A Physical Affair

CHAPTER FIVE

‘WHAT do you want?’ The words were out before Keira could draw them back and the tone of her voice made her cringe at the audacity. ‘I mean, I’m pretty busy.’ She indicated the work on her desk and then sighed. ‘I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to sound…’ She paused, searching for a placating word that might defuse her previous brusqueness.

‘Ungracious?’ Eden Cassidy suggested with a quirk of his lips, lips that drew Keira’s eyes without any conscious thought on her part.

Her heartbeats had began their now familiar dance and she swallowed quickly. She closed her mouth firmly as she went to apologise again.

Eden took a couple of steps into the room, stopping in front of her desk, and Daniel followed him, hovering awkwardly beside him, trying to convey to Keira a multitude of emotions in his expression. At any other time Keira would have been amused by Daniel’s obvious mixture of bewilderment and reticence. However, at that moment she had other matters on her mind. And they all focused on the younger man’s egotistical uncle.

What could he possibly want? Keira hadn’t seen him since their altercation on the patio of the Cassidy mansion, hadn’t thought ever to see him again.

She pushed herself to her feet, unwilling to give Eden Cassidy the advantage of towering over her. ‘If you’ve come to take Daniel to lunch then he’s free to go, of course,’ she said, and Eden motioned her to return to her seat, lowering himself into the chair opposite her, setting his briefcase down on the floor beside him.

‘I did have lunch in mind,’ he said easily. ‘But not with Daniel.’ His obvious meaning hung in the air between them as his gaze held hers, and Keira willed herself not to look away, refusing to acknowledge his enigmatic statement.

Lunch? With him? He had to be joking. But he was persistent, she’d give him that much. Although the reason for his apparent tenacity bothered her. Had his purported interest been further piqued by her reluctance to fall in with his impertinent plans to entice her into his bed?

Her mouth went suddenly dry at the thought. Silently she berated herself for her own lasciviousness and, contrary to the momentary racing of her senses, she refused to concede that the contemplation of such an erotic development excited her at all.

Casually she arched her eyebrows. ‘If you have some question concerning the magazine then I suggest you discuss it with Dianna,’ she began, and one corner of his mouth twisted derisively.

‘I’ve just spent the last half-hour with Dianna doing just that, discussing the magazine,’ he put in abruptly. ‘I was simply asking you to have lunch with me,’ he finished evenly, narrowed eyes challenging her.

Keira’s breathing fluctuated with her heartbeats and she made a show of shuffling some papers on her desk while she took an iron grip on her floundering composure. ‘I’m afraid I’ve got far too much work to do,’ she said, surprising herself with her firmness.

‘You have to eat.’

‘We’ve had a few glitches this morning and I’m way behind. I’m just going to send out for a quick sandwich.’

‘You can have a sandwich if you like,’ he agreed easily. ‘But we’ll get away from the office.’

His dark brow rose as Keira’s mouth opened slightly in disbelief.

Surely he didn’t intend they should waste a couple of hours fighting their way through lunch-hour traffic to share a cosy meal at a fancy restaurant? Did he imagine she’d go with him, even if she could spare the time? Which she couldn’t.

‘And some coffee, wasn’t it?’ he added, challenging her again.

Keira spared a second to look at Daniel, who was regarding his uncle through narrowed eyes, obviously assessing this latest development. Then he noticed Keira’s glance and changed his expression to one of bland interest.

‘Why not have a decent lunch for once?’ Daniel added his suggestion to his uncle’s, and Eden’s gaze centred momentarily on his nephew. ‘Wouldn’t you prefer to go to a restaurant, Keira?’ Daniel continued. ‘You’re always grabbing a sandwich, and eating on the run is bad for your health, apart from the fact that the canteen serves cardboard food.’

‘You’re exaggerating, Daniel,’ his uncle put in. ‘And for your information I didn’t have the canteen in mind. We have a perfectly good restaurant in the building and I’ve made reservations for-’ he glanced at his wrist-watch ‘-five minutes’ time. So shall we go, Keira?’

‘I really can’t…’ Keira began, but Eden had turned back to his nephew.

‘Don’t let us keep you, Daniel. No doubt you’ve got work to do, too,’ Eden dismissed the younger man and Daniel’s mouth tightened as a silent battle went on between the two men.

Keira saw the almost imperceptible jut of Daniel’s chin as he flushed slightly. She had no wish to see Daniel embarrassed any further in a contest the younger man was ill-equipped to win.

‘I’ll no doubt see you before I leave,’ Eden added, and Daniel lifted his chin.

