Free The Best Man's Guarded Heart by Katrina Cudmore

spoke, ‘Was there nowhere you could go? Why did you stay?’
    She winced at his questions. Anger and guilt had her saying bitterly, ‘Do you honestly think I would have stayed if I’d had a choice? I was seventeen , Andreas. I had no money... Even when I started working there was no way I was going to be able to support myself and Matt and Lizzie. I only took the job with my dad because he offered the best pay. Of course it was his way of controlling me, but I thought I would be able to save enough to move out. But rental costs just kept increasing. We have an aunt who lives in Newcastle, in the North of England, but she has her own family to care for. Anyway, Matt and Lizzie loved their school and their friends. I couldn’t take them away from all that.’
    He leaned even further over the workbench, resting his hand lightly on hers. When she started his hand enclosed hers, preventing her from jerking away. ‘I wasn’t blaming you. And you need to realise that you’re not inadequate.’
    She gave him a weak smile and tried to pull away, but his grip tightened.
    He scrutinised her with a playful but determined focus. ‘Say it for me—that you’re not inadequate.’
    â€˜Andreas, please...’
    â€˜ Say it.’
    Though she squirmed and shook her head in exasperation she eventually gave in. ‘Okay, I’ll say it. I’m...’ She cleared her throat as her chest tightened painfully, thick with emotions she didn’t understand. ‘I’m not inadequate.’
    He gave a satisfied nod. His eyes, deep green pools, flickered with gold, held hers, and her heart thumped frantically.
    â€˜Shall I tell you what you are ? Ise poli glikos . You are very sweet, you’re loyal, determined and kind, and...very beautiful. A woman with an incredible future in front of her.’
    They were the nicest words anyone had ever said to her. And she was totally unable to handle them. Flummoxed, she blushed deeply and said quietly, ‘I hope so.’
    â€˜And you don’t need any man or romance to complete you.’
    He was wrong. She did need love and romance. Only love would ease the gut-wrenching loneliness that was slowly eating away at her. But she could never explain that to a man so against everything she craved.
    â€˜Perhaps, but even you have to admit that it would make life a lot more fun.’
    He gave her a light look of warning. ‘Be careful what you wish for.’
    They worked in silence for the next half an hour, the pile of bunched herbs between them growing ever larger. Grace tried to maintain a veneer of outward calm, but inside she was a turmoil of emotions: disbelief yet toe-tingling pleasure that he had called her beautiful, regret that he was so against love.
    In the end he downed tools with a heavy sigh. ‘I can’t stand here listening to your stomach rumble any longer. I’m going to get you some food.’ He paused to grab his jacket and muttered, almost to himself, ‘And then I must tackle my best man’s speech.’
    Once he had left she carried the completed bunches to the other table and began attaching them to the doubled-up rope twine, creating lush foliage into which she would later place peonies encased in water tubes.
    Her hands trembled. He was right. She needed food. And she needed her head examined for saying what she had. So much for staying away from each other. The man was in charge of a multinational empire. He didn’t have time to be listening to her.
    And yet, even though it had been hard to say what she had, it had felt right. It had been strangely freeing to see his absolute acceptance of what she’d said. None of the doubtful looks or the disinterest that had greeted her in the past when she tried to speak to other family members about her problems with her dad.
    * * *
    Later that evening, Andreas cursed when he reviewed the most recent budget estimates for his Cayman Islands