It seemed strange that he should word his will in such a way that his niece should be at the mercy of Jay’s desires, but Jay suspected that had David lived longer the will would have been changed. It may well have been his way of hoping that, should anything happen to him earlier, Davina would be forced to realise that she was wasting herself, that she should live life to the full while she was young.
Davina opened the door to him but she wasn’t able to look him in the eye. ‘You’re prompt,’ she said quietly.
‘Yeah, I’ve gotta go to London this afternoon and wanted to get everything straight before I left.’
‘You’ve only just got
back
from London.’
‘Sure, this is just a dinner date. Mind if I come in?’ Even as he asked the question he saw a look of relief in
her eyes and knew that she’d been anticipating such a request, doubtless waiting eagerly to see what he was going to do. Well, she was in for quite a surprise.
She glanced briefly at him. ‘You haven’t brought any clothes for me,’ she said flatly.
Jay shook his head. ‘I’m not stopping.’ He waited silently, watching her as carefully as he’d watch a witness in the stand, gauging her reaction and not speaking until the silence grew awkward. This was something he liked to do, it put the opponent at a disadvantage. Although Davina wasn’t exactly an opponent she was rapidly becoming a quarry, albeit a very beautiful and desirable one. ‘Aren’t you going to ask why?’ he continued.
He was amused to see how hard she tried to look disinterested. ‘It’s none of my business.’
‘In this case it is. I want you to act as my companion for the evening.’
‘What about Pattie?’
‘She isn’t suitable. I’m dining with Brits and they always assume that leggy blondes are dumb. I can’t have them thinking I’ve got a dumb girlfriend, can I?’
‘What time will we be back?’ she asked nervously.
‘We’ll come back tomorrow. I won’t be able to drive tonight, not if I’m going to drink.’
‘Where would I stay?’
‘I’ll book us a couple of rooms in a nearby hotel.’
Davina hesitated. ‘I suppose that will be all right then,’ she conceded, but Jay sensed she was more disappointed than relieved.
‘I’ll pick you up at six-thirty. We’re eating at eight-thirty which gives us plenty of time to check in to our hotel, get changed and have a drink before we all meet up.’
‘What kind of thing should I wear?’ Davina asked.
‘Gee, don’t ask me. I haven’t a clue about women’s clothes. I’m better on underwear.’
‘What I meant was, is it very formal?’
‘No, but smart. Sophisticated yet slightly sexy is the look you’d better aim for. How’s the work going?’ he added as an afterthought.
‘I’ve finished the sci-fi. I posted it on Saturday. My next commission’s for a book of children’s fairy stories.’
‘Quite a change.’
‘More my style,’ she said demurely.
Jay shook his head. ‘I don’t think so, honey. I saw
you last night. I was watching you and you enjoyed it all. It turned you on. Come on, admit it.’
‘I don’t want to talk about it.’ Her tone was defensive and Jay decided not to pursue the matter.
‘Suit yourself. I’ll see you this evening. Make sure you’re ready, won’t you?’
‘Don’t worry, I won’t let you down. I presume this is my rent payment for the week?’
‘Sure, the first half at least.’
When he picked her up that evening Davina was clearly ill at ease. She placed a case containing her dress in the boot before getting into the passenger seat, her long legs slanted sideways. ‘Anything wrong?’ asked Jay.
‘I don’t really think I should be doing this,’ muttered Davina.
‘Why the hell not? If it’s Phil you’re worried about I’d have thought he’d consider you sitting around in front of me in your underwear far worse.’
‘I wasn’t thinking about Phil.’
‘Can’t you ever relax and enjoy yourself?’
‘You’re not a very relaxing person to be with,’ she retorted.
Jay nodded. ‘I guess that’s true. This is a social evening though so we’d better try and have a good time.’
Despite what he’d said he made no great effort to keep the conversation flowing, preferring to let silence spark off an erotic charge between them. When they arrived at the hotel he saw her eyes widen in surprise. ‘Is this it? I thought we’d be staying at the Savoy or somewhere like that.’
‘Sorry to disappoint you, honey. Believe me, it’s better than it looks from the outside,’ he added, realising that the plain terraced house in the quiet London side street must look very disappointing if she’d been expecting the glitz and glamour of a large hotel. ‘This place is pretty exclusive. My father used to stay here, and so did your Uncle David. I don’t suppose either of them stayed here alone either.’
