great joke?
‘Don’t,’ she said, trying to still sound light and teasing, and yet not quite pulling it off. She found she couldn’t pretend it was all a joke, as she had the other day. Somehow, in the quiet candlelight, with Jason holding her gaze over the table, she couldn’t summon that light, airy insouciance that she always covered herself with, almost like armour. ‘I’m a bit sensitive about that,’ she managed lightly and Jason sat back, his expression turning speculative.
‘Why?’
Emily choked back a startled laugh. ‘Because you humiliated me, that’s why!’
Jason stared at her, his expression so utterly nonplussed that once again Emily was torn between laughter and a strange sense of hurt. ‘I humiliated you?’ he repeated, his tone quietly incredulous. ‘Sorry, Em, but I don’t quite see how that happened.’
She shook her head, refusing to discuss it. They’d gone over it once already, and it really was time to relegate that episode to the dim and dusty past. ‘Never mind. It hardly matters, Jason. It was seven years ago. I was practically a child.’
‘I know,’ he said, so softly Emily almost didn’t hear him. ‘I was quite aware of that at the time.’
Discomfited again, Emily said, ‘In any case, we were talking about Helen and Richard.’
‘Is there more to say on that subject?’
‘You might not think so, but as someone newly arrived to London, Helen surely would like to experience all it has to offer and meet a few—’
‘Oh, no, you don’t, Emily.’ Jason put his glass down and looked at her with a certain knowing sharpness that Emily didn’t really like, but at least she recognised it. This was how Jason had always looked at her, how he was , and it almost relieved her to have him treating her the same as he always did. Then she could treat him as she always did, and she’d stop feeling so unsettled, so…restless. ‘You aren’t planning to organise Helen, are you?’
‘Organise?’ Emily repeated, widening her eyes.
‘Yes, just as you did with Stephanie. She might have been your work superior and several years older than you, but you had her well in hand within months.’
Emily stared at him in surprise and with a little bit of affront. He made her sound like a bossy know-it-all when she was just outgoing. Unlike some people. ‘How would you know?’ she demanded. ‘If I remember correctly, you’d swanned off to Asia at the time.’
‘Swanned off?’ Jason repeated in wry disbelief. ‘I don’t think working twelve hours a day on a flood retention basin in Burma involved any swanning.’
‘How would you know what I was up to?’
Jason shrugged, his face impassive. ‘I have my sources. I know you organised her on a round of dinner parties and drinks outings, and Tim wasn’t your first attempt at a blind date—’
Emily’s mouth dropped open most inelegantly. ‘You’ve been spying on me—’
‘Keeping tabs,’ Jason cut across her. ‘I hired you when you came to London, and of course I had a vested interest in making sure you were keeping safe. Especially considering your father, Isobel and Jack would all have my head if anything happened to you.’
‘Nothing did,’ Emily said a bit sulkily. She didn’t like the thought of Jason knowing what she was up to. Here she’d been thinking to show him how sophisticated and poised she’d become in the last few years, only to discover he’d been keeping an eye on her all along, as if she were some recalcitrant child.
‘In any case,’ Jason continued, ‘my point is that while I’m perfectly happy for you to welcome Helen into the company and even show her around a bit, I draw the line at having her meet people or, God help us, involving yourself in any more matchmaking.’
‘So you do admit I had something to do with Steph and Tim!’ Emily said in triumph, and Jason reached for his wine.
‘Undoubtedly, but I’d like you to leave Helen and Richard alone so they can make a go of it,
‘Don’t,’ she said, trying to still sound light and teasing, and yet not quite pulling it off. She found she couldn’t pretend it was all a joke, as she had the other day. Somehow, in the quiet candlelight, with Jason holding her gaze over the table, she couldn’t summon that light, airy insouciance that she always covered herself with, almost like armour. ‘I’m a bit sensitive about that,’ she managed lightly and Jason sat back, his expression turning speculative.
‘Why?’
Emily choked back a startled laugh. ‘Because you humiliated me, that’s why!’
Jason stared at her, his expression so utterly nonplussed that once again Emily was torn between laughter and a strange sense of hurt. ‘I humiliated you?’ he repeated, his tone quietly incredulous. ‘Sorry, Em, but I don’t quite see how that happened.’
She shook her head, refusing to discuss it. They’d gone over it once already, and it really was time to relegate that episode to the dim and dusty past. ‘Never mind. It hardly matters, Jason. It was seven years ago. I was practically a child.’
‘I know,’ he said, so softly Emily almost didn’t hear him. ‘I was quite aware of that at the time.’
Discomfited again, Emily said, ‘In any case, we were talking about Helen and Richard.’
‘Is there more to say on that subject?’
‘You might not think so, but as someone newly arrived to London, Helen surely would like to experience all it has to offer and meet a few—’
‘Oh, no, you don’t, Emily.’ Jason put his glass down and looked at her with a certain knowing sharpness that Emily didn’t really like, but at least she recognised it. This was how Jason had always looked at her, how he was , and it almost relieved her to have him treating her the same as he always did. Then she could treat him as she always did, and she’d stop feeling so unsettled, so…restless. ‘You aren’t planning to organise Helen, are you?’
‘Organise?’ Emily repeated, widening her eyes.
‘Yes, just as you did with Stephanie. She might have been your work superior and several years older than you, but you had her well in hand within months.’
Emily stared at him in surprise and with a little bit of affront. He made her sound like a bossy know-it-all when she was just outgoing. Unlike some people. ‘How would you know?’ she demanded. ‘If I remember correctly, you’d swanned off to Asia at the time.’
‘Swanned off?’ Jason repeated in wry disbelief. ‘I don’t think working twelve hours a day on a flood retention basin in Burma involved any swanning.’
‘How would you know what I was up to?’
Jason shrugged, his face impassive. ‘I have my sources. I know you organised her on a round of dinner parties and drinks outings, and Tim wasn’t your first attempt at a blind date—’
Emily’s mouth dropped open most inelegantly. ‘You’ve been spying on me—’
‘Keeping tabs,’ Jason cut across her. ‘I hired you when you came to London, and of course I had a vested interest in making sure you were keeping safe. Especially considering your father, Isobel and Jack would all have my head if anything happened to you.’
‘Nothing did,’ Emily said a bit sulkily. She didn’t like the thought of Jason knowing what she was up to. Here she’d been thinking to show him how sophisticated and poised she’d become in the last few years, only to discover he’d been keeping an eye on her all along, as if she were some recalcitrant child.
‘In any case,’ Jason continued, ‘my point is that while I’m perfectly happy for you to welcome Helen into the company and even show her around a bit, I draw the line at having her meet people or, God help us, involving yourself in any more matchmaking.’
‘So you do admit I had something to do with Steph and Tim!’ Emily said in triumph, and Jason reached for his wine.
‘Undoubtedly, but I’d like you to leave Helen and Richard alone so they can make a go of it,
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