Page 10 of Summer of Fire
She jerked her head up and smiled. There was no need to be rude.
‘Mr King,’ she said. ‘What a pleasant surprise.’
‘That’s kind of you to say. I was afraid I might have been too hard on you yesterday.’
Lizzie couldn’t quite bring herself to acknowledge his feeble understatement, but she was dying to know what he wanted. ‘May I help you with something?’
‘I was hoping you might. Can we go somewhere private to talk?’ he said, his voice lower but still warm.
Lizzie looked around, confused, because they were alone in the room.
‘Better to be cautious,’ he said, and she had to lean in to catch his words.
‘I daresay I can take a few minutes' break.’ She stood and followed him as he turned to leave the room. ‘I’d better let someone know.’
Jack said, ‘Don’t worry about that. Drake knows I’m here to see you. Shall we take a quick walk?’
He led the way down the winding back staircase, the walls lined with impressive oil portraits of key historical figures from British history. Lizzie’s heart thrashed about like a wild creature.
Was she in trouble for being rude to him yesterday? That was another reason she’d struggled to sleep the previous night. Ordinarily, she fell asleep when her head hit the pillow, but the meeting with Jack King had riled her up. The more she thought about him saying she was unsuitable, the more determined she was to prove she was up to the task—whatever that task may be.
Juliet’s voice entered her mind, and she heard her teasing that Lizzie was so competitive, she would do anything if there was a chance she might win.
By the time Jack reached a door on the ground floor and held it open so she could slip outside, her mouth was dry. There was a stiff breeze despite it being the height of summer, and the sun lurked behind an ominous cloud. Rain was on its way, and she rubbed her chilly arms, regretting not wearing her jacket to come outside.
‘I would offer you my jacket, but I’m afraid I didn’t bring one,’ Jack said, shrugging, his shirt sleeves rolled up to reveal muscular forearms.
She threw him a tentative smile. Maybe he wasn’t quite so disagreeable after all.
‘I’ll be as quick as I can, but if you agree to my request, this is an important first lesson.’
He leaned over and whispered in her ear. His warm breath tickled the sensitive skin on the side of her neck. ‘Never discuss our plans inside the building, even if it seems no one is around. Always go outside if possible. You never know who might be watching or listening.’
Goosebumps erupted on her flesh, and she shivered.
‘Understood. I must say you are being very mysterious. This is rather like a spy movie I saw at the pictures recently.’
‘More like it than you know,’ said Jack, running a hand through his blackhair, his dark eyes narrowing.
He really was mouth-wateringly good looking. She chastised herself as soon as the thought barged into her mind.
Whatever was she thinking? He was much too old for her, and might be married anyway, although he wasn’t wearing a wedding band.
‘I owe you an apology, so let me get that out of the way first,’ he said, his expression rueful. ‘I behaved like a clod of the highest order, and you were right to tear me off a strip.’
Lizzie stared up at him, relieved he wasn’t going to be disparaging. She didn’t do well with reprimands and would get herself into trouble if he provoked her again.
Her eyes locked onto his. A tremor ran through her body as he studied her, and suddenly her skin no longer felt cold. It was strange that they’d only met the day before—it seemed like she’d known him much longer.
‘I’ve been under a lot of pressure, but even so, as Drake rightly pointed out, it’s no excuse. If I was rude to you yesterday, then I apologise.’
Treacherous emotions stirred within her, and her stomach fizzed.
‘You were rather rude, and I won’t deny it bothered me, but apology accepted,’ she said.
‘Good, I appreciate you are not the type to hold a grudge.’ He smiled, and she saw how charming he could be.
This was a completely different experience from their first meeting, and despite a voice warning her to tread carefully, the intensity of his eyes on hers excited her. It was like they were the only two people in the universe as they stood there looking at each other.
