Best of Bosses 2008(87)

‘So,’ she said without preamble as soon as they were seated at the circular chrome table and a waitress had taken their order. Orange juice for her and a lager for him. ‘What is it that you wanted to tell me about Lily?’

‘You’re very good at cutting to the chase,’ Nick commented drily. ‘How much has she told you about…our relationship?’

‘We don’t discuss you.’

‘Strange, considering you seem to discuss me freely with everyone else.’

Rose went pink but held his gaze. ‘I don’t think she would appreciate some of the things I might have to say and I can’t put her in a position where she feels that she’s having to take sides.’

‘How big-minded of you.’ Did the woman have no social graces? he wondered.

‘I know you’ve been meeting up,’ Rose ploughed on, ‘but I don’t know how serious it is. Are you telling me that it’s…serious?’

‘Oh, very serious indeed.’ Nick sat back and took one long sip of lager, enjoying its coldness. ‘I think it’s now your cue to warn me off because I’m such a big, bad wolf.’

‘Lily could have told me this herself.’

‘Maybe she’s scared of making a stand for herself because you’ve never allowed her to.’

‘Is that what she told you?’

‘I’m reading between the lines.’

‘Then don’t bother. You don’t know anything about us.’

‘I don’t need case notes to see what’s in front of my nose. You’ve always made the rules and Lily has always obeyed them.’

‘If she’s pregnant, then I expect you to do the honourable thing and marry her.’

For the first time in his life, Nick found himself lost for something to say and Rose watched his stunned expression without saying a word, waiting for him to be the first to break the silence. He had an annoying habit of throwing her into a tizzy and making her gabble like someone who couldn’t operate the brake pedals on their mouth, but she could tell from his face that she had thrown him into a hole and she wasn’t about to help fish him out.

This was the thing she feared the most—that Lily would do something stupid like fall for the man, hook, line and sinker. She hadn’t seen her sister actually being even more stupid and getting herself pregnant, but if she had then Rose would be there, as she always had been, to lend the helping, guiding hand.

‘You think that…’ Nick shook his head incredulously. ‘Shooting your mouth off again. Do you ever think before you speak?’

‘What am I supposed to think?’ Rose demanded, unfazed by his attack. ‘You accost me at work—’

‘I was doing you a favour.’

‘You accost me at work, where, incidentally, you have no right to be, and insinuate that there’s something you have to tell me that’s so awful that my own sister just can’t tell me herself.’

‘And you think that pregnancy is the most awful thing that could happen to a woman.’

‘No, of course I don’t. When two people love each other and have a stable relationship, then pregnancy is the most beautiful thing that could happen, but in Lily’s case…’ She glared at him because he had started staring at her as though she had begun speaking in tongues.

‘You surprise me. I never thought you would have subscribed to the Happy Ever After fairy tale.’

‘What I subscribe to or don’t subscribe to is beyond the point,’ Rose snapped. ‘The fact is this—if Lily is pregnant—’

‘Oh, for God’s sake. She’s not pregnant.’ Nick leaned towards her, resting both his elbows on the table, and Rose fought not to pull back because the sheer force of his personality was so overwhelming. ‘Let’s get one thing straight here, Rose. I’m not a complete fool. I’m no shrinking violet when it comes to the opposite sex, but I make sure to always, but always, use protection. Believe me, the very last thing I would ever want would be to find myself cornered into marriage by a scheming woman who gets herself pregnant so that she can manoeuvre her way into my bank account.’

‘That is the most cynical thing I’ve ever heard in my life!’

Nick looked at Rose furiously. Respect was something he had commanded from other people for all of his adult life. Respect and admiration were the two things he had commanded from women. This one, white faced and disapproving, not only lacked both, but was actually sitting in judgement on him. Him! Nick Papaeliou, a man whose ability to instil fear was legendary.

He was finding it difficult to believe his ears.