like jewels when you laugh.’ It didn’t come naturally to him to compliment a woman and mean it, but he meant this particular one with every fibre of his being.
‘Thank you.’
Carefully she disengaged her hand from his, and the becoming flush on Lara’s cheeks told Gabriel that he’d been right about her being disturbed by the shock of electricity that had arced between them.
‘You’re blushing,’ he teased.
‘If I am it’s because I’m not used to receiving such effusive compliments.’
‘Not even from the man in your life?’
He experienced no remorse whatsoever for shamelessly fishing. But Lara’s expression looked troubled now, and the light in her eyes dimmed a little.
‘There isn’t a man in my life—at least not at the moment.’
Gabriel couldn’t deny he was relieved to hear it, although he wasn’t ready to explore why right then.
‘You mean to say that there potentially might be someone? Someone you perhaps have your eye on?’
‘No. I don’t mean that at all.’ She didn’t bother to try and disguise her annoyance that he should quiz her on the subject.
‘What about you?’ she asked, turning the tables. ‘Is there anyone significant in your life? For all I know you might even be married by now.’
‘I’m not—married, I mean. And neither am I in a serious relationship. I’m married to my work, Lara. I know that sounds extremely dull and boring but it’s true. However, that’s not to say I lack the company of a pretty woman when I want it.’
‘You mean you like to play the field? I suppose that’s why there’s no one serious in your life, then.’
She sighed. But whether that sigh signified disapproval or disappointment Gabriel couldn’t guess.
Staring at the dense shroud of trees and bushes that her lively pet terrier had disappeared into, she suddenly called out, ‘Barney! Here, boy! Come on back, now.’
When the dog didn’t immediately appear, Lara turned her gaze back to Gabriel.
‘I worry when he suddenly goes quiet,’ she admitted, ‘I’d better go and see where he’s got to. He might have got stuck down a rabbit hole or something. It’s happened before. Why don’t you wait here for me? You’ve already got your posh shoes all muddy, and the ground on the other side of those trees and bushes is invariably quite boggy. Hopefully I won’t be too long.’
‘I don’t give a damn about my shoes, and I haven’t left my jacket back at the house and rolled up my shirtsleeves for nothing. I’m not concerned about getting dirty. I’ll come and help you find the dog.’
‘His name’s Barney!’
Again Lara looked affronted, and again Gabriel couldn’t resist goading her.
‘Who’s he named after? One of your ex-boyfriends?’
‘He’s my parents’ dog, not mine, you ninny.’
‘You always used to call me that. You might be surprised to know I found it quite endearing.’
‘Now, that I don’t believe. My perception was that it irritated you. I was the pesky sixteen-year-old sister of your friend, remember? You didn’t take me at all seriously. You put up with me out of politeness to Sean and my parents, I’m sure.’
‘That’s not true.’ Gabriel frowned, perturbed that Lara had believed that.
‘Come on, then.’ As if intuiting his disturbance, she gave him a cheery smile. ‘Let’s go and find Barney.’
As he squelched through the dense and muddied undergrowth in his thousand-dollar Italian loafers, with the damp leaves of bushes and thickets brushing against his immaculate white shirt, occasionally stumbling when he lost his balance, Gabriel had to smile at the ludicrous image he must present. His colleagues on Wall Street would have a field day if they could see him.
Strangely enough, that made him smile even more. In truth, he wasn’t predisposed to be glum or morose. He honestly thought that he had the best of it. How could he not when he was following behind the long-legged beauty in tight jeans in front of him?
Lara was negotiating the uneven muddy trail through the woods like a latter-day female Indiana Jones, hardly pausing for breath and calling out ‘Barney!’ every now and then with renewed gusto. Gabriel knew himself to be a fit man who welcomed a challenge—be it mental or physical—but his companion’s agility and stamina had to be seen to be believed.
Suddenly coming to a halt, and with frustration and apprehension in her voice, Lara shouted, ‘Barney! This isn’t funny. What do you think you’re playing at, you naughty boy?’
‘Sounds like you’re expecting him to reply.’
‘Ha-ha, very funny...not.’
This time Gabriel was treated to an irritated glare which, thankfully, he didn’t take seriously—not when he guessed that Lara would be utterly distraught if they couldn’t find the dog. It made him want to make more of a concerted effort to help her.
‘Barney!’ he yelled, striding towards an even denser section of the woods that they hadn’t yet explored, at that point not giving a fig that his shoes were now more or less ruined by the rough, muddy terrain.
Was that a glimpse of a dark sandy-coloured coat he’d just spied through the trees? He squinted searchingly. Gabriel would bet his bottom dollar that it was.
‘Barney! Here, boy!’ he called again, moving more deeply into the shrouded area in front of him.
He hadn’t gone very far when he saw the terrier’s wriggling rear-end pointed upwards towards the sheltering canopy of leaves. The dog was furiously digging in the earth as though intent on finding treasure.
‘I’ve found him!’ he called out to Lara, spinning round only to find her hurrying towards him. Her white shirt was splattered with mud, as his was, her long dark hair was engagingly dishevelled, and her pretty face was visibly flushed pink with the heat of her exertions.
‘Thank God!’ she exclaimed as she flew past Gabriel to reach her adored family pet, dropping down onto her knees on the rough woodland floor.
She didn’t seem to care that she might potentially hurt herself or ruin her clothes.
‘Barney, you’re a very naughty boy,’ she scolded fondly, lifting the animal away from his enthusiastic digging and hugging him to her chest, uncaring that the terrier had made her white shirt even muddier.
Crazy as it was, Gabriel couldn’t help but envy the small hound. He wouldn’t mind his once spotless tailored shirt getting even dirtier if Lara held him to her fulsome breasts like that.
‘He was probably digging for rabbits.’ She grinned up at him, her dark eyes shining. ‘He can’t help himself.’ Turning back to the dog, she crooned, ‘You’re a natural-born hunter, aren’t you, baby?’
