His Secretary Mistress(30)

During this trip he had gone out of his way to be charming, determined to show her as much of Paris as possible in spite of spending a lot of time working on Sebastian Vaughn’s defence case. He had been a witty and entertaining companion, friendly yet remote, and she had been aware of an unspoken tension that sizzled between them. On several occasions she had looked up to find him watching her with eyes as dark as midnight, but each time he had quickly averted his gaze, as if embarrassed that he had been caught out. She was not obtuse, no inexperienced virgin, and she recognised the heat of desire he was so determined to deny, and shared his hunger.

She was tempted to tell him the truth about Lee, but something held her back. To reveal that she was divorced would pave the way for what, exactly? An affair? Perhaps not even that. Perhaps just a one-night stand while they were swept away by the atmosphere of the world’s most romantic city.

‘Shall we go?’ He sauntered across the room and proffered his arm with a nonchalant ease she could only admire, and the shiver that ran the length of her body had little to do with the cool night air.

In his black dinner jacket and white silk shirt he looked devastatingly handsome—a fact that did not pass unnoticed by just about every woman in the room when they arrived at Madame Roussel’s magnificent apartment. He would turn heads wherever he went, Jenna acknowledged bleakly. She was not the only woman to be turned on by his raw masculinity. But she hoped she hid her response a little better; several of the female guests were positively salivating.

‘Alex, I’m so happy to see you again.’ Sebastian’s grandmother held out her hand and smiled as Alex lifted it to his lips. ‘It is a grand occasion, do you think, my eightieth birthday?’

‘You look magnificent, madame, I can hardly warrant the years.’

‘And you are such a flirt.’ Eyes as clear and bright as those of a woman half her age sparkled with pleasure, and Clotilde Roussel’s welcoming smile encompassed Jenna. ‘So, you are going to help my grandson, Alex? Do you think you can save him from the consequences of his momentary madness?’

‘I’ll do my best,’ Alex assured her, but Madame Roussel’s rather haughty expression crumpled.

‘Sebastian is a good man, a gentleman in the true sense of the word. His only crime is that he adores his wife and wanted to protect her from the intrusions of the paparazzi. He was driven to desperate actions and now he stands to lose not just his career but also his good name. I know you will do everything in your power to help him, Alex. Ellisa is not with us tonight,’ Madame Roussel continued. ‘Seb refused to allow her to travel, with the baby due so soon, and I know he is impatient to get back to her, but this court case is looming and he is so worried. Perhaps you can persuade Sebastian to forget his problems for one night.’

It was an amazing party, Jenna thought as she glanced around the packed room, almost blinded by the array of diamonds on display. The cream of Parisian society was present—the men uniform in black dinner suits while the women vied for attention in their couture dresses. It was hard not to be overwhelmed, and she was grateful for Alex’s imperturbable presence by her side, the ease with which he drew her into conversation with the other guests.

She had discovered Sebastian Vaughn to be a gentle, soft-spoken man, his handsome face etched with lines of strain, his black hair already sprinkled with silver. Mindful of Madame Roussel’s plea to help her grandson forget his problems for the evening, Jenna had done her best to help him relax, had chatted animatedly with him and persuaded him onto the dance floor. And she had been successful, Jenna decided with a satisfied smile, as she studied Seb’s more relaxed features. During the course of the evening they had enjoyed several glasses of champagne, and their laughter, the way they sat with their heads close together, sharing a joke, had drawn comments from the other guests. Alex had managed to keep his thoughts to himself, but it was a close thing, he conceded as he watched Jenna lead his old friend onto the dance floor again. The tempo changed and Jenna slotted into Seb’s arms and smiled up at him, seemingly oblivious to anyone else as they moved in perfect accord to the music. Jealousy was a rancid emotion, Alex discovered as he contemplated striding across the dance floor, wrenching Jenna away and rearranging Seb’s good-looking features with his fist. Seb was one of his closest friends, for God’s sake, a man who patently adored his wife, and Jenna had a husband—although it appeared that she had momentarily forgotten that fact.

‘Seb, will you object if I steal my secretary for a moment?’ Alex had been inundated with willing partners on the dance floor, and it had been relatively easy to manoeuvre a change-over, but Jenna immediately stepped away from his arms and smiled apologetically.