‘Don’t worry about that,’ he put in sulkily. I’ll be pretty busy and going from job to job so you probably won’t catch up with me. I’ll see you tonight at the apartment,’ he finished, a bite to his voice, and Eden glanced at him.

‘I can only spare an hour,’ Keira cut in quickly and flashed Daniel what she hoped was a reassuring smile. ‘Perhaps you wouldn’t mind letting Roxie know where I’ll be if she needs me?’

Daniel hesitated for a moment, then gave Keira a meaningful look before nodding and leaving them, closing the door behind him with quiet hostility.

‘Was it necessary to belittle Daniel in front of me?’ Keira asked into the ensuing silence.

‘You would have preferred I invite him to join us?’ he came back coldly, his blue eyes chilling, and Keira snatched up her handbag.

‘Not for the reasons you’re implying. And if this is going to be another lecture of dire warnings about seducing your nephew then-’

‘I have no intention of mentioning Daniel,’ he remarked drily. ‘I suspect it would only be giving you more ammunition to use against me. And I’m sure you have enough already,’ he added, his voice imperceptibly lower, a nuance that didn’t pass unnoticed by Keira’s sensitised nerve-endings.

‘Shall we go?’ He opened the door and stood back for Keira to precede him. ‘And perhaps we should stamp certain subjects taboo for the duration of the meal, in the interests of good digestion.’

With one swift glance at the quirk of amusement that lifted the corners of his mouth, Keira stepped into the hallway.

If only he weren’t so incredibly attractive to her. To every woman, she reminded herself caustically as she continued across to the lifts, every centimetre of her so aware of his hard body so close beside her. That he still had the power to move her more physical senses at a basic level shocked and to no small extent shamed her somehow.

She was a long way along from the virginal eighteen-year-old she’d been when she’d met Dennis, but she would hardly describe herself as a woman of the world in that respect.

Perhaps that was why her immediate response to this man, this so obviously experienced man, filled her with a fear of the hold his magnetism could exert over her. And the fear that her capitulation could be so overtly easy.

Fortunately the lift doors slid open immediately and Keira breathed a quick sigh of relief to see that at least half a dozen other people would be sharing the cubicle with them as they sped upwards.

The maître d’ met them as they stepped into the restaurant, and it was obvious he had been waiting for Eden’s arrival.

In no time at all they were seated at a table over-looking a magnificent panorama of the city and the harbour. As Keira watched, a Manly ferry left its berth by the Harbour Bridge and headed out to round the Opera House.

With a flourish the menus appeared and Keira gave hers her attention, trying to concentrate on the flowing script. But nothing seemed to make sense. Except the knowledge that Eden’s body was so very close to hers. In fact she rather fancied she could feel the heat emanating from his skin. And if she moved her arm just a fraction they would touch.

She blinked, lifting her gaze over the top of the menu to meet Eden’s steady blue eyes, and he raised his eyebrows enquiringly.

Keira realised he must have spoken and she moistened her dry lips with her tongue-tip. I’m sorry. I’m not sure… I’m not really very hungry,’ she finished lamely and Eden reached across and took the menu from her nerveless fingers.

‘Two club sandwiches,’ he said evenly as he handed the menus to the hovering waiter. ‘And some wine. My usual.’

Keira drew a sharp breath, her eyes narrowing. She had to pull herself together, rebuild her resolve. Did he think he was going to woo her with expensive wine and an intimate setting?

And their table was secluded, she realised now. They were totally isolated from the other lunchers. Yes, it was far too intimate. And Eden Cassidy was far too close for comfort.

She had to put some distance between them. It was her only defence.

‘What do you want, Mr Cassidy?’ she repeated her earlier query as evenly as she could, deciding to return the ball firmly into his court.

‘What do you think I want, Mrs Strong?’ he countered, relaxing indolently back in his chair.

‘I really can’t imagine, but I suppose there is a reason why you came all the way down here. I mean, a man with a media conglomerate to run, one as extensive as Cassidy-Ford Publishing, wouldn’t be visiting one of his lowly subsidiaries just to share an undoubtedly expensive club sandwich with…’ She paused, valiantly trying to finish the sentence without becoming even more enmeshed in the conversational web she’d woven about herself.

‘With?’ he prompted, infuriatingly nonchalant, but Keira’s mind had drawn a blank. ‘With a very attractive woman?’ he suggested, and her hackles rose, but only after she’d consciously quelled that split second of heady excitement his provocative words evoked.

‘With one of your insignificant underlings,’ she bit out, her grey eyes bright with an anger that was aimed as much at herself as it was at him. ‘Especially one who has so recently knocked you back,’ she added, unable to guard her impetuous tongue.

