Millionaire's Women Part 21

Jack stared at her. 'What the devil did he expect you to do with her?'

'Hand her over to Robert's parents, who are lovely people, but far too elderly and frail to cope with a child of her age on a permanent basis. When I explained this he gave me an ultimatum. I had to choose between the child and him, right then and there. So I made it brutally clear that there was no question of choice, and never would be.'Her mouth tightened. 'Rupert took it badly-very badly.'

His fingers tightened on her hand. 'What happened?'

Kate eyes glittered icily at the thought of it. 'He flew into such a rage I thought he was going to beat me up. Dr Jekyll turned into Mr Hyde right there in front of me. But I was too furious on Jo's behalf to feel afraid. I just stood there,eye to eye, daring him to hit me. It was touch and go for a while, but like all bullies Rupert backed down in the end. At which point I threw the ring at him and told him to get out of my life.'

'Good G.o.d!' Jack stared at her, appalled. 'You took a h.e.l.l of a risk, Kate.'

'I realised that the moment he'd gone. I shook in my shoes for ages afterwards.' She turned to look at him. 'Now you can see why I hate talking about it. I just can't believe I was such a bad judge of character.'

'Not entirely,' he reminded her. 'Instinct warned you not to move in with him.'

'True.' Kate's eyes darkened. 'He was in such a rush about everything, I felt uneasy. He bought the ring just days after our first meeting, but no matter how much he argued I insisted we had to know each other better before I actually wore it.'

'Did you love him?'

'I was attracted to him, certainly. He was charming, witty and very good company. But until that horrible night I'd never come up against the real Rupert Chance.' She shrugged. 'It clinched my decision to give up my job. I'd worked in Personnel for years and prided myself on my judgement when it came to people. If that was no longer working for me it was time to call it a day.'

'Did Joanna like him?'

'She never met him. He was abroad at the time of the funeral. My relationship with Rupert-if you could call it that-lasted less than a school term. Why?'

'Her reaction to him might have been interesting.' Jack gave her a crooked smile. 'I get a card from Sydney every Christmas, with the current snapshot of Dawn, husband and progeny-three sons at the last count. Her way of telling me she's a respectable matron these days.'

'Is she still gorgeous?' asked Kate, hoping Dawn had lost her looks by now.

'In a different, earth-mother kind of way I suppose she is.' Jack shrugged. 'She looks contented with her life, and who can ask more than that?'

'Are you contented with yours?'

He was silent for a moment, his eyes on the fire. 'I'm head of a very successful outfit,' he said slowly, 'with a beautiful house here and a flat in London, and I'm the proud owner of several cla.s.sic cars and a great dog. So I must be contented.' He turned to look at her. 'Are you?'

'Yes,' said Kate firmly. 'I'm going to make a good life here for Joanna.'

'She's fortunate to have you to care for her.'

She shook her head. 'It's my good fortune to have Jo.'

'I'd like to meet her some time. You don't like the idea?' he added as she frowned.

'It's more a case of whether Jo likes it. I'd have to ask her first.'

Jack got up, clicking his fingers to the dog, who padded after him obediently. 'I'll just put him out for a moment.'

Kate sat very still when she was alone, staring, unseeing, into the fire.

'You're still frowning,' said Jack, coming back into the room.

Kate managed a smile. 'Just thinking. Where's Bran?'

'In bed.'

'Sensible chap. I should be making tracks for my own bed soon.'

'First tell me what's making you look so blue, Katie.'

d.a.m.n. She'd always turned to marshmallow when he called her that. 'You want the truth?'

He smiled crookedly. 'Probably not, but I promise I'll take it like a man.'

'To revert to the friendship issue-'

'You've changed your mind?' Jack sat down beside her and took her hand.

'No.'

'But you're thinking of Joanna. You chose her without hesitation over the objectionable Rufus-'

'Rupert.'

'Right. So it was obvious you'd make the same choice if she objected to me.'

'Exactly.' Kate smiled ruefully. 'So if I'm too much work as a friend I'll understand, Jack.'

'I've never been afraid of work.'

'I know that. Your father is very proud of you.'

His eyes softened. 'The funny thing is, Kate, that if you'd stayed with me I might not have achieved the same level of success. The all out concentration would have been impossible with you around to distract me.'

'Then maybe I did you a good turn by running off.'

'It didn't feel like it at the time,' he retorted.

'Nor to me.' Kate shook her head in wonder. 'I was such a girl when I met you, Jack. But I grew up pretty quickly after you dumped me.'

His eyes glittered dangerously. 'Your memory's at fault, Katherine Durant. It was you who dumped me.'

'Only technically!' She glared back. 'I had to salvage some remnant of pride! You wouldn't even meet me to say goodbye.'

'I was afraid I'd go down on my knees and beg you to stay.'

They stared at each other in silence broken suddenly by a log falling in the fireplace.

'That's an unlikely picture,' said Kate at last.

'The knees maybe,' he conceded. 'But not the begging.'

She shook her head. 'I can't imagine it.'

He shrugged. 'It belongs in the past, anyway, Kate. Far better to focus on the present.'

'You're right about that,' she said with a sigh. 'When Liz and Robert were killed, my own mortality hit me in the face. I even made a will.'

'Good move. Thinking in worst scenario terms,' he added, 'what provision is made for Joanna if anything happens to you, Kate?'

