The Gold Collection. Maggie Cox

you and Alistair Gambrill would prefer not to happen,’ he added, with a gently mocking smile.

      If she was deemed responsible for the loss of a highly influential client her career would suffer irreparable damage at PGH, and probably with other law firms, Lauren thought sickly. Senior lawyers were a tight clique. Doubts about her professional ability would spread, and she would find it hard to get another job in the City.

      She stared at Ramon’s hard face and her heart sank. ‘That’s blackmail.’

      He lifted his shoulders laconically, utterly unconcerned by her accusation. ‘You should know by now that I always get what I want.’

      Oh, yes, she knew all right, Lauren brooded bitterly. Ramon’s reputation as a ruthlessness businessman was legendary. She had no option but to work for him, but if he thought she was going to fall into his bed because he had decided that he wanted her back as his mistress he had better think again.

      ‘Doesn’t it bother you to know that you’ll be working with someone who dislikes you intensely?’ she said tightly.

      ‘No.’ His arrogant smile caused her to grind her teeth. ‘But I have to say I’m surprised that someone who dislikes me as much as you say you do could have responded to me with such passion a few minutes ago. Perhaps you don’t know what you want, querida?’ he suggested softly.

      While she struggled to formulate a reply, he strolled over to the desk and opened a file. ‘These are the details of the office complex in St Katherine’s Dock. I’d like you to start work on the lease agreement straight away. If you’re staying, that is?’ he added, when she continued to hover uncertainly in the doorway.

      With as much dignity as she could muster Lauren marched back across the room, sat down at the desk, and immediately focused her attention on the pile of documents, her silence thrumming with fury.

      Ramon resisted the urge to brush a tendril of hair off her face, and dropped her hairclip on the desk. ‘I guess you want this back.’

      ‘Thank you.’ Her voice dripped ice.

      He watched her scrape her hair back and clip the honey-gold mass on top of her head, and tried to ignore the sharp tug of desire in his gut. ‘I have a couple of meetings booked for this afternoon, and I probably won’t be back until late.’

      ‘Then it’s likely I’ll have left by the time you return.’ Lauren lifted her head and met his gaze steadily. ‘I finish at the office at five-thirty. That’s non-negotiable. But I’m happy to take work home to complete in the evenings if necessary.’

      Ramon’s eyes narrowed, his curiosity aroused by the quiet determination in her voice. ‘Everything is negotiable, Lauren.’

      ‘Not this.’ She collected Mateo from the day nursery at six-fifteen every evening, and not even the threat of losing her job would persuade her to work late.

      ‘I remember that you frequently used to work until seven or eight p.m.’ Ramon paused. ‘Maybe there’s someone you rush home to?’

      He was skating dangerously near the truth. She flushed, and tore her eyes from his to stare down at the papers in front of her. ‘We’ve already established that my personal life is not your concern.’

      ‘Oh, we’ve established a number of things,’ Ramon drawled in a dangerously soft voice. ‘Not least that you are hot for me—much as you want to deny it.’

      Lauren’s face burned, and she cursed those moments of weakness when she had responded to his kiss with a hunger that had more than matched his own. ‘As a matter of fact I need to leave half an hour earlier tonight. My mother is arriving from Jersey, and I’ve arranged to meet her at Gatwick.’ She hesitated. ‘I’ve already asked Alistair Gambrill for the time off. I hope it’s all right with you.’

      Ramon gave her a sardonic look. ‘It will have to be, won’t it?’ He paused and studied her speculatively. ‘Is there anything else you should tell me?’

      Her heart almost leapt out of her chest, and her eyes flew to his face. Did he mean Matty? Did he know…? His expression was unfathomable. ‘Wh…what do you mean?’ she stammered.

      ‘I simply wondered if you had any other engagements booked that I should know about, so that I can arrange viewings of properties around any other commitments you might have.’ Ramon stared at her impatiently. ‘Why are you so edgy, Lauren? And why do I get the impression that you’re hiding something from me?’

      Her palms felt clammy, and it took all her will-power to meet his gaze. ‘I really don’t know where you would get such a ridiculous idea from,’ she said, managing to sound coolly dismissive. ‘I’m not hiding anything.’

      ‘Liar. You are doing your best to hide the fact that you are still attracted to me.’ Ramon suddenly leaned forward, rested one hand on the desk, and placed the other on her nape. ‘But you are not succeeding. Your eyes give you away, querida,’ he drawled, before he swooped and captured her mouth in a brief, hard kiss that left her aching for more.

      He smiled sardonically at the confused mixture of anger and desire in her eyes, and then released her and strolled across to the door. ‘I’ll see you later,’ he threw over his shoulder—leaving Lauren too emotionally drained to wonder why he had said later rather than on Monday.

      ‘I’m sure Mateo will be walking before he’s a year old. Look how well he’s balancing on his feet.’

      Lauren glanced up from her laptop and smiled at the sight of her mother, kneeling on the floor playing with Matty. ‘Do you think he’s advanced for his age?’

      ‘Goodness, yes.’ Frances Maitland beamed at her little grandson. ‘You were such a cautious baby—you didn’t even crawl until you were eleven months—but he’s so active. He certainly doesn’t get his daring nature from you. He must have inherited it from his fa—’ She stopped abruptly and looked flustered.

      ‘From his father,’ Lauren finished her mother’s sentence dryly. ‘You can say the word you know, Mum.’

      ‘Well, it seems strange to talk about Matty’s father when I don’t even know his name,’ Frances muttered. ‘I wish you would tell me about him. I don’t know why it’s all so secret.’

      Lauren stifled a sigh. ‘I have told you about him. He’s a playboy. We had a brief affair, but when I found out I was pregnant I knew he wouldn’t want a child, so I didn’t tell him. End of story.’

      Frances sniffed. ‘It’s not right that you have to work so hard to support Matty on your own. You must be entitled to maintenance from his father.’

      Lauren shook her head fiercely. ‘I would never demand money for my son. Mateo is my responsibility, and I can give him everything he needs.’ She watched the baby zooming around the carpet on his hands and knees and frowned. ‘I still think he looks a bit flushed. And it’s strange that he didn’t eat his tea. Usually he loves his food. I don’t think I’ll go to the party tonight, in case he’s coming down with something.’

      Frances stood up and lifted the chuckling baby into her arms. ‘He’s absolutely fine. You can’t miss the Valentine’s Ball—I thought it was PGH’s big social event of the year?’

      ‘It is,’ Lauren said heavily.

      Alistair Gambrill’s wife organised the ball each year, and a proportion of the ticket money was donated to charity. The law firm’s most prestigious clients were invited, and every member of staff was expected to attend—particularly those who were chasing a promotion, she thought ruefully. She was still reeling from the shock of seeing Ramon again today, and felt in no mood to socialise, but she knew her absence would be noted by the senior partners.

      ‘Well, maybe I’ll go, but then come home tonight,’ she muttered. The ball was held in a hotel, and the ticket included overnight accommodation so that guests could drink and not have to worry about driving.

      ‘It’s