Lovers in law (31 page)

“Because the price I’m paying
is you.” I paused to let this sink in before spilling out every
thought that had rattled around inside my head in the darkest hours
of the night. “You know how important my career is to me, and this
offer can give me everything I’ve ever wanted in a very short time.
But the minute I heard it, I knew I didn’t want to go because it
would mean leaving you behind.”

“So why not refuse it straight
away?”

“Because I’d effectively have
been saying – I’ve turned down this job for you so you’d better
make it worth my while.”

It didn’t take long for an
intelligent ma
n like Radford to see my
point. “Did you ever consider leaving?”

“No.” I couldn’t have been more
definite.

“And you’d be willing to give up
that chance for me?”

“In a heartbeat. The last
time I went to Rome, I was running away because I was too afraid to
fall in love with you. This time, I’m too afraid to
leave.”

“Then stay.” As always,
Radford made it sound so simple. “Stay and let me make it worth
your while
.”

Dusk had dropped around us –
the perfect time for lovers – and I took in every detail of
Radford’s handsome face in the gathering darkness. The shape of the
lips that knew the curve and length of my body; the eyes
that
carried love and laughter; the scar
in his eyebrow where he’d risked everything to defend me. If I
travelled a million miles and kissed a thousand men, I’d never find
anyone who came close to Radford Byrne and it was time to confess
the truth.

“I couldn’t leave if I
tried,” I said. “
I love you. I can’t
function without you. From the minute we met I’ve been running
towards you. I can’t change direction now.”

I kissed him, this time not
caring who saw us. The whole of London could watch and envy us.
Radford’s arms came around me and I heard a long, low sigh of
relief that finally blew away every anxiety I’d put him through.
Guilt resurfaced but I knew I had plenty of time now to make it up
to him.

“I’m sorry there’s no baby,”
I told him
, unable to miss the quick
flicker of disappointment behind his eyes.

“So am I. I’d got used to the
idea of you and I becoming a family.” He tangled his fingers in my
hair and pushed it back from my face, holding me steady while he
kissed me deeply. “If I asked you to marry me again, would you
accept this time?”

I smiled and
wiped my lipstick off his chin. “No way. I’m not
giving in that easily.”

“What do you mean, you
witch?
” He held me at a distance,
frowning. “I’m offering you my heart and all my worldly goods.
What’s easy about that?”

I shrugged.
“You’ll let yourself go once we’re married.
You’re already putting on weight and skipping the gym.”

“I’m not to blame for that.
Maybe you should cook less and let me out of bed on Sunday
mornings.”

He wasn’t wrong but our
Sundays in bed were most definitely the highlight of my
week.
“You don’t keep your promises
either.”

“Are we back to your knickers
again?”

“Or lack of them.”

Radford’s hand slid between
my knees and his voice dropped an octave to a sexy rumble. “What if
I prefer you without knickers?”

“That wou
ld be a matter for negotiation. It depends on what I’m
being offered in return.”

“My mouth against your
pussy
at every available opportunity,” he
said, deadly serious as if we were in chambers.

I shivered with lust. Past
experience told me it was no small concession and I briefly
considered heading home for the first instalment. I upped my
demands instead. “Once upon a time, you told me you did all your
best work in the nude. I don’t think you’re naked often
enough.”

“How often do you
suggest?”
I could tell he was getting
really interested.

“Mondays and Wednesdays initially
but with options on the rest of the week.”

He pretended to consider it
but you don’t flirt with a man as clever as Radford Byrne without
anticipating trouble.
“Only if you’re
prepared to join me. And I’ll be looking for hot tub privileges on
Thursdays.”

Now we real
ly were getting into deep water. “Why
Thursdays?”

“Because you’ll be wearing
your thigh-high boots the other days and I
wouldn’
t want you getting them
wet.”

I glared at him, letting him
think he’d outwitted me but I
was far
from done. I’d gladly spend a lifetime on the merger and
acquisition of his heart and, if there was one thing I loved, it
was negotiating terms with Radford.

“Rumour has it you’re losing
your edge in court since falling in love with me,” I said. “You’ve
certainly overlooked something tonight.”

“Trust me – I’ll be looking over
everything later. I won’t miss a point.”

“Then what about the Tiramisu
Clause?” I asked, trying hard to sound like a tough opposing
counsel even though I was ready to faint with anticipation. “It
proved rather successful last time we invoked it.”

He laughed briefly and I knew
exactly what was going through his mind. Game on, he was thinking.
Play to win and take no prisoners.

“I had no idea you wanted to play
so dirty,” he said.

“Always my favourite kind of
game.”

“I’ll show no mercy.”

