Читать книгу Carole Mortimer Romance Collection - Кэрол Мортимер, Carole Mortimer - Страница 26

‘LIAM won’t be in today,’ Diana told her brightly as she looked into Juliet’s office the next morning.

Juliet had spent most of the night lying awake; she had found it impossible to sleep after that conversation with Liam in the study. And, wanting to avoid him this morning, she had had coffee in her bedroom, missing breakfast altogether, only to discover from Janet, when she had gone down, that Liam had left the house very early that morning. And now it seemed that he was to be away all day. Her relief was mixed up with a certain amount of curiosity as to where he had gone.

‘Business?’ she asked casually, looking up from the work on her desk.

‘With Liam, who knows?’ Diana gave a dismissive shrug. ‘I’ll just carry on going through the papers you gave us yesterday,’ was her parting comment as she closed Juliet’s office door behind her.

Liam was right; Diana was very discreet! Had he found something in that file last night that she just hadn’t seen when she had looked through it? What was he looking for? Knowing Liam, he would probably never tell her unless it was something he wanted her to know!

God, she wished he would come to some sort of decision concerning the business. The waiting was killing her! All she had wanted from him was a straightforward yes or no, but she knew that he wouldn’t be rushed, and that his decision, when it came, would be made on a practical business level, would have nothing to do with love or loyalty towards his father. Basically because he didn’t feel either of those things towards his family.

And he wasn’t about to come to any decision when he wasn’t even here!

John came into her office later in the morning, and Juliet could see that he wanted an explanation of what was actually going on, which wasn’t surprising considering Liam had walked in and more or less taken over William’s office—at the least!

There wasn’t a lot she could really tell John; she had no idea herself what was happening. It could take Liam weeks to decide whether or not to keep the company going—which wasn’t a lot of help to John, she accepted, but it was all she could offer him at the moment.

‘Will Mr Liam be in for dinner tonight?’ Janet asked her when she arrived home later that evening.

She had no idea what Liam’s plans were for this evening; given that she hadn’t seen him all day, how could she possibly know? He hadn’t been into the office at all today, not even to speak to Diana. Not that the other woman had seemed concerned by his absence; she was probably used to it. Diana certainly seemed to accept working alone.

There had been no time for the two women even to take a hurried lunch together today; Juliet was back in the midst of her own work now, Diana still poring over accounts in William’s office. Besides, Juliet felt a little uneasy in the other woman’s company now as she was no longer so sure of Diana’s relationship with Liam; he had certainly seemed defensive enough over the other woman when he’d come home last night!

‘I have no idea,’ Juliet replied dismissively. ‘Liam doesn’t keep me informed of his movements.’

‘He never did.’ Janet shook her head affectionately. ‘He always was the more independent of the two boys.’

Boys? Juliet again found it difficult to imagine Liam as a boy.

Janet laughed at her expression. ‘I can never think of him as anything else!’ she smiled. ‘He was a mischievous little devil.’ Her face clouded slightly. ‘Until Simon was born, that is.’

Juliet stiffened slightly at the mention of her dead fiancé; she had never discussed Simon with Janet. In fact, she hadn’t really spoken of him since his death. Whether that was a good or bad thing she wasn’t sure; she just knew that she found it too painful to talk about him.

But she was interested in this conversation in spite of herself. ‘What effect did that have on Liam?’ She frowned. As she did not have any siblings of her own, or any other family either, it was unknown territory for her.

Janet shrugged. ‘Well, his mother died, for one thing, so that didn’t help the situation. And Mr William doted on the baby, which didn’t help either, so—’

‘Liam and Simon didn’t get on,’ Juliet guessed.

‘I wouldn’t say that as children they didn’t get on,’ Janet said slowly. ‘After all, Liam was five when Simon was born—already at school, with his own group of friends. It was only as they grew up that the resentment became more obvious.’ She shook her head sadly. ‘By the time they were both teenagers it was like open warfare!’

So Liam has been resentful of his younger brother. She had guessed from his attitude towards Simon that there had been no love lost between the two brothers, and Janet had just confirmed it.

‘It was very difficult for Mr William.’ Janet gave a heavy sigh. ‘He loved both his sons—’

‘That’s debatable, Janet!’ cut in a harshly angry voice, and both women turned to find that Liam had entered the house without either of them being aware of it.

