The Christmas Marriage Rescue (Lakeside Mountain Rescue 4)

‘They’re for you.’

‘Me?’ He was giving her flowers? Alessandro never gave her flowers. It just wasn’t something he thought to do. So why was he thinking of it now?

Her heart plummeted and she wondered again just what sort of help he’d been giving the seductive Katya. ‘Feeling guilty about something, Alessandro?’ Her frosty tone brought a wary look to his eyes.

He muttered something under his breath in Spanish and she glared at him.

‘You never bring me flowers.’

‘An omission which I’m trying to rectify,’ he announced in a tone that reflected no small degree of exasperation and bemusement. ‘You wanted me to be more romantic, gatita.’

She clutched at the towel, her hair trailing over her shoulders like flames. ‘You think it’s romantic to see my husband flirting under my nose?’

His eyes narrowed. ‘When was I flirting?’

‘You really need to ask?’ She flung her head back and her eyes sparked. ‘She’s all over you like a rash.’

‘Who is?’

‘Katya.’ Christy hated her waspish tone and Alessandro lifted an eyebrow.

‘Are you accusing me of having an affair with Katya?’ His slow, masculine drawl was laced with amusement and she glared at the flowers and then at him, furious that he dared to laugh at her!

‘Why is that funny?’

‘She works for me, it is my job to train her,’ Alessandro said smoothly, and Christy clenched her fists.

‘And you have to be in close physical contact to achieve that objective?’ She knew she was behaving childishly but she just couldn’t help it.

‘You are being ridiculous.’

‘Am I?’ Christy tilted her head in challenge. ‘Last night you punched Jake.’

‘That was entirely different,’ Alessandro growled, the amusement in his eyes vanishing in a flash. ‘He was kissing you.’

‘And Katya was rubbing herself against you like a cat.’ She broke off and Alessandro sucked in a breath, his gaze suddenly thoughtful.

‘And you minded about that,’ he said softly, ‘so that’s good, is it not?’

‘Why would that possibly be good?’

‘Jealousy shows that feeling exists.’

Did it? Did he still have feelings for her? Or were his feelings all linked with his traditional, Mediterranean man’s view of family?

‘You didn’t think it was such a good thing last night when you split Jake’s lip,’ she pointed out, and Alessandro gave a wry smile.

‘Good point. OK.’ He gave a shrug of his broad shoulders that reflected his Latin heritage. ‘So we both admit we are hot-tempered and foolish and then you put my flowers in water and we go out to dinner.’ His sudden unexpected smile was so sexy and charismatic that she felt her stomach flip.

It had always been the same, she reflected weakly. One moment he was all seething, masculine volatility and the next all indolent, simmering sexuality.

‘Are you trying to talk me round?’

‘Perhaps.’ His voice was a lazy drawl as he slipped a firm hand round the back of her neck and trailed his fingers slowly through her hair. ‘Or perhaps we have done enough talking for one evening, querida. What do you think?’

She couldn’t think at all with him looking down at her with that slightly teasing, sexy gleam in his dark eyes.

‘I—We—’ She didn’t finish her sentence because he brought his mouth down on hers with passionate force, drugging her with the intensity of his kiss. She felt the strength in her knees dissolve and clutched at his broad shoulders for support.