‘Okay. I’m leaving because I know what’s going on between you and my sister and I don’t think it’s appropriate for me to continue working for you under those circumstances.’
‘You know what’s going on between me and your sister?’ Bafflement was quickly replaced by cold, dawning comprehension. Tessa wondered, for a few fleeting seconds, whether she might have made a mistake, but then decided that she had heard what she had heard, and, as if that weren’t enough, she knew what she knew. That Lucy was his type. In Tessa’s view, too many problems were caused by people trying to hide from the truth. She had seen enough of her friends and Lucy’s to know that ignoring certain glaring facts always proved very costly emotionally. Woe betide the poor woman whose boyfriend started avoiding phone calls, when her response was to make excuses on his behalf instead of interpreting the situation the way it really was.
Their fling, if it even deserved to be in that category, had been, Tessa thought, fragile from the word go. He had never been going to hang about for very long and if she had made the fatal mistake of falling in love with him, then that was her fault and her fault alone.
‘Care to elaborate?’ There was a dangerous softness to his voice that she chose to ignore.
‘I don’t see the point of that. Would you mind moving? I can’t breathe properly with you so close.’
He pushed himself away from her to go by the window where he proceeded to lean against the broad ledge, arms folded, like a judge contemplating a seriously irritating miscreant.
‘You think…what exactly?’
‘You know what I think! And there’s no point trying to deny it. I heard the two of you whispering by the front door, discussing that perhaps it would be best to keep the situation from me. I heard! And, for heaven’s sake, don’t even try to patronise me by pretending that you don’t have a clue what I’m talking about!’
‘I wouldn’t dream of patronising you and I remember the conversation distinctly.’
‘Right. Good. In that case…’ In that case, she thought, I’ll just get my act together and leave.
‘So in you jumped with your conclusions because, naturally, I’m the sort of bastard who sleeps with a woman and then has no compunctions about sharing himself with her sister. You wouldn’t say that you know me better than that?’
‘I never accused you of sleeping with Lucy,’ Tessa mumbled uncomfortably.
‘A minor technicality.’ Curtis overrode her interruption coldly. ‘Conspiring to meet up behind your back is as good as. And what a quick worker I am! Twenty minutes and I’ve already managed to make an assignation with a girl I didn’t know from Adam! What a lot of faith you have in me! Not forgetting your sister, of course.’
‘Lucy wouldn’t have known about…about us…’
‘Oh, that’s all right, then. For her to arrange to meet me after a couple of minutes and some polite conversation. Does she normally do that sort of thing? Get involved with a perfect stranger without bothering with the niceties of getting to know him?’
‘If you arranged to meet, then that would be step one in getting to know one another, wouldn’t it?’ Tessa shrugged. ‘Hence my resignation. Working with you under those circumstances would be too uncomfortable. For both of us.’
‘So, really, having written me off as a serial womaniser, you’re doing the big-hearted thing and giving me the space to move on to another model without having to work with model number one.’
‘That’s about it.’
A deathly silence lengthened between them. Tessa could feel the vein in her neck pulsing and her heart hammering inside her like a steam engine.
‘Fine.’
‘I beg your pardon?’
‘I said fine. You can go now. You’re released from your employment with immediate effect. Any money the company owes you will be forwarded to your address and, naturally, I will provide a good reference for you when you find yourself another job.’
Tessa stared at him. She had got what she wanted. She was being released from the agony of working alongside him while he cavorted with her sister. In the long run, it had been the only option. Lucy might come and go in the blink of an eye, but there would be others, a long line of them. Fun-loving blondes, the sort he enjoyed having around brightening his office, the sort he enjoyed going out with. If she had stayed put, she would have had to endure each and every one and how thick could one person’s skin be?
Logic and good, solid reason were no match for the awful loneliness spreading through her, though.
She made her legs move, made herself stand up and even propelled herself in the direction of him, stretching out her hand in the final, utterly polite, gesture of farewell.
Curtis looked at the outstretched hand with contempt.
‘I don’t think so,’ he said icily.
Her hand dropped to her side and she felt tears well up and prick the backs of her eyes. That expression in his eyes was the very worst thing. It sliced right through her like a blade.
‘I—’ she began.
‘Don’t say a word,’ he snarled. ‘I think you’ve already said quite enough.’ With that he spun round on his heel and stared out of the window, affording her the sight of his ramrod-straight back.
Let her go, Curtis thought savagely. He was aware of her hovering behind him, but there was no way he was going to rescue her from her self-inflicted discomfort. He continued to stare broodingly out of the window, not that there was much worth looking at. With spectacular predictability, it had failed to snow yet again and the skies were typically leaden. Everything looked monochrome and depressed.
He was aware of her departure with the sound of the door clicking shut, and only then did he slowly turn around and return to his chair, making no attempt to immerse himself in his work. He had no idea how long he sat there, staring at the wretched screen saver, while thoughts jostled in his head. He only knew that the next time he glanced out of the window, it had begun to snow. He guessed that all over London kids would be staring out of their windows in wonder, praying that the flurries would turn into something more substantial, something they could build a snowman out of. He had promised Anna that he would be home early, in time to take her and his mother out for an early supper somewhere. It had been his intention to invite Tessa along as well.
