Page 38 of The Spaniard's Surprise Love-Child

The air hissed through her clenched teeth as she planted her hands on her hips and looked across at him. ‘Did you even try and defend yourself?’

He flashed a grin and immediately winced, lifting a hand to his split lip. ‘Have you never heard of turning the other cheek?’

‘I’m surprised you have.’

Not resisting Roman’s fury had not been a plan, just a reaction to Rio’s belief that he deserved everything he got, but in the end it was what had stopped the escalation of the fight. If he had fought back Rio was sure his twin would have kept going to the death and Rio, with his newly acquired knowledge of what being a father meant to him, understood totally.

He watched Gwen stalk over to the fridge, pull out a tray of ice cubes and dump them into a clean towel. He loved the way she moved; there was an inherent grace to it that was all the more seductive for being totally unfeigned.

‘It might help the bruising,’ she said, thrusting the home-made ice pack at him. ‘And maybe an aspirin.’

‘I’d prefer a brandy.’ He looked at her mouth, thinking that, actually, a kiss might work even better!

‘It’s not even midday.’

Her outrage struck him as hilarious under the circumstances, but laughing hurt. ‘Fine, then a cup of tea would be nice. Shall we?’ He nodded towards the doorway.

She walked ahead of him back into the kitchen where Ellie was no longer playing. Instead, she was curled up fast asleep in the garden of her playhouse, her thumb in her mouth.

Rio watched with tender eyes as Gwen scooped her up. At least his daughter had a clear conscience. He rubbed a hand down his jaw on the uninjured side of his face.

‘I’ll put her down in the nursery,’ Gwen said.

CHAPTER TEN

RIONODDEDANDwatched her go, feeling the now familiar emotion tightening in his chest as he did so. The lightening of the heavy weight behind his breastbone had been only temporary. Once she had left the room it was back again.

He moved restlessly round the room. She was going to come back in a minute and then she’d be asking him questions again, and he’d end up telling her everything.

He felt he had to. The conviction that he shouldn’t keep this from her any longer was deep but inexplicable. After all, it wasn’t as though they were a couple, was it? They were just... His hands clenched as his handsome bruised features locked tight in a grimace of self-loathing and contempt.

Dios mio, they were not ‘just’ anything. That was the whole point, and if he’d needed evidence of it there was last night. He had gone past calling it mutual need, a chemical reaction. It was definitelymorethan that,but he didn’t want more.

He wanted simple and clean cut.

Shaking his head and immediately regretting it, he headed for the living room. Tea might be nice in theory but he definitely needed something stronger and maybe two aspirin as well.

Ellie didn’t wake as Gwen put her into her bed fully dressed; she was going to be hungry when she woke. Gwen kissed the air above her daughter’s soft flushed cheek and pressed a button and the blackout blinds slid into place. Then she felt around to find the switch to turn on the night lights.

Her route back from the bedroom wing of the house to the kitchen took her past the open-plan living room that took up half the square footage of the entire building. She was determined to find out the truth about his fight with his brother if she had to physically drag it out of him.

She wouldn’t accept a lie just because it made his life easier.

She had her argument in place if he was difficult, which was virtually inevitable, she reflected grimly. If he argued that it wasn’t any of her business he might be right—it wasn’t. But Ellie was, and she had a right to know about anything that could impact on her daughter. She intended to tell him that she wouldn’t allow their daughter to stay in an environment where violence was likely to flare up.

There had never been any violence in her home. Her father had many faults but that had not been one of them. Instead, her childhood had been the story of a relationship based on lies, and lies destroyed trust and self-respect, which was equally destructive.

She immediately felt guilty for likening Rio to her father even in a small way. Her father had always been a weak man and Rio was strong, but she knew environment mattered and it wasn’t about toys or beautiful clothes, it was about feeling safe. Children soon learnt to recognise the lies and half-truths inside a house.

She and Rio might not be in a relationship as such—although quite frankly she didn’t knowwhatthey were doing—but any decisions she made going forward had to be based on truth, not lies, and if he refused to talk to her then it was a deal-breaker for her.

She was determinedly stomping along the wide hallway back to the kitchen when a distinctive discordant sound of crashing piano keys from the living room brought her to an abrupt halt.

She retraced her steps to the set of open double doors, her first thought that Rio’s twin had returned.In which case, you’re going to do what, Gwen? Tackle him single-handed because his stupid brother wouldn’t defend himself?

Her shoulders sagged in relief when she saw that Rio was alone.

‘What are you doing?’ she snapped as her agitated heart rate began to slow.

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