Lynsey Stevens - A Physical Affair

She saw his lips move and her brain began slowly to decipher the words, unravel the message.

‘I missed you.’

Had he voiced those inciting words? Yes! Yes! He’d said he missed her. As she’d missed him.

Oh, yes? a part of her gibed brutally. He missed you so much he left without a word. And if his telephone conversation was any indication, he was leaving again. To rejoin Megan Donnelly.

Keira’s entire body went numb. She wasn’t going to allow him to pick her up and put her down at his whim. She might have to deal with him on a business level, but on a personal level, well, she’d close and lock that door with a final decisiveness.

Her lips tightened and she stepped around him, placing Gail’s article on his desk. ‘I think you should read that and then perhaps you’ll see your way clear to overriding Denver’s decision. And perhaps in future Denver might be encouraged to discuss any problems he has with our decisions with the editorial panel.’

Eden’s dark eyes roved over her to settle on the bitter twist of her lips, and she made herself start walking towards the door.

‘Is this another maidenly retreat?’ he asked evenly and Keira turned, her hand on the door-knob.

She raised her eyebrows coolly. ‘This was a business appointment, Mr Cassidy. I’d prefer to keep it as such.’

‘Ah! And you never mix business with pleasure, do you?’ he commented mockingly.

Pleasure. The sensuous way the word flowed over her almost took her breath away but she managed to hold on to her composure, be it extremely precariously.

‘I don’t care what you choose to call it. However, perhaps I should clarify an awkward situation. I consider I made a huge mistake last weekend. And I’m not inclined to repeat that particular mistake.’ Her voice fluctuated and almost died as her throat dried. ‘I think it would be prudent if we put it down to a brief lapse on both our parts.’

‘Again?’ he put in scornfully. ‘I think you’ve said all this before.’

‘I’ve already forgotten that what happened between us last weekend ever happened.’ She ignored his sarcasm and finished in a determined rush.

The air between them thickened again as the silence stretched for long seconds. ‘You have?’ he asked at last, and Keira knew a surge of panic as her neatly coiled composure frayed and began to unravel.

‘Of course,’ she replied with only volume to add credence to her assertion.

Of course you have, Mrs Strong,’ he echoed with caustic formality. ‘And I’d forgotten you make a habit of forgetting-’ he paused ‘-brief lapses.’ He held her gaze for heavy seconds before turning on his heel. ‘I have a lot of work to get through so I’ll say goodnight,’ he said as he walked back through the same door off to the left.

Keira stood staring at the empty space where he’d been and told herself she should be duly satisfied. She’d called the shots and he’d taken her at her word. It was all over. Just as she’d wanted.

In a daze Keira walked out of the office, along the hallway and past the secretively curious receptionist. The lift seemed to take a year to reach the floor this time but she finally stepped into its sanctuary. And she had to grab at the handrail for support as her knees threatened to give way beneath her.

Keira’s whole body felt almost unbearably heavy as she crossed to her office, thankful that everyone seemed to have left. Sinking down on to her chair, she covered her eyes with her hands. But she was too numb for the relief of tears.

What seemed like minutes later her telephone jangled and she jumped, instinctively reaching for the receiver.

‘Keira?’ The curt voice had her fingers tightening until her knuckles showed white.

‘Yes,’ she got out.

‘The article stands as is,’ he continued without any conversational preliminaries. ‘I’ll talk to Denver.’

‘Thank you,’ Keira began before she realised that he had broken the connection. Slowly she replaced the receiver. So, that appeared to be that. She’d won that point. However, the victory had a disturbing hollowness to it.

It was probably all for the best, she tried to tell herself. Without a shred of conviction.

A sharp knock on the panelling outside her open door made her start as Roxie swept in.

