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Now, laden with her carrier bags of gifts and cards, Chrissie unlocked the door of her ground-floor apartment

Sally appeared in the kitchen doorway ‘Cup of tea?’ she asked, a curvy brunette with a wide smile

‘I’d love one No night out this evening?’ Chrissie teased, for Sally had a very healthy social life and was usually rushing back to Lizzie’s town house to dress up

‘Not tonightnot unless I want to go into an overdraft!’ she joked, pulling a face

Chrissie set her bags down and walked into the lounge Two babies were playing with plastic bricks in the centre of the carpet Both had a shock of blue-black curls and eyes so dark they were alht and started to crawl eagerly towards her Soraya laughed and, rarely as energetic as her brother, she lifted her arh to be lifted

‘Hello,as she dropped to her knees to gather up Tarif before freeing up an arm to pull his sister close

‘Mu her ently

Tarif tugged her hair and planted a big, sloppy kiss on her cheek, nestling as close as he could get And all the worries and little annoyances of the day fell from Chrissie in the same moment Her twins had owned her heart from the day of their birth She had been so worried that she wouldn’t be able to cope with two babies but Lizzie had taken her home to the town house and showed her all the basics

‘You’ll hwe all do,’ Lizzie had assured her

But nobody had warned Chrissie that when she looked at her children she would be overwhelnant she had tried to think of them as Jaul’s children and she had deeply resented the position he had put her in She hadn’t felt ready to be a le parent But once the tere born, she had only cared that her babies thrived and were happy

‘I took them to the park this afternoon Tarif threw a real tantrus,’ Sally confided ‘He was throwing hiot it out of his system I was really surprised’

‘In the wrong ed ruefully ‘But Soraya’s the exact same if you cross her They like to test you out They’re quite volatile’

Very e of Jaul flashed into her head, long blue-black hair loose on his broad shoulders, brilliant dark eyes shiht numbly Hot-tempered, hot-blooded, hot in bed, hot in every way there was A snaking quiver of forbidden heat washed through her taut length But Jaul had also been incredibly stubborn, impulsive and unpredictable

‘Are you feeling all right?’ Sally asked, plucking the torriedly frorasp ‘Sorry, you looked a bit pale and spaced out there for a moment’

‘I’m fine’ Chrissie flushed to the roots of her pale hair, scrambled up and hurried into the tiny kitchen to make the tea in Sally’s place

Sometimes the past just leapt up and s A h her and ti her backwards A stray word or a familiar smell or piece ofher no hiding place from the backwash of old pain If she hadn’t loved Jaul, she would have got over him much more easily But then she told herself that for the sake of her children she was glad that she had loved Jaul even if it hadn’t lasted, even though he had used her and lied to her and probably cheated on her as well

The money his father had offered her had been the botto she needed to know about the rogue ether for ever Jaul thought that ically soothing hurt feelings and disappointed hopes His immense wealth had provided him with a sether for ever’ had coether for ever’ had only lasted until Jaul had become bored Unhappily, it had never occurred to Chrissie when she ith him that one day she would be a tiresome complication in his life too