Winnie smiled, charmed by Larkin’s assertive sister. “Well, I—”
“You don’t have to answer that, Winnie.” Sam held up a hand, still giving his wife the evil eye.
“It’s okay. No big secret,” Winnie said. “As Larkin told you, I’ve been having a bit of trouble with the press. He thought it would be a good idea for me to hide out here until things die down.”
“It was that ‘richest women in America’ article, wasn’t it?” Annalise scowled.
“Unfortunately, yes.”
Sam wiped drool from his son’s chin. “My wife is jealous she wasn’t included. When we got married, she put the bulk of her fortune in a trust for our children. Making her a kept woman. I like to keep her barefoot and pregnant.”
“You are such a pig.” Annalise, laughing, threw a strawberry at him. Then she turned back to Winnie. “But the more important question—is there anything going on between you and my brother?”
Winnie froze. Being a bad liar was a handicap. “Well, I…”
Fourteen
“Leave her alone, brat.” After walking for miles over and around Wolff Mountain with his brother and three cousins, Larkin had paused only long enough to strip out of his sweat-soaked clothes and take a shower, before going in search of Winnie. He wasn’t pleased to find her being interrogated by his sister.
Annalise had a knack for intimidation. Though in truth, Winnie didn’t seem upset or anxious. He had expected one of her shy smiles when he walked into the room. She did smile…but the expression in her eyes was guarded—certainly not the look of a woman who had spent the better part of the night wrapped in his arms.
Mindful that he and Winnie hadn’t discussed whether to keep their intimacy a secret, he settled for brushing her shoulder with his hand as he sat down beside her. “Morning, Winnie. Did you sleep well?”
She nodded, and for once, there was no pretty pink blush to reveal her state of mind. “Very well, thank you. I’ve been enjoying breakfast with these three lovely people.”
Sam snorted. “That’s the polite version. Annalise has been badgering her.”
“I most certainly have not.” His wife glared at him. “But at least now I know why they’re here.”
“You told them?” Larkin shot a sideways glance at Winnie, surprised, to say the least.
The slight shake of her head gave him a warning. “I explained that the article has been causing me some headaches and that you convinced me I should lay low here for a while.”
Ah. Not the whole story, but enough to appease his sister. As the maid entered the room, Larkin pointed at Sam’s plate. “I’ll have what he’s having, please. I’m starving.”
Winnie had finished her meal but was enjoying a coffee refill. “How far did you walk this morning?” Her tone indicated polite interest, nothing more.
His blood began to boil. It was one thing to hide the level of their relationship from his family, but another entirely to treat him like a virtual stranger. “I have no idea,” he said evenly, as the maid came back into the room and placed his breakfast in front of him before exiting. “We run part of the trails, do some rock climbing, tramp through the overgrown woods. It’s more of a ritual than a walk or a hike. Wolff Mountain has always been here for us. We like to remind ourselves of that whenever we come home.”