Fiance For Christmas

He looked uncomfortable. ‘Forgive me for prying, but your parents live in the country. Wouldn’t they prefer it if she returned home to live?’

‘You bet they would! She did go home to have the baby, but when Emily was six months old Julia insisted on going back to work. Mother and Dad help as much as she allows, but Julia’s very independent. She feels she’s to blame for this mess—’

‘It’s my fault, not Julia’s!’

‘I blame Max,’ said Cassie with venom. ‘In fact, I could murder him with my bare hands at this precise moment.’

‘That makes two of us,’ he agreed. ‘Let’s get out of here. I don’t know about you, but I’m starving.’ He smiled suddenly, the first real smile he’d managed all night. ‘Sorry I ruined your evening, Cassie. I’ll buy you dinner to make amends.’

Cassie caught sight of herself in the mirror on Max’s wall, and laughed. ‘With red eyes and mascara smudges? No way. Thanks just the same.’

‘You’re not quite the vision who let me in earlier on,’ agreed Nick, amused, as he locked up. ‘But I think I prefer the way you look right now—more like the young Cassie I used to know.’

‘You didn’t know me at all, Dominic Seymour!’ Which was all to the good, she thought with a shiver. If he had he might have noticed the crush she’d had on him once.

‘Cold?’ he said with sympathy, and turned the heater on full-blast.

Cassie settled low in her seat for the journey back to Shepherd’s Bush, feeling hungry, emotionally drained and in no mood for conversation. A mood which Nick obviously shared. When they reached the house he manoeuvred the Subaru into a space better suited to a Mini, then killed the engine and turned to her.

‘Cassie, I want to come in for a minute. I won’t keep you long. I need some advice.’

Cassie had rather hoped to see him off right away. Now the crisis was over she felt tired and hungry and in need of her bed. And oddly flat. ‘I suppose so,’ she said, resigned.

Once inside the house she hung up her coat on a peg with Nick’s raincoat, and because he was still shivering she turned the heating back on and took him into the kitchen, where it was warmest.

‘Before dishing out this advice you’re after,’ she said, yawning, ‘I’d better call Rupert and let him know Alice is safe.’

‘Does he know Alice?’

‘No. But he was very good about being pushed off without the meal I’d promised. And he did ask me to let him know what happened.’ Cassie marched past Nick and shut the kitchen door behind her so she could talk to Rupert in private. But he wasn’t home. Disappointed, she left a message, then went back to the kitchen to find Nick munching on a hunk of bread he’d cut from the loaf on the table.

‘Hope you don’t mind,’ he said indistinctly.

‘Oh, for heaven’s sake,’ she said impatiently. ‘If you’re that hungry I’ll give you a proper meal. But don’t kid yourself I feel any friendlier towards you, Nick. It’s only because I’m famished myself.’

Nick’s eyes glittered coldly, but instead of refusing, as Cassie expected, he forced a smile. ‘If you’re sure it’s no trouble.’

‘I wouldn’t offer if it was,’ she assured him. ‘It won’t take long.’

‘Thanks, Cassie. Mind if I have some more bread?’

‘Help yourself,’ she said, resigned, and lit the gas under the soup and the vegetables. She handed him a bottle of wine and a corkscrew. ‘Open that, please,’ she ordered, then went out to fetch the silverware and plates from the other room. The splendour of the red cloth and the candles had been for Rupert. Nick Seymour could make do with the kitchen.

He smiled sardonically as she set the table. ‘Ah! The honour of candles and tablecloth is not to be mine.’

‘No,’ she said shortly.

‘This is cosier,’ he assured her. ‘After all, we’re sort of family, you and I, Cassie.’

Her eyes flashed. ‘You mean you’re in love with your brother’s wife, who just happens to be my sister.’

For a moment Cassie was afraid she’d gone too far, but Nick held on to his temper with obvious, rather frightening effort.

‘You’re wrong!’ he said harshly at last. ‘I was a bit of a fool about Julia when I was younger, I admit, but she only had eyes for Max—always. Once they were married I steered clear of the house unless invited. I called unexpectedly that particular day because I was off to work in Nigeria for a while. I found Julia feeling off-colour and miserable because Max was about to leave on one of his endless trips into some wilderness, so I gave her a hug. Max walked in on a bit of brotherly comfort on my part and the rest is history.’ He looked Cassie in the eye. ‘I had a callow, immature crush on Julia once, it’s true. But it died a natural death. On the day in question I was just providing a convenient shoulder to cry on.’

‘It’s a pity you never managed to convince your brother of the fact,’ she pointed out, stirring the soup.

‘I tried, believe me,’ said Nick wearily. ‘No one was more appalled by what happened than I was.’

‘I seriously doubt that!’ Cassie slid the salmon into the microwave and fetched soup bowls from the cupboard. ‘The effect on Julia was shattering.’

‘I know. She refused to have anything to do with me afterwards. I haven’t seen her since, until tonight.’ He looked up, the striking blue eyes full of remorse. ‘She looks so much older, Cassie.’

‘So would you if you were a single parent juggling a lively toddler with a demanding job,’ she retorted. ‘Besides, Julia doesn’t usually look like that. You caught her at the end of a long working week, trying to get her baby to sleep. She was entitled to look tired.’

Nick nodded morosely, then brightened visibly as Cassie brought bowls of hot, fragrant soup to the table. ‘This smells wonderful. I’m impressed.’

‘I aim to please,’ she said briskly, sitting down. ‘Have some more bread.’

Cassie was almost as hungry as Nick, and neither of them said much until the soup bowls were empty. But when she put a plate of salmon and vegetables in front of him Nick gave her a wry look.

‘This was intended for Ashcroft, of course. I’m hellish sorry I ruined your evening, Cassie.’

She shrugged philosophically. ‘There’ll be other times. I see Rupert every day, anyway.’

‘So this is a regular occurrence?’ Nick began on his meal with relish. ‘If so, he’s a lucky guy.’

Cassie poured wine into their glasses, her resentment flaring up again. ‘Actually this was our first real date. I haven’t known Rupert long. He’s taken me out for a drink after work sometimes, but when he asked me out to dinner I suggested he came round here instead. So tonight was rather special.’

‘And I wrecked it.’ Nick drank some wine, his eyes sombre. ‘Something I’m bloody good at where the Lovells are concerned.’

‘Oh, get on with your supper,’ she said irritably. ‘After all,’ she added, trying to be fair, ‘when it comes to wrecking lives it was Max who did the demolition job on Julia’s, not you.’

‘He’s not doing much better with Alice, either, if today is anything to go by,’ said Nick grimly. ‘Let’s talk about something else. You, preferably. I know you went to college. What did you read?’

‘I did a BA in secretarial administration.’ Cassie added more vegetables to Nick’s plate.

‘And after that?’ he prompted. ‘Go on. I’m interested.’

‘I did temping for a while. I liked the variety, and it gave me experience, and a chance to find a job I really liked. These days I provide administrative support to a team of eight at an investment bank in the City. The group analyses the credit quality of various companies and so on.’

‘And young Rupert is one of the team,’ stated Nick.

‘Yes.’ Cassie frowned at him. ‘And he’s only a couple of years younger than you, Nick Seymour.’

‘And what exactly is this “support” you give Rupert?’

‘Exactly what the rest of the team gets,’ she said evenly. ‘All of them travel a lot, and I spend hours on the phone organising their itineraries and co-ordinating meetings.’