And there wasn’t a damn thing he could do about it. Unless, of course, he could convince Josie to take pity on him.
She’d been quick with a tender hand and he was sure that if he’d asked she’d have gone and fetched sugar for him from her own tray. If he’d done that she’d be really mad at him.
She might even have indulged his massage fantasy if she hadn’t caught him with his eyes rather lower than they should have been.
‘I take it that I can cross ants off the list of things I have to worry about,’ she said without the least sign of sympathy.
Okay, so she was too mad to indulge him now, but it wouldn’t last. She laughed too easily to hold a grudge.
‘If I say yes, will you have lunch with me?’ he asked.
‘So that you can help yourself to forbidden treats from my tray?’
‘Me? I’m helpless. Of course, if you forced them on me there isn’t a thing I could do to stop you.’
‘You can relax,’ she replied, but her lusciously wide mouth tightened at the corners as she fought to stop it responding to his outrageous cheek with a grin. ‘I wouldn’t dream of it.’
‘I’d make it worth your while,’ he promised.
‘Give it up, Gideon. I can’t be bribed.’
Of course she could. Everyone could be bribed. You just had to find out what they wanted most in the world. Preferably before they knew they wanted it.
‘You’re going to need a friendly ear in which to pour your frustrations before this wedding is over.’ That he would be the major cause of those frustrations didn’t preclude him from offering comfort. ‘A shoulder to cry on when everything falls apart.’
‘All I need from you is your room,’ she replied. ‘Besides, you’re supposed to be on a low stress regime.’
‘It would be your stress, not mine,’ he pointed out.
‘Yes, well, thanks for the offer,’ she said, losing the battle with the smile and trying very hard not to laugh. ‘I appreciate your concern, but SDS Events do not plan weddings that fall apart—’
‘You didn’t plan this one.’
‘—and you won’t be here long enough to provide the necessary shoulder for tears or any other purpose.’
‘I’ll be here until my back says otherwise.’ And, quite unexpectedly, he didn’t find that nearly as infuriating as he had just half an hour earlier.
‘Your back doesn’t have a say in the matter. I hate to add to your stress, but unless you intend playing gooseberry to the bride and groom you would be well advised to make other arrangements.’
‘Are you telling me that this is going to be the bridal suite?’
‘Twenty-four hours from now, you won’t be able to move in here for flowers,’ she assured him, so seriously that he laughed.
It hurt like hell but he didn’t care. He was throwing a spanner in the wedding works and he didn’t have to lift a finger—let alone a telephone—to do it.
‘I’m glad that amuses you, Mr McGrath. They do say that laughter is very healing, which, since you have to be out of here by first thing tomorrow, is just as well. Maybe you should try the plunge pool,’ she suggested. ‘It will take the weight off your muscles. Ease the pain.’
‘I’m willing to give it go,’ he assured her. ‘But I’ll need a hand.’
‘No problem. I’d be happy to give you a push.’
‘But will you stick around to help me out?’
‘Sorry, I have a full day ahead of me. Enjoy the herbal tea and nut cutlets.’
‘You’re full of excellent ideas, Josie. You just don’t follow through.’
‘Don’t test me,’ she warned.
She turned with a splendid swish of her robe, giving him an unintentional glimpse of thigh.
‘I’ll give you one thing,’ he called after her.
‘Your bed?’
‘Communication.’
She stopped and, when she turned back to face him, he said, ‘If you’ll make a call for me.’
‘You want me to call your wife and tell her you’re catching the next plane home?’
‘There’s no one waiting for that call, Josie.’ No one to rush back to. ‘I want you to ring my office. Give me your notebook and I’ll write down the number.’
She came closer, drawn by the temptation, took the notebook from her pocket and handed it to him with her pen. It was the kind of notebook he favoured himself, with a pocket at the back for receipts and an elastic band to hold it together. He slipped the band and it fell open at the bookmarked page where she’d started writing a list.
Hairdryers?
Ring???
Phone?
Florist
Caterer
Confectioner
He smiled and beside ‘Ring’ he jotted down a number.
‘Call Cara,’ he said, handing it back to her. ‘She’s my PA.’
‘And say what?’
‘Just ask her what the hell is going on in Marketing.’
‘What the hell is going on in Marketing,’ she repeated, then shook her head. ‘I can see why you’re stressed. You’re on holiday. Let it go, Gideon.’
‘Holidays are my work, which is why I know that David has a satellite telephone and Internet access. He keeps it a dark secret from the guests, but I’m sure he’ll make an exception in your case.’
‘You—’ She let slip a word that was surely banned from the wedding planners’ handbook. ‘Had again.’
‘You’re going to need me on your side, Josie.’
‘I need you gone!’
He left her with the last word and his reward was a view of an unexpectedly sexy rear as she walked away. A pair of slender ankles. He was already looking forward to making his acquaintance with the legs that connected them.
‘I don’t suppose you’ve got a London newspaper to spare for a man dying of boredom?’ he called after her.
‘Never touch them,’ her disembodied voice replied from the bridge. ‘Far too stressful.’
‘Liar,’ he called back as he tugged