Davina’s head turned sharply towards him. ‘You don’t know anything about what Uncle David did in London. Don’t you think it’s pretty despicable to try and make him sound like you?’
‘You think I’m despicable then?’
‘Yes,’ she said defiantly. ‘After what I saw last night, I do.’
‘Then why didn’t you say so at the time?’
‘It wasn’t my place.’
‘You could have left.’
‘I know,’ her voice was so low that he could hardly catch her words. ‘I should have gone, but …’
‘It’s okay,’ he assured her. ‘I know exactly why you stayed. Come on, let’s find our rooms and get changed.’
Once inside the front door they were discreetly welcomed by a middle-aged woman who Jay had met a couple of times before on his visits. He saw Davina glancing around in amazement, her eyes taking in the plush surroundings.
‘This place has four storeys,’ he explained. ‘All the rooms are en-suite, and discretion and privacy are assured. It’s really a kinda club I guess.’
‘But not for gentlemen,’ exclaimed Davina.
Jay couldn’t help laughing. ‘Maybe you’re right. It depends on your definition of a gentleman. Do you think Phil’s a gentleman?’
Her response was swift. ‘I don’t want to talk about Phil.’
‘I don’t blame you. He’s the most boring subject in the world. Even the weather’s more interesting than Phil.’
‘I don’t think Pattie feels like that about him.’
Jay’s eyes narrowed. ‘Why do you say that?’
She shrugged. ‘It’s just a feeling I’ve got.’
Jay felt relieved. At least she didn’t know for certain. As he drew her inexorably into his strange world he wanted to know that she was following willingly, not as a form of revenge on Phil for his fling with Pattie.
At eight o’clock precisely, Davina walked into the small bar of the hotel and Jay noticed every man’s head turn. She was wearing a claret-coloured velvet dress that clung to her slender but shapely body. It had an elegant cowl neck and a plunging back that reached down to her waist, leaving the creamy skin and the delicate bones of her spine totally exposed. She was wearing tiny pearl stud earrings and had a pearl bracelet around her right wrist, while on her left wrist a gold and diamond watch glittered. Her stockings had a soft silky sheen to them, and her shoes were black with high heels and a tiny ankle strap.
Jay felt a terrible desire not to go out to dinner. Instead he wanted to rush her upstairs and ravish her unmercifully on his bed, but he knew that the satisfaction would only be fleeting. It was far better to play
the game the way he’d planned, to make them both wait.
‘Very nice,’ he said smoothly. ‘Would you like a drink before we leave?’
Davina shook her head. ‘I think we ought to be going. You don’t want to be late, do you?’ He could hear the mockery in her voice.
‘I sure as hell don’t. Okay, let’s go.’
The dinner went exactly as he’d planned. They were dining with one of the country’s leading barristers and his wife, and Davina made just the sort of impression Jay had hoped. He noticed that despite the fact that he’d always considered her quite shy, she made conversation easily and he could tell that Christopher Parkinson was impressed. Confident of Davina’s ability to handle things, when not discussing points of law Jay was able to focus his attention on Christopher’s wife, Lizzie, who was a legal secretary at Lincoln’s Inn and fascinated by the differences in the British and American legal systems.
‘Don’t you think it strange how far apart the systems have drifted considering that yours was originally based on ours?’ she asked Jay towards the end of the evening.
‘Nope. The truth is, it’s your system that’s changed.
It’s become weaker, more obsessed with social workers and the rights of criminals. In my country we still put the victims first.’
‘That’s probably because there are so many of them,’ remarked Christopher.
Jay shook his head. ‘Did you know that a recent survey showed you were more likely to be mugged in England than in America?’
‘I don’t believe it,’ said Lizzie.
‘It’s true,’ Davina chipped in. ‘I read that too. Mind you, people can make figures say anything they want.’
‘None of you want to believe it, that’s all,’ said Jay. ‘You like the horror stories about madmen running amok with guns in my country. I guess it makes you feel superior.’
‘That’s very rude,’ said Davina, and Jay looked at her in surprise. ‘You sound as though you’ve got a chip on your shoulder,’ she said.
‘I promise you I haven’t,’ he replied, attempting a smile although inside he was less than pleased.
