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She was five foot nine so he had to be at least six foot two, from his heavy working boots and quilted jacket to the black cap pulled low over long, crazily curled dirty blond hair.
Slim hips. Broad shoulders. Long legs.
Her gaze tracked up his body before the sensible part of her brain clicked in to stop it.
‘Oh, Amy—’ she breathed in a low hiss of appreciation ‘—I owe you big time.’
‘This is so true! But what particular thing have I done now?’ Amy replied between mouthfuls of cake.
‘You didn’t tell me that you hired a lumberjack male stripper.’
‘Who? What?’ Amy looked up and whirled her head around like a meerkat before it froze in the same direction Toni was focusing on.
‘Oh. I see what you mean,’ she said with a cough and started taking photographs with the small digital camera that Toni carried with her everywhere.
‘I have no idea who that is and he is nothing to do with me, but what are you waiting for? Go and find out who he belongs to and if he’s available—nab him for yourself before any of the other gals do.’
And with that Amy pranced off towards her friends in her frilly lace-trimmed corset, which was going to be of zero value on an archaeological excavation in the Andes.
Leaning against the door frame, the mystery man didn’t move an inch. The very tall, very rugged, very cold-looking mystery man.
He was a fashion stylist’s idea of what would pass for an Indiana Jones style adventurer—after the action. In fact she would go so far as to say that he was quite scruffy.
Conscious that she was standing there ogling his long denim-clad legs, Toni’s gaze ratcheted up to his face just as he glanced in her direction. Blue eyes gazed at her so intently from under heavy dark blond eyebrows that she almost blushed under the fierce heat of that focus.
With cheekbones that sharp he could have passed for a male model if it was not for the heavy, definitely non-designer dirty blond and grey beard and the blue strapping that was bandaged around his right hand. His clothing was practical. Stained and well used. If this was a costume then it was entirely authentic!
He had not said one word to anyone but in those eyes and on that powerful face she recognised something very special. Confidence oozed out of every pore of this man’s body. He knew exactly who he was and what he wanted and what he was doing there.
That must be nice!
The way he simply leant against the door frame enjoying the view, as though he walked into a lingerie party every day of the week, screamed someone who was so totally comfortable in his own skin that it was sickening.
While she was dressed in a tiny purple satin push-up bra and matching shorts.
Oh, what? Not funny. So not funny.
Toni grabbed her kimono from the back of the sofa and pushed her arms into the sleeves faster than she’d thought possible!
Okay, some of these girls were used to wearing lingerie in front of the camera for a living, but she wasn’t. She didn’t like the idea that some stranger was standing there getting a good eyeful of a catwalk show.
Wait a minute. What the hell was he doing here? And who had invited him? Freya never said anything about having a boyfriend.
Perhaps he was just passing and someone left the door open!
‘Man alert!’ Toni cupped her hands around her mouth and yelled, ‘Unaccompanied male in the room, girls!’
The screaming and squealing had to be heard to be believed.
Utter chaos erupted on all sides as the girls scattered to the wind, mostly upstairs to the bedrooms from the sound of it.
Righty. Time to sort this out.
Toni narrowed her eyes and pulled the edges of her kimono tighter together.
She tried to stomp over to the hulk but it was a tad tricky in feather mules so she ended up mincing across the room instead. Head high, chin forward.
And those blue eyes focused on every tiny step she took.
She cleared her throat and looked him straight in the eye.
‘Okay. You look like the kind of guy who likes straight talk. I’m Antonia Baldoni, house guest of Freya Elstrom. This—’ and she waved one hand towards the abandoned articles and some very odd bedroom toys ‘—is my birthday party. And you are?’
He moved slightly away from the wall to an almost upright position so that when he spoke the sound came from several inches above her head.
‘Tired. Hungry. Surprised. And delighted to make your acquaintance, Antonia Baldoni. House guest.’ He rolled back his shoulders and exhaled very slowly through his nose. ‘Strange. I’ve just come from Freya and she never mentioned anything about a house guest.’
There was a definite squeak and a giggle from behind Toni’s back and one side of this man’s mouth twitched just once before he breathed, ‘Make that house guests. And just when I thought this day could not get any more bizarre.’
