‘And that makes everything all right?’ Nathan demanded tersely.
Brenna was aware that he had seen a double meaning to her apology—and taken it. ‘You said you were over that,’ she avoided the piercing ice of his eyes, knowing how he must have hated being thwarted a year ago when she hadn't returned to Canada as she was expected to.
‘That?’ he gave a harsh snort. ‘What's the matter, Brenna, can't you even use the word love?'
Her chin rose challengingly. ‘Not in connection with you, no!'
A dangerous glitter narrowed his eyes. ‘Then it's as well I am “over that”, isn't it?’ he bit out harshly. ‘Otherwise you just might have hurt my feelings, mightn't you?'
The idea of anyone or anything being able to pierce this man's heart and actually find any softer emotions that could be hurt was as laughable as his derisive tone implied.
‘Did you try the hotels in town?’ Brenna returned to the subject of Lesli, not willing to get into an argument with Nathan about what had happened sixteen months ago, and the fact that she hadn't returned to Calgary when college finished that summer as she had told Nathan she would.
‘All the major ones,’ he nodded. ‘None of them had a Mrs Wade or a Miss Jordan registered, which means that if she is in London she has no intention of being found until she's good and ready. Which leaves you,’ he reasoned. ‘Wherever she is, here or still in Canada, she'll be in touch with you some time in the near future; the Jordan sisters always stick together,’ he added derisively.
She knew he was referring to the fact that although she hadn't been back to Canada the last year, she had telephoned her sister regularly once a month just to let her know she was all right, had even written a couple of times. She had made no such contact with Nathan, and Lesli had promised not to give him her address. Her eyes widened as she realised that.
‘Grant and I searched out a few of those letters from you that Lesli has been hoarding the last year,’ Nathan drawled as he guessed the reason for her accusing look.
‘You read my letters to Lesli?’ she gasped, desperately trying to remember all that she had said in them; little about Nathan, she was sure.
His expression darkened. ‘No,’ he rasped. ‘Although I had the right; when you left you promised to marry me!'
‘I said I would be back in the summer and we could talk about it!’ she corrected heatedly. ‘Obviously I decided we didn't even need to talk about it!'
‘Wouldn't it have been more polite to come back and tell me that yourself?’ he ground out.
She hadn't felt able to do that, had feared—yes, feared that he might be able to persuade her into bed as he had during her Easter break at home. Because she knew if he managed to share her bed again she wouldn't be able to deny him anything. Even now she could vividly remember the strength of his lean body wrapped about hers, the musky male scent of him as his mouth nuzzled against her neck. The memories of that night hadn't faded at all during the last sixteen months away from him.
‘We had nothing to talk about,’ she dismissed in a hard voice.
‘I'd told you that I loved you!’ he reminded her tautly.
And that claim had caused her more pain than happiness; it still did! ‘And as you can now say you don't, it's as well I didn't take you seriously,’ she derided. ‘Now could we, for once, stop bringing our conversation back to a personal level and concentrate on Lesli and the fact that she's alone somewhere and seven months pregnant?'
Nathan gave an abrupt inclination of his head. ‘I'll have to call Grant and let him know I've had no luck finding her here.'
And Brenna could see how much admitting that failure irked him. ‘You can do that once we get back to London,’ she snapped. ‘Right now Lesli is the important one.'
His mouth thinned. ‘Grant is suffering too, you know,’ he rasped.
‘Of course,’ she scorned. ‘After all, Lesli is carrying the Wade heir! It wasn't enough to make him leave his prize herd, was it?’ she accused.
‘Brenna—–'
‘Oh, let's get back to the cottage so that I can get my things together,’ she bit out impatiently. ‘I'd like to get back to London this afternoon.'
He grabbed her arm and swung her round to face him, his features contorted with anger. ‘If Lesli leaving Grant had anything to do with you I promise you you'll regret it!’ he threatened harshly.
Brenna frowned. ‘What do you mean?'
‘You've shown your contempt of the Wade family for so long maybe a little of it rubbed off on Lesli. Maybe I should have read those letters!'
Her eyes shot flames at him. ‘If Lesli has come to her senses and no longer sees you and Grant as big fearless heroes, then all I can say is it's about time!’ she challenged. ‘But I can assure you nothing I've said influenced her; I've been telling her for years that you're both arrogant sons-of—–'
‘Your success as an illustrator of children's books doesn't seem to have moderated your language any,’ Nathan bit out grimly. ‘Your mouth still needs washing out with soap!'
Brenna's eyes flashed like emeralds. ‘And who taught me every curse in the book?'
His mouth thinned. ‘I always told Dad he should have kept you away from the ranch hands.'
‘I was referring to their boss!'
He gave a deep sigh. ‘A lot of things can go wrong on a ranch,’ he defended.
‘And you swear about every one,’ she recalled softly, her expression hardening as she realised she sounded almost wistful. ‘How did you know about my illustrating?’ she bit out.
He shrugged. ‘Lesli was very proud of her baby sister's accomplishments,’ he drawled. ‘The copy of the book that you sent her has been put by for the baby.'
‘What did you think about it?’ she mumbled.
Grey eyes glinted with humour. ‘Koly the Koala is not exactly my taste in literature.'
‘No,’ she snapped. ‘I remember Mum throwing out of the house a few of your ideas of literature,’ she scorned.
‘They were Grant's,’ he rasped. ‘He brought them back from university.'
‘And you didn't even glance at them,’ taunted Brenna.
‘Oh, I glanced at them,’ Nathan drawled derisively. ‘But they were giving me an inferiority complex; I didn't realise most of those positions were possible!'
Carolyn had got back from the village during their absence, and Brenna made the introductions Nathan had been in too much of a hurry to bother with when he arrived. Carolyn, beautiful blonde, blue-eyed Carolyn, had difficulty hiding her surprise at the sudden appearance of a stepbrother she had never heard of.
‘Although I don't blame you for keeping him a secret, darling,’ her friend told her as she put her arm in the crook of Nathan's, smiling up at him warmly. ‘He's beautiful!’ Carolyn laughed softly as Nathan raised surprised brows in Nick's direction, the dark-haired man lounging in an armchair, completely unperturbed by his fiancée's flirtatious manner. ‘Don't worry, Nathan, Nick isn't likely to challenge you to a duel or anything just because I like the way you look. Just because we're getting married there's no reason to act as if we don't see the attraction of other people.'
Brenna was well aware of Carolyn's views concerning her engagement, just as she was also aware that Carolyn had been faithful to Nick and the love they shared, since the moment they first met. But Nathan couldn't know that from the way Carolyn was acting, and Brenna could sense his sceptical gaze on her.
‘Carolyn is the author of Koly the Koala,’ she defensively explained her