Hunter's Moon. Carole Mortimer

trembling emotionally.

      Cassandra almost choked! ‘Bethany——’

      Jonas shook his head, smiling ruefully. ‘I’ll see you later on Christmas Day, at your grandmother’s house, and you can tell me all about your Christmas presents,’ he cajoled brightly. ‘I’ve been invited for lunch.’

      Yet more news for Cassandra! What on earth did her mother think she was doing? Jonas wasn’t family, was no relation to her mother whatsoever, and his connection to Cassandra was tenuous to say the least—a half-brother-in-law who had refused to even come to her wedding and had been nothing but objectionable since he had exploded into their lives a little over nine months ago! The unavoidable connection they all had with him through business certainly didn’t mean that any of them had to be this friendly with him on a social level. Christmas Day at her mother’s without her father’s calming presence was going to be bad enough, but to now find Jonas was going to be there too…!

      Only Bethany looked thrilled by the news, throwing her arms about Jonas’s neck to hug him. ‘All of us together for Christmas!’ she glowed, clapping her hands with excitement now. ‘That’s the next best thing to having you live with us. I’m going to tell Mrs Humphries what a lovely Christmas we’re all going to have!’ She ran out of the room, hair flying, tendrils still slightly damp at the bottom where they had had a wetting in the bath.

      A heavy, oppressive silence followed Bethany’s departure, and with a weary sigh Cassandra turned to look at Jonas—— And then wished she hadn’t! He stood in the doorway again now, leaning back against the doorframe, arms folded across his chest, mouth twisted tauntingly, eyes darkly mocking behind those somewhat protective glasses—not that this man needed protecting, from anything! Arrogant. Despicable. Ruthless. The adjectives she could find to describe this man were endless.

      ‘I can see you’re absolutely thrilled at the prospect of all of us being together on Christmas Day too!’ he scorned in that harshly derisive voice of his that so grated on her.

      ‘Thrilled’ in no way described how she felt about spending Christmas Day in this man’s company; she was absolutely horrified at the thought of spending that day of ‘peace on earth and goodwill to all men’ with this particular man!

      ‘Bethany will like it,’ she said dismissively—it was the only positive thing she could find to say about it!—as she placed the brush carefully back on the dressing-table with the rest of the gold-trimmed set, needlessly straightening the already neatly placed comb and hand-mirror. But she desperately needed something to occupy her hands—she was more than a little unnerved now at Jonas’s presence here alone with her, in the bedroom she had shared with Charles for all of their marriage. ‘Just as I know she appreciates your coming here to see her, as you have tonight,’ Cassandra continued determinedly, unable, with this man here, to even glance at the huge four-poster bed—a wedding present from Charles to her—that was usually so dominating in the room; this evening this man dominated it!

      ‘But I didn’t come here to see Bethany tonight,’ Jonas told her softly. ‘Much as I enjoy her company too,’ he shrugged dismissively.

      Cassandra gave him a sharp, frowning look. ‘No?’ she said warily.

      ‘No,’ he echoed tauntingly, straightening suddenly, even the mocking humour erased from his face now. ‘As you’re the other major shareholder in Hunter and Kyle, I thought you should know that I have just had an internal audit done of the company.’

      Cassandra stared at him. ‘You didn’t mention this before…’

      ‘No,’ he acknowledged grimly. ‘I didn’t believe there was any need to; I ordered it as a matter of course now that I’ve been in charge of things for six months. I just wanted to be ready for the end of the tax year, although there didn’t appear to be any problems. I say “appear to be”——’ he met her gaze with steady intent ‘—because now I know differently.’

      Cassandra swallowed hard, even as she felt all the colour drain from her face.

       CHAPTER THREE

      ‘DID you hear me, Cassandra?’ Jonas rasped coldly. ‘I said——’

      ‘I heard you!’ She turned away, totally shaken by this. She had known it had to come, of course, had realised it had to, but with the mess her own company had become she hadn’t had the chance—or time! —to think about Hunter and Kyle. And she should have done, the dangerous intent in this man’s eyes warned her harshly, when she risked another glance at him. She gripped her hands tightly together in front of her to stop their trembling. ‘It was——’

      ‘Mummy, Uncle Jonas, don’t you want your coffee?’ Bethany protested as she came bounding into the room to frown up at them impatiently for their delay.

      ‘I would love some.’ Jonas was the one to answer her, glancing at the plain gold watch with its leather strap. ‘Unfortunately, I don’t have the time now,’ he refused with a disappointed grimace, his eyes narrowed as he glanced across at the still pale Cassandra. ‘Marguerite has invited me to dinner tonight too,’ he told her softly.

      He thought she was going to be at her mother’s for dinner, Cassandra realised. Thank God she wasn’t; there was no way she could have given even a semblance of normality tonight at one of her mother’s dinner parties, not after what this man had just told her.

      And Cassandra knew exactly why Jonas had been invited to dinner tonight. It wasn’t just that her mother wanted to ask Jonas to give Joy away at the wedding—although God knew that was bad enough. No, her mother was very much aware that Jonas was now head of Hunter and Kyle, and as such he was responsible for any profits the company might make, profits she and Joy had a share in. She wouldn’t put it past her mother and Joy to have plans for Joy’s fiancé Colin either—he was Jonas’s assistant, and neither Marguerite nor Joy would be happy with him remaining just that, Cassandra was sure.

      The knowing look in Jonas’s eyes, when she looked up to make a reply, said he knew perfectly well of her mother and Joy’s ambitions for Colin—also that he would do what he damned well pleased about that situation!

      ‘That’s nice,’ Cassandra finally replied distractedly.

      Jonas gave a taunting smile. ‘Is it?’

      She was tempted to tell him she didn’t give a damn whether he went to her mother’s for dinner every night of the week—as long as she didn’t have to be there too! But Bethany clasped his hand at that moment, diverting his attention to her, and also putting an end to the conversation.

      Bethany hung on to Jonas until the very last minute, making it impossible for Cassandra and Jonas to talk privately again. Cassandra was glad of the respite, and she knew Jonas wasn’t bothered by the delay, because he expected to be talking to her again later on this evening. Cassandra shivered, glad once again that she had made other plans.

      Bethany turned away now from the door where she had been standing forlornly waving to her uncle until the tail-lights of his car had completely disappeared. ‘Can’t Uncle Jonas come and live with us?’ She looked up at Cassandra appealingly.

      Cassandra had been deep in thought, but this brought her sharply back into the present. This was the second time tonight her young daughter had made such a statement, and the sooner she was firmly told it wasn’t even a possibility, the better! ‘I wanted to talk to you about that, darling,’ she told Bethany firmly as she sat her down in one of the armchairs.

      It was still quite early when Cassandra arrived at her mother’s house—deliberately so on her part; she was determined she wouldn’t run into Jonas there now.

      Her mother, she was informed, was still dressing for dinner, and so Cassandra sat down to wait for her. It was more imperative than ever that Jonas not be drawn any deeper into their personal lives than he already was; the man had the power—and the ruthlessness!—to destroy all of them, if he chose