‘You’ve just seen Freya?’ Toni looked at him with her eyes narrowed and her head tilted to one side. ‘Really? You have to forgive me, but I find that a little hard to believe. Freya was invited to my party tonight but sent her apologies from Italy. So. Perhaps it’s time for you to start talking before I throw you out. Let’s start with the big ones. Where exactly did you say you met Freya? And what are you doing here? And who are you?’
A low thundering sigh rumbled low in this big man’s chest and Toni stepped back as he slung his body forward as though it was taking a huge effort and strode past her into the kitchen, looking around as he did so from side to side, leaving an aroma in his wake which made her waft the air with one hand.
‘Hey. Wait a minute. I didn’t invite you in,’ Toni said and shuffled after him in her mules.
‘You don’t have to,’ the blond said and pointed to a framed photo on the wall between the cabinets. It was one of a collection of what looked like holiday snaps which Toni had not had time to admire. Until now.
By going up on tiptoe Toni could get a better look at what seemed to be a family photo of people gathered around a dinner table. She recognised Freya and an older man who looked so much like her that he had to be her father, Lars Elstrom. And standing behind them, grinning for the camera, was a tall handsome blond man with broad shoulders and blue eyes the same colour as...
She whipped around, blinked at the man standing with his arms folded and then back to the photo.
Her shoulders dropped. He nodded very slowly up and down. Once.
‘Scott Elstrom. Freya’s brother. And I live here.’
Then he sniffed and gestured with his head towards the worktop. ‘Is anyone going to eat that pizza?’
Toni stared at the photograph and then glanced up at the serious expression on his face before returning back to the framed snapshot of the man, scowling at her at some sort of winter sporting event.
It was definitely him. No mistaking the dirty blond hair and physique.
It was definitely on Freya’s kitchen wall.
And, just like that, the effects of two hours of wine-drinking and general merriment popped like an overstretched balloon and what was left of the rational part of her brain kicked right back in.
Not a male stripper.
Not a birthday present in the shape of a hunky lumberjack.
He was Freya Elstrom’s brother.
Nightmare!
Toni closed her eyes and pinched the top of her nose. She gestured back towards the party, which had magically returned to full swing inside the dining room, with the flat of her hand. ‘As you can see, this is my birthday party. And I’m rather occupied at present.’
His slightly bloodshot blue eyes locked onto hers. ‘I’m not going anywhere.’
At this distance all she could focus on were the thin pale tan lines radiating out from the corners of his eyes and the dark stubble and grey-blond beard above that full, sensuous upper lip.
But there was nothing polished about this man. Far from it. His cheeks looked more sunburnt than tanned and his jacket and trousers were designed for hard use and had seen it. Unshaven. Unkempt.
Inhaling was a mistake. He smelt of leather and travel and acrid sweat mixed with wet dog in a combination which perfume manufacturers could bottle as instant girl-repellent.
Smelly did not quite cover it. This man was seriously in need of a long soak and a shave and several cans of deodorant.
Then the right side of his mouth turned up into what was probably meant to be a reassuring smile.
And every sensory switch inside her body turned on to maximum power.
Just like that. Completely out of the blue and totally, totally not what she wanted to happen. Especially not now.
Speech was impossible and for what seemed like minutes, but was probably only seconds, they both stood there in silence. Breathing in air which positively crackled with electricity. Neither of them willing to shift an inch.
It was almost a relief when someone’s mobile phone started ringing. The ringtone was the theme song for a popular Italian coffee shop. Amy had been playing with it earlier that day; she loved coffee and wasn’t sure when she would see her next cappuccino.
‘I think it’s yours.’ He blinked, breaking the connection, stepping back and folding his arms.
Toni turned away and sucked in some air because apparently she had stopped breathing. She reached into the tiny evening bag she had left on the kitchen worktop and found the phone in the inside pocket, flipping open the tiny, silver, high-tech unit as a familiar voice hissed down the line.
‘Sorry to interrupt, but are you coming back in?’ Amy whispered. ‘Lucy is just about to light the candles on the birthday cake and we’re frightened of the fire risk. You can bring the hunk with you if you’d like to help.’
