‘Do you want to work the whole weekend?’ he asked.
‘You wouldn’t dare.’
‘Try me.’
Clara toyed with one of the beads on her necklace. ‘Her name was Lois.’
He smiled, shaking his head. She still wasn’t giving up her true identity. Even under his PA’s scrutiny, he couldn’t stop the flicker lighting up his eyes. This was interesting.
He made a grab for the stress ball, closing his fingers around it hard. He nodded at Clara. ‘What was it you wanted?’
‘The latest contract for the Regis Software project. Mackenzie emailed it. It came in after your phone call with Andrew Regis.’ She placed a file on the edge of his desk. ‘And here are the supporting documents.’
Clara was still standing by his desk, scrutinising his every nuance. His shutters rose back up.
‘Is that all?’ he asked her.
Clara smiled and headed for the door.
Central Park, New York
‘Come on, Randy! Here, boy!’
Angel went haring off through the falling snow, chasing after a dog that looked as if it had had its hair professionally styled. The mutt was more pampered and preened than Hayley. She pulled at her hair self-consciously, tucking it into the collar of her coat.
The park was like a winter wonderland. All the grass, trees and bushes were coated with white powder, making them look like a picture-perfect, snow globe scene. The air was chilly and snow had started to fall again, already thickening the few inches laid thenight before. Outside the park, the high-rises towered over the vast island garden like giant gatekeepers. It was like nowhere else on Earth and, with every step Hayley took, it brought back memories of her last visit.
She’d been as slim as she’d ever been then, slim enough to feel cool and comfortable in skinny jeans. She’d lived in her jeans and a pair of black platform boots with diamantes and buckles. She must have looked halfway between a biker and a party girl. Her hair cut in a no-nonsense bob, she’d felt like she could own the world if she wanted to. She had dreams, aspirations, ideas that could fill her book ten times over, and nothing was going to stop her.
She had laid out on the grass of Central Park, her eyes in the sky, watching the clouds drift from the roof of one high-rise to another, letting herself become part of it all. New York was going to charge her passion and inspire her. It was the city of dreams and she was going to grab at every possibility it offered.
She sighed. Too much grabbing in the wrong place had set her off on an entirely different course. ‘So, Hayley, did you enjoy your first night in New York?’
The question came from Vernon, Dean’s boyfriend. The dog’s appearance hadn’t been the only shocker. She could only imagine that was why Dean wasn’t keen on showing her photos of his boyfriend the night before. Vernon was tall, like her brother, but he was older – alotolder – at a guess at least fifty. He had the salt-and-pepper hair and brown eyes of George Clooney, with a tanned complexion that hinted at an Italian heritage. When they’d first met, he’d hugged Angel straight away and kissed Hayley on both cheeks. He was easy and relaxed, warm and open. She wondered why her brother thought she might have been judgemental – she wasn’t their mother! What were numbers anyway? As long as he treated Dean right, nothing else mattered.
‘We were both suffering a little from jet lag and I had to watch my daughter burst into tears over the death of a lobster.’
‘Lyndon,’ Dean added.
Vernon looked bemused.
‘You really don’t want to know,’ Dean said, linking his arm through Vernon’s and smiling. He looked to Hayley. ‘How was the Guggenheim?’
‘Interesting. I’m not entirely sure I understood every piece, but Angel sucked it up like the little sponge she is.’ Hayley kept her eyes on her daughter, watching her ruffling the dog’s mane of fur. Her daughter was having a ball in New York already. A warm glow invaded Hayley’s chest as she continued to look across the park. This was what she wanted. Her daughter laughing, happy and carefree.
‘Well, I hate to talk business but you’ll never guess what happened today,’ Dean said, scuffing up some snow with his shoe as he walked.
‘Hold up, let me guess… um, your tyrannical boss told you the Globe isn’t anywhere near ready and it’s back to the drawing board?’ Vernon said.
The mention of the tyrannical boss shifted Hayley’s stomach lining as the jacket incident came to mind. She put her hands in her pockets. She really needed to buy some more gloves.
‘Would you believe it if I said it was the complete opposite?’
‘You’re kidding me,’ Vernon said in shock.
‘It gets even better,’ Dean continued.
‘You’re getting a pay rise?’ Hayley offered.
