In the Boss's Arms. Barbara Hannay

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      ‘Well, she was calling from the hospital and she sounded very upset. Perhaps she didn’t have your Cairns number with her.’

      ‘Whatever. It doesn’t matter. I’ll have to get on the first available plane.’ He was struggling to stay calm. ‘I assume there’s someone responsible to take care of Jack?’

      ‘I believe he’s staying at the home of one of his school friends.’

      ‘Right.’ Liam’s mind whirled. ‘Do you have the details of the hospital? The ward?’ Julia had to have the very best attention.

      He jotted down the information Rita gave him.

      ‘I’m sure she’s in good hands,’ she said, clearly trying to soothe him.

      ‘Yes, I suppose you’re right. Well, thanks for letting me know, Rita. I’ll—no doubt, I’ll see you soon.’ Liam disconnected, ran his hands down his face and pressed his fingers against his eyelids. Hell!

      This was not the first time Julia had been rushed to hospital, but that thought did nothing to ease his worry. It was always a nightmare.

      Releasing a heart-rending sigh, he touched the button connecting him to Alice’s extension.

      ‘Alice, I’m sorry. I’m going to have to—’

      ‘Alice isn’t here.’ It was Shana’s voice.

      ‘Oh.’ Liam massaged his temple where an ache had started. ‘Do you know where she is?’

      ‘She took off in a hurry. Said something about emergency shopping.’

      He sighed again. ‘OK. When she comes back, tell her to call me.’ Then he rang through to the front desk. ‘Sally, can you book me on the first possible flight to Sydney? Yes, I want the next available flight. I have to be there tonight.’

      Hot orange with pink polka dots.

      Alice grinned at her reflection as she stood before the mirror in her new underwear. This fun ensemble should be a good test of Liam’s liberal attitude to colour!

      She’d bought it on the way home from work. Of course, she’d felt a little guilty about leaving early, but she knew she could make up for lost time tomorrow and the early mark seemed justified. After all, tonight was her first official date with Liam and surely that called for a quick detour via the shopping mall to buy scented candles.

      Candlelight, wine, a leisurely meal and conversation were on the agenda for tonight. She and Liam needed to share more meaningful verbal exchanges, soulful heart-to-heart discussions. Until now she’d been reluctant to pressure him, but questions, like the ones Shana had raised, needed answers, as did others, like where their relationship might be heading.

      Problem was, on the way to the candle shop she’d passed the lingerie shop, and she’d seen this cute bra and panties set in the window. The colours were so outrageous she immediately thought of Liam. And in spite of her commitment to being cool and calm and in control, she had rushed straight in and bought them.

      And come home without the candles.

      So much for being in control.

      At least she had a sensible beige linen dress to wear over the fun lingerie. Alice slipped it on now and turned again to the mirror. This was better. The sleeveless shirtmaker dress was designed to be cool in the tropics, so it had very little shape, a stand-away collar and a row of sensible little buttons down the front.

      Now she looked cool and, more importantly, modest.

      Except…except…oh, how shameless could a girl get? All she wanted to think about was Liam’s gorgeous, sexy smile when he undid these buttons and found what was under this modest beige dress.

      Giving an exasperated shake, she hurried through to the kitchen and busied herself selecting plates, glassware, cutlery and place mats to set on the table out on her deck, sans candles. Halfway across the kitchen with her hands full, she heard her cell-phone ring. Darn. She’d left it in her bedroom and she had to put everything back on the kitchen counter while she went to answer it.

      Please, don’t let it be Mum or one of the aunts. Not tonight. Last night she’d spent ages on the phone, answering endless questions about the drama of the plane landing, and she’d had to explain that yes, Liam Conway was the same man her mother and aunts had seen in the photo in the paper and yes, it was an amazing coincidence that he’d turned out to be her boss. And yes, he was just as nice in real life as he’d appeared to be in the TV interviews.

      The phone was on her bedside table.

      ‘Hello, Alice.’

      She could hardly hear Liam’s voice above the buzz and hum of background noise—voices and busy, bustling sounds. She smiled as she pictured him waiting impatiently in the line-up at the crowded Indian takeaway.

      ‘Hi, Liam; is it going to be a long wait?’

      ‘Alice, you didn’t get my message to call me?’

      She frowned. ‘No.’

      ‘Shana was supposed to tell you.’

      ‘I—I—left work a little early.’

      She heard his sigh. ‘I’m sorry, Alice, I’m afraid I’ve had to cancel dinner. I’m at the airport now.’

      ‘The airport?’ Her heart gave an uncomfortable thud. ‘What are you doing there?’

      ‘Look, I’m terribly sorry, but something’s come up and I have to fly to Sydney.’

      ‘Tonight?’ It was virtually impossible to keep the disappointment out of her voice.

      ‘Yes. In fact the plane’s boarding now.’

      Whoosh. Alice’s knees buckled. She dropped down onto her bed. This didn’t make sense. What kind of something had come up?

      ‘I’m really sorry,’ Liam said again. ‘When this news came through I was totally thrown. I’ve had so much on my mind this afternoon. There was a lot to get organised in a hurry.’

      ‘What’s happened?’

      ‘It’s—it’s a family matter,’ Liam told her. ‘An emergency. It’s too complicated to explain now. They’re calling the final passengers for my flight. I’m going to have to turn this thing off.’

      She was clutching the cell-phone so tightly it should have snapped in two. How could Liam just take off with so little warning, such scanty information?

      ‘There’s a chance I might have to stay in Sydney for some time,’ he said. ‘But I’ll call you.’

      ‘All right.’ Her voice came out squeaky. Some time. How long was that?

      ‘Are you OK?’ He sounded concerned.

      No, of course she wasn’t okay. She was confused, disappointed, worried. Liam’s evasions scared her. They СКАЧАТЬ