LITMIR.BIZ

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wished she could distract her heart as easily as she seemed to have distracted Crys. But her heart wasn’t as easily deceived. She knew without a doubt that she was in love with Gideon.

      She flattered herself that she did quite a good job of hiding it as the day progressed. Not that it was too difficult to do, when Gideon seemed just as determined to avoid her company, too.

      In fact, by the time they had all collapsed in the evening, after yet another sumptuous meal, Molly could honestly say that they hadn’t exchanged more than a few words all day—and even those had only been of the polite category, such as ‘Could you pass the salt, please?’

      At least this respite from Gideon’s company gave her a chance to rebuild her defences—defences that had been badly damaged during their closeness the night before. And she felt restored enough that she felt no qualms about joining Gideon and Sam for Merlin’s evening stroll. In fact, after a day spent eating, chatting, and watching the occasional programme on television—a special Christmas Bailey being one of them—she welcomed the opportunity for some fresh air.

      Although, from the scowl on Gideon’s face as she went outside, it seemed he would rather she hadn’t joined them.

      Well, too bad. Sam was her brother, and this was her Christmas, too.

      The three of them walked in the grounds in silence for some time, the moon’s reflection on the light scattering of snow on the ground making it a clear night.

      ‘I’m glad you decided to join us, Molly.’ Sam suddenly spoke heavily ‘Gideon has told me exactly what’s been happening the last few days, and I think you should know—’

      ‘I disagree, Sam,’ Gideon cut in harshly. ‘In fact, I don’t think it’s a good idea for you to talk about this,’ he added determinedly.

      Sam turned to frown at the other man. ‘Why not?’

      ‘Because I don’t.’ Gideon’s expression was harshly forbidding, his face appearing all hard angles in the moonlight.

      Molly’s own face, she knew, was pale; she had felt the colour drain from her cheeks at Sam’s opening comment. How could Gideon have told her brother what had happened between the two of them during the night? How could he?

      ‘I disagree, Gideon,’ Sam told the other man ruefully. ‘I know you think you’re being protective, but Molly is far from being a child—’

      ‘Obviously,’ she snapped, utterly humiliated at the thought of Gideon discussing her in those terms—with her stepbrother, of all people. In fact, if he had been in the least a gentleman he wouldn’t have discussed last night with anyone.

      ‘Molly—’

      ‘Oh, forget it, Sam.’ She interrupted his placating words impatiently. ‘Gideon has spoken,’ she snapped angrily, feeling the heated colour return to her cheeks as she turned to glare at Gideon in the semi-darkness. ‘Too much, by the sound of it,’ she accused furiously.

      ‘Molly—’

      ‘Stay out of this, Sam,’ she told him coldly, her gaze still locked on Gideon. ‘You are without doubt the most arrogant, self-opinionated, horrible man it has ever been my misfortune to meet,’ she bit out accusingly.

      ‘Molly, please let me explain—’ Sam tried.

      ‘Leave it, Sam,’ Gideon rasped. His expression had become even grimmer at Molly’s tirade of accusations, and his face was starkly etched against the moonlight. ‘I’m sure Molly feels she is perfectly entitled to express her opinion of me.’

      ‘Yes, but—’

      ‘Too right I am!’ she snapped, her hands clenched at her sides now. ‘And arrogant doesn’t even begin to cover what you are!’

      He smiled without humour. ‘Self-opinionated and horrible were two other descriptions, I believe,’ he drawled hardly.

      ‘Oh, I could go on,’ she assured him scornfully. ‘But, don’t worry, I’m not about to,’ she added scathingly as she saw how dismayed Sam was looking. ‘I’m going back to the house now,’ she told them both abruptly, before turning on her heel and marching furiously away.

      The tears were falling hotly down her cheeks before she had gone half a dozen steps, and she brushed them away impatiently as she began to run rather than walk.

      How could he?

      How could he?

       CHAPTER TWELVE

      ‘BUT you can’t leave now,’ Crys protested in dismay when Molly joined her in the kitchen before lunch the next day and told her of her intention of doing just that. ‘It’s still only Boxing Day,’ she added incredulously.

      Molly was well aware of what day it was. She was also aware, after yet another night of not sleeping, that she simply couldn’t stay here a moment longer. If only so that she might go back to the flat she was renting in London and get some much-needed sleep.

      Although that was far from the real reason for the decision she had come to during the wakeful night hours…

      She would never forgive Gideon for confiding in Sam in the way that he had. Her humiliation had been complete the evening before, when Sam and Gideon had returned to the house and Gideon had ignored her. She’d sat talking to David. At least, she had been trying to talk to David—inside she’d been too disturbed to be able to think straight—before he’d made his excuses and disappeared upstairs to bed.

      Molly had waited only minutes before doing the same thing, glad of the privacy of her bedroom to lick her wounds in private.

      ‘I know what day it is, Crys,’ Molly assured her friend lightly. ‘But the traffic will be easier today for a long drive, and I still have lots of boxes to unpack.’ She grimaced at the thought of the disorder she had left behind in her new flat in London.

      Crys looked unconvinced by these arguments. ‘But it’s still Christmas.’ She frowned.

      ‘I’ve been here four days already, Crys,’ she reasoned cajolingly. ‘And it isn’t as if you don’t have other guests who will be staying on for several more days.’ Her voice hardened at the thought that Gideon was one of those guests.

      The real reason for her abrupt departure.

      ‘I know that, but—Sam, talk some sense into Molly.’ She turned to plead with her husband as he strolled in from walking Merlin. ‘She says she’s leaving today,’ Crys told him frustratedly.

      Molly could feel the blush in her cheeks as Sam paused in discarding his jacket to look at her with obvious surprise. But surely he more than anyone should realise that she simply couldn’t stay on here another moment longer?

      ‘Really?’ her stepbrother murmured slowly.

      ‘Really,’ Crys echoed impatiently. ‘Talk to her, Sam,’ she encouraged forcefully.

      Molly wasn’t happy at breaking up everyone’s Christmas like this, and was aware of how hard Crys had worked towards it, but at the same time she knew that the increasing tension between herself and Gideon was going to ruin it all anyway if something wasn’t done to stop it. The only option appeared to be to remove one of the protagonists. And, as she doubted Gideon intended going anywhere, that only left her to be the one to make the move…

      ‘Molly?’ Sam prompted quietly.

      ‘Sam, you know why I want to leave,’ she told him exasperatedly.

      ‘No,’ he said slowly. ‘I don’t think I do. Crys, darling—’ he turned to her smilingly ‘—would you mind if I just took Molly into my study with me for a while?’

      ‘If you can persuade her into staying on you can keep her in there all day,’ Crys assured

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