Free Temporary Intrigue by Judy Huston

thinking about things that no longer had anything to do with him.
    And to ignore that faint suggestion of her fragrance, somehow surviving and lingering above the pungent aroma of takeaway curried chicken.
    He could use the music to block out his thoughts and, by lowering the window, he could admit enough cold air to blast her perfume out of the car.
    But he could not dismiss the irrational sense of unease stirring within him, an unease that seemed to increase as each second took him further away from her.

CHAPTER FOUR

    “Smile!”
    Baring her teeth obediently, Dimity tried to look bright, alert and delighted to be at her desk in the marketing department of the Newcastle Global Homes Hotel. The end result, she suspected, would be fairly ordinary, but it was the best she could manage at nine o’clock on a Wednesday morning.
    Melissa clicked the digital camera.
    “Now, write a few lines about yourself and I’ll post it on the company’s intranet tomorrow.”
    “Is it worth it?” queried Dimity. “I’m only here for four weeks.”
    “We always do it.” Melissa checked the photo.
    “And you never know,” pointed out Dimity’s fellow PA, Amanda, “it might get you some work in one of our other departments.”
    Which, from Dimity’s experience to date, wasn’t such a bad prospect.
    “There’s enough work to keep you going, but take your time,” Melissa had advised while guiding her through orientation, introductions and an unfamiliar computer system on Monday. “Gail’s running workshops in Melbourne and won’t be back until Thursday. Things will pick up then.”
    Dimity had hardly been able to restrain a whoop at this postponement of the dreaded fronting up to Gail as a member of her staff. An added bonus was Melissa’s mention that Malcolm was also at the workshops.
    The chance to ease in was more than welcome. Despite Melissa’s friendly, laid-back style, Dimity had recognised immediately that the organisation was run on highly professional lines, always a worry for a serial bungler like herself. With a bit of luck, though, she would survive her stint.
    Make that a lot of luck, once Gail returned.
    In the small, cubby-hole like office adjoining the domains of Gail and Melissa that she shared with Amanda, Dimity concocted a truthful if vague account of her secretarial experience and emailed it to Melissa. Then, from the pile of papers already accumulated on her desk, she extracted some non-urgent work left over from yesterday. Yawning, she settled down to spin the task out until the ritual 10.30am coffee break.
    The only downside to a leisurely work day was that it gave her mind more time to wander. More often than not, without any conscious intention on her part, it wandered to Josh Williams.
    She was still haunted by the scene that had ruined a pleasant evening and had disturbed her sleep every night since then. He had been her guest, but she had sent him off without a smile, without a final ‘thank you’ for his help, without even wishing him a safe journey.
    While by contrast, he hadn’t forgotten the courtesies.
    “Take care,” he had said, but his manner had been withdrawn and the brown eyes, previously so warm and direct, had suddenly become cool and impersonal.
    Not that it mattered. Apart from having more than enough on her plate, she wouldn’t want to get involved with someone who seemed instinctively hostile towards her brother. He and Shane had reminded her of two dogs with their hackles raised, ready to launch themselves at each other’s throats.
    She was somewhat peeved at the way Sandra had continued to take Josh’s part.
    “You’ve always been so used to being a big sister to Shane that you’re not used to having someone step in and stand up for you ,” she had said when they went out for a quick meal on Sunday night to celebrate Dimity’s last night of freedom before starting work. “That’s all he was trying to do.”
    “So I’m prickly on some subjects. Too bad. I