‘But it’s nearly eight and I have to head over to get things going—’
‘Remember what I said about playing along with this because, honestly, it’s by far the better option?’
Georgie gritted her teeth. ‘How could I forget?’ she muttered in a driven undertone and when she slid her eyes to his face it was to see him smiling coolly at her. ‘Are you going to remind me again that I’m an intruder and you’ll have me sent to prison if I don’t comply with what you want?’
‘No, we can move past that. What else do you have to wear in your bag of tricks? If you let me have your phone, I’ll call your boss and inform him or her that you won’t be in until later.’
‘I can do that myself,’ Georgie said, mentally resigned. He’d folded his arms and she caught herself staring at the bulge of rippling muscle, taut under the tight long-sleeved tee shirt. She tore her eyes away. ‘I’ll put my joggers back on.’
‘No, no, no,’ Alessandro tut-tutted. ‘The joggers were a little teasing welcome outfit. This morning…something else will have to make an appearance.’
Georgie stared at him. ‘Something elselike what?’
‘Hmmm…now let me have a think.’ Alessandro lowered his eyes. He realised that he was enjoying their sparky conversation. Actually, he was enjoying looking at her as well. She was in a maroon thermal bodysuit with a half-zip up the front and the thermal leggings showed off legs that hadn’t been on show earlier when she’d swept past the sitting room in a world of her own.
Shapely legs. Slender. Slender legs, slender waist, all that long, tangly blonde hair and those big brown eyes.
His eyes dipped to her breasts and he flushed, surprised at his lapse in self-control.
‘I guess you’re looking for the sort of sexy outfit a woman might wear to impress you?’
‘Not necessarily…’
‘I googled images of you. I saw the sort of women you go out with. I’m afraid I don’t have any skimpy clothes to hand. Miniskirts and skintight Lycra dresses are impractical for coaching kids on the ski slopes.’
Alessandro grinned, suddenly amused despite the stress of the situation.
‘Okay. I’ll leave it up to you. Sophia will be on her way out, not that that will stop her noting every inch of your appearance.’
‘Did you…manage to sort out whatever it was that needed sorting out?’
For a second, Georgie thought that he wasn’t going to answer and who could blame him, considering it was none of her business, but eventually his eyes cooled and he shot her a thin, humourless smile.
‘I expect to get what I’m after.’
‘Oh, good.’ That smile said it all about a man who always got what he wanted. She wished she’d read a bit more about him, although, from the little she’d glimpsed and aside from the images, the information seemed to be largely a boring chronological, detailed account of business deals and company takeovers.
‘I’ll leave you and your imagination to come up with an outfit that’s a little less casual than jogging bottoms, shall I?’
He moved towards the door and threw over his shoulder, in a dry postscript, ‘We’ll be in the kitchen and I’m guessing there’s no need for me to tell you where that is.’
Georgie flushed. ‘I’ll head down as soon as I’ve changed into suitable clothing from the little supply I brought with me.’
‘Fifteen minutes. And as before, Georgie? Leave the talking to me.’
CHAPTER THREE
GEORGIE KNEW EXACTLYwhat Alessandro had meant when he’d told her that trackpants and an oversized jumper weren’t going to do as a counterpoint to ski gear.
He was probably the sort who liked assets to be on display or else what was the point of them? Perhaps he hadn’t noticed that her assets weren’t exactly noteworthy.
How on earth he expected his sultry, sexy ex-wife to believe that they were actually a couple was a mystery.
But she didn’t have much time to dwell on that.
She left on the tight thermal leggings because they were a nuisance to pull on and off but she replaced the utilitarian ski top with a black cropped vest and a black cropped cashmere cardigan with little pearl buttons down the front. The cardigan was a present from one of her sisters, who had decided three years ago that she neededfeminising. Georgie had laughed out loud at the time but in actual fact had ended up wearing it non-stop. She swept her hair up in a ponytail.
The only shoes she had brought with her were trainers, ski boots and bedroom slippers, so trainers it had to be, and she was sprinting down the stairs to the kitchen in under fifteen minutes.
