The Tempestuous Flame

‘His preserve,’ Caroline cut in tautly. ‘But I’m not, Mr Gregory. Oh, all right,’ she sighed. ‘If it inflates your male ego to force a defenceless girl to apologise—I apologise. Satisfied?’

He released her arm. ‘For a moment there I thought you were going to admit your relationship with Matt, but perhaps you’re not the sort of girl to go around boasting of your conquests.’

‘Conquests!’ she scoffed, rubbing her bruised wrist where he had held her so tightly. ‘You call being the mistress of a middle-aged tycoon a conquest? I wouldn’t! I’d call it—–’

‘I think I can guess what you would call it, Little Miss Puritan. Where’s the harm in bringing a little happiness into someone’s life? Or do you also object to that? God, what a little prude you are! And what a curious combination, prudishness and promiscuity.’

‘Promiscuity? But I’m not—–’

‘Not you, Caroline, Cynthia or whatever her name is. Do you lecture her too?’

Caroline turned away. ‘She happens to be a friend of mine, and I speak with full authority when I say she is not promiscuous. Far from it, in fact.’

‘So the stories I’ve heard are unfounded, are they?’

She resented his taunting tone, shaking her long hair back haughtily. ‘As I have no idea what these stories are I can’t really say, but I would advise you not to listen to idle gossip, Mr Gregory. I would have thought you of all people would have known that what people don’t know they think they know, or simply make it up.’

‘Me of all people? Oh, I see—you mean someone of my tendencies, my friends’ wives and so forth? Mmm, well, in some cases perhaps what you say is true, but I happen to have received my information on good authority.

‘And what authority is that?’ she asked sharply.

‘Now that would be telling,’ he replied, infuriatingly calm, appraising her appearance once again. ‘And if you don’t go and dress in a moment I may take your reluctance to leave my bedroom as an invitation—and I may just accept.’

‘Don’t excite yourself, Mr Gregory, I wouldn’t invite you anywhere, let alone into my bed!’ and she made her escape before he decided to make her apologise for that remark too, locking herself safely in the bathroom. She leaned heavily on the door, listening for his movements. To her chagrin he was merrily whistling to himself as he went down the stairs. Did nothing ruffle that smooth surface charm he chose to emit? Well, she would do her hardest to find out. Mr André Gregory needed taking down a peg or two, and she was just the person to do it.

She could smell bacon cooking as she walked gracefully down the stairs—her bacon, no doubt. Really, that man had a nerve! ‘Hi,’ she smiled happily at him as she sat down at the kitchen table, showing none of the seething emotions that existed underneath. ‘Are you cooking enough for me?’

If he was surprised by her change of attitude he didn’t show it, but gave her a cursory glance before carrying on with his frying. ‘If you want some,’ he said noncommittally.

‘Thanks.’ Caroline leant her chin on her hands, her blue eyes full of mischief if he bothered to look at her, which he didn’t. ‘Country air always makes me ravenous, doesn’t it you?’

‘I suppose so,’ he agreed quietly. ‘I’m not usually in the country long enough to find out one way or the other.’ He turned to face her. ‘So—when are you leaving?’

Caroline’s pleasant manner almost deserted her at his audacity, but she managed to remain cool. ‘Leaving?’ she repeated. ‘Oh, I’m not leaving,’ she told him sweetly. ‘As you so rightly said last night, there are two bedrooms and I won’t bother you if you don’t bother me.’

He studied her for a moment, the expression in his green eyes unreadable. ‘Are you quite serious?’

‘Quite,’ she mocked. ‘Why not? It could work out very well if we let it.’

‘Caroline, I came here for peace and quiet. I’m hardly likely to get that with you walking about half undressed most of the time and in very revealing tight jumpers and denims at other times. Hardly conducive to a peaceful existence, hmm?’

‘Are you saying you find me attractive, Mr Gregory?’

‘No, I didn’t say that, not you especially. It would be impossible for any man not to be slightly disturbed by your appearance.’ He placed a laden breakfast plate before her. ‘So I repeat—when are you leaving?’

