Married By Christmas

He grimaced ruefully at her evasion. ‘A mere child,’ he ground out disgustedly. ‘The sacrificial lamb!’ He shook his head. ‘I hate to tell you this, Lilli, but your efforts—enjoyable as they were!—were completely wasted.’ His gaze hardened. ‘If my own sister’s pleadings failed to move me, you can be assured that a night of pleasure in your arms would have had even less effect!’

Lilli looked at him with haughty disdain. ‘I don’t have the least idea what you’re talking about,’ she snapped.

‘No?’ he queried sceptically.

‘No,’ she echoed tartly. ‘I don’t even know what you’re doing here today. We were at a party, we decided to spend the night together—and that should have been the end of it. You came here, I didn’t come to you,’ she reminded him coldly.

‘Actually, Lilli,’ he drawled softly, ‘I came to see your father, not you.’

Her head went back in astonishment. ‘My father...?’ she repeated in a puzzled voice.

Patrick nodded abruptly. ‘Unfortunately, I was informed he isn’t in,’ he said grimly.

‘So you asked to see me instead?’ she realised incredulously.

‘Correct,’ he affirmed, with a slight inclination of his head. ‘Sorry to disappoint you, Lilli,’ he added.

She swallowed hard, quickly reassessing the situation. ‘And just why did you want to see my father?’

Patrick looked at her with narrowed eyes. ‘I’m sure you already know the answer to that question.’

‘Because he’s having a relationship with your sister?’ Lilli scorned. ‘It must keep you very busy if you pay personal calls on all her lovers in this way!’

Anger flared briefly in the grey depths of his eyes, and then they became glacially enigmatic, that gaze sweeping over her with deliberate assessment. ‘I’m sure you keep your father just as busy,’ he drawled.

After her comment about Geraldine, she had probably deserved that remark. Unfortunately, both this man and his sister brought out the worst in her; she wasn’t usually a bitchy person. But then, this whole situation was unusual!

‘Perhaps he’s paying a similar call on you at this very moment?’ Lilli returned.

‘I very much doubt it.’ Patrick gave a smile. ‘It hasn’t been my impression, so far in our acquaintance, that your father has ever deliberately gone out of his way to meet me!’

Her eyes widened. ‘The two of you have met?’ If they had, her father hadn’t mentioned that particular fact earlier!

‘Several times,’ Patrick confirmed enigmatically.

Exactly how long had her father been involved with Geraldine? Lilli had assumed it was a very recent thing, but if the two men had met ‘several times’...

‘Perhaps you could pass on a message to him that we will be meeting again, too. Very soon,’ Patrick added grimly, walking to the door.

Lilli watched him frowningly. ‘You’re leaving...?’ She hadn’t meant her voice to sound wistful at all—and yet somehow it did. In the fifteen minutes Patrick had been here he had made insulting comments to her, enigmatic remarks about her father—but he hadn’t really said anything. She wasn’t really sure what she had expected him to say... But the two of them had spent the night together, and—

He turned at the door, dark brows raised questioningly. ‘Do we have anything else to say to each other?’ he questioned in a bored voice.

No, of course they didn’t. They had had nothing to say to each other from the beginning. It was just that—

‘Ten, Lilli,’ he drawled softly. ‘You were a ten,’ he explained dryly as she gave him a puzzled look.

He laughed huskily as his meaning became clear and her cheeks suffused with heated colour.

She hadn’t wanted to know—hadn’t asked—

‘I’ll let myself out, Lilli,’ he volunteered, and did so, the door closing softly behind him.

Which was just as well—because Lilli had been rooted to the spot after that last statement.

Ten...

And she didn’t remember a single moment of it...

CHAPTER THREE

‘I WANT to know exactly what is going on, Daddy,’ Lilli told him firmly, having waited in the sitting-room for two hours before he came home, fortified by the tray of tea things Emily had brought in to her. After Patrick Devlin’s departure, Lilli had felt in need of something, and whisky, at that hour of the day, had been out of the question. Although the man was enough to drive anyone to drink!

She had heard her father enter the house, accosting him in the hallway as he walked towards the wide staircase.

He turned at the sound of her voice, his expression grim. ‘I was left in no doubt by you earlier that you didn’t want to hear anything more about Geraldine.’

‘I still don’t,’ Lilli told him impatiently. ‘Her brother, however, is a different matter!’

‘Patrick?’ her father replied.

Her mouth twisted. ‘Unless she has another brother—yes!’

Her father stiffened, striding forcefully across the hallway to join her as she went into the sitting-room, closing the door firmly behind him. ‘What about him?’ he said warily.

