Authors: Alicia Hope
They forget they’re representing the
organisation at official functions. Although it’s not
my
place to chastise them, maybe I could suggest
a
‘code of conduct’
refresher for all executive staff...
She got up
and
slid open the
plantation shutters to gaze through
the glass door
into
the
courtyard
.
The moon was casting
a
silver
wash
over the world
. S
he c
ouldn’t resist opening the door
to let in the night air
, which
rushed in
side
as though the room had taken a deep
breath. T
he
muslin curtains
billow
ed
in the breeze and
her
nightgown float
ed
around her bare legs.
She inhaled deeply and stepped
into the courtyard
,
her eyes taking in the shimmer
ing
strip of
moonlight on the tiny,
rhythmical
waves
lapping the shoreline
.
She padded
over
to le
an on a
courtyard
post
,
and gaze
d
at the heavens
. The night was cool and clear, the sk
y was awash with stars
,
and the full moon was the
brightest pendant on
the
black velvet
.
She
took another deep breath of
sea air, noting its
subtle
jasmine
top note
,
and held it in her lungs for a moment, before expelling it with a
n audible
sigh.
‘Nice night.’
Verity jumped
and
w
h
irled around
.
Where did that voice come from?
She peered through the
jasmine-covered
wrought iron screen
separating
her courtyard from the next, and
c
aught a glimpse of movement from
a shadowy figure
.
T
he
screen
offered privacy, but
was not a
solid
partition
by any means.
She winced.
Why didn’t I notice that before
? Here I am
,
blithely stepping out i
n my pyjamas!
‘
Oh!
Um ... y
es, it is
a
night
nice ... er ... a nice night
.’ She
bit her lip and
tried to control her thumping heart.
‘Did I startle you?’
To Verity’s
ears,
his deep voice held a
note like warm honey. It felt
reassuring.
B
e careful,
she
cautioned
herself.
‘Well, yes, I guess you did a little
... Royce
.’ She
glanced at the door to her unit. Should she
edge
her way back
there?
‘Sorry. I just t
hought
it best to
let you know I was here
, so you wouldn’t think
I was
lurk
i
ng
in the dark, spying on
you.’
Could he see her from ov
er there? She peered throu
gh
gaps in the greenery
and
could
just
make him out
, leaning on a post, looking
up at the sky
. His uncharacteristical
ly warm, friendly tone
had
a comforting effect
, and
Verity
gre
w more confident
.
After all, he couldn’t see her clearly, and she could retrea
t to her room at any time
.
A brief
wind
gust
lifted her fringe from her forehead, caressing the smooth skin beneath it. It felt good, and she paused, sorely tempted to remain outside.
‘So
,
if you’r
e not
p
r
ying on the neighbours,
what are you doing out so late
?’
‘Same as you
, I assume
, enjoying
the night.
’
Royc
e was silent for a few moments befo
re murmuring in
awe
, ‘
T
his
place
. It m
akes me
yearn for the simple life ... tempts me to
turn my back on the rest of civilisation
and
just
stay here
.’
Verity
leaned on her post again and
tilted
her face
upwards,
mirroring him
.
‘Would you really want that? Escape to an island and l
eave behind
all your wo
rldly possessions
?’
She could sense his ga
ze turning towards her
,
and then,
to her dismay
,
she heard him walk
onto the grassed area
fronting the unit block
. From there he had only to turn
sideways to see her clearly
—
in
her revealing attire
.
Her chemise’s
cowl neck and shoestri
ng straps
suddenly
felt
very flimsy
. She
straightened and
qui
ckly adjusted the matching wrap
which had
slid down her arms to
show
the satiny skin of her
shoulders
. B
ut its soft fabric did lit
tle to hide her shape
. She felt
very exposed, so she hurriedly pulled
over
a chair and sat
down
.
‘Would
you
?’ He was still stari
ng at the ocean
.
Nice tactic
,
Royce, answe
ring a question with a question. A little
hint
of the
ruthless negotiator
you’re purported to be
?
She gave a teasing
snort
.
‘I
asked first
.’
He lowered his head and
chuckle
d
before replying carefully,
‘I wouldn’t want to stay off the radar forever, but yes, there are times when I
’d gladly
trade the rat race
and all that comes with it,
for
peace
like this.
’
‘
Really?
’
‘You sound surprised
.
’
Verity
could see his strong face in profile. It
look
ed less forbidding in the moonlight.
‘To be honest, yes.
I thought you were … well....’
As she fumbled for the right words, Royce
raised
his head and smiled crookedly.
‘
Let me guess, a
n in
human,
ruthless
sw
ine
who
only cares for
power and status?’
Precisely
w
hat
Ella had warned him against becoming
, he reminded himself, and the very thing he
came close to turning
into
,
after losing her
.
‘I don’t know if I w
ould put
it quite like that
.
..
.
’
D
espite her protest, Verity
knew
he’
d
summed up her opinion of him
, pretty much
.
‘Well,
considering some
of the
things I’ve done, I won’t blame you if you don’t believe this,’
he said gruffly,
‘
but I’m
not the ogre
many people
think I am.
’
He paused, and when he spoke again Verity could hear a diffident smile in his voice.
‘
Don’t believe all the hype. Under the suit I’m actually an OK guy.
’ H
e
threw a careful glance
her way and then turned
his attention
back
to the night sky
. ‘But we were talking about island escapes. W
hat about you?
I can’t
imagine you’d want
to take the next exit out of
the corporate madhouse
.
’
A night bird called sharply, piercing the stil
l
of the balmy darkness. T
hey b
oth
waited silently until
the night sounds se
ttled again. Finally
Verity said quietly,
‘
Well,
like you say, assumptions can be misleading, ‘cos sometimes that’s
exactly
what I’d like to do
.’
‘
But
not now you’re CEO
?’
He tu
rned to face her and she subconsciously pulled her wrap closer about
her shoulders.
She was
wish
ing
she’d gone inside when she had the chance, but
she
felt
lulled by the night’s
tranquillity
, the gentle moonlight,
the
wine at dinner, and Royce’s ope
nness
.
I
ntrigued by his
talkative mood
, she
felt inclined to enjoy it while it lasted
, so she leaned back in her chair and said,
‘It’s only a job, Royce. T
here’s a whole lot more
to life than work, even if
we forget i
t
at times
.’
Royce’s head jerked
back
.
Verity
had sounded
so
much
like Ella. And Ella had
said
those same
words
to
him
more than once, when
he
was obsessing about his job and
career
. He regarded
Verity
through narrowed eyes and
mumbled
, ‘
Well, n
ot
everyone is
lucky
enough to have anything
other
than work.’ He sighed
and lowered his head
, adding, ‘O
r more
than an empty house to greet them
after hours.
’
Verity was
finding Royce’s proximity distracting
. She felt caught in s
ome so
rt of warm, invisible net, and f
or some reason
,
memories of the early days of her marriage
surfaced.
She and David had mo
ved
to the lower south west after the
ir
wedding, and lived
in a caravan f
or a while. He was
on
a
low wage and she was studying
fulltime,
so
they couldn’t afford a house or even a flat
. T
heir first winter in the van had been savagely cold
and damp
. Suffering in
the leak
y
,
chilled
metal box, they were
always grateful to accept
invitations
to other
homes.