Nor did there appear to be an answer to the fact that the taxi rank was empty.
‘Damn, damn, damn!’
‘I’ll take that,’ an all-too-familiar voice spoke from behind her, and a strong hand came to rest over hers on the handle of her case.
Maxi very nearly jumped out of her skin as she found herself staring up into an inimical face. ‘Kerr?’ Her voice shook with shock, a fact he registered with grim satisfaction.
‘The car’s over here,’ he went on, taking the case easily from her slackened grasp, and striding off so that she had to very nearly trot to keep up with him.
‘What are you doing here?’
‘Going out of my way to give you a lift,’ he supplied caustically, opening the boot, and would have tossed her case inside had she not made a grab for it.
She had got over the first shock of seeing him, and although her heart had leapt crazily at the sight of him it only served to warn her she was wise to keep her distance. ‘I don’t want a lift, as you would have found out if you read my note.’
‘I read it,’ he said shortly, and, with ridiculous ease, retook the case, shutting it in the boot before pointedly opening the passenger side door. ‘Get in.’
She stood her ground. She might be foolish enough to still love him, but she didn’t have to obey his every command! ‘I’m taking a taxi.’
He looked far from impressed. ‘You have two choices, Maxi. Either we discuss this in private or we have a stand-up fight in the street for everyone to see. Frankly, after the morning I’ve had, I’m in the mood for either.’
Glancing around, she discovered they had already attracted a deal of attention. If she didn’t want to cause a great deal more, then she had better take the course of least resistance. Without another word, but sending him a look which spoke volumes, she took her seat. Silently he climbed in beside her, and just as silently started the car and put it in motion, although his movements revealed that he was furiously angry.
Maxi, aware now of just how vulnerable she was, didn’t mind at all. There was safety in anger, less chance of her betraying herself. Besides, a small honest voice whispered in her ear, she rather liked fighting with him. There were times when it was quite exhilarating. At least she had his undivided attention, and sometimes she even won.
She allowed another mile to speed by before saying coolly, ‘I can’t imagine why you’re angry, but you’d better say something before you explode.’
His answer was to glance quickly into the rear-view mirror before steering the car off the road on to the verge. ‘I’m angry because you’re bloody infuriating. Instead of taking the usual route home, I’ve had to trek across half Dorset to fetch you,’ he thundered.
Far from quailing, Maxi raised her eyebrows. ‘Nobody asked you to. You could have stayed and gone to work instead of charging off after me.’
Releasing his belt, Kerr turned threateningly in his seat. ‘Had you bothered to ask me, I would have told you I wasn’t going to work—that I have a few days’ leave owing, which I’m taking this week to put my house into some kind of order.’
Which left her with nothing to say, save a very inadequate, ‘Oh.’
‘Oh, indeed,’ he drawled, visibly relaxing. Making himself comfortable against his door, he tipped his head curiously. ‘So, care to tell me just why you were running away?’
Maxi’s lips parted on a sharp intake of breath. ‘You are the most conceited man I’ve ever met! I wasn’t running away,’ she denied, preferring to describe it to herself as a tactical retreat—neither of which she would admit to aloud. ‘I decided to make my own way home because I didn’t want to bother you,’ she expanded, and Kerr laughed self-mockingly.
‘You bother me all the time,’ he declared, making her blink in surprise. ‘Your very presence anywhere on this planet bothers me.’
And he didn’t like it one little bit, that was obvious. ‘Sorry, but I’m not about to “shuffle off this mortal coil” any quicker than I have to. Not for you or anyone else,’ she riposted tartly.
This time his smile was genuine, but there was a brooding look in his eye as he reached out to turn her towards him with surprisingly gentle fingers under her chin. ‘Why is it I get the feeling the world would be a duller place if you did? You anger me quicker than anyone else I know, so that when I’m with you I either want to throttle you or kiss you!’
Her eyes were drawn to his as if by a powerful magnet. She knew she was getting way out of her depth, but a powerful force was urging her on. ‘Is that what you want to do now, throttle me?’ she asked dangerously.
