Unfortunately.
Naughty, naughty Cara.
‘Well, if you’re sure it won’t be too much of an inconvenience to you,’ she said slowly.
‘No. It’s fine,’ he answered curtly. ‘We’ll have to make sure to respect each other’s privacy, but it’s a big place so that shouldn’t be a problem. All the rooms have locks on them, in case you’re worried.’
Her pulse picked up as a host of X-rated images rushed through her head.
Slam a lid on that, you maniac.
‘I’m not worried,’ she squeaked.
He nodded.
‘And your girlfriend won’t mind me staying here?’ she asked carefully.
‘I don’t have a girlfriend.’
‘Or your w—?’ she began to ask, just in case.
‘I’m single,’ he cut in with a curt snap to his voice.
Okay, so the subject of his relationships was out of bounds then.
She was surprised to hear that he wasn’t attached in any way, though. Surely someone with his money, looks and smarts would have women lining up around the block for the pleasure of his company. Although, come to think of it, based on her run-ins with him so far, she could see how his acerbic temperament might be a problem for some people.
‘Right, I may as well show you your room now,’ Max said, snapping her out of her meandering thoughts. ‘Clearly, you’re not in a fit state to work this afternoon, so you may as well finish for the day.’ He turned and walked out of the room, leaving her gaping at the empty space he’d left.
So that was it then—decision made.
‘Oh! Okay.’ She hustled to catch him up, feeling her joints complain as she moved. Crikey. She was tired. Her whole body ached from sleeping on a saggy sofa and performing on so little sleep for the past few days.
She followed him up the sweeping staircase to the next level and along the landing to the third door on the right.
Opening it up, he motioned for her to walk past him into the bedroom.
She tried not to breathe in his fresh, spicy scent as she did so, her nerves already shot from the rigours of the day.
It was, of course, the most beautifully appointed bedroom she’d ever been in.
Light flooded in through the large window, which was framed by long French grey curtains in a heavy silk. The rest of the furnishing was simple and elegant, in a way Cara had never been able to achieve in her own flat. The pieces that had been chosen clearly had heritage and fitted perfectly with the large airy room. His interior designer must have cost a pretty penny.
Tears welled in her eyes as she took in the original ornate fireplace, which stood proudly opposite a beautiful king-sized iron-framed bed. Fighting the urge to collapse onto it in relief and bury herself in the soft, plump-looking duvet, she blinked hard, then turned to face Max, who was hanging back by the door with a distracted frown on his face.
‘This is a beautiful room—thank you,’ she said, acutely aware of the tremor in her voice.
Max’s frown deepened, but he didn’t comment on it. ‘You’re welcome. You should go over to your friend’s house and get your things now, then you’ll have time to settle in. We’ll start over again tomorrow.’
‘Okay, good idea.’
‘I’ll leave you to it then,’ he said, turning to go.
‘Max?’
He turned back. ‘Yes?’
‘I’m really grateful—for letting me stay here.’
‘No problem,’ he said, turning briskly on the spot and walking away, leaving her staring after him with her heart in her mouth.
Well, she certainly hadn’t expected this when she’d woken up this morning reeking of stale beer.
Sinking down gratefully onto the bed, she finally allowed her tense muscles to relax, feeling the tiredness rush back, deep into her bones.
How was she ever going to be able to drag herself away from this beautiful room when she managed to find a place of her own to rent?
More to the point, was she really going to be able to live in the same house as Max without going totally insane?
Steeling herself to make the journey over to Sarah’s house and pick up her things, she rocked herself up off the bed of her dreams and onto her feet and took a deep, resolute breath.
There was only one way to find out.
CHAPTER FOUR
IF SOMEONE HAD asked Max to explain exactly what had prompted him to suggest that Cara move in, he was pretty sure he’d have been stumped for an answer.
All he knew was that he couldn’t let things go on the way they were. Judging by her outburst, she was clearly struggling to cope with all that life had thrown at her recently and it was no skin off his nose to let her stay for a few nights in one of the empty bedrooms.
He had enough of them, after all.
Also, as a good friend of her cousin’s he felt a responsibility to make sure that Cara was okay whilst Poppy was away and unable to help her herself. He knew from experience that good friends were essential when life decided to throw its twisted cruelty your way, and he was acutely aware that it was the support and encouragement of his friends that had helped him find his way out of the darkness after Jemima died.
Watching Cara working hard the next day, he was glad she was still around. When she was on good form, she was an asset to the business and, truthfully, it had become comforting for him to have another person around—it stopped him from thinking so much in the resounding silence of the house.
They hadn’t talked about what had happened again, which was a relief. He just wanted everything to get back to the way it had been with the minimum of fuss. With that in mind, he was a little concerned about what it would be like having her around at the weekend. He’d probably end up working, like he always did, so he wasn’t too worried about the daytime, but they’d need to make sure they gave each other enough space in the evenings so they didn’t end up biting each other’s heads off again.
With any luck, she’d be out a lot of the time anyway, flat-hunting or seeing friends.
At six o’clock he leant back in his chair and stretched his arms above his head, working the kinks out of his tight muscles.