Clearly now out of the question.
He swivelled so that his chair was squarely facing the window and told himself that he had had a very lucky escape.
He had deviated from his usual course, had been blinded by a combination of seriousness, intelligence and humour, not realising that seriousness, intelligence and humour added up to a woman who would not be content to simply have a spot of fun.
Curtis frowned darkly at the window. He worked damned hard all year long. Relationships were about releasing him from the tensions of his job. Relationships were all about putting guilt-free fun into his life. They weren’t about making him feel like this, feel like throwing things at the window and walking for hours in the snow because he needed to clear his head.
He swore softly and ineffectively under his breath, cursing the fact that there was no one in the office with whom he could indulge in some casual banter, just until his head got sorted. Flexitime had distinct drawbacks occasionally.
He slung his jumper on over the long-sleeved tee shirt, stuck on his coat and headed down, only remembering that his computer was still running when he was almost out of the office.
He wasn’t too sure where he was heading. Only when he was outside, with the flakes gathering momentum around him and all trace of sun stifled under the thick grey skies, did he realise that he needed to see her.
She certainly didn’t need to see him. In fact, Tessa thought as she turned the key to her front door, he was the last person in the world she ever wanted to clap eyes on again.
A tiny voice in her head pointed out that her wish had certainly been granted. He had made no move to stop her from leaving the company. A careless shrug had been all she had
been worth at the end of the day. He hadn’t even mentioned what they had had together. It had been so meaningless to him that he couldn’t even be bothered to bring the subject up.
She dashed a couple of wayward tears from her eyes and pushed open the door.
Of course, just when she wanted to be on her own, Lucy was in. She could hear her sister clattering around in the kitchen, and, knowing that she could hardly avoid her, Tessa removed her coat, hung it on the coat stand by the door and reluctantly made her way to the origin of the noise.
‘Would you believe it’s snowing?’ Lucy greeted her triumphantly, as though the fall of snow were something she had personally been involved in. As an afterthought, she added, frowning, ‘Why are you home, anyway? I thought you’d gone off to work?’
Tessa sighed and sat down. ‘Long story.’
‘Will it be one of those long stories that I’ll want to hear?’ Lucy flopped into the chair facing hers and looked at Tessa with concern. ‘You didn’t have a relapse of your twisted-foot syndrome, did you?’
‘Oh, no. Foot’s fine.’ It’s the heart that’s not doing too good, she added silently to herself. ‘But, as of this moment, I’m officially on the dole.’
Lucy gaped. For a few seconds, Tessa forgot her worries and actually laughed because it took a lot to reduce her sister to speechlessness.
‘You’re joking!’ Lucy searched her face for some semblance of humour, found none and sank back into her chair. ‘Oh, my God, why?’
‘Oh, you know. Not the job for me.’
‘But…I thought you enjoyed working there. You told me that it was a lot more fun than your last place, that fuddy-duddy accountancy firm…I don’t understand…’
Now came the careful tiptoeing-round-the-minefield part. To put off the dire moment, Tessa asked whether she could possibly have a cup of tea, and then thought about her next approach, while Lucy gabbled away in the background, expressing curiosity and surprise at the same time. Finally, mug in hand, she plonked it in front of her sister and said sternly, ‘You’ve made a huge mistake. You had an invigorating, well-paid job and Curtis Diaz was most probably the best boss you could ever hope to find.’
‘Curtis Diaz is a workaholic and a womaniser.’
‘That doesn’t make sense. Workaholics don’t have time to womanise and, anyway, what do his private habits have to do with how much you enjoy your work?’
‘Stop quizzing me about this, Luce,’ Tessa said irritably. ‘I’m tired and I have another headache. I don’t need you to start playing older sis with me.’
‘Because you think you’ve monopolised that position!’ Lucy retorted quick as a flash. ‘Well, I just want to tell you that quitting your job has really jeopardised things for me. I mean, did Curtis mention anything about me? No, I don’t suppose he would have. If he knew that you’d made your mind up, he wouldn’t have wanted to put you under any pressure to stay. Mind you…’ she stared off into the distance, oblivious to Tessa ‘…there’s no real reason why everything should come to a halt just because you’ve suddenly decided that you hate working for him…’
‘Lucy, what are you on about?’
‘I mean…he really did like what he saw yesterday. I know he did. He said he did, but I just get the feeling that he’s not one of those guys who says something just for the sake of it…do you?’
‘Liked what?’ This conversation was getting surreal. What had Curtis seen that he had liked? Had they been playing some kind of adult doctor-and-nurse game for the half an hour that they’d been closeted away in his mother’s house? Surely they couldn’t have been that overcome with lust? A sick feeling clawed away at her stomach, threatening to make her bring up the few mouthfuls of tea she had just swallowed.
‘Well…we were going to tell you this together but…’ She couldn’t help it. She smiled. A broad, thrilled smile that lit up her face. ‘God, Tess, it’s the most exciting thing ever!’
