‘I’ll also admit that I don’t like feeling slightly bullied by you and your steely, don’t mess with me eyes…I mean, at one point I was scared you were going to kill me if I didn’t hug the kids,’ he chuckled, ‘but I can see that you were in a tough position. You weren’t to know that we’re not really the hugging types,’ he trailed off, looking uncertain. ‘When you forced me look at Aimee and I saw…what I saw, well, you were right to insist. But you don’t get to tell me how to raise my children, and there will be some things I won’t give in to,’ he emphasised.
‘It was the right thing to do, and I don’t regret it,’ she defended, ‘but if you feel bullied, I’m sorry. I also accept that you’re their dad and should know what’s best for them.’ Except that for years he’d given them little physical affection and appeared to have kept them at the periphery of his attention. She also knew from Jasper’s chatter at bedtime the night before, that Matt had signed them up for hobbies they detested, like horse-riding, draughts and fencing. So at the moment, she needed convincing that he had their best interests at heart.
‘Why do I feel like there’s an unspoken criticism in there somewhere?’ he asked dryly, rubbing a hand through his messy dark hair.
She shrugged, letting him fill the silence. Sometimes you had to let other people do the talking, to realise things for themselves.
‘Look. I love my kids, and I spend a lot of time protecting them,’ he stated. ‘Not everyone shows their love in the same overt way. Everyone’s different. But believe me, I work hard to provide for them and be a positive role model,’ he sucked in his cheeks, ‘I just hadn’t realised how much the lack of affection has affected them. Melody, my last nanny, never said anything about it and she was with us for three years,’ he frowned.
No way was she going to criticise her sister, even if she was wondering the same as Matt. ‘Perhaps she shouldn’t have had to. In any case, as you said, everyone’s different. Maybe she didn’t feel able to bring it up with you. You can be a bit… erm, never mind,’ she raced on when he raised both eyebrows, ‘I’m just more confident than some people. So, when and why did you stop hugging them?’ She gazed at him, wanting to know the story despite the fact that she shouldn’t care.
‘I’m really intrigued as to what I’m a bit of, but won’t hold you to it,’ Matt’s stern mouth quirked up on one side, before his face turned grim. ‘I don’t want to talk about it though Zoe, if you don’t mind. However, I’ll make more of an effort going forward.’ His expression was written with guilt. ‘They both looked so happy.’
‘Well, that’s good, and as long as I’m not in trouble—’
‘Don’t speak too soon,’ he replied. ‘What exactly are you trying to prove with that?’ Pointing at her jacket.
‘Nothing,’ she hitched her chin up, doing her best to pretend she wasn’t incredibly hot and wanted nothing more than to rip the stupid suit off. ‘You said I wouldn’t fit in, that I needed to dress the part so as not to embarrass the children. So I got changed into something smarter, like you said.’
He shook his head, looking impatient. ‘Not a suit! And I told you it wasn’t about embarrassing us. Now go and change.’
She shook her head, even as sweat broke out on her face. He hadn’t even said please.
His mobile started ringing on the desk. Stalking across the office he grabbed it and pressed the end-call button. ‘Shit! I’ve got that meeting soon. Sadie, please come back, all is forgiven.’ He cast both eyes up at the ceiling and joined his hands together in mock prayer. ‘I’m not sure how much more of this I can cope with,’ he said to Zoe. ‘I’m so used to Sadie organising me. I don’t know whether I’m coming and going, and all I want to do is get back into the studio. I just hope she recovers soon and that the hamper I sent helps…But anyway,’ walking back over to Zoe, he threw her a hard look, ‘I’m sorry, but I haven’t got time for this. We both know you’re being a little ridiculous. Please go and change.’
‘I’m fine.’ He was right, but she’d look silly backing down just like that and she didn’t like being bossed around. It made her wonder if this is what he’d been like with Melody the day he threw her out. Her fingers curled into her palms. She couldn’t forget what a bastard he’d been to her sister, even if he did seem to have some redeeming qualities, like wanting to be a good person for his children, and being nice to sick staff and having a sense of humour. Stop it. ‘Really,’ she insisted, ‘I’m fine.’
‘But you won’t be, with the predicted temperature today. I can’t believe you’re serious. You’ll bake if you leave the house.’ He glanced down at his watch, swore and moved away from her to start grabbing things off his desk, throwing his iPad, notepad and a sheaf of paperwork into a messenger bag before looping it across his chest.
‘It’s not that hot,’ she answered.
‘It will be,’ he shot back, stalking back over to her. ‘Come on,’ he stepped closer, eyes narrowing. ‘Look how overheated you got at our interview; ready to fall over from standing on the doorstep too long. You’ll make yourself ill, and then where will my kids be? Take it off.’ Reaching out, he curled a big hand around the jacket collar and tugged her closer.
She froze, smelling his aftershave, far too close to his broad, muscular chest, her body flashing with heat, but not because of the weather this time. She mustn’t sway towards him. Couldn’t ask him to put his fingers down inside her collar, to run them over the tops of her boobs, to—
‘Is this wool?’ he asked in disbelief, testing the material between two fingers.
‘Er—’ she pulled a face. ‘It might be.’
‘It’s the middle of summer. You’re completely insane,’ he joked. ‘Right, that’s it. Take it off. I don’t want to get done at tribunal for not ensuring the health and well-being of my employees.’
‘No!’ She might have given in at that point but quite apart from sticking to her guns, there was a really good reason she didn’t want to remove the jacket in front of him.
‘Yes!’ he insisted. To her shock, he started unbuttoning it, and she wrestled with him, trying to bat him away.
‘Matt, don’t!’ Oh shit, she thought fleetingly. ‘I said don—’
Unfortunately the jacket only had four buttons, his fingers made mega-quick work of them and she stepped back at the same time as he undid the last one.
The jacket flew open, revealing her pale, round breasts encased in a red lacy bra.
‘Bloody hell!’ His breath whooshed out, eyes all but popping out of his head as he took in her cleavage. ‘You’re not wearing a top!’
‘Thank you Captain Obvious, I didn’t know that,’ she muttered, yanking the jacket back together, doing it up with fumbling fingers, face burning as he spun around to give her some privacy. This was so embarrassing, and would probably forever be known as either jacket-gate or bra-gate. Why it had to happen in front of Matt of all people, she didn’t know. It was just her luck. ‘Sorry,’ she thought of how her sarcastic Captain Obvious comment must have sounded, ‘I didn’t mean to be rude.’
‘That’s fine. I’m sorry too. I-I just meant…Bloody hell,’ he repeated. ‘Why?’
‘It is too hot,’ she grimaced. Now the outfit choice looked really stupid. ‘And I didn’t think it would matter that I had nothing on underneath. You can turn around now,’ she said. When he obeyed, it was like he couldn’t quite bring himself to look at her, fixing his eyes on a spot on the wall over her left shoulder. She gazed up at him, seeing the nonplussed expression on his face. For some reason her mouth quirked up on one side. They must have looked like complete idiots during their little struggle, her trying to keep the jacket on, him trying to get her out of it. ‘I wasn’t planning on taking the jacket off,’ she explained, ‘and I didn’t foresee a madman coming along and trying to wrestle me out of it,’