‘Time to finish for the day, Cara,’ he said to the side of her head.
She glanced round at him, the expression in her eyes far away, as if she was in the middle of a thought.
‘Um, okay. I’ll just finish this.’ She tapped on her keyboard for a few more seconds before closing the laptop with a flourish.
‘Okay then. Bring on the weekend.’ She flashed him a cheeky smile, which gave him pause.
‘You’re not thinking of bringing the party to this house, I hope.’
Quickly switching to a solemn expression, she gave a shake of her head. ‘Of course not. That’s not what I meant.’
‘Hmm.’
The corner of her mouth twitched upwards. ‘You seem to have a really skewed impression of me. I don’t go in for heavy drinking and partying—it’s really not my style.’
‘Okay.’ He held up both hands. ‘Not that it’s any of my business; you can stay out all night at the weekends, for all I care,’ he said, aware of a strange plummeting sensation in his chest as images of what she might get up to out on the town flashed through his head.
Good God, man—you’re not her keeper.
‘As long as your work doesn’t suffer,’ he added quickly.
‘Actually,’ she said, slouching back in her seat and hooking her slender arm over the back of her chair, ‘I was thinking about cooking you a meal tonight, to say thank you for letting me stay.’
He wasn’t sure why, but the thought of that made him uncomfortable. Perhaps because it would blur the lines between employee and friend too much.
‘That’s kind, but I have pla
ns tonight,’ he lied, racking his brain to remember what his friend Dan had said about his availability this weekend. Even if he was busy he was sure he could rustle up a dinner invitation somewhere else, to let Cara off the hook without any bad feelings.
‘And you don’t need to thank me for letting you stay here. It’s what any decent human being would have done.’
Her face seemed to fall a little and she drew her arm back in towards her body, sliding her hands between her knees so that her shoulders hunched inwards. ‘Oh, okay, well, I’m just going to pop out and shop for my own dinner, so I’ll see you shortly,’ she said, ramping her smile back up again and wheeling her chair away from the desk with her feet.
‘Actually, I’m heading out myself in a minute and I’ll probably be back late, so I’ll see you tomorrow.’
Her smile froze. ‘Right. Well, have a good night.’
This was ridiculous. The last thing he’d wanted was for them both to feel awkward about living under the same roof.
He let out a long sigh and pushed his hair away from his face. ‘Look, Cara, don’t think you have to hang out with me while you’re staying here. We don’t need to be in each other’s pockets the whole time. Feel free to do your own thing.’
Clearly he’d been a bit brusque because she recoiled a little. ‘I understand,’ she said, getting up and awkwardly pushing her chair back under her desk. ‘Have a good night!’ she said in that overly chirpy way she had, which he was beginning to learn meant he’d offended her.
Not waiting for his reply, she turned her back on him and walked straight out of the room, her shoulders stiff.
Great. This was exactly what he’d hoped to avoid.
He scrubbed a hand over his face. Maybe it had been a mistake to ask her to stay.
But he couldn’t kick her out now.
All he could do was cross his fingers and hope she’d find herself another place to live soon.
* * *
To his surprise, he didn’t see much of Cara over the next couple of days. She’d obviously taken his suggestion about giving each other space to heart and was avoiding being in the house with him as much as possible.
The extremity of her desertion grated on his nerves.
What was it that made it impossible for them to understand each other? They were very different in temperament, of course, which didn’t help, but it was more than that. It was as if there was some kind of meaning-altering force field between them.
On Sunday, when the silence in the house got too much for him, he went out for a long walk around Hyde Park. He stopped at the café next to the water for lunch, something he and Jemima had done most Sundays, fighting against the painful undertow of nostalgia that dragged at him as he sat there alone. It was all so intensely familiar.
All except for the empty seat in front of him.
He snorted into his drink, disgusted with himself for being so pathetic. He should consider himself lucky. He was the one who got to have a future, unlike his big-hearted, selfless wife. The woman who everyone had loved. One of the few people, in his opinion, who had truly deserved a long and happy life.
Arriving home mid-afternoon, he walked in to find the undertones of Cara’s perfume hanging in the air.
So she was back then.
Closing his eyes, he imagined he could actually sense her presence in the atmosphere, like a low hum of white noise.
Or was he being overly sensitive?
Probably.
From the moment she’d agreed to move in he’d experienced a strange undercurrent of apprehension and it seemed to be affecting his state of mind.
After stowing his shoes and coat in the cloakroom, he went into the living room to find that a large display of flowers had been placed on top of the grand piano. He bristled, remembering the way he’d felt the last time Cara had started to mess with his environment.
Sighing, he rubbed a hand through his hair, attempting to release the tension in his scalp. They were just flowers. He really needed to chill out or he was going to drive himself insane. Jemima would have laughed if she’d seen how strung-out he was over something so inconsequential. He could almost hear her teasing voice ringing in his ears.
