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TWO

S later Roxton regarded Ursula through the lenses of his wire-rimmed spectacles. “What the devil do you mean, you won’t be available for the next few weeks, Mrs. Kern? We have an arrangement.”

“My apologies, sir, but a pressing matter has come up,” Ursula said. “I must devote my full attention to it.”

A disturbing hush fell on the library. Ursula mentally fortified herself. She had been acquainted with Slater for less than a fortnight and had worked with him on only two occasions but she felt she had an intuitive understanding of the man. He was proving to be a difficult client.

He had very nearly perfected the art of not signaling his mood or his thoughts but she was increasingly alert to a few subtle cues.

The deep silence and the unblinking gaze with which he was watching her did not bode well.

She sat very straight in her chair, doing her best not to let him know that his unwavering regard was sending small chills down her spine.

Evidently concluding that she was not responding as he had anticipated to his stern disapproval, he escalated the level of tension by rising slowly from his chair and flattening his powerful hands on the polished surface of his mahogany desk.

There was a deceptively graceful quality about the way he moved that gave him a fascinating aura of quiet, self-contained power. The dark, unemotional manner characterized everything about him, from his calm, nearly uninflected speech to his unreadable green-and-gold eyes.

His choice of attire reinforced the impression of shadows and ice.

In the short time she had known him she had never seen him in anything other than head-to-toe black—black linen shirt and black tie, black satin waistcoat, black trousers and a black coat.

Even the frames of his spectacles were made of some matte black metal—not gold- or silver-plated wire.

He was not wearing the severely tailored coat at the moment. It was hanging on a hook near the door. After greeting her a short time ago, Slater had removed it in preparation for working on the artifacts.

She knew she had no right to critique the man on the basis of his wardrobe.

She, too, was dressed in her customary black.

In the past two years she had come to think of her mourning attire—from her widow’s veil and stylish black gown to her black stacked-heel, ankle-high button boots—as both uniform and camouflage.

It flashed across her mind that she and Slater made quite a somber pair.

Anyone who happened to walk into the library would think they were both sunk deep into unrelenting grief.

The truth of the matter was that she was in hiding.

Not for the first time, she wondered what Slater’s motives were for going about in black.

His father had died two months ago. It was the event that had brought Slater home to London after several years of living abroad.

He was now in command of the Roxton family fortune.

But she was quite certain that the black clothes were indicative of a long-standing sartorial habit—not a sign of mourning.

If even half of what the press had printed regarding Slater Roxton was true, she reflected, perhaps he had his reasons for wearing black. It was, after all, the color of mystery, and Slater was nothing if not a great mystery to Society.

She watched him with a deep wariness that was spiked with curiosity and what she knew was a reckless sense of fascination.

She had anticipated that giving notice, especially in such a summary fashion, would not be met with patience and understanding.

Clients frequently proved difficult to manage but she had never encountered one quite like Slater.

The very concept of managing Slater Roxton staggered the mind.

It had been clear to her at the start of their association that he was a force of nature and a law unto himself.

That was, of course, what made him so interesting, she thought.

“I have just explained that something unforeseen has arisen,” she said. She was careful to keep her voice crisp and professional, aware that Slater would pounce on anything that hinted at uncertainty or weakness. “I regret the necessity of terminating our business relationship. However—”

“Then why are you terminating our arrangement?”

“The matter is of a personal nature,” she said.

He frowned. “Are you ill?”

“No, of course not. I enjoy excellent health. I was about to say that I hope it will be possible for me to return at a later date to finish the cataloging work.”

“Do you, indeed? And what makes you think I won’t replace you? There are other secretaries in London.”

“That is your choice, of course. I must remind you that I did warn you at the outset that I have other commitments in regard to my business which might from time to time interfere with our working arrangements. You agreed to those terms.”

“I was assured that, in addition to a great many other excellent qualities, you were quite dependable, Mrs. Kern. You can’t just walk in here and quit on the spot like this.”

