Give A Man A Bad Name
Roberta Leigh

www.millsandboon.co.uk

CONTENTS

CHAPTER ONE

CHAPTER TWO

CHAPTER THREE

CHAPTER FOUR

CHAPTER FIVE

CHAPTER SIX

CHAPTER SEVEN

CHAPTER EIGHT

CHAPTER NINE

CHAPTER TEN

CHAPTER ELEVEN

CHAPTER TWELVE

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

CHAPTER ONE

WHEN Marly Bradshaw saw Alex Hamilton for the first time, she knew he was the man of her dreams.

It was an unusually romantic thought for a young woman who had always considered herself practical and intelligent; more interested in her career than cooking, in climbing the corporate ladder than catering to a husband’s whims.

And yet...

‘He affected me that way too,’ her closest friend Nan commented. ‘Even now my heart thumps when I see him.’

‘He probably has a squeaky voice and a wife and four kids!’ Marly grinned.

Nan shook her head so vigorously that her thick black hair, permed into a riot of curls, bounced around her head. ‘He has the sexiest deep brown voice and he’s single.’

Further conversation was cut short by Nan being called to Reception, and Marly, returning to her office, thought for the umpteenth time what a stroke of luck it was that Steve Rivers, her boss at 3S Software in London, had asked her if she would consider going to Thailand to set up a computer program for the Riverside Hamilton, the newest luxury hotel of the Hamilton chain.

‘Consider it?’ she had exclaimed. ‘Why, I’d jump at it! My great-grandmother was Thai, and it’s my favourite country in all the world.’

‘Mine too,’ Steve had agreed. ‘How did your great-grandpa meet his wife? Thailand wasn’t a tourist spot in those days.’

‘He was a diplomat, and so was her father. They met at an embassy party and it was love at first sight.’

A month later had found Marly in Bangkok, staying with Nan Damrong and her parents. The two girls had met at boarding-school, and since then Marly had visited Thailand every other year, so that the prospect of seeing Nan for a couple of months had made the job doubly attractive.

Arriving at the Riverside for her first day of work, she had been disconcerted to discover that Alex Hamilton, heir to the business and temporary manager of its newest hotel, had been called to a board meeting in New York, leaving her to kick her heels till he returned and told her exactly how he wanted her to prepare the software.

Chafing at the delay, she had none the less used it to learn as much about the running of the hotel as possible, knowing it would help her devise the most efficient program. She had also renewed her acquaintance with Bangkok, for in the two years since she had been here it had changed considerably, with the addition of two more luxury hotels, another huge shopping complex, and high-rise office blocks mushrooming everywhere.

She had been delighted to find her knowledge of Thai—originally learned from Nan and then perfected by tapes and discs—was as good as ever, thanks to an aptitude for foreign languages. Indeed, one afternoon wandering the crowded streets, she had haggled over the price of a blouse and been mistaken for a Thai! As she was petite and fine-boned, with silky black hair inherited from her great-grandmother, and almond-shaped brown eyes inherited from a Cornish grandfather, this wasn’t surprising. And even after she had produced her passport to prove it, the local man had not been entirely convinced.

She was still amused by the incident when, returning to the Riverside, she had her first glimpse of Alex Hamilton. Not that she had known who he was. She had been standing by the magazine stall to one side of the huge marble foyer, when an unusual bustle at the vast plate-glass entrance doors made her turn to see what it was about. Yet another VIP, she had assumed, and expecting one to saunter in, had instead seen a very tall man with hair thick and tawny as a lion’s mane stride smartly across the floor, accompanied by scurrying minions.

Curious to know who he was, she had moved forward, not realising she was in his path until he stopped and frowned. Not even the drawing together of strongly marked eyebrows could mar the handsome face, for which the word ‘chiselled’ was singularly apt. High cheekbones swept down to a firm jaw, redeemed from squareness by a cleft chin, and deep-set eyes—the grey of woodland smoke—raked her from head to toe.

If he had run his hands over her body her reaction could not have been more startled. It was as if she had been given a shot of adrenalin. Her pulses raced, her breathing quickened, and the world seemed a brighter, more exciting place.

I’m mad, she thought, quite mad! But she knew she wasn’t; she was simply aware that for the first time in her life her innermost core had been touched. Colour came and went in her cheeks and she mumbled an apology and stepped back, glad of the huge dark glasses half covering her face.

Acknowledging her movement with a faint smile, which drew her attention to his mobile, well shaped mouth, he strode past her, and as he disappeared into a lift, still accompanied by members of the hotel staff, she asked a passing bellboy who he was.

‘Mr Hamilton,’ came the reply.

Stunned, she had stared at the lift doors. So that was the man who was to be her boss for the next two months! The prospect was as full of spice as gingerbread, and she had raced up the wide, carpeted stairs to the mezzanine floor that led to the offices, intent on sharing her experience with Nan.

‘He’s a real dreamboat, isn’t he?’ her friend had agreed. ‘But not an easy man to know. He plays his cards close to his chest.’

‘Does he have a girlfriend?’

‘In the plural. They line up for him and fall at his feet like ninepins. But he’s soon off with the old and on with the new.’

