Her chin rose to a haughty angle and her eyes clashed with his. “You were quick enough to agree once money was discussed.”
His mouth opened to argue money hadn’t entered into his decision. But he didn’t even try. The disdain in her expression showed her low opinion of him.
Uncertain how to lighten the conversation he tried another line of attack. “Let’s dance.”
****
Moisture disappeared from Debra’s mouth quicker than a drop of water on a red-hot skillet. She swallowed as her startled glance swung toward the assigned dance floor. It was small, already crowded with the half-dozen couples pretending to dance.
Its size and the soft music playing didn’t encourage actual dancing. More like canoodling. And she had no intention of canoodling with Jase McEwan.
She averted her gaze after a quick glance at her companion and muttered a very definite refusal, despite him already being on his feet. Her eyes narrowed as his hand slipped beneath her elbow and tightened.
“I want to dance.”
“Well, I don’t,” she spat as he half-dragged her from her seat. Anyone watching might take the movement around his lips as a teasing smile, but she knew better.
“Creating a scene is not going to further the supposition we’re lovers.”
“I never suggested we needed to appear to be lovers.” She ground out the livid words through clenched teeth as his hold on her arm forced her to follow him to the dance floor.
“Come on, Debbie.” His tone was sceptical as he turned her into his arms and held her against his body. “In this day and age? No one will believe there’s anything between us unless we show them how intimately we know each other,” he whispered into her ear.
Swaying to the music, his movements forced her to follow. She worked at keeping her body taut, refusing to allow the music—or his touch—to loosen her in any way.
“Relax,” he murmured, swinging her around to avoid a more energetic couple. “Enjoy the music.” He sang an accompaniment to the popular number, making the words sound very erotic.
“If I could get a decent swing I’d kick you in the shins.”
“No you wouldn’t.” He sounded so sure. More frustration bubbled up inside her. How could she have let this happen? She was stuck shuffling around a miniscule dance floor plastered to Jase. This sort of thing wasn’t supposed to be part of the business deal.
She gasped as the hand caressing her back slipped lower to press her more intimately against him. She jerked her hips aside.
“This will look more realistic if you put your arms around my neck instead of bruising my chest.” His breath tickled her ear, but she was too busy ignoring the accompanying tremor careering up and down her body.
“I’m hoping to dig out your heart,” she snarled back. “If you have one.”
His soft chuckle took her by surprise. “Oh, I have one all right.” He leaned back so he could look into her eyes and winked. “I’m surprised you can’t feel how it’s working overtime right now.” Both his hands dropped to her hips and made sure she couldn’t avoid the evidence of where his heart pumped blood to right then.
Her own heart walloped the inside of her chest so ferociously she was breathless for a moment. In a race it would leave a flying bullet behind as it surged its own response.
“I’ve had enough of dancing.” She couldn’t meet his eyes, but kept her chin tucked to her chest. This time her thrust against his chest released his hold and he meekly followed her back to their table.
It took time but Debra had regained a semblance of control by the end of their main meal, along with indigestion and a probable stomach ulcer.
To bury the surge of excitement his gesture had incurred she’d had to dredge up anger. He must believe her show of intense anger at his audacity.
When she could instil enough iciness into her voice she leaned across the table. “I will not allow this to become some farce where you make an exhibition of me, Jase. I accept showing a certain amount of PDA, as you so delicately call it”—her tone conveyed her scorn—“is necessary, but don’t you ever pull something like that on me again.”
She thrust back her chair and rose with as much decorum as she could manage. With a cold nod she walked away.
****
Jase swore as he hurried after her. Delayed by the need to settle their cheque, he cursed his stupidity some more.
“Hurry up, man,” he urged as the maitre d’ moved with the exigency of a sloth. Punching his PIN into the offered machine, he grabbed his card and lit out through the door, praying there had been no cruising taxis.
Relief surged through him. His gaze picked her out amid the evening foot traffic. It wasn’t her classy dress that caught his attention, but her gait. She stalked along the footpath with the confidence of Xena, warrior princess. She never paused. People stepped aside as certainly as the Red Sea had parted.
Jase stayed behind her until she turned into a less-crowded street. The darkening shadows of the dimly lit walkway sent him to her side.
“Go away.”
“I’m walking you home.”
“I’m a big girl. I don’t need anyone to walk me home.”
Jase continued alongside her despite her projected disdain. “My parents would disown me if I took a lady out and then never saw her safely home.”
Debra snorted.
Jase’s brain wrestled with a way to ease the tension his behaviour had caused. Try as he might nothing came to mind. It was only when he became aware that he was trotting alongside her like a trained puppy dog that he risked touching her arm.
“Could we please talk?” He indicated seats lining the inner harbour. “Could we go and sit down for a while and talk this through?”
At least she’d stopped belting down the footpath like some avenging angel.
“I’m so sorry, Deb. I apologise for my crass behaviour.” He glanced away from her, grimacing. His face warmed as his embarrassment increased.
“I’m not going to lie and say it will never happen again.” His breath caught as her chin jutted and her eyes narrowed. He shrugged. “You’re a beautiful woman, Debra. You can’t expect me not to notice and for my body not to respond.”
She tore her arm from his touch, marched across the road, and plonked herself down on one of the seats. Her rigid back warned of her continuing annoyance—but she hadn’t continued on to her apartment. Jase’s shoulders slumped with relief.
He was careful to leave space between them as he joined her. He rested his elbows on his knees and stared out over the twinkling lights dancing across the water. After moments trying to marshal his thoughts, waiting for inspiration to strike, he turned to Debra.
“If we’re ever going to convince this girl, what’s her name?—Chloe, then we have to do better than we did tonight.”