She tucked enthusiastically into the crisp bacon and perfectly fried egg. ‘And I repeat—I’m not. Look, Mr Gregory—André,’ she saw his start of surprise and the narrowing of those sea-green eyes, and smiled slightly to herself. ‘I’ll be in the studio most of the time, so you can do—whatever it is you want to do, down here. Surely that’s a perfectly feasible idea?’

‘Oh, it’s feasible all right, it’s just that I’m not agreeable to it. I came here to get away from—charming females like yourself, not to set up home with one. Anyway, why the sudden change of heart? A few moments ago you couldn’t wait to get rid of me.’

‘I’ve been thinking while I was upstairs, and I decided that there was no need for this unpleasantness. This cottage is big enough for two people—just, and we needn’t interfere with each other in any way.’

‘And what do you think Matt will say to that?’ he queried.

‘I’ve already told him. Ah, that surprises you, doesn’t it? Yes, I told—Matt, that I was staying on here, just as you probably told him you were. He wasn’t very happy about the arrangement, but he’ll come round.’

His mouth twisted. ‘Oh, I’m sure he will. You have your own little ways of getting to him, I suppose. Oh, eat your breakfast, and we’ll talk about it later,’ he added impatiently.

Caroline did as she was told, enjoying the meal he had cooked for her. Let him try and puzzle out her change of attitude for himself. She had deliberately chosen to wear a blue jumper that exactly matched the colour of her eyes and showed off her long blonde hair to advantage, intending to disconcert him. And she had succeeded! Well, watch out, André Gregory, because it had only just started. Before she had finished she would get him so intrigued by her behaviour that he would wonder what had hit him. And then would come the let-down. Oh yes, Mr Conceited Gregory, you’re time has come, she vowed silently.

She settled down in the studio to do some preliminary drawings. It was a long time since she had been to the cottage and she always found she could relax and paint better here than anywhere else. But this morning she seemed to be having some trouble settling down to any serious work, and put that down to the fact that she could hear André Gregory moving about downstairs. She wondered what he could possibly be doing. Finally, when she thought she could stand it no longer, he called up the stairs to her.

‘Caroline! Caroline, Matt’s on the telephone for you.’

She put down her equipment and rushed to the studio door. ‘Did you say Matt?’ she asked breathlessly.

He stood at the bottom of the stairs looking up at her. ‘I did, and I think it’s quite urgent.’

‘Oh, okay. Can you put the call through up here? Just press the switch on the side of the telephone,’ she explained.

‘Do you have any objection to speaking to him in front of me?’ his eyes taunted.

‘Certainly I do. My conversation with Mr Rayner is private.’

‘I see. And you still maintain there’s nothing between the two of you.’ His smile was frankly mocking as he moved out of her line of vision.

Caroline was tempted to flounce down the stairs and give him a piece of her mind, but was prevented from doing so by the buzzing of the telephone behind her. Bother the man! She snatched up the receiver, her mouth set in a mutinous line. It was going to be much more difficult to be pleasant to André Gregory than she had imagined. ‘Yes?’ she said sharply.

‘Caroline?’ her father’s gruff voice enquired. ‘Has something upset you?’

She laughed softly at his understatement. ‘Only your arrogant friend, nothing I can’t handle.’

Now it was his turn to laugh. ‘If you believe that, Caroline, then you certainly don’t know André very well. Some of the most self-assured women in the world have tried to manage him, and failed. I can’t see that you’ll succeed where so many others have failed.’

‘I’m not intending to marry the man, Daddy, just teach him a lesson he’s badly in need of.’

‘Caroline, you just don’t understand, or you don’t want to understand. André is not the man to try tricks like this on. And why did I have to just ask for Caroline and not for my daughter?’

‘Because for the moment that is the one thing I’m not, although according to your friend I’m plenty of other things.’

‘Like what?’

She bit her lip thoughtfully. ‘I know—your mistress, for one thing.’

‘My what!’

She laughed at his astonishment. ‘Your mistress,’ she repeated. ‘Besides being a member of the permissive society.’

‘Damn cheek of the man!’ came the mumbled reply.