‘Actually, so am I,’ she told him coldly. ‘Which is why you’ve never been invited into my bed.’
‘I would never ask to be!’
‘Good!’
She knew they must look and sound ridiculous as they glared mulishly at each other, but she also knew they were both too stubborn to back down. And despite his painful denial of desiring her she knew that Aaron did still want her; it was there in the heat of his emerald gaze, and the pulse throbbing in his jaw. If they weren’t both aware of Ian’s presence somewhere in the house they could have lain down on this cold stone floor and made love to each other right now! She was beginning to wonder why she had ever said no to this man.
‘I’d better go,’ she said jerkily, disturbed by her own thoughts. ‘Will you lock up or shall we?’
‘I’ll do it,’ he rasped, his jaw tight.
She nodded, walking away, tired suddenly, weary of answering this man’s accusations.
‘Charly…?’
She stiffened, looking at him with icy eyes. ‘My name is Mrs Allenby-Hart,’ she stated flatly. ‘Or Rocharlle if you prefer.’
His mouth firmed. ‘I wish I understood you,’ he muttered.
‘Maybe if you stopped thinking every man I’m with is a lover you might,’ she said heavily.
‘But there are so many of them,’ he shook his head.
‘All explainable.’
‘Matt?’
‘A friend.’
‘Shaw?’
‘Not even that.’
‘Anderson?’
‘My lawyer and friend.’
Aaron shook his head. ‘No woman has that many male friends.’
‘I do,’ she sighed. ‘But you obviously don’t believe that, so let’s end this conversation before you say anything I’ll regret hearing. I’m sure you wouldn’t regret saying it!’
‘Maybe I would,’ he muttered. ‘But it wouldn’t make it any less the truth.’
She gave him a pitying look before leaving him to join Ian, the other man taking one look at her face and wisely not saying another word until they were well on their way back to London.
‘So that was Aaron Grantley,’ he finally murmured.
She gave a choked laugh, still a little shaken by the unexpected encounter. ‘Yes.’
Ian glanced at her, the two of them having driven down in his car. ‘Does he always make snap judgments like that?’ he drawled knowingly.
She shrugged. ‘How would I know?’
‘I just thought you might.’
‘Well I don’t,’ she snapped.
‘Charly, if the man is bothering you—’
‘He isn’t,’ she dismissed tersely, knowing she lied. Aaron bothered her more than any other man she had ever known. But she was still afraid, so very afraid, of trusting her emotions again.
* * *
‘Does it make you feel safer, emotionally, if you buy a man’s affection?’
Charly recoiled from the accusation as Aaron forced himself into her apartment as soon as she opened the door. His words hit her like a physical blow.
He faced her angrily across the lounge. ‘Does it?’
She swallowed hard. ‘I don’t know what you mean.’
‘Then let me help you understand,’ Aaron scorned harshly. ‘Matt’s apartment.’
She looked more puzzled than ever. ‘What about it? You know why I was staying there.’ It was only yesterday she had had her last argument with him at Shevton House; she couldn’t imagine what she had done to merit this second attack.
His mouth twisted. ‘I also know now why that apartment was the obvious choice.’
She stiffened, her hands twisting together. ‘I told you—’
‘You’ve told me one load of garbage after another. You own this building, don’t you?’ he accused scathingly, very dark and attractive in faded denims and a thick black sweater, the sleeves of the latter pushed up to his elbows, his arms tanned and covered in fine hair.
Her head went back challengingly. ‘And what if I do? There’s no law that says I can’t own an apartment building!’ she snapped.
‘You can own as many apartment buildings as you damn well please,’ he bit out furiously. ‘It’s the men you keep in them that bothers me!’
‘What on earth do you mean?’ she demanded indignantly.
‘Matt lives in this apartment building.’
‘He occasionally sleeps here,’ she corrected haughtily. ‘He doesn’t live here. But there’s nothing wrong in that.’
‘No,’ he acknowledged scornfully. ‘If he legitimately rented the apartment there wouldn’t be.’
She swallowed hard, moistening suddenly dry lips. ‘Of course he rents the apartment. He—’
‘He pays no rent, Charly,’ Aaron put in softly, challengingly.
