To Marry McAllister

‘Maybe,’ Sabina acknowledged noncommittally, not sure she actually wanted to go that far. ‘Tell me, when and where do you intend holding your next exhibition?’ she abruptly changed the subject, obviously having decided she had told him enough about her private life for one evening.

Well, not in Brice’s eyes she hadn’t; there were still dozens of things he wanted to know about Sabina Smith! Even if he did accept that some of them would have to wait…

‘Richard told me that he attended the exhibition you had two years ago,’ she added coolly. ‘He said it was very successful.’

Brice didn’t doubt that the other man had said that; he just knew that Sabina had really mentioned Richard as a reminder—just in case Brice might have forgotten—that she had a fiancé in her life…

As if he could forget with that damn great rock glittering on her left hand. But that didn’t mean he wouldn’t like to forget all about Richard Latham. In fact, the more he got to know Sabina, the more he wished the other man would just evaporate into thin air!

This evening wasn’t going too badly, Sabina decided with inward relief. Brice McAllister was certainly easy enough to talk to. Too much so, on occasion.

‘Mmm, this looks wonderful,’ she enthused as her asparagus and Brice’s escargot were brought to the table.

‘I have no doubt that it will taste as good as it looks.’ Brice nodded indulgently. ‘Do you—? Oh, no…!’ he groaned impatiently.

Sabina looked across at him curiously, only to find he was looking towards the doorway at a couple who had just entered the restaurant. Sabina vaguely recognised the woman as Chloe Fox, the fashion designer ‘Foxy’, having met her a couple of times, but she had no idea who the man was with her.

Although he looked enough like Brice, very tall, dark, with an arrogant handsomeness, for Sabina to question the likeness.

‘My cousin Fergus, and his wife Chloe,’ Brice provided with obvious irritation, his displeasure with the other couple’s arrival also obvious, at least, to Sabina. She hoped the other couple, having now seen Brice and walking purposefully towards their table, couldn’t see it too!

Brice stood up politely. ‘Fergus. Chloe,’ he greeted tightly before moving to kiss Chloe lightly on the cheek. ‘May I introduce Sabina?’ he added with obvious reluctance.

‘You certainly may. Although I’m sure we would both have recognised you without the introduction.’ Fergus shook Sabina’s hand warmly before turning back to this cousin. ‘We’re not interrupting anything, I hope?’ Eyes of chocolate-brown tauntingly met Brice’s frosty green ones.

Sabina found she liked the teasing affection Fergus showed towards his cousin. It made Brice McAllister seem much less arrogantly self-assured. Altogether less dangerous…

‘Would the two of you care to join us?’ she invited the other couple softly, keeping her expression deadpan as she saw the unmistakable look of warning irritation Brice shot in his cousin’s direction.

‘I’m sure you and Brice would much rather be alone,’ Chloe was the one to answer her, but her dark brows were raised over speculative blue eyes as she looked across at Brice.

‘Of course we wouldn’t,’ Sabina replied smoothly. ‘It will be much more fun if there are four of us. Brice has very kindly taken pity on me while my fiancé is away on business and brought me out to dinner,’ she added pointedly.

‘Oh, Brice is well known for his kindness,’ Fergus mocked even as he pulled back a chair for his wife to sit down before sitting down himself.

‘Well known,’ Brice muttered disagreeably as he resumed his own seat at the table.

‘Have some wine, Fergus. Don’t mind if I do, Brice,’ his cousin carried out a conversation with himself as Brice now sat in stony silence, Fergus signalling the waiter to bring over a couple of wineglasses so that he and Chloe might join them in sipping the white wine.

Sabina smiled at his obvious mockery of his cousin, becoming more sure by the second that inviting the other couple to join them had been a good move on her part; Brice didn’t seem half as daunting in the company of his cousin and his wife!

‘Please don’t let your food get cold,’ Chloe advised lightly as a waiter discreetly set two more places at the table. ‘Fergus and I can look at the menus while the two of you eat,’ she added happily.

Sabina watched Brice beneath lowered lashes as she resumed eating her asparagus; anyone looking at him as he hooked the snails out of their shells, before grinding them between those even white teeth, would have thought each and every one of them had done him some personal disservice.

