‘Do you know how many cookbooks get published in a year? Even the novelty value of me being an ex-model will only get me so far... Being dumped by a heartless billionaire?’ She had produced a mock sad face before delivering an equally brilliant smile and adding, ‘It will raise my profile.’
‘And sell books.’
‘Obviously. But I was thinking more of a TV show. That’s where the real money is.’
That was what he’d liked about Caro: she’d never pretended. That and her appetite for sex.
‘So we’re splitting up?’
‘You’re heartbroken. I can tell. Honestly, I don’t want to, but a girl has to make a living.’
He shook his head as the formerly meaningless memories faded. Now he realised that the implication that he’d been engaged had stopped Lily from telling him she was pregnant.
‘I was there, remember?’ Lily bit back. ‘I was the other woman.’
He stared at her and looked thoughtful. ‘And that bothers you?’
Her cheeks grew pink. ‘As a matter of fact, yes, it does.’
‘If you mind so much, it might be a good idea in future to ask a few questions before you jump into bed with someone.’
Indignant, she sat bolt upright in her chair. ‘Talk about double standards. I don’t recall you asking me many questions. For all you knew I might have had a boyfriend.’
‘Oh, I’m not trying to occupy the moral high ground,’ he retorted. ‘Though I have to admit, skipping out while my partner is asleep has never been my style.’
Feeling the flush mounting in her cheeks, she lowered her gaze and grabbed her glass.
‘It wouldn’t have mattered anyway. I had to have you.’
The sudden raw, throaty admission brought her eyes up. She had barely registered the dark feral gleam in his eyes before it was gone. Then he picked up the threads of their previous conversation as though nothing had happened.
‘So do you want me to be with you when you tell your mother or not?’
‘Tell my mother?’ Had she imagined it? The heat between her thighs was not imaginary.
‘Well, we’re not telling mine.’
‘Why not?’
‘Signe has been known to forget she has a son. I seriously doubt she’ll be interested in a grandchild.’
It took her a moment to place the name. He called his mother by her Christian name. ‘No, seriously—’
‘Yes, seriously. She is not the most family-orientated woman in the world. Sadly I inherited that much from her, so this is going to be a learning curve for me.’
The admission surprised her.
‘You sound like... Do you dislike her, your mother?’ He did not seem offended by the question. It seemed to her he was actually thinking about it.
‘Not dislike, no. We are not close and I actually admire her achievements. She has carved out a niche in the world of international law—small world, smaller niche, but she is the undisputed authority.’
‘She’s your mother.’ Lily was shocked by the objective analysis. ‘You sound as though you’re talking about a stranger.’
‘We don’t all get given the perfect family, like you had.’
‘My family wasn’t perfect. My dad...’ She stopped, mortified to feel her eyes fill with tears.
‘Sorry. I remember your father.’ From somewhere he retrieved a memory; it was pleasant. ‘One Christmas when we were staying at Warren Court, before I moved in, he taught me to fish.’
‘Did he? I didn’t know that.’
‘He was really one of the good guys.’
‘You sound like my mum. She always talks about the past as though it was perfect, glowing and golden, never a cross word. Truth is they used to fight all the time. I hated it—it made me feel...not safe.’
She stopped before she poured out anything further. Why on earth had she said those things to him of all people? It was not even something she had discussed with her twin.
‘I suppose it is a matter of interpretation. For me it was the silences, the apathy when people can’t be bothered to fight. That’s when a relationship is dead. Conflict can be healthy.’
She gave a snort of disbelief.
‘For what it’s worth your parents always seemed passionately in love to me. They sparked off one another.’ Before she could respond, he reached across and speared a slice of avocado from her plate with his fork, studying her face. ‘But then it’s not a subject I’m an expert on.’