‘But I—We’ve only just had lunch!’
‘Well, I wasn’t suggesting we have dinner now,’ he smiled. ‘Later tonight will do.’
‘I have a date,’ she told him stiffly.
‘With your Canadian?’
‘With Daryl, yes.’
‘And as he departs at the end of the week I don’t suppose I should deprive him of your company. After all, I’ll have you to myself when he’s gone.’
‘Mr Blair …’
‘Yes, Lauren?’ He smoothed a lock of hair back from her face. ‘I like your freckles,’ he murmured, his eyes intent on her face.
Lauri blushed under his scrutiny. ‘You—you do?’
‘Mm, they’re adorable. They make me want to kiss the tip of that little snub nose of yours.’
She flinched away. ‘Mr Blair! Stop playing games with me!’
He watched her with laughter in his eyes. ‘Is that what I’m doing?’
‘You know it is. But I won’t be used for your amusement. I’m not going to let you laugh at me, you—you—’
Alex shook his head. ‘I’m not laughing at you, Lauren. In fact, I don’t find any of this funny. How long have you worked for me?’
‘Why?’ she asked curiously.
He sighed. ‘How long?’
‘Three weeks,’ she supplied.
He nodded. ‘That accounts for my not having seen you before. I didn’t think I could have overlooked you.’
She gave a nervous laugh, still conscious of his hand in her hair. ‘I’m quite overlookable.’
Alex shook his head. ‘Not by me you aren’t. You’ve been forcing yourself into my thoughts ever since we met yesterday. And that’s why I don’t find this situation funny. You’re seventeen, just, and I’m a man of thirty-four, and yet I can’t get you off my mind.’ He gave a derisive smile. ‘It must be that startling combination of red-gold hair and defiant green eyes. Whatever it is it’s pretty explosive to my equilibrium. So I intend seeing you as often as possible in an effort to get you out of my system.’
‘And if I don’t want to see you?’ She was furious at his assumption that she would be willing to see any more of him than she had to. Not that she believed his wild assertion that he wanted to see her to get over his attraction to her, there had to be another reason. Maybe there was another woman in his life he wanted to get rid of and he intended using Lauri to do it. What woman wouldn’t be piqued to find he preferred a nonentity like Lauri Prescott to their undoubted beauty and sophistication? Yes, that had to be it, and she wasn’t going to help him out. It might help him to be seen with her, but it could only bring trouble to her, she found him attractive enough already without making the mistake of falling for him!
Alex shrugged. ‘I could always tell your aunt of your—accident, of the fact that you weren’t showing L-plates. I don’t think she would appreciate that last part.’
Remembering how Jane was always telling her to curb her impetuosity Lauri didn’t think she would either. ‘Don’t you have any other way of getting rid of her?’ she scorned.
He looked puzzled. ‘Your aunt? But I don’t want—’
Lauri sighed. ‘Not Jane. The woman you don’t want in your life, the woman you’re using me to put off.’
He laughed. ‘You’re that woman, Lauren, no one else.’
‘I don’t believe you. It’s ridiculous!’
‘I couldn’t agree more,’ he grimaced.
‘Well, there’s no need to be insulting about it,’ Lauri snapped. ‘You really do—er—like me?’
He smiled at her choice of word. ‘I find you very—desirable.’