Page 30 of 2 Books in One Bundle

‘Change of plan.’

‘And with adate,’ said the woman, her brown eyes sparkling as they took in Mia with rampant curiosity. ‘It has to have beenyearssince that last happened. What was her name?’ She appeared to think for a moment and then said, ‘Aha! Valentina. That was it, wasn’t it?’

At her side, Mia felt Zander tense but his smile stayed in place and he continued to radiate nonchalance, which was averyinteresting paradox.

‘I don’t recall,’ he said languidly while Mia thought, not so languidly, Valentina? Who wasshe? ‘Mia, this is my sister, Thalia. Thalia, this is Mia Halliday.’

Thalia held out her hand. ‘It’s a pleasure to meet you.’

Parking the intriguing Valentina for now, Mia shook it and returned his sister’s megawatt smile with an attempt at one of her own. ‘Likewise.’

‘Great dress.’

‘Thank you.’

Zander had certainly approved of it, she recalled, a hot flush rolling through her body from her feet up. Earlier this evening, she’d emerged from her bedroom in the gold fringed knee-length affair that she liked because it was easy to wear and shimmied when she moved, only to be hustled straight back into it. ‘Liquid sunshine’ was how he’d described it, while whipping it off her before tumbling her to the bed, messing up her hair and make-up and making them very late indeed.

‘You look familiar,’ said Thalia with an assessing tilt of her head and a slight frown. ‘Have we met before?’

‘I catered Zander’s birthday party back in October,’ said Mia, batting away the steamy memories of earlier in order to be able to concentrate on the conversation happening now. ‘You may have seen me there.’

‘Ah, yes, that’s right. I remember. Zander was scowling at you.’

‘I was not.’

‘My mistake,’ his sister said, a recognisably wicked glint dancing in her eyes. ‘If I recall correctly, it was the risotto that was the source of your displeasure.’

Oh? ‘The risotto?’ said Mia, her eyes narrowing as she slid her gaze in his direction. ‘What was wrong with it?’

‘Nothing,’ he said, sounding supremely unperturbed but looking as though he’d quite like to throttle his sister.

Thalia was evidently unaware of the danger she was in. ‘He thought the flavours unoriginal,’ she said blithely. ‘Which they were very much not.’

Unoriginal? Seriously? ‘Did you?’

With a tut of exasperation, he leaned in close and bent his head. ‘I wanted you,’ he murmured, the admission for her ears only. ‘You didn’t want me. It was frustrating. But I wasn’t going to tell Thalia that. She’d never have let it go. Your risotto was perfect.’

‘Oh,’ she breathed softly, her pique melting clean away. ‘Well, that’s all right then.’

‘I’ll make it up to you later.’

Why later? she thought giddily. She wanted him to make it up to her now. Because in response to his proximity, his warm breath that caressed her skin, the spicy scent that scrambled her senses, her pulse was drumming in her ears and even though they’d spent all day in bed, the desire that was sweeping through her was as fresh and hot and wild as ever. But, unfortunately, they were in public, so she got a grip and murmured, ‘I’ll hold you to that.’

‘I’ll make sure you do.’

Straightening slowly, almost reluctantly, she sensed, Zander cleared his throat, shoved his hands in his pocket and switched his attention back to his sister. ‘Where’s Santi?’

‘Phone call,’ said Thalia, fanning her face with her hand. ‘He’ll be back in a minute. So are you two an item?’

‘When am I ever an item?’

‘What’s the deal, then? Because I nearly got singed just now—and don’t take this the wrong way, Zan—but Mia isn’t your usual type.’

‘I know she isn’t,’ he said, enviably cool while Mia still burned. ‘She is, however, pregnant, and the baby’s mine.’

CHAPTER ELEVEN

WHYZANDERHADchosen that particular moment to impart their news, he had no idea. All he knew was that the words had bizarrely been piling up on his tongue from the moment they’d walked into the room and had spilled out before he could stop them.

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