For the first time in their acquaintance Sabina had the feeling that Brice was at something of a disadvantage. It was a pleasant feeling!

Despite the fact that Brice added little to the conversation as the meal progressed, Sabina found she was enjoying herself. Chloe and Fergus were lively conversationalists, with a teasing sense of humour, and their love for each other was in every glance they exchanged. The fact that Brice glowered at the two of them for the next two hours seemed to bother them not one bit.

‘I believe we’re going to be distantly related,’ Chloe observed much later in the evening as the four of them lingered over coffee.

Sabina saw the sharp look of surprise Brice shot his cousin-in-law. And she had to admit, she was a little puzzled herself. ‘I’m sorry…?’ she prompted frowningly.

Chloe smiled. ‘My older sister is married to your fiancé’s nephew,’ she explained. ‘I’m sure once you’re married that must give us some sort of family connection—although for the life of me I can’t work out what it is!’ she added laughingly.

Neither could Sabina. Especially as there would never be a wedding! But what shocked her the most was that she hadn’t given her ‘fiancé’ a thought for the last two hours. Not one…

‘It does sound rather complicated,’ she dismissed vaguely before turning to Brice. ‘I’m sorry to break up the evening, but I believe it’s time I went home.’

His mouth tightened with displeasure; obviously he hadn’t liked the fact that they had shared their evening with Fergus and Chloe, but he disliked the idea of her ending the evening even more.

Which was all the more reason to end it!

She had been unwise to come out with him at all this evening, knew he was not a man she could easily spend time with. It had been pure luck—on her part—that his cousin and his wife happened to be here too.

‘Maybe we’ll get a chance to work together some time soon,’ Chloe told Sabina warmly as she and Fergus prepared to leave, the two men in some quiet dispute over who was paying the bill.

‘Maybe,’ Sabina answered noncommittally, knowing her appointment book was completely full for the next six months. Thank goodness! She already knew that the less she had to do with this dynamic family, the better.

‘I was so sorry we didn’t get to work together last year, after all,’ Chloe added softly. ‘But I believe you were ill at the time?’

Sabina gave the other woman a sharp look. What—?

‘Harper Manor in November,’ Chloe enlarged lightly. ‘I was showing a line of evening dresses that weekend.’

Sabina stared at the other woman, clearly remembering now—too late—that she had been scheduled to wear a couple of those dresses at that particular show.

‘I hope it was nothing too serious?’ Chloe continued concernedly.

Sabina, never particularly big on small talk anyway, found herself completely struck dumb.

This was just too much. First that letter earlier today, and now a reminder of her absence from the catwalk last November. It was just—

‘What wasn’t too serious?’ Brice frowned at the two women, obviously having now come to some sort of agreement with his cousin concerning the bill—as he had insisted initially, he was paying it!

Chloe turned to smile at him. ‘I was just reminding Sabina that the two of us should have worked together last year, but she wasn’t well.’

Brice looked at Sabina with narrowed eyes. ‘What was wrong with you?’

So blunt. So straightforward. So unanswerable!

‘Really, Brice,’ Chloe spluttered affectionately. ‘You can’t just demand to know about someone’s illness in that way!’

‘Why can’t I?’ He frowned. ‘You mentioned Sabina was ill last year. I merely want to know what was wrong with her.’ He shrugged, as if he couldn’t see what the problem was.

Whereas Sabina could see what it was all too clearly! She simply didn’t talk about her absence from modelling at the end of the previous year. And she had no intention of doing so now.

Chloe gave Brice a reproving look, obviously now regretting having mentioned the subject at all. ‘Really, Brice, we women have to have some secrets,’ she rebuked lightly.

‘It was really nothing of great importance,’ Sabina dismissed coolly; the last thing she wanted was for Brice to think there was something mysterious about her absence from modelling the previous year! ‘Just a touch of flu,’ she excused. ‘It’s been lovely meeting both of you,’ she told the other couple sincerely—if nothing else, they had been a very welcome diversion from spending the evening alone with Brice.