Her face was flushed, her eyes over-bright as Sin raised his head to look down at her.
He smiled his satisfaction at her appearance. ‘I always like to thank my hostess in the appropriate manner.’
The dreamy expression instantly left her face, as she pushed against his chest to be released, her mouth tightening as she was made aware of his arousal on her slow journey down to the ground. ‘Consider her thanked,’ she snapped. ‘I’m sure Caroline will be suitably impressed.’
Sin frowned, reluctant to release her completely, his hands still firmly on her waist. ‘Caroline …?’
She nodded. ‘When you go up to the Hall for dinner. You are going, aren’t you?’ she added waspishly, angry with herself for feeling even a moment of weakness towards this man.
‘Tomorrow. But—’
‘Have a good time.’ She ran her hands down her thighs once she was free of him, ashamed of their slight dampness. ‘The Colonel has a very good cook, and I’m sure the company will be very agreeable.’ She was so angry—at herself and him—that her voice still shook with it.
‘I’m sure I will.’ His frown had turned to a dark scowl. ‘Robyn—’
‘I must go in,’ she interrupted firmly. ‘The light from the hallway is attracting the moths and things.’ The latter was true, but they both knew that wasn’t her real reason for going back into the cottage. ‘Thank you for the tulips. Caroline’s favourite flowers are carnations, by the way,’ she added brittly. ‘Pink ones.’
‘Caroline is a child—’
‘You thought I was one too until a few hours ago,’ she reminded him forcefully. ‘And yet that didn’t stop you flirting with me this morning.’
Sin’s mouth tightened as a dull red colour slowly ebbed into his cheeks. ‘That was only a little harmless fun—’
‘Not to a sixteen-year-old it wouldn’t have been!’
‘Robyn, you’re seeing this out of proportion—’
‘I’m not “seeing” it at all, that’s the problem,’ she glared at him. ‘I left behind the casual encounters you’re obviously accustomed to when I moved here from London!’
‘For God’s sake,’ he snapped his exasperation. ‘I kissed you goodnight, not raped you!’
‘I’ve been a divorcee for two years,’ she scorned derisively. ‘And you know how a woman alone is apt to see more into these things than she should!’
‘I don’t believe that any more than you do,’ he sighed. ‘Although I’m sorry such a fleeting kiss has caused so much hassle.’
‘For you or for me?’
‘Both!’
‘Try your charm on Caroline, Mr Thornton,’ she scoffed. ‘She makes no secret of her attraction to older, more sophisticated men.’
‘Thanks!’
‘I believe in honesty,’ Robyn bit out.
‘So do I—in moderation,’ he added with rueful humour, the gleam back in his startling blue eyes. ‘I’m not going to push my luck any further tonight where you’re concerned, I’m quitting while I’m ahead.’
Robyn was surprised that he thought he was, she had the distinct impression she had very firmly put him in his place. He didn’t seem to agree with her. And as she lay in bed later that night it was that kiss that bothered her, tormented her until she couldn’t sleep, not worry over Brad’s unexpected deepening of interest in their children.
* * *
She was running late. It had been inevitable after she had switched off the ringing of the alarm at six-thirty, turning over with a groan to fall back into a deep sleep until Kim and Andy came bouncing into her room shortly after seven. After that it had been one mad dash to try and catch up with herself, seeing to the twins’ needs, putting on the washing, feeding the cat—and all before she could even start to think of dressing herself and getting ready to go to work. Thank God it was Friday, at least tomorrow she could have a legitimate lay-in until seven-thirty, maybe eight o’clock if she were lucky!
As a consequence she wasn’t pleased when the knock sounded firmly on the cottage door at a quarter to nine, knowing she needed all the time before nine o’clock to get herself ready. Surely the milkman didn’t want paying today; he usually waited until Saturday morning, when he could be sure of finding her at home.
It wasn’t the milkman who stood on the doorstep, and she pulled her robe more securely about her, conscious of the worn brown velour garment as Sin Thorton’s eyes widened at her appearance, making no effort to hide his interest in the creamy skin exposed by the vee-neckline of the cotton nightgown she wore beneath the robe.
