Authors: Rita Clay
Jason murmured something about never leaving a beautiful woman’s side, but Dianna was too
preoccupied
to pay attention. She made her way across
the
carpeted hall to the ladies’ room and walked in, closing the door softly with
the
last of her
control.
She never should have come! Tears pushed at her eyelids and she had a hard time preventing them from coursing down her cheeks. The shaking in her limbs made her sit on the dressing-table stool, taking deep breaths of air,
attempting
to reason
herself
into composure.
Noah would never mention what had happened seven years ago—his family’s reputation was at stake, and that alone would keep him quiet
.
Why would he want to say anything anyway? After
all,
he didn’t know about Tabby! Dianna took another deep breath. She
was
running from shadows again. She
c
ould go back out and face him, knowing there was no harm he could do to her. Then all would be back to normal
.
Yes, that was it
.
All she had to do was act co
ol
and composed, never allowing him to see
the
state
of
her nerves
.
Once this party was over she probably wouldn’t see the
P
resident of Wescomp more than a few times a year.
She hoped her casual exterior wouldn’t crack as she left the lounge and walked toward Jason, ignoring the tall arrogant man who stood in the doorway of the reception room watching her intently with a small secret smile on his
lips
. The smile she aimed at Jason was more brilliant than she intended and his eyes lit up in appreciation.
“I always said there was something about an older woman that brought out the best in me,” he teased as he
gallantly
took her arm and they began walking toward the
large
gathering.
“Something along the lines of a mother figure?”
she said playfully.
“Ouch, lady!”
She gave his arm a squeeze, more from nerves than friendliness. They were approaching
the indomitable
Noah
Weston
and she needed to repeat her silent pep talk. “Just teasing. Sorry. I can tell the difference between a man and a boy.” She spoke absently, not knowing how provocative her words sounded
“Yes, but Jason hasn’t learned the difference between a witty woman and a shrew.” Noah’s voice intruded on their banter, soft and lazy with just a hint of sarcasm. “Watch it, Jason. She might decide to eat you for
a snack.
” His grin was maddening. He was playing cat and mouse with her, and she wasn’t the one wearing the Cheshire smile!
Her face was mockingly innocent “I thought that
was
your
job
!”
He smiled.
“I gave you my answer to that long ago, Mrs. Hammond
.
But times have changed and people have aged
.
What was young then is more experienced now.” His voice held the hint of a threat, but Jason didn’t pick it up.
“And what was tender then
,
is no longer. You might find the meal tough and not at all to your liking,” she replied coolly.
He gave a handsome smile.
“I always did like a challenge.”
“Not this one,” she murmured sweetly,
not showing a hint of displeasure. She tried to pass him in the doorway, but he stood complacently blocking her entrance.
Jason halted, watching both of them with a puzzled expression, trying to understand the thrust-and-parry conversation. There was more to it than was immediately apparent, but h
is f
ace
showed confusion
as he took Dianna’s arm possessively, nodding his head toward the back of the room.
“I see Miss Sinclair is here. She’s very beautiful tonight, as usual.” Jason’s voice was louder than normal, attracting the attention of a stunningly lovely woman who stood on the other side of the room. She walked toward them with feline grace; her blond hair flowed about her shoulders, framing beautifully sculpted features and wide blue eyes. Her pale blue dress,
what looked like
a designer original, showed off an enticingly voluptuous figure. She came to Noah’s side and slipped a proprietorial arm in his.
“Darling, I was wondering where you were. You left me all alone to cope with this crowd,” she complained, her bright cherry
lips
pouting flirtatiously.
“
I'm
sure you did very well, Kitty.
You
weren’t shy of male company
with h
alf the board of directors was paying court” He grinned, the
cl
eft in his chin deepening.
“
That
h
alf your board is over fifty and balding!”
“But that didn’t stop you from basking in the limelight.” Noah glanced around the room as if only a portion of his attention was on their conversation. Then he re
turned to the
present company and turned to introduce them.
“Kitty, I’d like you to meet Mrs. Hammond and Jason Manners. This is Catherine Sinclair, a very talented young country-and-Weste
rn
singer.
My board is betting she'll be the next big star in the
music world.”
Catherine’s eyes narrowed on Dianna before she shrugged her shoulders in dismissal and turned a charming smile on Jason.
“You were at the Greer party, weren’t you?”
“I didn’t think you’d remember.” Jason grinned uneasily, glancing quickly at Noah.
“I wasn’t that drunk, darling Though Noah deserves to find me in that shape if he tries to make a habit out of going to parties just to discuss business and leaves me on my own.”
“Enough, Catherine. I doubt if my employees are concerned with your vices.” A muscle in the side of his jaw was tightened in disapproval. There was still a ruthless quality about him that reached out and touched Dianna, sending warning signals through her body. Never underestimate him, she told herself. Never underestimate the devil
“But, darling, surely my vices matter very little to Wescomp compared to yours!”