‘Did I give you a fright? Sorry. Didn’t expect you’d still be on the job.’ Roxie sat on the corner of Keira’s desk. ‘Am I exhausted? You know, I’d forgotten how tiring these assignments are. A week away from the office seemed wonderful before I went. Now I’m pleased to get back to my desk. And talking about desks, why are you still at yours? Burning the midnight oil isn’t a job prerequisite, you know.’

Keira glanced at her watch, surprised to see it was almost six o’clock. No wonder everyone had gone home. ‘I was just about to head home,’ she fibbed as she stood up.

‘And I’ve been dying to know, how did you like your flowers?’ Roxie motioned for Keira to precede her through the open door.

‘What flowers?’ she asked absently, and glanced around at the other girl’s exclamation of disbelief. ‘I haven’t the faintest idea what you’re talking about, Rox.’

‘I’m talking about the biggest bunch of red roses I’ve ever seen in my life that was sitting out in Reception.’

‘I didn’t see any flowers. They must have been delivered to the wrong floor or something.’

Roxie shook her head. ‘Card had your name on it.’

Keira frowned. ‘When was this, Roxie? You must have been mistaken.’

‘Me, mistaken? I’m deeply wounded. I saw them out at Reception bright and early on Monday morning, before I left on the assignment. The flowers were definitely for you, Keira. I can assure you I’ve got twenty-twenty vision. The card said “Keira Strong”.’ She raised her eyebrows expressively. ‘In very distinctive script, too, I might add.’

‘Distinctive…?’ Keira’s heartbeats did a skip and then settled. ‘I didn’t receive any flowers,’ she said firmly.

Now Roxie was frowning. ‘There’s something amiss here.’ She checked the time and hurried across to the nearest phone. ‘Meg was on the desk when I came past. We might catch her before she leaves.’ Roxie punched in the extension, questioned the receptionist and hung up the receiver and beamed. ‘She said Denver took charge of them. He said they gave him hay fever so he was putting them in the staff-room. Didn’t you see them there?’

Keira shrugged. ‘I’ve been having my lunch at my desk all week.’ Because she’d felt so down about Eden’s continued silence. But what if…?

‘Come on.’ Roxie grabbed her arm and led her down the passage.

On the corner counter in the lunch-room sat a huge vase of flowers, their blossoms already fading.

‘I rest my case.’ Roxie probed carefully into the greenery and held up a small white envelope. She handed it to Keira with a flourish. ‘I won’t say I told you so. But I will say Denver could have mentioned he’d put them in here. You know I wouldn’t put it past him to do this on purpose, just to be miserable, and he’s always been as thick as thieves with Dingbat Di.’

Keira only half listened to Roxie. Her fingers fumbled as she slid the card from its envelope and read the short message.

A close friend and business associate in the States has been taken seriously ill and I have to fly over there. I’m not sure when I’ll be back or if I’ll be able to get in touch. But I’ll be thinking of you. And Sunday. Eden.

‘Well, what’s it say?’ Roxie probed dauntlessly.

‘What?’ she replied, more than a little disconcerted, and Roxie clucked her tongue in exasperation.

‘The note. Eden Cassidy.’

For a moment Keira considered refuting Roxie’s conclusion but she just shook her head in dejection. A soft groan escaped her and Roxie concernedly touched her arm.

‘Keira? What’s the matter.’

‘He says a friend in the States is ill,’ she said inconsequentially and the other girl nodded.

‘That would be Kyle Ferguson,’ Roxie told her. ‘I heard Kyle and Megan had only just announced their engagement and Kyle came down with something the doctors were having trouble diagnosing. Rotten luck, wasn’t it?’

Keira stared at her friend, valiantly trying to absorb the significance of Roxie’s confidences. ‘Megan Donnelly and…?’

‘Yes. Kyle’s one of Eden’s top men over in the States. The three of them, Eden, Kyle and Megan, have been friends for years, so I heard, and Kyle’s been trying to tie Megan down for about as long.’

‘Where do you hear these things, Roxie?’

‘This particular thing I got from Meg who’s a friend of Julie, Eden’s receptionist.’

