Chapter One

KRISTINA MASTERTON PICKED up her copy of The Publishing News and studied the front page article carefully. ‘Kristina Goes for the Kill’ screamed the headline and beneath it was an accurate, if unflattering, description of the way she’d handled the auction for Martin Templar’s new thriller. ‘Attractive Kristina said afterwards that she was “very pleased” with the way things had gone,’ concluded the article. ‘This can only make one wonder what it would take to make her delighted.’

With a sigh, Kristina put the glossy paper down on her desk and leaned back in her chair. It was a fair article, there was a very flattering picture of her to accompany it, and if the comments were slightly barbed she knew they held the ring of truth.

She tried in vain to remember when she had last felt ‘delighted’ about anything. According to magazines and newspapers she was the young businesswoman who, at the early age of twenty-six, had it all. In her book deals she pushed hard to get the best for her clients, but that was a literary agent’s job and to do less would be unforgivable. Exactly why she’d been so successful so early she had no idea. A combination of luck and hard work, probably.

The trouble was that she knew she was lucky, she knew she was successful and she also knew, with painful clarity, that she did not ‘have it all’. Something was missing from her life, yet try as she might she couldn’t think what it was.

She’d been going out with Ben, an advertising copywriter, for four years and they lived in a pretty little mews house in Chelsea which she’d had decorated exactly as she had wanted. Ben was very easy-going and since her taste was for clean uncluttered lines and neutral calm colours she assumed that he didn’t feel he had any reason to complain. He had a nice home to come back to at the end of the day, and during the course of the four years they’d settled into a comfortable and mutually satisfying sex life. Not that it played quite such a large part in their lives as it used to, she thought to herself, but then after four years that was probably the same for all couples.

Her phone rang and she picked it up, grateful for the interruption. It was surprising, but thinking about her sex life with Ben was slightly depressing and this realisation was something she didn’t particularly want to face right now.

‘Kristina? Hi, it’s Lucretia here. Have you got a few minutes to spare, only I’m stuck.’

Kristina’s fingers tightened round the telephone receiver. Lucretia was one of her biggest earners. She produced steamy pot-boilers at the rate of two a year and they sold in massive quantities all over the world, but she was also difficult. The moment her fingers ground to a halt over her keyboard she’d be on the phone to Kristina, wailing about writer’s block and certain that she’d never be on the best-seller list again. After half an hour or so of chat she’d go back to her computer, ego soothed, self-confidence boosted, and churn out another chapter for her adoring public, leaving Kristina drained and exhausted in her place.

‘Sure, Lucretia, you know I’m always here for you,’ said Kristina in her most reassuring voice, then she stared out of her office window as the usual stream of complaints came down the line. Murmuring, ‘Of course you can,’ and ‘But you know how they all adore you,’ at regular intervals she allowed her thoughts to wander.

If she really ‘had it all’, she thought, then she’d be happy. Why did she wake up each morning feeling slightly irritated and then have to force herself to go into the office? Once, she’d greeted every new morning with enthusiasm, eager for the kill, as The Pubishing News would put it. But she still loved her work, and thrived on the rush of adrenalin that a fiercely contested book auction could give her. So what was the problem?

‘Do you think that would work, Kristina?’ asked Lucretia plaintively.

Guiltily Kristina realised that she had no idea what her client was talking about. ‘Of course it will, Cretia,’ she said warmly. ‘You must trust your instincts. In the end you know you’re always right. Your sales should tell you that!’

‘You’re an absolute angel,’ gushed Lucretia. ‘I don’t know what I’d do without you. I’ll get straight back to work, and you’ll get first mention in my list of acknowledgements, I promise you.’

‘There’s no need for that!’ laughed Kristina, knowing full well that she wouldn’t because this was a promise regularly delivered and never kept. ‘It’s my job to give you advice.’

‘Not just a job I hope,’ retorted Lucretia. ‘I think of you as my better half, my fountain of wisdom.’

‘Well, that’s very kind but quite untrue. You do it all yourself and you know it, but if I do help in any way then I’m very pleased. I must go now, my other phone’s ringing. Talk to you soon.’

With great relief she replaced the receiver. Sometimes when she was talking to Lucretia she wondered how on earth the woman managed to sell so well. She certainly used better words in her novels than in her speech, when ghastly clichés fell from her lips like rain from a cloud.

