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‘Not your parents’?’
‘No. They weren’t really around much.’
He looked at her curiously and Cara turned away. She never spoke about her parents—or lack of them.
‘Bula. Welcome to the Coconut Beach Front Resort.’
‘Thank you.’ Cara turned to smile at another Fijian man who greeted them. This one was the size of a sumo wrestler but his open smile was instantly engaging.
‘Dinesh!’ Aidan greeted him like an old friend, giving the man one of those high manly handshakes she had seen her brothers do together when they hadn’t seen one another for a while.
‘Good to see you again, boss. It’s been too long.’
Boss? Was that some sort of friendly island greeting, or was Aidan literally the man’s boss?
‘Dinesh, this is Cara Chatsfield. She is my guest while we’re here.’
‘A pleasure to meet you, Ms Chatsfield. I hope you enjoy your stay.’ He turned to point a little way up the beach. ‘If you would please come this way I’ll drive you to your bungalow.’
He led them to a small buggy and within minutes they had pulled up outside a quaint wooden beach hut with a thatched roof. Cara was completely charmed as she made her way up the couple of steps to a wide veranda.
Another native Fijian, a woman dressed in traditional island sarong-style skirt and white blouse, handed them a tall glass of fruit juice and Cara sighed blissfully at the flavour, feeling a renewed sense of energy as the sugar hit her system.
Inside, quaintness gave way to decadent luxury with whitewashed walls, deep-seated sofas and dark wooden floors covered in traditional hemp rugs. Exotic flowers had been placed around the large living area and Cara stepped into the small tub of fresh water to rinse the clinging sand from her feet before venturing inside.
‘Oh, this is really lovely.’
She turned and then stepped back to let Dinesh pass with their luggage.
Unexpectedly large hands spanned her waist and she let out a nervous sound as she realised she’d stepped straight back into Aidan. For a heartbeat her bottom nestled against his hard thighs and Cara forgot to breathe as heat rushed through her body.
She took a quick step forward and his hands dropped to his sides. ‘I’m sorry,’ she said, her voice slightly hoarse.
‘My fault,’ he intoned, not looking at her as he moved farther into the room. It seemed to Cara that the previous night hung between them as if no time had passed at all and she didn’t know whether to move forward or backwards. Both physically and metaphorically, she thought without real amusement.
Deciding to explore while Aidan spoke with Dinesh, Cara discovered an ornate gold-and-marble bathroom straight out of a Turkish bathhouse, two single bedrooms and a larger bedroom with a huge four-poster bed fit for a queen.
A low hum of pleasure lingered on her lips and, grinning widely, she made an elaborate circle with her arms when she heard Dinesh behind her with the bags.
‘Dinesh, this is—’
Cara’s eyes widened and she dropped her arms awkwardly to her sides. Instead of Dinesh it was Aidan and he was scowling at her.
‘Your bags.’
‘Oh, thanks.’ Not wanting him to think that she had automatically expected to take the master bedroom and doing her best not to imagine what it would be like to actually share the room with him, Cara cleared her throat. ‘You can have this room. I didn’t expect—’
‘That’s fine.’ He cut her off. ‘I don’t sleep much anyway.’
Needing to get away from the big bed and him, Cara made the mistake of moving at the exact moment he did, but this time rather than just brush against him she found herself momentarily plastered up against the front of him.
‘Oh, I’m so sorry.’
Heat didn’t just simmer this time, it shot through her, and the breath that hitched in her lungs sounded like a gunshot in the quiet room. Aidan’s blue gaze burned into hers and Cara felt her pulse leap as she held her breath in anticipation of his devastating kiss.
Only instead of kissing her, Aidan pressed his lips together in a grim line and clamped his hands on her shoulders to push her back.
‘Get some sleep.’
He strode out before she could make another objection and, feeling totally despondent at yet another rejection, she made her way to the bathroom. She gazed longingly at the sunken bathtub but opted instead for a quick, refreshing shower before climbing into bed.
An hour later, as exhausted as she was, it seemed her body was confused by yet another sudden change in the time zone and she was unable to sleep. Unable to stop thinking about how many people she had inadvertently let down last night.
Rolling onto her back she stared at the pale curtains tied back at each post and listened to the unfamiliar island sounds outside her windows. She wondered if Aidan was asleep and then made a face in the darkness.
