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‘Reed!’ she gasped her hurt surprise; he had never been deliberately cruel to her before.
He put his hands up in apology. ‘OK, that was uncalled for,’ he acknowledged grimly. ‘I’m upset, and I’m taking it out on you. But I’m damned worried.’ He frowned.
She could see that, had never seen him this agitated before. But she also knew that if she mentioned it he would point out that he had never lost his mother before!
‘Don’t you think one of us should remain here?’ she suggested practically. ‘Just in case she should come here.’
He thought for a moment before nodding. ‘You stay,’ he bit out. ‘I couldn’t stand the inactivity right now.’ He took his jacket off the back of his chair, shrugging in to it. ‘And for goodness’ sake go and put your contacts in so that you’ll at least recognise it is her if she arrives!’
She hurried into the adjoining office, leaving the door open for him to follow, groaning her dismay as the outer door opened and a grinning Marc Kincaid came in. ‘Not now, Marc,’ she said, trying to push him back outside the door before Reed saw him. ‘Reed isn’t in the mood to see you right now,’ she explained frantically as Marc looked down at her in surprise, her efforts to evict him proving ineffectual, Marc being almost as big as Reed.
‘He’s never in the mood to see me,’ Marc dismissed, easily standing his ground. ‘But——’
‘He wants to see you even less than usual today.’ Darcy threw a hunted look over her shoulder; Reed was, thankfully, still in his office. Although her luck couldn’t hold. It hadn’t so far today! ‘Please leave, Marc,’ she begged him desperately.
‘He will want to see me, Darcy,’ he assured her. ‘But how about a kiss first?’ he encouraged huskily, bending his head to claim her mouth with his.
It was far from the first kiss she had shared with this wickedly handsome man; she was still slightly amazed that someone as attractive and popular as he was wanted to date her. He was handsome enough to have any woman he wanted, with his thick blond hair, dancing blue eyes, a seductively smiling mouth, the masculinity of his body undoubted in his tight denims and fitted blue shirt. But for the last six weeks he had asked to see her every night. Not that she had accepted every night, but four out of seven still amounted to a lot of nights.
And Reed was going to be even more furious than he already was if he found him here. She had met Marc because Reed had become his financial partner in the photographic studio he ran on a lower floor of the building, but Reed didn’t approve of their personal relationship spilling over into his office.
‘And just what happens if someone wants to come in the door?’ grated an icy voice.
Marc lifted his head slowly, in no hurry to release Darcy as he looked up to grin at the other man. ‘They either ask us to move or wait until we’re finished,’ he drawled unconcernedly.
‘Marc——’
‘Darcy tells me you’re in a bad mood,’ he continued as if she hadn’t tried to cut in. ‘Something wrong, Reed?’ he held Darcy snugly against his side, his arm about her shoulders.
‘Yes, something is wrong,’ the other man hissed. ‘I’ll leave Darcy to tell you all about it!’
Marc still blocked the doorway. ‘Maybe I can help?’ His eyes gleamed with amusement.
‘I doubt it,’ Reed snapped, shooting Darcy a disparaging look.
‘Sure?’ Marc taunted.
‘Marc, please,’ she groaned, as Reed looked ready to explode if the other man didn’t get out of his way. ‘Reed is in a hurry.’
‘Too much of one for his visitor?’ Marc challenged.
‘Is this important?’ Reed snapped tersely.
Marc grinned. ‘I think so. I think you will, too, if you stop long enough to listen to me.’
‘Can’t it wait?’ Reed sighed impatiently.
‘I doubt it.’ The other man shook his head mysteriously.
‘Marc, unless it’s really important please leave it until later.’ She looked up at him pleadingly. ‘You see, Reed’s mother arrived in London this morning, and I——’
‘I know,’ he nodded.
‘… lost her between here and Heathrow, and— What do you mean, you know?’ Darcy frowned up at him as she realised what he had said; Reed went rigid with tension as he looked at the other man with narrowed eyes.
