Read Online The Trouble with Valentine’s by Kelly Hunter - Free Book Online

very tempted, to deliver. But if she did, things would get out of hand. Or out of trousers and into hand, so to speak, and heaven only knew what would happen after that. Come to think of it, she had a pretty good idea what would happen after that …
    And what if they were caught?
    They’d be thrown off the plane in disgrace. A big red ‘deviant’ stamp would appear in her passport and then Interpol would sign her up for sexual misconduct reform school and Tris would find out and, oh, the horror …
    Nick wasn’t the only one with a vivid imagination.
    Feigning nonchalance, Hallie withdrew her hand from his thigh and reached for her glass of water. She was flustered; she was aroused; she was totally out of her league.
    She was enjoying every minute of it. ‘Actually, I’ve changed my mind,’ she said.
    ‘Good call.’ He exhaled deeply.
    ‘After all, it wouldn’t do to forget that this is strictly a business arrangement.’
    ‘Exactly.’
    Exactly. The sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach was
not
disappointment. Nick was her employer, nothing more, and only for one week. After that it was contract fulfilled and goodbye. Surely she could resist his considerable charms for one lousy week.
    All she needed was a more professional approach.
    ‘So how do you want to approach this businessof being married?’ she said crisply. ‘Are we aiming for warm and fuzzy or a fiery attraction of opposites?’
    ‘Think of yourself as a cross between a personal assistant and a German Shepherd,’ he said. ‘Supportive, loyal, and when necessary, extremely protective.’
    A German Shepherd? Ugh. This new approach worked fast. ‘Anything else?’
    ‘Are you sure you couldn’t manage a simper?’
    ‘Positive.’
    Nick sighed. ‘Just be yourself then. That’ll work too.’
    ‘Oh.’ And after a moment’s reflection, ‘That was a nice thing to say.’
    ‘You realize that was almost a simper?’
    ‘It was not.’
    Nick’s answering smile was suspiciously gleeful as he flicked on his overhead light, reached for the in-flight paper and snapped it open, effectively ending the discussion.
    Hallie glared at the back page of the paper. It was shaking ever so slightly. He was laughing at her, dammit. ‘That was
not
a simper.’
    ‘If you say so, dearest.’
    A fiery marriage, she decided. A constant battle of words and of wits and it was a damngood thing this marriage was only going to last a week.
    Any longer and she’d probably kill him.
    Twelve hours and several time zones later, they touched down at Chek Lap Kok International Airport, collected their luggage, and met up with the Teys’ driver, who went by the name of Kai. They followed the silent Jet Li lookalike through the streamlined arrivals terminal, out through the huge automatic opening glass doors, and they were in Hong Kong.
    ‘Phew.’ Wide-eyed at the sleek steel-and-glass building they’d just emerged from, Hallie paused to gather her composure. ‘It’s cooler than I thought it would be.’
    ‘It’s winter,’ countered Nick. ‘If you want hot and humid, we’ll have to come back in September.’
    ‘Ah.’
    They followed the Teys’ driver towards an illegally parked Mercedes and Hallie began to watch their guide with increasing interest. Maybe it was the easy, graceful way he moved or the way he seemed to know what was happening around them without ever seeming to notice. Maybe it was the way he loaded their suitcases into the trunk as if they were empty, which was definitely not thecase. Maybe it was simply that he was gorgeous, with a quiet intensity about him that drew the eye, but … no. That wasn’t it either. He reminded her of someone.
    He reminded her of Tris.
    ‘
This
is the Teys’ driver?’ she whispered to Nick ‘I’m guessing that’s not all he is.’
    ‘No,’ agreed Kai in a soft, cultured voice as he shut the trunk and opened the car door for her. ‘I also cook.’
    ‘Nice.’ Hallie smiled at the man. ‘But you can’t