she had asked herself that question she had known the answer all too clearly; all of her friends and business acquaintances had known of her relationship with Danny, of how for one wild, impetuous month she had put the rest of her life on hold to be with him—even GemStone had taken second place to the relationship for a while. She was going to look a complete idiot, both privately and professionally, when it became public knowledge that Danny had actually preferred her sister!
But she’d been sure Nick couldn’t be serious about the proposal, that it was just a knee-jerk reaction to Jemima’s betrayal. But he was quite serious, Nick had assured her grimly. Why shouldn’t they marry each other? They were both adults, and falling in love had proved a humiliating experience for both of them. And he was thirty-eight, he’d stated, it was time he had a wife, and Gemini, successful, self-assured, wise now to the stupidity of falling in love, would make him a very good one. And she, he’d claimed, would gain a husband who made no emotional demands on her, who was proud of her achievements and, most importantly of all, would never hurt or humiliate her in the way Danny had.
It had been this last claim, a brutal reminder of how ridiculous she was going to look to the outside world, and feeling still deeply wounded by the hurt Danny and Jemima had inflicted on her, that had made her make the last impulsive decision of her life and say yes!
Nick had kept to his word, and their marriage of fourteen months was undoubtedly a success in all that it had set out to be. Gemini was there as Nick’s partner and hostess if he should need one, and Nick was there for her in the same guise. And the existence of their marriage had completely taken away any public sting of humiliation they might have encountered after the end of their relationships with Danny and Jemima. To all intents and purposes it had looked as if the two of them had been the ones to realise they had previously made a mistake, and those mistakes had been rectified by the two of them marrying each other.
Yes, their marriage had succeeded in everything it had set out to do. Gemini had long ago recovered from the hurt Danny had so selfishly inflicted on her heart, having realised it had been a brief infatuation. It was hardly Nick’s fault if she was now fully aware—inwardly, at least!—of her magnetic attraction to the man who was now her husband.
And now Jemima, selfish, uncaring Jemima, had calmly delivered her six-week-old baby into the marriage!
Gemini shook her head now in answer to Nick’s question concerning Jessica’s father. ‘I have no idea,’ she sighed. ‘But the nanny who delivered the baby here earlier this evening didn’t mention any man being involved,’ she added with a frown.
‘Not for some months, at least,’ Nick bit out contemptuously. ‘I can’t believe I was ever stupid enough to believe I actually loved the woman!’ he added self-disgustedly before throwing the brandy to the back of his throat, seemingly unmoved as the fiery liquid hit his stomach.
Gemini winced. Not because she didn’t feel the same anger towards Jemima for this last thoughtlessness, but because she could no longer bear the thought of Nick ever having been in love with Jemima…
Quite how these possessive feelings towards her own husband had occurred Gemini wasn’t aware, but she had found in recent months that what had begun as a purely business arrangement was no longer so. At least on her part.
But Nick’s angry response to Jemima’s latest escapade seemed to imply he was still in love with her sister.
‘How can the two of you be identical to look at and yet be so unalike in temperament?’ he added with a disbelieving shake of his head.
Jemima was beautiful, warm and funny, if irresponsible. Gemini, as the eldest twin, if only by minutes, was more serious, coolly detached and self-assured, and dedicated to promoting her own fashion label.
And it was obvious which of them Nick found the most attractive!
God, how that hurt. How could she have been stupid enough to fall in love with her own husband?
Because that was exactly what she’d done. She wasn’t even sure when or how; she only knew that she had, that every time he was at home she was totally aware of him, that she found the way he looked physically attractive, that she admired the successful way he ran his business empire. In fact, she loved everything about him! And at the same time she knew that he felt no more for her now than he had when he had first proposed this sterile marriage fourteen months ago…
Gemini stood up abruptly. ‘I don’t think getting into a character assassination—’ or otherwise! ‘—is going to help the situation,’ she told Nick briskly, smoothing down the silkiness of her grey silk robe, very aware of the fact that she had cleansed her face before going to bed and so consequently wore no make-up, that her hair was probably in disarray too.
In fact, she probably looked a fright! And the one thing she had been very decided on, when accepting Nick’s proposal of marriage, was that she would always make sure to keep her end of their bargain, that she would never be less than the beautiful showpiece and perfect hostess that he wanted in his marriage.
Nick’s mouth twisted. ‘You’re probably right—talking about the flaws in Jemima’s character could take all night!’
And Gemini had no wish to talk about her sister for the rest of the night. In fact, she had no real wish to talk about her sister at all. It was bad enough that she knew Nick still felt so strongly towards Jemima, without the two of them talking about her too!
‘In that case,’ she said coolly, ‘I suggest the two of us get back to bed—’ She broke off as Nick looked across at her with dark brows raised speculatively. ‘Separately, of course,’ she bit out tersely.
‘Of course,’ he drawled derisively.
Gemini glared at him. ‘I’m tired, and not a little irritable; this certainly isn’t the time for your warped sense of humour, Nick,’ she snapped resentfully—because a part of her so wished he weren’t joking at all.
She’d been aware the whole time they were talking that Nick was naked under that black silk robe, and just the thought made her ache!
It wasn’t difficult to see that his shoulders were wide, his body leanly muscled, and she could see the dark hair that grew on his chest, and the bareness of his legs beneath the robe. Just looking at him made Gemini’s knees tremble with a need she had never known before! With anyone…
Strange, she had believed herself to be so much in love with Danny fifteen months ago. But after being Nick’s wife for over a year she couldn’t even remember what Danny looked like, let alone what it had felt like to be with him…
Nick’s was such a strong personality, and he had so much physical presence, that when he wasn’t at home the house seemed strangely empty, only coming alive again when he returned. As it had tonight…
‘Sorry.’ He grimaced now at her rebuke, running a hand through the dark thickness of his hair. ‘I— What is it?’ he prompted sharply at her indrawn breath.
How on earth could she possibly tell the man who was her husband that she longed to run her hands through the darkness of his hair, that she wanted to lie in bed next to him looking down at him, to kiss every part of him, to know the full pleasure she was sure Nick was capable of giving her; that she wanted to give him pleasure in return!
There was no way she could ever let him even see she felt that way, let alone tell him such a thing!
‘Nothing,’ she snapped abruptly. ‘I told you, I’m
