Sitting at the table, listening to the conversation, sometimes taking part, she was glad she had agreed to come. This was how normal people behaved with each other, and it was a poignant reminder for Aimi, who had once thought endless shopping, wild, glamorous parties where drink flowed like water and everything was loud laughter and music was the only way to live. That Aimi would have considered this deadly dull, but the Aimi of today bitterly regretted that she hadn’t wised up sooner. Such was the benefit of hindsight. It showed you what might have been, and damned you with the knowledge that you could never go back.
In those final few minutes before her world would be knocked off its axis and sent spinning into space for a second time, everyone was laughing at something Paula had just said. Aimi found it so funny, her eyes were watering and her stomach ached. It was as she was using her napkin to wipe her eyes that the distant chime of the front doorbell permeated the room.
Simone Berkeley looked at her husband in mild query. ‘I wonder who that could be,’ she said to the room at large.
‘Were you expecting anyone, Mum?’ Paula asked, only for her mother to shake her head.
Moments later, they all heard the sound of footsteps coming towards the room and everyone looked expectantly towards the door. It opened seconds later and a tall, dark-haired man stepped into the room, grinning at the sea of faces.
‘I hope you left something for me, you pack of gannets!’ he exclaimed cheerfully, and his remark was met by cries of delight.
‘Jonas!’
The family immediately leapt to their feet as one, leaving a bemused Aimi to swivel round in her seat and examine this late arrival. She had heard of Jonas Berkeley, of course, the oldest son, who owned a high-powered company and lived a jet-set lifestyle which took him off to all corners of the globe. His name was often in the newspapers, sometimes for his work, but more often for the latest woman in his life. Naturally he had an open invitation to the family gathering, but nobody had expected him to be able to make it. Hence their surprise and delight.
Her own surprise was her response to him, which was totally unexpected. The instant she laid eyes on him, something stirred in the depths of her. All her senses appeared to leap to attention, as if her whole being recognised and responded to something in him. His laughter as he greeted everyone sent shivers down her spine and the rakish sparkle in his startlingly blue eyes dried her mouth.
For all her wild youth, Aimi had never actually experienced such a blatantly physical response to anyone in her twenty-seven years. She was suddenly made very much aware of the blood pulsing through her veins and the rapid beating of her heart. All at once her smile faded away and it was then, as Jonas Berkeley glanced from one member of his family to another, that their gazes locked.
She could actually see the moment when he was stopped in his tracks, and her heart lurched anxiously. Something elemental forked through the air between them, only to be broken when his sister claimed his attention, yet there had been time enough to see the predatory gleam which had entered his eyes. Shocked and disbelieving, Aimi turned away, pressing a hand to her stomach.
Oh, my God, she thought dazedly. What had just happened? Silly question, Aimi, you know darned well! She had just experienced the pull of an immensely strong sexual attraction, and her whole body was quivering as a result. It was the very last thing she had expected, for she had worked hard to keep the attractive, outgoing side of her nature under control—to be the complete antithesis of her former self in every way. Which was why she had eschewed all forms of romantic entanglement. No man had ever made her control slip.
Until just now, that was. Without a word he had broken through her defences, making her feel things she did not want. She didn’t know why it had happened now, only that she had to make rapid repairs so the damage did not show. Telling herself to be calm, she breathed slowly until she felt in control again. Now she should be able to give the appearance of calmness, although in reality she was still trembling inside.
A hand touched her arm and she jumped, looking up to find Nick beside her.
‘Come and say hello to my brother. I’m eager for him to meet you,’ Nick invited, and Aimi’s heart fluttered anxiously at the thought of looking into those amazing eyes again so soon. However, there was one little part of her that needed to check out if it had really happened or if she had imagined it, so she smiled, as if the ground hadn’t just rocked, and stood up.
As she took the half a dozen steps to where Jonas Berkeley stood within the circle of his family, Aimi had the weirdest sensation that she was walking down a predestined path. A momentary sense of caution whispered, Go back, yet a stronger force kept her moving. She couldn’t stop her eyes from rising to meet his and, the instant that happened, once again the air seemed to become positively charged, making it difficult to breathe properly.
‘OK,’ Nick declared, noticing nothing amiss, and made the introductions. ‘Aimi, this strapping fellow is my brother, Jonas. Tall, handsome and disgustingly wealthy, he’s also a bit of a Casanova, so you have been warned. And this young woman is my indispensable assistant, Aimi.’
Jonas’s teeth flashed white as he smiled directly into her eyes and held out his hand. ‘Hello, Nick’s indispensable Aimi. I’m very pleased to meet you,’ he greeted her in a voice whose low timbre was an unexpected delight to her ear.
Aimi gasped silently, more than a little unnerved to know she was still feeling the full force of the man’s charisma, despite her hasty repairs to her defences. He oozed supreme male confidence and sexual allure, and it was stunning. Knowing she was not as cool as she would like to be, she hesitated fractionally before taking his hand, and knew she had been right to do so when his fingers closed around hers. The contact sent a wave of tingles up her arm and throughout her system, causing the tiny hairs to rise. Her faint start was absorbed by his hand, which tightened on hers momentarily.
‘I’m pleased to meet you, too,’ she returned politely, glad to hear that she at least sounded normal. Easing her hand free, she coiled her fingers into her tingling palm. ‘Nick talks of you often.’ It was true, though he had never said what a charismatic man his brother was. Probably because he never saw him that way. Women would see a whole different side to him. A side she would have preferred to remain in blissful ignorance of! Whilst she might admire a man’s looks aesthetically, she tried to never allow herself to be moved by them. Today, though, something was going badly wrong and she didn’t like it.
‘Ah, that would be the reason my ears have been burning lately,’ Jonas joked lightly, his mouth tweaking into a boyish grin. ‘So, how long have you been working for Nick?’ he asked and, as he did so, his eyes took in the grey pencil skirt and white blouse she was wearing, despite the stifling summer heat. There was a quizzical glint in his eye when he met hers again.
‘Six months, give or take,’ Nick informed him, smiling at Aimi. ‘I tell you, everyone could do with an assistant like her!’
His brother looked from one to the other. ‘Is that so? Do I detect more than just a working relationship here?’ he enquired, and Aimi got the distinct impression that it was not an idle question. He wanted to know just how involved his brother was.
Nick laughed and shook his head. ‘Good Lord, no! Nothing like that! She’s brought order to the chaos of my life. Isn’t that right, Aimi?’
‘I do my best,’ Aimi agreed uncomfortably, wondering if Nick realised he had just as good as told his brother she was not off limits. From the wry amusement in Jonas’s eye, he knew it, and knew that she did, too.
‘What