‘I thought you were the milkman,’ she felt flustered into saying something.
’Really?’
The ludicrousness of the situation struck her at the same moment Sin drawled the suggestive query, and suddenly she was giggling like the schoolgirl she had denied being.
‘Come in,’ she invited once she was a little more controlled. ‘Before the neighbours get the wrong impression,’ she added teasingly, her rancour of last night forgotten for the moment in their shared humour.
‘This one already has,’ Sin grinned as he preceded her into the kitchen.
‘Tough!’ she drawled. ‘Now what can I do for you? As you can see, I’m not dressed yet,’ and felt decidedly undressed next to the casual but obviously expensively cut navy blue shirt and grey trousers he wore. ‘And I have to be at work in—’ she glanced at the big kitchen clock on the wall, ‘—twenty minutes,’ she told him with a grimace.
‘You’re cutting it a bit fine, aren’t you?’ He raised blond brows, seeming to dominate her small kitchen.
‘Tell me something I don’t know,’ she glared at him.
‘Your robe is undone.’
She gasped, looking down to find her robe securely in place, the belt neatly tied at her slender waist. She looked up at Sin with accusing eyes, finding he really did live up to his name at that moment, his eyes gleaming with wicked satisfaction.
‘Got your interest, though, didn’t I,’ he mocked unrepentantly.
‘You’ve got that anyway—for two minutes. Then I throw you out,’ she warned.
’Should be interesting.’
‘You think I can’t do it?’ her voice was deceptively soft as she issued the challenge.
‘Please,’ Sin held up his hands defensively. ‘I came here to make my peace, not have another argument.’
She raised auburn brows. ‘Have we argued?’
‘Not going to make this easy for me, are you?’ he realised self-derisively.
‘What?’ Robyn feigned innocence.
He gave a rueful smile. ‘I give up! I just wanted to say I’m sorry about last night, in retrospect I realise I came on a bit strong for our first evening together. You’re right about the company I keep in London; I forgot where I was for a while—and that you had obviously opted out of that casually intimate way of life.’
Robyn flushed at the latter, until that moment having been preoccupied with the term ‘first evening together’, almost as if he expected there to be a lot more of them. Well she had news for him, once Caroline got her claws into him none of his evenings would be free!
‘I haven’t opted out of that way of life,’ she told him stiffly. ‘Because I never joined it. Brad was the first man I ever dated seriously—’
‘And since then?’
She met his gaze unflinchingly. ‘Since then is no one’s business but my own.’
‘And the man involved, I would presume,’ Sin mocked.
‘Yes,’ she agreed flatly, not correcting his assumption that there was a man. He had come on too strong last night, and she didn’t want a repeat of it now or at any other time. He had made his obligatory pass, she intended making sure there was no mistake about him needing to make another one.
‘I’d better leave you to get ready for work,’ he nodded, turning to go.
‘Thanks for coming round.’ She walked him to the door, relieved at his acceptance of the situation.
He shrugged. ‘My ple
asure. And, Robyn …?’
‘Yes?’ she looked up at him enquiringly.
Devilment glittered in the dark blue eyes. ‘What did you say were Caroline’s favourite flowers?’
Her mouth curved into an amused smile. This man was impossible! ‘Pink carnations,’ she laughed. ‘As you well know,’ she added sternly.
‘As I well know,’ Sin grinned. ‘I’ll be seeing you,’ came his parting shot before he strode across the grass to the cottage next door.
Not too soon, she hoped. She had enough on her mind at the moment without having to worry about crossing verbal swords with the irrepressible Sinclair Thornton every two minutes.
But it seemed it was already impossible for him not to have altered the even tenor of her life, as she found out later that morning when Caroline came into her office.
‘How did yesterday evening go?’ Caroline came straight to the point, her tone condescending, obviously expecting to hear that it had been a disaster from start to finish.
Robyn looked up fatalistically, having been expecting Caroline for the last hour, although she could have wished the other woman had chosen some other time to come and harass her; she needed her attention on the job in hand when she was doing the wages for the estate workers. ‘Very well, thank you,’ she answered noncommittally.
