Free Ran From Him by Jenny Schwartz

definite.”
    “I hope so.” She finished rinsing the dishes and left them to drain. A tea towel was the one thing the kitchen lacked. She tore off a paper towel to dry her hands.
    “I go for a drive when I need to think. But your strategy seems much more rewarding.” Again, he looked at the cake.
    A smile escaped her. “Would you like a cup of tea and slice of cake? Dinner will be in a couple of hours—if you’ll be home for it?”
    “Wild horses couldn’t drag me out of here.”
    She grinned and filled the kettle.
    He got out mugs and a knife to cut the cake; a man who never lost sight of priorities.
    “Cake plates, too.” She bit the inside of her mouth when he looked blank. “You’re not Hansel to leave a trail of crumbs to mark your path.”
    He laughed. “You’ll be a great mum, Cate. But frankly, I don’t know if I have cake plates.”
    He did. She’d already found them, and now she bent and took two from a low cupboard. When she turned to present them to Daniel, his boyish expression had changed into something older and more challenging. He’d been enjoying the sight of her derriere.
    His look flustered her, reminding her of last night. She didn’t know whether to apologise, explain or feign amnesia.
    He took the cake plates out of her hands, and the decision. “You’re an attractive woman, but just now I want cake more.”
    She laughed, not minding this once that he’d read her mind. “Have at it then.” And she poured the hot water into their mugs, dangling tea bags, while he cut the cake.
    He had generous ideas about the size of servings, but she didn’t argue. It was her belief that cooking burned enough calories for the end result to be indulged in.
    They carried their afternoon tea to the living area and sat down.
    “Wonderful cake,” he said after the first mouthful.
    It was an old reliable recipe for a rich chocolate cake, and just now, warm from the oven, it tasted like pudding.
    “It’s my favourite.”
    There was a friendly silence while they finished their cake, then she studied him over the rim of her mug.
    Even allowing for the smidgin of truth in the old saying, “the way to a man’s heart is through his stomach”, he was looking pleased with himself. Happier even than the best chocolate cake warranted.
    “Have you pulled a brilliant business move or something?”
    “A bit of both.” He stretched widely and grinned a Cheshire Cat grin. “You are looking at a free man.”
    “Explain.”
    “I’m handing over the day-to-day responsibility for the company to Tim Radjik. It took a while to find the right person and then to negotiate their package, but as of next month, Tim will be CEO and I’ll be free.” Daniel was too honest not to modify his statement somewhat. “Well, I’ll be Chairman, but that’s not as heavy a commitment in terms of time and physical presence.”
    She stared at him. “I thought the company was your baby. You built it into a success. You gave everything to it.”
    “Because I had to. I never dreamed of being a businessman. All I ever wanted was to dig up rocks. Mum says I never dug in the sandpit like a normal child, I excavated.”
    She smiled, imagining him as a serious blonde-haired toddler. But she shook her head, not understanding how he could give up the success he’d earned. “You’re good at business.”
    “I can be ruthless when I have to be, and I was lucky that my take-over of the company coincided with the mining boom, but I don’t get the same satisfaction from business that your dad and Rob do. They enjoy the competition and the details of a balance sheet.”
    “Rob doesn’t.”
    Daniel raised a dissenting eyebrow. “He does, you know. Maybe he didn’t in the past, but he’s grown into it.”
    Cate disagreed. Kind Rob couldn’t be like their dad.
    “Forget Rob.” Daniel set his mug on the coffee table. “We should be celebrating with champagne.” He grinned at her shudder. “Or brandy?”
    “Beast,” she