Fated Attraction

by Carole Mortimer

  He was still in the lounge, although he had obviously eaten his dinner in her absence. He looked up at her expectantly.

  Rhea-Jane sighed. ‘I failed to talk any sense into Raff—you will have gathered that’s where I’ve been?’ She grimaced.

  Her brother shrugged. ‘I guessed it might have been, yes.’

  ‘He didn’t even want to begin to listen to me, I’m afraid,’ she revealed dully.

  ‘Rhea—’ He broke off as the doorbell rang, and the two of them frowned at each other.

  It was ten o’clock at night; who on earth could be calling at this time?

  ‘I’ll get it.’ Jordan stood up. ‘I told Henson we wouldn’t need him any more tonight,’ he explained before leaving the room.

  Rhea-Jane was glad of the respite which gave her the opportunity to gather her shattered emotions. Jordan wasn’t stupid, he could easily guess at all the things she hadn’t yet told him about her visit to Raff.

  She turned as she heard him enter the lounge again. ‘Jordan, I—’ The words froze in her throat as she saw the man standing at Jordan’s side.

  Raff …

  CHAPTER TEN

  RHEA-JANE, who had been home only a few minutes, couldn’t believe Raff was here now. He had to have left Quinlan House almost immediately after her to have got here so quickly.

  He was looking at her intently, a nerve pulsing in his cheek, his body filled with nervous energy.

  Nervous? Raff?

  She frowned her puzzlement at his behaviour. What was he doing here? Not two hours ago he had left her in no doubt as to how he felt about seeing her again.

  ‘I came to accept your offer,’ he finally said, his voice strained. ‘If it still stands,’ he added uncertainly.

  She shrugged. ‘I’m sure Jordan is still interested in—’

  ‘I’m not talking about the leisure complex,’ Raff cut in harshly. ‘A short time ago you told me you would have accepted my marriage proposal if I had let you give me an answer. I’ve come to accept your acceptance.’

  Jordan gave a brief laugh, shaking his head at the two of them. ‘I think I had better leave you two alone to talk; it all sounds a little complicated to me.’ He turned to leave.

  ‘Oh, but Jordan,’ Rhea-Jane stopped him, frowning. ‘Don’t you want to talk to Raff?’

  He glanced at the other man. ‘I believe it can wait. It’s already waited this long, a few more hours isn’t going to make a lot of difference. Besides,’ he added teasingly, ‘I think the two of you had better sort out this marriage proposal before either of you changes your mind again!’

  There was an awkward pause after Jordan had left the room, neither Raff nor Rhea-Jane seeming to know what to say to each other now they were alone.

  But Raff had followed her, after all!

  It had taken him a little longer than she would have wished, he had put her through fresh heartbreak, but he was here.

  ‘I want it clearly understood,’ Raff suddenly rasped, ‘that I won’t touch a penny of your money. You can do what you like with it, but I never want it said I married you for your money.’

  ‘Raff—’

  ‘Because I’m not marrying you for your money. In fact—’

  ‘Raff, the way things stand, at this moment in time I don’t have any money,’ she cut in firmly, relieved to see she at last had his full attention.

  ‘That’s why I needed a job, why I— Oh, God, it’s a long story,’ she frowned, and then proceeded to tell him of her father’s will and the conditions attached to it.

  ‘Damn fool,’ Raff muttered, hands thrust into his trouser-pockets.

  ‘Not really.’ She grimaced. ‘I was a headstrong little madam until I reached eighteen, which was when my father died.’

  Raff gave a wry smile. ‘Was a headstrong little madam?’ he taunted.

  Rhea-Jane returned his smile, a bubble of happiness starting to rise inside her. ‘If you think I’m bad now you should have known me three years ago!’

  ‘I would have liked to.’ He spoke gruffly. ‘Rhea, did you mean what you said earlier, about marrying me?’ He stood in front of her, his eyes dark with emotion.

  ‘I meant it,’ she nodded.

  His hands came up to cup each side of her face. ‘Will you do me the honour of marrying me?’

  ‘Oh, yes!’ She threw her arms up about his neck, feeling as if she had come home.

  They kissed with a thirst that seemed as if it might never be assuaged, over and over again, desire licking through their bodies, both of them trembling with need as they moved slightly apart.