Caroline’s mouth tightened. ‘I’m sure Sin was bored out of his mind,’ she scorned.
She stiffened, although the other woman’s attitude really came as no surprise to her; Caroline must have been furious when Sin had refused her dinner invitation yesterday in favour of her own! ‘He didn’t seem to be,’ she shrugged.
Caroline gave her a pitying glance. ‘I’m sure he was too polite to show it.’
‘You’ll have to ask him, won’t you,’ Robyn sighed, having no patience for this sort of confrontation today. ‘When you see him tonight,’ she added pointedly.
‘I don’t envisage discussing you at all tonight, or those brats of yours,’ the other woman dismissed haughtily. ‘It’s enough that you were impolite enough to put one of my father’s guests in such an awkward position in the first place.’
Robyn flushed at the barb. ‘I’ve already explained about that—’
‘I know,’ Caroline snapped. ‘But Daddy would appreciate it if you didn’t interfere in that way again.’
She felt sure it was really the younger woman who wanted no interference where Sinclair Thornton was concerned, that having actually met the man she now wanted him as her lover. Not that she could really blame Caroline for that, Sin was very attractive. But she had a feeling Sin would prefer to do his own choosing about the women in his life, that he was a man who liked to do the chasing, not the other way around.
‘Think of it this way, Caroline,’ she drawled. ‘At least now you have a chance to get your hair done before tonight.’
The perfectly bowed mouth tightened perceptively. ‘As it happens I do have an appointment this afternoon,’ Caroline confirmed resentfully. ‘Did the terrible twins behave themselves last night?’ she added with relish.
‘They aren’t terrible,’ she bit out hardly. ‘And of course they behaved themselves.’
‘Don’t sound so indignant,’ the younger woman derided. ‘I wouldn’t be surprised by anything those two did.’
‘Then you won’t be surprised to know that they were perfectly well behaved!’
Caroline smiled her satisfaction at having once again managed to get under Robyn’s skin. ‘Parental love speaking, darling,’ she dismissed.
‘I don’t think so—’
‘Of course you don’t,’ the younger woman laughed scornfully. ‘You’re the parent. Which reminds me, your husband—’
‘Ex-husband,’ she corrected tautly.
‘Ex-husband,’ Caroline repeated mockingly. ‘He telephoned Daddy this morning and invited himself down next Friday for the night.’
‘Yes.’
‘You don’t seem surprised?’
‘I’m not,’ Robyn confirmed.
‘I don’t know why he can’t stay with you down at the cottage—’
‘Because we only have the two bedrooms!’
‘So?’
‘So it would be a little crowded with the three of them in the twins’ room,’ she bit out between clenched teeth.
‘Really, Robyn, how old fashioned you are. Don’t you know that everyone is sleeping with their ex nowadays?’ Caroline said in a bored voice.
’I’m not everyone,’ she returned curtly.
‘No, you aren’t, are you,’ she managed to make it sound like an insult. ‘What is this anyway, Brad’s usual quarterly visit?’ she scoffed.
Robyn’s fingers tightened about the pen she held clasped in her hand. ‘You’ll have to ask him that.’
‘Oh, I intend to,’ Caroline smiled without humour. ‘There’s nothing I enjoy more than an intimate conversation with my cousin.’
It was a well known fact that Brad and Caroline argued every occasion that they met, and no doubt Caroline would enjoy baiting Brad as to the reason for this visit. Robyn only hoped she was told the reason before the younger, bitchier woman, as she hated to feel at a disadvantage where Caroline was concerned.
‘Was that all, Caroline?’ she sighed. ‘I have to finish off the wages.’
The younger woman’s mouth tightened with irritation. ‘I only came to tell you Daddy wants you in his study as soon as you have a moment.’
And to question her about the evening with Sin! Caroline had the subtlety of a battering ram. ‘I’ll go through in a moment,’ she nodded. ‘Nothing wrong, is there?’ she frowned, wondering if it had anything to do with Brad’s proposed visit.