‘Stop it!’ said Kristina out loud. ‘You’re being rude and unkind for no reason at all. It isn’t her fault you’re in a bad mood. She’s a nice woman who works hard and deserves the money she earns.’

‘Who is?’ asked Kristina’s assistant, walking into the room with coffee for her boss.

‘Lucretia Forrest.’

Sue laughed. ‘No one deserves that much money! Are you all right?’ she added. ‘You look a bit tired.’

‘I’m fine, well, health-wise I’m fine. I don’t know, Sue, sometimes I wonder what it’s all about. Do you get days like that?’

Sue, who was nineteen and had been with Kristina for two years, shook her head. ‘Not really; life’s fun. I love my job and I love David. Right now there isn’t much more I could ask for. Don’t forget to ring Claire Webster’s publisher about that jacket for her new book. She’s rung me twice already today to see if you’ve managed to persuade them it’s tacky rather than eye-catching.’

‘Sure, I’d forgotten but I’ll get on to it now. And thanks, Sue.’

‘For what?’

Kristina smiled. ‘For pointing me in the right direction.’

Sue looked surprised. ‘It’s what I’m here for, and I know that book jackets aren’t high on your list of priorities.’

After her assistant had gone, Kristina swivelled her chair round and stared out over London. She hadn’t been talking about the book jackets, but there was no way she’d ever let Sue know that. No, what she’d been talking about was that Sue had made her face up to one rather unpleasant fact. She was used to Ben; they had a comfortable life together and were at ease with each other but there was no way she could put her hand on her heart and say, as Sue had just done, that she loved him. ‘Did I ever?’ she wondered aloud, reaching for the phone.

After that, as she began to crisply point out to the publisher of Claire’s latest book that the jacket would probably decrease sales by about 25 per cent, and then moved on through a typically hectic day, she had no more time to consider her moment of truth, but it was temporarily shelved rather than permanently discarded. After all, it explained why she hadn’t, as the articles claimed, got it all.

When she got back to the mews house at seven that evening Ben was already home. He’d changed into jeans and a polo-neck top and was cooking a stir-fry in the wok. Normally she’d have been relieved that she didn’t have to cook, but this evening she felt a surge of irritation at the sight of him happily engaged in such a domestic chore.

‘It was my turn to cook tonight,’ she pointed out as she hung up her beige cashmere coat.

Ben nodded. ‘I know, but as I got in early and you were late there didn’t seem any point in waiting.’

‘I bought some fresh pasta on my way back. I also spent ages choosing ingredients for the sauce and …’

‘We’ll have that tomorrow,’ retorted Ben. ‘What’s the matter? Bad day at work?’

‘We can’t have it tomorrow: we’re going out to dinner with Jacqueline and William, remember?’ said Kristina crossly.

‘Okay then, chuck the pasta away. It’s no big deal is it? Why are we going out with them? Is it a birthday or a promotion?’

‘Neither as far as I know,’ confessed Kristina, wishing she hadn’t snapped at Ben when he was only trying to be helpful. After all, women across the country were screaming for a New Man to split the domestic chores fifty–fifty and pull their weight as equal partners, so why should she complain when she’d got one? Because it isn’t what I want, said a small voice in her ear.

‘What’s it for?’ persisted Ben, taking out pre-heated plates from the oven and serving the food quickly and efficiently.

‘I’ve got a feeling they may be going to announce their engagement,’ said Kristina. ‘Not that Jackie said anything to me, but she sounded pretty pleased with herself over the phone and they have been living together for five years now. Marriage seems the logical step.’

‘It certainly does,’ said Ben, giving her a meaningful look.

‘I’m surprised though,’ said Kristina quickly. ‘I wouldn’t have expected it because Jackie’s always been like me, very against marriage. Like we always say, why mess with something that works?’

‘I’m not so sure about that any more,’ said Ben.

‘Open the wine,’ said Kristina quickly. ‘This is a delicious meal, Ben. That’s probably why I snapped at you when I got in. I know you’re a better cook than I am!’ Ben smiled complacently and didn’t deny it. Illogically, this annoyed Kristina. He was a better cook than her, but he didn’t have to agree quite so readily.

