Read Online Wild and Willing! by Kim Lawrence - Free Book Online

them out,’ Anna volunteered helpfully.
    ‘Thank you for that pearl of wisdom.’
    Anna hoped that her mother could now see how unpleasant Adam Deacon was. She threw her parent a look, but that lady was apparently fascinated by the cover of a glossy magazine. As awful as Adam was this was an emergency and Anna was concerned about these children she’d never met.
    ‘Can they reach the lock?’
    Adam conveyed this question down the line. ‘All right, Kate, there’s no need to yell.’ He winced and moved the instrument several inches from his ear. ‘It appears the leg’s come off the stool.’ He spoke into the phone again. ‘Tell Granny I’ll pay for the Persian rug to be cleaned. I’ll buy her another one!’ he snapped, impatience lapping at the edge of his level tones. He turnedback to Anna. ‘They can’t turn the taps off. The plaster is falling off the drawing-room ceiling.’
    This time the look he shot Anna was one of pure appeal. Adam in charge, domineering and capable, was a dynamite package, but this hint of vulnerability wrung her heart. Adam wasn’t as self-sufficient as he liked to appear.
    ‘Tell them to pull the plug out,’ she suggested practically. Simple common sense often eluded intellectuals, in her experience, and here was a perfect example.
    Adam hit the heel of his palm to his forehead. ‘Why didn’t I think of that?’ He passed the advice down the line. ‘They’ve done it. Now we’ve just got to get them out— Hi, Jake, what sort of lock is it? Then you could actually unscrew the mechanism from the outside. Good man,’ he said with a sigh of relief. After a pause he said, ‘Tell them to calm down. How?’
    ‘Get them involved.’ Anna made the suggestion tentatively.
    Adam’s eyes narrowed as he regarded her. He gave a sudden decisive nod. ‘Here, you tell her.’ He covered the distance between them in two strides and shoved the phone into her hand. Leaning one hand against the wall, he effectively prevented her from obeying her instincts and running.
    She glowered at him. How typical of the man to selfishly put her on the spot. ‘Hello, I’m Anna.’ Her anger faded as she heard the panic in the young voice of the girl on the other end of the line.
    The youthful voice identified herself as Kate, and Anna replied sympathetically. Her soft tones eventually appeared to have a soothing effect on the overwrought girl.
    ‘Explain to them that they’ll soon be out and tell them what— Jake, is it? Yes, what Jake is doing. Do they like helping him? Good. Then let them think that’s what they’re doing. Improvise a bit. Let them use their toothbrushesas screwdrivers and they can help Jake. Keep talking to them. Good. I’ll pass you back to your uncle.’ Straightening her elbow, she thrust the instrument hard into his middle.
    Adam winced and his mouth twisted in a wry grin as he acknowledged her censorious frown. ‘Hi, Kate.’ He nodded several times and then silently mouthed, ‘Thank you,’ to Anna.
    The glow of pleasure was out of all proportion to the token. Trying to subdue the sudden rush of colour that ran over her pale skin, she waited for him to move. He didn’t, and she fought to regain her composure. Literally pushed into a corner, she couldn’t help but be aware of how disturbing his physical presence was; she was only human.
    Anna lost track of the situation on the other end of the line. She was unable to concentrate on anything he said before he finally rang off. He straightened to his full height and looked into her flushed, agitated face.
    ‘The heroine of the hour.’
    Suspiciously she searched for mockery but found none. ‘I have a practical turn of mind,’ she said half-apologetically.
    ‘And a soft heart,’ he murmured, as if he had just made the discovery. ‘Kate says thank you.’
    ‘You’ll make me blush,’ she replied uncertainly.
    ‘You already are.
    ‘I thought I could cope with any crisis of any description.’ He gave a grimace of