A Heavenly Christmas. Carole Mortimer

determinedly out of her apartment. She got into the lift, pressing the button for the next floor and stepping out to stride forcefully down the corridor and put her finger on Ethan Sherbourne’s doorbell. And kept it on. Two could play at this game!

      Ethan opened the door and barely had time to raise surprised brows before Olivia pushed him firmly to one side and strode into his apartment.

      She looked anxiously around the sitting room, finally turning a blazing grey gaze on Ethan Sherbourne as he stood just inside the room, curiously returning her gaze. ‘What have you done to her?’ Olivia demanded coldly. ‘And don’t tell me nothing,’ she added impatiently, before he had time to answer, ‘because I could hear her crying all the way downstairs!’

      ‘I doubt that very much,’ Ethan drawled as he walked further into the room. ‘The only reason I bought this apartment was because I was assured by the agent that the building is completely soundproof.’

      Olivia snorted softly to herself. No doubt he had been thinking of his harem at the time!

      ‘I don’t care what you were assured,’ she returned. ‘I definitely heard her crying.’

      ‘I presume by “her” that you mean Andrea?’ He derisively turned the tables on her after her earlier comment to him. ‘And exactly what do you think I’ve done to her?’ He folded his arms across his chest as he faced Olivia, his expression deceptively calm as he looked at her with mild curiosity.

      Grey eyes flashed warningly as Olivia glared back at him. ‘How should I know?’ she replied shortly. ‘Judging from previous evidence of your ability to know the needs of a young baby, you’ve probably tried to feed her steak or something equally unsuitable!’ She looked around the room for a second time. ‘Where is she?’

      ‘Changed. Fed. Played with. Fast asleep.’ He continued to look at Olivia, now with amusement.

      ‘But I heard her,’ Olivia said restlessly. ‘I definitely heard her crying.’ Although she equally definitely couldn’t hear the baby crying now…

      Ethan slowly shook his head. ‘I don’t think so.’

      ‘Then where is she?’ Olivia was low on patience at the best of times—at the moment it was non-existent!

      He sighed, dropping his arms down to his sides. ‘If you promise to be quiet, I’ll show you.’ He raised dark, questioning brows.

      Her cheeks flushed fiery-red. ‘Of course I’ll be quiet,’ she clipped. ‘What—?’

      ‘If you’ll excuse my saying so, you haven’t shown much sign of it in the last few minutes,’ Ethan observed.

      Olivia had been about to question him sharply again, but at these words her lips clamped together. Although she couldn’t resist another glare in Ethan’s direction.

      ‘Better.’ Ethan gave a mocking inclination of his head. ‘Follow me through to my bedroom.’

      Under other circumstances Olivia would have told him exactly what he could do with such an invitation. But in her concern for Andrea she resisted any such response, instead following Ethan into the bedroom situated directly above her own, lit by a low-voltage lamp on the bedside table.

      What looked suspiciously like a drawer lay in the middle of the sumptuous king-size bed, and nestled securely inside that drawer, covered with a many-times-folded satin sheet, lay baby Andrea, looking absolutely adorable as she slept contentedly.

      Also looking as if she had been like that for some time…

      ‘Satisfied?’ Ethan asked softly at Olivia’s side.

      She swallowed hard, nodding wordlessly. Whoever she had heard crying a few minutes ago, it obviously hadn’t been Andrea.

      In the circumstances, Olivia felt very reluctant to mention those two knocks on her apartment door which had accompanied the sound of crying…

      ‘That was—the idea of a drawer for a bed—it was very inventive,’ she told Ethan awkwardly once they had returned to the sitting-room.

      Ethan eyed her wryly, ‘Didn’t you think I could be inventive?’