‘Be right there,’ she replied and closed the phone.
Sucking in a long breath, Toni lifted her head and stared into the face of one of the strangest-looking men she had ever met in her life.
Hell. Who was she kidding? He was smelly, bandaged and glaring at her. And totally gorgeous.
‘Stay right where you are. Help yourself to the pizza. I’ll be back soon and we can sort all of this out.’
TWO
Hustling a gaggle of still giggling party girls into their clothes proved more difficult than Toni had imagined, especially when their unexpected male guest was trapped in the kitchen and they were all desperate to take another peek before they left.
In the end Amy came to her rescue with the vague excuse that it was getting late and some of them had an early plane to catch. The next ten minutes were a mad rush of tidying up, distributing the bedroom toys and assorted lingerie items into party bags and arguments about whether they should break into the kitchen to rescue the chocolate brownies they had saved for the coffee.
It was almost a relief when she finally kissed Amy goodnight with promises that she would call if there was any trouble, and finally waved the girls goodbye from the doorstep.
Toni dropped her head back against the heavy door and gazed down the hallway towards the kitchen.
Trouble was waiting for her behind that innocent white-painted door. She just didn’t know how much.
Swallowing down a huge lump of apprehension, Toni inhaled a couple of short, sharp breaths. Perhaps she shouldn’t have downed all of those mystery cocktails Lucy had concocted followed by the champagne and wine.
Probably.
Blinking hard, she pushed away from the front door with the flat of both hands. Time to find out what Scott Elstrom was doing back in town.
Casually pushing the door open, Toni sauntered into the kitchen with as much aplomb as she could muster.
Scott was sitting on a bar stool with his back against the kitchen wall and an empty plate in front of him.
He had stripped off his outer coat and hung it from a hook near the back door that Toni had not even noticed before. Um. Maybe he had been here before?
‘How was the pizza?’ she asked in a sing-song voice as she took in the heavy grey and blond beard and dark blond hair. ‘If you fancy dessert, why don’t you help yourself to the chocolate willy lollipops? There are several flavours and they are anatomically correct.’
He scowled at them and coughed. ‘That’s good to know but I’ll pass.’ Then he nodded to the brownie pan. ‘Those look good.’
Toni clutched the tray and slid it across the worktop out of his reach. ‘My finest recipe. Which my birthday party guests would have enjoyed if the party had not been broken up so early by an unexpected guest. These brownies are staying over here until I have a few more answers.’
‘I didn’t ask you to send the girls home. As for unexpected—’ he raised his bandaged right hand in the air ‘—no clue you were going to be here. No apologies. No excuses. And those brownies do smell good.’
‘No brownie until I know who you really are,’ she replied with a shake of her head and folded her arms. ‘That’s only one photo. You could be some distant freeloading relative who Freya doesn’t want sleeping in her spare room. Or some ex-boyfriend. Or something.’
Without saying another word, he lifted a smartphone out of a side pocket on the leg of his cargo trousers, placed it on the breakfast bar and started tapping away. Toni couldn’t help but notice that his body might be on the sinewy side but his fingers were long and slender.
‘Hiya. Yes, I got here. How are things? Really? He’s already asking for pen and paper? Unbelievable...yes, I know.’ Then he shot her a glance. ‘By the way, I’ve just met your house-sitter. She gave me pizza and is ready to call the police to get rid of the crazy vagrant who thinks he lives here. Now don’t be like that. Calm down. You’ve had a few other things on your mind these past few days. Take a deep breath. That’s better. Inhale slowly. It’s all under control. Now, why don’t you have a word with your pal while I eat her brownies, okay? Okay.’
Toni could only watch, stunned, as this tall man in a check shirt turned around on the bar stool and calmly stretched out his hand towards her. ‘It’s for you. My sister would like a word.’
Five minutes later Toni collapsed down on the bar stool opposite Scott in a complete daze.
‘I am so sorry. We had no idea or we would never have organised a birthday party while your dad is in the hospital. Wow. That is so inappropriate I don’t know where to start.’
She reached into the brownie tin and cut an enormous cube and started nibbling at it to try and calm her nerves.
