Free Falling For His Proper Mistress by Tessa Radley

he hauled her into his arms.
    â€œYour father knows you loved him,” she murmured against his parka.
    That uncertainty lay at the root of Guy’s guilt. He’d resisted all his father’s calls to return. Deep down he’d blamed his father for driving them apart after his mother’s death. “I doubtit—even though I tell myself that one day we’ll meet again, I’m not even sure that I believe that either. But thanks.”
    With a sigh, he set her away from him.
    Then, narrowing his gaze until he located the minivans in the distance, he put the SUV back into gear and trod on the gas to close the gap.
    â€œGuy, my parents died in a boating accident when I was a two-year-old.”
    â€œI didn’t know that.” She’d never told him that—he wondered what other vital, formative information she’d withheld.
    â€œUncle Art used to tell me I carried them with me, in my heart. They were with me all the time. But that worried me—I didn’t want them in my heart, I wanted to know they were up there.” Avery pointed through the windshield to the blue sky overhead. “It’s so perfect, so blue, so clear. How could there not be heaven and angels? I used to tell Uncle Art that one day I’d go there to visit them.”
    So she still believed in angels and ever-after. How’d he missed this softer, more idealistic side to her? Guy wondered what other illusions she still clung to. “You wanted to visit them up there even though you’re scared of heights?”
    A quick sideways glance revealed her smile and the dimple in her cheek. “You know, I never gave that a thought—I told my Aunt I could catch a plane from LAX.”
    Guy couldn’t help himself, he gave a shout of laughter.
    High above where the balloons floated sunrays glinted off a plane. “Matt is somewhere up there,” Avery said suddenly.
    He sobered. “Matt?”
    â€œMy cousin.” There was an odd note in her voice. “You’ve seen him.”
    He couldn’t remember meeting her cousin. One thing his father’s death had brought home was it was often better tosay nothing than to mouth an inane bunch of platitudes at someone’s loss. First her parents, then her cousin, Matt. He decided to keep it factual.
    â€œI don’t remember meeting him. Was it in New York?”
    â€œNo, last night. In the sky lounge.”
    Confused, he slowed and turned his head to stare at her.
    â€œDark hair. Tall.” She held her hand above her head, almost touching the roof of the SUV. “We shared a drink. You came in. And left before I could introduce you. He was at the champagne-and-oyster party the previous night, too. He flew home today.”
    Her cousin. He switched his attention back to the road. The man who’d hugged her…was her cousin Matt. Not dead.
    And not her lover.
    Guy felt himself flush. After a moment of feeling like a complete idiot, he laughed. “You should have told me.”
    â€œAnd ruined your fun?”
    The agony of emotion that had stabbed him when she’d embraced Matt last night had been anything but funny.
    â€œNot nice,” he said reprovingly.
    Avery sounded unrepentant. “Serves you right for jumping to conclusions.”
    â€œWhen you said he was up there, I thought you meant he was dead. Like my father.”
    He nosed the SUV through an open gate into a field and came to a stop beside the chase vehicles. By the time he got to the passenger door, Avery was already on the ground.
    â€œGuy—” she touched his arm “—I’m so sorry.”
    Guy wished he’d kept his mouth shut. He didn’t want her feeling pity for him. He wanted her teasing humor back. Everyone had been pussyfooting around the family since his father’s death almost six weeks ago.
    â€œThere’s a lot to do,” he said gruffly. “And almost two dozen hungry people who have just