Tantalisingly, his thumb began to caress her bottom lip. Somewhere at the back of his eyes a flame flickered as he laughed huskily. ‘Guess again,’ he invited, in that dangerous tone which set her heart fluttering in her chest, and brought his lips crushing down on hers.
It was madness, but she craved his kiss as a thirsting person craved water. Unable to move because of her belt, she wouldn’t have tried anyway because behind that heated exchange she recognised an emotion bordering on desperation. She knew he didn’t want to feel this, but couldn’t help himself. She knew that emotion so well. Therefore, she could no more deny him her lips than stop breathing, and, in giving, received. What began as a fierce assault melted into a slow, erotic exploration of the honeyed sweetness of her mouth as she opened to his insistent tongue. Her hand came up to tangle in his hair, holding him to her when his lips left hers to plunder the tender cord of her neck. It was so beautiful. So hopeless.
‘Damn you, Maxi,’ he muttered raggedly against her scented flesh. ‘How can you keep saying no, when everything in you cries out yes? You go up in flames in my arms!’ Kerr pulled her head back, and she found herself looking up into eyes that were like storm-tossed seas.
Her neck ached, but not nearly as much as her heart. ‘Because you despise me. Because you hate yourself for wanting me. Because I know that if I give in to you I’ll end up feeling as cheap as you think I am, and I’ll hate myself.’
His face closed up angrily. ‘Even if I say I’ll still respect you in the morning?’ he taunted, and she drew in a sharp breath.
‘While you can still say those kind of things to me, Kerr, the answer will always be no,’ she said as evenly as she could.
‘You expect me to believe that, when every time I touch you I know damn well I could change your mind?’ he insisted.
She paled at that truth. He could do it so easily, but at what cost to them both? ‘Only by force. The force you said you wouldn’t use,’ she reminded him. ‘Or are you saying you’ve changed your mind? That you’re quite prepared to rape me? Because it will have to be that, Kerr. I’ll never come to you willingly.’
Kerr went quite still. ‘No, damn you, it won’t be rape. I’ve never in my life forced a woman, and I don’t intend to start with you.’
His hands dropped away, and Maxi sank weakly back into her seat. ‘I’m glad to hear it.’
‘And I’ll be glad to hear exactly what it is you are holding out for. Marriage?’
‘What?’ Dear God, hadn’t anything she’d said got through? ‘I ought to take you up on that, just to make you suffer, Kerr Devereaux! As it is, I wouldn’t marry you if you were the only man left on earth!’ she exclaimed, feeling the tension in her head turn to an ache, an ache that was echoed in her heart. ‘Can we please go now?’
With angry movements Kerr fastened his belt and started the engine, but didn’t engage a gear. ‘This is far from over,’ he warned tersely, and, with less than his usual smoothness, set them on their way again.
Maxi didn’t bother to answer. Battling his dislike and anger was bad enough, without having to fight her own response to him. She felt bruised and battered, and longed to get home, but they still had a twenty-minute ride ahead of them before they reached the village. It felt more like an hour when eventually the spire of the church came into view.
Relieved that they would be home soon, and praying that Fliss would not be anywh
ere in sight, thus eliminating any need for pretence, Maxi let her gaze drift to the busy main street. As she did so, a male figure emerged from the newsagent’s. For a moment, as the car swept past, she couldn’t think why it seemed so familiar. Then it hit her, and with a gasp she turned in her seat to get another look. But already the man had disappeared from view. Heart thumping anxiously, she slumped back into her seat.
Kerr spared her a glance, then another when he caught sight of her pale face. ‘What is it? What did you see?’
She bit her lip hard. ‘It’s crazy, but I could have sworn I just saw Colin,’ she answered, before she could think better of it.
‘Ellis?’ Kerr’s voice reverberated with dislike. ‘What would he be doing here?’
Maxi curled her hands into fists and told herself to be sensible. ‘I don’t know,’ she said, more to herself than to Kerr. As the first shock began to fade, logic returned. ‘It couldn’t have been him, not here.’ A fact that brought a shiver of relief, because Colin was the very last person she wanted to see, ever again.
‘I’d like to think you’re right, but we can’t be sure,’ Kerr pointed out grimly.
