Defying the Billionaire's Command

A muscle ticked in his jaw. ‘And what kind of man is that?’

‘A rude, condescending player who takes what he wants and damn the consequences.’

Dare’s brows rose. ‘A player?’

‘I looked you up online last night,’ she said, tossing her hair back over her shoulder. ‘And you’ve had more women than I’ve had patients!’

He cocked a slow grin. ‘Considering I don’t know how many patients you’ve had I can’t really comment, but I am flattered you took the time to look me up.’

‘Don’t be,’ she shot back. ‘I was only interested in what kind of man would treat his own grandfather so callously. And now I know. A horrible one!’

It wasn’t quite the put-down she’d been reaching for but Carly was too incensed to care. Straightening her spine she marched away from him, determined never to see him again.

CHAPTER FIVE

‘DID YOU HAVE a nice walk, darling?’ His mother smiled at Dare as he found her alone in a small, feminine sunroom at the back of the house. ‘You know, I really liked Carly. She seems like an intelligent woman and so attractive, don’t you think?’

It wasn’t difficult to hear the hope in his mother’s voice but he hadn’t sought her out so she could wax lyrical about the most frustrating woman he had ever met. ‘Don’t matchmake, Mother, you know I don’t like it.’ And it was something she had tried more than once before. ‘Mark has the car ready to leave when you are.’

‘I was just expressing my opinion, Dare. No need to bite my head off.’ She sniffed as if he had done her a great injury. ‘I can’t help it if Carly seemed entirely down to earth and...unpretentious. Normal, even.’

‘Unlike the women I usually date.’

‘Do you call it dating?’ she asked innocently. ‘I thought you young people called it hooking up when it only lasted a period of hours.’

Dare scowled. ‘If you wanted grandchildren you should have remarried yourself and had more kids.’ He felt like a jerk as soon as he saw her hurt face. He, more than anyone else, knew why she had never risked a relationship again. ‘I’m sorry.’ He ran a frustrated hand through his hair. ‘That was uncalled for. But I don’t want to talk about Carly. I want to know what happened with Benson after we left.’

She sighed. ‘Why don’t you come sit down? This used to be one of my favourite rooms when I was a child.’

By the looks of it, his mother had just finished a cup of tea. God, how he hated tea. ‘Sorry. Again. I’m a little...’ He raked a hand through his hair and glanced around at the cushioned window seats and low side tables. ‘How is it being back here?’

‘Lovely, actually. In some ways it’s almost as if I’m nineteen again. But you’re a little what?’

Her parental radar had evidently picked up on his slight hesitation before but there was no way he was going to tell her that he was a little sexually frustrated. ‘Nothing.’ He smiled encouragingly. ‘So what does Benson want?’

She looked as if she wanted to question him more but then she sighed. ‘To reconnect. To get to know you. He’s a big admirer of yours.’

Dare’s eyes narrowed. ‘Already?’

‘Yes. He looked you up online.’

He was being checked up on a lot, it seemed. Had Carly and his grandfather looked into his past while in bed together? And why was he back to thinking about that when she’d denied sleeping with him?

No, actually, she had denied loving him—she had neatly avoided the whole topic of how deep her involvement with him was and Dare hadn’t even noticed.

He frowned. ‘That’s it? That’s all he said?’

‘Well, now that you mention it he did ask if I would like to stay on for a few days.’

‘What did you say?’

‘I said yes.’

And she had a determined glint in her eye that said she wouldn’t be swayed. Dare sighed. ‘I need to be in the office Monday morning. I can’t—’

‘I’m not asking you to stay with me, darling, I know how busy you are. But once the two of us started really talking we realised that there’s too much to be said in one day.’