‘I mean, I know that Maud arrived from America this morning.’ Marc at last released her. ‘You see, I was just on my way out to lunch when I noticed the lady peering up at the notice-board downstairs —and she had a long way to peer, believe me,’ he teased. ‘Anyway, being the helpful soul that I am, I asked her if I could be of any help.’ He raised mocking brows at Reed. ‘She looked too young and beautiful to be your mother, old chap,’ he mocked. ‘But she assures me that’s who she is.’
‘What have you done with her?’ Reed demanded harshly.
‘Nothing, she’s right outside.’ Marc shrugged, as if he couldn’t understand what all the fuss was about.
Reed pushed him aside none too gently, coming to an abrupt halt as the tiny lady causing all the uproar appeared in the doorway.
‘Hello, darling.’ She reached up to kiss her eldest son on the cheek. ‘I was just admiring your lovely nameplate on the wall outside. You——’
‘Mother!’
‘Mrs Hunter!’
She blinked lids over surprised green eyes as Reed and Darcy spoke at the same time. ‘Yes, dears?’ she prompted interestedly, giving Darcy a chiding look as she did so. ‘I’m sure I asked you to call me Maud,’ she scolded, coming further into the room. ‘My, this is a nice office, Reed,’ she said admiringly as she looked around. ‘Do you——’
‘Mother, where the hell have you been?’ he bit out with controlled violence, his hands clenched at his sides.
She blinked again, obviously surprised by his vehemence. ‘Darling, you know I don’t like it when you swear——’
‘Not another one!’ he ground out exasperatedly, momentarily closing his eyes, the glitter even more intense when he raised his lids. ‘Mother, you disappeared from Darcy’s car two hours ago, where have you been?’ he demanded, the flame in his eyes positively primitive as Marc gave a chuckle at his omission of ‘the hell’ the second time around. Marc’s expression instantly became bland.
Darcy gave him a warning look. Ordinarily the two men were quite good friends, although on the surface they had little in common but their intense professionalism and an eye for beautiful women. Marc was completely dedicated to his work, was a perfectionist, and in a different way Reed was the same about his investments. Their approach to women was different, however, Marc being a different man then, light and frivolous, whereas Reed never let anyone too close to him, not even the women he took as his lovers. Maybe they weren’t so different in that respect after all: being light and frivolous didn’t allow for deeper relationships either! But it was obvious Reed didn’t appreciate Marc’s levity now, although from Marc’s wink in her direction he wasn’t too worried about it.
Maud’s expression seemed to say she didn’t know what all the fuss was about either. ‘I had a nice rest in Darcy’s car after the flight; I had the misfortune to be seated next to a man on the plane who just would not stop talking,’ she said disgustedly. ‘He talked all the way over here—when he wasn’t drinking,’ she added with a frown. ‘Do you know that he——’
‘Mother!’
‘I wish you would let me tell this in my own way, Reed,’ his mother admonished sternly. ‘You know how I forget things when I’m constantly interrupted— Did you say something, dear?’ She looked concernedly at Darcy as she made a choking sound.
‘No! Er—no,’ she repeated lamely.
Green eyes twinkled at her from a face still beautiful, not marred by the usual worry lines of a woman her age. And Darcy was beginning to realise why! Why hadn’t she noticed at the airport? Probably because she had been too busy trying to see where she was going to notice just how vague Maud Hunter was!
Maud turned back to her son. ‘As I was saying,’ she said pointedly. ‘I was very tired after the flight. And then this nice young lady met me at the airport.’ She beamed at Darcy. ‘She’s such a nice girl, Reed. I hope you’re good to her.’ She frowned. ‘Anyway,’ she hastily continued as her son looked as if he might explode again, ‘when I woke up I realised Darcy must have been kind enough to let me continue sleeping, and then when I got out of the car to look for her I couldn’t find her. It’s strange the things that come back to you, you know,’ she told them all, ‘because I suddenly realised I was very close to where my old friend Joyce Bennett use to live. After ten years I still remembered——’
‘Mother,’ Reed cut in on her ramblings in a strained voice. ‘You aren’t going to tell us that you calmly went off to visit a friend while Darcy was frantically trying to find you?’