‘You’ll have to ask Daddy that, won’t you,’ Caroline dismissed with relish, obviously enjoying Robyn’s worried expression.
One of these days—! She seemed to be saying that a lot lately where Caroline was concerned, and she had a feeling that day wasn’t going to be long coming. And when it did come she may just find herself out of a home and job. Damn the woman, why didn’t she move up to London permanently instead of just the occasional weekend! Life had certainly been a lot more peaceful before Caroline came home for good.
Peace. Was that really all she wanted from life? She had thought that she did—Of course she did! She was just a little unsettled at the moment, worried about Brad, angered by these constant verbal battles with Caroline. Envious of the younger woman’s carefree life? No! But was she? She hadn’t thought so, had no idea why the question had come into her mind, loved the twins more than life itself. But didn’t she occasionally wish she didn’t have the responsibility of providing a home and living for them all, didn’t she resent the fact that Caroline had everything given to her on a silver platter, that life hadn’t dealt her any of the knocks Robyn had had to deal with the last few years? Of course she felt that, she wouldn’t be human if she didn’t! But she felt sure she wouldn’t like, or find Caroline’s bitchiness any more tolerable, if she were still living her own pampered existence with her father and mother. The two would certainly have no more in common than they did now.
And right now she had to go and see the Colonel, knowing that ‘when she had a moment’ meant as soon as she could in the Colonel’s language. She knocked softly on the adjoining door, entering after a polite lapse. Sin Thornton stood alone in the room, turning from his contemplation of the extensive gardens.
‘Hi,’ he greeted lightly.
‘Hello,’ her own greeting was much more guarded, looking around pointedly for the Colonel.
’He had to step out of his study for a moment,’ Sin explained. ‘A problem in the Gift Shop, I think.’
‘Oh.’ She felt awkward just standing there, but she had been disconcerted by Sin’s presence here when she had expected to see the Colonel. ‘Maybe I’d better come back later,’ she suggested.
‘No,’ Sin’s hand on her arm was firm. ‘He shouldn’t be very long.’
‘But I’m sure he won’t want me to i
ntrude on your meeting—’
‘On the contrary,’ Sin drawled, his hand dropped away to be thrust into the hip pocket of his fitted trousers. ‘We were talking about you, actually.’
‘Me?’ her eyes widened indignantly as she wondered what had been said.
‘Don’t look so outraged,’ Sin mused. ‘What we were actually discussing was the Colonel’s secretary—’
‘But that is me—’
‘—and the fact that she could help me with my research,’ he finished pointedly.
Robyn’s frown deepened. ‘Me?’
‘You’re beginning to sound repetitious,’ he mocked.
She flushed at the taunt. ‘I don’t understand how I can help with your research. Your books are all blood and thunder, aren’t they?’ she said with distaste.
‘I’ve never thought of them in that way,’ he frowned, his humour fading.
‘Then maybe you should!’
‘Maybe,’ he bit out, aware of her censure. ‘But the research I have in mind is of a purely historical nature. Of course, I usually do it all myself—’
‘Then why not this time?’ She was rankled at the way he and the Colonel seemed to have made this decision for her; she already had enough to do as secretary and part-time guide.
He shrugged broad shoulders beneath the navy blue shirt. ‘It’s Henry’s idea—’
Henry! Already he was calling the older man by his first name; she had known Brad’s uncle for six years and she still called him the Colonel!
‘—that while I’m talking to him in the afternoons you could do some of the research for me,’ Sin seemed unaware of her wandering thoughts as he continued speaking. ‘Of course, if you would rather not …’
They both knew she would rather not! ‘It isn’t a question of that,’ she said stiffly. ‘I have other work to do in the afternoons.’
‘Ah yes,’ Sin nodded. ‘Taking around the interested public. Henry thought Caroline could do that for a couple of weeks.’
It would almost be worth it just to see the younger woman’s face! But the thought of working with, and for, Sinclair Thornton certainly detracted from that pleasure. ‘Has he told Caroline yet?’ she mused.
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