‘Knocked me back?’ He shook his dark head in mock dismay. ‘Come now, Keira, I prefer to refer to it as exercised your freedom of choice. Much more refined, don’t you think?’

Keira watched him sceptically. Was his seemingly genuine bonhomie another ploy? Or had his ego taken her rejection of his outrageous proposal without offence? In the unlikely event that this was so, then why was he here?

One fairly obvious reason came immediately to mind. The rumours that had been rife throughout the magazine’s staff in the past week, rumours of employment cuts.

Keira went a little cold. Was he going to fire her? Wine her and dine her and then tell her he was dispensing with her services? That her failure to take him up on his blatant proposition was to put paid to her career?

If that was the case, he’d find he’d victimised the wrong woman. She’d never allow him to get away with it. She’d…

‘Wrong on all counts, Keira,’ he said seriously, straightening in his chair as the waiter appeared with the wine. They spent several moments while a taste was proffered to Eden and he’d nodded an acknowledgment.

‘As a matter of fact I have come to discuss business. And this time I think I’ll have an offer you can’t refuse,’ he added, his lips twisting self-derisively as he raised his glass to his lips.

Keira watched, that same traitorous craving rising in her, until she was almost hypnotised by the pursing of his lips on the wine glass, the movement of the muscles in his throat as he swallowed, and she had to force herself to concentrate on his words. Desperately she took a gulp of her own wine.

‘However, before we go into that,’ he was continuing, ‘I’d like you to tell me something about Natural Life.’

Keira sat forward in surprise. ‘With respect to what? Cassidy-Ford bought the magazine over five years ago and-’ she shrugged ‘-a couple of issues later it was discontinued.’

‘You started the magazine with a friend, I believe.’

‘Yes. With a schoolfriend. We were cadet journalists together and we decided to try Natural Life on a small scale and see how it went. We were reasonably successful considering the fact that we were novices and produced the whole thing on a shoestring budget. We were just beginning to get our heads above water financially when Cassidy-Ford made its offer. But you must know all this.’ Keira set down her glass and absently rubbed at the tension in the back of her neck.

‘Why did you sell out?’ he asked without comment.

‘Why wouldn’t we, when the price was right?’ Keira parried.

‘Humour me with this, Keira, hmm?’ he said equitably, his voice quietly persuasive. ‘What was the real reason?’ he persisted, and Keira sighed, knowing she had no defence against his pervasive probing.

‘Gail, my partner, married a few months before I did but within the year she’d given birth to a set of twins, so she was finding it difficult to devote as much time to the magazine as it required. She felt bad about putting more and more of the physical burden on me so-’ Keira gestured resignedly with her hands ‘-we decided the best interests of the magazine and our small staff would be served by accepting your offer. Gail and I both got our financial investment back and none of the staff, including myself, lost jobs.’

‘Why do you think Cassidy-Ford discontinued the publishing of the magazine? It was a growing concern when we bought it. What went wrong?’

Keira eyed him undecidedly and took another stalling sip of her wine, suddenly becoming aware that she’d almost finished her glass.

‘Don’t get evasive on me,’ he said quickly. ‘You’ve been honest, sometimes brutally so, until now, and I can assure you I wouldn’t ask if I didn’t want your opinion.’

‘Fair enough. I think you had too many overheads for the limited market. We were producing the number of magazines to fill the demand. When Cassidy-Ford took over they tried to increase that demand when the demand wasn’t there.’ Keira regarded him levelly. ‘Of course, I could be wrong.’

Eden’s lips quirked but he made no comment as the waiter materialised with their meal. He placed before them an appetising stack of sandwiches surrounded by crisp salad, and only when she looked at the well-presented food did Keira realise she was hungry. Her tummy tightened as she reached for her cutlery.

They ate in silence for some time and only when Keira set down her fork did Eden motion to the waiter for coffee.

‘Now, where were we?’ he remarked when they were alone again. ‘Ah, yes. You were telling me where we went wrong with Natural Life.’

‘You did ask for my opinion,’ Keira put in quickly. ‘And that’s simply what I gave you. My opinion.’

Eden took a sip of his coffee, grimaced, and added a little more sugar. ‘Don’t be so prickly. Although I suppose you have every right to be, don’t you? Look, Keira, perhaps we started out on the wrong foot. Well, I did, anyway. But I’d prefer not to be in constant dispute with you.’

‘I really can’t see any point in-’ Keira started to say, and he held up his hand.

‘Hear me out, Keira, before you give me the verbal reprimand I undoubtedly deserve. I’ve spoken to Daniel and he assures me you are just good friends.’