Janet immediately looked flustered at being caught discussing him in that way, and Juliet had to admit that she wasn’t too happy about it herself. She was sure that Liam’s remarks last night about not discussing him, or his private affairs, with Diana also applied to Janet!

He strode forcefully into the entrance hall, closing the door behind him with firm finality. ‘We’ll have coffee in my father’s study, Janet,’ he told the housekeeper icily, his eyes glittering like twin blue lakes—fathomless lakes with a threat in their depths! ‘The study, Juliet,’ he told her coldly as he marched past, not even pausing to see if she intended following him.

He just knew that she would! Not that she wanted to, but she accepted that she probably did owe him an apology for being caught out talking about him with Janet. But it hadn’t been intentional; it had just been a natural progression in the conversation.

Janet made a pained expression. ‘Oh, dear,’ she sighed, looking guiltily after Liam.

‘Don’t worry about it,’ Juliet said softly, squeezing her arm reassuringly. ‘We weren’t doing anything wrong.’ Although she doubted whether Liam saw it that way!

Janet shook her head regretfully. ‘I know that look,’ she said, grimacing. ‘His father had one just—’ She broke off awkwardly. ‘Liam always was as stubborn as a mule,’ she sighed. ‘And he isn’t going to like it that we were talking about him.’

‘It will be fine,’ Juliet assured her with more confidence than she actually felt; Liam was furious, and her delay in joining him wouldn’t be improving his mood. ‘You go and get the coffee and I’ll speak to him.’ She gave the older woman a comforting smile.

Janet didn’t look any more convinced about Liam’s mood than Juliet felt, but she went off to get the requested coffee anyway.

Juliet took a deep breath and followed Liam to the study. She almost faltered as she entered the room, finding him sitting behind the desk in William’s chair, his face set in a cold, angry mask; obviously this was not going to be a pleasant conversation. Not that she had particularly expected it to be, but facing Liam across the desk like this she felt like a naughty schoolgirl who had been called in by the headmaster to be chastised for some misdemeanour!

He sat forward to rest his elbows on the desktop, lacing the fingers of each hand together in front of his face, his eyes icily assessing as he looked at her. And looked at her. And looked at her.

The silence stretched on and on, until Juliet felt as if her nerve might snap. ‘For goodness’ sake, Liam,’ she finally bit out tautly, that feeling of being a naughty little girl still with her. ‘Janet was just——’

‘I’m not interested in what Janet was doing,’ he cut in harshly. ‘I believe I made my feelings plain to you yesterday evening!’

She swallowed hard. ‘Janet just wondered if you were going to be in for dinner,’ she continued determinedly. ‘And one thing led to another.’ She shrugged dismissively.

His mouth twisted. ‘I’m sure it did. Well, in future—’ his face hardened ‘—I would prefer it if one thing didn’t lead to another!’

‘Fine,’ she snapped, tired of these mood swings. ‘I’ll endeavour not to let your name pass my lips again!’

He sat back, looking at her through narrowed eyes. ‘Really?’ he drawled.

Juliet suddenly didn’t like the way he was looking at her; she felt uncomfortable under that appraising gaze. ‘Really!’ she returned—somewhat defensively, she felt.

Liam stood up slowly, moving stealthily around the desk and standing dangerously close to her. ‘Never?’ he challenged softly.

There was heated colour in her cheeks now, and she wanted to move. Instead, she stood her ground with great effort. Inwardly she just wanted to get away from him! What was it about this man that had this effect on her?

She met his gaze unflinchingly. ‘Look, Li— Liam,’ she completed firmly. ‘It would obviously be better if you and I stayed away from each other as much as possible——’

‘Why?’ he cut in softly. ‘Some of the times we’ve been… close I’ve enjoyed very much.’ His gaze moved appraisingly across her face and body.

Her cheeks were burning now, and she had to force herself not to move away. ‘You know very well what I’m talking about, Liam,’ she rapped out. ‘You’re here on business; there’s no need for us to put up a pretence of getting on!’

He shrugged unconcernedly. ‘But on one level we do “get on", Juliet,’ he drawled huskily. ‘In fact, I’m amazed at just how well…’

She knew to which ‘level’ he referred; it would be impossible not to know! And she wasn’t amazed by it at all—stunned would be a better way of putting it!

