Page 36 of Bound By Her Shocking Secret

Clearly she hadn’t expected that.

Gabriela appeared then, to take the starter plates away and deliver the main course. A traditional Costa Rican beef and bean stew, light and tasty.

Daniel watched with interest as Mia tucked in. She’d never been shy about eating. He remembered staring at her the first time they’d gone for dinner, and she’d put down her fork.

‘What? Is there something on my face?’ she’d asked.

He’d commented dryly, ‘I don’t think I’ve ever seen a woman eat with so much relish.’

She’d blushed, and said a little tartly, ‘It’s a crime to waste good food.’

‘I agree,’ Daniel had said, beyond amused, and enthralled by her appetite and her defensiveness.

As if playing a cruel trick on him now, she looked up at him and swallowed her food before saying, ‘What is it? Have I got something on my face?’

Daniel shook his head, not liking the swell of something in his chest. Something close to what he’d felt earlier when he’d played with Lexi.

Yet in spite of that unnamed emotion he found himself admitting, ‘Actually, I haven’t taken a lover since you.’

Mia’s eyes went wide. Colour poured into her cheeks. She looked at him suspiciously. ‘Did you just say—?’

He nodded, looking at her carefully. ‘I haven’t had a lover since you.’

She took a gulp of water.

‘Have you?’ he asked, suddenly feeling exposed.

He’d assumed she hadn’t, because of Lexi, but maybe that had been naive. After her initial reticence Mia had been a voracious lover, and there was no reason for her not to have taken lovers in the interim.

The prospect sat like lead in his gut. But then she said, ‘I...no. No, I haven’t.’

A sense of satisfaction rushed through Daniel. He told himself it was satisfaction and not relief. She was avoiding his eye now. Her cheeks still flushed. Desire twisted in his gut.

Gabriela came out and took away the dinner plates, appearing oblivious to the crackling tension in the air. Mia suddenly appeared to be fidgety. She picked up the baby monitor and turned it on and off again, as if checking to make sure it was working.

Daniel said quietly, ‘I haven’t wanted another woman since you, Mia.’

Those huge green eyes met his. He saw her throat work. ‘I... I can’t say it’s been the same for me.’

Daniel could see the pulse beating near the base of her throat. ‘Liar.’

She sat up straight. Indignant. But no words came out. She left the baby monitor on the table and stood up and went over to the railing. Daniel followed her.

She said, ‘I’ve moved on, Daniel. I’ve had a baby. I have more important priorities now.’

‘You hadmybaby—which you kept a secret from me,’ he pointed out. And then, ‘And you might have different priorities, but you’re still a desirable woman. Not just a mother. In case I haven’t made myself completely clear, I still want you, Mia.’

Mia was reeling.Daniel did want her. She hadn’t been imagining the heat between them. She hadn’t been projecting her desire on to him.

As much as this made her feel somehow vindicated, it also terrified her. Because believing that Daniel didn’t want her had enabled her to stay somewhat sane. Protected.

But now...if he knew how much she still wanted him...there would be nothing between them. Literally. No walls. No barriers. Nowhere to hide.

The fact that he hadn’t slept with anyone since her was almost too much to try and comprehend. It stripped away her defences even more, leaving her dangerously exposed. Not helped by the all too seductive surroundings.

She turned to face him, feeling desperate, willing herself to say whatever it took to push him back. ‘Look, Daniel, whatever was between us died the day our—’

He cut her off, his face taut. ‘Do not say it.’

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