‘She’s got you there,’ said Christopher, patting Davina on the arm with what Jay considered unnecessary familiarity. ‘Would you care to dance, my dear?’
the older man continued, and Jay watched as Davina and Christopher took to the floor.
‘I don’t dance,’ said Lizzie, ‘so don’t feel that you have to ask me.’
‘That’s a pity, I’d have enjoyed taking you on the floor,’ said Jay casually.
Lizzie leant closer to him. ‘I’d have enjoyed it too,’ she said softly, and he realised that if he wanted her she was available. Not now of course, that would be impossible, but at a later date.
‘You have my husband’s telephone number, don’t you?’ she continued. Jay nodded. ‘Good. You must let us know next time you’re in town. Of course my husband may be busy, but I’d be more than happy to show you around.’
‘You’re very kind,’ said Jay. ‘I enjoy seeing new sights.’
At that moment Christopher and Davina returned to the table and immediately Jay got to his feet. ‘My turn now.’
He led her out onto the dance floor and was pleased when the music slowed. He always enjoyed dancing with tall women, it was so much more comfortable and her chin rested neatly on his shoulder. His right arm
was around her waist, his left hand resting lightly on her shoulder as he steered her carefully between the other dancers.
He pulled her a little closer to him so that their bodies were joined. ‘Do you know what I’d like to do to you tonight?’ he murmured in her ear. ‘I want to take you back to the hotel and undress you slowly. I want to lick every inch of your gorgeous body. I’d like to hear you whimpering with desire, to see you arching your hips towards me, hear you begging me to enter you.’ He could feel her trembling against him but she kept her head buried against his jacket and didn’t reply. ‘Wouldn’t you like that too?’ he asked, allowing the fingers of his left hand to caress the top of her bare arm. ‘Imagine how it would feel if I was touching you like this elsewhere. On the soft skin at the top of your inner thighs, or here.’
As he spoke he moved his left hand until he was drawing tiny circles on her bare back. He used the soft pads of his fingers and heard her draw in her breath sharply while at the same time her hips pressed instinctively closer to his and he knew that she must be feeling the hardness of his erection.
When the dance finally ended and they sat down opposite each other again her face was flushed. Although she wouldn’t look at him, her eyes were shining. Christopher looked knowingly at Jay while Lizzie’s mouth set in a tight line.
Seated at a table on the far side of the room, Phil Burnett had watched the couple incredulously, his face red with fury. He’d felt like getting up, crossing the floor and hitting Jay Prescott hard on the jaw, before dragging Davina out of the restaurant. Unfortunately for him, he was about to close a lucrative sale with his two dining companions. If he blew it, he’d almost certainly lose his job and so he kept silent. However, the rage ate into him, ruining both the meal and the anticipated pleasure of the business deal.
Half an hour later Christopher got to his feet. ‘Time we were going, Lizzie. It was a great evening, Jay. You’ve got those names and addresses that I gave you?’ Jay nodded. ‘Make sure you contact them all. Every one of them is known personally to me and they’ll be extremely helpful. Jeffrey might want to come over to America on a reciprocal visit some time, so he’ll probably be particularly amenable.’
‘Thanks a lot, you’ve been a great help,’ said Jay, clasping the older man’s hand firmly in his. Then he turned to Lizzie. As he kissed her on the cheek he touched the side of her neck softly with his right hand in a tiny intimate gesture that he knew would please her. It wasn’t that he necessarily thought he’d take her up on her offer, but it was always possible that she’d provide an interesting break for him at some time.
‘Enjoy the evening?’ he asked Davina as he hailed a cab to take them back to their hotel.
‘It was very nice,’ she said politely, rather like a little girl who’d been to a party. ‘I hope I did everything right.’
‘You were perfect,’ he assured her. ‘The question is, will you do everything right later tonight?’ Before she could answer they were getting into the cab and Jay settled back against the seat, looking forward to the next few hours with keen anticipation.
Back at the hotel the pair of them entered the lift in silence, and neither spoke until they reached the door to Davina’s room. She hesitated, uncertain as to what she should do now. She’d never felt like this before. Her
skin was tingling and she still seemed able to feel the touch of his fingers on her back, where he’d caressed her as they danced together. She was highly aroused and certain that he knew it, yet despite this she knew that it was up to him to make a move. He wasn’t the kind of man who would expect her to suggest that she joined him, and in any case she wasn’t certain that she’d be able to utter the words.