had chosen in the window. A table for two, it was shielded from the glare by clever tilting of the vertical blinds, while yards of white tulle billowed in the breeze.
Despite his irritation, he felt obliged to say something after he was seated, and, offering India a faintly perfunctory twist of his lips, he said, ‘Thanks. I guess I’ll have to have my picture circulated to the other members of the staff if I want to avoid any more embarrassment.’
India stretched her arms to thigh level and linked her hands together. It was a vaguely protective gesture, though she seemed not to be aware of it. ‘That won’t be necessary if you allow me to introduce you to the rest of your employees,’ she said, her tone clipped and reproving. ‘If you hadn’t disappeared yesterday evening, you’d probably be known by now. Our grape-vine is quite efficient, and you are creating quite a stir.’
Nathan lay back in his chair and looked up at her. Although he realised her remarks were justified, he knew a quite unwarranted desire to disturb her composure. Was this what happened when familiarity gave way to estrangement? Why did he want to treat her differently now, when she was obviously doing her best to keep it civil?
He refused to consider that the way she looked had anything to do with his attitude. The short pleated skirt and collarless white blouse were an unlikely incentive to his mood. The fact that they were black and white again respectively, as her outfit had been the day before, seemed to point to their being a kind of uniform, even if the cap sleeves did reveal her arms, and the skirt expose her legs from mid-thigh.
Even her hair had been confined in a French plait, and the tight way she had drawn it back from her face should have added severity to her profile. But it didn’t. Instead, the austere style revealed the purity of her jawline, and the delicate curve of cheeks, which were as flawless as a peach.
God! The words flooding into his head appalled him. Appalled him, and disgusted him, too. He didn’t want to analyse exactly what he was thinking, but when his gaze drifted from her face to the taut thrust of her breasts emotions of a different kind caused the harshness in his voice.
‘I didn’t “disappear” last night,’ he corrected her shortly, suddenly aware of the tightness of his trousers. He shifted in his chair, trying to find a more comfortable position, and concentrated on the menu lying on the table in front of him. ‘I just needed a little time to myself, that was all. I’m sorry if I inconvenienced you—and your mother—but I didn’t know I had to inform you of my whereabouts.’
India’s intake of breath was revealing. ‘No one’s saying that, Nathan——’
‘Then what are you saying, then?’ he demanded, slanting a gaze up at her vivid face. Yes, that was better, he thought; she was angry with him now. It was easier to deal with anger than combat her cool control.
‘My mother expected you would want to see her,’ she declared at last. ‘That’s not so unusual, is it? For heaven’s sake, Nathan, she was your father’s wife. Whatever grudges you may still bear her, she has taken Aaron’s death badly. They’d been together for almost fourteen years! Can’t you show a little consideration?’
Consideration? Nathan was tempted to ask what consideration Adele had ever showed towards him. But India wasn’t to blame for her mother’s duplicity. She was innocent of any treachery. Innocent of malice.
‘Look, why don’t you sit down and we’ll talk about it?’ he suggested, seeing Lloyd fast approaching with his coffee. ‘Hey, that’s great,’ he added, as the waiter set a jug of freshly squeezed orange juice and a steaming pot of coffee on the table. He gave the man an approving smile. ‘Just what I need.’
Lloyd looked relieved. ‘Your eggs and bacon are on the way, sir,’ he exclaimed. And then, after casting a doubtful glance in India’s direction, ‘I’m sorry if I caused you any upset earlier, Mr Kittrick. If I’d known——’
‘No sweat.’ Nathan could afford to be magnanimous. ‘Miss—er—Miss Kittrick will be joining me for breakfast. Perhaps you’d like to take her order as well.’
India looked as if she wanted to refuse, but propriety won the day. ‘Er—just toast and coffee, Lloyd,’ she declared as he ushered her into her seat. And then, as the waiter went away again, she appended, ‘Don’t make my decisions for me, Nathan. I’m not a schoolgirl now.’
Nathan absorbed her anger as he poured himself a glass of golden juice. ‘Will you join me?’ he asked, gesturing towards her glass, but she turned it upside-down, and stared mutely out of the window.
With her profile turned towards him, and her determined chin supported by the knuckles of one hand, Nathan was able to watch her undetected. Despite the beauty of her complexion, she looked tired, he thought. Tired, and troubled, and he guessed Adele had given her a hard time when he had failed to show up the night before. Her knuckles shifted, and she brushed her hand across her cheek, revealing short, rounded nails, only palely tinged with polish. Her fingertips brushed the faint shadows beneath her eyes, and drew his attention to the slender arch of her brows. And when his eyes moved to her mouth, he knew his control was slipping again.
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