After The Loving

Court looked at her searchingly. ‘There’s a sort of glow to you … Oh God, I haven’t stepped in with my size tens, have I?’ he groaned as a blush darkened her cheeks.

‘Raff and I came straight here, if that’s what you mean,’ she told him. ‘I’m afraid it was my fault we got here late; I arrived late at Raff’s.’ Because of the telephone call to her parents, both of them concerned—if delighted!—at her sudden need to go home for the weekend. It had taken her some time to convince them that nothing had gone drastically wrong in her life to warrant the visit.

Court shook his head. ‘I’m surprised Raff hasn’t told you you work too hard.’

‘He has,’ she smiled. ‘But as he wouldn’t tolerate interference in his business neither will I!’

His friend chuckled softly. ‘No wonder he finds you so fascinating; all his other women were quite willing to forgo their own plans to pander to his whims!’

‘I sometimes wonder if you two love or hate each other!’ she mocked.

‘Love, of course,’ Court drawled. ‘Although if looks could kill I’d be dead now!’ he groaned as he glanced over Bryna’s shoulder. ‘Unless it’s you he’s upset at? Maybe he really didn’t like your being late earlier.’

He hadn’t seemed too worried at the time, but from the way he was glaring at the two of them now something had upset him! Perhaps he was still annoyed about Christmas?

He stood beside the bar in the adjoining dining-room, a drink remaining untouched in his hand as Rosemary Chater did her best to attract him to her fiery-haired beauty. For all the notice Raff took of her she might not have been wearing the most low-cut gown Bryna had ever seen, or been wearing that look of open invitation on her beautiful face. Raff’s gaze was fixed on Court and Bryna as they moved slowly to the music.

Maybe he really was angry about her refusal to spend Christmas with him and Kate and Paul, but with Christmas only two weeks away he had left the invitation late enough!

She smiled at Court. ‘No, I think it’s you he’s angry with,’ she teased him.

‘Well, I did beat him at golf today …!’

‘You didn’t!’ she laughed disbelievingly; Court had been trying to win a round of golf against Raff ever since she had known the two of them.

‘I did,’ Court grinned triumphantly. ‘Of course his mind didn’t seem to be altogether on the game,’ he admitted with some reluctance. ‘But who’s to say I haven’t always lost in the past because of pressures of work?’

‘I didn’t think Raff had any pressures of work now,’ Bryna frowned. Raff had employed a very capable assistant four months ago, and while she might not like Stuart Hillier very much, and found his smooth charm more than a little overpowering, she knew he was good at his job, and that he had taken over a lot of the pressure of the solitary reign over his business empire that Raff had previously refused to relinquish. Everything had seemed to be going so smoothly in that direction the last four months.

Court shrugged. ‘How should I know how well it is or isn’t going? He never discusses business with me. Maybe it wasn’t business worrying him at all, but he certainly had something on his mind.’

Her, and the fact that, despite their agreement that when the affair was over for one, or both, of them, they would admit that honestly, Raff seemed to be having trouble breaking the news to her. Maybe he did care for her in his own distant way and didn’t want to hurt her. He might even have guessed at some of the love she felt for him. But she was soon going to have to decide if she walked away from him with some of her pride intact, or if she waited the short time until he ended things once and for all.

‘Hey, have I said something I shouldn’t?’ Court frowned down at her concernedly.

Bryna shook off her mood of depression, knowing he had only confirmed for her what she already knew, smiling brightly to dispel his concern. ‘Shall we go and join him before Rosemary falls out of her dress completely?’ she suggested drily as the music came to an end.

Court groaned. ‘I’m afraid she had herself lined up as next in line to share his bed before he met you.’

And like a vulture the other woman was now circling, waiting for the affair to end, trying to give it a helping hand if she could! And she was certainly going all out to do that at the moment.

From the first Bryna had found the world of cynicism, bitchiness, and self that Raff inhabited a little overwhelming, although she was hardened to a certain degree herself from her years as a top-class model. But almost every woman she met clearly let her, and Raff, know that they wanted him too, only the fact that he showed no interest in returning their attraction giving her comfort during the last months.