“I don’t want any. I’ll
expect to be probed with the full rigour of the law.”

“You have my professional
undertaking.”

“But you must be prepared for an
equal amount of oral examination.”

He sucked in his breath and gave a
small groan. “I think I can stand up to questioning.”

“That’s a shame. I prefer taking
the Tiramisu Clause lying down.”

Radford squeezed my bum and I
knew he was thinking of heading straight home. “I don’t suppose we
could rush to an expedited hearing,” he said hopefully. “Matters
need to be aired sooner rather than later.”

But
I pulled him to his feet and began walking towards the
restaurant. “You haven’t read the case papers and I’m not wearing
any knickers. Essentially, we’re both working without briefs. And,
for my part at least, plenty’s getting aired already.”

Radford was laughing so hard he
could barely kiss me. “Will I ever win against you?” he asked

I could have lied and told
him he’d never succeed but, the truth was, he already had. “You’ve
won in every way possible. You’ve captured my heart, conquered my
soul and laid claim to the rest of my life. All I can do is lie
down, open my arms and surrender.”

He took hold of both of my
hands and pulled them in close to his chest. “Some cases are very
satisfying to win and I suspect this is one of them.
I hope you won’t be a sore loser.”

“On the contrary, I hope very much
that I am.” I scraped my nails down his stubbled cheek and he
couldn’t miss my meaning. “You promised to make staying in London
worth my while and I’ll need a lot of repayments on that
guarantee.”

I wrapped my arms around the
neck of my beautiful man and pulled him close, determined never to
loosen my hold. There’s an old saying – a woman needs a man who’ll
ruin her lipstick, not her mascara – and I suspected I’d found
mine.

“Let’s get something to eat,”
Radford suggested,
putting his arm around
my shoulders. “We can continue negotiating our marriage settlement
over dinner. I want you calling yourself Allegra Byrne as soon as
possible. You’ve been Lawless long enough.”

I
can’t pretend I didn’t like the sound of that. Perhaps it
was time for someone to bring order to my life and I couldn’t think
of anyone more qualified than the sexy man walking beside
me.

“As a point of law,” Radford
said, breaking into my
thoughts, “what
exactly do we call ourselves? You won’t marry me so we’re not
engaged. Partners sounds too businesslike and we’re much more up
close and personal than that. And I’m way too old to be anyone’s
boyfriend. So what are we?”

I thought for a while but
there really could only be one answer. “Lovers-in-law,” I told him
with a kiss and heard him repeat it under his breath, getting used
to the shape of it on his lips.

He shrugged.
“It’ll have to do for now,” he said, “but it’s
only temporary. I’m serving formal notice that I’ll woo and court
and seduce you until I wear down all your defences.”

“That won’t take long. You’re
pretty irresistible already.”

I snuggled into him, happier
than I’d ev
er been. Rome might be the
Eternal City but, in London, I’d found Radford and a love that
would last longer than an eternity.

With an offer like that on the
table, how could I refuse to accept it?

If you enjoyed Lovers In Law,
the story doesn’t end here. Towards the end of the novel you met
Aiden Thirstan, a friend and client of Radford Byrne. Handsome,
charismatic Aiden has his own romantic story to tell and you can
find out all about it in Love Notes.

Erika Fenn fled England to escape a
broken heart and found worldwide fame as a singer-songwriter. Five
years later, exhausted and on the verge of losing her voice, she’s
back in Britain. And the last person she wants to see is Aiden
Thirstan, the man who broke her heart in the first place.

Not only did Aiden wreck her past
but her future’s under threat now too. The question is, does Erika
trust Aiden enough to let him help her? And if she does, can she
trust herself not to fall in love with him all over again.

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books by Avis Exley.

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inspirations from Love Notes, visit the Avis Exley page on
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Author Note

Avis Exley opened her first romance
novel at the age of fourteen and has been reading and writing them
ever since. A slave to research, she’s travelled the world in the
company of international playboys, property magnates,
ultra-successful businessmen, medieval knights and even a Viking
prince. A typical day sees Avis lying on a silken cushion and
sipping champagne whilst auditioning handsome, well-muscled men for
a starring role in her next story.

Although brought up in the English
countryside, Avis heard the streets of London were paved with gold
and headed for the capital. It was love at first sight. She
instantly fell for the city’s history, energy and iconic sights,
and she’s so proud it’s been the focus of the world during the
Jubilee and Olympic year. Now London and Britain’s lesser-known
locations provide the inspirational backdrop for the first of
Avis’s novels to be released in e-book form. Find Avis Exley’s
extracts on Tumblr, Pinterest and Facebook to see if you can fall
in Brit Love too.