Tiger's Eye

by Madeleine Ker

  It stilled her for a moment, the way a bird can be hypnotised in a man’s palm. She felt his tongue touch hers with wicked intent, just enough to set her hair-trigger pulses racing. Then he released her, and looked into her face as if to check that her skin was flushing, and that her eyes were dazed.

  ‘Try and be good while I’m gone,’ he suggested huskily, and walked away.

  Damn him! She tried to recover her composure, listening to the pounding of her own heart. He knew how to disturb her all too well…

  Once her hair was sun-dry, she picked up her towel and went back to the house to see if there was any prospect of breakfast. There was, but the only person present, sitting with a cup of coffee and a piece of toast, was Jason Tennant.

  Feeling more than a little embarrassed, she bade him good morning, and joined him.

  ‘Is this safe?’ he enquired drily. ‘Or will Blaize come charging in here and brain me with the jam-jar?’

  ‘Oh, he’s off for a flying lesson.’ She took a welcome sip of coffee. ‘I’m terribly sorry about last night, Jason. It was all my fault.’

  ‘Well, some of it was evidently mine.’ He glanced at her. ‘You did give me the impression that my attentions were not unwelcome, you know.’

  ‘I know,’ she said, looking wretchedly at her toast. ‘I was very wrong.’

  ‘What was it all about? Do you mind telling me?’

  ‘There’s nothing to tell. I enjoyed your company, Jason. I really did. You were very kind and attentive. But I didn’t want … what happened … to happen.’

  ‘You must have had other things on your mind,’ he said drily, obviously half guessing at the truth. ‘So what’s with Blaize? 1thought he was going to hit me, right there in the middle of everybody. When he was telling us all how efficient and charming you were, I didn’t suspect that his feelings were quite so strong. Has he appointed himself sole guardian of your honour?’

  ‘Of course not.’ She smiled. ‘I’m only here for a few more weeks, after which I’ll probably never see Blaize Oliver again. His temper is just something I have to put up with until then.’

  ‘He certainly seems to be very touchy where you’re concerned. And I get the impression that dear Kate is none too pleased with his interest in you.’

  ‘Oh, you noticed?’

  Jason grinned at her tone, then looked at her sideways. ‘You’re sure you didn’t enjoy what happened … last night?’

  ‘I was very flattered, Jason. But I mean it. It’s got nothing to do with Blaize, I promise. I’m just not into serious relationships at this stage of my life. But I’d like to be your friend, if you’ll let me.’

  Jason grunted, and pulled out a pack of cigarettes.

  He lit one, and blew a cloud of smoke into the air. He was silent for a while. She didn’t need to say anything more. Unlike Blaize, with his sea-lion manners, Jason was a gentleman. He’d respect her wishes without challenge.

  He glanced at the big window. ‘Looks like thunder,’ he commented. ‘Just my luck. A three-day break in Spain, and it rains on my parade. In more senses than one.’

  Leila smiled. ‘The girl you ended up with last night was much prettier than me.’

  ‘It was like going from French champagne to cheap white wine.’ He shrugged. ‘What are your plans for the rest of today?’

  ‘To keep out of everyone’s way. If I had a car, I’d wander around and see something of the countryside. But I haven’t, so I suppose I’ll find a shady spot in the garden and read.’

  He held something up with a jingle. ‘Blaize has given me his Golf to use while I’m here,’ he told her, dangling the keys. ‘And there’s a map in the glove compartment. What do you say to a tour or the locality, followed by a lunch in some local restaurant?’

  ‘That sounds super,’ Leila said fervently. ‘But isn’t it a bit like playing hookey?’

  ‘No one’s going to miss us,’ he pointed out. ‘Blaize is out, and the rest are all asleep, except Lucy. We can leave a message with her.’

  The temptation to give Blaize a thoroughgoing snub was irresistible. He needed a punishment after his insufferable arrogance of last night, and going out with Jason would be just the way of asserting her independence.

  ‘Then I’d love to go,’ she agreed decisively. ‘Just give me twenty minutes to dress?’

  ‘Go on. I’ll meet you at the car.’

  Feeling positively light-hearted, she went upstairs to change. The prospect of hitting back at Blaize for once was one she relished, not to mention getting away from Katherine Henessey’s little jobs, which, she suspected, would be increasingly numerous from now on.

  She slipped into a stretchy towelling dress in a pastel pink. It was slinkily snug over her breasts and hips, but it was very comfortable, and it made her feel as though she were really on holiday. Picking up her camera, a scarf and her dark glasses, she went out to meet Jason.

  Tracey’s door opened as she passed by, and Tracey’s head emerged. ‘Hello,’ she said.

  Leila paused. ‘Hi. How’s Terry?’

  ‘Sleeping. But he’s OK.’

  ‘Did you enjoy the party last night?’

  ‘It was OK,’ Tracey said, which was her usual response, whether something had been dull as ditchwater or one long scream of excitement. ‘Are you going somewhere?’

