Page 42 of His Innocent Unwrapped In Iceland

There were pictures of Luke, a tall, handsome young man with coal-black hair and very familiar amber eyes. He looked so much like Orion that Isla’s breath caught. And in a strange twist, she discovered that he was studying fine arts at university, and his social media pages were full of pictures of incredible sculptures he’d carved out of rock, and also of a lovely dark-haired girl who was clearly his girlfriend.

It felt wrong to look at pictures of him, to know more about him than his own father, but Isla couldn’t stop herself. Besides, it wasn’t as if Luke had been difficult to find. Orion could have looked for him at any time, yet he hadn’t.

The next day, Orion unveiled his next present to her—a Christmas tree.

It was a living tree in an enormous pot and it was huge, the top almost brushing the ceiling of the lounge, filling the room with the crisp scent of pine. It had been decorated with tinsel and silver baubles and there was an angel on the top.

Isla loved it.

‘You told me you’d never had a proper Christmas tree,’ Orion said, watching her as she stared up in wonder at the tree. ‘So I thought I’d provide you with your first.’

Her heart felt like he’d filled it up with light and now it was pressing painfully against her ribs. A sweet pain. She hadn’t thought he’d remember what she’d told him, but he had.

There were even a few carefully wrapped presents under the tree.

‘This is amazing,’ she said, reaching out to touch one of the delicate blue glass baubles. ‘I actually did have a tree once. It was in that family that in the end didn’t want me. They put up a little tree and there were decorations on it that their son had made and...and they put up one I had made too.’ Her throat closed at the memory. ‘It was the first time I felt like I was part of a family.’

There was warmth at her back and then Orion’s arms slid around her, pulling her up against the hard heat of his body. ‘I know it’s not the same,’ he murmured. ‘But we can have a tree at least.’

Yet it was almost the same. She felt at peace here with him and if she squinted a little, she could imagine that the decorations on the tree had been made by their own children. And a sudden vision filled her head, of Christmas morning here, with the tree up and the fire going, and children unwrapping presents to the sounds of laughter and shrieks of delight.

Her heart clenched tightly in her chest, a shaft of longing piercing her.

She wanted that for herself.

What if this marriage was real? What if it was for ever?

That shaft of longing ached and ached, but she ignored it. Wanting their sham marriage to be real was ridiculous. And she hadn’t known him long enough to start entertaining thoughts of a family with him, and apart from anything else, he’d basically implied that he wasn’t looking to make a family with anyone. And why would he? When the one he’d had had caused him so much pain?

Which reminded her...

Are you sure this is a good idea?

Isla ignored that thought too. It was an opportunity, that’s all it was, and he liked opportunities. He also didn’t have to take it if he didn’t want it, that was up to him. But he should still have the choice. He should know that therewasa choice.

She stepped out of his arms and turned. ‘I love it, Orion,’ she said honestly. ‘It’s a beautiful gift.’

He smiled, his eyes full of warmth, and her heart caught. He was so gorgeous she sometimes didn’t know what to do with herself. ‘I hoped you’d like it,’ he said. ‘Now I’m feeling very smug.’

She wanted to tease him, tell him smugness wasn’t a new feeling for him, but she was suddenly nervous. Perhaps this wasn’t the right thing to do. But then... She hated the thought of this lion of a man going through the rest of his life with that thorn in his paw. With the constant nagging pain that wouldn’t go away.

It wasn’t fair. It wasn’t right.

She swallowed and reached into her pocket for the piece of paper she’d put there that morning. ‘Now it’s time for my gift to you,’ she said, her heart beating uncomfortably fast in her chest.

Orion frowned slightly. ‘You look nervous,’ he observed. ‘Is it dangerous? An explosive of some kind?’

He was teasing her, which somehow made it worse. Perhaps this would ruin everything. He’d been upset before when she’d tried to push him in the pool about Luke, but... She had to do this. It was an opportunity, that’s all.

Isla pulled the piece of paper out of her pocket and held it out. ‘No. None of the above.’

Still frowning, Orion took the piece of paper and unfolded it, looking down at what she’d written. His frown deepened. ‘What’s this?’

Isla shoved her hands into the pockets of her jeans. ‘It’s an email address.’

‘Whose email address?’

She took a breath and met his gaze. ‘It’s Luke’s. Your son’s.’

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