had all the weapons, and then some. Taking a steadying breath, Kathryn urged her fluttering heart to be still. Drew was right; this man was dangerous. If he could make her defences crumble without really trying, what would happen if and when he did try? It was more than time to beat a strategic retreat.
‘I’ll have to take your word on that. For the moment I’m more interested in freshening up before dinner. Agnes has put me in the rose room, isn’t that right?’ she said, with all the composure she could muster.
‘This time I’ll let you run away, but it won’t always be so. Left at the top of the stairs and follow your nose. You can’t miss it. No doubt Agnes will have fitted the steel door by now in an attempt to keep me out,’ he added sardonically, and Kathryn left the room feeling as if she had been put through a wringer.
Events had taken an unexpected turn. This was not how she had foreseen the weekend going. Joel had turned her world on its head, and she found herself in a situation entirely new to her. Joel Kendrick wanted her and she wanted him. The problem was, she had never entered into a relationship that had no happy ending in sight. And that, if she responded to the way he could make her feel, was what she would have to do. He had made that very clear. From nowhere, she found herself with some serious decisions to make, and very little time to make them.
CHAPTER TWO
UPSTAIRS in her bedroom, Kathryn sank down onto the bed and gave her wobbly legs a much needed rest. She felt shattered and intoxicated in equal quantities. Nothing could have adequately prepared her for meeting Joel Kendrick. No advance warnings could have equipped her for the reality. She had thought to have some fun, and certainly hadn’t expected to be attracted to him so strongly, or to have that attraction reciprocated.
What she felt went way beyond anything in her experience. She could honestly say she had never felt such an intense physical attraction. It was there between them like a living, breathing thing. What did she do about it? That was the question. She knew what Joel wanted, but what did she want?
To have an affair with Joel would no doubt be an incredible experience, but it would break her own rules, because if he were to be believed—and she had no reason to doubt him—there was no future in it. She might like to flirt, but she wasn’t a fool. She never went further unless she thought there might be a future with the man.
Only, there was a part of her which said this time was special. That she would be a fool to turn it down. Yet if she took what was on offer, that would be doing what Drew had said, and throwing herself to the wolf. Would being part of his life for a brief time be worth it? Certainly she wouldn’t know unless she tried it. But she was only here for two days. Two days wouldn’t even amount to an affair. It would be, at best, a brief encounter. Surely she had more respect for herself than to give in to her passions for a mere forty-eight hours?
With a heavy sigh she fell back onto the bed, knowing the answer. Common sense said it had to be no. She mustn’t allow herself more than a brief flirtation. At least she had an inkling of just how dangerous he could be to her if she wasn’t careful. She was going to have to keep her wits about her, for she didn’t doubt for a moment that he would take advantage of their mutual attraction. His reputation was proof enough. Pride dictated that she must not become his next conquest, no matter how strong the pull on her senses.
A soft knock on the door brought her up on her elbow.
‘Who is it?’
‘Drew,’ the muffled voice responded, and she grimaced, knowing what was coming.
‘Come in,’ she invited, scrambling to the side of the bed and swinging her legs down.
Drew looked at her closely as he entered and shut the door, and she wondered what he expected to see.
‘It’s OK, you don’t have to say it, I know,’ she declared wryly, hoping to head him off at the pass. No such luck.
Her cousin came and sat beside her, concern heavy on his brow. ‘What were you thinking of?’ he challenged despairingly, and that brought a smile to her lips.
‘It wasn’t the sort of situation where thinking came into it,’ she returned wryly. She had simply responded to the signals coming off Joel, and her own rioting senses.
‘Kathy, this man could break your heart.’
Reaching for Drew’s hand, she squeezed it reassuringly. ‘Don’t worry. I’m not going to let him. I have no intention of being seduced.’
‘But you are attracted to him?’ Drew persisted, and she shrugged fatalistically.
‘I won’t deny it. He’s a very attractive man. But I’m not stupid, Drew. I know where to draw the line.’
He didn’t look totally convinced, but grudgingly accepted what she said with a proviso. ‘Just make sure Joel knows where the line is, too.’
Kathryn stood up and tugged him to his feet. ‘Oh, I intend to. Now, get out of here and let me freshen up. I’m starving, and the smells wafting up are making my stomach rumble. Besides, if I’m quick, I could get a look at that computer before dinner. The sooner I start, the sooner I can be finished and on my way home.’
That clearly met with his approval, and he went without further comment, leaving Kathryn to sigh heavily. Then, because she was a practical person, not given to languishing on thoughts of what might have been, she gathered together her sponge bag and a change of clothes and went in search of the bathroom.
As it turned out, Kathryn didn’t get an opportunity to look over Joel’s computer until after dinner. When she went back downstairs, this time dressed in a long-sleeved holly-green dress made of soft wool, she met Agnes coming from the dining room.
‘My, don’t you look nice this evening, miss,’ the housekeeper declared with a warm smile.
Kathryn smiled back. ‘Thank you, Agnes. Something smells good.’
‘Lancashire hotpot. Master Joel’s favourite. The table’s set, so it won’t be more than a few minutes now. If you go into the sitting room, you can help yourself to a drink before dinner,’ Agnes suggested, pointing to a door on the other side of the hall.
Realising her hope of looking over the computer had to be abandoned, Kathryn obediently made her way to the sitting room. It was a pleasant room, with comfortable sofas and armchairs surrounding the brick fireplace where another fire blazed cheerfully. Drinks were set on a tray on the sideboard, and Kathryn helped herself to a small Martini. If she wanted to get some work done later, drinking too much now would be inadvisable.
She was studying a group of photos on the mantel-piece when a subtle shift of the air told her Joel had come into the room. She had never been so attuned to a man that she could sense his presence even at a distance. It was uncanny, and she didn’t know quite what to make of it. Turning, she found him just inside the door, studying her with eyes that gleamed appreciatively. In response, her nerves took a tiny leap and set her pulse throbbing. He looked magnificent, and her heart did a crazy lurch as her own eyes ate him up. The white silk shirt and black trousers he now wore barely seemed to tame him. He moved, coming towards her with a lithe, pantherish grace that tightened her stomach with desire.
‘You look good enough to eat,’ he murmured, his gaze setting her nerves alight with such disconcerting ease it was a wonder she didn’t melt on the spot.
‘I thought hotpot