  ‘Jason Tennant has asked me to go for a little drive round the locality. Maybe you can suggest somewhere interesting? ’–

  ‘There are lots of places.’ Tracey nodded. ‘There’s Peratallada, which is an interesting old town. And Pals is very pretty. And Begur is lovely, too. And all the beaches, of course…’

  ‘Sounds good. Got anything planned for this morning?’ Leila asked, catching a wistful note in the girl’s voice.

  ‘No. And everyone’s bound to be asleep until noon.’

  ‘Feel like coming with us?’

  Tracey’s green eyes lit up. ‘Do you mean it?’

  ‘Of course. I can’t see you behind that door–—are you dressed?’

  Tracey opened the door to show that she was in a pair of cream cotton overalls. ‘Is this all right?’

  ‘You look lovely.’ Leila smiled. ‘You can be our official party guide.’

  ‘Great!’

  ‘I’ll tell Lucy you’re going, then.’

  ‘Great’ was at least an improvement on ‘OK’, Leila reflected as she went downstairs, after having had a word with Lucy, who seemed quite relieved to have Tracey off her hands for the morning. Over the past couple of days, Tracey had warmed towards her, which puzzled her. She didn’t bother questioning it overmuch, however; it would certainly make her life here a little easier not to have everyone’s hands against her.

  Jason wasn’t exactly overjoyed to hear that they were going to have company on their trip. He’d obviously been looking forward to having Leila all to himself. But he put a brave face on it.

  Tracey arrived five minutes later, complete with guidebook to the area.

  It was rather odd being in the all-white VWGolf with Tracey again. It brought back memories. She caught Tracey’s eye for a moment, and they smiled at one another with the instinctive warmth of people who shared an amusing recollection. She had learned a lot more, Leila reflected, about this odd, pretty little girl since that strange first day in Barcelona. They set off down the tarmac drive.

  The thunder broke at two o’clock in the afternoon, far too late to spoil what had proved to be a delightful morning. By that time, the three of them were just settling down to lunch in a tiny, crowded restaurant in an old hillside town. The first peal rumbled overhead like a steamroller in the sky, and a scattering of fat, wet drops sprinkled the window-pane.

  ‘Just in time,’ Tracey commented.

  ‘What are we having?’ Jason asked, studying the menu. ‘It all sounds intriguing. What on earth is “black rice”?’

  ‘It’s cuttlefish cooked in its own ink, with rice,’ Tracey explained. ‘It isn’t very interesting. But rape is delicious—it t
astes just like lobster.’ Leila watched her as she studied the menu over Jason’s shoulder.

  Tracey had proved to be a sweet companion this morning, knowledgeable about the area, but not unmannerly, the way some teenagers might have been. The three of them had enjoyed the tour immensely; it was the closest thing to a family outing, Leila suspected, that Tracey had had for a long time.

  Her response to the happy, relaxed atmosphere had been to show unexpected flashes of affection towards Leila. Leila had been careful not to over-respond, but it was nice to feel Tracey showing warmth, rather than cold hostility. For once, it seemed, Tracey had stopped thinking of Leila as a rival for her beloved Katherine.

  While they waited for their food to arrive, Tracey gloated over the corals and shells she’d bought in one of the towns on their route. She collected marine things, Leila had learned, and not just for their beauty. She’d revealed an ease with the jaw-breaking names that had surprised Leila. Beneath her interest lay a lively curiosity about the lives and habits of the things she collected.Leila had been so impressed that she’d bought a big, glossy cowrie to add to the haul, much to Tracey’s delight.

  ‘I’d love to do marine biology at university, ’ she said now, in answer to a question from Leila, and pulled a face. ‘But I don’t think I’m going to get good enough marks. Not if things go on the way they’re going.’

  ‘Don’t you do well at school?’ Leila asked.

  ‘I’m awful,’ she confessed with a sigh.

  ‘Well, you’ve got the intelligence,’ Jason said. ‘So what’s the problem?’

  ‘Oh… the teachers don’t like me. Most of them don’t, anyway. I suppose I’m rather naughty. Dad’s furious with me, because I used to be top of my class. That’s why he makes me study, even on holiday.’

  Leila caught Jason’s eye, and looked away. She could guess the problem well enough. Ever since the divorce, Tracey would have been distracted and rebellious, probably unable to concentrate. The arrival of puberty had, as so often happens, been disastrous; the problem had worsened. When impatient teachers tried to discipline her, she’d have interpreted their reaction as dislike.

  And the school complaining to Blaize would have added to the pressure at home. The cycle of underachievement and poor behaviour would have built up quickly, and it was a hard cycle to break.

  Leila knew that. It had happened with her own schooling once or twice during her teens.

  Was it worth having a talk to the girl about it? Leila herself wasn’t exactly an academic type, but her own experience had given her some idea of what Tracey was going through. She decided to make some gentle approaches to the girl later on, and, if she wasn’t snubbed, perhaps see if she could help in some way.

  They ate a tasty lunch, accompanied by a full-bodied Rioja, and, after an hour or so, scuttled out through the by now pouring rain to head back to Cap Sa Sal.

  ‘They’ll all be sitting around complaining about the weather,’ Jason predicted, which turned out to be fairly accurate. Most of the house-guests, plus a few who seemed to have been left over after the party, were sitting in the lounge chatting, and making locust-like ravages into a buffet lunch that was being eaten late, Spanish-style.