Later that evening, as Kristina sat reading an unsolicited manuscript that one of her outside readers had said showed flair and originality, Ben came and sat down next to her on the sofa.

‘Tiring day?’ he asked.

She knew what that meant. ‘No, not particularly,’ she replied.

‘Well, how about an early night anyway?’ he suggested, kissing her on the side of her neck. He always kissed the side of her neck when he wanted to make love to her.

She put the manuscript to one side. ‘Sounds like a good idea.’

Ben immediately put out his hands to help her to her feet. Kristina looked up at him. ‘Why don’t we do it here?’

‘The sofa’s not very comfortable; I prefer the bed,’ he protested. ‘It’s different for you, you’re not six feet tall.

She’d known he wouldn’t agree, but just for once she wanted something different, something more exciting than their routine couplings that had recently begun to leave her feeling dissatisfied. ‘In the bathroom then? On the new carpet! There’s plenty of room there.’

‘We’ve got a perfectly good bed,’ protested Ben.

‘I want to do it in the bathroom,’ insisted Kristina.

‘Okay then,’ agreed Ben reluctantly. Kristina had known that he’d give in this time.

Once in the warm bathroom she quickly began to undress him, pulling down the zip on his jeans then easing them over his hips and down to his ankles. Carefully she eased his erection free of his Y-fronts and taking it in her mouth sucked gently on it as her hands ran up and down his legs. He sighed with pleasure and his hands rested on her shoulders, the fingers straying up her neck and into her hair in soft, caressing movements.

When he was fully erect and rock-hard Kristina slowly began to peel off her own clothes, and when she was naked she pressed her breasts against his chest and rotated her upper body so that her nipples grew hard against the hairs on his chest.

Ben reached for her, his hands going round her bottom as he pulled her hips against him and they sank slowly to the floor. Ben lay beneath Kristina, which was the way she preferred it, and as she knelt above him, letting the tip of his penis brush against her pubic hair, his eyes widened with excitement and he tried to pull her down quickly on to him.

‘Not yet,’ she said sharply, and to her disappointment Ben, as usual, obeyed her. She didn’t know why she was disappointed. They both knew that she liked to be in control, and were equally turned on by this, but suddenly she wanted him to break out of the roles they’d adopted. She wanted him to grab her and force her down on to his erection, then grip her hips and move her swiftly and urgently up and down until they both came together in a shattering explosion.

It didn’t happen. As usual she teased and tantalised him, lowering herself sufficiently for the tip of his straining erection to enter her warm, moist vagina and then lifting herself up again. She changed position and spread herself along the length of him, rubbing up and down against his naked body so that her clitoris was stimulated by the underside of his glans and in the process she nearly made him come too soon, but still he didn’t try and stop her or take the initiative.

‘Do you want me to suck your nipples?’ he murmured, and once more Kristina felt an illogical surge of irritation. Surely he didn’t have to ask after all this time, she thought. He knew her body inside out, knew exactly what she did and didn’t like, so why ask?

‘Yes,’ she muttered through gritted teeth, and when his mouth closed greedily about the small pale pink peaks the familiar surge of pleasure washed over her as her climax began to build.

Ben’s hands were playing with the cheeks of her bottom, squeezing and stroking them before he managed to slip one hand upwards beneath her and now it was his fingers that were stimulating her clitoris and she gave a tiny cry of excitement as the tight hot feeling grew deep within her.

When she knew she was on the brink of her orgasm she lifted herself up and then lowered herself down on to his by now painfully hard penis, and as the pleasure mounted she threw her head back and rode him without any thought at all for his needs and desires. All she was concentrating on was the steady build-up of pressure that was tightening her belly and drawing her insides into a hard little knot that she knew would only be released at the moment of climax.

‘I can’t keep going much longer,’ groaned Ben, his face contorted with effort.

‘Wait just a moment,’ Kristina implored him, and then at last she was there and the wonderful rushing heat suffused her whole body. She cried out with satisfaction and within seconds Ben was crying out too as he writhed beneath her, his orgasm all the more intense because of the amount of self-control he’d had to exercise.

‘There,’ he said with a smile. ‘That was good wasn’t it?’

