I didn’t mean—’
‘It’s okay, Talie. I know exactly what you meant. The other thing I have to impress on you is the need for total discretion.’
‘I always assumed that was the first requirement of the job, Mrs Lester. But if you’re concerned, then maybe you should send someone you know.’
‘It’s Heather. And I’m asking you. Yes or no? Will you go?’
Reality beckoned.
‘I’d absolutely love to, but the thing is I’ve already got another temp job lined up and I can’t let them down—’
‘I’ve already spoken to the agency. They will rearrange the booking if you are willing to take this assignment.’
In the middle of the night?
Apparently sensing her disbelief, Heather said, ‘I’m a personal friend of the manager. Who speaks very highly of you, I might add.’
‘Oh, I see. Well, if you’re sure. I mean, surely there’s someone else at the office…’ She stopped, remembering how the other women at the office spoke about Jude Radcliffe. ‘Who can do shorthand,’ she finally managed.
Heather laughed. ‘Not like you, Talie. You’ll have my undying gratitude if you’ll take this on.’
And clearly the undying gratitude of the right-hand woman to Jude Radcliffe was something well worth having. In the unlikely event that she would ever be able to take on a full time job.
Assuming that all objections were disposed of, Heather went on, ‘A car will pick you up at nine-thirty to take you to the airport. The driver will have everything you need in a carry-on bag, including some notes I made in case something like this happened.’
‘Heavens, that was lucky.’
‘Not lucky. It’s called forward planning. Babies have a habit of doing their own thing. You’ll have my laptop, too, and there’s everything you’ll need on that. Jude’s been away, so I’m sure he’ll want to work on the plane. Have you got a notebook handy?’
Heather spent ten minutes or so briefing her before rushing back to her daughter. Talie replaced the receiver and sat on the bottom of the stairs for a moment, staring down at the pages of shorthand notes she’d taken down, utterly stupefied by the speed at which events had overtaken her.
She needed to move. She needed to pack…
‘Who was that?’ Her mother’s voice finally filtered through the disbelief that something so amazing could have happened to her. ‘Who could be so thoughtless, calling at this time of night?’
She stirred, went back upstairs to her mother’s room. ‘It’s okay, Mum, it was work. A special temping job has come up and I’m going to have to go away for a few days—’
‘Away? Where? I can’t—’
‘You’ll be fine,’ she said, firmly putting a stop to her mother’s panicky reaction. ‘Karen is here until the end of the month, remember? And I’ll ring you every day.’ She decided it would be wiser not to mention exactly where she’d be phoning from… ‘I bought some videos for you today,’ she said, changing the subject. ‘A couple of old Doris Day movies.’
‘Really?’ Her mother brightened momentarily. Then, ‘If only your father were here.’
‘I know, Mum. I know.’ She brushed the hair back from her mother’s forehead and kissed her. ‘You go back to sleep. I’ll bring you some breakfast before I leave tomorrow.’
‘Heather? I’ve been trying to get you all morning. What’s this damn nonsense about you not coming to New York? I’m at the airport and the flight has already been called.’
‘I’m sorry, Jude. I did try and get you last night, but I could only get your answering machine and it ran out before I could explain—’
‘And then you switched off your phone.’
‘I can’t have it on in the hospital.’
‘Hospital! What hospital? What’s happened?’
‘Nothing to worry about. It’s just my daughter. She’s gone into labour early and she’s having a bit of a torrid time, poor darling. They’re considering a Caesar—’
‘And you’re a surgeon?’ He didn’t wait for an answer. ‘Stop fooling around and get to the airport. You can buy the baby something special at Tiffany’s—’
‘Talie can take shorthand as fast I can, and she’s fully briefed. I promise, you won’t even miss me.’
Talie? Who the devil was Talie?
‘Your daughter’s got a partner, hasn’t she? She doesn’t need you to hold her hand—’
‘Jude, I have to go.’
‘I refuse to cope with some stranger. I want you. Here. Now!’
‘She’s not a stranger!’ Then, ‘Isn’t she there? The car was supposed to have picked her up at nine-thirty.’
At that moment the automatic doors slid back, and as Jude Radcliffe caught sight of an unmistakable mop of blonde hair that even under restraint looked in danger of exploding he stopped listening. It was the pocket-sized blonde bombshell from the lift. She was pushing a trolley laden with a mountainous heap of luggage and talking to an elderly woman who was searching her handbag in a totally distracted manner.
‘Heather,’ he said, ‘you’re fired.’
And he cut the connection.
Talie, looking around desperately for someone in uniform to grab and ask for help, suddenly found herself confronted by her knight errant, freed from the armour of navy pinstripe and looking totally gorgeous in a grey cashmere sweater that exactly matched his eyes.
‘Good heavens, are you going to New York, too? How brilliant! I thought I was going to be on my own with Jude Radcliffe, and everyone says he’s a total…’
She stopped. The girls in the office might well be right, but it occurred to her that saying the first thing that came into her head might not be wise since, knight errant or not, he had to be one of Jude Radcliffe’s famously bright young men. And, ignoring that enticing left eyebrow, which was inviting her to continue, she turned quickly to the elderly lady she’d rescued as she’d struggled with her trolley.
‘This is Kitty,’ she said. ‘She’s going to visit her new grandson in New Zealand. At least she would be if she could find her ticket.’
‘It’s all right, dear. I’ve found it. It was stuck between my book and my box of tissues.’
Talie breathed a huge sigh of relief as the woman finally produced the folder from the depths of her bag. ‘I’ll just take her to find her queue and then I’ll be right back.’
‘You’re going nowhere. Our flight has already been called. You should have been here an hour ago.’
‘I know, but there was an accident in the tunnel,’ she said, a touch less brightly as it occurred to her that her knight might be dressed casually for travelling, but his expression was as unyielding as granite. Typical. Just when she could do with a smile or two to allay nerves that were stretched to breaking point, she finally got ‘serious.’
‘And you had to give first aid?’ he enquired.
‘Not this time,’ she said, and, assuming he was teasing her, began to relax and smiled up at him. She was on her own with the smiling, she discovered. Losing her own rapidly, she said, ‘I’ll only be a minute—’
‘You’re not listening to me, Talie,’ he said, in a tone that stopped her in her tracks.
‘Oh, you know my name?’
‘It’s not a name. It’s the