'Whatever you want to do is okay with me, Johnny,' Randal reassured firmly, and the boy's face lightened.
'Come on,' Renata said, offering her hand, and he got up from the table and went with her. Over her shoulder she said to Randal, 'See you at dinner.'
When they had gone Randal let out a long, rough sigh. 'There wasn't any choice, was there? I couldn't refuse to let him go while he was there, listening. I don't want him blaming me because he never sees her.'
'I'm sure he wouldn't. You seem to have a great relationship, the two of you.'
He smiled at her. 'Do you think so? Well, I hope so. It isn't that I want to stop her seeing him-I wish she visited him more often-but Renata is given to arbitrary fits of spite. She might suddenly decide to take off with him, not bring him back-only to get bored with the game after a day or two and dump him, and Johnny could get hurt.
Dryly, Pippa said, 'I don't think she'll run off with him. I think she's looking forward to playing a very different game tonight, at dinner.'
He gave her a shrewd, sharp look. 'What are you talking about?
Pippa lifted a shoulder in a shrug. 'She may enjoy having a succession of men, but I got the impression she was still interested in you. Maybe she's the type to want to keep any man she's owned once on a leash, and she resents the fact that you got away.
'Do you think so?' he asked, finishing his coffee.
Pippa did not add that she also suspected that his ex-wife had not been pleased to see him with another woman, especially one who was a good ten years younger.
'If you're ready, shall we check out our rooms and unpack?' he suggested, rising, and she agreed, following him out to the reception area. They collected their keys and took the lift upstairs to the first floor.
Pippa let herself into her own room; Randal stood at the door, staring round, frowning. The room was small but comfortable, with a single bed. On a luggage rack against the wall stood Johnny's overnight bag.
'They obviously thought Johnny was going to be using this room,' Pippa said, seeing a connecting door open, leading into another room.
Randal walked over there and went through into what turned out to be a sitting room. Pippa followed him across that into a third room, a spacious double bedroom with twin beds covered in blue silk brocade that matched the floor-length curtains. It was a charming room, with elegant eighteenth-century furniture. On the luggage rack were her suitcase and Randal's side by side.
She turned on him. 'You can't have made it clear that this room was for you and Johnny! They obviously thought you and I would be sharing this room, while the smaller room was for the child.'
'I didn't discuss the sleeping arrangements with the booking staff!' he said irritably. 'I just asked for a double suite and one single room. I'll ring down now and get you a better room.'
'No, don't bother-that room is fine.' She picked up her own case. 'I'll unpack. Would you collect Johnny's case and unpack for him?'
He took her case from her. 'Look, I'm sorry, Pippa. I didn't, realise they would give you such a tiny room.'
'It doesn't matter, it's only for a couple of days.'
'You can use the sitting room as much as you like!' he offered in placation, carrying her case into her small bedroom.
She deliberately checked that there was a bolt on the inside of her bedroom door. 'Thank you.'
'Will you mind having dinner with Renata and Alex tonight?' he asked, removing Johnny's case from the luggage rack.
'No, why should I?' She put her case on the bed and unlocked it Casually, she asked, 'You knew she was going to be here, didn't you? That's why you were so insistent I should come with you. I'm here as a trophy, to let her know you aren't still pining for her, you've already found another woman.'
His face filled with angry dark red, his eyes flashed. 'Don't be ridiculous! I told you, she rarely comes to see Johnny. I didn't expect to see her here!'
She did not believe him. Renata had said she had hinted that she might come, and Randal's pride, his male ego, had needed to convince his ex-wife that he had another woman, she needn't think he wasn't missing her.
Randal had been using her! Pippa felt jealousy and resentment burning deep inside, twisting like a knife in her entrails. All the way here, to the school, she had been wondering what might happen in this hotel, had been trying to work out how to keep Randal at bay, make certain he didn't try to share her bed once his son was asleep. She had been shaking with excitement and passion, too, because even while she was determined he should not make love to her she couldn't help wanting to be in his arms. It might be contradictory, irrational, crazy, but her body ached for his, however hard she tried to convince herself he was forbidden to her.