She gave an impatient sigh. ‘That’s what I just asked you!’

‘You spent the night with him, Lilli,’ her father reminded her. ‘I would have thought you would know all there is to know about the man! We none of us have defences in bed. Or so I’m told...’

She bit back the reply she would have liked to make; that sort of conversation would take them absolutely nowhere, as it had this morning. ‘I’m not talking about the man’s prowess—or otherwise!—in the bedroom,’ she snapped. ‘He said the two of you know each other.’

‘Did he?’ her father returned with studied indifference.

‘Daddy!’ She glared at her father’s back as he stood looking out of the window now—very much as Patrick had done earlier. He was trying to give the impression that the subject of the other man bored him, and yet, somehow, she knew that it didn’t...

He sighed. ‘I’m sorry. I just didn’t realise the two of you had spent part of your night together discussing me—’

‘We didn’t,’ Lilli cut in. ‘He was here earlier.’

Her father froze, slowly turning to face her. ‘Devlin came here?’

She wasn’t wrong; she was sure she wasn’t; she had never seen this emotion in her father before, but he actually looked slightly fearful. And it had something to do with Patrick Devlin...

‘Yes, he was here,’ she confirmed steadily. ‘And he said some things—’

‘He had no right, damn him!’ her father told her fiercely, his hands clenched into fists at his sides.

‘I’m your daughter—’

‘And this is a business matter,’ he barked tensely. ‘If I had wanted to tell you about it then I would have done so.’

‘Tell me now?’ Lilli encouraged softly. Her father had mentioned this morning that Patrick Devlin was the chairman of Paradise Bank—could that have something to do with this ‘business matter’? Although, as far as she was aware, her family had always banked with Cleveley...

‘I told you, Patrick Devlin is Paradise Bank,’ her father grated.

And she was none the wiser for his repeating the fact! ‘Yes?’

‘Don’t you ever read the newspapers, Lilli?’ her father said tersely. ‘Or are you more like your mother than I realised, and only interested in what Bennett International Hotels can give you in terms of money and lifestyle?’

The accusation hung between them, everything suddenly seeming very quiet; even the air was still.

Lilli stared at her father, barely breathing, a tight pain in her chest.

Her father stared back at her, obviously mortified at what he had just said, his face very pale.

They never talked about her mother, or baby Robbie; they had, by tacit agreement, never talked about the loss of either.

Lilli drew in a deep breath. ‘I know Mummy had her faults—’

‘I’m sorry, Lilli—’

They had both begun talking at the same time, both coming to an abrupt halt, once again staring at each other, awkwardly this time. The last three months had been difficult; Lilli’s grief at her mother’s death was something she hadn’t been able to share with anyone. Not even her father.

She had known that her father had his own pain to deal with. The years during which her mother’s illness had deteriorated had been even more difficult for him than they had for Lilli, her mother’s moods fluctuating between self-pity and anger. It had been hard to cope with, Lilli freely acknowledged. But she had had no idea how bitter her father had become...

‘I shouldn’t have said that.’ Her father ran a weary hand through dark hair liberally peppered with grey. ‘I’m sorry, Lilli.’

She wasn’t sure whether he was apologising for the remarks about her mother, or for the fact that he felt the way he did...

‘No, you shouldn’t,’ she agreed quietly. ‘But a lot of things have been said and done in the last twenty-four hours that shouldn’t have been.’ She included her own behaviour with Patrick Devlin in that! ‘Perhaps it would be better if we just forgot about them?’ She certainly wanted to forget last night!

‘I wish we could, Lilli.’ Her father sat down heavily in one of the armchairs, shaking his head. ‘But I don’t think Devlin will let either of us do that.’ He leant his head back against the chair, his eyes closed. ‘What did he have to say when he came here earlier?’ He opened his eyes to look at her frowningly.

Besides marking her as a ten...?

‘Not a lot, Daddy.’ She crossed the room to kneel on the carpet at his feet. ‘Although he did say to tell you the two of you would be meeting again. Soon. Tell me what’s going on, Daddy?’ She looked up at him appealingly.

He reached out to smooth gently the loose tendrils of dark hair away from her cheeks. ‘You’re so young, Lilli.’ He sounded pained. ‘So very young,’ he groaned. ‘You give the outward impression of being so cool and self-possessed, and yet...’

‘It’s just an impression,’ she acknowledged ruefully. ‘How well you know me, Daddy.’ She gave a wistful smile.

