Miss Prim's Greek Island Fling

He ate a spoonful of cereal before gesturing to them. ‘Do you like the changes I’ve made?’

‘I—’

‘Market research suggests that locating the point of sale over here provides for “a more comfortable retail experience”—’ he made quotation marks in the air with one hand ‘—for the customer.’

She had to physically refrain from reaching across and shaking him. Drawing in a breath, she tried to channel responsible, calm balance. ‘Why does any of this matter?’

‘Because it needs to be perfect.’

Her chest clenched. Her eyes burned. Balance fled. ‘Why?’

He shrugged and ate more cereal. ‘Because that’s what I do. I create designs as near perfect as possible.’

Didn’t he know what these pictures and the constant reminders were doing to her?

He pulled the sheets from their plastic sleeve. ‘What do you think about this shelving arrangement? It’s neither better nor more functional than the ones you’ve already chosen, but apparently this design is all the range in Scandinavia at the moment, so I thought I’d throw it into the mix just to see what you thought?’

She couldn’t help it; she had to look. The sleek lines were lovely, but these didn’t fit in with the overall feel she was trying to achieve at all.

You’re not trying to achieve an overall feel, remember? Pipe dream!

With a growl she slapped the picture facedown.

‘No?’ He raised one eyebrow—perfectly—which set her teeth even further on edge. ‘Fair enough.’

‘Enough already,’ she countered through gritted teeth. ‘Stop plastering these designs all over the house. I’ve had enough. I can see you do good work—excellent work. I’m sorry I misjudged you, but I believe I’ve already apologised. I’ll apologise again if you need me to. But stop with the pictures. Please.’

He abandoned his breakfast to lean back and stare at her. She couldn’t help wondering what he saw—a repressed woman he’d like to muss up?

It was what she wanted to believe. If it were true it’d provide her with a form of protection. But it wasn’t true. She knew that kiss had shaken him as much as it’d shaken her. It was why he’d avoided her for these last few days as assiduously as she had him.

‘I’ll stop with the pictures of the shop if you answer one question for me.’

‘Oh, here we go again.’ She glared. She didn’t raise an eyebrow. She needed more practice before she tried that again. She folded her arms instead. ‘Ask your question.’

He leaned towards her. The perfect shape of his mouth had a sigh rising up through her. ‘Why are you working as an operations manager instead of opening up your dream shop here on this island and living a life that makes you happy?’

She flinched. His words were like an axe to her soul. How did he know? When Rupert, Cora and Justin had no idea? When she’d been so careful that none of them should know?

He held up the printouts and shook them at her. ‘Your face when you described this shop, Audra... You came alive. It was...’

Her heart thumped so hard she could barely breathe.

‘Magnificent,’ he finally decided. ‘And catching.’

She blinked. ‘Catching...how?’

‘Contagious! Your enthusiasm was contagious. I’ve not felt that enthusiastic about anything—’

He broke off with a frown. ‘—for a long time,’ he finished. He stared at each of the three pictures. ‘I want you to have this shop. I want you to have this life. I don’t understand why you’re punishing yourself.’

Her head reared back. ‘I’m not punishing myself.’

‘I’m sorry, Princess, but that’s not what it looks like from where I’m sitting.’

‘I do worthy work!’ She shot to her feet, unable to sit for the agitation roiling through her. ‘The work the Russel Corporation does is important.’ She strode across to the bluff to stare out at the turquoise water spread below.

‘I’m not disputing that.’ His voice came from just behind her. ‘But...so what?’

She spun to face him. ‘How can you say that? Look at the amazing things Rupert, Cora and Justin are doing.’

His jaw dropped. ‘This is about sibling rivalry? Come on, Audra, you’re twenty-seven years old. I know you always wanted to keep up with the others when you were younger, but—’ He scanned her face, rocked back on his heels. ‘It’s not about sibling rivalry.’

‘No,’ she said. It was about sibling loyalty. Family loyalty.

He remained silent, just...waiting.