“And neither is up for discussion,” he stated grimly. “If you want to join the party I suggest you behave yourself, now, or you’ll lead me to think that you should be on your way home
early
.”
Noah’s last comment
apparently
hit home, and Catherine’s face showed the sting of his words. His threat had effectively silenced her. Dianna stood quietly, not realizing how tightly she had been clutching Jason’s arm until Noah noticed it, then looked at her, his deep gray eyes seeming to read her
e
very thought. He stepped aside, murmuring to Jason to be sure to introduce Dianna to all and sundry, and
walked away.
Jason escorted her toward the milling group around the long hors-d
'
oeuvre table. An ice sculpture of
two
large robot
s
stood in the center of the table, the accuracy and intricacy of design making it a work of art They began circulating from group to group, names tumbling over names as Dianna smiled prettily, becoming further withdrawn at the strangeness of it all. These were the elite of Dallas, known to her only from the newspaper columns.
She wasn't sure why she was here if she wasn't supposed to meet the rest of the heads of departments.
CHAPTER
TWO
Everyone was friendly.
First, she felt awed, then charmed. Only occasionally did the men show their feet of
cl
ay and the women their boredom and unhappiness. They all striv
ed
to maintain the image of the beautiful people, even among themselves.
When a photographer walked up, they came alive and smiled as if
they were in the
K
ing's Court.
She recognized some of the m
ore
prominent guests as her glance darted around the large room. Judge Hawthorne was talking to the new young Senator Greer and a few others. The senator’s light brown hair and eyes and his smooth boyish face were easily recognizable. Dianna vaguely remembered reading an article concerning his future plans to run for the Presidency.
His wife stood in a darkened comer of the room, her head leaning on a stocky older man’s shoulder, arms entwined in his. He had been pointed out earlier as a famous character actor. Although his face was familiar, Dianna couldn’t remember his name. Mrs. Greer was obviously tipsy and in the mood for making love, but not with her boy-child husband
.
Her husky laughter floated across the room and Dianna watched the senator give a cursory glance in her direction before scanning the crowd
.
His eyes locked with
Di
a
n
na’s and after his apparent surprise at a new and lovely face, he smiled
.
Dianna returned his smile, giving a slight negative shake of her head to his unspoken question. He registered disappointment before turning to prowl the rest of the room.
Jason’s arm went
rested lightly on
her waist as he turned to introduce her to Thomas Beloit, a man Jason apparently held in awe, at least judging by the tone of his voice. He had been highlighted
in Texas magazines
off and on, escorting one starlet or another. He still held much charm, although late nights and heavy drinking had taken their tol
l
.
When they were introduced his eyes lit with interest before his lids drooped to disguise his thoughts.
“And you honestly work for Noah? He isn’t as quick to notice a beautiful woman as I once thought
.
My only hope is to get to know you before he discovers your charming
attributes,
my dear.” His eyes locked with hers before traveling down the length of her body, a slow smile giving his thoughts away.
“I wish you would leave my employees alone, or they might get the wrong idea, Tom.” Noah’s voice, directly behind Dianna, seemed to come out of nowhere. She tried to ignore him, but she couldn’t ignore the tingle his soft breath sent down her spine, nor could she move either forward or backward.
“If you are really interested,” Noah continued, “you’ll have to make plans after office hours.”
“But this
is
after office hours, Noah,” Tom answered s
miling
,
but
his eyes never le
ft
Dianna’s face.
“This lady doesn’t belong to anyone
, before
or
after hours,” Dianna interjected
firmly
, “so
I'd
appreciate
not
being handed from one to another of you like a sheaf of papers.” She forced herself to smile the words,
and then
sipped on her cocktail to quiet the rest of her thoughts. She didn’t see Noah’s admiration at the flame of temper that lit up her large hazel eyes, nor did she realize that anger had given a glow to her usually pale skin. All she could do was
pretend to be composed. Heightened
conscious of Noah’s lean length directly behind her ma
de
her feel they were in intimate contact
,
al
though their bodies never touched. Even his
warm
breath caressed the back of her neck
, frightening her with the reaction it produced on her
already
heightened senses.
She turned quickly to Jason, linking her arm in his as she assumed a light note. “How about getting something to eat, Jason?”
“Delighted,” Jason answered smoothly as he led her away from both men and into calmer waters, glad for once to be around to see the big boys receive a set-down.
Later, as they helped themselves to an array of delicacies, Jason introduced her to a few more people. The group on their right consisted of a publishing agent, a movie star’s somewhat disenchanted husband, and a banker. She had to smile at the incongruity of them in their small circle discussing the finer points of tennis
or golf
as if they had known each other for years.
She and Jason made small talk while one part of her tired mind attempted to blot out Noah’s presence. She shouldn’t have come. The episode in the basement was only a part of the reason for her tense mus
cl
es. Her hands trembled as if she had a chill, and no matter how many times she told herself to relax, the feeling of impending doom
refused to
go away. Why was it she was capable of handling all the men in the room . . . except Noah?