Keira raised her eyebrows.

‘Can I help it if people tell me things? Well, most people. You’re my only failure. I have to drag information from you. It’s like pulling teeth.’ She looked meaningfully at the note Keira still clutched in her hand.

Keira reread the message, her stomach contracting in despair. What had she done? If Eden thought she’d received his note then her behaviour in his office would make him think…

‘I think I’ve made a terrible mistake, Rox,’ Keira said softly.

‘If it’s as important as your expression tells me it is, then go and tell him so,’ Roxie suggested with her usual bluntness, and Keira glanced at her quickly.

‘I’m not sure it’s retrievable,’ she said almost to herself.

‘But it’s worth a try, don’t you think?’ Roxie smiled encouragingly and inclined her head in the direction of the penthouse office. ‘Come on, I’ll walk you to the lifts for moral support.’

They retraced their steps and Roxie pushed the up button, giving Keira a gentle shove forward when the doors opened. ‘Good luck. And, Keira?’ She turned back to face the other girl. ‘I’ll expect to be godmother to the first.’

The lift doors slid closed, concealing Keira’s flushed face.

In no time she was standing in the same reception area but this time the desk was unattended. Her heartbeats hammered in her chest.

Perhaps Eden had already left? She clutched the note in her damp palm and almost walked back into the elevator. But she lifted the card and read the distinctive script again. Roxie was right. She had at least to try to make amends. And Eden did deserve an apology.

Slowly she crossed to the desk and stood indecisively. Should she simply go up to his office and knock? Her legs refused to move and she drew a steadying breath. Before she could change her mind she reached over the desk and turned the phone to face her, punching in Eden’s extension.

‘Eden Cassidy.’

The sound of his voice almost caused the receiver to slip through Keira’s fingers, and when she opened her mouth no words came. She fought the urge just to put the phone down.

‘Yes?’ Eden barked into the earpiece, and Keira swallowed quickly.

‘Eden,’ she got out. ‘It’s… it’s Keira.’

AN oppressive silence seemed to echo along the line.

‘Yes?’ he repeated, a little less aggressively this time.

Taking a deep breath, Keira launched into a disjointed explanation. ‘I’m sorry. About the flowers. I didn’t know, I mean, I didn’t receive them. I’ve only just found them. And read your card. I thought…’ Her voice wavered and finally died and the silence returned.

‘I arranged for them to be delivered on Monday morning,’ he said carefully.

‘I know. That is, I know now. They…’ Keira paused, unsure whether she should implicate Denver Clarkson. ‘The flowers were put in the staff-room and, you see, I didn’t go in there until this evening.’

‘And you thought I hadn’t been in contact since Sunday?’ he asked quietly.

‘Yes. I’m sorry, I should also apologise for-’ Keira swallowed again ‘-I’m afraid I may have over-reacted before, when I, when we were discussing the article.’

‘You did that,’ he acknowledged, his voice low, the tone sending shivers down her backbone, rendering Keira speechless again. ‘But in the circumstances I can appreciate how you felt.’

‘Thank you. For understanding. And belatedly for the flowers,’ Keira added quickly, shifting the receiver from one hand to the other. ‘The roses were beautiful.’

The heavy silence hung between them again and for the life of her Keira couldn’t think of another thing to say. When she wanted to say so much.

‘So,’ Eden finally broke the rising tension, ‘shall we put our last conversation behind us and start over?’

‘I… Yes. I think that might be best.’ Keira cringed at her insipid reply. Who would blame him if he-?

Eden gave a soft chuckle. ‘You know, I happen to recall another conversation we had, and, incidentally, it’s given me nightmares ever since.’ His voice was even more provocatively arousing and Keira’s sensitive nerve-endings reacted accordingly. ‘You may remember that night of Sam’s eightieth birthday party. Apart from my abject foolishness living on to haunt me, I keep thinking about something you said.’