‘We had absolutely no clue. Because I would definitely have cancelled if Freya had let me know. Seriously. I would. This is awful. I feel so embarrassed. Mortified, really. That is all so inappropriate. Please let me apologise again and...’
Scott held up one hand. ‘I get it. You didn’t know. It’s your birthday. So you organised a party and enjoyed yourself. No problem.’
‘Actually, my birthday isn’t until Thursday but my sister Amy is leaving on a gap year trip tomorrow and she wanted to help me celebrate before she left so she arranged this surprise party and all my friends from the company turned up and... I am babbling. Because I am mega embarrassed.’
‘That would be true. About the babbling.’
Toni took another nibble of brownie before daring to glance up at this man who was just sitting there in silence, dominating the space.
‘So you are not a male stripper. Sorry about that little confusion. It was a ladies only night so any man had to have a very good reason for being there. And, seeing as none of the girls claimed you...I might have jumped to the wrong conclusion.’
His mouth opened slightly as though he was about to reply, then he reconsidered and closed it again. A rough-skinned hand rasped over his beard and he glanced quickly over his clothing as his voice rasped low in his throat. ‘You thought that I was a male stripper? What kind of stripper turns up dressed like this?’
She winced and closed one eye and pretended to duck slightly.
‘Scruffy lumberjack. Check shirt. Beard. Very popular with the city girls who like a—’ she coughed quickly ‘—less refined country look.’
Then she blinked. ‘The oiled chest and man string are a bit old-fashioned these days. The hunky bit of rough...oh, I didn’t mean to say...imply that you’re rough or anything, but...’
‘Maybe you ought to stop talking now. I am not the oiled chest type even on a good day and this has not been one of them.’
‘Oh. Yes. Right. Good. Or not good, depending on how bad your day has been. If you know what I mean.’
‘How bad has it been? Let me see.’
His dark blond eyebrows squeezed tight together and he pinched his forehead with a thumb and middle finger.
‘Almost lost a hand to frostbite. A pig of a snow machine to an air base. Cargo plane from Alaska to Iceland, scheduled flight to Rome, where I had to pay first class to get a seat, four hours at a hospital trying to work out what the hell was happening then a flight back to London. And don’t get me started with how long it took me to get from the airport to the hospital and back again.’
He lifted his chin and dropped his hand away.
‘So, overall, I’m not too happy about being here right now. I think that would sum it up.’
Toni blew out fast through narrowed lips. ‘Alaska? In February? Frostbite? Well, that explains a lot.’
Then she slipped off the breakfast bar stool and flicked out both of her hands. ‘Righty. What would you like? Coffee or tea? And I can easily reheat these brownies for you. Oh—you’ve already eaten the last of them. No problem, there are plenty more in the freezer. It will only take twenty minutes tops.’
He replied by easing his weight off the bar stool and rolling back his shoulders, making his chest pop.
‘Thanks for the offer, but it’s late and my body clock is deep-fried. Nice to meet you and thanks for the unexpected entertainment but I’m heading to bed. If you’re here in the morning we might try to have a conversation which isn’t in code. But right now I am way too tired to talk about the why and how.’
Then he looked up at her and asked, ‘The bedroom with the blue door—I usually keep it locked. Anyone sleeping in there?’
‘Oh, no. Still locked. Freya said it was private.’
And, with a quick nod in her direction, Toni watched him sling the huge duffel bag over one shoulder with a grunt and a wince. The weight of it meant that he had to lean forward from the waist but he shifted the load a few times before striding into the hallway and to the staircase which led to the bedrooms.
It took a few seconds for her champagne and wine-fuddled brain to connect with what was going on.
Her commission! Oh, no!
‘Wait a minute. One last question. I’m supposed to stay with Freya for another week and work with her father at the Elstrom office. Do I need to reschedule? I mean...when will your father be back in London?’
His steps slowed and with one movement he lowered the duffel on to the hall carpet. There was something in the way his shoulders were braced tight that made Toni feel the heat of his gaze even before he looked sideways at her.
