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Todos os capítulos de The Boss: A Cozy Romance: Capítulo 41 - Capítulo 50

78 Capítulos

41

THE Sovereign Islands sat in the Gold Coast Broadwater and were, Alex knew, arguably one of its most prestigious addresses. Houses that weren’t mansions only fell short of it by a small margin; the rest were. All of them had waterfront access either directly onto the Broadwater or linked to it by a series of canals.The Broadwater itself was protected from the might of the ocean by South Stradbroke Island and was a boating paradise. It shared its bounty, its white beaches, its slate-green mangroves and darker casuarinas, not only with sailors and fishermen, but a rich tapestry of bird life from pelicans and oystercatchers to migratory whimbrels. To Brahminy kites, sea eagles and even, although rarely, the black and white, long red- legged jabiru, big birds that looked as if they were dancing through the shallows as they fished.There were dolphins in the waters and wild wallabies on shore on South Stradbroke.The City of the Gold Coast to the south was a high-rise Mecca of sophisti

42

Alex absorbed this and thought a little more charitably about Nicky’s mother. ‘And … now?’ she queried quietly.‘Now? It was like being punched in the guts. The first words he said to me last night were, “Are you really my father? I didn’t actually believe I had one.” Now?’ he repeated with a nerve flickering in his jaw. ‘I won’t rest until he knows he has a father he can rely on.’It had all been said quietly, but Alex could see the intensity behind it and the resolution. She looked away and blinked back a tear.‘So that’s why,’ Max Goodwin said as he resumed massaging her ankle, ‘I’m prepared to go to quite some lengths to make this work out. And you—’ he gazed at her thoughtfully for a moment ‘—seem to have an intrinsic way with kids. How come?’She explained. ‘We used to get kids from way out west, boarders from Dirranbandi, Thargomindah and so on who were terribly homesick at first—it just seemed to come naturally to me.’‘Would it be so difficult for you to help me out at le

43

But there was also the concern she’d seen twice now in Paul O’Hara’s gaze; something seemed to tell her it was concern for her. Yes, possibly over a twisted ankle today, but yesterday there’d been that question mark, the definite question mark, about her relationship with Max Goodwin. She went still as it occurred to her that, as part of the family, Max’s cousin probably knew better than most that Max and Cathy would never get over each other. But they’d been apart for siX years, hadn’t they? And not that long ago he’d claimed he hadn’t even thought about her for a long time. She stared out of the window unseeingly. On the other hand, he hadn’t married anyone else in siX years and, surely, if there was a significant woman in his life she’d be part of these social functions for the Chinese consortium delegation? She shook her head and forced herself to concentrate on what was the cruX of the matter for her—if Max Goodwin was not for her, she’d learnt one thing in life painfully we

44

THE next three days were mostly peaceful.Both Jake Frost and Max had gone back to Brisbane and the household relaxed a little.Alex and Nicky explored the islands with Nemo, they swam, they walked to the nearest shopping village of Paradise Point with its pleasant beach and they fished off the jetty.The pool area of the Tuscan villa was especially beautiful. Enclosed in a walled garden, the pool was surrounded by thick emerald lawn and the walls were smothered in a variety of creepers; honeysuckle and jasmine scented the air and the starry little flowers of port-wine magnolia studded the dark green of its foliage. There were beds of creamy-white gardenias and glossy-leaved camellia bushes.In one corner sat a quaint gazebo with a cupola roof. It looked faintly oriental or, Alex thought, like someone’s ‘folly', but Nicky loved it. He had a toy gun and it gave him a lot of pleasure to clamber around the gazebo or hide under its benches or behind its lattice screens and ambush imag

45

He smiled and watched her for a moment, and thought how young, troubled and essentially innocent she looked. She was also probably the least vain female he knew, yet it was only human to resent being told she was ‘quite safe’ in that context, and curiously lovable.As for wine, women and song, not that she’d ever know it, but it might not have been so far off the mark. Well, a nightcap maybe, somefavourite music in the den, a girl in his arms on the wide, comfortable settee, to relax him from his high-pressure business life.This girl?Especially this girl, he thought with an indrawn breath. How sweet would it be to initiate her into the rituals of love-making? To make her gasp with desire and focus those beautiful eyes solely on him, to very slowly bring alive all her most sensitive erogenous zones. To possess that slender figure, those stunning legs and to be the one to meld the different elements of her personality, her sense of humour, that keen intellect and the scholarly sid