Maxi was breathing easier now. ‘I can. Colin isn’t in this country,’ she declared with absolute confidence.
‘I thought you said you haven’t seen him?’ Kerr’s voice was heavy with suspicion, and she realised she had revealed more than she intended.
‘I told you the truth, but that doesn’t mean I don’t know where he is. Colin isn’t in England. Take my word for it,’ she advised hardly.
‘I might, if I knew how you can be so certain,’ Kerr demurred.
Unseen, Maxi pulled a wry face. She could be certain because the last time she had seen Colin he had been about to begin a long prison sentence—thanks almost entirely to her. But that was another story.
‘Let’s just say I know him better than you do, and leave it at that,’ she evaded neatly, and was saved further cross-questioning when they turned into the drive a few seconds later.
No sooner had the car drawn to a halt before the house than her mother was on the top step waiting for them.
‘Darling, you look so tired!’ she exclaimed as Maxi mounted the steps, and swept her daughter into a fond embrace. ‘Was it terribly bad, dear?’
‘Bad enough,’ Kerr interjected, bringing up the rear with Maxi’s case. ‘Whoever it was had had a good go at trashing the place, but nothing was actually missing. The police think it looks more like a personal attack.’
‘Good gracious!’ Lady Ambro looked justifiably horrified. ‘What are they doing about it?’
‘Checking into Maxi’s hate mail,’ he replied, shepherding them inside, setting the case down by the door.
‘Hate mail? Oh, Maxine, you never should have got into such a dangerous profession!’ her mother declared protectively. ‘I can’t bear to think of you living all alone in the city.’
To have her own thoughts spoken aloud didn’t increase Maxi’s confidence. Nevertheless, she smiled. ‘It’s all right, really. Nothing like this has ever happened before. I’m sure the police will soon get whoever did it. It will probably turn out to be just a crank.’
Her mother looked doubtful. ‘If you say so, dear, but I don’t mind admitting I won’t feel comfortable until they get him. Come into the lounge. Mrs Toomey has just made tea. You must be dying for a cup. Will you join us, Kerr?’
He gave her a smile. ‘I’d love to, thanks, Bernice.’
‘Then would you mind going to the library and reminding John about the tea? Or it will get cold.’
Maxi followed her mother as Kerr walked off. Collapsing into a corner of the nearest couch, she accepted her cup gratefully.
‘It was very good of Kerr to go with you like that, wasn’t it? Although it’s exactly the kind of thing he would do,’ Lady Ambro declared, and Maxi looked up with a wry smile. She knew the signs which told her her mother was intent on matchmaking, but how could she blame her when they had given her cause to think the match was possible?
‘Yes, he can be kind,’ she agreed with a heavy sigh.
Her mother looked at her intently. ‘What’s the matter, dear?’ she asked gently. ‘I thought you liked Kerr?’
Maxi kept her eyes rigidly on the slowly swirling tea. Like was such an insipid word for what she felt. ‘I do, but...’
Reaching out a hand, Lady Ambro gave her daughter’s free hand a squeeze. ‘But you think Colin will always come between you? Well, darling, that might well be so if you don’t tell him the truth. You’ll be doing him an injustice if you think he won’t understand.’
If only it was that simple. Kerr might well understand, but it still wouldn’t make him feel anything more for her than a reluctant passion. She had been through too much to settle for half-measures. If she had to make a commitment, then it would be all or nothing. She couldn’t give less, and wouldn’t accept less. However, it was far too complicated a problem to discuss over tea, so she merely said,
‘I’m just waiting for the right time.’
‘Well, don’t wait too long, dear. Kerr is a very eligible man. Someone else might come along and snap him up right under your nose!’ her mother chided, then was distracted by the sound of approaching feet. ‘Ah, here they are at last,’ she declared.
Only it wasn’t just the two men who appeared in the doorway. Fliss and Andy were with them—a much more relaxed Fliss than the woman Maxi had encountered over the weekend. Although still a little reserved, she sympathised over the burglary. That began a general discussion, and Maxi was both amused and warmed by the proposals put forward for her safety.
Eventually a lull fell, and into it Kerr said, ‘Maxi and I thought we’d take you two out for dinner tonight.’
