Heat settled low in her body and she shifted, trying to ease that ache between her thighs. She watched the muscles move in his throat and her nipples hardened.
Greer folded her arms, trying to hide her reaction. ‘What did you mean about the risk of turning into your father?’
Conall licked frosting from the corner of his mouth and she had to look away. ‘He’s a big man, not just in size but in other ways too.’
‘He’s certainly got a forceful personality.’
She remembered the man in Perth. He’d dominated the conversation with his booming voice and an attitude that proclaimed him the most important person at the function.
Conall’s eyes narrowed. Was he too remembering that event? The way Fraser Abercrombie had all but ignored her, after that one sweeping survey that made her jaw lock so she didn’t demand he keep his eyes above her neckline.
‘He has.’ The affirmation didn’t sound positive. ‘He’s loud and brash. His capacity for work and success are the stuff of legend. And he matches that with an enormous appetite for pleasure.’
Conall’s mouth turned down and she read something in his eyes that made her want to change the subject, forhissake. Whatever track his thoughts followed, wasn’t pleasant.
‘It’s as well he has a big frame to match his big appetite, if he has a weakness for cake. Though I did notice last year that he’s beginning to grow portly. But I don’t think you have anything to worry about. You rarely indulge and you exercise every day.’
She heard a crack of laughter as Conall’s expression morphed from disapproving to amused.
‘With that ringing endorsement I’ll risk another piece of cake.’ He took another bite, watching her as he chewed. It felt deliciously intimate, seeing his dark eyes dance with pleasure. ‘You’re right. He has a sweet tooth. Desserts are one of his weaknesses.’
‘But not the only one,’ she murmured.
For so long she’d wanted to know more about Conall’s family but he’d avoided talking about them, apart from that recent, disturbing revelation about his sailing mishap with his appalling brother. When she’d asked if his family would attend their wedding he’d said their marriage was no business of his family. His tone had made it clear he hadn’t wanted to discuss the subject. A moment later he’d distracted her with a mind-numbing kiss.
But a kiss couldn’t blot out the suspicion he thought his family would consider her not good enough. Which had fed her concern that they weren’t marrying for the right reasons.
‘You never speak of him.’
Conall’s voice was gruff as he met her stare. ‘It’s not a topic I like discussing.’
In the past she hadn’t pressed for more information because of exactly that reaction. Was it any wonder their relationship had proved fragile when they hadn’t been able to discuss such basic subjects?
She looked away, that sense of connection they’d just shared withering.
After a moment Conall spoke again, his tone careful, and that intrigued her almost as much as his words. ‘He’s famous for his self-indulgence. Fine food and wine, expensive racehorses, expensive cigars, only the best whiskys and…’
Conall paused and she turned to see his mouth tighten.
‘You don’t have to—’
‘I want to. You’re mywife.’
He said the word with such deliberation it felt like a challenge.
She’d adored Conall for so long but had never felt like his wife. Because he didn’t love her, and the way he shut down any discussion about his family or his past reinforced that. Why open up now?
‘My father has five children by four different women. He’s on his fifth wife now.’
Greer knew about the man, of course. He was a larger-than-life billionaire, dominating both the Australian and international mining industries. She knew about the multiple wives but Conall’s expression made her wonder again what it had been like growing up with such a man.
‘Your mother—’
‘Wasn’t one of his wives.’
Greer frowned. What she knew of Fraser Abercrombie came from business articles. She’d never read the biography that came out a few years ago. Perhaps she should have. ‘But you have the same surname.’
‘When I was five my mother died and the authorities contacted my father. He had my name legally changed to his and I was raised in his house.’ Conall’s mouth twisted and Greer felt an answering corkscrew of tension in her stomach. ‘He’s big on ownership.’