She might not have moved away, but there was definitely a barrier going up around her! ‘You won’t be here for much longer, Liam, so—’

‘Are you telling me or asking me?’ His voice was dangerously soft now.

Her eyes flashed her irritation with this verbal game he was playing. ‘Carlyle Properties is a very small fish in your large pond, Liam,’ she snapped impatiently. ‘Once you’ve seen what you need to you’ll be going off to deal with your other businesses. Until that time, as I’ve already said, perhaps it would be better if we avoided each other as much as possible.’

‘Is that what you did with your last business partner?’ he taunted challengingly. ‘Strange; I thought you had rather a different arrangement with my father.’

She drew in a sharp breath at his deliberately insulting tone. ‘I wasn’t your father’s business partner,’ she reminded him tautly.

‘Oh, no, of course you weren’t.’ He nodded agreement. ‘Assistant, wasn’t it? Well, I suppose at his age he needed all the assistance he could—I wouldn’t, if I were you,’ he advised in a menacingly soft voice as her hand arched up instinctively.

Her hand was arrested in mid-action, her breathing ragged in her agitation. ‘You are the most insulting man I have ever met in my life,’ she finally managed to say. ‘That happens to be your father you’re talking about!’ She glared at him for the slur he was making on a man she had cared about very much. And who had cared about her in return.

‘He was a man, wasn’t he?’ Liam dismissed harshly.

‘He was my friend,’ Juliet defended. ‘My very good friend.’ She could have kicked herself for allowing that emotional catch in her voice; Liam wouldn’t understand things like platonic love between two people who weren’t actually related to each other. And now wasn’t the time to enlighten him, either, as she could hear Janet approaching the study with the coffee-tray.

‘Could I have a dinner-tray in my room?’ she requested stiltedly of the other woman as she entered after knocking briefly on the door. She studiously avoided looking at Liam; she was so angry and upset that she might say something completely unforgivable if she looked at him again.

‘I have something I wish to discuss with you, Juliet,’ Liam told her coldly before Janet could answer.

She still couldn’t bring herself to look at him; she needed some time and space away from him. ‘Can’t it wait until morning?’ she said abruptly.

‘No. It can’t,’ he answered uncompromisingly. ‘It’s business,’ he added curtly as she still looked mutinous.

Juliet drew in a ragged breath. Liam had the upper hand in this situation, and he knew it. When it came to the future of Carlyle Properties—something William had entrusted to her—then she had no choice…!

She nodded. ‘I’ll join you for coffee after dinner,’ she conceded, at last looking up at him—and then wishing she hadn’t! Liam had a way of looking at her that made her feel so—so…It was very uncomfortable, feeling that someone disliked you as much as Liam seemed to dislike her!

Although dislike possibly wasn’t the right word. As he had admitted, on one level they did get on, and Liam obviously resented that fact. He couldn’t dislike her because he wouldn’t really allow himself to get to know her, but he did resent the effect they had on each other. As she did.

‘Very well,’ he accepted icily, obviously not too happy with the compromise, but willing to let it go by because of Janet’s presence. ‘Ten o’clock, in the study,’ he added hardly.

‘Very well,’ she acknowledged distantly.

‘And make sure she does have a tray in her room, Janet.’ He turned to the housekeeper. ‘Juliet has a habit of forgetting that her body needs food!’ he added drily.

Juliet gave him a narrow-eyed look before turning on her heel and abruptly leaving the room.

‘He had to have the last word,’ she muttered to herself disgruntledly as she went up the stairs. She hoped his dinner gave him indigestion! It was the least he deserved, because she surely wasn’t going to enjoy her own food, no matter what Liam might have instructed to the contrary!

Ten o’clock came around all too quickly as far as Juliet was concerned. She did eat some of the delicious dinner which Janet brought up for her, just the smell of the beef Wellington making her feel hungry—mainly, she suddenly realised, because she had forgotten to eat lunch. It certainly had nothing to do with what Liam had said to her!

Why did he bring out such childish rebellion in her? she wondered heavily. She had lived her life quite sedately for the last seven years, and in a few short days Liam had reduced her to an emotional see-saw, one minute so angry with him, the next unable to resist being in his arms. She would be glad when he had gone out of her life again!

But would she…?