‘Were you, dear?’ Maud looked at her concernedly. ‘I am sorry. You see, I——’
‘Mother, please!’
Darcy completely sympathised with Reed’s impatience this time; she felt like shaking the muddle-headed woman herself!
Maud sighed. ‘I went back to the car when I couldn’t find Darcy, but that had disappeared as well, and that was when I——’
‘Went off to visit your old friend Joyce Bennett,’ Reed finished icily.
Maud looked bewildered by his anger. ‘Well—yes. But——’
‘Didn’t you realise that Darcy would be worried about you? That I would be worried about you when she arrived back here without you?’
‘I didn’t mean to be gone quite as long as I was,’ she grimaced. ‘Once Joyce and I started talking——’
‘I’m sure,’ Reed grated. ‘I think you owe Darcy an apology—I think we both do!’
‘You do?’ His mother frowned. ‘I hope you haven’t been shouting at her, Reed,’ she rebuked. ‘It wasn’t Darcy’s fault that I was late getting here.’
‘I’m beginning to see that,’ he sighed heavily. ‘Let’s go through to my office, Mother. I’ll talk to you later, Darcy.’ It was an order, not a request.
‘Can you believe that?’ Marc chuckled as he sat on the edge of Darcy’s desk once they were alone. ‘That sweet little old lady, Reed the Rake’s mother!’
‘He isn’t a rake.’ Darcy automatically corrected Marc’s nickname for her employer, while busily tidying the papers on her desk-top that had no need of it; her desk was always completely organised. ‘And yes, I can believe she’s his mother.’ No two people who weren’t related could have eyes of such a deep green. But other than those eyes the two had no similarities whatsoever!
‘Sounds like he’s going to have his hands full.’ Marc still grinned.
‘She’s only here until tomorrow,’ Darcy supplied absently. ‘Reed is driving her down to Southampton then to get on her cruise-ship.’ He had told her that much before she left for the airport this morning, although he had told her little else about his charming but vague mother.
‘That’s what I could do with, a nice long cruise.’ Marc stretched lazily. ‘I don’t suppose you would care to come away with me this weekend?’
Her brows rose mockingly at his teasing expression. ‘I don’t suppose I would,’ she drawled.
He grimaced his disappointment. ‘I thought not. So, how is my birthday girl?’
Birthday girl; this was the worst day she had known in a long time! ‘She’s fine,’ she lied, having forgotten that it was her birthday. ‘She is also busy,’ she added pointedly.
He stood up, holding up his hands defensively. ‘I was only doing my good deed for the day——’
‘I know.’ She sighed at her lack of gratitude for the fact that he had safely delivered Maud to Read. ‘I’m sorry.’ She gave him a tight smile. ‘It’s been chaotic here the last few hours, and——’
‘Reed been throwing his weight around, has he?’ Marc sympathised.
‘Only a little.’ She grimaced at the understatement. ‘And he had the right.’
‘Want to talk about it?’ he encouraged softly.
Darcy shook her head, feeling too shaken to go into the details of her argument with Reed. ‘Maybe tonight.’ She shrugged.
‘Ah yes, tonight.’ Marc’s eyes lit up excitedly. ‘Put your glad rags on because tonight I have a surprise for you!’
She warily searched the glow of his eyes. ‘What sort of surprise?’
He tapped the end of her nose playfully. ‘If I tell you it won’t be a surprise any more. Just do what little there is to improve on that beautiful face and wear your sexiest dress.’
‘Beautiful face’, Darcy thought despondently a short time later as she looked in the mirror she had used to finally put her contact lenses in. Marc photographed beautiful women all day long, and no one in their right mind could compare her to the multitude of beauties that went into his studio each day. But then, when had Marc ever claimed to be in his right mind?
