulling at his brow. So it wasn’t his imagination after all. There was definitely something about Holly’s background that made her reluctant to speak of it. Could he get her to trust him enough to reveal it?

      He pulled himself up short. Why on earth was he even trying to understand her?

      He was supposed to be keeping his distance. He wasn’t the type of guy to let his emotions get the better of him. It was fine to care about her welfare— perfectly fine. Any decent person would do that. But if he thought too much about her cute dimples, and pert manner and that far away look she sometimes got in her eyes when she didn’t know he was looking, he would be feeling stuff he had no right to be feeling. It was bad enough being attracted to her physically. God forbid he should start liking her as a person.

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