me like a naïve nineteen-year-old!’ she flung with a degree of acerbity.
‘How would you have me treat you, Alyse?’
‘With some respect for my feelings,’ she returned fiercely.
‘Perhaps you’d care to elaborate?’
It was pointless evading the issue, and besides, it was only a matter of time before he’d discover Georg’s absence from the nursery.
She drew a deep breath, then released it slowly. ‘I’ve moved my belongings into an upstairs bedroom.’
The eyes that lanced hers were dark and unfathomable.
‘I suggest you move them back down again,’ he drawled with dangerous silkiness.
‘No. I refuse to allow you to play cat to my mouse by dictating my sleeping arrangements.’
‘Is that what I’m doing?’
Oh, she could hit him! ‘Yes! I won’t be coerced to conform by a display of sheer male dominance.’
‘My dear Alyse, you sound almost afraid. Are you?’
Now she was really angry, and sheer bravado forced her to counter, ‘Do I look afraid?’
‘Perhaps you should be. I don’t suffer fools gladly.’
‘What’s that supposed to mean?’
At that precise moment a loud wail emitted through the monitor, and Alyse threw Aleksi a totally exasperated look.
‘It’s time for his bottle.’
‘I’ll fetch him while you heat it.’
Momentarily defeated, she retrieved a fresh bottle from the refrigerator and filled a container with hot water.
Aleksi was a natural, she conceded several minutes later as he caught up the bottle, took a nearby chair and calmly proceeded to feed Georg.
‘He should be changed first,’ Alyse protested, meeting those dark challenging eyes, and heard him respond with quiet mockery,
‘I already have.’
There was little she could do except give a seemingly careless shrug and return her attention to a variety of saucepans on the stove, although it rankled that he should display such an adeptness when she had so readily cast him into an entirely different mould.
Alyse settled Georg in his cot while Aleksi had a shower, and it was almost seven when they sat down to dinner.
‘This is good,’ he remarked.
Alyse inclined her head in silent acknowledgment. ‘What would you have done if I hadn’t prepared a meal?’
His gaze was startlingly direct. ‘Organised a babysitter, and frequented a restaurant.’
‘I mightn’t have wanted to go.’
‘Perversity, Alyse, simply for the hell of it?’
She couldn’t remember arguing with anyone, not even Antonia at her most difficult. Yet something kept prompting her towards a confrontation with Aleksi at every turn, and deep within some devilish imp danced in sheer delight at the danger of it all.
‘No comment?’ he queried.
She met his gaze with equanimity. ‘I have a feeling that anything I say will be used against me.’
‘Perhaps we should opt for a partial truce?’
She was powerless to prevent the wry smile that tugged at the edges of her mouth. ‘Would it last?’
‘Probably not,’ Aleksi agreed with a degree of cynicism. ‘However, I’d prefer that we at least project an outward display of civility in the company of my parents.’
‘Why? They know the reason for our marriage, and are aware it isn’t an alliance made in heaven.’ Alyse sipped from a glass of superb white wine. ‘If you expect me to indulge in calculated displays of affection, forget it.’
He spooned the last of his minestrone, then waited for her to finish.
‘I’d prefer to help myself,’ Alyse said at once, knowing he’d serve her a far too generous portion. She wasn’t very hungry, and merely selected a few vegetables, then toyed with dessert.
‘There are numerous friends and business associates who will be anxious to meet you, and a party next Saturday evening will provide an excellent opportunity.’ He leaned back in his chair and surveyed her with a veiled scrutiny. ‘I’ll organise the caterers.’
She got to her feet and began stacking plates, unable to prevent a flaring of resentment as he lent his assistance.
‘I can manage,’ she said stiffly, hating his close proximity within the large kitchen.
‘I’ll rinse, you can load the dishwasher,’ Aleksi told her, and she gritted her teeth in the knowledge that his actions were deliberate.
‘You now have a wife to take care of all this,’ Alyse voiced sweetly. ‘Why not relax in the lounge with an after-dinner port, or retire to your study?’
‘So you can pretend I don’t exist?’
Oh, he was too clever by far! ‘Yes, damn you.’
Dark eyes gleamed with ill-concealed humour. ‘No one would guess a firebrand exists beneath that cool façade,’ he mused cynically, causing her resentment to flare.
‘I didn’t possess a temper until you forced your way into my life!’
‘Forced, Alyse?’ he queried with soft emphasis. ‘I’ve never had to coerce a woman into anything.’
His implication was intentional, and Alyse quite suddenly had had enough. Placing the plate she held carefully on to the bench, she turned and made to move past him.
‘Since you obviously believe in equality, you finish the dishes. I’m going for a walk.’
‘In the dark, and alone?’
Her eyes flared with brilliant blue fire. ‘I need some fresh air, but most of all, I need a temporary escape from you!’
‘No, Alyse.’ His voice sounded like silk being razed by tensile steel, and she reacted without thought, hardly aware of her hand swinging in a swift arc until it connected with a resounding slap on the side of his jaw.
For a wild moment she thought he meant to strike her back, and she cried out as he caught hold of her hands and drew her inextricably close. Any attempt to struggle was defeated the instant it began, and after several futile minutes she simply stood in defiant silence.
Her pulse tripped its beat and measurably quickened at the degree of icy anger apparent. He possessed sufficient strength to break her wrists, and she flinched