‘That’s nonsense—’
‘I checked,’ he slowly shook his head. ‘Only two people in the building don’t pay rent, you and Matt.’
‘That’s ridiculous,’ she blustered. ‘Of course he—’
‘Don’t lie to me, Charly.’ Steel edged his voice. ‘I may come over as an easygoing sort of guy.’ He ignored her snort of disbelief. ‘But I grew up in the tough streets of New York, and I grew tough with them.’ His eyes were cold. ‘But one thing I’ve always despised is liars. You’re a liar, Rocharlle Hart,’ he told her harshly. ‘Matt stays here when he can get out of going home free, gratis, for nothing—’
‘I do know the meaning of the words,’ she snapped resentfully, wishing she knew who had told him that piece of confidential information. But he would never tell her, and she knew she would never be able to find out any other way. ‘I just don’t happen to consider it any of your business how Matt lives here.’
Many a night after spending time with her as she sat at Stephanie’s bedside Matt had slept on a cot-bed a friend kept for him. It had been far from an ideal arrangement, and the strain often showed. She had moved into this apartment herself so that her home was near the hospital, rarely leaving Stephanie’s side, but when she did not wanting to be away too long. An apartment on a lower floor had become vacant and she had offered it to Matt. Of course he had refused it, but when she had pointed out that he could let other colleagues in the same position use it he had reluctantly agreed to accept the use of it. But neither of them had ever thought their motives would be so misunderstood!
‘I’m making it my business,’ Aaron rasped. ‘Molly won’t be fooled for ever, you know. She believes that several of the doctors got together to pay for the rent on this place. It would break her up if she knew Matt was no more than a bought and paid for lover!’
Charly shook her head. ‘You don’t know what you’re talking about.’
‘Believe me, I know,’ he bit out disgustedly. ‘So answer my question, do you feel safer if you buy affection?’
‘Get out of here!’ she gasped. ‘And take your filthy thoughts with you!’
‘Can’t you face the truth of what you’re doing? Or have you always been like this?’ he frowned. ‘Did you buy yourself a husband too?’
‘No!’
‘I think you did.’ His eyes glittered. ‘You dangled your father’s partnership with Hart’s father in front of his nose to get him to marry you.’
‘You have it all wrong—as usual,’ she told him shakily.
‘The man was years older than you—’
‘Then he was also more experienced,’ she pointed out heatedly. ‘Do you honestly think an eighteen-year-old could seduce an experienced man of twenty-eight?’
‘You could!’
‘Thank you for your confidence,’ she said wearily. ‘But you have that the wrong way around. My husband was constantly unfaithful—’
‘I know all about Hart’s affairs.’
She sighed. ‘You’ve been doing your homework.’
Aaron’s mouth twisted. ‘I’ve always believed in knowing all that I could about my adversaries.’
She frowned. ‘We aren’t enemies.’<
br />
‘Oh yes, we are,’ he nodded hardly. ‘Because you’re so damned beautiful I lost sight of my reason for knowing you at all for a while,’ he rasped. ‘But it’s all clear to me now.’
‘I wish it were to me,’ she said wearily.
‘It will be,’ his voice was softly threatening. ‘You may be discreet in your affairs, but once you look deeper than the surface beauty it becomes obvious just how many men you know. It was probably the reason your husband turned to other women.’
‘Now listen here—’
‘To more lies?’ he scorned. ‘The rumour is that your husband and daughter were leaving you at the time of the accident; as you were obviously unfit to be any child’s mother he should have done it years before!’
Dry sobs wracked her body as she struck out at him blindly, pounding at him with her fists, unaware of the time the tears began to cascade down her cheeks, just hitting him over and over again, calling him every foul name James had ever called her, and a few more that he hadn’t.
‘Charly, for God’s sake!’ Aaron sounded exasperated as he warded off her hands, clasping her wrists as she didn’t stop striking out at him. ‘You’re damned hysterical,’ he rasped.
‘I always get this way when I’m accused of being an unfit mother!’ She was breathing heavily, hatred for him in her eyes. How dare he say she was unfit to be Stephanie’s mother when she had suffered numerous humiliations just to stay close to her daughter?
