A Tempestuous Temptation (8 page)

How had they ended up having such an intensely personal conversation? When had she stopped keeping him at a distance? Why had it become so easy to forget all the things she should be hating about him? Was that the power of lust? Did it turn your world on its head and make you lose track of everything that was sensible?

Just admitting to being attracted to him made her feel giddy, and when he told her that they should be getting back because she looked a little white she quickly agreed.

Suddenly this trip seemed a lot more dangerous than it had done before. It was no longer a case of trying to avoid constant sniping. It was a case of trying to maintain it.

B
Y THE
Monday morning—after two evenings spent by Aggie trying to avoid all personal conversation, frantically aware of the way her body was ambushing all her good intentions—the relentless snow was beginning to abate, although not sufficiently for them to begin the last leg of their journey.

The first thing Aggie did was to telephone the school. As luck would have it, it was shut, with just a recorded message informing her that, due to the weather, it would remain shut until further notice. She didn’t know if it was still snowing in London, but the temperatures across the country were still sub-zero and she knew from experience that, even if the snow had stopped, sub-zero temperatures would result in frozen roads and pavements, as well as a dangerously frozen playground. This routinely happened once or twice a year, although usually only for a couple of days at most, and Health and Safety were always quick to step in and advise closures.

Then she looked at the pitiful supply of clothes remaining in her bag and said goodbye to all thoughts of saving any money at all for the New Year.

‘I need to go back into town,’ she told Luiz as soon as she had joined him in the dining room, where Mrs Bixby was busy chatting to the errant guest who had returned
the evening before and was complaining bitterly about his chances of doing anything of any use. Salesmen rarely appreciated dire weather.

‘More fresh air?’

‘I need to buy some stuff.’

‘Ah. New coat, by any chance?’ Luiz sat back, tilting his chair away from the table so that he could cross his legs.

‘I should get another jumper … some jeans, maybe. I didn’t think that we would be snowed in when we’re not even halfway through this trip.’

Luiz nodded thoughtfully. ‘Nor had I. I expect I’ll be forced to get some as well.’

‘And you’re missing your … meetings. You mentioned that deal you needed to get done.’

‘I’ve telephoned my guys in London. They’ll cover me in my absence. It’s not perfect, but it’ll have to do. This evening I’ll have a conference call and give them my input. I take it you’ve called the school?’

‘Closed anyway.’ She sat back as coffee was brought for them, and chatted for a few minutes with their landlady, who was extremely cheerful at the prospect of having them there longer than anticipated.

‘So your school’s closed. How fortuitous,’ Luiz murmured. ‘I’ve tried calling the hotel where your brother is supposed to be holed up with Maria and the lines are down.’

‘So is there any point in continuing?’ Aggie looked at him and licked her lips. ‘They were only going to be there for a few days. We could get up there and find they’ve already caught the train back to London.’

‘It’s a possibility.’

‘Is that all you have to say?’ Aggie cried in an urgent undertone. ‘
It’s a possibility?
Neither of us can afford to spend time away from our jobs on a possibility!’ The
thought of her cold, uncomfortable, Luiz-free house beckoned like a port in a storm. She didn’t understand why she was feeling what she was, and the sooner she was removed from the discomfort of her situation the better, as far as she was concerned. ‘You have important meetings to go to. You told me so yourself. Just think of all those poor people whose livelihoods depend on you closing whatever deal it is you have to close!’

‘Why, Aggie, I hadn’t appreciated how concerned you were.’

‘Don’t be sarcastic, Luiz. You’re a workaholic. It must be driving you crazy being caught out like this. It would take us the same length of time to return to London as it would to get to the Lake District.’

‘Less.’

‘Even better!’

‘Furthermore, we would probably be driving away from the worst of the weather, rather than into it.’

‘Exactly!’

‘Which isn’t to say that I have any intention of returning to London without having accomplished what I’ve set out to do. When I start something, I finish it.’

‘Even if finishing it makes no sense?’

‘This is a pointless conversation,’ Luiz said coolly. ‘And why the sudden desperation to jump ship?’

‘Like I said, I thought I would be away for one night, two at most. I have things to do in London.’

‘Tell me what. Your school’s closed.’

‘There’s much more to teaching than standing in front of the children and teaching them. There are lessons to prepare, homework to mark.’