‘I should do,’ he said with gentle affection. ‘I love you very much, Lilli. No matter what happens, I hope you never forget that.’ He gave a heavy sigh.

Lilli once again felt that chill of foreboding down her spine. What was going to happen? And what did Patrick Devlin have to do with it? Because she didn’t doubt that he was at the root of her father’s problem.

Her father straightened determinedly in his chair, that air of defeat instantly dispelled. ‘Devlin and I are involved in some business that isn’t going quite the way he wishes it would,’ he explained briskly.

Lilli frowned, realising that, with this blunt statement, her father had decided not to tell her anything. ‘He called me a sacrificial lamb,’ she persisted.

‘Did he, indeed?’ her father rapped out harshly. ‘What the hell does he think I am?’ he cried angrily, rising forcefully to his feet. ‘Devlin is right, Lilli—it’s past time the two of us met again. Damn Gerry and her diplomatic approach—’

‘About Geraldine Simms—’

‘She’s not for discussion, Lilli,’ her father cut in defensively, those few minutes of father-daughter closeness definitely over.

Obviously Geraldine Simms was too important in his life to be discussed with her! It made Lilli question exactly how long this relationship with the other woman had been going on. Since her mother’s death—or before that? The thought of her father having an affair with a woman like Geraldine Simms while her mother was still alive made Lilli feel ill. He couldn’t have—could he...?

Lilli stood up too, eyes flashing deeply emerald. ‘In that case,’ she rebutted angrily, ‘neither is the night I spent with her brother!’

‘Lilli!’ Her father stopped her as she was about to storm out of the room.

She turned slowly. ‘Yes?’ she said curtly.

‘Stay away from Devlin,’ he advised heavily. ‘He’s trouble.’

He might be, and until a short time ago she had been only too happy with the idea of never setting eyes on him again. But not any more. Patrick Devlin was the other half of this puzzle, and if her father wouldn’t tell her what was going on perhaps Patrick would!

She met her father’s gaze unblinkingly. ‘Stay away from Geraldine Simms,’ she mocked. ‘She’s trouble.’

Her father steadily met her rebellious gaze for several long seconds, and then he wearily shook his head. ‘This is so much deeper than you can possibly realise. You’re playing with fire where Devlin is concerned. He’s a barracuda in a city suit,’ he added bitterly.

‘Sounds like a fascinating combination,’ Lilli replied.

‘More like deadly,’ her father rasped, scowling darkly. ‘Lilli, I’m ordering you to stay away from him!’

Her eyes widened in shock. This was much more serious than she had even imagined; she couldn’t remember the last time her father bad ordered her to do anything. If he ever had. But the fact that he did it now only made her all the more determined.

The real problem with that was she had no idea—yet!—how to even make contact with Patrick Devlin again, without it seeming as if she was doing exactly that. Because she had a feeling he would react exactly as her father was doing if she went to him and asked for answers to her questions: refuse to give any!

Well, she might be young, as both men had already stated quite clearly today, but she was the daughter of one man, and had spent the previous night in the arms of the other—she certainly wasn’t a child, and she wasn’t about to be treated like one. By either of them!

‘Save that tone of voice for your employees, Father,’ she told him coldly. ‘Of which I—thankfully!—am not one!’ She closed the door decisively behind her as she left the room.

It was only once she was safely outside in the hallway that she allowed some of her defiance to leave her. But she had meant every word she’d said in there, she would get to the bottom of this mystery. And she knew the very person to help her do that...

‘Sally!’ she said warmly a few minutes later when the other woman answered her call after the tenth ring. She had begun to think Sally must be out. And that didn’t fit in with her plans at all. ‘It’s Lilli.’

‘Wow, that was quick,’ Sally returned lightly. ‘I didn’t expect to hear from you again for weeks.’

Lilli forced a bright laugh. ‘I said I would call you,’ she reminded her.

‘It’s a little late in the day for lunch,’ Sally said dryly. ‘Although to be honest,’ she added confidingly, ‘I’ve only just got out of bed. That was some party last night!’

Lilli wouldn’t know. ‘Any luck with that gorgeous man?’ she said playfully—knowing full well there hadn’t been; her father had spent the night with Geraldine Simms.

‘None at all.’ Sally sounded disappointed. ‘But then, with Gerry on the hunt, I never expected it. She monopolised the man all night, and then—’

‘Are you free for dinner this evening?’ Lilli cut in sharply—she knew what came ‘then’!