Kristina rolled off him and on to the soft carpet, feeling its deep wool pile caress her still tingling flesh. ‘Yes,’ she agreed. ‘It was great.’ But it hadn’t been. Unlike the manuscript it had all lacked flair and originality. The trouble was, Kristina had the feeling that she had only herself to blame.

The following evening it was Ben’s turn to get back late. By the time he arrived, Kristina had already tried on and discarded three outfits for the evening and was frantically going through her wardrobe for something that fitted her mood. Black with a veil might be appropriate, she thought to herself with a wry smile.

‘Have I time for a shower?’ asked Ben, coming up behind her and resting his hands on each side of her bare waist.

‘As long as you’re quick. Don’t do that, Ben, I’m trying to think.’

‘Let me distract you,’ he murmured, nuzzling the nape of her neck.

Kristina felt like screaming at him. ‘Please, Ben, hurry up and shower. If this is an engagement announcement we mustn’t be late.’

‘It’s your fault,’ retorted Ben, sounding quite put out for him. ‘You stand around half-naked and then expect me to ignore the fact. I’m only human, you know.’

‘I didn’t realise I was that irresistible,’ she quipped, once again regretting the way she’d been snapping at him over the last few days.

‘You are to me,’ he assured her as he stripped off his clothes and made his way to the shower. Kristina wondered what other men would think.

Standing in front of the full-length mirror she studied herself critically. She was definitely striking, she knew that, but more by virtue of the fact that she had such an unusual combination of hair and skin colouring than because of any outstanding individual features. Her hair was very dark and naturally curly. Without any effort on her part it looked sexily tousled and casual, but her eyes beneath equally dark brows were a startling deep blue and her skin was incredibly pale, like the finest porcelain.

She was quite tall, five foot seven, and slim but she thought that her breasts were too small and her bottom too large. The fact that men always found her sexy and she’d never had any shortage of admirers still hadn’t given her the kind of confidence in her looks that she felt she should have. The trouble was, she longed to be a cool blonde with a hint of colour along high cheekbones and a wonderful figure with a cleavage she could show off in low-cut dresses. Someone more like Jacqueline she supposed.

Finally she settled for a pine-green fit-and-flare dress overlaid with an asymmetrically cut tunic of see-through lace. The outfit clung to her body like a second skin and the slightly scooped neckline and long sleeves of the lace over-tunic disguised her slenderness a little, making her look more interesting, she thought. Not that there was a lot of point in looking interesting. She’d known William for five years and Jacqueline for twelve. Neither of them were likely to take more than a cursory glance at her, but for some reason she felt that she had to start changing things, making more of an effort to get out of the rut that she was in. It might be a high-powered rut, but it was still a rut.

‘Hey, that’s a bit over the top isn’t it?’ asked Ben as he started dressing. ‘We’re only going to a bistro.’

‘I felt like dressing up.’

‘You look incredibly sexy,’ he admitted. ‘Are you sure we haven’t got time for a quickie?’

‘Quite sure,’ she said firmly. She never enjoyed Ben’s quickies. It was rather like being really hungry and then having someone give you a bowl of thin soup and expecting you to be grateful. ‘I wonder when they’ll be getting married,’ she asked as they climbed into Ben’s car. ‘The summer I suppose. Summer weddings are nice.’

‘Do I detect a brooding note?’ asked Ben with a grin.

‘Certainly not,’ said Kristina sharply, and Ben retreated into hurt silence for the rest of the journey.

The restaurant was crowded and it took them a few moments to find Jacqueline, but then Kristina noticed her very blonde hair at the far side of the room and she waved. Jacqueline waved back, and Kristina thought she’d never seen her friend look so happy. ‘There they are,’ she said to Ben.

‘Where?’

‘Over there, by the window. Jackie’s had her hair cut short. Doesn’t it look great?’

‘Yes, great. William appears to have had a head transplant,’ he added in a low voice.

‘A what?’ asked Kristina as they approached the table, but before he could answer her they were there and then she realised what he’d meant because the man sitting next to Jacqueline wasn’t William at all, it was a complete stranger.

Jacqueline smiled broadly at Kristina. ‘I thought you’d forgotten, you’re not usually late. Laurence, I’d like you to meet my oldest friend Kristina and her partner Ben. Kristina, Ben, this is Laurence van Kitson.’

