Molly Matthews Meddles in Marriage (7 page)

Mid-embrace the door flew open and Rory appeared, looking unabashedly pleased with himself. Dressed in black slim-fitting chinos and a white double-cuffed shirt, the sleeves rolled halfway up his tanned arms, he looked as though he’d just wandered off the end of a catwalk. Damn her body for responding so urgently to his physical presence.

She clutched tighter to Aaron for moral support, the hackles on her back rose, the stirring deep within her stomach, a mix of anger heightened with a dash of pleasure and a huge sprinkling of relief.

“Yes?” she managed, her annoyance now bubbling just beneath the surface.

“I know,” he said, holding his hands up guiltily, visibly chastised by the collective death stare he was on the receiving end of from Molly, Aaron and Pippa. “I’m late. Apologies, but…”

“You’re not late,” Molly corrected him, extracting herself from Aaron’s embrace. “You missed the entire event. Slight difference. Really, if you don’t want to attend, that’s up to you, but I’d be grateful if in future you could let me know so that we can alter our arrangements at this end. A phone call wouldn’t have gone amiss.” A tight smile stretched over her lips, but she knew she was doing a bad job at convincing anyone of her sincerity.

Aaron, never one for confrontation, made for the door, looking as though he’d rather be anywhere other than here.

“I’ll give you a call tomorrow,” he said, giving Molly an encouraging smile, beckoning Pippa to join him on the way out and completely blanking Rory in the process. “Or would you like us to wait until you’re finished here?”

“No, honestly, you get off. I just have a couple of things to see to and then I’ll be on my way too.”

Left alone with Rory, she turned to face him, the room that had earlier housed forty people comfortably now seeming smaller and much more claustrophobic. A heat fired in her chest, making her skin fetchingly blotchy, she didn’t doubt. He smiled that easy, lazy smile, the one that could make you forgive him anything, possibly even not turning up to a much anticipated and heavily organized dinner party, if you were the forgiving kind, of course. Which Molly wasn’t. Certainly not today.

“You won’t believe me, I know, but I was really looking forward to this evening.” He tilted his head to one side, his eyes appeasing, his gaze traveling her face. He reached out to touch her shoulder but she flinched. The other night her inhibitions had been loosened by the intimate atmosphere of the restaurant, the divine food, her perpetually filled glass of champagne and the heady proximity of Rory, but that was a mistake. She wouldn’t let down her guard again. Not when she had a job to do.

“I was all set to come, I promise, but I ran into a friend of mine, Theo Manning.”

Molly sighed in exasperation. Only Rory could namedrop with such casual abandon, as if she might be on familiar terms with probably the most influential fashion designer in town. As if that might excuse his rudeness. Another reminder if she needed one that Rory inhabited a completely different world to the one she knew.

“We had a couple of drinks and then…” He shrugged, not mastering the apologetic look at all. “Time ran away from us. I tried calling, but we were stuck in this cellar bar on the other side of town and I couldn’t get any reception.”

Pathetic, seethed Molly inwardly, unimpressed by the “I’m a hot-shot celebrity with an amazing network of friends with much better things to do with my time than sticking to an appointment I’d made with you” routine. No doubt it worked on most people, but she certainly wasn’t impressed in these circumstances. If it had been a date, she’d have given him his marching orders by now. But…hell, this wasn’t a date! So why did she need constant reminding of that fact? He was her client. One who’d paid his money. And she ought to try remembering that fact. She hitched up her professionalism from the bottom of her boots.

“Well, never mind,” she said, not entirely convincingly, wondering for the first time why he’d even bothered to turn up at all. “I’ll be in touch in the next couple of days to fix up some dates. I’m assuming you do still want that?”

His wide lips curled at the edges, one dark eyebrow rose high.

“Well, a date sounds very exciting. Where do you think we should go?”

She bit on her lip, determined to stop the smile twitching at her lips.

“I wasn’t talking about us, as you well know.”

“Shame!” There was a definite glint in his eye, a wicked smile dancing on his lips.

“Ours is a business relationship and I would be grateful if you could remember that. I will try to do my best to find you a wife, but I would ask that you meet me halfway on this and work with me and not against me. The flirting, the game playing, it’s vaguely amusing, but unnecessary.”