Her body locked into a half-in-the-hallway-half-in-the-kitchen position. She simply couldn’t move. It was as if her feet were reluctant to leave the relative safety of the kitchen, just in case.
‘News flash. I’m back. Freya’s in Italy. Dad won’t be coming back any time soon. As of today, he has officially retired. Goodbye Elstrom Mapping. Hello Italy.’
Then he gave a twitch. ‘Sorry. But it looks like you’re out of a job.’
His gaze scanned her scantily clad body from the toes sticking out from the feathery mules to the top of her gold paper crown and lingering at all of the right places on the way up.
The start of a lazy lopsided smile warmed his mouth. ‘No rush to get packed tonight. Tomorrow will do. Goodnight.’
* * *
Goodnight? Out of a job? What?
Any lingering after-effects of the party had gone in a flash.
Before Scott could start up the stairs, Toni dashed in front of him and stood on the bottom step so that they were at more or less the same height.
To his credit, Scott Elstrom didn’t even flinch but braced himself, legs apart, and stared at her as she crossed her arms and stared him out.
‘Oh, no, you don’t. I signed a contract with Freya Elstrom to paint a portrait of the CEO of Elstrom Mapping. She was the one who got in contact with me. Begging me to do the work. I’ve dropped everything to be here.’
There was a deep low sigh from the man standing only inches in front of her and he shifted his gaze from her face to the wall for a few seconds.
‘What was your surname again?’
‘Baldoni. Ah, I can see that you recognise it. The Baldoni family have painted the last four generations of Elstrom chairmen. Freya called me just after Christmas to set it up for her father. Apparently he had been thinking about it for a while and finally just decided to go ahead with his portrait. This is the earliest I could do it, which makes me feel sick.’
‘Christmas. Right. So she asked you to paint his portrait after the holidays. No wonder she wanted me there.’
‘Actually, she was more concerned that it was a Baldoni than which member of my family it was. Apparently your father is a stickler for tradition.’
‘You might say that,’ he murmured and ran his hand back through his dirty blond, very scraggy hair. ‘He would want the same artist if he could do it.’
‘Tricky, since my grandfather is long gone. But if Mr Elstrom is ill,’ she murmured to herself, and then realised that Scott was still listening, ‘of course I can reschedule the sitting. That’s not a problem. When your father is better, Freya can let me know. I have some photos that she sent me and I’m sure I can come up with something he will be pleased with... Why are you shaking your head? Is there something else?’
‘My father is retired, Miss Baldoni. As of this afternoon, I am the new head of Elstrom Mapping.’
His eyebrows squeezed closer together but his gaze focused laser-sharp on her face.
‘And the last thing I need is my portrait painted.’
* * *
Scott stood back and watched the fiery brunette with the lovely brown eyes stomp past him up the staircase towards the guest bedroom before picking up his over-heavy duffel.
Toni Baldoni probably had no idea how much he enjoyed following her up the stairs. One slow step at a time.
The last time he had shared this house with girls wearing nothing but lingerie had been on Freya’s university graduation party, when he had dared to turn up an hour early and walked in on way too many over-excited girls high on champagne and life, all fighting for the hair straighteners and his attention. They had even taken over his en suite bathroom to cope with the party preparations.
Strange. He hadn’t thought about that in a long time.
An unexpected quiver of a laugh surprised him as this brunette stomped in her ridiculous shoes down the landing and her light gown wafted up, giving him a delightful flash of creamy thigh.
Eyes flashing, she instantly flung a glance at him over one shoulder and tugged down her gown, shot into the guest room and shut the door very firmly behind her.
Shaking his head and blinking to stay awake, Scott found the key, turned it in the lock and stepped inside the same bedroom that he had claimed the very first day he had arrived with Freya and his mother. This clean and uncluttered modern town house had seemed like another world from the dark, creaky old Victorian stone villa that was the family home they had shared with their father.
Sheer force of habit made him drop his duffel bag next to the bed and unlock and fling open the double windows to let some air into the overheated and stuffy room.
He didn’t need the heat.
He just wanted sleep and quiet to process the events of the day.
Freya had known that he wasn’t planning to come back any time soon and not that much had changed in the two years since he had last slept here.