Laurence rose to his feet, and by the way he towered over Ben, Kristina realised that he must be at least six foot three and very well built. His hair was as blond as Jacqueline’s and his rather angular face was tanned. His light blue eyes seemed to look straight through Kristina and she felt a faint shiver of something strangely like fear run through her.

He held out a large hand but when she took it his grip was surprisingly gentle, almost a caress. ‘Pleased to meet you,’ he said in a clipped voice, and she realised then that he was a South African, which explained both the name and the colouring.

‘Who is he?’ whispered Ben as the pair of them sat down.

‘No idea,’ Kristina whispered back.

‘No engagement announcement by the look of it,’ he muttered, and looking at the glow on Jackie’s face and the way she was smiling at Laurence, Kristina had to agree. William, it seemed, had vanished from the scene.

‘Love the outfit,’ she remarked to Jacqueline, who was wearing a soft purple-heather coloured trouser suit that looked to be made of some kind of damask material. The long tunic with side vents and pointed sleeves was extremely soft and flattering, totally unlike her friend’s usual fitted dresses or sharp suits. In fact, now she came to look at her more closely, Jackie looked altogether softer and more relaxed tonight than Kristina had ever seen her.

‘Shall we order?’ asked Laurence.

Before anyone could reply he’d clicked his fingers and immediately, despite the fact that the restaurant was full and the waiters rushed off their feet, one appeared at their table, pencil poised over his pad.

Kristina felt totally thrown off balance. Not only was William missing, Jacqueline didn’t seem the same and this man Laurence clearly thought himself in charge, despite the fact that neither she nor Ben had ever met him before.

‘I think the melon for the first course, and then the salmon,’ he said decisively.

‘And the young lady?’ asked the waiter, his eyes lingering appreciatively on Jacqueline.

‘She’ll have the same,’ said Laurence smoothly.

Kristina glanced at him in open astonishment. William would never have ordered for Jackie without consulting her first, but amazingly Jackie was still smiling happily and didn’t seem to think Laurence had done anything unusual.

‘I’d like vegetable soup and then the beef stroganoff,’ said Kristina after a short pause. ‘What about you, Ben?’ Ben also chose soup followed by trout in almonds and the waiter left them to study the wine list.

‘Any preferences?’ Laurence asked Ben. Ben shrugged. ‘Not really. Nothing too sweet.’

‘I’d like a Chardonnay,’ said Kristina crisply.

Laurence’s light blue eyes flicked to her face. ‘Then a Chardonnay you must have, Kristina! Jackie and I will share a Sauvignon.’

Kristina felt like laughing aloud. Now he’d really put his foot in it. Jacqueline loved Chardonnay, in fact she could put away an entire bottle without any trouble at all. She always claimed it was her favourite food as well as her favourite drink.

‘Do you hear that, Jackie?’ asked Kristina. ‘Laurence thinks you’d like a Sauvignon.’

‘That sounds perfect,’ agreed Jacqueline, and Laurence put a hand over hers on the table top, his fingers closing around her hand in a grip that seemed both restraining and possessive. Kristina’s stomach lurched and she wondered what on earth was going on between the couple opposite her. Clearly they were lovers, but how had they met and what kind of a relationship did they have?

With William, Jackie had been very much the dominant partner, and like Kristina this was the way she’d always run her romantic life. Could she really have changed so radically, or was this just some wild aberration on her part, or even a joke? Perhaps she was going out with Laurence to amuse herself, as a contrast to the reliable, dependable William. Yet somehow, watching the way Laurence kept touching her friend and resting his arm along the back of her chair she didn’t feel that this was the answer.

‘He won’t last long,’ muttered Ben as their first courses were brought to the table. ‘Far too much of a chauvinist for Jackie. Is he something to do with her paper do you think?’ Kristina shrugged. She had no more idea than he did, but she intended to find out as soon as possible.

‘Are you in journalism too, Laurence?’ she asked him.

He glanced across the table at her, his expression surprised. ‘Of course not. Whatever gave you that idea?’

Kristina shrugged. ‘I suppose that since Jackie’s a journalist it seemed a reasonable assumption.’

‘Not to me. After all, what is it that you do? Something connected with books I seem to remember Jacqueline saying. Is that right?’

‘Yes,’ replied Kristina shortly. ‘I’m a literary agent.’

