scales had suddenly been wrenched from her eyes, she saw him for the first time as the man he was; a man who had built up a multi-million pound financial empire virtually from nothing; a man notorious in business circles for his single-minded determination when it came to getting his own way; a man whom she had grossly humiliated and insulted, and who was now towering above her menacingly … a man with whom she was completely alone …
She stepped backwards on legs that trembled, longing to run, but mesmerised like a petrified rabbit by the dark grey eyes.
‘Not so valiant now, are we?’ Luke asked softly, moving as stealthily as a jungle cat.
Terror swept her, drawing her down into a black vortex, paralysing her limbs completely.
‘Oh no,’ he continued in that same frighteningly steady voice, ‘I’m not going to touch you now, Genista. But one day I shall. I fully intend to make you pay for last time, to honour the promises you made me albeit only with your eyes and body.’ His mouth twisted in a cynical smile. ‘And don’t try to pretend that you didn’t. You were taking me for a ride, Genista, but now I’m in control of the train and the ride won’t be over until I say so.’
He was playing with her like a cat with a mouse, Genista thought bitterly, deliberately tormenting her, knowing that because she was his employee he had a certain amount of power over her.
‘You don’t strike me as a man who would compete for any woman,’ she said bravely, trying to appear unconcerned. ‘Especially one he knows to be the mistress of someone else.’
For a moment she thought he was going to strike her. Her body stiffened in fear, and his eyes gleamed satirically, the bitter hunger she had thought she saw there seconds before banished so completely that she thought it must have been a trick of the light.
‘I’m a businessman,’ he reminded her coolly, ‘and I don’t like being cheated out of my just re-wards. I wanted you the moment I saw you, Genista—you’re a very beautiful woman—and I fully intend to have you!’
With that calm declaration he turned on his heel, leaving her alone in the office trying to come to terms with her chaotic thoughts. The man was unbelievable—insane even! He was behaving as though he were a feudal baron with rights of droit du seigneur over her. She knew she had every right to feel furiously angry, but for some reason the confrontation with him seemed to have drained her of the energy to feel anything apart from a panicky fear that stuck in her throat, causing her heart to beat nervously as she contemplated the words he had thrown at her before leaving the room.
Her fingers trembled as she dialled the foyer number of the flats. George answered almost immediatedly, assuring her that he had changed her lock. It must be the relief that made her feel so close to tears, she decided when she hung up, because certainly it was not like her to be so emotional.
When Bob returned from lunch she asked him if he could spare the time to accompany her to her garage.
‘I’m terrified of driving the car for the first time,’ she admitted to him ruefully, ‘and I badly need some moral support.’
‘You should have asked our new boss,’ Jilly interrupted with a grin. ‘He’s really smitten, didn’t you think so, Bob?’
‘Don’t be so ridiculous, Jilly!’ Genista cut in before Bob could speak. ‘I’ve already told you, you’ve got romance on the brain!’
‘All right, tell me about your new car instead,’ Jilly temporised. ‘What make is it?’
‘A Mercedes,’ Genista told her, reluctant to sound as though she were bragging about her new possession. ‘It’s something I’ve wanted for a long time, and at last I’ve decided to take the plunge. It’s a convertible—a sort of sports model, and I want Bob to come with me to pick it up. I’m terrified of driving it for the first time.’
‘A Mercedes?’ Jilly squeaked, in obvious awe. ‘You lucky thing!’ She said it without any malice, adding with a grin, ‘A sports car too—what happens in the winter?’
Neither of them had seen Luke walk into the room, and feeling relieved that her friend had exhibited no envy, Genista replied with a touch of slightly dry humour,
‘Oh, I’ll use the Ferrari then, of course. What do you think, Bob? When we’ve collected the Mercedes, how about buying a Ferrari?’
They were all laughing when Genista turned round and caught sight of Luke’s openly contemptuous expression. Shock and guilt mingled on her own face, and it wasn’t until much later that she realised he must have read in her expression confirmation of his suspicions that Bob was buying the car for her.
Bob’s phone rang and Jilly drifted back to her desk, leaving Genista completely unprotected when Luke walked up and muttered in a voice which only carried as far as her,
‘Perhaps I ought to start checking the books. There’s no way Bob can afford the sort of luxuries that you demand, unless he’s got private means. You certainly believe in pricing yourself high, don’t you?’
‘Meaning you couldn’t afford me?’ Genista parried swiftly, not caring what conclusions he would draw from her words. He already suspected the very worst it was possible for a man to think of a woman about her; any further conclusions he might draw could only be an anti-climax.
‘On the contrary,’ he told her smoothly, with a speed which caught her off guard, ‘I could easily provide you with the Mercedes and the Ferrari. Think about it, Genista. I’m not averse to paying generously for my pleasures.’
‘How predictable you are!’ Genista hissed back angrily. ‘You want something and you immediately think all you have to do is buy it. Haven’t you learned yet that some things simply can’t be bought?’
Her heated speech made him raise an eyebrow, his eyes gleaming sardonically as he looked down at her, saying with slow deliberation, ‘But we already know that you’re not one of them, don’t we, Genista?’
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