Free Falling For His Proper Mistress by Tessa Radley Page B

thunderous glare. And proceeded to dig herself deeper into the mess she’d created.
    What did Guy think she was going to do, in heaven’s name? Sleep with Todd?
    The frustration and anger cut deep.
    Guy didn’t trust her.
    At the heart of it all, that was what hurt most. That was what made her act so perversely. Her disappointment at his lack of trust about Jeff…then Matt…and now Todd. God,she’d just told him he’d been wrong about Matt, but did he learn? No, he simply leapt to the next wild conclusion about her.
    If he knew her at all, Guy would never have believed her capable of that kind of betrayal. If he’d known anything about her he would’ve found it impossible to believe. She was really quite proper in her way. Not a wild wanton at all. But he hadn’t cared to find out who she was. All he was interested in was a sexy body in his bed. Coupled with his distrust, that made her loath to tell him about her stupidity.
    Yet despite her annoyance with Guy she found herself tasting the food and observing the guests and keeping mental notes about what they ate and what they pushed away.
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    Still annoyed an hour later, Avery escaped the ride back with Guy by hopping in one of the other resort minivans with the balloonists on the way back. But when they pulled up in the courtyard, Guy was waiting for her, his eyes still stormy.
    â€œI’ll introduce you to Louis Leclere, the chef at Chagall’s.”
    â€œI met him yesterday, at one of the talks I listened to,” Avery said. “He told me that you and he are old friends.”
    The Frenchman had confessed that Guy had lured him to Jarrod Ridge just over a month ago.
    Guy’s mouth tightened. “Let me introduce you to the resort’s head barman then.”
    â€œOh, I met him, too. Louis thoughtfully introduced us. In fact the three of us are meeting—” she glanced at her watch “—in thirty minutes. They’re going to show me around the cellars. I better go change into something more suitable.” She gestured to the dust on the hem of her white jeans. “Otherwise I’ll be late.”
    â€œAvery,” Guy put a restraining hand on her arm, andglanced meaningfully at Todd who was hovering nearby, “Louis tends to have a devastating effect on women. We have a policy that staff don’t date guests—I’ve told him that already. But I wouldn’t want you to tempt him to break the rules.”
    Angrily, she shook off his hand. “Well, since I’m neither a guest nor staff but an independent contractor, that shouldn’t affect me. Of course, that won’t affect me asking Louis out on a date—he’s staff, and I’ve always had a thing for French accents.” Guy glowered.
    Jerk.
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    Avery spent the rest of the day avoiding Guy. Until he finally cornered her late that afternoon in the Sky Lounge where she was studying the proposed drink list for the winter ski season and jotting down notes into a moleskin notebook.
    â€œI shouldn’t have said what I did this morning about staff and guest liaisons,” he said abruptly halting beside the bar counter.
    â€œNo, you shouldn’t,” she agreed, gazing unseeingly at the list in front of her. “You should’ve trusted me to behave with professionalism.”
    Her rebuke was met with silence.
    â€œTruce?” he said at last.
    He had a long way to go. Setting the list down with a snap, Avery glanced up to find that Guy’s confusion was written over every hard line on his face. “If you’re not prepared to trust me, then so long as you treat me with the respect you accord other employees and contractors we have a truce.”
    Heat flared in his eyes, turning them a smoldering, smoky gray. “Impossible. I can’t treat you like I treat everyone else. We’re lovers.”
    â€œShh!”
    Avery glanced around to see if he’d been overheard.