had changed into someone she didn’t recognise, but she had put it down to work stress, the unplanned pregnancy—she had become pregnant following a stomach bug which had made the Pill ineffective—all manner of things but the real cause.
She had loved him, made excuses for him—fool, fool, fool. And all the while the debts had been mounting, debts she was now struggling to pay off, month after painful month, as well as providing for her daughter and herself.
Maggie had been great. The two thousand pounds Graham had borrowed from her had been written off as far as Maggie was concerned on the day of the funeral, but there were plenty of others who hadn’t been so magnanimous.
She was constantly torn all ways. She wanted Melody to have nice clothes, good food and a happy environment, but although she had struggled to make the best of the tiny bedsit she had rented since the funeral it was hardly the best place in the world in which to bring up a young child. And the debts diminished so slowly. She couldn’t believe how slowly.
‘I take it you could start immediately, Mrs Allen, should you be offered the post?’
Kim had been so entrenched in the morass of the past that her eyes were almost bewildered when she raised them to meet Lucas Kane’s.
‘Yes, I… Yes.’ Pull yourself together and act like the efficient secretary he’s looking for, she told herself bitterly. You can’t afford to be choosy about who you work for, even though you disliked this man on sight. Not that she had any chance of securing the post; he had made that very clear.
‘And would you accept the position, should it be offered?’ he asked softly.
She stared at him, her stomach muscles tightening as she acknowledged again that she felt he was playing with her. And she had had enough of that—manipulation, half-truths, deceit—to last her a lifetime.
‘Oh, I’m sorry, I should have mentioned the salary before now.’ His voice was very cool as he mentioned a figure that was three times as much as she had been getting at Curtis & Brackley.
Kim gaped at him. She knew her mouth was partly open, that was the worst of it, but she was too stunned to do anything about it.
‘I believe in paying the best for the best, Mrs Allen.’ His mouth was twisted in a quizzical smile. ‘But if you worked for me you would earn every penny; ask Miss West if you don’t believe me. I demand absolute loyalty, unquestioning allegiance to Kane Electrical… You get my drift?’
His derisive expression was mocking but in this instant Kim found she didn’t care. Her mind was turning cartwheels in working out what such a financial bonus would mean and, on top of a car, a dress allowance… But she hadn’t been offered the job. She came back to earth with a wallop.
‘I…I think with such a generous package you would be within your rights to expect complete commitment and dedication from your secretary, Mr Kane,’ she managed at last. And how!
‘You do? Good. A meeting point at last.’ His voice was very deep and quiet and for a moment the portent of his words didn’t register. And then, as the covert censure hit, Kim flushed hotly.
The silver gaze ran over her pink face, the golden-blonde of her upswept hair bringing the charcoal-brown of her eyes into greater contrast, and then Lucas Kane stood up abruptly, thrusting his hands into his pockets as he turned to look out of the huge window behind him.
‘You haven’t answered my question, Mrs Allen.’ His voice was remote, distant.
‘I haven’t?’ Her mind was whirling and for a second she couldn’t grasp what he was getting at.
‘I asked you if you would accept the position if it was offered,’ he reminded her evenly, still without turning round.
She stared at the big figure in front of her, part of her mind conceding that he must be one of the tallest men she had ever met and certainly the most disturbing, and then she found herself saying, ‘Yes, I would accept it, Mr Kane, if it was offered.’
He was quite still for another moment and then he turned, slowly, to glance at her still sitting primly on the chair in front of the desk.
She was one hell of a beautiful woman. The thought came from nowhere and he found it intensely irritating. Beautiful, but with an air of wary vulnerability one moment and steel-like hardness the next. Nothing about her seemed to add up and he was sure she was keeping plenty from him—as far as skeletons in the cupboard went he wouldn’t be surprised if she had several rooms full of them.
From all she had said it sounded as though the kid was nothing more than an appendage to her life; women like her should never have children of their own. It was a sweeping statement and he recognised it as such, which further irritated him.
Damn it all, he knew nothing about her and her private life was no concern of his. As long as she did her job, that was all he was interested in. The thought caught him, tightening his mouth still more. Anyone would think he was offering her the job and he still had two of the other applicants to see yet, one of whom appeared to be a second June—if that were possible.
‘So, thank you for attending this interview, Mrs Allen, and we’ll be in touch within a day or two.’
It was a clear dismissal and Kim rose immediately to her feet, only to find she didn’t quite know what to do with the coffee cup.
‘May I…?’ He moved round the desk and again she felt that little curling in her insides as the sheer breadth and height of him dwarfed her. At five foot ten she wasn’t used to feeling so tiny and it was disconcerting to say the least.
‘Thank you.’ As he reached for the coffee cup she was careful not to let her fingers touch his although she couldn’t for the life of her have explained why. He was so close now she caught the faintest whiff of delicious and probably wildly expensive aftershave, and the effect of it on her sensitised nerves was enough to make her take a hasty step backwards, almost falling over the chair behind her as she did so.
Great. That was all she needed. Wouldn’t he just love it if she fell flat on her face in front of him? It was enough to put iron in her backbone and a tight smile on her face as she gathered up her bag and coat, and said steadily, ‘Goodbye, Mr Kane. I’ll wait to hear from you.’ And they both knew exactly what his decision would be, didn’t they? she added with silent bitterness.
‘Goodbye, Mrs Allen.’ There was a bite to the words; he had obviously noticed her involuntary recoil and hadn’t appreciated it, Kim thought wretchedly, humiliation adding more depth to the colour staining her cheeks.
The two or three steps to the interconnecting door seemed like miles, but then she was outside in June West’s office and Kim was amazed how utterly normal everything seemed. She had just endured one of the most—no, probably the most—unnerving experiences of her life and June West was sitting typing away at her word processor as though nothing had happened. But then she dealt with Lucas Kane every day of her life. The thought was astounding and Kim found herself looking at the other woman with new respect as she made her goodbyes and escaped to the lift.
What had made her say she would take the post if it was offered? As the lift whisked her silently downwards, Kim stared at her reflection in the mirrored wall in horror. Well, she knew why—filthy lucre! She gave a weak grin and the dark-eyed girl staring at her grinned back.
Not that her agreement was any cause for concern—Lucas Kane was as
