Unlocking Her Boss's Heart(43)

‘Here’s your drink, Cara,’ he said, handing it over and giving Frank a curt nod.

Frank must have seen something in Max’s expression because he got up quickly and took a step away from them both. ‘Okay, well, it looks like your boyfriend’s got this, so I’ll say good evening. Have a good one, Cara,’ he said, flashing her a disappointed smile as he backed away, then turning on his heel to disappear into the dark garden.

‘Sorry,’ Max said gruffly, ‘I didn’t mean to scare him off.’ He didn’t look particularly sorry, though, she noted as he sat down next to her and laid his arm across the back of the bench. In fact, if anything, he seemed pleased that the guy had gone. Turning to look him directly in the eye, her stomach gave a flutter of nerves as something flickered in his eyes. Something fierce and disconcerting.

Telling herself she must be seeing things, she forced a composed smile onto her face. ‘It’s okay; he wasn’t my type anyway.’

Not like you.

Pushing the rogue thought away, she took a long sip of the water he’d fetched to cover her nerves. What was she doing, letting herself imagine there was something developing between them?

‘Thanks for the water. I didn’t mean to worry you. I’m feeling better now I’m in the fresh air.’

Despite her claims, he was still looking at her with that strange expression in his eyes.

‘Why are you single?’ he asked suddenly, making her blink at him in surprise.

‘Oh, you know...’

He frowned. ‘It’s not because I’ve been working you too hard, is it?’

‘No, no!’ She shook her head. ‘It’s through personal choice.’

His frown deepened, as if he didn’t quite believe her.

She swallowed before expanding on her answer, linking her fingers tightly together around the glass. ‘I decided to take a break from dating for a while. My last relationship was a bit of a disaster.’

He relaxed back against the bench. ‘How so?’

‘The whole fiasco at LED pretty much ruined it. After I started having trouble coping with what was going on at work I got a bit down and it made me withdraw into myself. My ex-boyfriend, Ewan, got fed up with me being so...er...unresponsive.’ She cringed. ‘That’s why I’ve been trying so hard to stay positive. I know how it can get boring, having people around who feel sorry for themselves all the time.’

He ran his hand through his hair, letting out a long, low sigh.

Heat rushed through her as she realised how Max might have interpreted what she’d just said. ‘I didn’t mean... I wasn’t talking about you.’

He snorted gently and flashed her a smile. ‘I didn’t think you were. I was frustrated on your behalf. I can’t believe the guy was stupid enough to treat you like that.’

‘Yeah, well, it’s in the past now. To be honest, that relationship was always doomed to fail. He was a little too self-centred for my liking. He made it pretty obvious he thought I wasn’t good enough for him.’

‘Not good enough! That’s the most ridiculous thing I ever heard,’ he snapped out, the ferocity in his tone telling her he had a lot more he wanted to say on the matter, but for the sake of propriety was keeping it to himself.

She smiled at him, her heart rising to her throat. ‘It’s okay. It doesn’t bother me any more.’ And it really didn’t, she realised with a sense of satisfaction. Her experiences since breaking up with Ewan had taught her that her real self-worth came from her own actions and achievements, not pleasing someone else.

Putting the empty glass onto the ground by the bench, she tried to hide a yawn of tiredness behind her hand. It had been a long and intense day.

‘Do you want to get out of here?’ Max asked quietly.

Clearly she hadn’t been able to hide her exhaustion from him.

Looking at him with a smile of gratitude, she nodded her head. ‘I wouldn’t mind. I don’t think I’ve got the energy for any more dancing.’

He stood up. ‘Okay, I’ll go and fetch the car.’

‘I’ll just pop back in and say goodbye to Jack and Amber and I’ll meet you back here,’ she said, gesturing to the pull-in place at the end of the sweeping driveway.

He nodded, before turning on his heel and heading off towards where they’d left the car parked by the estate’s church.

She watched him disappear into the darkness, with his jacket slung over his arm and the white shirt stretched across his broad shoulders glowing in the moonlight, before he dipped out of sight.

After saying a hurried goodbye to the now rather inebriated newlyweds, she came out to find Max waiting for her in the car and jumped in gratefully, sinking back into the soft leather seat with a sigh. Now she knew that bed wasn’t far away, she was desperate to escape to her room and finally be able to relax away from Max’s unsettling presence.