Read Sweet Peas in April for Free Online

one.” His hands lingered as he handed it over. His touch was cold and she shivered. “You promised you’d give it serious consideration,” he said, not letting go of her hand.
    “I haven’t had chance to yet, but I will, as soon as I get a few minutes later today.” She tugged her hand free and put the file back on top of her inbox.
    He beamed. “How about lunch then? We could talk it over then.”
    Sam glanced at the clock on the wall, not missing the scowl on Adam’s face. “It’s a little early for lunch, Peter. It’s not even ten o’clock yet.”
    Peter’s hand ran over her arm before she moved it away. “Not now. Later. Say about twelve?”
    “OK.” She agreed, hoping he’d then go away. She wanted to go back to what Adam had found.
    “Cool. We’ll go in my car. I have a table booked at Lancini’s for twelve fifteen.”
    Adam raised an eyebrow. “Lancini’s for lunch?”
    “You have a problem with that, Mr. West?” Peter asked, distain crossing his face.
    “No, not at all,” he said straight-faced.
    Sam knew that look all too well. That was the yes-I-do-have-a-problem-but-no-I-am-not-going-to-tell-you look. “I’ll be ready at twelve, Peter. Now I’m afraid I really do need to get on here.”
    Peter nodded. “Sure. I’ll see you later.” He headed out and shut the door.
    Sam turned to Adam, not going to let this slide. “Well, what’s with the attitude? What is your problem with me having lunch with Peter?”
    “It’s just a little posh for a work lunch, isn’t it? Not to mention you can’t get a reservation at Lancini’s unless you book at least a month in advance.”
    She sighed. Yep, the green-eyed-monster had finally reared its ugly head. “Just because we never went anywhere that posh, doesn’t mean I don’t do it occasionally now.”
    Adam stared at her. “We couldn’t afford it. We only had our student grants to survive on. My parents cut me off when I married you. Yours didn’t want to know either.”
    “Can we please not do this now?” she asked as the all-too-familiar sick feeling settled in the pit of her stomach. “Show me those files again and which ones you got the data from. I want to know how big a mess I’m in here and whether there is a faint chance of getting out of it. Preferably before I’m sued by every single client I have. Or before I go bankrupt.”
    Adam pursed his lips and stared at her intently for a long moment before nodding and reopening the laptop.
    For the next two hours, work consumed them. Sam knew the truce wouldn’t last and desperately wanted it to. Being this close to Adam again was hard. She still had feelings for him deeply rooted within her that she’d never managed to fully remove. And she knew they were once again stirring and blooming.
    She lifted her gaze to the vase of flowers. She’d had sweet peas in her wedding bouquet, cut from the ones growing in the garden of the house that she, Adam, and five other students were renting. Even her wedding dress had been one from her wardrobe. “Elope” was the term they’d used, but they’d simply gone to the local registry office, filled in the forms, and gone back three weeks later to marry.
    Not exactly how she’d imagined her wedding whilst growing up. But it was their only choice, given the opposition they had to their relationship. Would things have been different if people approved of her marrying a white boy? Or if Adam’s father hadn’t immediately disinherited him for daring to date a black girl? Why did things have to be so complicated and go so wrong? Why couldn’t they have worked things out rather than fall apart under all the hurt and blame following Immy’s death?
    She looked at Adam’s fair head bent over the laptop, a look of intense concentration on his face. He was jealous of Peter. But there was no point telling him there was no need. Because he’d never believe her. But if she were honest, all she wanted was Adam. The problem was, she’d taken off