‘Well...I was due to go to the Jameses’ party this evening, but it will just be like every other party I’ve been to this month. Christmas-time is a bitch, isn’t it? Everyone and his cousin throws a party—and invites exactly the same people to every one! In all honesty, I’m all partied out. And there’s another ten days to go yet!’ Sally groaned with feeling.

‘Does that mean you’re free for dinner?’ Lilli prompted.

‘Name the place!’ The grin could be heard in Sally’s voice.

Lilli did, choosing one of her own favourite restaurants, knowing the other woman would like it too. She also promised that it was her treat; Sally knew ‘everyone and his cousin’, and anything there was to know about them. Lilli didn’t doubt she would know about Patrick Devlin too...

She wasn’t disappointed in her choice of informant!

‘Patrick!’ Even the way Sally said his name spoke volumes. ‘Now there is a gorgeous man. Tall, dark, handsome—He’s Gerry’s brother, you know—’

‘I do know,’ Lilli confirmed—she knew now!

‘He’s also intelligent, rich—oh yes, very rich.’ Sally laughed softly.

‘And single.’ It was almost a question—because Lilli wasn’t absolutely sure of his marital status. She had beea to bed with the man, and she didn’t even know whether he was married!

‘He is now,’ Sally nodded, nibbling on one of the prawns she had chosen to start her meal. ‘Sanchia wasn’t the faithful kind, and so he went through rather a messy divorce about five years ago. Sanchia took him for millions. Personally, I would rather have kept the man, but Sanchia settled for the cash and moved back to France, where she originally came from.’

Sanchia... Patrick had been married to a woman called Sanchia. A woman who had been unfaithful to him. She couldn’t have known him very well if she had thought he would put up with that; Lilli had only known him twenty-four hours, but, even so, she knew he was a man who kept what he had. Exclusively.

But at least he wasn’t married now, which was a relief to hear after last night. Although there was still so much Lilli wanted to know about him...

‘What does he do?’ Lilli frowned; chairman of a bank didn’t tell her anything.

‘I just told you.’ Sally laughed. ‘He makes millions.’

‘And then gives them away to ex-wives,’ Lilli scorned; that didn’t sound very intelligent to her!

‘One ex-wife,’ Sally corrected her. ‘And he didn’t give it away. It was probably worth it to him to get that embarrassment out of his life. Sanchia liked men, and made no secret of the fact...’

‘She sounds a lot like his sister,’ Lilli said bitterly. How could her father have been so stupid as to have got mixed up with such a family?

‘Gerry’s okay,’ Sally said grudgingly. ‘Although Patrick is even better,’ she added suggestively.

Lilli gave her a guarded look. ‘Sally, you haven’t—You and he haven‘t—’

‘I should be so lucky!’ Sally laughed again ruefully. ‘But Patrick doesn’t. Not any more. Not since Sanchia,’ she amended wistfully.

Lilli hoped she succeeded in hiding the shock she felt at this last statement. Because Patrick most certainly did! At least, he had last night. With her...

Sally gave her a considering look. ‘You do realise I’m going to have a few questions of my own at the end of this conversation?’ she teased. ‘And the first one is going to be, just when and where did you get to meet Patrick? As far as I’m aware, he’s lived in New York for the last five years, and he’s very rarely seen over here.’

Lilli kept her expression deliberately bland. ‘Hey, I’m the one buying you dinner, remember,’ she reminded her. She liked Sally very much, found her great fun to go out with, but she was also aware that her friend was the biggest gossip in London—that was the reason she had been the perfect choice for this conversation in the first place! ‘Besides, just what makes you think I have met him?’ She opened widely innocent eyes.

Sally gave a throaty chuckle, attracting the attention of several of the men at adjoining tables. Not that she seemed in the least concerned by this male interest; she was still looking thoughtfully at Lilli. ‘Only a woman who had actually met Patrick would show this much interest in him; he’s a presence to be reckoned with!’

Well, from all accounts—his account!—Lilli had met that challenge all too capably. ‘I’m more interested in the business side of his life than his personal one.’ Now that she had assured herself he wasn’t married or seriously involved with anyone!

Sally shrugged. ‘I’ve just told you he’s based in New York. Chairman of Paradise Bank. Rich as Croesus. What else is there to know?’

His business connection to her father! ‘English business interests?’ she prompted skilfully.

‘Oh, that one’s easy,’ the other woman returned. ‘It was all in the newspapers a couple of months ago.’ She smiled warmly at the waiter as he brought their main course.

Lilli barely stopped herself grinding her teeth together in frustration. What had been in the newspapers months ago? ‘I was a little out of touch with things at the time,’ she reminded Sally once they were alone again.

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