  ‘I’ve missed you so much these last few days,’ Raff admitted gruffly.

  ‘I’ve hated it.’ Rhea-Jane shook her head at the unnecessary suffering they had both been through.

  ‘I just felt such a damned fool,’ Raff sighed, grimacing. ‘There was I telling this rich and powerful man that I wanted to marry you and he couldn’t have you, and you turned out to be his sister, and just as rich and powerful!’

  ‘But—’

  ‘I know you aren’t really like that, darling,’ he smiled down at her. ‘If you were, you would have told me several times in the last few weeks exactly what I could do with my job. I know you said you needed the job, but you didn’t need my insults too,’ he realised self-derisively as she would have protested. ‘Once I realised who you really were I—’

  ‘No more self-recriminations.’ Rhea-Jane’s fingertips on his lips stopped him. ‘We’re together now. And nothing else will drive us apart, will it?’ she added a little anxiously.

  His arms tightened about her. ‘I promise to try not to behave like a stubborn fool again,’ he derided himself.

  ‘And I promise— Oh, dear!’ She gave a sudden frown. ‘Now I don’t want you to be cross, but I—well, I’ve agreed to go to a party with Robert on Saturday evening.’ She smiled grimly.

  Raff’s brows rose. ‘In that case, I take it he knew all along exactly who you were?’

  ‘I’m afraid so, although I swore him to secrecy,’ she hastened to explain.

  Raff’s mouth quirked. ‘Then by all means keep your date with him on Saturday night; it will be a case of ‘‘your fianc$eA came too’’! It might be a good idea if Jordan accompanies us as well,’ he added thoughtfully.

  ‘Isn’t that being a little too cruel?’ Rhea-Jane protested laughingly. ‘One of you Robert might be able to cope with, two of you just wouldn’t be fair!’

  Raff shrugged. ‘The party he is taking you to is undoubtedly Anita and Jack’s anniversary bash; it will be the ideal time to announce our engagement and introduce you and Jordan to the rest of the family,’ he explained.

  ‘Your aunt isn’t going to be pleased,’ Rhea-Jane said soberly, remembering the other woman’s coldness towards her.

  ‘Anita’s opinion has never been of importance to me before, so I don’t see why I should change the habit of a lifetime,’ Raff dismissed.

  But none of them was quite prepared for Anita Barnes’s reaction when she discovered exactly who Rhea-Jane was!

  * * *

  Robert arrived exactly on time to pick her up for their date on Saturday evening, coming to an abrupt halt when she showed him through to the lounge and he came face to face with the other two men.

  Raff had more or less moved in over the last couple of days, most of their time having been spent together, Raff more relaxed now, the strain gone from his face, Rhea-Jane knowing that her own face glowed with happiness.

  The three men together were enough to take any woman’s breath away, all so tall and handsome, and very attractive in their dinner-suits and white shirts. Rhea-Jane felt privileged to be escorted by three such dashing men.

  Although Robert still wasn’t aware of the fact that she was going to be escorted by all three of them! Poor Robert.

  ‘Er—Jordan,’ he acknowledged abruptly. ‘Raff …’ he added in a puzzled voice.

  Raff glanced at the plain watch on his wrist. ‘I see you can be punctual
when a beautiful woman is involved,’ he drawled.

  ‘Do you want a drink first or shall we be on our way?’ Jordan offered politely, looking at them enquiringly.

  Robert’s eyes widened. ‘We? But—’

  ‘I don’t think it’s safe to let my fianc$eAe out alone with you,’ Raff told him lightly.

  ‘And just to make sure, I’m coming along too,’ Jordan explained mockingly.

  Raff and Jordan had become a formidable duo the last few days.

  From a business angle the partnership was moving along nicely, and, to Rhea-Jane’s surprise, on a personal level the two men were becoming the best of friends. Poor Robert didn’t stand a chance when they joined forces.

  ‘Fianc$eAe?’ Robert looked totally stunned by this piece of information. ‘But you didn’t say anything the other night when I—’

  ‘Oh, we weren’t engaged then,’ Raff informed him dismissively, his arm going gently about Rhea-Jane’s shoulders as he drew her to his side. ‘Rhea had already agreed to go out with you when she consented to be my wife. Of course, she didn’t want to let you down at such short notice,’ he continued, ‘but in the circumstances I don’t—’

  ‘Oh, I’ll be only too happy to have you accompany us,’ Robert assured him hastily, obviously reconciling himself to the situation, perhaps even coming to enjoy it a little; after all, there was his mother to tell the good news to yet! ‘You too, Jordan, of course,’ he added with largesse.