‘And is Ben a novelist? Or a publisher perhaps?’

‘No, he’s in advertising.’

‘There you are then,’ said Laurence with a smile that didn’t reach his eyes. ‘You don’t go out exclusively with people in your line of work, and neither does Jacqueline.’

Kristina looked at her friend to see how she was taking all this, but to her surprise Jacqueline didn’t appear to be listening. She was gazing at Laurence with an expression of pure physical lust. She had an extraordinary look of yearning in her eyes that made Kristina’s mouth go unexpectedly dry.

‘Then what do you do?’ she persisted, suddenly determined to make this handsome but distinctly impolite man answer her question.

‘I deal in diamonds,’ he said curtly.

‘Lucky you, Jackie!’ laughed Ben. ‘Wearing any tonight?’

Jackie shook her head. ‘I don’t like diamonds, sapphires are my favourite stone.’

‘I think diamonds are very useful,’ said Kristina. ‘They can always be sold for a good price after you’ve changed the man in your life!’

‘Or the man in your life’s moved on!’ said Laurence with a laugh.

Kristina was beginning to dislike him intensely. ‘I suppose it does sometimes happen that way round,’ she conceded, looking to Jackie for support. Jackie though was clearly useless tonight. She refused to back up Kristina’s remark and simply smiled apologetically at Laurence, who didn’t smile back but instead lifted a hand and with one finger carefully traced the outline of her mouth. Jacqueline’s lips parted and her breathing grew visibly more rapid, but then he removed his hand and the brief, sensual moment passed.

Kristina was beginning to feel very uncomfortable. This wasn’t the Jackie she’d known for years, the control freak who ran her life like a military operation, and used to schedule sex with William around her assignments, days in advance.

‘Are diamonds doing well at the moment?’ asked Ben cheerfully.

‘Yes,’ replied Laurence shortly, stopping that line of conversation dead in its tracks.

Ben blinked in surprise. ‘Oh, well good for you. Of course it isn’t the same in advertising. I mean, you’re not relying on how much people want a particular product at a given moment. You’re the one trying to persuade them that they can’t do without it!’

‘Quite,’ agreed Laurence, finishing his main course and putting his knife and fork together tidily on the side of his plate. ‘Jacqueline, your mascara’s smudged. Perhaps you’d like to repair the damage before we have dessert?’

Kristina’s mouth opened in shock. She couldn’t believe that she was hearing right, that anyone would be so rude as to talk to their date as if she were a child of six who had to be told when to wash and tidy up. She waited for Jackie’s explosion, but she waited in vain.

Jackie stared at Laurence in amazement, but then after opening her mouth to reply she seemed to think better of it and checked herself. She took a few deep breaths and smiled at him. ‘What a good idea. Excuse me a moment everyone, please.’ With that she rose from her chair and walked across the restaurant to the ladies’ room.

‘I think I’ll join her,’ said Kristina quickly, and without even looking at Laurence she hurried after her friend.

She found her sitting on a stool gazing into the tiled mirror, carefully examining her make-up for flaws.

‘There’s nothing wrong with your mascara,’ said Kristina. ‘I think he’s mad! Where did you find him? And what’s happened to William?’

‘William? Oh, William’s gone. I decided he wasn’t right for me.’

‘But you made the perfect couple. I remember you saying that you’d never find anyone who suited you better. He never minded when your job took you away, he was romantic and …’

‘I got bored,’ said Jackie shortly.

‘Bored?’

‘You know how it is, or perhaps you don’t, but I realised that I always knew exactly what he was going to do, or say. And as for sex … Well, he might as well have made love to me by numbers. Nothing was ever changed; he knew what I liked so that’s what he did.’

‘Well, you wouldn’t have wanted him doing things you didn’t like!’ retorted Kristina.

Jackie laughed. ‘No, of course I wouldn’t, but there are other things you can do, new things to try and William wasn’t the kind of man to want to experiment.’

‘Laurence seems the kind of man who wants nothing but an obedient doll,’ said Kristina sharply. ‘I mean, what are you thinking of? He’s everything you hate in men. He even chose what you ate and drank tonight! As for this business of make-up, it’s pure rubbish.’

