Carole Mortimer - Elusive Lover

‘No, I didn’t!’ she snapped, and explained how Mike came to have a key to her room.

‘The bastard!’ Josh muttered.

‘Yes.’ They were still walking, apparently with no purpose in mind. ‘Where are we going?’

‘I told you, to have breakfast. Here we are,’ he stopped outside one of the restaurants she never seemed to have the time to try. ‘I hope you’re hungry,’ he said before going inside.

Erin had the feeling that even if she weren’t he would still make sure she ate. She had no choice but to follow him in, her case, with all her worldly possessions, still held firmly in his hand.

He was greeted like a regular, obviously well known by the waitress who came to seat them. ‘Table for two, Josh?’ she looked speculatively at Erin.

And no wonder! It was only nine-thirty in the morning, and Josh was still carrying her suitcase.

‘That’s right, Marie,’ he grinned at the young girl, her open, fresh prettiness obviously appealing to him. ‘And do you have somewhere to stow this until after we’ve eaten?’ he indicated the suitcase.

‘Sure——’

‘Oh, but——’

‘Something wrong, Erin?’ Josh quirked one black eyebrow at her.

She reached for the case, anxious not to let it out of her sight. ‘I’d rather keep it with me.’ It was all she had in the world.

‘Okay,’ but he kept a firm grip on it. ‘Table for two people and a suitcase, Marie,’ he requested tauntingly.

Erin waited until the other girl had poured their coffee before lashing out at him. ‘It’s all right for you to laugh at me,’ she snapped, ‘but everything I own is in that case.’

He pulled a face. ‘It doesn’t weigh much.’

‘That’s because I don’t own much!’

‘Drink your coffee,’ he instructed. ‘It’s good and strong. You’ll feel better for it.’

‘How do you know that?’ she asked in a disgruntled voice. ‘I may not even like coffee. Did that occur to you when you were accepting on my behalf?’

‘You should have said——’

‘As it happens, I like coffee,’ she told him coldly. ‘What I don’t like is someone making my mind up for me.’

Green eyes narrowed with impatience. ‘I’m sorry, Your Majesty. Is this place to your liking, Your Highness?’

She blushed at his sarcasm, pretending to look around consideringly. Compared to the eating-house she had worked in this was really good, very clean, the booths and tables all fitted out in green crushed velvet, the staff all smartly dressed in black and white.

The two of them were seated in a side booth, the hot sun from outside not filtering through the small set-back window and so making it hot and uncomfortable to eat.

‘Well?’ Josh prompted.

Erin looked back at him. He was easily the most attractive man in the room; most of the other tables were full. He had taken off his hat now that they were inside, and his hair appeared even blacker, slightly ruffled where he had run a casual hand through it. The denim jacket and trousers were just as casual, the boots just as dusty, and yet he stood out from the similarly clad men in the room.

‘It’s all right,’ she shrugged, annoyed with herself for noticing how attractive Josh was. Enough men had hurt her lately, without her falling for this man.

Marie came back to take their order, and Erin half-heartedly ordered eggs and bacon, making sure her request for her eggs to be ‘flipped over’ went in, the thought of the near raw eggs she would be served if it didn’t making her feel nauseous. She had made that mistake once, but she had never made it again. Josh ordered everything—eggs, bacon, sausages, and wheatcakes.

‘Like some?’ he asked as he requested the latter.

‘No, thank you,’ she grimaced. She would have enough trouble getting the eggs and bacon down her. Since she had stopped eating so much she had been unable to take in great amounts when she did get around to having a meal.

‘Hash browns?’ he asked hopefully.

She rather liked this form of fried potato, so she nodded acceptance. ‘Please,’ she added politely, sitting back as her coffee cup was refilled. She had learnt that wherever you went they would just keep filling your cup up with coffee unless you asked them to stop, and they never seemed to charge any more for it. She knew, because sometimes these gallons of coffee were all she could afford on the budget she had allowed herself.

‘At last we’ve found something the lady likes,’ Josh taunted, sitting back in his seat as he watched her through narrowed eyes.

Erin flushed. ‘I’m sorry if I’m bad company. It isn’t every day I lose my job and get thrown out of my lodgings.’

‘Mm, we’ll have to see what we can do about that later. Right now I intend to have that talk you vetoed last night. Let’s start at the beginning. How did you get out here in the first place?’

‘Plane!’ she mocked.

‘Very funny! I meant where did you get the money from?’

It must be obvious from her clothes that she couldn’t have afforded the ticket herself, and she flushed her resentment. ‘How do you think I got it? Walking the streets?’

Josh sat forward with a sigh, obviously coming to the end of his patience with her. ‘You tell me,’ he drawled. ‘Did you?’

‘Of course not——’

‘Why so indignant, Erin? You brought the subject up, I’m just asking. Is that the way you got your money together to come here?’

He was serious, damn him! Her sarcasm had backfired on her, Josh’s intent look showed her that he wanted an answer. ‘No, it isn’t! Bob bought me a one-way ticket.’

‘Boy, he must have really wanted to get rid of you. Not a very good reference, is it?’ Josh mocked.

Erin gave him a startled look. ‘I beg your pardon?’

‘It doesn’t matter,’ he dismissed. ‘You aren’t bad at keeping a place clean, anyway.’

She flushed. ‘I’ll get another job, if that’s what you mean.’

‘Honey, I’m sure you will. With your talents you’re sure to be in demand.’

‘If you’re being sarcastic——’

‘Oh, but I’m not. I know a lot of men who would jump at the chance of having someone like you to keep their house clean during the day and their bed warm at night.’

‘You——’

‘Our breakfast has arrived, Erin,’ he interrupted what looked like being a tirade, sitting back while his laden plate was placed in front of him, smiling up at the susceptible Marie.

Erin saw that smile, and the effect it had on the other girl, and looked away. One smile and he thought he had Marie in the palm of his hand. Maybe he did, but his charm wasn’t working as well on her. She would just have her breakfast and go, knowing she had to find herself another job before this evening or risk sleeping under the stars. She had no idea how the police felt about people sleeping out on benches over here; in London they were usually moved on or arrested for the night. That would be all she needed!

She thanked Marie for bringing her meal. ‘I don’t like the implications of your remark,’ she told Josh once the waitress had moved away.

He looked up from pouring maple syrup on his wheatcakes. ‘I wasn’t implying anything, I was stating a fact. On your track record you’re sure to get yourself into another unwanted situation.’

‘I didn’t choose to have Mike makes passes at me!’ Her eyes flashed deeply violet.

‘Just as you didn’t choose to have Bob throw you out and replace you with a woman called Mary. You sure know how to pick ‘em, Erin,’ he shook his head. ‘Now eat your breakfast. And no more talking until I’ve finished eating. I hate arguing with a pretty woman when I’m eating.’

‘You——’

‘I mean it, Erin,’ his eyes were like green chips of glass. ‘Eat.’