Forbidden Surrender

‘I’m sorry.’

Marie seemed to shake off her dark mood, and gave a dazzling smile. ‘Let’s order lunch.’

Sara was amazed at the other girl’s capacity for passing from topic to topic, from mood to mood, and it seemed that during lunch they discussed every subject possible. By the end of the meal Sara felt that they were friends.

‘I still can’t get over our likeness,’ said Marie as they went from the restaurant into the lounge for coffee. ‘Dominic’s convinced it’s all a trick on your part,’ she giggled.

Sara stiffened. ‘I’m well aware of your fiancée’s opinion of me.’

‘And he’s aware of yours,’ Marie grinned. ‘Did you really hit him?’

Sara kept her eyes down on her coffee cup. ‘Did he say I had?’

‘He didn’t need to, it was pretty obvious. God, he was in a foul temper the rest of the evening! I’ve never seen him in such a black mood.’ Marie didn’t seem perturbed by the fact, grinning widely.

‘He deserved it,’ Sara said tightly.

‘I’m sure he did,’ Marie nodded. ‘The trouble with Dominic is that he’s perfect himself, and he expects others to be the same.’ She shrugged. ‘I’m afraid that even I don’t meet up to his high standards.’

That Dominic Thorne made her feel totally inadequate was obvious, and that Marie admired him tremendously was also obvious.

‘Dominic thinks you’re trying to get money out of me in some way,’ Marie added guilelessly. ‘Or Daddy.’

Sara frowned. ‘But I’ve never met your father, nor have I made any effort to contact him.’

‘No,’ Marie grinned. ‘But Dominic thinks my father may have met your mother, about nine months before you were born.’

An angry tide of red colour passed in front of Sara’s eyes. Dominic Thorne had a disgusting mind. How dared he imply that about her mother!

Marie laughed at her expression. ‘Don’t worry, I soon disabused him of that—my father was devoted to my mother. That’s the reason he’s never remarried.’

‘And my mother loved my father. Your fiancée really does have a twisted mind! Besides, I didn’t make any effort to see you again, and if I’d been up to something underhand surely I would have done?’

‘Dominic says that was just a clever move on your part,’ Marie shrugged.

Sara drew in an angry breath. ‘Your fiancée says altogether too much!’

‘Actually, he doesn’t,’ Marie said seriously. ‘He doesn’t talk much at all, but when he does you can bet it’s something important. Now I’m the opposite, I chatter on for hours and none of it makes much sense.’

Sara had already noticed that, and she liked it. She liked Marie too, found her bubbly, flamboyant nature the complete opposite of her own more reserved one.

She considered they had talked about Dominie Thorne quite enough for one day. ‘What do you do?’ she asked Marie.

‘For a living, you mean?’ Marie sounded scandalised.

Sara laughed at her expression. ‘By your reaction I take it you don’t do anything.’

‘Is that terribly naughty of me?’ Marie looked like a guilty little girl.

‘No,’ Sara smiled. ‘I wish I could do the same.’ Although she wasn’t sure she really meant that. Her months of enforced inactivity had made her long to go back to work, although she accepted that the injuries to her legs had made it impossible for her to do anything too strenuous. But nevertheless she didn’t think she would enjoy being idle. Her mother and father had been quite well off, and that money had now been left to her, but she had never been encouraged to sit at home and live off that wealth. Even her mother had been her stepfather’s chief assistant at the advertising agency.

‘I’m kept quite busy,’ Marie told her. ‘Daddy’s always entertaining, and I have to be his hostess. And then there’s the sports club, I go there a lot. And then—–’

‘Okay, okay,’ Sara laughingly silenced her, ‘I believe you!’

‘You’re a model, aren’t you?’ Marie said interestedly. ‘Pete told me,’ she explained.