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mortifying to have been caught ogling him.
    ‘Yes. Sorry,’ she gasped, clasping a fist to her chest and giving it a good thump.
    ‘Are you all right?’
    ‘Wine,’ she managed by way of explanation, and cleared her throat. ‘I’m fine.’
    He picked up a bowl from the table beside the barbecue, brought it over and set it down in front of her. ‘Have a prawn.’
    Nicky wasn’t sure having a prawn was all that advisable when she’d evidently lost control of her oesophagus, but took one anyway. ‘Thank you.’
    She dipped it into the little pot of aioli, then sucked it into her mouth and opened her eyes wide in delight as the juicy taste of the sea and salt exploded on her tongue. ‘Wow, these are amazing.’
    ‘Local,’ Rafael muttered, his gaze on her mouth and his jaw tightening. ‘Expensive.’
    She smiled. ‘But worth every céntimo .’
    He didn’t say anything, just kind of growled and shrugged and continued to stare at her mouth.
    A funny tense kind of silence stretched between them and Nicky was beginning to wonder whether she might have a blob of aioli on her lip or something, when Rafael suddenly frowned, gave himself a quick shake, then threw himself into the chair opposite her.
    ‘So how has your day been?’ he asked rather more curtly than she thought the question deserved.
    ‘Idyllic,’ she said, swiping a paper napkin from the box to wipe her fingers and dabbing her mouth just in case, and telling herself that she must have imagined the flash of tension and the curtness because as far as she could see there wasn’t anything to get tense or curt about. ‘Ghostly pale isn’t really me so I’ve decided to work on my tan. Me and my bikini barely moved from the pool all day.’
    A muscle started hammering in his jaw and she thought she heard him grit his teeth. ‘Sounds great,’ he muttered.
    ‘It was,’ she said, briefly wondering if his obvious displeasure was down to her hogging of his pool. ‘Do you mind?’
    ‘About what?’
    ‘Me monopolising your pool.’
    ‘Not at all,’ he said, lifting his gaze back to hers and giving her a tight smile. ‘Make yourself at home.’
    ‘Thank you,’ she said, and, unable to fathom what the inscrutability of his demeanour was about, decided to continue with the small talk he’d initiated before any more of that weird uncomfortable tension had the chance to return. ‘And how has your day been?’
    Rafael rubbed the back of his neck, let out what sounded like a deeply exasperated sigh and sat back. ‘Fruitful.’
    ‘In the literal or metaphorical sense?’
    ‘Both.’
    ‘How come?’
    ‘I spent the whole day with my estate manager discussing plans for an early harvest.’
    ‘I imagine you must have had a lot to catch up on.’
    Rafael arched a quizzical eyebrow. ‘Why would you imagine that?’
    ‘Gaby said you haven’t been here for months.’
    ‘I haven’t.’
    ‘Why not?’ It seemed a shame when the place was a little slice of heaven on earth.
    ‘I’ve been busy with work.’
    ‘And now you’re less busy?’
    ‘For the moment.’
    ‘So you’re on holiday too?’
    The minute the words were out of her mouth Nicky wished she hadn’t brought up the subject of holidays, because as Rafael fixed her with that startling green gaze of his and leaned forwards she had the feeling that she might be about to regret it.
    ‘I suppose I am,’ he said. ‘And talking of holidays...’ He paused and she automatically tensed because judging by the probingly intense way he was looking at her there was no ‘might’ about it. ‘Tell me more about yours.’
    ‘What about it?’ she asked and inwardly winced at her faintly prickly tone.
    ‘You’re here by yourself.’
    ‘Evidently.’
    ‘And indefinitely.’
    ‘Is that so surprising?’ Her fingers tightened around the stem of her wine glass as she wondered where he was planning to go with this.
    He tilted his head and regarded her for a second. ‘I suppose not, but don’t you