Yes, Liam evoked emotions she hadn’t felt for some time, emotions she wasn’t altogether comfortable with, but at least she had been alive, totally alive, since first meeting him.

She couldn’t be falling in love with him…? Not with Liam of all people!

She felt angry in his presence, irritated, apprehensive occasionally, but those other emotions—of anticipation of seeing him again, the pleasure she had known in his arms, the fact that she felt so alive in his company—what did they mean? They couldn’t mean she was falling in love with him— was already in love with him…

God, it was gone ten o’clock now; if she didn’t go downstairs soon he would—

‘A question of the mountain coming to Mohammed?’ Liam drawled as he entered her bedroom unannounced.

After the recent thoughts she had been having about him, being alone with him in her bedroom was the last thing Juliet wanted!

She stood up abruptly from where she had been seated at the table in front of her bedroom window. ‘I was just about to come downstairs and join you,’ she told him stiltedly as she crossed the room to stand pointedly beside the open doorway.

Liam shrugged, making no effort to move. ‘I’m here now,’ he dismissed easily. ‘We may as well stay here.’

No, definitely not! ‘Business is better discussed in the right surroundings,’ she insisted determinedly.

His mouth twisted mockingly. ‘So I seem to remember you telling me once before,’ he said, reminding her of the evening at the hotel in Majorca. ‘I rarely deal in offices, Juliet,’ he continued drily. ‘More business is settled over a good meal, or in a bedroom,’ he added pointedly, ‘than has ever been achieved in a boardroom!’

His meaning, concerning the bedroom, wasn’t lost on Juliet, and she didn’t like the implied insult one little bit! ‘I would prefer to go down to the study,’ she told him distantly, grey eyes unblinking as she met the challenge in his gaze.

‘Whatever,’ he finally shrugged. ‘It’s really totally irrelevant to me.’

She would imagine most things were that he didn’t think directly affected him. And, as she knew from experience, Liam would say what he had to say no matter what the surroundings.

‘The study it is, then,’ she said determinedly, unconcerned with what he might think of her stubbornness.

‘After you.’ He stepped back in an exaggerated movement to allow her to pass him.

Juliet kept her head held high as she went to walk past, and looked up in startled surprise as he stepped in front of her, her eyes widening in trepidation as she saw the look on his face.

‘What is it about you?’ he muttered, almost to himself. ‘I have every reason to dislike you, and yet…’ He shook his head in self-disgust. ‘What do you use, Juliet? Spells and magic potions?’ he added harshly.

She swallowed hard, unable to move, held captive by the intensity of those dark blue eyes. ‘I don’t know what you mean.’ She gave an involuntary quiver of awareness.

Liam saw her reaction to their closeness. ‘Oh, I think you do.’ He nodded, one hand slowly moving up to caress the length of her hair. ‘I want to make love to you, Juliet!’ The words were said harshly, as if the need was completely against his will.

As Juliet had no doubt it was! She felt the same attraction herself. But the difference was that she knew it just couldn’t happen. Wouldn’t happen!

‘Liam—’

‘Don’t start reasoning, Juliet,’ he bit out hardly, his arms moving possessively about her waist. ‘I’ve done enough of that myself, and at the end of the day the whole damn lot goes out of the window the moment I’m alone with you!’ he ground out disgustedly, the warmth of his breath stirring the hair at her temples.

There was no way she could escape from the steel band of his arms without seriously bruising herself, but she held herself as far away from him as she could, pushing against his arms. ‘This is ridiculous, Liam.’

‘I know that, damn you!’ he muttered viciously. ‘But maybe the only way to kill this thing is to make love to you!’

‘You—’ she got no further in her protest as his

mouth came down almost savagely on to hers, demanding a response from her.

There was no gentleness in him, no caring for the bruises he was inflicting upon the softness of her skin, only forceful demand as he plundered her mouth and body with an anger that bordered on savagery.

Juliet whimpered low in her throat, her head flooded with deep, dark memories—memories that made her fight against him with every ounce of her strength.

And it was a battle she was destined to lose.

Liam was so much stronger than she, ruled by a passion he didn’t even try to check as he swung her up in his arms, kicking the door shut with his foot before carrying her across the room to the bed, giving her no chance to escape as his weight came down on hers and his mouth claimed hers once again, his hands restlessly caressing the length of her body.

