this evening, Mr. Randolph," she assured him stiffly, not giving an inch.
Something black and dangerous flared deep in the back of his eyes and she covertly watched a small muscle jump along the hard bone of his jaw line. She met his eyes steadily, but only she knew the effort it cost her. Suddenly she knew that this man could be utterly ruthless. The Van Metres might have been descended from a pirate, but this man would be his modern-day counterpart. There was a natural air of command and inflexibility of purpose emanating from him in an aura so tangible she could almost see rather than sense it.
He had meant, had expected, to see her dressed normally at the office this morning and her failure to do so had, for some reason, disproportionately angered him. She wouldn't have thought him an unreasoning autocrat, but unless she were to think that her failure to appear in her normal guise had disappointed him, that he was eager to see what she really looked like, she could only conclude that he expected every order to be immediately carried out.
With the inspiration born of desperation she gestured at the papers she had left on his desk earlier. His eyes dropped to follow her motion, but before she could say something, a most welcome interruption occurred. Miss Barth, glancing through the doorway, noticed that Keri was in seemingly intimate conversation with Mr. Randolph and some instinctive, territorial reaction brought her bustling in with the morning mail.
Keri relaxed in relief. Dain glared at the unfortunate Miss Barth, who stuttered in dismayed explanation. "I ... I thought you'd like your morning mail, Mr. Randolph. M-may I bring you a cup of coffee?"
Seizing the chance with both hands, Keri murmured, "I'll get to my own work, Mr. Randolph," and exited with graceful haste.
The rest of the day was strained. A resentful Miss Barth gave Keri a briefing on the reception arrangements and Keri caught the other woman studying her closely several times with a suspicious intensity. Keri did nothing but look blandly back at her every time their eyes met, but she knew, with a sinking heart, that when she came to work j on Monday, Miss Barth was not going to be pleased. She might already have suspicions, but the reality of Keri's natural appearance was not going to come as a pleasant surprise to her co-worker. Keri was refusing to think just what it was going to be to Mr. Dain Randolph.
Mrs. Covey seemed oblivious to the cross- and under-1 currents that swirled within the office suite. She typed and filed with all of her usual phlegm, but she accepted Keri's overture for lunch with flattering alacrity; Keri didn't deceive herself that it was solely for the pleasure of her company. Mrs. Covey might not be in competition for Mr. Randolph's attentions, but she had all the normal curiosities of her sex and she had tried more than once to genteelly pump Keri. Keri had equally genteelly remained unpumpable.
Unfortunately, the old order changeth and Keri wasn't going to be able to remain aloof if she planned to continue working at RanCo much longer. She was going to have to tap the office grapevine for information and Mrs. Covey was sure to prove a convenient as well as fruitful source.
They chose a small nearby restaurant because Keri felt the need to escape totally from the environs of RanCo for even so short a time as the lunch break. Miss Barth had smugly informed her fellow secretaries that she and Mr. Randolph would be sharing a working lunch. Keri silently wished her the best of luck with what the other secretary obviously saw as a heaven-sent opportunity.
While Keri was pouring oil and vinegar over her chefs salad, and wondering how to find out what she wanted to know with as much subtlety as was possible in the circumstances, Mrs. Covey obligingly saved her the trouble. She flew to the subject of Dain Randolph like a homing pigeon to its favorite roost.
"Isn't Mr. Randolph an interesting man?" she enthused.
"Mmm, yes,
Something black and dangerous flared deep in the back of his eyes and she covertly watched a small muscle jump along the hard bone of his jaw line. She met his eyes steadily, but only she knew the effort it cost her. Suddenly she knew that this man could be utterly ruthless. The Van Metres might have been descended from a pirate, but this man would be his modern-day counterpart. There was a natural air of command and inflexibility of purpose emanating from him in an aura so tangible she could almost see rather than sense it.
He had meant, had expected, to see her dressed normally at the office this morning and her failure to do so had, for some reason, disproportionately angered him. She wouldn't have thought him an unreasoning autocrat, but unless she were to think that her failure to appear in her normal guise had disappointed him, that he was eager to see what she really looked like, she could only conclude that he expected every order to be immediately carried out.
With the inspiration born of desperation she gestured at the papers she had left on his desk earlier. His eyes dropped to follow her motion, but before she could say something, a most welcome interruption occurred. Miss Barth, glancing through the doorway, noticed that Keri was in seemingly intimate conversation with Mr. Randolph and some instinctive, territorial reaction brought her bustling in with the morning mail.
Keri relaxed in relief. Dain glared at the unfortunate Miss Barth, who stuttered in dismayed explanation. "I ... I thought you'd like your morning mail, Mr. Randolph. M-may I bring you a cup of coffee?"
Seizing the chance with both hands, Keri murmured, "I'll get to my own work, Mr. Randolph," and exited with graceful haste.
The rest of the day was strained. A resentful Miss Barth gave Keri a briefing on the reception arrangements and Keri caught the other woman studying her closely several times with a suspicious intensity. Keri did nothing but look blandly back at her every time their eyes met, but she knew, with a sinking heart, that when she came to work j on Monday, Miss Barth was not going to be pleased. She might already have suspicions, but the reality of Keri's natural appearance was not going to come as a pleasant surprise to her co-worker. Keri was refusing to think just what it was going to be to Mr. Dain Randolph.
Mrs. Covey seemed oblivious to the cross- and under-1 currents that swirled within the office suite. She typed and filed with all of her usual phlegm, but she accepted Keri's overture for lunch with flattering alacrity; Keri didn't deceive herself that it was solely for the pleasure of her company. Mrs. Covey might not be in competition for Mr. Randolph's attentions, but she had all the normal curiosities of her sex and she had tried more than once to genteelly pump Keri. Keri had equally genteelly remained unpumpable.
Unfortunately, the old order changeth and Keri wasn't going to be able to remain aloof if she planned to continue working at RanCo much longer. She was going to have to tap the office grapevine for information and Mrs. Covey was sure to prove a convenient as well as fruitful source.
They chose a small nearby restaurant because Keri felt the need to escape totally from the environs of RanCo for even so short a time as the lunch break. Miss Barth had smugly informed her fellow secretaries that she and Mr. Randolph would be sharing a working lunch. Keri silently wished her the best of luck with what the other secretary obviously saw as a heaven-sent opportunity.
While Keri was pouring oil and vinegar over her chefs salad, and wondering how to find out what she wanted to know with as much subtlety as was possible in the circumstances, Mrs. Covey obligingly saved her the trouble. She flew to the subject of Dain Randolph like a homing pigeon to its favorite roost.
"Isn't Mr. Randolph an interesting man?" she enthused.
"Mmm, yes,
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