‘And naturally you have no computer with you.’

‘Of course I haven’t.’ He wasn’t going to give way. She hadn’t really expected that he would. She had known that
he was the type of man who, once embarked on a certain course, saw it through to the finish. ‘I have an old computer. There’s no way I could lug that anywhere with me. Not that I thought I’d need it.’

‘I’ll buy you a laptop.’ To Luiz’s surprise, it was out before he had had time to think over the suggestion.

‘I beg your pardon?’

‘Everyone needs a laptop, something they can take with them on the move.’ He flushed darkly and raked his fingers through his hair. ‘I’m surprised you haven’t got one. Surely the school would subsidise you?’

‘I have a school computer but I don’t take it out of the house. It’s not my property.’ Aggie was in a daze at his suggestion, but underneath, a slow anger was beginning to build. ‘And would the money spent on this act of generosity be deducted from my full and final payment when you throw cash at me and my brother to get us out of the way? Are you keeping a mental tally?’

‘Don’t be absurd,’ Luiz grated. He barely glanced at the food that had been placed in front of him by Mrs Bixby who, sensing an atmosphere, tactfully withdrew.

‘Thanks, but I think I’ll turn down your kind offer to buy me a computer.’ This was how far apart their lives were, Aggie thought. Her body might play tricks on her, make her forget the reality of their situation, but this was the reality. They weren’t on a romantic magical-mystery tour and he wasn’t the man of her dreams. She was here because he had virtually blackmailed her into going with him and, far from being the man of her dreams, he was cold, single-minded and so warped by his privileged background that it was second nature to him to buy people. He could, so why not? His dealings with the human race were all based on financial transactions. He had girlfriends because they were beautiful and amused him for a while. But
what else was there in his life? And did he imagine that there was nothing money couldn’t buy?

‘Too proud, Aggie?’

‘I have no idea what you’re talking about.’

‘You think I’ve insulted you by offering to buy you something you need. You’re here because of me. You’ll probably end up missing work because of me. You’ll need to buy clothes because of me.’

‘So are you saying that you made a mistake in dragging me along with you?’

‘I’m saying nothing of the sort.’ Luiz looked at her, frowning with impatience. More and more he was finding it impossible to believe that she could be any kind of gold-digger. What sane opportunist would argue herself out of a free wardrobe? A top-of-the-range laptop computer? ‘Of course you had to come with me.’ But his voice lacked conviction. ‘It’s possible you weren’t involved in trying to set your brother up with my niece,’ he conceded.

‘So you
did
make a mistake dragging me along with you.’

‘I still intend to make sure that your brother stays away from Maria.’

‘Even though you must know that he had no agenda when he got involved with her?’

Luiz didn’t say anything and his silence spoke louder than words. Of course, he would never allow Mark to marry his niece. None of his family would. The wealthy remained wealthy because they protected their wealth. They married other wealthy people. That was his world and it was the only world he understood.

It was despicable, so why couldn’t she look at him with indifference and contempt? Why did she feel this tremendous physical pull towards him however much her head argued that she shouldn’t? It was bewildering and enraging
at the same time and Aggie had never felt anything like it before. It was as if a whole set of brand-new emotions had been taken out of a box and now she had no idea how to deal with them.

‘You really do come from a completely different world,’ Aggie said. ‘I think it’s very sad that you can’t trust anyone.’

‘There’s a little more to it than that,’ Luiz told her, irritated. ‘Maria’s mother fell in love with an American twenty years ago. That American was Maria’s father. There was a shotgun wedding. My sister went straight from her marriage vows to the hospital to deliver her baby. Of course, my parents were concerned, but they knew better than to say anything.’

‘Why were they concerned? Because he was an American?’

‘Because he was a drifter. Luisa met him when she was on holiday in Mexico. He was a lifeguard at one of the beaches. She was young and he swept her off her feet, or so the story goes. The minute they were married, the demands began. It turned out that Brad James had very expensive tastes. The rolling estate and the cars weren’t enough; he wanted a private jet, and then he needed to be bankrolled for ventures that were destined for disaster. Maria knows nothing of this. She only knows that her father was killed in a light-aeroplane crash during one of his flying lessons. Luisa never forgot the mistakes she made.’