Her face was in the streetlight’s shadow, but he sensed her attention. “Anyone watching us must have thought we were about to kill each other.” His cheeks felt tight but he made them stir into the semblance of a smile. “Your brother will guess in a second.”
Debra’s gaze skidded away from his face.
“Debbie, I’m booked to fly home on Sunday morning. If you want I’ll get the first flight Monday instead, but that still doesn’t give us much time. We need to be seen out on the town, and to spend time with Paul and Chloe. But before we do either, we have to find some common ground where we can establish some rules.”
“First rule,” she snapped, “is no unnecessary displays of public affection. Or...” She appeared to have difficulty swallowing as her gaze dropped to his crotch area.
Jase bit the inside of his cheek as he nodded. Did crossing your fingers during a lie make it less of a lie? “I don’t suppose the boss would let us have the day off tomorrow?”
“Most definitely not.”
Her expression appeared calmer, yet she still radiated strength and confidence he’d rarely seen in women of his acquaintance. Breath caught in his throat. She was magnificent. “You’re an amazing woman.”
He smiled as her mouth dropped open a little and her eyes bulged. Watching her attempt to swallow lifted his flagging confidence and puffed out his chest.
The enquiring lift of her eyebrows urged him to continue. “To put yourself out to ensure someone else’s peace of mind is impressive.” He shook his head. “No one would ever believe under that corporate-giant-killer image you portray, you’re plainly a marshmallow.”
Her lips flat-lined. Her eyes narrowed dangerously. But before she could speak he continued. “I promise your secret is safe with me.” He grinned. “Only I will ever know Debra Laurie is soft and warm and caring.”
She eyed him warily. “Thank you.” A frown still puckered her forehead. “I think.”
“You know, you don’t have to be so harsh to be in charge.”
“Oh yes, I do,” she snapped.
Jase frowned at her vulnerable expression as she stared across the water.
“I tried the listening, sensitive management style. First I was treated with indulgence—like a child, then I was given the run-around by every male I dealt with. I got sick and tired of their arguing with every decision I made. I had to become a domineering, inhuman bitch just to gain some authority.”
She swung around to face him. “I’m not their bloody mother. I don’t care whether they like me. I just care that they do their jobs. They can criticise me for not being a people person.” She spat the words. “I don’t care.”
Jase’s heart swelled at the wobble in her voice.
“Believe me, I’ve heard it all. I’m emotional, an illogical thinker, can’t follow an argument. I nag. I can’t take a little criticism. They exhausted me for years but I learned not to listen to their petty little power struggles.”
Her voice firmed. “If they can’t work for a woman, then they can go. I don’t have time for subordinates to query every bloody decision I make.”
Jase was taken aback by Debra’s intensity. He wondered if she saw dissension where there wasn’t any, or perhaps she had struggled to assert her authority. “Your brother—”
“Paul and I manage separate parts of the business. We confer, of course, but it works to have a single boss within those areas.”
She glanced sideward at Jase, a feline smile playing at her lips. “There have been some who sought Paul’s support against me.” Her smile reminded him of a jungle cat about to pounce. “Their contracts were summarily cancelled.”
Silence settled over them as Jase swallowed what she’d shared. He’d never given any thought to pressures faced by those in upper management roles.
He’d never wondered if women have a more difficult time asserting their stamp of authority than their male counterparts. But Debra had.
Trying to assume control of a multi-national business had forced her to disguise her personality to such an extent she no longer believed she could be anyone but the facade. Her whole life had become a bitter battle.
He detected the tension filling her body. Her taut arms and legs proclaimed her isolation. She sat in a lonely silence he was uncertain how to breach.
Chapter Thirteen
A complete change of subject seemed to Jase to be his most auspicious manoeuvre.
“What shall we do tomorrow? After work, I mean,” he tacked on as her eyebrows shot up. He’d been careful wording his question, giving her no doubt of his intention to continue her charade. “How about the movies?”
It seemed an innocuous outing. He could control any wayward urges during a movie, couldn’t he? “There’s that one that won all those Oscars. Have you seen it?”
She shook her head, though she didn’t appear ready to involve herself in any further conversation. She continued staring across the water, her slender hands clasped in her lap.
Jase propped his elbows on his splayed knees, wishing he could pummel something. Added to the disappointment the evening had not reclaimed the camaraderie of their trip to Queenstown, guilt filled him that it had been his crass actions that had squashed any such chance.
As the silence closed in on him, she broke it by tentatively asking if he’d seen another movie.
Jase couldn’t help it. The guilt churning into a tightly wound spring was released with a burst of laughter. “You’re kidding?”
He laughed again as even in this lighting he could see colour rushing into her cheeks. “No, I haven’t seen it. Is that what you’d like to see?”
Relief surged through Jase as a subconscious smile tickled Debra’s lips. “I like action movies.” Her smile grew. “I can imagine the baddies are my corporate associates. Seeing their blood and guts splattered all around—”
“I get the picture,” he teased. “Remind me never to get on the wrong side of you.” His voice faltered. He’d already done so, and in a big way.
To cover his gaffe, he continued, telling her he’d check the session times. “There’ll be more people out and about tomorrow night. Do you think we should try dinner again afterward?”
When it appeared she might refuse he tacked on, “With any luck we might run into some of those people you mentioned—the ones who were giving Chloe such a hard time.”
Jase could see his reminder having an impact on Debra. Her lips tightened as she nodded. “Then I’ll make reservations at that other restaurant you mentioned.”
Some of the strain had gone from the evening but Jase hesitated to encroach on Debra’s space. Their walk back to her apartment was completed almost in silence. The parting was quite formal considering Jase’s earlier intention of taking every chance he could to get closer.