Free The Redemption of Darius Sterne by Carole Mortimer

Andy made her point cuttingly.
    Darius gave a humourless smile. ‘Are you going to keep throwing that in my face all evening?’
    â€˜You can depend on it!’ Her eyes flashed.
    He gave an unconcerned shrug. ‘I use whatever means I deem necessary at the time.’
    â€˜In order to get your own way.’
    â€˜Yes,’ he confirmed unapologetically.
    â€˜Will your brother be here too this evening?’ Andy decided to change the subject before the two of them ended up having a heated argument in front of all the other guests! Well, it would be heated on her part. Darius gave the impression that not too much penetrated that cool shield he kept about his emotions.
    A façade that was instantly shattered as Darius looked down at her between narrowed lids. ‘Why?’
    â€˜No particular reason.’ She frowned at his sudden aggression. ‘I was just changing the conversation to something less controversial.’
    And Darius was
just
behaving like a jealous fool, he realised belatedly. Miranda had asked a perfectly polite question about his brother, and he had reacted like a Neanderthal.
    Maybe it was the fact that she looked so stunningly beautiful tonight. Her figure-hugging gown was simply cut in comparison with the evening gowns worn by the other women present this evening, and styled in such a way that Darius could see she wasn’t wearing a bra. She wore no jewellery at all, and very little make-up. The whole effect gave her the elegance of a swan in a roomful of peacocks.
    Several male heads had turned Miranda’s way when they’d entered the hotel together. Several of those men had continued to watch her covetously, until Darius had given each and every one of them a challenging glare.
    To Miranda’s credit she seemed totally unaware of that male interest.
    As she seemed totally unaware of her own beauty.
    Which was a novelty in itself.
    Darius had never yet met a beautiful woman who wasn’t totally aware of her own attractiveness, and what it could get her.
    â€˜I’m sure Xander will already be in the room somewhere,’ he confirmed abruptly. ‘Unlike me, he tries to cater to my mother’s dislike of tardiness.’
    Miranda gazed up at him curiously. ‘One day you really will have to tell me what the problem is between you and your mother—’ She stopped abruptly, a blush colouring her cheeks, because she had realised as soon as she said it that her mention of ‘one day’ implied she thought the two of them would be meeting again after this evening.
    Darius smiled humourlessly. ‘Oh, I really won’t, angel,’ he drawled dismissively.
    â€˜No. Well. Perhaps not,’ Andy accepted awkwardly, the warmth having deepened in her cheeks at Darius’s endearment. Unless he called all of his women
angel
? It would certainly save him any embarrassment if he forgot which woman he was spending the evening or night with.
    Darius eyed her curiously. ‘Did you tell your sister and brother-in-law that you were coming out with me this evening? Obviously not,’ he drawled dryly as a guilty blush deepened the colour in Andy’s cheeks.
    â€˜I couldn’t think of an acceptable way to explain
why
the two of us had even met again, let alone that we were going out together,’ she answered impatiently.
    If she had even told Kim that Darius had visited her at her dance studio on Thursday, then heZr sister would have launched into yet another major big-sister lecture.
    If Kim knew Darius had actually blackmailed Andy into going out with him this evening, and used Colin’s continued employment for Midas Enterprises as leverage, then Andy had absolutely no doubts her sister wouldn’t have hesitated in stating that Darius could do whatever the hell he pleased in that regard, because Andy wasn’t going anywhere with him. Tonight or ever!
    That was the excuse Andy gave herself for remaining silent on the