Carole Mortimer Romance Collection

Diana gave a lightly dismissive laugh. ‘I’m trying not to put on too much weight. You see—’

‘Not another woman obsessed with her weight,’ an all too familiar voice cut in derisively. ‘John told me this was where I could find you both,’ Liam explained his presence beside their table as Juliet gave him a startled look.

She couldn’t quite believe he was here; she was starting to feel haunted by this man. But she always informed John where she was going when she left the office, so she supposed this was her own fault.

‘Going to join us?’ Diana invited warmly, seemingly unaware of any tension between Juliet and Liam.

‘If Juliet doesn’t mind.’ He looked down at her with those piercing blue eyes.

What did he expect her to reply to that? He obviously knew what reply she would like to make; he also knew that she wouldn’t be that rude in front of a third person. ‘Of course not,’ she answered graciously, even though it was the last thing she really wanted. She had a feeling she and Diana Gilbraith were going to get along just fine, and she felt more than a little resentful of Liam’s interruption of their conversation.

Being at a small table for two, which was now having a third place laid at it so that Liam could also eat, the three of them were sitting rather close together, and Juliet moved away sharply when her knee inadvertently made contact with Liam’s under the table as he sat down.

He gave her an amused look at her reaction. ‘Sorry,’ he murmured drily, moving his chair back slightly so that his legs weren’t so far under the table.

What was it about this man that put her so much on edge? He had had that effect on her even before she had known who he was, but the feeling had only increased since she had found out his identity. And it didn’t help that she seemed to respond to him physically in a way that she found totally disturbing! ‘I’ll have whatever the ladies are having,’ Liam told the waiter when he came for his order.

Diana looked at him with amused blue eyes once they were all alone again. ‘You may change your mind once you see what we’ve ordered!’ she told him teasingly.

He gave her an easy smile. ‘Probably,’ he accepted wryly. ‘So you thought the two of you had earned a break?’ he added mockingly. ‘Work all done, is it?’

Juliet opened her mouth to give him a cutting reply—at least some of them had been working this morning!—but Diana got in before her.

‘Slave-driver!’ she told him good-naturedly.

‘Possibly,’ he conceded dismissively. ‘I’ve been back to the house, Juliet, the file isn’t in my father’s desk. And the filing cabinet there is locked.’

Juliet just stared at him. He had been back to the house this morning? She didn’t understand. What was so special about this particular file? Pet project of his or not, it seemed rather extreme!

‘I have the key,’ she told him dazedly.

He nodded as if he had already guessed that. ‘Can I have it, please?’ He held out his hand pointedly.

She frowned. The filing cabinet in William’s office held all his private papers; he hadn’t believed in safes, because he’d thought that they just encouraged people to think that there was something worth stealing. So he had always put important papers in the filing cabinet in his study in the house.

Of course, William might have left the house to her, but things like his personal papers must surely belong to Liam. Nevertheless, she still felt reluctant to give Liam the key to the cabinet.

‘It’s back in my office,’ she answered evasively, at the same time feeling as if Liam might be able to see into her handbag, see the key in a zipped pocket there.

He met her gaze challengingly, as if he had guessed exactly that. But other than calling her an actual liar…‘I’ll have it later, then,’ he finally answered, sitting back as the waiter arrived with their coffee and pastries. ‘I see what you mean,’ he said ruefully, looking at the sweet, sickly food.

‘I did warn you,’ Diana laughed at his expression.

There was such an easy camaraderie between these two, and yet Juliet was still convinced that her second impression of them was the correct one—there was nothing romantic between them. Maybe there had been once, a long time ago, and that accounted for their easy familiarity with each other, but it was certainly over now. Besides, she and William had been the best of friends and there had never been anything between them either—no matter what Liam might think to the contrary!

He turned probing blue eyes on her just as she was about to eat a forkful of sticky pastry. ‘Has the first day been as bad as you thought it would be?’ he asked drily.

