Staying at Daisy's by Jill Mansell

octaves. ‘I didn’t do anything wrong! It was Dominic, not me. He told me how much he’d loved me and said I was perfect and then he just launched himself at me on that bench. I had no idea he was going to kiss me… I didn’t want him to kiss me…’
    ‘But I gather you did manage to show him your bra.’ Dev Tyzack feigned surprise. ‘The very same one you revealed to me not ten minutes earlier. I’m telling you, that bra must have been viewed by more people than the Oscars.’
    ‘The buttonhole on my uniform is loose,’ shouted Tara. ‘It just kept popping undone .’
    ‘I’m sorry.’ Icily, Daisy addressed Dev Tyzack. ‘But you aren’t helping matters here. In fact you’re being downright obnoxious. If we’re going to sort this out, you need to calm down and stop throwing wild accusations at my staff. As far as I’m concerned, your friend Dominic is the guilty one around here. Has it even occurred to you to fling any accusations in his direction?’
    Oh God, thought Tara, petrified. Daisy was losing it; she was going way over the top now. Her eyes were bright with fury, her fists clenched at her sides, and she looked as if she wanted to punch him. She was going to get into the most terrible trouble, the repercussions could be horrendous.
    This had evidently occurred to Dev Tyzack as well. A derisory smile twisted the corners of his mouth, the very mouth Tara had earlier thought so attractive. Well, she didn’t anymore.
    ‘Not a very professional thing for a hotel manager to say, is it?’
    ‘Maybe not,’ Daisy shot back, ‘but I am being truthful. If you’re going to be obnoxious, I’ll tell you you’re being obnoxious.’
    ‘Not worried that you might end up looking for another job?’ Dev Tyzack raised a mocking eyebrow.
    ‘I won’t get the sack for this, I can promise you. I have the owner’s full backing.’
    ‘Really? Aren’t you the lucky one. Who is the owner, might I ask?’ Having affected surprise, he now allowed his gaze to come to rest on a framed photograph on the desk. It was a group photograph featuring Daisy as a teenager, doubled up with laughter between her parents. Tanned and healthy, the three of them had been celebrating New Year’s Eve in the Cayman Islands and it was Daisy’s all-time favorite photo. ‘Oh, I see ,’ said Dev Tyzack. ‘The owner of this hotel is Hector MacLean and he just happens to be your father. Now I understand how you got the job.’
    Tara couldn’t bear it. Her stomach was churning like a tumble dryer. She was innocent but she felt guilty. And what if she wasn’t as innocent as she thought? Maybe she was just making pathetic excuses for herself to avoid having to admit that she should never have gone with Dominic to the summerhouse in the first place.
    What’s more, Daisy was looking more homicidal by the second. And there was a big brass letter opener on her desk, not to mention a ferocious-looking stapler that fired staples like a Kalashnikov.
    Praying that Daisy wouldn’t actually start firing it like a Kalashnikov, Tara clapped a hand to her mouth, muttered ‘’Scuse me, think I’m going to be sick,’ and made a bolt for the door.
    As she rushed from the office, she caught sight of Dominic. He was in the lounge bar across the hall, standing in front of the fireplace clutching a drink.
    Tara’s palms were clammy as she made her way towards him. The only other person in the room was Rocky, polishing glasses behind the bar and pulling a ‘Rather you than me’ face at her when he realized she was approaching Dominic.
    ‘Oh God. What do you want?’ Dominic didn’t look at all pleased to see her. Gone were the loving tones he’d employed twenty minutes earlier.
    That was fine by Tara.
    ‘You’ve lied to everyone.’ She came straight to the point. ‘You told them I threw myself at you.’
    There was a sheen of perspiration on his upper lip. He was gripping the tumbler of Scotch in his hand so tightly it was a wonder the