Running From Fate (43 page)

In fact, he though
t
, glancing at his watch,
everything would be ready soon so it was about time he made an appearance.
With a last glance in the mirror above his dresser
,
to check that he had managed to get all the flour out of his hair,
he straightened his collar and walked out the
bedroom
.
After a quick search he found Mira in the living room admiring the painting of King Arthur that hung above the fireplace.
  Rather than interrupt
,
he stood silently in the doorway and just watched.

Tonight she was dressed in a simple black cocktail dress that
covered
her arms and
fell to just below her knees.  It was refined and sedate,
but still managed to make her look sexy.
Hell, he thought, she had looked sexy with half her hair plastered against her head and wearing the previous night’s clothing.  Her shook his head, pulled his mind out of the gutter, and quietly stepped forward.

With her
head
tilted to the side and a dreamy look on her face, she reminded him of the young girl that she used to be.
He paused at the thought, examining his emotions for a trace of
the
anger that he had felt earlier
.  It
wasn’t there.
In
its
place was a remembered feeling of warmth
and companionship that he hadn’t experienced in many years.
With a light step
he crossed the room and stood behind her.

“That’s one of my favorite
pieces
,” he told Mira.
“I’ve always been f
ascinated by that period of
history.”

“I remember,” Mira replied.
“I spent most of my eight
h
year practicing sword fighting with a broom, but you never did let me play knights with you.”
She paused and smiled in remembrance
. 
“You called me ‘my lady’ for three whole months
that year
.
I wanted to bash you over the head with something.”

“If you though
t
you could have gotten away with it I’m sure you would have.
You were always a bit of a tomboy.”

“Not so much now,”
she
said softly.
“Anyway,” t
urning, she
looke
d
him in the eyes.
“There have always been women warriors so I don’t see
why it has to be a man’s domain.
Not all women are weak.”

“You will agree
though, won’t you
,
” James murmured as he move
d
closer, “that there are some benefits to the softer side?”

“I’m not sure what you’re
talking about.”
Mira tilted her head and unconsciously leaned forward, her
earlier caution
eclipsed by the heat
emanating from
his body
and feelings of remembered pleasure
.
“Why don’t you show me?”

“Why don’t I?” 
He reached out and
slowly pulled
her against his chest.

“Dinner is served.”
Winston announced from the doorway.

Mira sprang back like a guilty teenager and
banged her head against the wall, shaking the picture.  She raised a hand and rubbed at the sore spot
.

“Damn it,” James muttered as he spun toward the doorway.
He had been so close to assuaging the thirst that had been haunting him. 
“Couldn’t you see that I was busy?”

“
Excuse me sir, but I wasn’t aware that you would be
‘occupied’ so quickly
.  Besides,
” Winston said blandly, “we wouldn’t want the dinner you
worked so hard on to get cold, would we?”
He turned
on his heel and walked out
.

Well, James
sighed
, the moment was lost.
There was nothing else to do but get on with the evening.
 
“M
y lady.
”
  He
held out his arm.
“Would you care to join me?”

“Certainly.”  She hooked her arm around his and they strolled out of the room.

Mira had been worried about James
’
culinary skills, but t
he meal
turned out to be
excellent and
her host
kept her entertained with
stories
from his college years and amusing tales of their childhood together.
By the time dessert
was
served
,
a fluffy pastry concoction filled with fruit and cream,
she
was feeling relaxed enough to ease into the topic of the argument that had split them up.
If
a reconciliation
was going to happen
, and she was beginning to hope for one,
they needed to clear the air.

“You know,” she said carefully
as she sat down her fork and leaned back
.
  “
I went to see your dad
before I came to Raleigh.”
He made no comment so she felt it was safe to continue
. 
“He was actually the one who suggested that I
look into EcoSpace
.
You know, h
e’s very proud of what you’ve done with your life.”

“Look,”
James interrupted.
“I
may
have
rethought the situation and
forgiven you, but
he
does not deserve the
courtesy.”
He laid down his
own fork
and looked her in the eye.
“I won’t say that you can’t talk to Patrick Kelly, but I don’t want to know about it
. 
In fact,” he added
. 
“After this conversation, I never want to hear his name
again
.”
He had no wish to be harsh with her, but
if there was any chance for them she had to leave the subject alone.  Her expression had
hardened, however, and she looked ready to argue. 
He lowered his voice
almost to a growl and narrowed his eyes
, exuding an aura that made his rivals tremble.
“Is that clear?”

“I’m not going to let you threaten me,” Mira said
coolly.
She didn’t realize it but her expression and her posture were now mirroring his. 
“If a relationship is going to work we
have
to be on equal footing.  H
owever
,
” she added when it looked like he would interrupt.
“I will agree to your condition
.
A
t least until you
come
to your senses.”
For a brief moment it looked
like
he
was going to explode, but at the last second, his expression shifted and instead of
yelling at
her
he bent over convulsed in laughter.

“What’s so funny?”
she
demanded.
She didn’t
mind a
joke, even if it was aimed at
her, but she better damn well be in on it
.
And if he didn’t shut up soon she was going to hit him over the head with her dessert bowl.

“You should see the look on your face,” James chuckled as he wiped his eyes
with a convenient napkin
.
“If you had a gun, I’d swear you were going to shoot me.”

“The thought did cross my mind,
”
she growled.
“
What
did you find
so amusing?”

“You.”  She lifted up the bowl and actually looked like she was going to use it.  From previous experience he knew she had a good throwing arm.  “N
ow wait a second.”
He held up a hand.
  “Don’t get riled up
.
I didn’
t exactly mean that like it sounded.”
He watched
as she sat the potential weapon down and
tapped her
fingers on the table
.
He needed to
think of a way to get out of the hole he’d dug.
If he was trying to re-establish anything with Mira this was definitely not the way to go about it.
In his own defense, h
e
had momentarily
forgotten h
ow volatile her temper could be.
Of course,
from childhood experience he also knew that she was
pretty quick to forgive, especially if you had a good explanation, and
wasn’t one to
hold grudges.

“I’m waiting,” Mira said impatiently.

He
cleared his throat and tried to come up with the best way to phrase things.
“
I’m sure by now that
you must be aware of my reputation,” he began
.

“What does your predilection for going through women like water have to do with anything?”

“
The media exaggerates, as you should well know
and
a
nyway
, I was talking about my business reputation.”

“The fact tha
t your employees
all seem to
have
great respect for your abilities, but half of them live in fear of incurring your displeasure?”
He looked so uncomfortable that
Mira found her anger beginning to disappear.
Of course, considering his recent behavior, it wouldn’t hurt to let him struggle along by himself.
She leaned back and crossed her arms.