‘Well, I’m sorry about that. It must have been hard growing up without a father.’ She bit into a slice of toast that tasted like cardboard. ‘But I don’t want anything from you and neither does my brother.’

‘You don’t want anything from anyone. Am I right?’

Aggie flushed and looked away from those dark, piercing eyes. ‘That’s right.’

‘But I’m afraid I insist on buying you some replacement clothes. Accept the offer in the spirit in which it was intended. If you dislike accepting them to such an extent, you can chuck them in a black bin-bag when you return to London and donate them all to charity.’

‘Fine.’ Her proud refusal now seemed hollow and churlish. He was being practical. She needed more clothes through no fault of her own. He could afford to buy them for her, so why shouldn’t she accept the offer? It made sense. He wasn’t to know that she wasn’t given to accepting anything from anyone and certainly not charitable donations. Or maybe he had an idea.

At any rate, if he wanted to buy her stuff, then not only would she accept but she would accept with alacrity. It was better, wasn’t it, than picking away at generosity, finding fault with it, tearing it to shreds?

With Christmas not far away, the town was once again bustling with shoppers, even though the snow continued falling. There was no convenient department-store but a series of small boutiques.

‘I don’t usually shop in places like this.’ Aggie dithered outside one of the boutiques as Luiz waited for her, his hand resting on the door, ready to push it open. ‘It looks expensive. Surely there must be somewhere cheaper?’ He dropped his hand and stood back to lean against the shop front.

They had walked into town in silence. It had irritated the hell out of Luiz. Women loved shopping. So what if she had accepted his offer to buy her clothes under duress? The fact was, she was going to be kitted out, and surely she must be just a little bit pleased? If she was, then she was doing a damned good job of hiding it.

‘And I’ve never stayed in a bed and breakfast before the
one we’re in now,’ Luiz said shortly. ‘You’re fond of reminding me of all the things I’m ignorant of because I’ve been insulated by my background. Well, I’m happy to try them out. Have you heard me complain once about where we’re staying? Even though you’ve passed sufficient acid remarks about me being unable to deal with it because the only thing I can deal with are five-star hotels.’

‘No,’ Aggie admitted with painful honesty, while her face burned. She wanted to cover her ears with her hands because everything he was saying had a ring of truth about it.

‘So I’m taking it that there are two sets of rules here. You’re allowed to typecast me, whilst making damned sure that you don’t get yourself typecast.’

‘I can’t help it,’ Aggie muttered uncomfortably.

‘Well, I suggest you try. So we’re going to go into that shop and you’re going to try on whatever clothes you want and you’re going to let me buy whatever clothes you want. The whole damned shop if it takes your fancy!’

Aggie smiled and then giggled and slanted an upwards look at him. ‘You’re crazy.’

In return, Luiz smiled lazily back at her. She didn’t smile enough. At least, not with him. When she did, her face became radiantly appealing. ‘Compliment or not?’ he murmured softly, and Aggie felt the ground sway under her feet.

‘I’m not prepared to commit on that,’ she told him sternly, but the corners of her mouth were still twitching.

‘Come on.’

It was just the sort of boutique where the assistants were trained to be scary. They catered for rich locals and passing tourists. Aggie was sure that, had she strolled in, clad in her worn clothes and tired boots, they would have followed her around the shop, rearranging anything she
happened to take from the shelves and keeping a close eye just in case she was tempted to make off with something.

With Luiz, however, shopping in an over-priced boutique was something of a different experience. The young girl who had greeted them at the door, as bug-eyed in Luiz’s presence as the waitress had been on Saturday in the café, was sidelined and they were personally taken care of by an older woman who confided that she was the owner of the shop. Aggie was made to sit on the
chaise longe
, with Luiz sprawled next to her, as relaxed as if he owned the place. Items of clothing were brought out and most were immediately dismissed by him with a casual wave of the hand.

‘I thought
I
was supposed to be choosing my own outfits,’ Aggie whispered at one point, guiltily thrilled to death by this take on the shopping experience.

‘I know what would look good on you.’

‘I should get some jeans …’ She worried her lower lip and inwardly fretted at the price of the designer jeans which had been draped over a chair, awaiting inspection. Belatedly, she added, ‘And you don’t know what would look good on me.’