Tessa could think of nothing to say. Her throat had closed up and really she doubted whether she would have been able to speak even if she had wanted to. The truth was going to come at her from every angle, she now realised. It didn’t matter how much she tried to deflect the blows, they would still come because they would never be able to keep a relationship between them silent.
‘You know when Curtis came round the other evening…Lord, but it feels like a thousand years ago!’ Her eyes sparkled as she leant forward, propping her chin in her hand. She had wonderful, tumbling hair that she occasionally straightened, when she wanted to look glamorous. Now, it was a riotous jumble of curls cascading past her shoulders.
‘Yes, I remember.’ Tessa sighed quietly.
‘Well, he asked me all about what I was doing at college and then he told me that I might be just the person to work on some logos for him. You know he’s thinking about extending parts of his operation to the Far East…’
What she was hearing seemed to be coming at her from a long way off. In fact, it took a few seconds for it to sink in, then she said, on a whisper, ‘What are you talking about, Luce?’
‘My work! What else? We decided not to say anything to you because I know you. I knew you’d be disappointed if you thought that I’d been rejected, but yesterday, after he had a look at my portfolio, he said that he was prepared to give me a stab at it. He was so sweet about it! Not patronising at all. He said he liked my work, that it was quirky and inventive, which would be just the sort of thing he would be looking for…’
‘Your work…’ Tessa said hollowly.
‘Why aren’t you excited?’ Lucy demanded, pausing in her breathless excitement to realise that the expected reaction had not arrived.
‘I am. Excited and thrilled.’ Tessa forced herself to smile but the smile was strained. Why hadn’t he said anything? Why hang on to his silence, letting her fling herself into accusations that were wildly off target?
She remember the puzzled look on his face when she had informed him that she knew about his feelings for her sister.
‘What about your course?’ she asked faintly, dragging the subject back to the prosaic and leaving her restless mind free to wander unimpeded. ‘You can’t possibly give that up. Not when you’ve come so far…’
But Lucy had everything sorted and Tessa half listened, only stirring herself when mention was made of food and, buoyed up by the prospect of her first successful dip into the brave world of advertising, Lucy actually volunteered to go out and buy some. With her own money.
Once she was gone, Tessa went into the sitting room and just let the sound of silence drift over her. Peaceful though it was, it wasn’t nearly peaceful enough to end the nasty tangle of thoughts writhing around in her head like hungry serpents. She moaned softly and closed her eyes.
She still had them optimistically closed when the doorbell went.
The prospect of lunch, even though it might be procured and prepared by her sister in a very rare excursion into domesticity, did not appeal. Tessa didn’t feel hungry. In fact, she felt as though she had crashed headlong into a brick wall.
Which was good, she told herself, trundling to the front door. Because, face it, even if things hadn’t gone utterly pear-shaped now, they would have further down the line. She and the brick wall would still have become close acquaintances somewhere in the future.
She pulled open the front door and her eyes travelled up, and up, and up until they finally rested on Curtis’s dark, glowering face. At which point something like electricity shot through her veins, making her take a step backwards from the impact.
In that brief instant of stunned hesitation, Curtis pushed his way inside and slammed the door shut behind him, then he leaned heavily against it and stared down at her.
‘What are you doing here?’ Tessa asked in a small voice. She took a few more steps backwards, putting distance between them. Her hands fluttered nervously and she clasped them together in front of her.
‘Just passing by. Thought I’d drop in. About now, you should start hurli
ng more accusations about me and your sister, wouldn’t you say? Something along the lines of what a bastard I am?’
‘You should have told me.’
‘Told you what.’
‘That I was wrong about you and Lucy. That you were interested in her work. That that was what all the hushed voices were all about, as well as her desperation to get to your mother’s Boxing Day do. Because she wanted to show you her portfolio. I shouldn’t have had to hear it all from my sister.’
‘And what…stop you in mid-rant?’ He had spent the last hour cooling his heels at his usual coffee shop close to the office, giving his composure time to return to working condition. In fact, he had never had so many about-turns in his life before. One minute he had wanted to storm over to her place and give her a piece of his mind, because why the hell should he allow her to drag his reputation into the mud without murmuring a single word of protest? The next minute, he was telling himself that she wasn’t worth the effort of an argument, that she could think precisely what she wanted and the fact that he knew the truth was enough.
In fact, he had worked his way through two espressos and a bacon roll before coming to the decision that he was a man of honour and, as such, had a right to put her straight on one or two of her assumptions.
In a very cool, very detached, laudably rational way, of course. After all, all he would be doing would be to put her straight and move on with a clean slate. Get right back to the sort of woman he understood. Some uncomplicated, fun creature. The world was full of them, as he had always found.
Looking at this particular woman now, though, was doing nothing for all his good intentions. He didn’t feel very cool or detached or even rational, come to think of it.
‘No,’ he drawled, moving towards her until they were doing a weird dance, with Tessa retreating in the face of Curtis’s slow, relentless advance. ‘How cruel would I have been not to have allowed you the pleasure of ripping my personality to shreds?’
The Billionaire Boss's Bride Page 15