  By the time they reached the Barneses’ home Rhea-Jane could see Robert was clearly aware of all the possibilities the next few minutes could bring, and that he was greatly looking forward to the upset the announcement of Raff’s engagement to Rhea-Jane was going to cause the rest of the family.

  Robert had always known he would never be any more than a friend to Rhea-Jane himself, so she certainly hadn’t expected him to be upset on that count, and now he was over the first shock of realising she was going to be his cousin-in-law he was enjoying himself immensely.

  The driveway to the Barneses’ house was full of Mercedeses, BMWs, Jaguars, and there was even one majestic Rolls-Royce.

  ‘Just a few family friends,’ Robert teased as he parked his sporty car out on the road.

  ‘Now you know why I usually avoid these affairs,’ Raff muttered to Rhea-Jane as he opened the door for her to step out of the car beside him on the pavement.

  ‘Never mind—’ she put her arm through the crook of his, reaching up to kiss him lingeringly on the lips ‘—the next party you’ll have to go to is our wedding.’

  ‘Next month?’ he urged gruffly.

  They had talked over possible dates for the wedding, and as far as Rhea-Jane and Raff were concerned it could be tomorrow, but Jordan insisted Rhea-Jane should have a proper wedding, with the right amount of notice given to family and friends. He was also adamant that it should be a church wedding, and that he would give her away. Rhea-Jane had teased him about the latter, claiming he would probably force Raff to take her if he could!

  ‘As soon as it can be arranged,’ she promised.

  ‘Come on, you two,’ Robert urged them impatiently. ‘You’ll have time for all that later.’

  Rhea-Jane laughed softly as they followed him to the house. ‘You can hardly wait to make the announcement, can you?’ she taunted.

  He turned to grin at her. ‘No!’

  ‘He’s honest, anyway,’ Jordan drawled as he brought up the rear.

  Raff gave him a meaningful glance. ‘You haven’t met my aunt Anita yet,’ he warned.

  ‘I’m looking forward to it,’ Jordan muttered as the door was opened by a young girl of about sixteen who, with her cascade of dark hair, bore a distinct resemblance to Robert.

  ‘So am I,’ Raff murmured with amusement.

  Anita Barnes was at the centre of what Rhea-Jane could only describe as a ‘glittering’ crowd of people, the glitter mainly coming from the jewels the middle-aged women were adorned with.

  But as soon as Anita saw Robert she excused herself and crossed the room to greet him.

  The older woman looked almost pretty tonight, a happy glow to her austere features, an affectionate smile curving her lips as she reached up to kiss her only son. ‘Thank you for the beautiful flowers you sent, darling,’ she told him warmly. ‘Your father is about somewhere …’ She gave a dismissive gesture in the direction of the crowded sitting-room behind her.

  ‘I’ll see him in a minute,’ Robert nodded. ‘Right now, Mother, I’d like to—’

  ‘Raff!’ Anita had finally seen him standing slightly to one side behind Robert. ‘How lovely of you to come,’ she added in a rather puzzled voice, as if seeing him here was the last thing she had expected. As it probably was! ‘I had no idea you knew—’

  ‘Raff came with me, Mother,’ Robert cut in firmly, obviously slightly put out at having his announcement interrupted.

  ‘He did?’ Anita looked even more puzzled, knowing the two of them had never really been close.

  ‘And his fianc$eAe,’ Robert added softly.

  ‘His—?’ Some of the gaiety left Anita Barnes’s face, her eyes widening as she saw Rhea-Jane standing at Raff’s side. ‘But—but you’re—’

  ‘Rhea-Jane Somerville-Smythe,’ Robert told her with relish.

  ‘No …!’ his mother protested weakly, paling.

  ‘And this is her brother—’

  ‘Jordan,’ Anita finished faintly, what little colour had been left in her face after Rhea-Jane had been formally introduced fading rapidly as she looked disbelievingly at Jordan. ‘How—what—how did you find out? Did she leave you a letter or something like that? And after telling me no one would ever find out!’