It hadn't even occurred to her that his ex-wife might turn up, or that Randal might have brought her along as a shield against Renata realising he still wanted her.
Because he must still want his ex-wife, or why would he have been so insistent about Pippa coming with him? She had seen his face at lunch, when he first glimpsed Renata across the room. She had seen his clenched features, the taut jawline, the glitter of his eyes. He still wanted Renata; he was jealous of the tall, tanned Australian golfer who, Pippa angrily decided, was a perfect match for the luscious blonde. They might have been made for each other, in fact, although Randal obviously wouldn't be too pleased if she told him so.
She started unpacking, walking to and fro, sliding clothes into drawers, hanging others up in the tiny wardrobe.
'Do you want me to unpack for Johnny, or will you?' she said without looking at him.
'You're jealous,' he said suddenly. 'You're jealous of Renata, aren't you?' He was at her elbow a second later, grabbing her by the shoulders and swinging her round to face him. 'Ever since we met again you've been trying to convince me you're indifferent, never want to see me again-but you're jealous of Renata, which proves you're nothing of the kind. You can't be jealous if you're indifferent.'
'I am not jealous!' she furiously snapped.
'Oh, yes, you are. I can see it in those big green eyes.' He held her away from him, gazing down into those eyes, his own flickering and gleaming, silvery stars.
'Pure imagination,' she flung back. 'Wishful thinking!'
His voice husky, he whispered, 'Believe me, Pippa, I never expected to see Renata here. I meant what I said-I wanted you and Johnny to get to know each other. And-' He broke off and she watched him suspiciously, trying to probe behind his features, see inside his head, read his mind.
'And what?' she insisted.
He hesitated. 'Nothing. I forget what I was going to say.'
'I don't believe you! Come on, you started to say something-finish it!'
He grimaced. 'Okay, but you won't like it! I was going to say I wanted to spend the weekend with you!' He pulled her closer, his eyes eating her. 'You kept saying you didn't want to see me again, but I wasn't giving up. I meant to keep in contact with you.' One hand ran down her spine, over the soft silk of her dress, slowly, caressingly. When it reached the hem just above her knees, he pushed her dress upward, slid his hand up inside, between her thighs, fingertips sensuously brushing the inner secret heat, forcing a cry of excitement from her.
'You see? You want me,' he whispered, bending his head His tongue-tip softly stroked her mouth. 'Close contact, that's what we both need.' He groaned, pulled her hard so that their bodies collided, touched, from shoulder to thigh. 'I need to touch you, make love to you.'
'No, don't! Stop that,' she broke out, trembling violently, her mouth hot from the mere touch of his tongue. She was aware of his body touching hers everywhere, the heat between them intolerable.
'And you need it, too, whether you'll admit it or not,' he muttered, one hand on her back, pressing her hard against him while he cradled her head in his spread fingers with the other, manoeuvring it into position so that he could kiss her.
She would rather die than admit anything of the kind, and she resisted his fierce, invading mouth, struggling so hard he shifted his hand from her spine to her waist and held her possessively, his hand just below her breast.
Her treacherous mouth had parted to admit him, her body clung hotly to his, but she still struggled-so furiously that the two of them swayed and toppled on to the bed, knocking her suitcase off, on to the floor, spilling her clothes in all directions.
'Let go, let go,' she cried, pushing at his wide shoulders.
Randal looked down at her, eyes half-open, smouldering, languorous, and her mouth went dry at the expression in those eyes.
He moved his hand to touch her breast and she drew a shaken breath. He slid an arm under her, lifting her, swiftly pulled her dress over her head, followed by her lacy white chemise and then her bra. She fought him uselessly, tried to stop him stripping her, but his deft fingers were too fast and certain. In seconds she was naked all but her brief white panties.