âWhile weâre on the subject ofgetting things straightâ¦I donâtregret kissing you, Vanessa. Quitethe contrary.â That curious gleamfaded up and swam again in hiseyes. âWould it surprise you tohear Iâd like to do it again?â
A hot jet of arousal flashed through her veins. For a moment she was so shaken she couldnât respond. She wet her suddenly dry lips, then wished she hadnât. She didnât want to give him the wrong idea.
Her voice was a croak. âThat wouldnât be wise.â
The line between his brows gradually deepened. âYouâre right. Of course. Not wise at all.â
She gazed up dreamily, lost in the entrancing mirrors of his eyes. âSo was that kiss just part of the service?â
His jaw tightened. âNo. That was unforgivable. It wonât happen again.â
âYouâre certain?â
The pad of his thumb grazed her lips before his mouth descended once more. âAbsolutely.â
One Christmas long ago, Robyn Grady received a book from her big sister and immediately fell in love with Cinderella. Sprinklings of magic, deepest wishes come trueâshe was hooked! Picture books with glass slippers later gave way to romance novels and, more recently, the real-life dream of writing for Mills & Boon.
After a fifteen-year career in television, Robyn met her own modern-day hero. They live on Australiaâs Sunshine Coast, with their three little princesses, two poodles and a cat called Tinkie. She loves new shoes, worn jeans, lunches at Moffat Beach and hanging out with her friends on eHarlequin. Learn about her latest releases at www.robyngrady.com and donât forget to say hi. Sheâd love to hear from you!
Robyn also writes for Mills & Boon>®Desire!
Dear Reader
Todayâs world is such a busy place. Seems we have a thousand things to do and a thousand choices to make. The pressure can be overwhelming. Imagine if we could cast some ancient spell and conjure up the perfect balance between work and relaxationâresponsibility and funâ¦
Multimillionaire Mitch Stuart knows about the former, not so much the latter. When his father died, Mitch became head of a house full of dependent females. After years of automatically putting his family and their company first, Mitch happens upon a fascinating lady. Vanessa Craig prefers tatty jeans to Chanel, puppies over expensive perfumeâand she has this focused young banker, with the world at his feet, completely bewitched. Unfortunately sheâs appeared in his life at the worst possible time.
Vanessa has never known such passion or happiness. Sheâd like nothing better than to languish for ever in the bliss to be found in Mitch Stuartâs strong arms. However, if they continue to see each other Mitch could lose what heâs worked towards for so long. She needs to make a single, heartrending choice. If Mitch canât do what needs to be done, perhaps she should do it for himâ¦and bow out of his life.
I hope you enjoy Mitch and Vanessaâs journey towards finding and embracing the very best of both worlds.
And, Stueyâ¦in my books, youâre every womanâs quintessential sexy banker.âº
Best
Robyn
To Moet and Ebony, with love
CHAPTER ONE
âITâS settled. Youâre coming home with me.â
The low murmur at Vanessa Craigâs back left her nape tingling, as if her skin had been brushed by an intimate kiss. Drawn from stacking the last of the special diet dog food, she curled some hair behind her ear, then slowly edged around. She triedâbut failedâto keep her eyes in her head.
Of course, the attractive man standing nearby hadnât spoken to her. Heck, he didnât know she existed, even if Vanessa was acutely aware of every sensitised cell in her body suddenly glowing with life.
Powerhouse height, pitch-black hair, a strong shadowed jaw and eyes bluer than any Vanessa had seen. The precise cut of his trousers, the immaculate polish of his shoesâeverything about this man didnât simply say he settled for the best.
He was the best.
When the man-god shifted his weight, the ledge of his magnificent shoulders went back. His attention drifted from the small tank, which contained a single goldfish, and landed on her.
âAfternoon.â His mouth curved up at one side as he quarter-turned to face her. âYou work here?â
Vanessa swallowed the knot of hot desire tugging in her throat. âIâm the manager.â
âGreat. Iâm interested in that fish.â
Vanessa studied the goldfish, who was busy studying the man. She smiled over. âNot half as interested as he seems to be in you.â
While she spoke, the light changed in her customerâs ocean-blue eyes, as though something in her face or her voice, made him wonder if theyâd met before. Not on this side of her dreams.
As his sexy smile returned, he tilted his head at the tank. âIâm wonderingâ¦can you tell his gender?â
Although Vanessa had answered that question regarding fish many times in the past two years, the majority of people who visited her Sydney pet storeâGreat and Smallâseemed content to while away some time fawning over the puppies and kittens. Who could blame them? Cute bundles of fur bouncing around, pressing their squishy wet noses against the window, desperate for a cuddle. Searching for a home.