She looked critically at her reflection, at the bubbly red-gold curls that refused to be tamed, deep blue eyes that seemed to have taken on a permanently vague look, a short nose liberally sprinkled with freckles even during the winter months, a pretty smiling mouth, with a dimple in her elfin chin. No make-up in the world could make her appear sophisticated and worldly; in fact it had the opposite effect, making her look garishly childish. She had been told once that her long dark lashes framing deep blue eyes were her best feature, and so the only affectation she did have was the use of contact lenses rather than glasses, although even that effect was ruined when she forgot to put them in, looking owlishly bewildered then. No wonder Reed lost all patience with her!
‘Marc gone?’ he suddenly rasped behind her.
Darcy jumped guiltily at being caught staring at her reflection, hastily putting the mirror away in her bag, embarrassed by the apparent vanity. She nodded, not quite able to meet Reed’s gaze. ‘He was going to lunch, remember?’ she dismissed lightly.
His mouth twisted. ‘I’m surprised you didn’t go with him!’
‘I thought I had better wait around and see if you wanted me to clear out my desk and leave now or if you want me to stay on until you have my replacement.’ She moistened her lips nervously, finally looking up at him, able to see him clearly for the first time today. He looked as forbidding as she had imagined he would! ‘Maybe an incompetent secretary who doesn’t possess a memory is better than none at all; I don’t know.’ She shrugged.
The hard lines of his face tightened even more. ‘I was angry when I said that, Darcy,’ he grated. ‘I didn’t mean it.’
‘Didn’t you?’ she said dully, knowing that at the time he had said it he had meant every word.
‘No.’ He grimaced, moving to stand next to her desk. ‘You’re a damned good secretary, better than I——’ He broke off, sighing impatiently.
‘Better than you ever thought I would be,’ Darcy finished for him ruefully. ‘I manage, as long as I only concentrate on one thing at a time,’ she added bitterly.
‘Darcy——’
‘At least, I thought I was quite competent.’ She frowned uncertainly.
‘You are,’ Reed acknowledged forcefully. ‘Hell, I’m not making a very good job of this apology.’ He ran a hand through his already tousled black hair. ‘My only defence for my behaviour towards you earlier is that I was worried out of my mind.’ He gave a weary sigh. ‘You’ve seen my mother at her worst; you can guess why!’
Yes, she could guess why, quite easily. Reed was a man who made important decisions in a matter of seconds, who gambled on the Stock Exchange in millions rather than hundreds, and his mother’s vagueness must be quite an irritation to such a man. But how could she explain to him that her own forgetfulness had been acquired and wasn’t part of her fundamental character? She couldn’t do it without going into the past, and so she knew she would never tell him.
‘Does this mean you don’t want me to leave?’ She frowned.
‘Of course I don’t want you to leave,’ he dismissed impatiently. ‘Do you accept my apology?’
Now wasn’t the time to point out that he hadn’t actually got around to making one, not if she wanted to continue working for him. And she did want to continue doing that, very much.
‘Of course.’ She smiled her forgiveness. ‘Would you like me to take your mother to your apartment now? I’m sure she would like to rest.’
‘She would.’ He nodded tersely. ‘But I’ll take her.’ His expression darkened as her eyes shadowed over with pain. ‘It has nothing to do with the fact that between the two of you you would probably forget where you’re going,’ he refuted impatiently. ‘As she only has today in England this end of her trip, I think I should spend a little time with her.’
‘Of course,’ Darcy acknowledged noncommittally.
‘Darcy——’
‘Reed, could we go to Harrods on the way to your apartment?’ His mother came out of his office. ‘I want to buy some tea to take back with me.’
‘Wouldn’t it be better if you waited until you get back from the cruise before doing that?’ he suggested after shooting a resigned look in Darcy’s direction. ‘You won’t need it until then.’
‘I suppose not.’ She nodded thoughtfully, going to the door he held open for her. ‘Maybe we can look at the coffee instead?’ she suggested hopefully.
‘Doesn’t the same thing apply?’ he pointed out drily.