'Guardianship would go to her Sutton grandparents, with Anna and Ben named in the will as trustees.' She yawned suddenly. 'Sorry. It must be this fire. I really must go home now, Jack. Sorry to drag you out.'

He got up at once, and held out his hand to help her up. 'A gentleman-even the self-made variety like me-always sees a lady home, Miss Durant.'

'Another time I'll bring my car,' she told him, and flushed as she heard the promise implicit in her words. 'I'll just say goodnight to Bran before we go,' she said hastily.

'I hit on a good idea by asking Dad along,' said Jack on the drive back. 'You relaxed the moment you saw him, so you were obviously worried when I took you to my place for dinner.' He shot her a sidelong glance. 'Were you afraid that I'd fall on you with ravening l.u.s.t before the meal or after it?'

Kate let out a snort of laughter. 'Neither, Jack. But you're right about your father. It was an inspired move to ask him along.'

'The idea was to convince you that my intentions were strictly honourable!'

'It succeeded. I enjoyed the evening very much.'

'In that case, come again soon.'

'The two of you must come to me next time,' she said impulsively, then bit her lip. 'But I'll have to paint my dining room first. Otherwise it's the kitchen table again.'

'As Dad said, it's something we've done often enough before.' Jack gave her a searching look as he parked outside her house. 'Tell me, Kate. Why are you doing all the painting yourself? Cash flow problem?'

Kate shook her head. 'It's just my way of putting my personal mark on the house-making it really mine.' She hesitated. 'Would you like some coffee?'

She unlocked her door and Jack followed her through the brightly lit house to the kitchen. He helped her off with her coat then turned her round into his arms.

'No coffee, not even ravening l.u.s.t. Just this, Katie.' He bent his head and kissed her, and for a moment she stood ramrod stiff, fighting her own response. But as the kiss deepened, her lips parted to the irresistible familiarity and sheer rightness of it. With a sigh she surrendered to the arms which tightened round her, all her senses urging her to taste him, touch him, drink in the male, remembered scent of him as her body responded to the mounting urgency in his. No, No,reminded a voice in her head and she took in a sharp, shaky breath and pulled free. Jack raised his head and stepped back, eyes gleaming under narrowed lids.

'When a gentleman sees a lady home he deserves a goodnight kiss.'

She smiled brightly. 'What's a kiss between friends?'

'Do you kiss all your friends like that?'

'Only the men!'

Jack laughed. 'The girl I knew would have blushed when she said that.'

Kate shrugged. 'That girl grew up fast, Jack.'

'And I'm to blame.'

'Mostly,' she agreed, and went with him to the door.

'I must try to make amends. But before I leave I want something else.' He grinned as she backed away. 'Don't panic-just your mobile phone number.' He noted the number in his diary, then tore out a page, scribbled his own number and handed it over. 'Right then, Kate. If you need me, ring me any time. Goodnight.' Jack kissed her cheek and crossed the pavement to his car.

Mill House was the main topic of conversation over Sunday lunch next day at the Maitland house. Ben was as interested in Kate's description of the actual property as his wife, but he hooted at the look on Anna's face when she heard that Tom Logan had been present.

'Didn't Jack trust himself alone with you?' she demanded.

'Of course he did. But when the past rears its head between us the atmosphere tends to get a little tense. With Mr Logan there as peace-keeper it was a very pleasant evening.'

Anna sighed in disappointment. 'No red-hot s.e.x then?'

'For G.o.d's sake, wife,' said her husband, laughing. 'You can't ask questions like that.'

Kate rolled her eyes. 'Oh, yes, she can, and frequently does. But, to satisfy your curiosity, Mrs Maitland, I made it very clear to Jack that the only thing on offer is friendship.'

'He was happy with that?' said Ben sceptically.

'He appears to be.'

'So when are you seeing him again?' asked Anna.

'We haven't set a date. But it's up to me, anyway. I'm giving Jack-and his father-supper at my place next time.'

'Is this going to be a regular kind of thing, then?'

'I hope so. I'm very fond of Mr Logan.'

Anna hooted. 'And what about Mr Logan Junior? How do you feel about him?'

'Ambivalent.' Kate smiled suddenly. 'Before I left London people kept asking me what on earth I'd find to do up here in the sticks. Time certainly hasn't hung heavy so far.'

CHAPTER FIVE.

INCONFIRMATION of this a message was waiting on Kate's telephone when she got home that evening. of this a message was waiting on Kate's telephone when she got home that evening.

'Richard Forster here, Kate. If you're an Oscar Wilde fan The Importance of Being Earnest is on at the Playhouse this week. I can get tickets for Wednesday or Thursday if you'd like to see it. We could eat somewhere first-or after. Let me know.'

When Kate rang him Richard sounded so delighted to hear from her she wouldn't have had the heart to say no even if she'd wanted to. Friendship with Jack Logan, she reminded herself stringently, needn't exclude all other men from her life.

'I love Oscar Wilde,' she told him. 'Thursday would be good. How are you?'

They chatted together for a while, arranged times and discussed eating places for their evening out, and Kate rang off at last, feeling rather pleased with life. Her good mood lasted for all of fifteen minutes, until Jack rang.

'You're hard to find,' he said irritably. 'You were out this morning, the line was engaged just now-and you've had your mobile switched off all day.'