A Secret Worth Keeping?: Living the Charade / Her Shameful Secret / Island of Secrets. Robyn Donald

      His eyes met hers. Held. ‘You know why I’m here,’ he said, just as softly. ‘You challenged me to be here.’

      Miller arched an eyebrow. ‘I thought you said you were thirty-three, not thirteen.’

      A crooked grin kicked up the corners of his mouth and he pulled his shirt up over his rippling chest. Lord, did men really look that good unairbrushed?

      Last night’s dream flashed before her eyes and she was relieved when he turned his back on her. Only then she got to view his impressive back, and her eyes automatically followed the line of his spine indented between lean, hard muscle. ‘What exactly are you doing?’

      He dropped his T-shirt on the bed and turned to face her. ‘Changing my shirt for dinner. I don’t want to embarrass you by coming across too casual to meet your friends.’

      Ha! Now that she knew who he was she knew he’d impress everyone downstairs even in a clown suit.

      * * *

      Tino shrugged into his shirt and tiny pinpricks of heat glanced across his back as he felt Miller’s eyes on him. A powerful surge of lust and the desire to press her up against the nearest wall and explore the attraction simmering between them completely astounded him. He’d been trying to keep things light and breezy between them—his usual modus operandi—but his libido was insistently arguing the toss.

      ‘Next time I’d prefer you to use the bathroom,’ she said stiffly. ‘And these people aren’t my friends. They’re business colleagues—although as to that I doubt I’ll know many of the other people in attendance.’

      ‘How many are staying here?’

      ‘I think six others tonight. Tomorrow night at TJ’s fiftieth party I have no idea.’

      ‘I thought this was a business weekend?’

      ‘TJ likes to multi-task.’

      Tino rolled his silk shirt sleeves and noticed her frowning at his forearms. ‘Problem?’

      His question galvanised her into action and she crossed to her small suitcase and started rifling through it.

      ‘I’ll be ten minutes.’

      Five minutes later she reappeared in the doorway and padded over to the wardrobe. She barely looked different from the way she had when she’d gone in. Black tailored pants, a black beaded top, and a thin pink belt bissecting the two. She perched on the armchair and secured a fancy pair of stilettos on her dainty feet. The silence between them was deafening.

      ‘Am I getting the silent treatment?’

      She exhaled slowly and he noticed the way the beads on her top swayed from side to side. ‘I hope you’re not currently in a relationship.’

      ‘Would I be here with you if I was?’

      ‘I don’t know. Would you?’

      Her chin had come up and he was surprised he had to control irritation at her deliberate slur. She didn’t know him, and he supposed, given his reputation—which wasn’t half as extensive as the press made out—it was a valid question.

      ‘Okay, I’m going to humour that question with an answer—because we don’t know each other and I understand you feel compromised by the fact that I’m a known personality. I don’t date more than one woman at a time and I never cheat.’

      ‘Fine. I just...’ Her hand fluttered between them. ‘If we really were going out you’d know I hate surprises.’

      ‘Why is that?’

      She glanced away. ‘I just do.’

      Her answer was clipped and he knew there was a story behind her flat tone.

      ‘I don’t suppose there’s any chance you can just fade into the background and not draw attention to yourself, is there?’

      Tino nearly laughed. So much for coming on to him once she found out who he was. He shook his head at his own arrogance. But, hell, most women he met simpered and preened and asked stupid questions about how many cars he owned and how fast he drove. This gorgeous female was still treating him like a disease. And she was gorgeous. She’d dusted her sexy mouth with a peach-coloured gloss that made him want to lick it right off.

      ‘We need to go downstairs.’ She sounded as if she was about to face a firing squad.

      She grabbed a black wrap from the back of the cream chair and stopped suddenly, nearly colliding with him. He felt a shaft of heat spear south as he touched her elbow to steady her, and knew she felt the same buzz by the way she pulled back and went all wide-eyed with shock, just as she had by the car.

      A shock he himself still felt. He hadn’t anticipated being this physically attracted to her. He reminded himself of his iron-clad rule of not getting involved with a woman this close to the end of the season—particularly this season, which had started going pear-shaped three months ago.

      So why couldn’t he stop imagining how she would taste if he kissed her?

      He stepped back from her, out of the danger zone. ‘You might want to think about not jumping six feet in the air every time I touch you.’ He sounded annoyed because he was.

      ‘And you might want to think about not touching me.’

      Large aquamarine eyes, alight with slivers of the purest gold, stared up at him, and the ability to think flew out of his head. Her eyes reminded him of a rare jewel.

      Then she blinked, breaking the spell.

      Get a grip, Ventura. Since when did you start comparing eyes to jewels?

      ‘You really have the most extraordinary eyes,’ he found himself saying appreciatively. ‘A little glacial right now, but extraordinary nonetheless.’

      ‘I don’t care what you think of my eyes. This isn’t real so I don’t need your empty compliments.’

      How about the back of my hand across your tidy tush? The thought brought a low hum of pleasure winging through his body. He did his best to ignore it. ‘Are you usually this rude or do I just bring out the best in you?’

      Her shoulders slumped and she stepped back to put more space between them. ‘I’m sorry. I’m...uncomfortable. This weekend is important to me. I wish I’d just given you chicken pox and handled everything myself. I let Ruby convince me this would be a good idea.’

      Tino felt contrite at her obvious distress. ‘Everything will be fine. Just think of us as two people going away for a weekend to have some fun. You’ve done that in the past, surely.’

      ‘Of course,’ she said, her reply a little too quick and a little too defensive. ‘It’s just that I would never choose to come away for a weekend with a man like you.’

      He stiffened even though he knew by her tone that she was being honest rather than deliberately insulting, but, hell, he had his limits. ‘What exactly is it about me that you don’t like, Sunshine?’ he queried, as if her answer didn’t matter. Which, in the scheme of things, it didn’t.

      Her lips pursed at the mocking moniker, but he didn’t care.

      ‘We really need to go down.’

      Tino crossed his arms. ‘I’m waiting.’

      ‘Look, I didn’t mean to offend you. But I’m hardly your type either.’

      ‘You’re female, aren’t you?’ He couldn’t help the comment. The desire to get under her skin was riding him.

      ‘That’s all it takes?’

      Her incredulous tone drew a tight smile to his lips. ‘What else is there?’

      She shook her head. ‘See, that’s why you’re not my type. I like someone a little more discerning, a little more...’ She stopped as if she’d realised she was about to insult him.