Mail-order Bridegroom Part 57

"Necessary," Damon corrected.

It was a beautiful afternoon for a carriage ride, Kate had to admit that when Damon ushered them out of the taxi near the carriages across from the Plaza Hotel.

The nippy April winds that had plagued the city earlier in the month were absent this afternoon, leaving almost balmy breezes in their stead. Kate could see beds of red and yellow tulips beginning to open and tender shoots of other young plants peeking out of the warming soil. The buds on the trees in Central Park had begun bursting into leaf.

The girls, skipping on either side of Damon, were enchanted with the prospect of their outing, and Damon was smiling and indulgent as he let them take his hands. Kate, seeing no way out, followed them, apprehension giving way to bemus.e.m.e.nt-for the time being at least.

The apprehension reappeared when they were bundled into the carriage and shefound Leda and Christina on one bench facing forward, while she and Damonwere wedged together on the opposite one. The feel of his hard body next tohers caused a momentary quickening of her heart. She edged away.

Damon slipped his arm around her and pulled her back.

"Cosy, isn't it?"

Kate shot him a fierce look.

"A.little too cosy."

He grinned.

"What's the matter, Ms McKee? Don't you like men?" His taunting rephrasing

of her question to him was clearly deliberate.

"Sometimes, Mr Alexakis, I wonder if I do," Kate said frankly.

He looked startled, but before he could respond Leda pointed to the sky and

said excitedly, "Look, Kate! Runaway balloons!"

Sure enough, more than a dozen helium-filled balloons had somehow been let

loose and were floating past the treetops, their bright colours vivid against

the cloudless sky.

"And look, there's the zoo where we saw the polar bears and penguins, Kate!"

Christina added, bouncing up and down on the seat.

"Have you been to the zoo, Uncle Damon? We're going again next week. Do you want to come?"

"I'm sure your uncle is much too busy," Kate said.

Damon disagreed.

"Sounds like a good idea at that."

"You shouldn't make promises you won't keep," Kate chastised him under her breath.

"What makes you think I won't be keeping it?"

"You're a busy man."

"Ah, yes. But I'm also intending to be an attentive suitor."

"We need to talk about that," Kate began.

He closed the s.p.a.ce between them and touched his lips to hers.

"Later," he promised in lover like tones.

Both girls giggled.

"Damon!" Kate said, outraged. But one glance at his nieces told her thatshe wasn't going to get anywhere discussing their agreement with them around.But she vowed to let him know as soon as they were alone that she couldn'tgo through with it.

At least that was her intention until they dropped ilie twins off and,instead of ieiiing Kale gu in with them, he told' Sophia he was taking her todinner. They went to Baudelaire's.

She didn't know if his choice was made by coincidence or design. But the moment they were seated and Kate opened her mouth to tell him the agreementwas off, she noticed that directly across the room her father and Jeffreywere entertaining a group of j.a.panese businessmen.

Her father seemed equally astonished. When he first realised it was Kate he was looking at across the room, he stopped mid-sentence and stared, thenrecollected his purpose and continued his conversation.

But throughout the evening Eugene DeMornay's narrow gaze strayed in herdirection more often than Kate would have liked, and she found herselfdeterminedly smiling at Damon and keeping the conversation going animatedly.She didn't say a word she'd planned to say to him.

There would be time for that later, she promised herself.

Her father made no move to speak to her or even acknowledge her during the meal. Kate wasn't surprised. Eugene DeMornay always put business first.

Even when she and Damon finished and got up to leave, Kate didn't expect he would do more than stare at Damon with his laser-like gaze.

But when they were within ten feet of the table, Eugene DeMornay rose from his chair.

"Katherine."

Kate felt Damon's fingers tighten briefly on her arm and was grateful for them there.

Her father stepped into her path and reached for her hand.