Until now. Raff had ceased to look bored by Rosemary Chater, in fact as Court and Bryna moved to join the other couple he led the other woman on to the dance floor, seeming to enjoy the way her body instantly melded to every contour of his.

‘She can only cause trouble if you let her,’ Court spoke quietly at Bryna’s side, also watching the other couple with narrowed eyes.

Bryna turned to him with a grateful smile. ‘Then I won’t let her.’

He raised blond brows. ‘Is it as easy to dismiss as that?’

Easy? She hated the way the other woman moved against Raff with deliberate seductiveness, but what could she do about it when Raff was enjoying it? She wasn’t a fool, to make a scene about what was, for all the sensuousness of movement, just a dance; she knew that would be the surest way to drive Raff away from her. He hated scenes—he had once told her his wife had caused several before the two of them decided to live together but go their separate ways, to have their own lovers.

‘No, it isn’t easy,’ she gave Court a tight smile. ‘Why don’t we go through and help ourselves to some of that lovely supper you’ve laid out in the other room?’ It was almost ten o’clock and she hadn’t eaten anything since lunchtime. So much for the doctor’s confidence that she would maintain a healthy diet!

‘Is everything okay between you and Raff?’ Court eyed her curiously as she nibbled uninterestedly on a sandwich.

Her eyes were overbright as she looked up at him. “’The Queen is dead. Long live the Queen."’ She looked pointedly at Rosemary Chater as she said the latter, too numb to even sound bitter.

Court looked much older when the boyish humour deserted his face. ‘Are you sure?’

Her heart was breaking, the tears threatening to cascade down her cheeks—and she was incongruously trying to work out how she could bite into the cold chicken leg she held in her hand, without choking on it! ‘Have you ever known him to behave like that in front of me before?’ She felt sick as she watched Raff nuzzle against the other woman’s silky throat.

‘Hell!’ muttered Court furiously as he followed her stricken gaze. ‘I’ll go and break them up——’

‘No.’ Her hand on his arm stopped him. ‘Would you please just get my coat and call a taxi to take me home?’

‘I’ll take you——’

‘This is your party, Court,’ she reminded him huskily, no longer able to look at Raff with the other woman. ‘The host shouldn’t walk out on his guests.’ She tried to sound teasing, but to her dismay she just sounded forlorn.

Court’s mouth tightened. ‘None of this lot cares about that, half of them wouldn’t even know I’d gone!’

‘I’d really rather go on my own, thank you,’ she refused as gently as she could, sure that if she didn’t get out of here soon she was going to make an absolute fool of herself.

Court looked as if he were about to argue again, but the pleading in her eyes silenced him. Bryna kept her face averted from the couple dancing as she and Court moved through to the entrance hall to collect her coat.

Raff had done to her what they had always agreed wouldn’t happen, publicly humiliated her by turning to another woman when the two of them had arrived here together.

Court put his hands warmly on her shoulders as he came to stand in front of her after helping her on with her coat. ‘If you ever need a shoulder to cry on …’ he told her affectionately.

‘I know I can call you,’ she gave him a wan smile. ‘You——’

‘Where do you think you’re going?’ rasped a harsh voice Bryna recognised only too well.

She took a second to regain control before turning to face Raff, blinking a little uncertainly as she saw the fury blazing in the depths of his eyes. ‘I was just about to leave——’

Cool grey eyes turned to Court. ‘You too?’ Raff bit out coldly.

Court met the challenge in his friend’s gaze unflinchingly. ‘I wanted to go with her, but Bryna insisted I stay here.’

Raff’s mouth twisted. ‘Running out on me, Bryna?’ he taunted.

‘I——’

‘Good God, man, what did you expect her to do?’ Court exploded. ‘Tap you on the shoulder while you were making love to Rosemary to tell you she was leaving!’

‘I wasn’t making love to her, damn it,’ Raff ground out, his hands clenched into fists at his sides.