‘Better than the plum.’ Her eyes twinkled with humour.
‘I thought so,’ he grinned.
Velvet looked away. ‘Tony and I had better be going now,’ she said awkwardly, looking only at Sarah. ‘Thank you for taking care of him for me.’
‘Jerard did that, my dear. He came back this afternoon and took them to the park.’
‘Oh. I see. I—But how?’ she frowned. ‘You don’t have a child seat in your car.’ She could imagine Tony leaping about all over the back seat with Vicki unable to control him.
‘I had one put in this morning after you agreed to spend the day with Vicki and me on Sunday,’ Jerard told her casually.
‘You—? You didn’t have to do that!’ she gasped heatedly.
‘It’s safer,’ he dismissed.
‘Yes, but—’
‘Stop arguing, woman,’ he growled, ‘and sit down. You aren’t going anywhere until you’ve had some tea. Sit,’ he ordered as she hesitated.
She did so, resentfully. ‘What did your last dog die of?’ she snapped.
‘Old age,’ he drawled.
‘I’m surprised,’ she scorned.
Jerard’s eyes narrowed. ‘Would you like another lesson in obedience?’
‘No, thank you!’ She couldn’t mistake the threat in his voice.
‘Then sit there and rest,’ he instructed before striding out of the room.
Velvet drew an angry breath, her attention not completely on the game of Snakes and Ladders Vicki had persuaded her into. How dared Jerard treat her like this in front of his mother? How dared he treat her like this at all!
She was about ready to get up and leave when Jerard came back into the room carrying a tea tray. Even doing such a mundane task he looked vitally attractive, having changed out of the three-piece suit some time during the day into a black sweat-shirt and black denims. But why was he doing such a mundane task, why get her tea?
‘I thought I told you to rest,’ he said sternly. ‘Play with your grandma, Vicki, Velvet’s had a hard day.’
‘Okay,’ his daughter accepted goodnaturedly, collecting up her board and dice, and taking Tony with her. He seemed to have become her shadow lately, chanting her name monotonously when they were at home.
‘Will you stop being sarcastic to me!’ Velvet muttered under her breath to Jerard.
His eyebrows rose. ‘Who’s being sarcastic?’ He put the tray down on a small coffee-table and pulled it over in front of her. ‘We’ve already had ours,’ he explained as she looked questioningly at the single cup on the tray, the small plate of cakes. ‘And there was no sarcasm intended—I know how hard models work.’
‘Do you?’ she snapped, her mouth tight. ‘How many of your girl-friends have been models?’
‘Only one,’ he revealed tightly, sitting down at her feet.
‘I suppose—Oh. You mean me …’ she realised dully.
‘Yes. Drink your tea, you’ll feel better.’
This time she didn’t resent his autocratic behaviour, but drank the tea gratefully, although she didn’t touch the cakes, very conscious of Jerard sitting so close to her.
An outsider could be forgiven for completely misunderstanding this situation, for thinking that she and Jerard were husband and wife, and that Vicki and Tony were their children, with the doting grandmother looking on. For a moment Velvet allowed herself the luxury of basking in that dream—until she became aware of Jerard watching her. She flushed, looking away from his mesmerising blue eyes.
‘I really do have to go now,’ she said briskly. ‘Tony has to have his bath, and I have to prepare our dinner.’
‘You work too hard,’ Jerard scowled. ‘You should have a nanny to care for Tony.’
‘We aren’t all as rich as you,’ she scorned. ‘Besides, I like taking care of him myself.’ She looked up to see her son yawning tiredly. ‘Bed for you, little man,’ and she held out her arms to him, laughing as he ran into them.
‘I’ll carry him out to the car for you,’ Jerard stood up to offer.
‘There’s no need—’
‘I know that, but I’m going to do it anyway,’ he said firmly. ‘Stop being so damned independent.’
‘I’m not—’
‘You are,’ he told her fiercely. ‘My mother told me how much you fought against leaving Tony here today.’
‘I didn’t want to be a burden—’
‘You aren’t, and neither is Tony. You’ve had Vicki all week, with no complaints, the least we could do is care for Tony for one day. Surely you realise how much my mother loves him?’
‘Yes,’ she acknowledged huskily.
‘And you aren’t sure that’s a good thing, are you?’
‘No,’ she didn’t attempt to prevaricate. ‘This whole situation is getting very complicated.’
Jerard shook his head. ‘It isn’t complicated at all, it’s very simple when you think about it.’
Velvet gave him a sharp look. ‘What do you mean?’
Tony chose that moment to yawn once again, Jerard’s harsh features relaxing as he looked down at him. ‘He really is very tired. You’d better get him home.’
She gave him an impatient glance. ‘That’s what I’ve been trying to do for the last hour.’
‘My, you are snappy today,’ he taunted.
‘And you’re as arrogant as usual!’
‘Glad you aren’t disappointed,’ he grinned.
She was never that around him; she was charged with excitement, sexually aware of him with every fibre of her body, but never ever disappointed.
She blushed as she realised his mother must be wondering what they were talking about so intently, not that the other woman seemed to mind; she was smiling at them indulgently. Jerard had been proved right about his mother’s matchmaking; she never lost an opportunity to extol the virtues of her son, and she had taken great pleasure in showing Velvet the promised photographs of Jerard in his youth. They had been fascinating photographs, Jerard as a baby right through to his wedding day.
Tina Daniels had been a delicate woman to look at, very blonde, with a beautifully elfin face, her figure very slender. Sarah had told her that the photographs were ten years old, but even so Jerard had changed little; he was tall and handsome, his hair perhaps worn a little shorter, but otherwise he looked the same, a look of pride in his smiling blue eyes as he looked