  She turned accusingly to Rhea-Jane. ‘And how dare you sneak into the family home in that way? Jane Smith, indeed!’ she snorted. ‘And I even commented that weekend on how like Diana you were,’ she added self-disgustedly. ‘How you must have laughed at me. What did you do it for, that’s what I would like to know? There’s no money, you know.’ She gave a harsh laugh. ‘Good God, with the Somerville-Smythe millions why should you be interested in the little there is in the estate? You—’

  ‘Anita!’ Jack Barnes cut in forcefully, keeping a tight smile on his lips for the benefit of the audience to this conversation his wife’s outburst had aroused, and taking a firm hold of her arm. ‘Keep your voice down,’ he muttered. ‘If there’s some problem let’s all go into my study and discuss it.’

  ‘But—’

  ‘I think Jack is right, Anita,’ Raff put in harshly, his narrowed gaze on his aunt’s face.

  Rhea-Jane was still stunned by the vehemence of the attack, trembling slightly as Raff’s arm moved protectively about her waist. A little outrage on the other woman’s part, on account of her deceit, was to be expected, but this was something else!

  Jack Barnes’s study bore little resemblance to either Raff’s or Jordan’s, being meticulously tidy, decorated in blues and greys probably of his wife’s choosing.

  Anita waited only long enough for the door to be closed behind her before turning on, of all people, Jordan this time. ‘You have no claim on the family estate, you know,’ she scorned. ‘Not without running the risk of losing all that Somerville-Smythe left you. And—’

  ‘Anita!’ Raff’s quietly authoritative voice silenced the tirade. ‘Jordan is about to become my brother-in-law.’

  ‘The damned irony of it!’ his aunt scoffed disgustedly. ‘But then, I suppose for respectability’s sake it couldn’t have worked out better,’ she scorned, turning flashing eyes on Rhea-Jane. ‘I should have known you were her daughter. The likeness …’ She shook her head frustratedly. ‘You seem destined to make fools of the men in this family, no matter what the barriers might be!’

  Raff moved forward, a nerve pulsing in his cheek. ‘Anita, I want you to tell me what the hell you’re talking about.’

  Her gaze swept scathingly over Rhea-Jane and Jordan. ‘Why don’t you ask them?’

  His gaze did
n’t waver. ‘Because I’m asking you.’

  ‘The little fool was pregnant when she left Quinlan House,’ Anita announced distastefully. ‘Such an innocent, she got herself pregnant!’

  Raff stiffened at Rhea-Jane’s side. ‘Rhea-Jane is not pregnant,’ he said with certainty.

  ‘I’m not talking about her,’ Anita dismissed scathingly.

  ‘My mother,’ Jordan put in huskily. ‘She’s talking about my mother.’

  ‘You see, he knows what I’m talking about,’ Anita pounced triumphantly. ‘The little fool didn’t want to get rid of it, but by this time Donald’s responsibilities lay with Helen, seriously injured after a car accident, and so I offered to help Diana out.’

  ‘How?’ Raff demanded harshly.

  ‘Financially,’ his aunt snapped. ‘Until she could decide what she was going to do about the baby—’

  ‘She kept it,’ Jordan put in softly, looking as if he were made of stone, he stood so still.

  ‘She kept you, yes.’ Anita glared at him. ‘What do you want from us now?’ she demanded to know. ‘You have more now than you would ever have got with Donald as your father!’

  It was all so incredible.

  It couldn’t be true, could it, what Anita Barnes was undoubtedly saying?

  Jordan was Raff’s brother …?

  Because that was exactly what the other woman was saying.

  ‘They’ve made a fool of you, Raff,’ Anita told him scornfully. ‘Little Miss Smith here coming to live in Quinlan House pretending she needed a job, when all the time—’

  ‘Mrs Barnes,’ Jordan cut in coldly. ‘Fantastic as it might seem, Rhea is a complete innocent in all this.’

  ‘You don’t really expect me to believe that?’ Anita said scathingly.

  ‘I expect you to believe,’ Jordan’s voice was at its most dangerously soft, ‘that until a few minutes ago neither Rhea nor myself, nor indeed Raff—if his stunned expression is anything to go by—had any idea that Donald Quinlan was … my father.’ For all his hauteur, Jordan was obviously dazed by the knowledge, too.