Jacqueline shook her head. ‘No, he was right. I did have a smudge. I’ve put it right now. And as for the meal, it makes a change to have someone make a decision for me, especially after the day I’ve had.’

‘You look well,’ conceded Kristina. ‘There must be something good about him. You’re definitely glowing!’

‘That’s thanks to Laurence. You must agree that he’s good looking, Kristina.’

‘I suppose he is, in a rather hard way though. He’s got the strangest eyes, they seem to see right through you.’

Jacqueline didn’t answer. Instead she sprayed herself with some perfume and then slid from the stool. ‘Time to rejoin the men I think. Laurence will wonder what we’ve been up to!’

‘Let him wonder. Since when did what a man thought worry you?’

‘Perhaps I just don’t want to be away from him for too long,’ laughed Jackie.

‘Are you living together?’ enquired Kristina with interest.

Her friend shook her head. ‘No, nothing like that. We meet up once or twice a week I suppose. He’s a very private person, and now that William’s gone I’m rather relishing my own privacy too.’

‘What’s he like in bed?’ asked Kristina.

To her surprise Jacqueline bent her head and began to rummage in her handbag, clearly determined not to let Kristina see the expression on her face. ‘Fantastic,’ she muttered. ‘Where did I put my lipstick? I can’t seem to find it anywhere.’

‘Just fantastic? No details?’ persisted Kristina.

At last Jackie lifted her head again. ‘That’s right, no details. Come on, we must get back.’

As she stood up she brushed her blonde hair back off her forehead and dangling from her left wrist Kristina saw a fine gold chain with a tiny letter ‘B’ suspended from it.

‘That’s rather beautiful,’ she commented.

‘What?’ asked Jacqueline.

‘Your bracelet. Let me look closer. Yes, I thought it was a letter ‘B’. Why ‘B’? Your name’s Jacqueline.’

‘It’s a shape, not a letter,’ said Jacqueline, blushing furiously. ‘And it was a present from Laurence. Come on, he and Ben will think we’ve run off and left them.’

Intrigued, Kristina followed her friend back to their table. She knew Jackie wasn’t telling the truth. It was a letter ‘B’ and clearly the bracelet was of some significance. It was unusual for Jackie to blush about anything, let alone a piece of jewellery.

During the remainder of the meal Kristina studied Laurence and Jacqueline carefully. Once or twice she thought that Laurence was aware of her scrutiny, but Jacqueline remained oblivious mainly because all of her attention was centred on her new, blond-haired boyfriend.

Laurence was surprisingly tactile. He touched Jacqueline a lot, brushing his hand down her arm, stroking the nape of her neck and once or twice Kristina was convinced he was touching her more intimately beneath the table but never once did Jacqueline touch him. She merely responded to each touch by blossoming in front of Kristina’s eyes as the evening progressed.

When they all parted company, Jacqueline’s eyes were glowing and her face was alight with happiness. As Laurence slipped her coat over her shoulders she smiled up at him with a look of such adoration that Kristina wondered if the man was a hypnotist of some kind. He’d certainly changed her friend.

‘I’ll ring you,’ Kristina said to Jackie as they parted company, but Laurence was already leading her away towards where his car was parked and Jackie either didn’t hear or didn’t choose to reply.

‘What did you make of that?’ Kristina asked Ben as they drove home.

‘A bit of a boring evening really. He doesn’t say much does he? Not the life and soul of the party. Did you find out where William was?’

‘He’s been given the elbow,’ said Kristina. ‘It seems …’ She stopped. She’d been about to say that it seemed he’d bored Jackie, but then she decided not to. It might lead the conversation into tricky waters, because she knew that the same thing was happening to her with Ben, and now was definitely not the moment to bring that up. ‘They decided to split,’ she said quickly. ‘Grown too used to each other or something.’

‘Pity, he was a good chap,’ said Ben.

That night, after they’d made love and Ben was sleeping, Kristina re-ran the evening in her mind and was surprised at how much impact Laurence had made on her. Not only that, it was clear that there was something very special going on between him and Jacqueline, something that Jacqueline wasn’t prepared to discuss even with her best friend.

Before she too fell asleep, Kristina vowed to find out as soon as possible what exactly it was that had both totally changed her friend’s attitude and at the same time given her the glow of a woman who was having the time of her life in bed.