He paced to the other side of the room, seemingly intent on examining the pattern of the carpet as he went. Suddenly he looked up.

“Flirting?” He ran a hand through ridiculously glossy brown hair. “I’m sorry, I didn’t realize I was.”

Of course he didn’t. Flirting was as natural to him as breathing and sleeping was to other people. He hadn’t singled her out for special attention, even if it had felt that way. It was a tool of his trade and boy, did he use it effectively.

“This might be business but it doesn’t stop us being friends, does it?” He dug his hands deep into his trouser pockets. “The better we get to know each other, the easier your job will be, don’t you agree?”

Yes. No. She didn’t know! Being friends with Rory sounded dangerous. She wasn’t sure her heart was up to that sort of high-adrenaline exposure. Rory had displayed, once again, his uncanny knack of putting her on the back foot. A feeling she didn’t like nor was familiar with.

“I suppose,” she said truculently. “But if I’m being honest with you, you’re unlike any of my other clients.”

“I’m a one-off. I could have told you that.” Rory pulled out a gold-backed dining chair, spun it round and sat astride, resting his arms on the backrest, a big grin on his face. “In what way?”

God, he’s gorgeous!
When he focused on her like that, his gaze intent upon her face, it turned her whole body into a molten mess.

She pulled out a chair, placing it a safe distance from him. He should have a sign affixed to his forehead—
Beware: Hazardous Materia
l. She sat to face him, crossing her legs primly.

“When most people come to my agency, I can tell that it’s a decision they’ve thought about long and hard. They come knowing at this particular point in their life that what they want more than anything is to find their life partner. They’re excited and full of hope that they’re on the brink of something momentous. And that’s what makes it so exciting for me. That I can help them share that journey.”

Rory nodded, indicating for her to go on. She took a breath, weighing up whether she should or not. A thought flashed into her mind. Returning a membership fee would be a first, but it wouldn’t matter, not in the instance. She needed to be perfectly honest with her clients and if he didn’t like what she had to tell him, then that was tough luck.

“The thing is, I don’t get that same sense of hope or excitement from you. If I’m being honest, it all seems like a big joke.”

“That’s just my sunny disposition,” he said darkly.

Undeterred, she went on.

“Every time I mention a possible date, you brush it aside as if it’s of no importance. It makes me wonder if you’re ready for this, whether it’s what you really want. Or whether you’re here for other, more pragmatic reasons.”

He didn’t answer immediately, he just continued watching her, his hands clasped together on the top of the chair, his head nodding imperceptibly. The silence sizzled between them and Molly willed him to say something, anything.

For a moment, she wondered if she’d offended him or perhaps, more likely, he wasn’t used to people questioning his behavior. His face took on a bemused expression.

“What other possible reasons might I have for coming here?” he said, finally.

“I don’t know.” She gave a small shrug. “People sometimes do the wrong things for the right reasons, trying to fulfill someone else’s expectations? It’s obvious your public image had taken a battering, maybe your sole focus is on repairing that”—she paused, looking into his eyes—“when it shouldn’t be really. Not if you’re serious about finding your soul mate. Is that why you’re here, because you think a wife will somehow benefit your career? I hope not,” she added quietly, wondering if she’d imagined Rory wincing at her words. “As I said, it could be one of any number of reasons. Some people come when they are still exploring their sexuality.”

Rory laughed, spluttering on his words.

“You think I’m gay?” He leaned back on the chair, his eyes growing wide.

“No, I didn’t say that.” If there was one thing she was absolutely certain on, it was that. His whole being bristled with barely contained masculine sexuality, the atmosphere between them charged with electricity. “It’s just important that you’re totally honest with yourself as to why you’re here. Otherwise you’re wasting not only your own time, but my time too.”

Rory rubbed his finger behind his ear, observing her thoughtfully.

“Well, I would hate to think I was wasting your time, Molly.” He smiled, but the sarcasm dripped off his tongue.

“Please, don’t twist my words. You understand what I’m saying, don’t you?”

“I do understand. Completely. You want to see evidence of my commitment. What was it you said? Some excitement and hope. Don’t worry, I’ve got plenty of both.”

Okay, so he’d completely ballsed that one up. He liked to pride himself on being a good actor, but he couldn’t even convince Molly that he was serious about wanting to find a bride. Which he was. Or at least he had been until the moment when Molly had waltzed into his life.