Maxi wasn’t the only one who looked up in surprise. It was going a bit further than Fliss was ready for, but even as she opened her mouth to protest their mother was ahead of her.
‘What a lovely idea. You young people should go out on your own.’
Her youngest daughter’s smile waved considerably. ‘Of course, but I should think Maxi feels far too tired after the last twenty-four hours.’
Maxi would have been quite happy to accept the let-out, but Kerr had other ideas. ‘Nonsense. She needs cheering up. A good meal in pleasant company will be just what the doctor ordered, eh, Andy?’
‘Oh, absolutely,’ his brother agreed, laughing, and there was nothing either woman could do except accept gracefully.
Later, when everyone had dispersed, Maxi met Kerr in the hall. He was just in the act of putting the phone down. ‘Breaking a date?’ she taunted, and he sent her a wolfish smile.
‘Now is that likely, when I have eyes only for you?’ he retorted ironically, and she rolled her own eyes.
‘Where you’re concerned, anything is likely. That was a very clever move you made earlier.’ He had very neatly linked them as a pair.
‘I thought so. It was too good an opportunity to miss, and the strategy seems to be working,’ Kerr agreed, crossing to where she stood by the stairs.
‘Good. That means this farce will soon be over.’
Sliding his hands into the pockets of his jeans, he shook his head, eyes gleaming. ‘You know you don’t really mean that, darling,’ he argued in a tone designed to set her nerves tingling.
His closeness was a threat her survival instinct said she should back off from, but she resisted. ‘I do mean it.’
Again he shook his head. ‘No, you don’t, because you’ll no longer have Fliss for an excuse to go out with me. You’ll have to stop kidding yourself then.’
Maxi uttered a disbelieving laugh. ‘I’m not kidding anyone, least of all myself. When this is over, I’ll be only too relieved to have to see very little of you. Christmas and Easter will be quite sufficient.’
Kerr sobered, expression assured. ‘It will never be enough.’
Loving him as she did, she already knew that, but to admit it was a folly she wouldn’t commit. ‘Are you sure yo
u aren’t referring to yourself?’ she countered tersely. ‘You keep talking about me, what I want, or what I need. I think you should put your own house in order before you start on mine! Now excuse me, I intend to go and have a rest before embarking on this marvellous evening you’ve planned for us all!’
His voice followed her upstairs. ‘You can keep running, Maxi, but every time you look over your shoulder I’ll be there, waiting.’
* * *
The dinner at Lyme Regis had been a surprise success, Maxi decided hours later, as she strolled slowly along the Cobb. The breeze off the sea made her shiver again. Tonight she had chosen to wear black trousers with a white sleeveless silk blouse, neither of which were designed for a chilly night. Glancing up at the still starlit sky, she wondered if the weather might be on the change. Then she glanced over her shoulder to see if Kerr was coming. The four of them had been going for a walk when he had been called back to take a telephone call at the restaurant. The manager had sent one of the waiters after them because the caller had said it was urgent. He had told them to go on and he’d join them, but that had been almost ten minutes ago.
Kerr was nowhere in sight, but she waved to Fliss and Andy who had declined the longer walk in favour of a sheltered seat, and carried on. She was almost at the end now, and it seemed a shame not to go on. She’d take a quick look, and if Kerr still wasn’t back they’d have to go and find him.
A little ahead of her, a lone male figure came up the steps from the lower level and stood directly in her path, staring out to sea. As she hesitated, wondering whether it might not be better to turn back, the man suddenly turned to face her. Her gasp of shock died under the wash of the waves, and she stood as if turned to stone. Even in the darkness, it was possible to see her ex-husband smile.
‘Nice night for a stroll,’ Colin Ellis observed in a voice she had hoped she’d forgotten, as if the last seven years had never happened.
Though she knew the wisest course of action was to turn and walk away, her feet appeared rooted, and wouldn’t obey. His reappearance had shocked her, just as he had doubtless intended. All she could think of was that he shouldn’t be here. He should be in prison, not here, facing her on this lonely strip of stone.
An Old Enchantment (Harlequin Treasury 1990's) Page 13