He felt her stiffen, and knew whatever secret she held would be one he’d be lucky to obtain. Banan, however, loved a good challenge.
“Why does it matter?”
One corner of his mouth lifted in a smile. “Because I’m curious about you. I want to know what makes you, you.”
“There’s nothing more to tell you than what I already have. You know my life growing up in Seattle. You’ve seen how klutzy I am, and I’m afraid that will never change.”
The sigh in her voice, and the resignation he heard, had him rolling over until he was on top of her. “I think there is much more to you than you’ll allow anyone to know. We just shared our bodies in the most intimate of ways. I touched you, kissed you, licked you—”
“I know,” she interrupted, a light blush staining her cheeks. “Believe me, Banan, I know. I experienced every wonderful minute of it.”
He grew hard hearing her low, husky voice. How could such a mortal have that ability over him? If he were in his right mind, he’d get dressed and get the hell away from Jane. And never look back.
The thought of doing that left him sick to his stomach, however. Which only made him more confused.
“Jane. Please,” he urged.
She turned her gaze away from him and took a deep breath. “My mother thinks I’m in London because I want to see Europe.”
“And the truth?”
“I learned I have a half sister.”
She uttered it so softly, it took Banan a moment to realize what she’d said. “How did you find out?”
Jane gave a light touch to his shoulder, and to her surprise, he moved off her. She sat up, holding the sheet to her chest. Which was silly, really. He’d seen all of her already.
But what she was about to say still caused her anguish, and she needed all the protection she could get. Even if it was just a sheet.
“Three years ago, my parents decided to sell the home I grew up in and build their dream house. They moved closer to the coast where they’d first met. It was such a sweet story, and one I’d heard for as long as I can remember.”
Jane paused and looked at Banan. He was leaning on one elbow, silently watching her.
“They didn’t want such a big house, so they had to get rid of furniture. I took some pieces because I couldn’t imagine allowing it to go to someone else. One item was a desk my father had kept with him since he was sixteen.”
This was where the story took a turn she still, after three years, couldn’t wrap her head around sometimes. Jane picked at the sheet.
“The desk was so used and scratched, I thought I’d refinish it. I was sanding it down when I found the hidden compartment in the bottom of one of the drawers. There, secured with string, was a stack of letters. I thought they were from my mother.”
“But they were no’,” Banan said.
Jane shook her head. “They were from another woman, a Scotswoman, who had come over to visit relatives. She met my father and they began dating. Dad was seeing her and my mother at the same time. He ended up calling it off with the other woman, and asking Mom to marry him. But the other woman was already pregnant.”
“I’m sorry, Jane.”
His words, spoken so honestly and tenderly, brought tears to her eyes. “It’s all right. I learned through the letters that the woman didn’t hold any type of grudge. She knew my father was in love with my mom. I also learned that, apparently, my mom knew all about it.”
“So why did you lie to them? Why no’ tell them why you came to Britain?”
“Good question,” she said with a wry smile. Jane turned to Banan then and drank in his dark good looks. “They kept this from me. I was at first angry, then hurt. I have a half sister out there, and I want to know her. I spent most of my savings hiring a private investigator who tracked Samantha—Sammi, as she likes to be called—to Oban, Scotland. Her mother died almost five years ago. She owns her own pub.”
Banan’s gray eyes narrowed slightly. “You said you went to Oban.”
“Yes. I went there to talk to her. I’d seen pictures of her, so I knew what she looked like. But when I stood twenty feet from her, I couldn’t do it. I’d been over and over in my mind what I’d say. Then, chickened out.”
Banan reached for her arm and tugged her back against him. “Are you ever going to approach her?”
“It’s my goal. It’s the entire reason I have the damn job at PureGems to support me so I can get to her.”
“Why no’ move to Scotland? You’d have been closer?”
“I didn’t know she was in Scotland until I got here. The last report I had was that she was in London. I already had a job and my flat when the PI found her in Oban.”
Banan rested his chin atop her head. “When are you going to tell your parents?”
“I’m not sure I am. I want to meet Sammi first.”
“Then you plan to return to Seattle?”
His question wasn’t one she could immediately answer. It had been her plan when she first came to London, but she had come to love being in Britain. “I do miss my family, but…”
“But,” he pressed.
“I like it here.”
“Doona go into PureGems tomorrow, Jane.”
It was her turn to rise up on her elbow and look at him. “Why?”
“I’ve a bad feeling about Arnold. No’ to mention the fact he came here, threatened you, and had the other man watching your flat.”
“We don’t know if that was Richard or not.”
“Trust me,” Banan said with confidence. “It was.”
“I need that job.”
Banan was trying to figure out how much he could tell Jane to convince her how dangerous things were. “Do you trust me?”
For long moments she stared into his eyes, and then said, “Yes.”
“Then, I beg of you, doona go back to PureGems. Elena willna be there much longer either. G…her man,” he amended quickly, “never wanted her to return, and he’ll do what he must to keep her safe. I doona know how deep Arnold is in what we’re investigating, but he already suspects you know something. You’re a liability. Do you know what men like him do to liabilities?”
“I’ve seen enough movies and read enough books to know.”