Their eyes met across the table and Keira held his gaze.
‘My husband’s dead, Mr Cassidy,’ she said evenly. ‘I’ve been a widow for three years. So,’ she continued when he made no immediate comment, ‘I suppose that makes my association with Daniel even more suspect. I mean, on past accusations I’d say you’d be the first to imply a frustrated widow on her own would have to be on the loose. Let’s all lock up our sons.’
What he would have said in his defence, if he’d elected to defend himself, that was, Keira would never know for Daniel chose that moment to rejoin them.
‘Burton’s taken Megan a tray. She’s waiting for a return call. Have you finished your lunch, Keira?’ he asked, and she nodded unsmilingly.
Daniel’s gaze went from Keira to his uncle and back to Keira. He had to feel the tension that Keira knew arced between them, the incendiary vibrations that filled the air.
‘OK. What say we walk off all this food?’
‘Fine by me,’ Keira agreed. Anything to get away from Eden Cassidy.
‘Great. Let me just make the rest of this into a sandwich and we can be off.’
‘Mrs Strong may prefer to ride,’ his uncle suggested easily, and Daniel turned to Keira.
‘Would you? I can have a couple of horses saddled in no time.’
‘No, thanks, Daniel.’ Keira stood up. She hadn’t been on a horse since she was a child and didn’t fancy putting her rusty skills to the test today. She could just see herself falling off. With her luck it would probably be at Eden Cassidy’s feet. ‘I’d prefer a walk.’
‘Fine. Let’s go, then.’ Daniel took her arm and headed her down the steps past the glistening turquoise water of the swimming-pool.
And until they disappeared from sight she felt the piercing burn of Eden Cassidy’s blue eyes running shivers down her spine.
Glancing ruefully at the deep marble spa bath and the vials of bath salts, Keira slipped out of her robe and under the shower. What she wouldn’t give for a leisurely soak in the tub, but she knew she wouldn’t have time for that luxury.
Letting the water play over her body, she wished this evening well and truly over. If she could only snap her fingers and find herself safely in her office immersed in her work on mid-Monday morning, with this deplorable situation behind her.
To think that Daniel’s uncle could even imagine she could be involved with his nephew. It was ludicrous. But, she had to acknowledge, had she been the male and Daniel a young niece then the worst would have been conceded.
Sugar mummy? Keira bit off a giggle and then quickly sobered. The circumstances weren’t funny at all. Now there was the party to get through, in the presence of the arrogant and insufferable Eden Cassidy.
During their long walk this afternoon Daniel had admitted his grandfather’s party was going to be a rather large but very exclusive affair. Some four hundred guests were expected.
Keira stepped from the shower and wrapped the soft, warm bath-sheet around her. Well, in such a crowd, surely she could make herself invisible to Eden Cassidy. He’d be far too involved in circulating between his and Sir Samuel’s family and friends to have time to seek her out to accuse her of further misdemeanours.
With some satisfaction she recalled the expression on his face when she’d informed him she was a widow. For one fleeting second she could have sworn he had been genuinely disconcerted. She arched her eyebrows at the mirror. Even if her statement had been only technically true.
She was a widow. But Dennis had been killed in a road accident just a week before their divorce became final.
Keira sighed and hung the bath-sheet on the heated gold towel rail. While she had the chance she should be enjoying such opulence where even the bath-towels made you feel pampered.
The carpet was soft beneath her feet as she walked through to the bedroom and slipped into her underwear. She glanced at the dress she’d chosen and grimaced slightly. Her one extravagance and it had stood her in good stead on the few occasions she’d had the opportunity to wear it.
The soft silky material slid over her shoulders and settled like a second skin. Keira nervously adjusted the bodice, checking the neckline. It was by no means plunging but it was lower than she usually wore, just hinting at the swell of firm, full breasts beneath.
She turned slightly to check the back of the dress that displayed even more smooth skin. There was no doubt that it suited her, she acknowledged. The steely grey colour lent her skin a creamy glow, accentuated the smoky grey of her eyes.
As usual she used little make-up, a touch of blue-grey eye-shadow, mascara on her lashes, lip gloss on her mouth. A fine gold locket which had belonged to her aunt clipped around her neck and nestled just above the beginning of the valley between her breasts. Then she brushed out her hair, tonight letting it fall to her shoulders in its natural waves instead of confining it in its usual chignon.
Slipping on her high-heeled shoes, she gave herself one final appraising look in the full-length mirror before telling herself she was as ready as she would ever be. And pray that she could elude the accusing and suspicious Eden Cassidy.
The ballroom of the palatial Cassidy mansion easily accommodated the four hundred guests Daniel had told Keira would be here to celebrate Sir Samuel Ford’s eightieth birthday.
The old man himself was holding court at the other end of the room when Keira entered the wide doorway on Daniel’s arm. Interested eyes turned as they paused on the top of the short flight of stairs leading down into the magnificent ballroom.
And Keira could imagine just what they might be thinking. That she was romantically involved with Sir Samuel’s grandson and heir. His uncle wouldn’t be the only one harbouring misconceptions. Her face flushed and she lowered her eyes nervously. Damn Daniel for talking her into this.
When she looked up her eyes went of their own accord to meet the cold gaze of Daniel’s uncle. And the rest of the gathered guests simply faded into the shadowy background. Something fluttered into life in the pit of her stomach and her knees went decidedly weak. She was suddenly hot, and when Daniel spoke beside her she found her spinning mind couldn’t compute his words.
The message that came through loudly and clearly was all purely physical. And it involved only Eden Cassidy.
Oh, no! Keira bit back a moan. This was absurd. She couldn’t be attracted to such a man.
‘Keira!’ Daniel squeezed her arm and she broke the hold those implacable eyes had on her and turned her unfocused gaze on the younger man. ‘Keira?’ Daniel frowned slightly, leaning closer to her, seemingly oblivious of the speculative glances cast their way. ‘Are you all right?’
‘I’m fine,’ Keira hastened to assure him as she put more space between them.
He gave her one questioning glance before repeating his words. ‘Come and I’ll introduce you to Sam.’
Meeting Daniel’s grandfather would be bad enough, but out of the corner of her eye she saw that Eden Cassidy had moved to join Sir Samuel Ford. If she went with Daniel now there’d be no escaping him.
Why had she…? She straightened her backbone. She only had herself to blame for getting herself into this situation so she might as well make the most of it. And that included Eden Cassidy. Her nerve-endings began to beat a wild tattoo and with no little effort she pulled herself together.
‘Ready?’ Daniel queried.
‘Why not?’ she said softly, and something in her tone brought a smile to Daniel’s face.
Then he was moving them purposefully through the crowd towards the guest of honour.
‘You know, just at this moment I could almost wish I were ten years older,’ Daniel said out of the corner of his mouth as he noticed a contemporary of his grandfather’s running his eyes over Keira as they passed.