‘Ithoughtwe were doing a damn good job of getting to know one another.’
‘We are.’
‘Then where are you now heading with this?’
‘Nowhere.’ Celia looked at him, held his gaze, her eyes steady and as unreadable as his were.
‘I’m thinking,’ Leandro murmured, ‘thatnowhereisn’t a direction for the questions you’re asking.’
‘I’m just tired, that’s all.’ She felt panicked at the box she’d opened because she knew that certain boxes, given their situation, were best left shut.
‘There’s only so far you can run with that excuse, Celia. That’s not the first time this evening you’ve told me that you’re tired and it’s beginning to sound like a sticking plaster being put onto something that’s really bugging you.’ He led the way to the sofa and beckoned her across.
He patted next to him and when she sat down he immediately turned to her, his eyes penetrating and intense, searching her face to get inside her head and find out what was going on.
‘So? Are you going to spit it out or are we going to go round the houses playing guessing games?’
‘I suppose we’ve discussed a lot of things,’ Celia muttered, one foot hovering over the edge of a cliff she’d been so determined not to go anywhere near. ‘We’ve talked about the practicalities like where we’re going to live and what the choices are for me after the baby’s born. We’ve discussed whether we would get a nanny if I decide to return to work andwhenreturning to work might be appropriate...’
‘But...? Because I can hear the siren sound of abut.’
‘AndI think that this has been a fantastic few days getting to know one another...’
‘Agreed.’ Leandro smiled with wolfish sexiness that made Celia’s bones feel like mush.
‘But lust and sex don’t last for ever...’
Leandro frowned. ‘We have yet to put that to the test.’
‘Maybe we should try and work out what we might do if and when that time comes.’
‘Why?’
‘What do you meanwhy?’
‘Why pre-empt a situation that’s nowhere on the horizon?’
‘Because...’
‘There are no guarantees in life, Celia.’ His eyes were serious and he was leaning into her, which had the effect of jumbling her thoughts until she wasn’t sure quite what she’d been trying to say in the first place. Her hands itched to touch him and to smooth over the crease that had suddenly appeared between them, like a ripple disturbing the flat, smooth surface of a lake.
‘I get that.’
‘We do our best and if problems arise at a later date, then that’s the time to try and sort them out.’
‘Yes, well...’
‘You want to turn this into a list of pros and cons and I don’t think that’s a good idea. We both know what we have to do, what the right thing to do is...don’t we?’ He inclined his head to one side and gave her a few seconds to respond, which she did by nodding. Not vigorously but sufficiently for him to nod firmly in return, in agreement with her. ‘We’ve talked at length about this,’ he said quietly. ‘In the end, there’s nothing in life that’s one hundred per cent guaranteed. Nothing. The rate of divorce says it all, wouldn’t you agree? People walk down the aisle with big dreams and big hopes but two thirds of those starry-eyed couples will see the inside of a divorce court sooner or later. What we have will be sturdier, trust me.’
Celia was the first to look away.
‘You’re right.’ But she had to try and inject conviction into her voice and remind herself of all the reasons why what they had was better than the alternative. She might be greedy for more, but greed was no reason to start unpicking what had been knitted together. When she smiled, there was more warmth and she stood up and told him that she was going to have a bath.
‘I have so many baths and showers here.’ She did her best to get things back on track.
‘It’s the heat.’ Leandro followed suit and stood up, towering over her, his dark eyes still concerned and still ever so slightly watchful. ‘Relax. I’ll hunt down some juice for you from the cafe downstairs. It’s open twenty-four-seven and I could do with stretching my legs.’
Celia kept smiling even though there was a wariness in his voice that dismayed her. Instead of relaxing in the bath, she opted for a quick shower and then, on the spur of the moment and instead of climbing into bed, she changed into a pair of loose dark culottes and a grey silk top and headed down to the cafe.