Ursula twitched the skirts of her black gown so that they draped in neat, elegant folds around her ankles while she considered her options.

The atmosphere in the library was rapidly becoming tense, as if some invisible electricity generator was charging the air.

It was always like this when she found herself in close proximity to Slater.

But today the disturbing, rather exciting energy had a distinctly dangerous edge.

In the short time she had known him she had never seen him lose his temper.

He had never gone to the other extreme, either.

She had yet to see him laugh. True, he had dredged up the occasional, very brief smile and there had been a certain warmth in his usually cold eyes from time to time.

But she got the feeling that he was more surprised than she was when he allowed such emotions to surface.

“I do apologize, Mr. Roxton,” she said, not for the first time. “I assure you I have no choice. Time is of the essence.”

“I feel I deserve more of an explanation. What is this pressing matter that requires you to break our contract?”

“It regards one of my employees.”

“You feel obligated to look into the personal problems of your employees?”

“Well, yes, in a nutshell, that is more or less the situation.”

Slater came out from behind the desk, lounged against the front of it and folded his arms.

His sharply etched features had an ascetic, unforgiving quality. On occasion it was easy to envision him as an avenging angel. At other times she thought he made a very good Lucifer.

“The least you can do is explain yourself, Mrs. Kern,” he said. “You owe me that much, I think.”

She did not owe him anything, she thought.

She had taken pains to make her terms of employment clear right from the start.

As the proprietor of the Kern Secretarial Agency she rarely took assignments, herself, these days.

Her business was growing rapidly. The result was that for the past few months she had been busy in the office, training new secretaries and interviewing potential clients.

She had accepted the position with Slater as a favor to his mother, Lilly Lafontaine, a celebrated actress who had retired to write melodramas.

She had not expected to find the mysterious Mr. Roxton so riveting.

“Very well, sir,” she said, “the short version is that I have decided to take another client.”

Slater went very still.

“I see,” he said. “You are not happy in your work here with me?”

There was a grim note in his voice. She realized with a start that he was taking her departure personally.

Even more shocking, she got the impression that he was not particularly surprised that she was leaving his employ, rather he seemed stoically resigned, as if it had foreseen some inevitable doom.

“On the contrary, sir,” she said quickly. “I find your cataloging project quite interesting.”

“Am I not paying you enough?” Something that might have been relief flickered in his eyes. “If so, I am open to renegotiating your fee.”

“I assure you, it is not a matter of money.”

“If you are not unhappy in your work and if the pay is satisfactory, why are you leaving me for another client?” he asked.

This time he sounded genuinely perplexed.

She caught her breath and suddenly felt oddly flushed. It was almost as if he were playing the part of a jilted lover, she thought. But of course that was not at all the case. Theirs was a client-employer relationship.

This is why you rarely accept male clients, she reminded herself.

There was a certain danger involved. But finding herself attracted to one of her customers was not the sort of risk she had envisioned when she established the policy.

Her chief concern had been the knowledge that men sometimes posed a risk to the sterling reputations of her secretaries.

In the case of Slater Roxton, she had made an exception and now she would pay a price.

All in all, it was probably best that the association was ended before she lost her head and, possibly, her heart.

“As to my reasons for leaving—” she began.

“Who is this new client?” Slater said, cutting her off.

“Very well, sir, I will explain the circumstances that require me to terminate my employment with you but you may have a few quibbles.”

“Try me.”

She tensed at the whisper of command in his tone.

“I really do not want to get into an extended argument, sir—especially in light of the fact that I hope to return to this position in the near future.”

“You have already made it clear that you expect me to wait upon your convenience.”

She waved one black-gloved hand to indicate the jumble of antiquities that cluttered the library. “These artifacts have been sitting here for years. Surely they can wait a bit longer to be cataloged.”

“How much longer?” he asked a little too evenly.