Mrs Goode was older than she had expected, and frailer, but it was Reece's attitude to the elderly housekeeper that surprised Miriam the most. She had expected— She hadn't known what she'd expected, she thought silently as she watched Reece fetch the small woman a cup of tea from the tray that Jinny had just brought in and adjust the rug on her knees; but this gentleness that he was displaying was a definite jolt to the picture she had began to form in her mind's eye. And Mrs Goode clearly worshipped the very ground her employer walked on.
'Such a silly thing to do,' she said ruefully, with a small shake of her bird-like head as she gestured to her ankle which was heavily encased in plaster. 'I must be getting old.'
'It's nothing to do with age and you know it.' Reece smiled at the older woman as he spoke and something twisted in Miriam's chest as she saw the warmth between them. 'Sheer stubbornness as usual. I'd told you and told you not to carry too much when you go down those stairs; Jinny can do all of that.'
'Oh, away with you.' Mrs Goode flapped her hand at him and Miriam's mouth opened slightly with surprise. 'I'm too old a bird to change the habits of a lifetime now.'
They sat for some minutes discussing the schedule and lists that Miriam had brought to show the housekeeper, who expressed her approval of Miriam's plans with wholehearted enthusiasm. 'Lovely, my dear.' Miriam noticed the slightly strained look in the housekeeper's eyes and it appeared that Reece did too, because he stood up suddenly, his voice firm as he glanced at the older woman's white face.
'Bed for you.' He smiled at Mrs Goode gently. 'I'm going to help you upstairs before I go, and there you stay for the rest of the day.'
'But there's so much to do.' The elderly woman peered up at him anxiously. 'And Barbara won't be able to help.'
'It's all in hand, Mrs Goode,' Miriam said carefully, not wishing to step on the older woman's toes but realising that she needed to rest. 'If I run into any problems I'll give you a call, if I may—pop and see you. But there are several things that can only be done in the last two or three days so I was hoping you'd be able to do those when you're feeling better, and perhaps oversee the temporary staff.'
'I'm getting you a wheelchair tomorrow, just for a couple of weeks,' Reece added firmly, 'and you'll be able to skitter about in that to your heart's content, but just for today do as you're told and stay in bed, would you?' He helped his housekeeper to her feet and supported the thin little body with a hand round her waist as Mrs Goode turned and smiled at Miriam.
'Goodbye, dear.' She patted Miriam's hand quietly. 'You're doing wonders, dear; well done.'
'It's my job.' Miriam smiled cheerfully.
'And such a lovely smile,' the old woman continued with the embarrassing candour of the elderly. 'Have you got a young man?'
'No, she's fancy-free,' Reece interposed, with a sardonic glance at Miriam's pink face. 'Married to her job, so I understand.'
It was clear that Mrs Goode wanted to say more, but Reece led her very firmly from the room as Jinny appeared to take the old woman's other arm, and Miriam sped off back to the kitchens with her face burning.
Vera and Dave had organised a quick snack and switched the coffee-pot on,, but just as she took a big bite of her ham and tomato sandwich Reece appeared in the doorway to the kitchen. 'Could I have a word?' he asked grimly as she hastily swallowed and rose. 'In the flat?'
'Of course.' She followed him out into the corridor and into the small flat warily. What now?
'I just wanted to thank you for being so tactful with Mrs Goode,' he said surprisingly as he turned to face her in the bright little lounge. 'She's fretting about the arrangements but you put her mind at rest at the same time as making her feel useful.' The silver eyes narrowed on her clear face. 'You understand people quite well, don't you?'
'Some,' she said lightly. There was one within a hair's breadth who was a complete enigma if he did but know it.
'And I was going to suggest that at the end of the week, or maybe at the weekend, it might be a good idea for you to move in here,' he added quietly. 'With the amount of work that needs to be done it seems to make sense to be living on the job.'
'I—' It did make sense but somehow, without knowing why, the thought of actually living in his house made something hot and liquid trickle shiveringly down her spine. Stupid. Animal chemistry. Imagination. It was probably all of those things, but this feeling that made her catch her breath as she faced him wouldn't be denied. 'I'll see later; it might not be necessary,' she prevaricated uncomfortably, flushing as he laughed derisively.
'I'm not going to break the door down in the middle of the night,' he said with cool mockery. 'You'll be quite safe even if you are in the wolf's lair.'
'I never doubted that for a minute,' she said stiffly, her cheeks getting still hotter as he raised a disbelieving eyebrow before sauntering out of the room with a silent wave of his hand.
He had to be the most irritating, annoying man she had ever met in her life, she thought crossly as she closed the front door to the flat and joked the others across the corridor. But she wasn't going to think of him now; there was too much to do. And too little time in which to do it.
They worked hard all day, and when they left the house just before six Reece still wasn't home. She dropped Vera and Dave off and arrived back at the bedsit utterly exhausted and longing for a relaxing hot bath. After an hour's soak she felt a little more herself, and she fixed a quick meal of cold meat and salad and ate it to her dressing gown in front of the fire, flexing her toes to the warmth from the gas jets now and again as she watched TV.
She had just settled down to planning the time sheet for the next day when Mitch rang. 'You'll never guess, Mim.' Her brother's voice was both relieved and faintly apprehensive. 'Reece Vance has paid off all the remaining debt with the garage and old man Gregory hasn't made a murmur. We had all the papers through today, so that's that little problem out of the way.'
'But—' She stopped abruptly. So now they were under obligation to Reece financially. She didn't like that; she didn't like it at all. 'What were the terms for paying Reece back?' she asked carefully.
'I knew you'd ask that so I phoned him,' Mitch said quickly. 'He insists he doesn't want a formal agreement; we just pay him back what we can when we can, and he made the point that he definitely doesn't want any interest added. Not quite what you'd expect from an astute businessman like him, is it?' her brother asked wryly.
'No, it certainly isn't.' It had got them out of a bad situation with Gregory, it was undeniably generous and more than kind of him. So why was she finding it so difficult to be pleased? she asked herself silently. What was it, some sort of pride?
Sudden self-knowledge made her flush painfully. That was exactly it, she admitted slowly. He was extremely wealthy and, by his own admission, used to women who were inclined to take when they could and she wanted to be…different. She closed her eyes tightly as a hot dose of self-contempt burnt in her chest. She had wanted him to respect her, admire her principles, know that she wasn't like all the others.
She shook her head at her own stupidity. Who was she trying to fool? She had fallen for the guy, and no amount of lying to herself would alter the fact that she had to put a brake on this thing now. It was just physical attraction, a chemistry bombshell between opposites, but it was hot and strong and incredibly dangerous—for her at least.