There was no respite to the demanding kisses. Liam seemed unaware of the low sobs in her throat, the convulsions of her trapped hands against his chest. Juliet could feel herself drowning, drowning in a sea of blackness that had no end.

‘Liam, no!’ she cried as she hung on to the last remnants of consciousness. ‘Please, no!’ This last was a begging plea, a need to be heard. ‘Don’t do this to me! Please…don’t do this to me!’ She was sobbing in earnest now—uncontrollable sobs that racked the whole length of her body.

He raised his head to look down at her with glazed eyes, staring uncomprehendingly at the river of tears running down her cheeks.

‘Liam, please!’ She looked up at him with painfilled eyes, her face completely white, her hands clasped into defensive fists in front of her breasts, shock starting to set in too now as her body began to shake. ‘P-please…!’ she sobbed brokenly.

He frowned deeply, shaking his head as if to clear it from a fog and drawing in deep breaths of air to his seemingly starved lungs. ‘Oh, God!’ he finally groaned, throwing himself back on the bed beside her, his arm flung up over his eyes, as if he too wanted to shut out the memory of what had just almost happened.

Shock was setting in properly in Juliet now, and she lay rigid on the bed, unable to move, shaking too badly even to attempt to stand up, even though at this moment she wanted to put as much distance between herself and Liam as she possibly could.

‘Hell!’ He shot up off the bed, striding over to the window to stare down sightlessly at the driveway. ‘Hell!’ he muttered again, running an agitated hand through the dark blond thickness of his hair.

That was exactly where Juliet felt that he had taken her! Her numbed senses were starting to thaw, and so the pain began to feel more intense. Liam had been intent upon making love to her, with or without her co-operation. No doubt he would have preferred it with, but—

‘Take that look of horror off your face!’ he instructed harshly, looking at her from across the room now, very pale, a nerve pulsing in his cheek. ‘I’ll admit I was beyond reason for a few minutes, but I would never have actually made love to you without your consent!’ He shook his head in denial of just how beyond reason he had been.

‘Which I would never have given,’ she returned huskily, surprised that she could articulate at all; she did feel horrified by what had almost happened.

Liam drew in a ragged breath. ‘Possibly not,’ he conceded icily. ‘We’ll never know. But what I do know,’ he added quickly as Juliet was about to assure him that she certainly did know, ‘is that it isn’t a good idea for me to continue staying in this house.’ He looked about him scathingly. ‘Just a house.’ He shook his head. ‘And yet it’s always held bad memories for me!’

And now it held even more! Juliet didn’t believe that she would ever be able to enter this bedroom again without remembering what had happened here with Liam.

She sat up slowly, feeling the bruises he had inflicted on her body. ‘I’ll be the one to move out,’ she said softly, not even looking at him, knowing she couldn’t stay here any longer. It had been bad enough before, but now…!

‘My father left this house to you,’ Liam reminded her harshly.

She shook her head, moving like an automaton as she slipped on a pair of shoes. ‘I never wanted it. I know you don’t believe me, but I never wanted any of what he left me. But William felt responsible—’ She broke off abruptly, turning

sharply to look at Liam with stricken eyes. She had said too much; she knew she had by the narrow questioning of his eyes.

‘Responsible for what?’ Liam predictably prompted.

God, this had disturbed her! She would never have—

‘Juliet!’ he ground out forcefully.

She moistened suddenly dry lips. ‘Nothing,’ she denied hurriedly. ‘It was nothing.’

He didn’t look convinced—and Juliet had secretly known he wouldn’t be. He was far too astute; he missed very little of what was going on around him. And he thought he knew her very well. He didn’t, but he believed he did.

He gave her a considering look as he slowly crossed the room to stand in front of her. ‘I had a question to ask you tonight, Juliet, and I believe you’ve just answered it for me!’ he said coldly.

She looked up at him frowningly, not liking that look of disgust on his face one little bit. Why should he be the one who was disgusted? She was the one who had almost been…almost been…

Liam’s mouth twisted scathingly. ‘It was a cover-up, wasn’t it, Juliet?’ he accused, revolted. ‘A damned cover-up that cost a life—’ He broke off as Juliet rose abruptly to her feet.

If she had looked at him with horror before, it was as nothing to the terrified despair she felt now. How could he know so quickly? How could he possibly have guessed the secret which she and William had kept for so many years?