‘—What I’m doing every minute of the day and night,’ she finished in that highly educated English voice. Maybe she should take up acting? ‘I’m only out to lunch, Dominic.’
He put his hand over hers, and Sara only just stopped herself from pulling away. ‘I feel responsible for you while your father is away.’
Sara pouted as she had seen Marie do. ‘But, Dominic, surely I can’t come to any harm while I’m out to lunch?’
He gave an indulgent smile, looking the most pleasant she had ever seen him, his harshly attractive features softened. ‘You could come to harm just sitting at home,’ he teased. ‘Who are you lunching with?’
‘Well, actually—–’
Dominic’s face darkened, his eyes narrowed to icy blue slits. ‘You haven’t seen the Hamille girl again, have you?’
Sara bristled angrily on her own behalf. ‘And why shouldn’t I?’ Amazingly she still managed to maintain Marie’s accent.
‘I’ve already told you why,’ he said sternly. ‘The girl is out to cause trouble.’
As far as Sara was concerned this charade had gone on long enough! ‘And in what way am I doing that, Mr Thorne?’ She dropped the pose, talking to him in her own voice, her anger obvious.
He instantly dropped her hand, his face an angry mask. ‘Very amusing, Miss Hamille,’ he snapped. ‘Perhaps you should take up acting as a profession.’
Her mouth twisted. ‘I had just thought the same thing. Let me assure you, Mr Thorne, I am not out to cause ‘‘trouble”. I met Marie today at her suggestion, and because I like her. But now that I know your opinion of my mother and myself—and incidentally, my mother didn’t meet Marie’s father at any time, let alone nine months before my birth. I’m sorry, Mr Thorne, did you say something?’ she asked coldly.
His expression was fierce. ‘I said damn Marie and her loose tongue,’ he rasped.
‘If the remarks hadn’t been made she wouldn’t have been able to repeat them. Twenty-one years ago my mother was married to my father, and that is the time I was born. The comments you made about her are slanderous,’ her eyes sparkled with fury, ‘and I’m not going to sit back and let you make them!’
‘It was merely conjecture,’ he said smoothly. ‘Your similarity to Marie is—amazing. I was merely trying to find a reason for it.’
‘Well, that isn’t it!’ Sara snapped.
‘No, I accept that. Your age would seem to veto that idea. Twenty-one, I think you said?’
‘Almost,’ she confirmed resentfully. ‘Next month.’
‘Mm, and at the time Marie’s father was also happily married to her mother.’
‘I require an apology for your remarks, Mr Thorne,’ Sara told him stubbornly.
Anger flared in those narrowed eyes. ‘Miss Hamille—–’
‘An apology!’ she repeated tightly. ‘My mother is dead and so unable to defend herself, but I demand an apology on her behalf.’ She looked at him challengingly, refusing to withdraw from their silent optical battle. Marie might enjoy his domineering attitude, but Sara just found it infuriating, and she refused to be cowed by it.
Dominic Thorne looked as if he were going through a battle of his own, with himself. That he was unaccustomed to admitting to being wrong about anything she had no doubt, but she remained firm. He would apologise.
‘All right,’ the words came out in a hiss, blue eyes glittering resentfully. ‘I apologise. It would appear I’m mistaken.’
Sara could thankfully see Marie coming back, the other girl bending to lightly kiss her fiancée on the lips before sitting down beside him.
‘Sorry I was so long,’ she spoke to Sara. ‘I’m afraid Suzanne is as much of a chatterbox as I am!’ She gave a glowing smile in Dominic Thorne’s direction. ‘What are you doing here, darling? Not that I’m not pleased to see you,’ she entwined her fingers with his, ‘but I thought you’d be hard at work this afternoon.’
‘I had some spare time.’ His voice showed none of his fury of seconds earlier, his manner at once indulgent. ‘I thought I might find you here.’