  Blaize wasn’t around, but a very frosty Katherine was on hand to greet them.

  She followed Leila out of the lounge, and turned angrily on her. ‘What is the meaning of this behaviour?’ she snapped.

  ‘I’m sorry? What behaviour?’

  ‘Simply absconding with the child, without even asking for our permission.’ Katherine’s lips were thin with tension. ‘Do you realise that I almost called the police?’

  Leila stood very still. ‘I really don’t see what the police have to do with it,’ she said quietly. ‘I told Lucy where we were going, and she had no objections.’

  ‘The governess has no authority in this house! She was very wrong to allow an unknown like you to take her employer’s child away!’

  ‘In the company of Jason Tennant, who is an old friend of the family,’ Leila pointed out. ‘I wouldn’t have dreamed of taking her out on my own. But Tracey seemed bored, and was keen to come, so I saw no harm in it.’

  ‘No harm? Let me be the judge of what is harmful and what isn’t, please. The girl is seriously unstable!’

  Leila met the angry, cold eyes. ‘Tracey took no harm this morning, Katherine,’ she repeated. ‘She was at a loose end. And, in fact, she seemed to enjoy herself rather more than she usually does in this household.’

  ‘Just who the hell are you to criticise the way the household is run?’ Katherine’s eyebrows had soared in outrage. ‘As it happens, I had plans to amuse the girl myself this morning.’

  ‘Oh, dear.’ Leila tried to make it sound sincere. ‘But perhaps you should have told her in advance. I don’t see why you’re so angry about this.’

  ‘You mean I should be pleased with your incredible behaviour?’

  ‘I mean that Tracey had a happy, carefree morning, which would otherwise have been spent moping around the house. Is—is Mr. Oliver upset?’

  ‘Tracey’s father is furious,’ Katherine said grimly.

  ‘Rick Watermeyer has had to fly him to Gerona in the helicopter, for an urgent meeting, as it so happens. But he’ll speak to you himself when he gets back, and I can assure you that you won’t find it so easy to be insolent to him.’

  Leila’s heart sank like a stone. ‘Very well,’ she said heavily, and turned to go.

  ‘You’re doing your best to get your hooks into the girl, aren’t you?’

  Leila stopped and turned round, her face set. ‘That’s an extraordinary thing to say. What do you mean?’

  ‘Sweet little innocent.’ Katherine’s tone made the words three icicles. ‘You have no intention of helping out with the guests, I note.’

  ‘I didn’t know you needed help,’ Leila said, blinking at the change of attack. ‘There seems to be an adequate amount of staff here.’

  ‘Adequate?’ Katherine repeated coldly. ‘Two stupid housemaids, and old Mrs Saunders? With everybody congregating indoors because of the weather? Quite apart from anything else, you should have stayed to help out, instead of absenting yourself with Jason Tennant and the child. You do precious little as it is!’

  ‘But I’m not a housemaid,’ Leila reminded her calmly. ‘I’m Mr. Oliver’s secretary. My duties don’t include helping out in the house.’

  ‘You are Mr. Oliver’s employee,’ Katherine said, putting a frigid emphasis on the word. ‘And your duties are whatever Mr. Oliver decides they are.’

  ‘That’s questionable,’ Leila replied, trying to control her anger at the way Katherine talked to her. ‘But, in any case, I take my orders from him, Katherine, not from you.’

  ‘Well, in his absence, I am in charge in this house,’ Katherine replied, in a voice that sounded like skates hissing over ice. ‘And I am now asking you to go back into that lounge, and help gather up the used plates and glasses.’ She gave Leila’s clingy pink dress a grim look.

  ‘But you’d better change out of that first.’

  Leila met the ice-centred hazel eyes. It wouldn’t have cost her much to help out. But she knew very well that things were under control, and that Katherine’s imperious commands were intended to humble her, and to make sure she knew her place, and that was something that raised her hackles to the no-return point.

  ‘I’m sorry you have a lot of guests on your hands this weekend,’ she said in a voice that was silkily controlled. ‘But then, as you’ve just said, you are the mistress of the house. I’m only a hard-working temporary secretary. And this is Sunday, my one day off.’

  ‘You refuse?’ Katherine said dangerously.

  ‘I very much doubt that Mr. Oliver would expect me to wait on his guests,’ Leila replied flatly. ‘But, if he does, then he can tell me so himself.’

  There were white marks around Katherine’s nostrils, as though some invisible devil were pinching her there.

  Leila turned and walk
ed away, tingling to her toes.

  That hadn’t been very clever, she realised in retrospect.

  Katherine Henessey wasn’t the sort of enemy she needed. But there had been no way of avoiding a confrontation-not with Katherine pushing so hard. There was going to be an unhappy outcome from that little tussle, of that she was glumly certain. Katherine would make sure of that, if Blaize was every bit as furious as she’d claimed. There would be a full report as soon as he got back from his flight.

  Not that much could be done to worsen relations between herself and Blaize, she thought unhappily. In fact, it would not surprise her to find herself on her way back to London early next week.