style="font-size:15px;"> ‘It wasn’t like that,’ Rachel flushed. ‘I—–’
‘Rachel?’
She instantly paled, turning at the sound of that familiar drawl, her eyes widening as she looked at Nicholas St Clare. He was standing only a couple of feet away from them, the dark brown shirt stretching tautly across his chest and shoulders, partly unbuttoned, the sleeves turned back to just below his elbows, the cream trousers fitted to his muscular thighs.
Danny’s stance instantly became challenging. ‘How nice,’ he taunted. ‘Your boy friend has come to pick you up from school!’
Rachel gave him a distressed look, and she heard Hilary gasp at her side. Nick looked unmoved, eyeing the younger man with amusement. She had no idea what he was doing here, or even how he had got here. She didn’t remember telling him what time she finished, or even what college she attended. ‘Ready?’ she repeated dazedly.
‘I told your mother and father I’d take you straight home,’ he further astounded her by announcing.
She swallowed hard, still not understanding, but getting his message that he was here to drive her home. She could see the Jaguar parked a short distance away, although with the hostile audience they had it could seem like a mile.
‘You haven’t forgotten?’ he prompted, his eyes narrowed.
‘I—er—No, of course not. ‘Bye, Danny, boys.’ She couldn’t quite look at any of them.
‘Would your friend like a lift home?’ Nick offered as she reached his side.
She had forgotten all about poor Hilary, although in the circumstances perhaps that wasn’t so surprising. ‘Hilary?’ she asked softly, almost pleadingly.
Hilary’s awed gaze hadn’t left Nick St Clare since he had first spoken, and she had some difficulty answering Rachel. ‘Er—no—thanks,’ she finally managed to stutter. ‘I have some shopping to do.’
Rachel knew the other girl must be completely bowled over, otherwise she would never have refused!
‘I’ll see you tomorrow, Rachel,’ Danny put in softly, obviously still out to cause trouble.
‘Probably,’ she answered coolly. ‘The college isn’t that big.’
‘Goodbye,’ Nick said generally, his hand firm on Rachel’s elbow, and guided her over to the Jaguar, opening the passenger door with a flourish.
She daren’t look in Danny’s direction as the car moved away from the kerbside, knowing she would see contempt in his face if she did.
‘I gather he’s a friend of yours?’ Nick spoke abruptly.
Her lashes fluttered nervously as she looked at him, the realisation of seeing him once again washing over her. His presence outside the college really had come as a surprise to her, so much so that it hadn’t occured to her to protest when he told her he was driving her home. It had almost been as if she had no mind of her own.
‘He was,’ she answered huskily.
‘Was?’ Nick prompted.
‘Yes,’ she almost snapped her reply.
‘He wouldn’t happen to be the boy you were kissing in the park yesterday, would he?’ Nick taunted.
Colour flooded her cheeks. She hadn’t realised Kay Lennox had seen her with Danny, but she was the only one who could have passed on such information to Nick St Clare. Had she also passed on her message to him?
‘I can see he was.’ Nick’s eyes mocked her as he glanced at her, the rush-hour traffic holding most of his attention. ‘Don’t you know there are more private places for making love?’
Rachel flushed, with anger this time. ‘We weren’t making love, we were kissing! And it’s none of your business where I do it.’
‘It might be if I were the man you were kissing,’ he said softly.
His words robbed her of speech, as they were supposed to, she felt sure. She had pushed the memory of the light kiss he had given her last night to the back of her mind, but now the thrill just that fleeting touch of his lips had given her came flooding back.
‘Did your sister give you my message?’ she asked to cover her embarrassment.
Nick glanced at her. ‘That you couldn’t make dinner tonight?’
‘Yes,’ she nodded.
‘Yes, she gave it to me.’
Rachel frowned her consternation. ‘Then why are you here?’
‘To take you home. Your mother said you usually finish about this time—–’
‘When did you see my mother?’ she asked sharply.
‘About an hour ago.’
‘But—I—You—–’
Nick chuckled softly. ‘Did you want to say something, Rachel?’
‘Yes, I did!’ she snapped. ‘What are you doing here?’
He sighed. ‘I just told you—–’
‘You didn’t tell me anything,’ she flashed. ‘If your sister passed on my message that I couldn’t meet you tonight then why did you go to my home?’
‘To give you the flowers.’
‘What flowers?’ She was becoming really agitated now, and Nick’s annoying attitude did not help.
‘I don’t know,’ he shrugged. ‘I didn’t make a list of the different varieties.’
‘Nick!’
‘Hmm?’
‘Oh, I give up!’ She subsided into her seat. ‘You’re impossible!’ She contented herself with glaring at the perfection of his profile.
‘So I’ve often been told,’ he shrugged.
‘It’s true!’
‘Rachel,’ he was serious now, the teasing had left his eyes, his mouth was no longer smiling, ‘why did you call off our date?’
‘I—You—–’
‘I don’t remember you stuttering like this last night,’ he frowned.
‘When we spoke last night I had no idea you were Nicholas St Clare!’ She fidgeted with her tee-shirt, pulling it down over her denims.
‘But now you do.’
‘Yes, now I do!’
‘And you no longer want to go out with me?’
‘No.’
