A Suspicious Proposal. HELEN BROOKS

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СКАЧАТЬ besides which, she was hoping the other two wouldn’t join them, even though she had instinctively warmed to Xavier’s niece. She had to tell him as soon as possible—and an audience was the last thing she needed. He had already introduced her as Janice, as it was, and now she was feeling acutely uncomfortable and more than a little guilty.

      There was a moment or two of silence and then Xavier said, his tone resigned, ‘Would you care to join us for an aperitif?’

      ‘If that’s all right?’ Candy’s tone was subdued now; she had obviously clicked onto the fact that her uncle was less than pleased to see them.

      ‘Of course it is.’ Essie’s voice was warm. There was something almost vulnerable about Xavier’s niece; Essie couldn’t quite explain it, but she felt that behind the lovely façade of clear translucent skin, vivid blue eyes and wonderful chestnut-red hair the other girl wasn’t quite so confident as she appeared, and Essie forgot all her previous thoughts about being alone with Xavier as she aimed to make the young couple feel welcome.

      And so it continued through the evening. When they all walked through into the restaurant, it seemed natural for Candy and Harper to join them, especially as their tables were next to each other and only took a moment to put together.

      The meal was wonderful, all five courses of it, the wine undoubtedly expensive, and Xavier was an excellent host—courteous, amusing and urbane. But behind the cultured, suave exterior Essie sensed he was watching them all in the same way a scientist examined something he found interesting. He gave nothing of himself away.

      As soon as the thought hit, she knew it was the truth. Xavier was the epitome of the cool, controlled ice-man, however light and witty his conversation, and however much that sexy, sensual mouth smiled. Sexy and sensual? She caught herself up sharply, irritated she’d noticed. He wasn’t sexy or sensual or anything else—he was simply the enemy, as far as she was concerned, and she’d better remember that. Once she’d told him—if they ever got to be alone for a moment or two—it would be wise to beat a hasty retreat. This was not a man to mess with.

      They lingered over their liqueur coffees—the rich, brandy-flavoured coffee topped with whipped cream was the best Essie had tasted and the pianist who had been playing a medley of songs while the diners ate was excellent—but then, after Xavier had insisted the meal was his treat to Harper, the other two rose to leave.

      ‘Thanks, Xavier.’ Candy leant forward and touched her uncle’s arm with a smile.

      Essie found herself asking—although she hadn’t meant to, ‘You don’t call him Uncle, then?’

      ‘Uncle?’ Candy grinned. ‘With only ten years between us? Besides, I’ve never thought of Xavier as an uncle; he’s the big brother I never had.’ There was real affection in the lovely blue eyes and, as Xavier glanced at his niece, Essie saw a softness to his smile she hadn’t seen before. And it hurt. Ridiculously, irrationally, it hurt like mad, because she knew he would never look at her like that. In fact, once she told him the truth, she didn’t dare to think how he would look.

      But she didn’t want him to look at her like that, anyway! Good grief, it was the last thing she wanted! What on earth was she thinking of? The protests came, fierce and strong, and such was her agitation that she let her napkin slip under the table so she could bend down and retrieve it and compose her face again.

      She loathed his type of man! She loathed him; he was a typical male chauvinist with a grossly exaggerated idea of himself. Okay, so this evening had been fun—she had to admit she’d enjoyed herself, in spite of everything—but that was because he was in entertainment mode, that was all. The real man was still there, under the façade of smooth dinner companion. He was a control freak, like the rest of his kind.

      Essie had accepted a brandy when the other two had declined—not because she wanted one, but because it would give her an opportunity to talk to Xavier with other people around, and she had the feeling she would need their unsuspecting support. And now, as Xavier settled back into his chair, his powerful chest muscles flexing under the thin white silk of his shirt—the jacket long since discarded on the back of his chair—she took a quick sip of the fine thirty-year-old spirit as she contemplated how to start.

      ‘Don’t you ever relax?’

      ‘What?’ The deep, husky voice had been very soft and now Essie stared straight at him, her eyes narrowing warily. This was the start of the seduction programme, was it? The one that had been put on hold when his niece and her fiancé had joined them so unexpectedly.

      ‘You’ve been on edge all evening. I could almost feel the waves coming off you,’ he drawled lazily, ‘and you were the same this afternoon, but in a different way.’

      He was too perceptive by half. She watched his eyes wander over her face and she knew he was doing it deliberately, his gaze pausing on the soft swell of her lips until she could feel them tingle as though he had kissed her.

      ‘I don’t know what you mean,’ she said tightly. She was going to tell him, she was, but in her own way, and certainly not defending herself at the same time.

      ‘You’re like several different women under the same skin,’ he said thoughtfully, ‘and you change from one to the other like a nervous little chameleon. Why are you so guarded tonight, Janice? Is it me in particular you’re chary of, or all men?’

      This had gone quite far enough and, in view of his comments, there would never be a better opportunity to tell him he had made a mistake—a big mistake—this afternoon, she thought feverishly. And then he completely took the wind out of her sails and had her floundering for words when he leant forward, his hard dark face amazingly tender, and said, ‘You’re a phoney, Janice Beaver. All this wild living and seeking of attention—that’s not the real girl. Has someone hurt you? Is that it? Whatever he did, whatever happened, he’s not worth messing up your life for. Believe me, I know.’

      ‘Xavier, please.’ This was awful, terrible. He was making her feel so guilty. She took a deep breath, her nostrils flaring, and removed her hand from where it was resting under his before she said, ‘This isn’t like you think.’

      ‘Someone did hurt you, didn’t they?’ It was as though he hadn’t heard her. ‘And badly.’

      She wished she’d never started this. She swallowed deeply, the tension making her voice brittle as she said, ‘That’s nothing to do with this and it was a long time ago.’

      ‘Time’s relative and it might help to talk about it.’

      She had to explain who she was. She took another deep breath, the elusive and very male scent of him teasing her nostrils as he leant even closer, his silvery eyes reflecting a shaft of light from the discreetly placed lamp above their table, and she had just opened her mouth to begin, to tell him, when the pianist stopped playing and instead spoke into his microphone, reading from a card one of the waiters had just given him.

      ‘Sorry to interrupt the flow, ladies and gentlemen, but there is an urgent call for Miss Esther Russell. If Miss Russell is here, perhaps she would make her presence known or make her way to Reception.’

      ‘Janice?’ Xavier’s voice brought her startled eyes back to his. ‘Don’t let him win, don’t let him ruin your life, because that’s what’ll happen if you’re not careful.’

      ‘I have to go to Reception.’ Essie’s voice was slightly hysterical but she couldn’t believe this was happening. It was like a black comedy, a dark farce.

      ‘Reception?’ СКАЧАТЬ