"What a surprise! I had no idea you'd be here this evening. You should havesaid." He leaned towards her and Kate gave him a light peck on the cheek."It was a spur-of-the-moment thing," Kate said nervously."Gentlemen," Eugene turned to his guests,"I'd like you to meet my daughter, Katherine and--' He looked from Kate to Damon expectantly.

"Damon Alexakis," Damon introduced himself before Kate could.

"Her fiance."

The two j.a.panese gentlemen offered polite bows.

Jeffrey's jaw dropped. Kate's father's mouth opened--and shut. His eyes widened, then narrowed. A muscle ticked in his cheek. His gaze went from Damon to Kate where itremained, harsh and accusing.

If she'd seen the slightest bit of wonder, the slightest bit of fatherlyconcern she would have denied Damon's a.s.sertion. She would have said there had been a mistake, they weren't sure yet, Damon was hoping.

But Eugene DeMornay didn't look fatherly. He looked furious. And if there was concern, it was all for his business and Jeffrey.

Kate pulled her hand away and slipped her fingers through Damon's.

"You know how busy you are, Daddy. I haven't had a chance to bring Damon byto meet you."

"I can see I've made a mistake by being so inaccessible." His gaze went oncemore to Damon.

"Alexakis," he acknowledged.

"Won't you two join us?"

"We'd be delighted," Damon said over Kate's incipient protest. He drew over two chairs from the unoccupied table next to theirs, seating Kate next to himso closely that, every time he moved, his suit coat brushed her arm. Instead of moving away, he moved closer, slipping his arm behind her shoulders.

Eugene watched them narrowly.

"Mr Mori and I were going to have a brandy. But perhaps I should orderchampagne? To toast your engagement?"

"That would be appropriate," Damon agreed smoothly. He turned and smiled into Kate's eyes, looking every bit the besotted lover.

Eugene's jaw clenched for a split second, then in a tight voice he summonedthe waiter. The two j.a.panese gentlemen spoke to each other quietly in theirown language. Jeffrey didn't say a word. Kate was gratified to notice thatthere was no smile on his face, smug or otherwise.

She didn't know how much her father knew about Damon. No doubt he'd heard of him. The movers and shakers of the world were always well aware of eachother, even if they had never formally met.

As she sat there she could almost see their brains clicking round, adding andsubtracting, a.s.sessing and defining, deciding exactly in which piegeonholethe other belonged.

She should have been feeling far more guilty than she did. But for once, asfar as her dealings with her father went, it was nice to have the upper hand.

The champagne arrived and was poured. Eugene lifted his gla.s.s.

"To my daughter, Katherine," he said, fixing her with a speculative look.

"A woman of surprises."

"And pa.s.sion," Damon said loud enough for Jeffrey to hear.

Kate choked on her champagne. Her face flamed. She began to cough and her

eyes began to water.

Jeffrey's eyes bugged. He sat, transfixed. It was Damon who patted Kate's

back, offered her water, and then his handkerchief to dab her streaming eyes.

The moment she regained her breath, Kate gave him a speaking look.

He gave her a conspiratorial smile in return, then leaned forward and touched

his lips to hers.

"Better now?" he asked softly.

Kate opened her mouth, still stunned by both the kiss and the tone of his

voice. No sound came out. Gamely she cleared her throat, then tried again.

"S-some." But she was never going to be able to pull this off. She wasn'tthe actor Damon was."I th-think perhaps we should go.""I do, too, love." Damon got to his feet and smiled apologetically at her father, then turned to Jeffrey. "See what I mean?" he said in a low tone."She can't wait to get me alone."Jeffrey's jaw clenched.Mortified, Kate stepped on Damon's foot. Enough was enough, d.a.m.n it."Goodnight, Daddy. Nice to meet you," she said to his guests."Jeffrey," she acknowledged briefly, trying to move away as quickly as she could, but Damon's hand held her fast as he made his farewells, beginning with the businessmen, ending with Kate's father.

"Good to have met you at last, Mr DeMornay."

Eugene didn't look as if he agreed, but he did manage a frosty smile and a nod.