this is not a date.”
Wincing, she reached for her napkin. So much for maintaining peace. She’d just bonked him over the head with the olive branch she’d hoped to extend. But his distrustful glares really rubbed her the wrong way.
“I’m sorry. There’s no excuse for me being rude. But it’s just dinner. Della already had most of the meal prepared before her sister called. Cooking it was no big deal.”
Mitch stared at her in silence as if weighing the truth of her words, and then he nodded and started on his shrimp. Carly dug into hers, savoring the citrus tang of Mrs. Duncan’s marinade. She caught herself watching the absurdly sensual sight of Mitch’s straight white teeth biting into the shrimp and his lips surrounding the meat.
Get a grip. Kincaid is not on tonight’s or any other night’s menu. Remember how he treated Marlene?
She polished off her appetizer and reached for the main course. Mitch followed suit, piling large helpings of fish and vegetables on his plate. He devoured his meal almost as ravenously as Rhett had, but with the perfect form of one who’d had etiquette lessons. She wondered who’d taught him the fine art of eating politely. One of his nannies?
“Did you eat lunch today?” she asked to break the silence.
“There wasn’t time. Where are your parents now?”
She gave him points for making conversation. “Arizona. Dad needed the drier climate for his health.”
“With all your talk of family, why don’t you move out there with them?”
“I’ve thought about it. But my parents’ lives are filled with retirement community activities. I’d have to apply for a new license in a different state, and that could mean months without income. My parents can’t afford to support us, but they’d feel obligated to try. Add in that children aren’t allowed to stay overnight in their complex, and things get even more complicated.”
“Leave Rhett with me.”
She sighed and wiped her mouth. “Give it up, Mitch. That’s not going to happen.”
“It could. Say the word and you’re a free woman.”
She’d been footloose and fancy-free before and she hadn’t liked it. How could anyone expect her to go back to normal knowing she’d given up something precious? Twice.
“You act as if caring for Rhett is a burden. It isn’t.”
“You say that now, but give it time.”
“I’ll say the same thing next week, next year and ten years from now.”
He snorted a sound of disbelief, but she decided not to waste her breath arguing. Talk was cheap. He’d soon see by her actions that she meant what she said.
“You’re only twenty-eight. Aren’t your parents too young to retire?”
“Mom was forty and Dad forty-five when they adopted Marlene and me.” And because Carly had been adopted, she knew exactly what kinds of questions her baby girl would be asking.
Silence returned, broken only by Rhett’s babble and the chink of silverware.
“Does Mrs. Duncan need more than one day?”
Surprised, Carly searched Mitch’s face. Good to know the rat bastard had a human side after all. “It would be nice if you’d call and offer it. I have her sister’s phone number.”
“I’ll get someone from the temp agency in to cook our meals and oversee the remaining staff if Mrs. Duncan needs more time.”
“Oh please. We’re adults. We can feed ourselves. I know my way around the kitchen if you don’t. And I think your staff can muddle through pushing a vacuum and making beds for a couple of days.” His eyes narrowed to slits, pinning her like a butterfly on a collector’s board. “What?”
“You intend to work all day and then come home and cook for me. Why?” Suspicion laced his voice.
“For us. And don’t take it personally. I’m not after your heart via your stomach. Rhett and I have to eat, too. And I like to cook. I used to prepare all the meals for Marlene and me.”
He looked ready to argue, but instead consumed the last bites of his swordfish. He sat back, still wearing the skeptical, guarded expression. “That was good.”
“Thank you. And it’s healthier than your usual dinners.”
His eyebrows slammed down. So much for the truce. “Don’t try to change me, Carly. Don’t interfere in my life.”
“Wouldn’t dream of it,” she denied and knew she fibbed. By the end of the year she’d have his bachelor lifestyle turned upside down. Priorities changed when a child entered the picture. He’d discover that sooner or later.
He studied her as if she were a puzzle he couldn’t figure out—and one he didn’t trust.
“Down. Ball,” Rhett demanded.
Mitch stood. “I’ll clear the table. You get the boy.”
Carly blinked. A man in Hugo Boss who wasn’t afraid to do dishes? Nice. Too bad she wasn’t looking. “Thanks, but he’d rather play with you.”
“No.” Swift. Harsh. Unequivocal. Mitch stacked their plates and strode into the house.
Carly stared after him. Mitch Kincaid was going to be a tough nut to crack—even harder than her most difficult client.
But just like she did with her more pigheaded patients, she would find a way to motivate him.
Carly Corbin was a sneaky, devious woman.
Mitch opened the tap in the sink to drown out the squeals of laughter penetrating the kitchen windows. Turning his back on the woman and child racing through the gardens, he bent to load the dishwasher.
Carly was determined to drag him somewhere he would never go again with her home-cooked meals and let’s-play-family games. He still had the scars from his last round of playing house. He wouldn’t give his heart to a child only to have it ripped out when the mother—or in this case, the guardian—had a change of heart. Once he could guarantee Rhett wouldn’t be leaving would be soon enough for Mitch to befriend him. Until then, he’d keep his distance.
Carly had clearly given the idea of moving across the country to be closer to her parents careful consideration. Unless she left the boy behind, that put the terms of the will and everything Mitch held dear in jeopardy.
He had to get custody of his father’s little bastard.
Soon.
He closed the dishwasher and straightened. The stillness of the backyard grabbed his attention. He scanned the garden and spotted a splash of peach and Carly’s bare legs sprawled on the lawn between the fountain and the koi pond.
Alarm flooded his veins with adrenaline. Had the boy fallen in? Dammit, he’d ordered the gardener to fence the shallow pond and
