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to face her, but before he
could reply she spoke softly. “Jeff obviously didn’t bother to tell
you when he was relating his humorous tales of my youth, but I have
a degree in Occupational Therapy and for the past five years I’ve
been working with children with injuries and disabilities.”
    “Why didn’t you tell me?”
    “I thought you knew. Or did Jeff only bother
to relate my lesser accomplishments?” she replied tartly, then
wished she hadn't. Why was she trying to antagonise him? Was she
trying to get back at him for what he so obviously thought of her
when she’d first arrived? It really wasn’t his fault that Jeff had
given him the impression she was incompetent. But he hadn't had the
courtesy to ask her occupation, and her professional pride was
piqued. She wanted his respect.
    “When you’re dressed I’d like to see you in
my study so you can give me full details of your qualifications.”
He strode back into the penthouse.
     
    Braden had removed his suit coat and tie, and
was busy making notations on a report he was reading when Jenna
knocked on the open study door. He hurriedly scribbled another
comment, then glanced up to catch Jenna gazing at the dark curls
visible through his opened shirt. Their eyes met, and his skin
tightened and heat rushed through his body at the blush that
coloured her cheeks.
    He was acutely aware of the good fortune
which had brought her to them. For a reason he still couldn’t
fathom, Caitlin had obviously decided she could trust Jenna
implicitly. After the trauma of the past few months it was a
miracle he wasn’t about to toss away. He realised his anger had
been unjustified, and he had to admit to himself it had been partly
fuelled by a spark of jealousy at the way the child had swiftly
encompassed Jenna in her affections. And another part of the anger
had been caused by the sudden surge of desire he’d felt when he’d
seen Jenna again.
    When she’d stepped from the pool his body had
reacted so outrageously he’d had to turn away for fear that she
would see the evidence. Before she came into the office he managed
to convince himself that it was because of the stress and worry of
the past months that his body was looking for a release. Any
attractive woman would have had the same effect. But now he knew it
wasn’t true.
    In a voice husky with self control he asked
her to sit down and explain her qualifications.
    She told him how, after gaining her degree
and working for two years with athletes with injuries she had
started work in a children’s hospital, and it was there she had
realised this was where her true vocation lay.
    "I've always tried to incorporate swimming
and water exercises into therapy as much as possible. The buoyancy
of the water means no weight bearing down on joints, so it
alleviates a lot of the pain otherwise involved in moving an
injured limb. Once children realise they're able to move without
pain, they relax into the programme and gradually build up stronger
muscles and better flexibility."
    She smiled, her joy in her work dispelling
the guarded look she'd worn since he'd asked her to tell him about
her job. "I let the kids have some fun in the pool, too. It helps
lessen the pressure to achieve they sometimes feel they're
under."
    Fun was something Braden hadn't considered in
years, but the thought of having fun with Jenna was definitely
appealing.
    She told him of the various jobs she'd had in
Australia and overseas in the past two years, particularly working
in camps for children with injuries and disabilities.
    Braden watched her eyes sparkle and her
colour heighten as her enthusiasm for her work shone through. He
was accustomed to determined, hard-headed business people whose
only enthusiasm was for profits achieved, and Jenna's eagerness and
warmth were a revelation. An emotion so long forgotten he couldn’t
put a name to it stirred in his gut.
    He watched the animation in her shining green
eyes as she spoke of children who arrived at