Clearly a woman of conviction and passion and integrity, it was evident she was wholly committed to her business and to her clients and there was something about her single-mindedness that Rory found extremely attractive.

That and the fact that she was unlike the flirty and frivolous women who mainly inhabited his world, that was intriguing in itself.

Tonight she was wearing a black pencil skirt and a floaty cream blouse that definitely suggested business but Rory could see beyond the professional exterior to the inherent femininity lying within. She reminded him of a flower about to blossom, she just needed some help in teasing open those tightly cupped petals.

He sighed. That was his trouble. Molly had become far too much of a distraction. How could he even think about meeting a woman, a life partner more to the point, when the woman in front of him was so delightfully distracting? He shifted in his seat, a dangerous longing stirring deep within his bones. Maybe he should just say to hell with it and whisk Molly off into the sunset. That would save them both a whole heap of problems and it would be no great hardship as far as he was concerned.

Opposite him, she’d folded her arms to match her crossed legs, her brow adopting a similarly fierce expression. She was clearly unimpressed by his assertion that he was full of hope and excitement. But he was. Suddenly. Sitting here with her. And it was a revelation that there was no other place he would rather be. After meeting Theo he could quite easily have sloped off home, but he’d had an overwhelming urge to get to the dinner party. However late. And that urge hadn’t come from wanting to have dinner with a whole bunch of strangers. No, what drove him to get here was the thought of seeing Molly again. To hear her voice and to see her smile. Because she did smile occasionally when she wasn’t reprimanding him with a scowl. And he wasn’t sure how she’d managed it, but this woman was definitely getting beneath his skin.

“So, was it a successful evening?” he asked, hoping she’d forgiven him by now.

“Yes, it was,” she said, clasping her hands together in front of her. “It was a shame you missed it because there were a couple of ladies I wanted you to meet. You would have got on well with them. Not to worry, though, I’ll arrange for you to meet them some other time.”

He nodded, distracted by the open neckline of her shirt. There was no hint of cleavage, no jewelry, just a tantalizing glimpse of long, toned neck. The thought of running his hand along its length filled him with desire. He shook away the thoughts.

“Great!” he said, realizing she was waiting for some kind of response.

“You see, Rory, there you go again.”

“What?” With supreme effort, he dragged his gaze from the mesmerizing sight of her neckline to focus on her equally hypnotic eyes.

“Sounding distinctly underwhelmed as soon as I mention a possible date.”

“Molly, I’m finding it difficult to even think about dating when I’m sitting here with you. Somehow it seems disloyal.” A lazy smile spread across his face. “Perhaps us going on a date together isn’t such a bad idea after all.”

She sprang out of her chair, shaking her head with despair.

“This is hopeless, Rory. This isn’t about us, so would you please stop suggesting that it is. It’s not helping matters at all.” She turned to face him, her hands low on her hips, the curve of her breasts highlighted through the sheer fabric of her blouse. “And for your information, there’s no way I would date any of my clients as a matter of principle.”

“Hmm, just my luck, a woman of principle.”

“This is just one big joke for you, isn’t it? I’m sorry, Rory, I was wrong. I don’t think I can help you after all. I suggest you find another agency to help you in your search.”

“Oh, come on, Molly. I was only teasing. Besides, I thought we had a deal. You said you’d be able to find me a bride in time for the film premiere. Don’t tell me you’re going back on your promise?”

She sighed and he saw the exasperation in the set of her shoulders, the weariness in her eyes. A twinge of guilt pricked at his conscience.

“I’ve had my doubts about your commitment to this process from the moment I met you. I’m not convinced you really want to do this or that your motives for finding a partner are genuine. I’m sorry, Rory, but nothing that you’ve told me has dissuaded me otherwise.”

“You can’t dump me, Molly. Now that would be a first! Just think how humiliating it would be? To be rejected by a marriage bureau before I’ve even had a chance to meet any of the women clients.” He grinned, holding out an arm, beckoning her to come and sit down again. His instinct was to take her in his arms and make everything better with a kiss, a long, slow passionate kiss, to feel her body yield beneath his touch, but he knew he was treading on dangerous ground even considering such a thing.