His Cinderella Mistress

He looked about his surroundings self-derisively. When standing in the middle of a cow shed, with the woman who was slowly driving him insane, that was when!

CHAPTER TEN

JANUARY gave an inner sigh of relief as Max’s attention was distracted when he finally decided to answer the call. Despite her earlier self-derision, it had been very unnerving having him standing there watching her as she worked.

For one thing, for all this was her usual garb when she was working on the farm, she looked so unglamorous. For another, she was still so aware of the fact that she couldn’t be alone with this man for longer than two minutes without ending up in his arms!

Not that she thought there was much chance of that happening at the moment—Max would need to be blind as well as besotted to find her attractive the way she looked right now. And January knew he was neither of those things…

‘Don’t you ever sleep, Jude?’ she heard him snap into the mobile telephone.

Jude…? Jude Marshall?

‘Jude, I believe we had this same conversation yesterday,’ he bit out irritably.

About the three of them, no doubt, January acknowledged resentfully, unashamedly listening to Max’s side of the conversation now even while she gave every appearance of continuing with the milking.

‘They simply do not want to sell, Jude,’ Max rasped. ‘That is, of course, your prerogative,’ he continued coldly. ‘No. No, I don’t. I—’ He broke off as one of the cows gave an extremely loud moo in the background. ‘What was that?’ he obviously repeated the question that had been put to him, giving January a brief grimace before replying. ‘I have the television on, Jude,’ he invented. ‘The news. Look, Jude, I’m sure you didn’t telephone me at this ridiculous hour, wasting your time and money, to talk about what I may or may not be watching on television! But for your information, we’ve had snowstorms here—Yes, snowstorms! I am freezing cold, and not a little fed up with this whole situation—’ He listened for a few seconds. ‘So fire me!’ he snapped before abruptly ending the call.

January stared at him. Had he really just told the owner of the Marshall Corporation, his friend as well as employer, what he could do with his job? And if so, why had he…?

‘Don’t look so worried,’ Max drawled as he looked up and saw January’s stunned expression. ‘Jude won’t fire me,’ he sighed. ‘We go too far back for him to ever do that.’

So that challenge had just been bravado on his part? January could hardly contain her disappointment. For a moment there she had really thought—

The mobile telephone began to ring a second time. Obviously Jude Marshall wasn’t a man used to taking no for an answer.

Well—obviously, January instantly chided herself, otherwise Max wouldn’t be here in the first place. Something she would do well to keep remembering; Max was only here to try and persuade her and her sisters into selling their home.

If only she didn’t love him so much!

‘January?’

She lowered long lashes over her eyes, determined that Max wouldn’t see her tears. Let him play his stupid power games with Jude Marshall—and leave her alone.

‘Shouldn’t you answer that?’ she said huskily as he came to stand in front of her, the ringing mobile telephone still in his hand.

‘I can talk to Jude any time,’ Max rasped, the ringing ceasing abruptly as he switched it off. ‘January—’

‘I’m really very busy, Max.’ She moved purposefully away from him as he would have reached out and taken her in his arms—so much for thinking she looked undesirable! ‘And you’re cold,’ she reminded him determinedly. ‘My uncle should have cleared the track shortly, so you’ll be able to drive back to the hotel,’ she added dismissively, her chin rising challengingly. ‘Maybe even book yourself a flight back to America, away from this cold weather,’ she added scathingly.

A nerve pulsed in his tightly clenched jaw. ‘Is that what you want?’ he muttered grimly.

‘Of course,’ she assured him brightly. ‘We all just want to get on with our lives. Don’t you?’ she derided.

His eyes glittered. ‘My life isn’t in America!’ he snapped.

‘Well, wherever it is, then,’ January shrugged, wishing he would just go—before those threatening tears began to fall.

She simply couldn’t bear the thought of Max going completely out of her life, of never seeing him again.

Max stared at her for several long minutes, his expression grim. ‘Okay,’ he finally muttered forcefully. ‘I’ll go back to the farmhouse and wait for your uncle. But I’m still coming with you later to see Josh,’ he warned hardly.

January gave a weary shrug. ‘I doubt I could stop you even if I wanted to.’

His gaze narrowed. ‘And do you want to?’

‘Max,’ she began impatiently, ‘as far as you’re concerned, what I do or don’t want doesn’t seem to be particularly important,’ she snapped. ‘Now, if you wouldn’t mind; I’m busy,’ she added rudely before turning away, hearing the slam of the shed door seconds later.