‘Do you deny that your husband was taking your daughter from you when they crashed?’
‘I’m not denying or admitting anything to you,’ she told him icily. ‘Get out of my home and never come back.’
Uncertainty flickered in his eyes. ‘Charly—’
‘Get out,’ she said again flatly.
‘Maybe if we talked—’
‘I have nothing to say to you.’ She turned her back on him, willing him to leave before she broke down completely, the trembling beginning as soon as she heard the door close behind him.
She moved blindly across the room to the telephone, dialling before she had time to think. ‘Ian?’ She sighed her relief as he answered on the third ring. ‘I know it’s late—Yes, I’m fine,’ she lied, her whole body shaking in reaction now. ‘I hope I haven’t disturbed you? Good,’ she nodded as he assured her she hadn’t, ‘Ian, I want the Shevton House deal sewn up by the weekend. I don’t care what you have to pay to get it but I want it to be mine by Friday afternoon at the latest.’
She stared sightlessly at the wall after the call had ended. The house would be hers, she would give it to Matt after he had spoken to Molly over the weekend—and then she never wanted to see Aaron Grantley again!
CHAPTER EIGHT
‘AND this is where I keep the tea and coffee.’ Molly closed the last cupboard in the kitchen. ‘I think I’ve shown you where everything is.’ She looked around the room frowningly.
‘Including the sink,’ Charly teased, being given a conducted tour before the other couple left on their weekend away.
Aaron was in the lounge with Matt, and Charly had been studiously avoiding any verbal or physical contact with him since he had arrived shortly after her an hour ago, their original plan to drive down together ignored by her; she couldn’t have stood to be alone with him all that time! She had also ignored his numerous calls to her office the last week, not interested if he wanted to apologise, and not wanting to listen if he just wanted to throw out more accusations. He had refrained from coming to see her in person.
‘Yes, well—’ Molly looked embarrassed. ‘I’ve never been away like this before.’
‘You’ll enjoy it,’ she assured the other woman. ‘I know it’s no good me telling you not to worry about the children,’ she had already spent a pleasurable hour with the two youngsters, ‘because you will anyway,’ she gently chided. ‘But I can assure you they will be fine with me.’
‘Are you and Aaron okay?’ Molly frowned her concern.
‘Of course.’ She feigned surprise at the question.
‘You both seem a little—distant.’ Molly still looked worried.
Charly smiled reassuringly. ‘We’ve both had a difficult week,’ she understated, having had trouble getting through the latter part of hers. Although Aaron didn’t seem to have had the same trouble, had looked just as relaxed and confident as usual when he arrived. ‘Don’t worry, we’ll soon relax,’ she told the other woman.
‘Matt and I can always go away for this weekend some other time if you and Aaron need to—’
‘Molly, will you stop worrying and take that gorgeous husband of yours away from here,’ she teased.
Molly wrinkled her nose. ‘I’ve got to the stage where I don’t want to go.’
‘I know,’ Charly acknowledged gently. ‘But by this time tomorrow you’ll wonder what all the fuss was about.’
‘You think so?’ Molly didn’t look convinced.
‘I know so.’ She firmly turned the other woman and pushed her out of the room in the direction of the lounge. ‘Matt, take this wife of yours away for a romantic weekend before she decides she would rather stay here and change nappies.’
‘Well, when you put it like that…’ Molly giggled, her arm about Matt’s waist as he cuddled her to his side. ‘I can’t tell you how grateful we are to you.’ She sobered. ‘Maybe we can do the same for you one day?’
Charly’s laugh was forced as she avoided looking at Aaron. ‘Maybe,’ she said non-committally.
She cuddled Tommy, and Aaron held Lucy aloft on his shoulders as they walked out to the car with the other couple.
‘Now Tommy’s spare nappies are in his cupboard upstairs, and if Lucy—’
‘Molly, will you get in the car and just go,’ Aaron drawled. ‘Charly and I will cope.’
‘Oh all right.’ Molly glared at him as she got in the car and wound down the window. ‘I’m only behaving like a mother, aren’t I, Charly?’
