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restaurants in Cannes.'
    'How did you persuade him to leave?'
    'By offering him more money. That never fails— with anyone.'
    Caroline trembled and was glad he could not read her thoughts.
    'Do you spend enough time here to warrant a full-time chef?' she asked.
    'I come here often—but only for days at a time, and it's impossible to get decent help on a temporary basis. This way, if I feel like coming down on the spur of the moment, I know I don't have to worry.'
    She did not reply. How little one worried about money when one had a surfeit of it. She tried to imagine the cost of running a boat this size and boggled at the sum.
    'What next?' asked Matt, and with a start she saw a waiter standing beside her with a small sweet trolley.
    'I should only have fruit,' she replied.
    'But you won't?'
    'I never do what I should.'
    'Only where food is concerned!' he grunted. 'Whatever I offer, you always refuse.'
    'Then you should make me an offer I can't refuse.'
    'I might at that.' He did not elaborate. 'Let's have coffee inside.'
    They moved into the elegantly pine-panelled saloon, and Caroline strolled over to look at the Bonnard still life. Although she knew Matt regarded the yacht as another home, she could not believe he would keep such a valuable painting here.
    'They're exquisite,' she said as Matt joined her when she moved on to a small Renoir portrait of a young girl. 'But surely this can't be a very safe place to keep them?'
    'Safer than you imagine. The yacht is alarmed and there's always someone on board. In any case, there's no point having beautiful possessions if you're going to keep them locked away in a vault.'
    'I like the pictures you have in your home too,' she told him.
    'At one time I collected purely as a hedge against inflation. I very often didn't even bother to inspect what my agent had bought.'
    'Another William Randolph Hearst?' she asked with a smile.
    'Hardly,' he replied dryly. 'My humble collection would fit into one of the maids' bedrooms at San Simeon!'
    'What happened to arouse your interest, then?' she asked.
    'I went to a Sotheby's auction one morning. I'd never been before and it was an eye-opener to me. The challenge of outbidding a rival is something that appeals to my competitive nature—although there's always the danger of being carried away. I occasionally was at first—but I soon learned. Since then I've attended sales all over the world and learned to appreciate what I buy.'
    'Don't you think it's time Caroline went home?' Helen called from across the room. 'Lee wants to start work early in the morning.'
    Knowing how quick a camera lens was at picking up fatigue, Caroline conceded that Helen had a point, though Matt did not appear to appreciate it.
    'I'll drive you back to the hotel,' he told her. 'Lee and Ann can take the other car.'
    Wondering if this was the moment she had been anxiously awaiting, Caroline said goodnight to Mark and Helen, and carefully made her way down the gangplank.
    'The sooner Helen marries Mark, the better,' said Matt as they drove out of the harbour. 'I think she's jealous of your past relationship with him.'
    'Or my relationship with you?'
    'I can't think why she should be. If I were off her hands it would stop her worrying about me. She watches over me like a mother hen.'
    'Or a jealous woman.'
    'Don't be silly.' He dismissed the idea and took her hand in his. 'Let's not talk about Helen. Right now all I want is to talk about us.'
    With a sudden squeal of brakes he brought the car to a halt at the side of the deserted country road and pulled her into his arms.
    Caroline surrendered to his embrace, knowing this was what she had been longing for since they had been apart. Her senses became alive at his touch and she drowned in the ecstasy of their kiss. Her desire mounted and she pressed closer to him.
    'Matt darling,' she murmured, her body trembling. The sound of her own voice reawakened her sensibilities and she forced herself to draw away, knowing she