The pastry never got as far as her mouth as she stared at him; what did he mean, ‘the first day’? Just how long did he and Diana intend to be at Carlyle Properties?

‘That’s hardly a fair question to ask her in front of me, Liam,’ Diana reproved lightly, having no qualms about eating her own pastry, and obviously relishing its sweetness.

He raised dark blond brows. ‘I don’t ever remember telling Juliet I was going to be fair,’ he drawled mockingly.

He hadn’t told her that he was going to be anything—that was the trouble! She just didn’t know what was going on when this man was about.

‘To answer your question,’ she said quietly, ‘if I knew what you wanted from Carlyle Properties, perhaps I could be more helpful.’

His eyes took on a glacial sheen. ‘The truth,’ he bit out harshly. ‘That’s what I want from Carlyle Properties!’

She frowned across at him. ‘Carlyle Properties has nothing to hide,’ she told him slowly, giving up on the pastry, her appetite once again deserting her. ‘Everything is up to date. You’re perfectly free to go to any of our work sites, view any of the paperwork——’ She broke off as she realised that there was one file he couldn’t view, for the simple reason that she couldn’t find it. And that appeared to be the only one he was interested in!

‘Exactly.’ Liam nodded abruptly at her hesitation.

Her eyes glowed, deep grey. ‘What is so special about this one file, Liam?’ she snapped.

‘I believe that is my business,’ he returned icily. ‘Literally. You weren’t even involved in the company then!’

Juliet was very aware of Diana as their audience, a Diana who seemed slightly nonplussed by Liam’s aggressive attitude towards her.

She put down her fork, giving up any pretence of eating; she was only here at all because she had thought she was keeping Diana company. Now that Liam was here that was no longer necessary. And she certainly didn’t want to spend any more time in his company!

‘Then perhaps I had better not waste any more time, and should go back to the office to carry on looking for the damned file!’ Her own anger was barely contained.

‘Perhaps you had better,’ he agreed forcefully, his gaze never wavering from her angrily flushed face.

‘Liam—’

‘Stay out of this, Diana,’ he advised her hardly, not even glancing at her. ‘You just don’t understand.’

‘You’re right, I don’t,’ she acknowledged in a puzzled voice. ‘I’ve never seen—’

‘This is between Juliet and me,’ he cut in harshly. ‘Isn’t it?’ he prompted her coldly.

It certainly was, but she wasn’t quite sure what ‘it’ was! When they weren’t angry with each other they appeared to be in each other’s arms—and neither of those situations was what she particularly wanted. How could they possibly sort out the business side of things when they were always so angry with each other? And as for being in Liam’s arms…! That just clouded the issue.

Juliet bent to pick up her bag—the bag containing the key Liam had asked for…‘I’ll see you both back at the office,’ she said stiltedly, standing up.

Diana gave her a sympathetic grimace. ‘Thanks for joining me for lunch.’

Juliet gave her first genuine smile since Liam had joined them. ‘I enjoyed it.’ Until they had been interrupted! ‘Perhaps we can do it again some time before you leave?’

‘Don’t worry.’ Liam was the one to answer with soft menace. ‘You girls will have plenty of time to go out to lunch together again; I have a feeling we’re going to be at Carlyle Properties for some time!’

Juliet didn’t answer him, just walked away, her back ramrod-straight as she crossed the restaurant to the door. Just how long was ‘some time’ going to be? However long it was, it was going to be too long as far as she was concerned! And she didn’t just have Liam all day at the office; he was actually at the house too. Wonderful!

Except he wasn’t at the house that evening. Juliet returned from the office on her own at six o’clock, Liam and Diana having left some time during the afternoon and not come back. And Liam didn’t return for dinner either, leaving Juliet to face Janet alone.

It was the first time she had seen the housekeeper on her own since the older woman had come into her bedroom the evening before and found Liam there too. Although Juliet knew her well enough to know that Janet wouldn’t mention that fact if she didn’t—and she had no intention of doing so—she nevertheless felt slightly embarrassed at facing her again.