Page 22 of Revelations of A Secret Princess

CHAPTER FIVE

AWEEKLATERJake stood at his office window watching two figures track through a layer of white that was forecast to be the last, late snow of the season. They pulled a small toboggan.

When Caro had asked permission to take Ariane out he’d been sceptical. Since she’d left hospital in St Ancilla his niece hadn’t shown interest in anything except staying inside with her teddy bear and toys.

He guessed her reluctance to go out stemmed from memories of the storm that left her parents dead and her trapped in their car, crushed beneath a massive tree.

Jake’s belly clenched. At least Connie and Peter had died instantly.

He knew nothing about being a father, and not as much as he should about being a hands-on uncle, but he’d get there. He’d give Ariane the love and stability she needed.

Jake’s mouth twisted. He wouldn’t let her face what he and his sister had, a gaping hole where parental love should have been. It had been his determined older sister who’d given him the love, discipline and constancy their feckless mother hadn’t.

He owed Connie everything and he was determined to give her daughter what his sister had given him. Once this deal was through he’d ease back, spending more time with Ariane. Which meant finding a permanent home. In Australia? St Ancilla? Renting a castle in Europe was useful for his current scheme but it was hardly the home his niece needed. Nor were his high-rise apartments in Sydney, New York and London. He’d get somewhere with a garden and plenty of sunshine.

He planted his hand on the glass, watching the pair skirt the castle. Ariane wasn’t smiling but nor did she look nervous, as she had previously when he’d suggested an outing.

Caro had succeeded where he’d failed.

Jake stifled what felt suspiciously like jealousy. It didn’t matterwhohelped Ariane come out of her shell of grief and shock. He should be pleased.

Plus, it reinforced the fact he’d made a wise choice offering Caro the position on probation.

Yet he reserved judgement on Caro Rivage.

Because he was drawn to her?

Jake forced the notion away.

Because of her patent wariness around him?

At first he’d assumed she suffered from interview nerves but it was more than that. He felt she watched each word, each nuance, always on guard. Did she have a problem with men in general or him in particular?

Yet she wasn’t scared of him. She was...cautious. And he couldn’t shake the idea that she wasn’t all she seemed.

Jake frowned. Should he delve deeper? Get a comprehensive investigative report?

Or was he overreacting because she kept her distance despite the way she looked at him sometimes? As if she were fascinated, as inexplicably drawn to him as he was to her. Yet she avoided him when she could. It wasn’t a response he was used to in women.

He huffed out a laugh. Was his ego so big he imagined a mystery because a woman didn’t try to snare him? He should be glad. He didn’t need that complication in his home.

He’d been cooped up inside too long, working on this deal.Thatwas what made him stir crazy, not Caro Rivage. Maybe Ariane wasn’t the only one needing fresh air.

Fifteen minutes later he approached a little valley on the far side of the castle. The air was so sharp he tasted it with every inhalation. Above was the wide blue bowl of sky and before him a cleared slope surrounded by trees.

It felt good to be outside. Especially when he heard childish giggles.

Jake’s chest tightened. How long since he’d heard Ariane happy?

It unlocked memories of the last time he’d visited his sister on St Ancilla. They’d eaten outdoors under a vine-draped pergola. Connie and her husband had been the same as ever, the most content couple he knew, and little Ariane had been in high spirits, laughing at some nonsense game her father had invented with her. It had been idyllic and Jake had been glad to see Connie enjoying such happiness. She deserved it after those tough early years devoting herself to her difficult kid brother.

The sound of a husky voice interrupted his thoughts. It tickled its way through his belly then up his spine, drawing his shoulders tight.

Caro. Even if he didn’t know the voice he recognised his response. The eddy of heat down low and the teasing prickle of awareness across his nape.

How was it a woman so prim and buttoned up had such a seductive voice? Last night he’d woken in a tangle of sweaty sheets, the echo of that throaty voice in his head. It had murmured an explicit invitation that made him feel as if it had been six months, not six weeks since he’d kicked Fiona out of his bed.

Scowling, he strode towards the sound.

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