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CHAPTER FIVE
Edward
MYCARPULLSup outside her hotel bang on time and I’m surprised to find her already waiting on the pavement. Perched on her backpack, one booted foot tapping, her arms wrapping a vibrant yet ridiculously thin kimono around her.
Does the woman not own a coat?
It’s not raining today, but the clear sky offers no protection from the chill, and even with the sun’s rays lighting her up on the pavement it can’t be enough to warm her.
I leap out of the car before my driver can approach her. ‘Get in. It’s freezing out here.’
She shoots to her feet, her cheeks radiating the same heat as her eyes. I’ve annoyed her, but I don’t care. Where is her common sense?
‘Hello to you too.’
I ignore her snippy remark and grab her bag, handing it to my driver as she gives a huff of protest.
‘Get in, Summer,’ I repeat, holding open her door. ‘As much it will save me a headache or two, I really don’t want you to catch your death right now.’
She stares at me hard, opens her mouth and closes it again. Whether it’s because of the hint that I might actually care about her wellbeing or the cold itself, she finally moves. Shrugging her satchel off her shoulders and slipping inside, she promptly slams the door in my face.
I look over the roof, take a breath and deny the smirk that wants to form. ‘Keep it under control.’
I walk around the car and get in the same side I exited.
‘Seatbelt,’ I say, without looking at her, knowing she won’t have fastened it.
I’m saved from a retort by my driver, who catches her eye in the rear-view mirror, and she gives a soft sigh, does as I’ve asked. More for his benefit than mine, but that’s just fine.
As soon as she’s secure he pulls away from the kerb and I breathe more easily...until I catch the faint trace of her perfume. Light, sunny...all her.
‘Are you always this grumpy, or do you save it just for me?’
Another smile teases at my lips and I beat it back. This isn’t amusing. If I could stay grumpy this wouldn’t be such torture.
‘Behave like an obstinate child and I’ll treat you like one.’
‘A child? What the—?’
She breaks off as the privacy glass glides into position, saving my driver from hearing more than he should.
‘How dare you?’
Slowly, I turn to face her. Prepare myself for having her so near. The luxurious back seat is far too cosy, and never have I needed us to be at loggerheads more.
‘You’re stood outside in the freezing cold, paying no heed to the weather—how else should I treat you?’
‘“Paying no heed”?’ she splutters back at me, laughing, her eyes wide and disbelieving. ‘What century did you walk out of?’
‘Cut the attitude, Summer.’
‘My attitude? Have you checked yourself out in the mirror lately?’
Heat collides with heat. Her chest is undulating so rapidly with her breaths that her kimono parts and my eyes unwittingly dip. I fist my hands against the pulse in my groin and she grunts, tugging the fabric back together and throwing herself back in her seat, arms folded, pout to die for.
‘For your information,’ she blurts to the passing world outside, ‘I don’t own a coat.’
‘You don’t...?’ I frown. She can’t be serious. ‘How can you not own a coat?’
