Free The Made Marriage by Henrietta Reid Page B

that the other diners were too wrapped up in their own affairs to notice her agitation.
    In spite of her distress s he became aware of the sudden muting of conversation as a young man and woman appeared in the doorway: the boy was exceptionally tall and slim, with olive dark skin and brown, slightly slanted, eyes that held a reckless glint; the girl had sleek dark hair that fell on either side of her face like a silky curtain, and with a start Kate realised that the small classically regular features were familiar. They were heading for a vacant table beside her and she felt a sense of panic as she heard a woman at a nearby table laugh and say to the man across from her, ‘Look who’s here! Nicky and that gorgeous au pair girl at the Fitzpatricks’!’
    Yes, it was definitely Doretta Denzzani, Kate realized, as they took their places. She tried to turn her chair sideways in the hope of avoiding Doretta’s bright encompassing gaze, but she was too late. The girl, after one surprised glance in her direction, turned and whispered something to her companion and, to Kate’s horror, she realised that she had become the target of the man’s s la nted fawn-like eyes and that slow comprehension was beginning to dawn in them so that they glittered with a mischievousness that was frightening and unrestrained.

 
    CHAPTER FOUR
    TO add to her discomfiture she felt conspicuous sitting alone at the table and noticed that several of the waitresses glanced at her curiously as they hurried past with laden trays. Then with a gush of relief she at last saw Owen’s tall figure appear in the doorway. He paused for a moment and his eyes traversed the room with the slow careless glance that she had already noticed missed very little.
    Catching sight of her anxious face, he strode towards her table, feeling a little irritable: an explanation no doubt would be expected for his tardiness. So already she was restricting his freedom, destroying his casual bachelor life, where there was no one but himself to answer to, no importunate female clutching possessively at his coat tails!
    As he took a seat across from her she leaned forward and hissed c onspiratorially, ‘Do you know who’s at the table behind you?’
    ‘Yes, of course,’ he answered coolly. ‘My cousin Nicky and the Fitzpatrick au pair girl, Doretta.’ He appeared faintly surprised at her air of suppressed excitement. ‘But what’s all the melodrama about? Nicky often comes here with the current girl-friend.’
    She drew herself upright, shocked at his casual reaction. ‘But he’s the man who sent me those horrible lying letters and brought me all this way for nothing, yet you sit there—’ She drew in her breath and tried to restrain herself as a waitress approached. When the girl had taken her order and departed she continued in a rush, ‘You’re so casual about it !’
    ‘What do you expect me to do?’ he retorted. ‘Challenge him to a duel ? After all, you’ve no one but yourself to blame for having landed in such a mess. Anyway, why this change of face ? I gathered you thought the letters pretty wonderful; full of sentiment and feeling, and all the qualities that I so obviously don’t possess in your estimation !’
    ‘But don’t you see, that’s what makes it so horrible! He obviously knew exactly the sort of thing a girl would like to hear and deliberately dragged me here on false pretences : it was cruel and heartless.’
    ‘If you feel so strongly about his iniquities,’ Owen told her coolly, ‘now’s your chance for a confrontation. Why don’t you go over and tell him exactly what you think of his behaviour?’
    ‘No need for that !’ a voice drawled behind them. ‘Here’s the horrid nasty Nicky in person. To be ticked off by such a pretty little bundle of love would be a real pleasure.’ Dismayed, Kate glanced up to find herself the absorbed focus of the two dark dancing eyes of the man who stood at her side. ‘May Doretta and I join you,