‘Which I also told you,’ Keira put in drily.

‘Which you also told me,’ he agreed easily. ‘However, in my defence, as Daniel’s guardian I was simply concerned about him. We haven’t been seeing eye to eye lately over this business about deferring his studies so-’ he shrugged ‘-I guess I was all primed up to over-react and I did. I’d like to apologise. So let’s call a truce, hmm?’

Keira held his dark gaze for long moments before giving a slight acquiescing nod, while her defences suggested vehemently that she keep up her guard.

‘All that aside, I wanted to say I know just how good you are at your job,’ Eden continued evenly. ‘And I’m aware of how much of yourself you put into Chloe. It shows in the finished product.’

‘I’m just the assistant editor, Mr Cassidy.’ Keira fought the wave of pleasure that washed over her at his praise. Yet part of her warned her to beware. ‘Dianna-’

‘For God’s sake, call me Eden,’ he broke in. ‘And I don’t want to discuss Dianna Forester. Can’t you accept a compliment on your ability for what it’s worth?’

‘When there aren’t any strings attached, yes, I can,’ Keira replied just as forthrightly, and Eden sighed exasperatedly.

‘I thought we’d finished with that. There aren’t any strings, I assure you. Now, to get back to Natural Life. If we decided to recommence publication, what would you like to see retained, discarded or added?’

‘Are you going to publish the magazine again?’

‘Perhaps. Our research shows that today’s climate is more suitable for that type of publication.’

‘How long have you been considering reissuing Natural Life?’ Keira asked him suspiciously, wondering if he might have conjured up what may very well be a bogus ploy to do more checking on a woman he considered an unacceptable match for his nephew.

Eden shrugged. ‘A couple of months. We’ve done all the research and now I’m here to confer with you as the magazine’s previous editor,’ he finished blandly. ‘So, let’s hear your ideas.’

His query seemed genuine enough, Keira thought uneasily and then she frowned, realising that in spite of her misgivings he’d peaked her interest. ‘If you intend to pick up where you left off with Natural Life then I think perhaps you need to broaden its guidelines. Don’t aim the magazine at one socio-economic group. The articles should be of interest to a more diverse audience than they were before. The focus of the original magazine was fairly limited.’

Eden opened his briefcase and took out a folder, shifting his coffee-cup so he could spread it out in front of him. ‘I have a list of the regular features, those which rated highly and those our survey suggested we discard.’

He handed Keira a loose sheet and she glanced down at it, skimming the list with interest before she nodded and went to pass the paper back to him.

‘Keep it. I have my copy here. Do you think the survey was on track?’ he asked.

‘Pretty much so. I agree the articles should appeal to both sexes. With both men and women working, the woman isn’t necessarily the exclusive homemaker, even more so now than was the case ten years ago. There should also be something geared to the unemployed, of interest but still affordable.’

Eden made short, concise notes on his copy and Keira watched the sure movements of his hand, the furrow of complete attention etched between his dark brows. And the unnerving part of her that registered his undeniable physical attributes swung so easily into gear that she tensed painfully. Her nerve endings quivered, the sensations all but distracting her, and she had to force herself to regain her own concentration.

‘Nowadays a lot more people are interested in the environment,’ she continued quickly, ‘so I feel a magazine like this one could carry more information about that, especially articles that are plain and easy to understand, targeted at the layman and not bogged down in a lot of technical mumbo jumbo.’

Eden smiled faintly and Keira flushed, but persisted defiantly.

‘I’d also like to see occasional reports on the national heritage, exclusively Australian. That was something we planned before we sold the magazine. As a matter of fact you could probably use and expand a lot of the bylines from the old magazine,’ she added thoughtfully.

‘Such as?’ he enquired, looking up.

‘Well, perhaps the general everyday information columns.’

Eden consulted his notes again. ‘I see one of your most popular and successful columns was a write-in questionanswer type on health, naturopathy, pets, etcetera, called “Ask Aunt Aggie”.’

‘Yes,’ Keira agreed slowly. “It featured household hints, repairs and remedies, and old-fashioned recipes using tried and true methods which struck a happy medium between ones that are quick and easy using natural ingredients, and ones that began with “go out and slaughter your ox”. Of course, the name’s a little trite but-’ she shrugged ‘-it worked.’

Eden sat back regarding her and Keira shifted uneasily in her seat. ‘We got good feedback on that particular column,’ he said thoughtfully. ‘So, you feel the magazine would work this time around?’

Keira nodded. ‘I don’t see why it wouldn’t. Allowing that this isn’t the best economic climate for starting a business venture, the magazine would have to have topical appeal and if your research points out that it does, well, it sounds more than viable.’

