situation.
‘Genevieve! I wondered where you’d disappeared to!’ His voice was loud and commanding. ‘Excuse us …’ he added in an aside to the blond man.
She suddenly found her hand encased firmly in his and his arm slid strongly around her waist, propelling her at a stumblingly fast pace towards the exit. Many more heads turned. Interested faces passed Jen by in a blur. As they descended the stone steps onto the frosty street the icy cold air hit her and made her head spin. She was vaguely aware of a crowd moving towards them, saw cameras and mobile phones raised as people clocked just who it was she was in a clinch with.
She struggled free and put a pace between them, intending to swing round on her heel and give Alex a piece of her mind. She didn’t care what media grief that might cause him. She’d had it with his interference. Even though her knees went buckly and he caught her again around the waist, before she could hit the frozen pavement, she refused to let him get away with this.
‘What the hell do you think you’re doing?’ She snapped crossly. ‘I was well
in
there! ‘
CHAPTER FOUR
A LEX managed to hold his tongue until they were out of earshot of the press. Having rushed her into the safety of the back of his car, he had his driver head back to the apartment.
‘Well in there?’
he said through gritted teeth, wondering why he was so angry. ‘That was not a school dance and you are not fourteen. Do you realise you just threw champagne over Viscount Dulverwell?’
To his utter amazement, instead of looking ashamed or embarrassed, she actually looked even more pleased with herself.
‘Hah! A viscount, eh? I knew it! The watch gave it away.’ She hiccupped suddenly and clapped her hand over her mouth.
His lips quirked. The sooner he got some black coffee into her the better.
‘Anyway, why are you so annoyed?’ She jabbed a finger at his chest. ‘What were you doing there? Are you checking up on me?’
‘No, I am not!’ he snapped in exasperation.‘I’m being seen in the right places. Looking respectable. Looking
single
. And escorting a drunk young woman off the premises was definitely
not
part of my plan.’ He glanced sideways at her, taking in her delectably dishevelled state. ‘You’d better hope no one got a picture.’
He imagined for a moment the fallout if the chaos of the last fifteen minutes made it into tomorrow’s papers. His PR team would have him becoming a hermit next. But suddenly Alex realised none of this made him the slightest bit regretful. If anything, absconding from the dull exhibition, rescuing a delightfully out-of-her-depth Jen, felt like a small victory in the face of the ridiculous media manipulation supposedly taking place on his behalf.
‘Why do it, then?’ she asked him.
‘Do what?’
She gave an exaggerated shrug. ‘Why escort me anywhere?’
She leaned in towards him, putting a slim hand on his arm and enveloping him in the vanilla scent of her perfume. His pulse kicked in response, hard.
‘Why not just ignore me, let me get on with my evening while you do whatever it is you people do at these places? Buy one of those ghastly pictures, maybe? I didn’t ask you to drag me out of there. I was managing perfectly well by myself.’
Thrown by his body’s instant reaction to her touch, he plucked her hand from his arm and moved it back into her own personal space.
‘I was saving you from making a total fool of yourself,’ he said. Not strictly true. The sensible thing would have been to leave her to her own devices, keep as much space between them as he could.
He refused to acknowledge how he’d felt on spotting her across the gallery. At first he’d assumed she was there watching him, convinced as he was that she was now planning to write some story about him. But a few minutes’ observation had made it obvious she hadn’t a clue that he was there. Intrigued as to what on earth she was doing there on her own, he’d been unable
‘Genevieve! I wondered where you’d disappeared to!’ His voice was loud and commanding. ‘Excuse us …’ he added in an aside to the blond man.
She suddenly found her hand encased firmly in his and his arm slid strongly around her waist, propelling her at a stumblingly fast pace towards the exit. Many more heads turned. Interested faces passed Jen by in a blur. As they descended the stone steps onto the frosty street the icy cold air hit her and made her head spin. She was vaguely aware of a crowd moving towards them, saw cameras and mobile phones raised as people clocked just who it was she was in a clinch with.
She struggled free and put a pace between them, intending to swing round on her heel and give Alex a piece of her mind. She didn’t care what media grief that might cause him. She’d had it with his interference. Even though her knees went buckly and he caught her again around the waist, before she could hit the frozen pavement, she refused to let him get away with this.
‘What the hell do you think you’re doing?’ She snapped crossly. ‘I was well
in
there! ‘
CHAPTER FOUR
A LEX managed to hold his tongue until they were out of earshot of the press. Having rushed her into the safety of the back of his car, he had his driver head back to the apartment.
‘Well in there?’
he said through gritted teeth, wondering why he was so angry. ‘That was not a school dance and you are not fourteen. Do you realise you just threw champagne over Viscount Dulverwell?’
To his utter amazement, instead of looking ashamed or embarrassed, she actually looked even more pleased with herself.
‘Hah! A viscount, eh? I knew it! The watch gave it away.’ She hiccupped suddenly and clapped her hand over her mouth.
His lips quirked. The sooner he got some black coffee into her the better.
‘Anyway, why are you so annoyed?’ She jabbed a finger at his chest. ‘What were you doing there? Are you checking up on me?’
‘No, I am not!’ he snapped in exasperation.‘I’m being seen in the right places. Looking respectable. Looking
single
. And escorting a drunk young woman off the premises was definitely
not
part of my plan.’ He glanced sideways at her, taking in her delectably dishevelled state. ‘You’d better hope no one got a picture.’
He imagined for a moment the fallout if the chaos of the last fifteen minutes made it into tomorrow’s papers. His PR team would have him becoming a hermit next. But suddenly Alex realised none of this made him the slightest bit regretful. If anything, absconding from the dull exhibition, rescuing a delightfully out-of-her-depth Jen, felt like a small victory in the face of the ridiculous media manipulation supposedly taking place on his behalf.
‘Why do it, then?’ she asked him.
‘Do what?’
She gave an exaggerated shrug. ‘Why escort me anywhere?’
She leaned in towards him, putting a slim hand on his arm and enveloping him in the vanilla scent of her perfume. His pulse kicked in response, hard.
‘Why not just ignore me, let me get on with my evening while you do whatever it is you people do at these places? Buy one of those ghastly pictures, maybe? I didn’t ask you to drag me out of there. I was managing perfectly well by myself.’
Thrown by his body’s instant reaction to her touch, he plucked her hand from his arm and moved it back into her own personal space.
‘I was saving you from making a total fool of yourself,’ he said. Not strictly true. The sensible thing would have been to leave her to her own devices, keep as much space between them as he could.
He refused to acknowledge how he’d felt on spotting her across the gallery. At first he’d assumed she was there watching him, convinced as he was that she was now planning to write some story about him. But a few minutes’ observation had made it obvious she hadn’t a clue that he was there. Intrigued as to what on earth she was doing there on her own, he’d been unable
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