Read Online Hostile engagement by Jessica Steele - Free Book Online
Authors: Jessica Steele
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still irked her at having to give in to his order that she have dinner up at the Hall—as she had already told him, she reflected as she shook out a pale apricot-coloured dinner gown prior to stepping into it, she had had very little choice. No choice either when Jud Hemming had elected to wait downstairs while she changed. Oh, she'd tried to get rid of him, but her, 'I'll be ready if you call back for me in an hour,' had had him replying, 'You'll be ready in half that time, and I'll wait right here.' His eyes had been cold as he had surveyed her then, and she had slammed up to the bathroom to take a quick shower with the very definite feeling that if she was one minute over the half hour, she would hear his footsteps charging up the stairs to get her. Oh damn, now her zip had stuck.
Backing towards the mirror, Lucy struggled to see where the metal had caught the fine apricot material. The minutes ticked on as -she wrestled with the recalcitrant zip, but all she achieved was to jam it so tight it would go neither up nor down. Marvellous, she thought, sitting down on her dressing table stool and staring glum-faced at her reflection; she would have to ask that brute downstairs to take a look at it because the zip had stuck so fast she couldn't even take the dress off and put on something else. Fortunately her face was made up and her hair smoothly brushed and swinging loosely to her shoulders; she was ready apart from that stupid zip. She listened thinking she heard a movement downstairs and considered that was all she needed for Jud Hemming to start to become impatient. Standing up, she slewed round and saw in the mirror the expanse of bare back that would be open to his view if she asked him to see if he could fix her zip.
With the resigned thought of 'what else can I do?' she
left her bedroom and as she reached the head of the stairs saw that Jud had come out into the hall and was looking up at her from the bottom of the stairs. Even from that distance the expression on his face looked distinctly chilly.
`Ready?' he called, when she made no move to join him.
`No,' she called back, and before she could add anything further, the intimacy of the request she had to make causing her to hesitate to voice it, Jud did no more than begin to a scend the stairs. 'You can't com e up here,' she protested, wasting her breath as he joined her on the landing.
`Your half hour is up,' he told her icily. 'You look ready and you've already agreed to come-so don't start playing games with me at this stage. I warn you now ...'
`My zip's stuck,' Lucy cut in, not liking the ominous threat behind his words.
Jud looked at the front of her, seemed to notice only then that the front of her bodice was not fitting as snugly as it might have done, and that her dress had never been designed to reveal any part of her breasts, the creamy swell now open to his gaze. 'Turn around,' he instructed coolly, clearly unaffected by the sight of her charms, and unspeaking Lucy did as she was bidden. 'The light's no good here,' he said after a moment or two. 'Let's try your bedroom.'
`The light is better downstairs,' Lucy lied, feeling unaccountably nervous at having this suddenly still man in the intimate closeness of her bedroom.
`Believe it or not,' said Jud, as the silence lengthened between them, 'I'm more interested in having my dinner at this moment than taking advantage of anything you have to offer.'
Stung once more by his sarcasm, his very tone telling her whatever else other men might think of her, she left him cold, Lucy stormed ahead of him, mindless that he had a clear view of her, as her flapping dress fell off her shoulders to reveal a goodly proportion of her naked back. She left him to please himself whether he followed her into her
room, and stood silently fuming with her dress held to the front of her her back to the open door. She didn't care then whether her dress was mended or not; one more word out of him and he could return
Backing towards the mirror, Lucy struggled to see where the metal had caught the fine apricot material. The minutes ticked on as -she wrestled with the recalcitrant zip, but all she achieved was to jam it so tight it would go neither up nor down. Marvellous, she thought, sitting down on her dressing table stool and staring glum-faced at her reflection; she would have to ask that brute downstairs to take a look at it because the zip had stuck so fast she couldn't even take the dress off and put on something else. Fortunately her face was made up and her hair smoothly brushed and swinging loosely to her shoulders; she was ready apart from that stupid zip. She listened thinking she heard a movement downstairs and considered that was all she needed for Jud Hemming to start to become impatient. Standing up, she slewed round and saw in the mirror the expanse of bare back that would be open to his view if she asked him to see if he could fix her zip.
With the resigned thought of 'what else can I do?' she
left her bedroom and as she reached the head of the stairs saw that Jud had come out into the hall and was looking up at her from the bottom of the stairs. Even from that distance the expression on his face looked distinctly chilly.
`Ready?' he called, when she made no move to join him.
`No,' she called back, and before she could add anything further, the intimacy of the request she had to make causing her to hesitate to voice it, Jud did no more than begin to a scend the stairs. 'You can't com e up here,' she protested, wasting her breath as he joined her on the landing.
`Your half hour is up,' he told her icily. 'You look ready and you've already agreed to come-so don't start playing games with me at this stage. I warn you now ...'
`My zip's stuck,' Lucy cut in, not liking the ominous threat behind his words.
Jud looked at the front of her, seemed to notice only then that the front of her bodice was not fitting as snugly as it might have done, and that her dress had never been designed to reveal any part of her breasts, the creamy swell now open to his gaze. 'Turn around,' he instructed coolly, clearly unaffected by the sight of her charms, and unspeaking Lucy did as she was bidden. 'The light's no good here,' he said after a moment or two. 'Let's try your bedroom.'
`The light is better downstairs,' Lucy lied, feeling unaccountably nervous at having this suddenly still man in the intimate closeness of her bedroom.
`Believe it or not,' said Jud, as the silence lengthened between them, 'I'm more interested in having my dinner at this moment than taking advantage of anything you have to offer.'
Stung once more by his sarcasm, his very tone telling her whatever else other men might think of her, she left him cold, Lucy stormed ahead of him, mindless that he had a clear view of her, as her flapping dress fell off her shoulders to reveal a goodly proportion of her naked back. She left him to please himself whether he followed her into her
room, and stood silently fuming with her dress held to the front of her her back to the open door. She didn't care then whether her dress was mended or not; one more word out of him and he could return
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