46

‘You live and learn,’ Max Goodwin commented. ‘But I would have thought, if anything would do it, it would be a fright.’‘It can be, or it can be underlying stress or it can have nothing to do with what’s going on around you at the time,’ she told him.‘So you’ve taken medical advice, Alex?’‘Yes.’ She swallowed. ‘I really thought I was over them,’ she said again and added unthinkingly, ‘I guess there’s more stress in my life at the moment than I’m accustomed to.’He let go of her hand and turned to look at her with his elbow propped on the back of the settee. ‘Why? Interpreting?’She looked into his eyes and could have kicked herself because interpreting was a breeze compared to what she was going through on his account. But he was not to know that.‘Uh—it’s not as easy as it looks.’His lips twisted. ‘I never for one moment imagined it was. So that’s all?’ He raised his eyebrows and she noticed the little scar at the outer edge of his left eyebrow again.She looked away and

47

‘AS A nanny?’ Alex stared at Max, totally bemused.‘As my PA, which may—’ he looked humorous ‘—cover mainly child- minding duties over the near future, but from then on will have a much broader scope.’‘I don’t understand.’He sat forward. ‘These negotiations are going to be successful, Alex—’ ‘I thought you said there was some hard bargaining—and so on?’ ‘There is, but I wouldn’t have undertaken them if I hadn’t done myhomework and if I hadn’t thought they’d succeed.’ For a moment the tough, successful high-flier he was was very evident in the set of his face. Then he relaxed and continued, ‘Once this is over, I’ll be spending quite a bit of time going backwards and forwards to China so a permanent interpreter, as well as a quick wit, will be an asset to me.’Alex’s eyes nearly fell out on stalks. ‘M-me?’ she hazarded raggedly. He looked amused as he nodded. ‘What’s so surprising about that?’ She blinked a couple of times. ‘It … I … I just didn’t expect it.’‘You’d be part of

48

She hadn’t been able to establish that ‘something’ as she’d showered and dressed for the golf day, but at least she’d established the need to do it. And she’d taken a few quiet minutes to think of her Mother Superior, really and deeply. It had brought her a sense of peace. Then Nicky had woken, hot and fretful and itchy, and that had set in motion the most amazing train of events … She stared out of the window as the Pacific Motorway flashed past. The traffic was fast and heavy, with that familiar hum of its concrete surface, and the sky was overcast now. That amazing train of events, she thought, would be the perfect answer to her new resolution, her determination to shape her life differently, to set goals and accept challenges—if only it hadn’t come from Max Goodwin. But was that not simply a challenge too? It was absolutely no good hungering for a man you couldn’t have, a man you firmly believed should build a life with the mother of his son, anyway, so you nipped all that in

49

THE transformation of the house for the dinner dance was breathtaking— considering that the place was rather breathtakingly beautiful even in normal mode.Once again the vast, stone-flagged terrace was the main venue, but this time, instead of two long tables, many smaller round tables were grouped around an imported wooden dance floor.There were flowers everywhere, on the tables and in standard wrought-iron vases. A canopy of magenta ribbons was looped above the dance floor and electric candles in tall sconces shed soft light.A cascade of tiny flickering lights pricked the night as they outlined the jetty.The band, more accurately a string quartet, its four members dressed in dinner suits with magenta velvet bow ties, was tuning up softly.Alex gave Nicky a tour, then they sat on the staircase for a while, where they could look through the hall to the terrace.‘It looks like an enchanted castle,’ Nicky said. ‘Will my dad be here tonight?’‘Indeed he will, but I’m not sure w

50

The meal was cleared and more champagne poured—it was time for the speeches and toasts.If you didn’t know him, Alex thought as she watched Max Goodwin perform his part, you would think there was nothing wrong with him. But she noticed that his sister was watching him intently with a frown in her eyes.Then all the formalities were over and the string quartet demonstrated their versatility, and couples took to the dance floor to a lively beat.Alex decided to slip away. She had the beginnings of a headache and a few minutes alone in a nice quiet spot seemed like a good idea.She had no idea that two men saw her go: Max—and his cousin, Paul O’Hara.She went out onto the lawn and took the path that led to the swimming- pool garden but stopped at a sound behind her, a footstep. She took a deep breath and turned—it was Paul O’Hara.He too wore his dinner suit well, his fair hair was smooth and his nice grey eyes were serious and concerned again. ‘Please don’t run away, Alex—may I ca

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