An Innocent Affair Read Free Page A

silicone.’
    Hope gave a shout of laughter. ‘That’s a bad case of stereotypes you’ve got there. There’s room at the top for variety and individuality. In fact, I think both are essential.’ She flicked soapsuds at him.
    Her action seemed to startle him. Perhaps Alex Matheson wasn’t the sort of man people laughed at or teased? He met the humour shining in her blue eyes and his immense shoulders visibly relaxed.
    He shrugged. ‘I don’t know much about acting or modelling.’
    â€˜You just know what you like?’ she suggested, tongue firmly in her cheek.
    â€˜And what I don’t like. To tell you the honest truth, the idea of silicone…bits gives me the creeps,’ he confessed. This sent Hope into a fresh spate of giggles.
    â€˜You’re so…so quaint,’ she gasped, wiping tears of mirth from her eyes.
    Alex paused in the act of mopping the soapy suds from his sleek hair and gaped at her. ‘Quaint?’ he repeated in a strange tone.
    â€˜In the nicest possible way,’ she assured him kindly.
    â€˜I’m relieved.’
    â€˜Actually, for models, too much up top can be a nuisance,’ she confided. ‘Clothes hang better on an androgynous frame.’
    â€˜You’re not androgynous.’ His eyes dwelt fleetingly on the ample proof of this statement.
    â€˜I’m not the waif type,’ she agreed. ‘I’m meant to be the athletic, wholesome, sexy type,’ she explained, very matter-of-factly.
    â€˜And are you?’
    â€˜I play a mean game of tennis,’ she replied selectively.
    Her caution brought a grin to his face, making him appear younger and less severe. He really ought to grin more often, she decided appreciatively. ‘Perhaps we could play some time?’
    Hope could field sexual innuendo with the best of them, but to her amazement she felt the colour creep inexorably up her neck until her face was aflame.
    â€˜I expect you like to win?’
    Alex withdrew his fascinated gaze from her crimson cheeks with difficulty. ‘Doesn’t everyone?’ Her veneer of sophistication was much thinner than he’d imagined.
    â€˜I don’t possess the killer instinct.’
    â€˜You think I do?’
    Hope placed the last glass on the draining board and shook the moisture off her hands. ‘If I say yes, you’ll accuse me of stereotyping you as the hard-nosed businessman—ruthless and incapable of compassion.’ As she spoke it struck her forcibly how very easily he could be slotted into that category. It wasn’t just that he was physically formidable; the stamp of authority went gene-deep in him. He was a man accustomed to making what he wanted to happen occur.
    He saw the flicker of uncertainty cross her face. ‘I draw the line at homicide.’
    â€˜That’s a comfort.’
    â€˜It would seem I’m woefully uneducated about your life.’
    â€˜Don’t worry, I don’t know much about building cars.’
    â€˜We could exchange information and improve our general knowledge,’ he suggested silkily.
    â€˜Are we talking a date?’ A cautious smile trembled on her lips. It was scary how much his reply meant to her.
    â€˜Tryst, assignation, rendezvous…’ She was mature forher age, and there was nothing artificial about this girl—woman, he firmly corrected himself. The need to justify his response was strong.
    â€˜I’d like that.’ She sounded cool and collected, having firmly quashed the inclination to jump on the table and dance.
    â€˜Good.’ The gleam of ruthlessness in his grey eyes, the one that bothered her, was back. ‘Where did you say the champagne was?’
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    â€˜How did it go, Hope?’ Charlie managed to get a quiet moment alone with his daughter once the guests had begun to disperse.
    â€˜Better than I expected.’
    â€˜You’ll be yesterday’s news before long,’ he