A noise startled him and he whipped round to see Cara standing in the doorway to the room, dressed in worn jeans and a sloppy sweater, her face scrubbed of make-up and her bright blue eyes luminous in the soft afternoon light. To his overwrought brain, she seemed to radiate an ethereal kind of beauty, her long hair lying in soft, undulating waves around her face and her creamy skin radiant with health. He experienced a strangely intense moment of confusion, and he realised that somewhere in the depths of his screwed-up consciousness he’d half expected it to be Jemima standing there instead—which was why his, ‘Hello,’ came out more gruffly than he’d intended.
Her welcoming smile faltered and she glanced down at her fingernails and frowned, as if fighting an impulse to chew on them, but when she looked back up her smile was firmly back in place.
‘Isn’t it a beautiful day?’ She tipped her head towards the piano behind him. ‘I hope you don’t mind, but the spring sunshine inspired me to put fresh flowers in most of the rooms—not your bedroom, of course; I didn’t go in there,’ she added quickly. ‘The house seemed to be crying out for a bit of life and colour and I wanted to do something to say thank you for letting me stay, even though you said I didn’t need to.’
‘Sure. That’s fine,’ was all he could muster. For some reason his blood was flying through his veins and he felt so hot he thought he might spontaneously combust at any second.
‘Oh, and I stripped and remade the bed in the room next to yours,’ she added casually. ‘It looked like the cleaners had missed it. I gave it a good vacuum, too; it was really dusty.’
The heat was swept away by a flood of icy panic. ‘You what?’
The ferocity in his tone obviously alarmed her because she flinched and blinked hard.
But hurting Cara’s feelings was the least of his worries right then.
Not waiting for her reply, he pushed past her and raced up the stairs, aware of his heart thumping painfully in his chest as he willed it not to be so.
Please don’t let her have destroyed that room.
Reaching the landing on the top floor, he flung open the door and stared into the now immaculate bedroom, the stringent scent of cleaning fluid clogging his throat and making his stomach roll.
She’d stripped it bare.
Everything he’d been protecting from the past had been torn off or wiped away. The bed, as she’d said, now had fresh linen on it.
He heard her laboured breath behind him as she made it up to the landing and whipped round to face her.
‘Where are the sheets from the bed, Cara?’ he demanded, well past the point of being able to conceal his anger.
Her face was drained of all colour. ‘What did I do wrong?’
‘The sheets, Cara—where are the sheets?’
‘I washed them,’ she whispered, unable to meet his eyes. ‘They’re in the dryer.’
That was it then. Jemima’s room was ruined.
Bitterness welled in his gut as he took in her wide-eyed bewilderment. The woman was a walking disaster area and she’d caused nothing but trouble since she got here.
A rage he couldn’t contain made him pace towards her.
‘Why do you have to meddle with everything? Hmm? What is it with you? This need to please all the time isn’t natural. In fact it’s downright pathetic. Just keep your hands off my personal stuff, okay? Is that really too much to ask?’
She seemed frozen to the spot as she stared at him with glassy eyes, her jaw clamped so tight he could see the muscle flickering under the pressure, but, instead of shouting back this time, she dragged in a sharp, painful-sounding breath before turn
ing on the spot and walking out of the room.
He listened to her heavy footsteps on the stairs and then the slam of her bedroom door, wincing as the sound reverberated through his aching head. Staring down at the soulless bed, he allowed the heat of his bitterness and anger and shame to wash through him, leaving behind an icy numbness in its wake.
Then he closed his eyes, dropped his chin to his chest and sank down onto the last place he’d been truly happy.
* * *
Oh, God, please don’t let this be happening to me. Again.
Cara wrapped her arms around her middle and pressed her forehead against the cool wall of her bedroom, waiting for the dizziness and nausea to subside so she could pack up her things and leave.
What was it with her? She seemed destined to put herself in a position of weakness, where the only option left to her was to give up and run away.
Which she really didn’t want to do again.
But she had to protect herself. She couldn’t be around someone so toxic—someone who clearly thought so little of her. Even Ewan hadn’t been that cruel to her when he’d left her after she’d failed to live up to his exacting standards. She’d never seen a look of such pure disgust on anyone’s face before. The mere memory of it made the dizziness worse.
There was no way she was staying in a place where she’d be liable to see that look again. She’d rather go home and admit to her parents that she’d failed and deal with their badly concealed disappointment than stay here with Max any longer.
She’d never met anyone with such a quick temper. What was his problem, anyway? He appeared to have everything here: the security of a beautiful house in one of the most sought-after areas of London, a thriving business, friends who invited him out for dinner, and he clearly had pots of cash to cushion his easy, comfortable life. In fact, the more she thought about it, the more incensed she became.
Who was he to speak to her like that? Sure, there had been a couple of little bumps in the road when she’d not exactly been at her best, but she’d worked above and beyond the call of duty for the rest of the time. And she’d been trying to do something nice for him in making the house look good—pretty much the only thing she could think of to offer as a thank you to a man who seemed to have everything. What had been so awful about that? She knew she could be a bit over the top in trying to please people sometimes, but this hadn’t been a big thing. It was just an empty guest room that had been overlooked.
Unlocking Her Boss's Heart Page 5