Eden consulted his file. ‘And some of these contributors-do you think they would be available to work on Natural Life again? Especially this Miss Agatha Rains, who apparently created Ask Aunt Aggie?’

A small smile played about Keira’s lips and Eden’s eyes narrowed to centre on them. ‘There’d be no problem with Aunt Aggie, and I’m sure the others would also be available.’

‘Good. Which brings me to my final question. How would you like to take on the job of editor of the revamped Natural Life?’

Keira stared at him for surprised seconds. ‘Me? But-’

‘You’ve done it before.’

‘Not on the scale you’re obviously talking about and, besides, we’re snowed under at the moment. I couldn’t spare the time from Chloe right now.’

‘I wouldn’t expect you to cover both positions. As I said, you’ve been doing an outstanding job.’

Keira went to speak and Eden held up his hand. ‘And I know all about the situation that exists with the staff. I’ve been aware of it for some time. Let’s leave it at that and not go into the politics of personalities, hmm? I wouldn’t offer you this promotion if I didn’t think you could handle it. All that remains is for you to decide whether or not you want it.’

‘I’m flattered but I… Well, I haven’t really given any thought to changing jobs. I expected to…’

‘Go on doing what you’re doing now? One of my snoops-’ he grimaced ‘-tells me you can do the job with your eyes closed. That’s no challenge.’

Keira felt her cheeks colour. ‘What makes you think I need a challenge?’ she asked shakily, and he raised one dark brow.

‘Let’s just say I’m a fantastic judge of character. So, yes or no?’

‘You want to know right now?’

‘Why not now?’

‘There are considerations. I mean, what happens with Chloe?’

‘All that will be taken care of.’

‘And what about staff for the new magazine?’

‘You can choose your own staff.’ He removed another sheet from his folder and passed it across to her. ‘That’s a suggested list of positions. Read it through and you can make your recommendations to fill them. You can create or delete if you feel it’s necessary and we’ll discuss it.’

Keira glanced down at the list in amazement. On paper it seemed as though she could write her own ticket, so to speak. It was far too good to be true. Would she have to pay for such generosity in the long run, be held on a tight editorial rein by the powers-that-be?

‘If I do take the position I’d want to know what or who I’ll be up against,’ she said slowly, and Eden Cassidy provocatively held her gaze.

‘Who you’ll be up against? Now there’s a thought,’ he said softly, and Keira’s heartbeats accelerated in immediate response.

‘You wish,’ she said as softly, smiling despite herself, and he raised one fine dark brow again.

‘Oh, I do. I can’t dispute that. However, that has nothing whatsoever to do with Natural Life and I wouldn’t be foolish enough to jeopardise Cassidy-Ford’s chances of getting the best person for this position. So I’d better reassure you I’d only be on the periphery of the venture. Technically, you’d be top dog. And you needn’t even contact me directly if you didn’t want to. You could report via Denver Clarkson, as Dianna does now.’

‘And I’d have final say as to my staff?’

He nodded.

‘You say I’d have editorial independence but just what would that mean in terms of the day-to-day editorial decisions?’

‘It would be exactly the same as it is with Chloe. I have trust in you and your judgement. You’ve edited this type of magazine before and you’ve excelled in your present position. I see no problem with your having editorial autonomy.’

Keira returned her gaze to the papers in front of her. Tremors of excitement welled within her. It was really the job she’d been working towards all these years since the failure of her marriage. Admittedly she’d allowed her ambition to slip on to the back burner this past year or so, but there was no denying that a position such as the one he was offering her had been her goal, the pinnacle of her chosen career.

Now it was within her grasp. She simply had to reach out and take it. And less than a week ago she would have killed for this chance.

So why was she hesitating? Her heart skipped a beat. The answer to that question sat right in front of her. Climbing this rung of the ladder took her one step closer to Eden Cassidy.

She was well aware that Dianna Forester, as editor of one of Cassidy-Ford’s publications, often attended various meetings where Eden Cassidy presided. Dianna would return and with studied casualness drop his name into the conversation, much to Roxie Denahey’s disgust.

Keira’s mind shot off at another tangent. Roxie would be the first person she’d add to her new staff. Roxie was competent and trustworthy and they got on so well, always had, which wasn’t the case with Roxie and Dianna.

She could also offer positions to-Keira stopped the direction of her train of thought. She was acting as though she’d decided to take on the job when…

‘What’s your decision?’ Eden’s deep voice made her start slightly and she raised grey eyes to meet his. ‘Assistant editor of the tried and true, or editor of our new endeavour?’