‘Yes.’ She smiled to take the sharpness out of her reply, aware of green eyes on her. ‘But I can assure you Tommy won’t run around without a nappy, and Lucy won’t go hungry.’
‘She’s such a finicky eater—’
‘Molly, close the window and let’s go.’ Matt was ruefully impatient. ‘Women!’ he added indulgently.
‘I’m only concerned—’
‘Mummy, as soon as you’ve gone Aunt Charly is going to give us a bath,’ Lucy told her mother primly.
Molly spluttered with laughter. ‘Well that puts everything into perspective.’ She kissed her daughter as Aaron held her up in front of the car window. ‘Have a nice time, darling,’ she choked before giving Tommy his kiss, waving at them out of the back window until the car disappeared out of sight.
‘Okay,’ Charly said briskly, seeing that now that their parents had actually gone the children weren’t altogether sure they liked the idea, Tommy’s bottom lip trembling precariously. ‘Last one undressed and into the bath gets a sweet.’ She took hold of Lucy’s hand as Aaron put her down on the ground, running into the house and up the stairs to the bathroom with Tommy in her arms.
‘You said the last one,’ Lucy finally realised as she jumped naked into the warm water.
Charly laughed. ‘So I did,’ she teased.
‘Then I must be the winner,’ Aaron watched them from the open doorway as Tommy was gently placed in the bubble-topped water opposite his sister. He strolled further into the room. ‘Do I get the sweet, Aunt Charly?’
She concentrated on washing the children. ‘We all get one sweet after the bath,’ she said flatly.
Lucy squinted up at him as Charly washed her silky hair. ‘Are you really coming in the bath with us, Uncle Aaron?’
‘Not this time,’ he smiled. ‘I might embarrass Aunt Charly.’
‘Mummy and Daddy often get in the bath together,’ the little girl told them candidly.
‘Do they indeed?’ Aaron said with mock seriousness, while Charly did her best to hold back a smile.
‘
They often get in with us too,’ Lucy said with all the intensity of a five-year-old.
‘How about it, Charly?’ He quirked dark brows at her.
‘No, thank you,’ she refused primly, hearing how pompous she sounded but unable to do anything about it. She was going to find it difficult just being polite to Aaron this weekend, but she had been determined not to let Molly and Matt down. ‘I bathed earlier,’ she added stiltedly.
‘Need any help here?’ Aaron offered gently, seeming to sympathise with her awkwardness.
‘No, thank you,’ she refused again, still not looking at him.
‘Then I’ll go and see about getting dinner started.’
She turned sharply. ‘I can get it!’
Green eyes held her gaze steadily, refusing to let her look away now that she had finally looked at him. ‘We’re in this together, Charly,’ he told her softly. ‘I wouldn’t dream of letting you do all the work.’
‘Don’t you think I’m capable?’ She couldn’t help the sharpness of her tone, but luckily the children seemed too engrossed in the toys they had floating about on top of the water to take any notice of the adults’ exchange.
‘Charly—’
She turned away from the regret in his eyes. ‘Molly left the food for dinner out in the kitchen. The steaks are ours,’ she added dryly.
‘With Tommy only having six teeth I would never have guessed,’ Aaron derided.
She sighed. ‘I’m sorry.’
‘So am I. Charly, about the other night—’
She turned furious eyes on him. ‘This is hardly the time or place to discuss it!’
‘No,’ he conceded heavily as Lucy looked up curiously. ‘Later, then?’
‘I don’t think so.’ She got Tommy out of the water, making him giggle as she dried him, ignoring the broodingly silent man across the room, aware of the exact moment he turned impatiently and went downstairs.
Whether it was the novelty of having Aaron and Charly in the house that made Lucy eat Charly didn’t know, but the little girl ate quite a good meal. Aaron volunteered to put Tommy to bed while she took Lucy up, and although she offered to do it he insisted. Somehow the little joke she had intended playing on him concerning the baby no longer seemed appropriate and after settling Lucy down for the night, her well-worn teddy bear cuddled up against her, she went along the corridor to Tommy’s bedroom. Surprisingly all was quiet inside.
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