Marly was mulling this over as she slid into the passenger seat of Nan’s car to go home, though she did not mull for long, for she was soon holding on to her seat for dear life. Nan, in common with the majority of Thais, drove fast: weaving in and out of traffic, dodging oncoming cars, taxis and tuk-tuks—three-wheeled scooter taxis—and skimming so close to them that she practically scraped their paintwork!

But when a motorcyclist cut in front of them for no reason other than to mount a pavement and park his bike there, Marly had had enough and shut her eyes tight. But she opened them again immediately, deciding it was easier to cope with seen fear. Heart in mouth, she watched Nan shoot along the inside lane, overtake a single-decker bus with people clinging to the doors like limpets, and swing sharply left into the quiet side-street where she lived.

‘I’ll never get used to the way you drive,’ Marly gasped, emerging from the car outside her friend’s home.

Large, beautiful, and built of golden teak, it was in the Thai gabled roof tradition, and could have been mistaken for two houses instead of one, had it not been for the balcony joining them together on the upper floor. It was also quite a rarity among Bangkok’s newer single-storeyed houses with their corrugated-iron roofs, though recently the traditional had started coming back into favour, albeit at exorbitant prices.

Leaving their shoes by the front door before stepping over the threshold—as was the custom—they walked into the living-room and, with palms together and heads bowed, waied Nan’s mother in the time-honoured greeting towards Thai elders and superiors.

Since first visiting her friend, Marly had been touched by such customs, for they indicated a respect and caring for each other that was endemic to Thai culture.

‘Your father is bringing Kevin Rossiter back with him from the hospital,’ Nan’s mother told them. In a pastel-blue cheong-sam, the traditional dress still favoured by many Thai women, she was smaller than her daughter, with silky, grey-streaked hair drawn into a coil at the nape of her neck. ‘Kevin is a brilliant young doctor and has been working with the professor for the past month,’ she explained to Marly.

‘Is he staying for dinner?’ Nan questioned.

‘He’ll be very welcome if he does,’ her mother replied, surveying the table the maid had set with more places than the size of her family. Thai hospitality was legendary, their homes and food being shared with anyone who cared to accept it.

Twenty minutes later Marly and her friend, showered and changed into softly shaded dresses, returned to the living-room where Nan’s father was talking to a sandy-haired young man.

‘Kevin’s from New Zealand and is studying tropical medicine in my department,’ Professor Damrong, a stockily built man a little taller than his wife, informed Marly.

Smiling at the visitor, Marly saw only Alex Hamilton’s face staring down at her—Alex Hamilton of the smoky grey eyes, chiselled features and supercilious smile, the man whose path she had blocked earlier that day.

‘Marly and my daughter were at school together in England,’ the professor went on. ‘She’s here to prepare a computer program for the Riverside Hamilton.’

‘Sounds a big job,’ Kevin commented, warm hazel eyes intent on her. ‘Why don’t you and Nan have dinner with me and put me in the picture? I’m a computer nut.’

‘You two go,’ Nan said promptly. ‘I’m behind with my lines and have three days left to learn them.’

‘Lines?’ Kevin quizzed.

‘For the cabaret the staff at the hotel are putting on for Christmas.’

‘Looks as if it’s just the two of us,’ Kevin said to Marly, and she tried to look pleased at the prospect.

Her brief encounter with Alex Hamilton had put her on an emotional high, and she was in no mood to make conversation with an earnest young doctor, worthy though he might be. But once seated opposite him in the Italian restaurant of the Royal Orchid Hotel, she was glad she had accepted his invitation. After all, it was stupid to behave like a lovesick schoolgirl over a man who did not know she existed!

‘It’s a stroke of luck meeting you,’ Kevin commented after they had given their order. ‘I hope you’re going to be here for several months?’

‘I’m not sure. It depends how long it takes me to devise the software that the hotel wants.’

‘Is it just for the hotel here?’

‘No. For the whole group.’

‘Obviously a very high-powered woman.’ Kevin looked flatteringly impressed. ‘Is there a boyfriend in the background?’

Marly shook her head. ‘Not even in the foreground! I’ve been too busy with my career. What about you?’

‘Fancy-free and still looking! Like you, I’ve been too busy establishing myself. Still, the worst is behind me and the future is for living,’ he said, signalling the waiter to pour their wine.

Sipping it, Marly studied him through her lashes. He was a nice-looking man if you fancied them fair, hazel-eyed and whipcord-thin. Except that she preferred them tawny-haired, smoky-eyed and powerfully built.

‘Tell me about your job,’ Kevin cut across her musing. ‘Or don’t you like talking shop?’

‘I love it,’ she grinned. ‘But right now there’s nothing much to tell. My boss was away until today, and I haven’t yet found out what my brief is.’

‘When did you arrive?’

‘A week ago, and I’ve been champing at the bit till now. Though to be honest I love wandering around Bangkok.’

‘Maybe we can wander together,’ he suggested. ‘How are you fixed for tomorrow? I’m always free on a Sunday.’

‘I’m not. At least not this Sunday,’ Marly lied, reluctant to give him any encouragement. ‘Now that Mr Hamilton’s back I’d better stay in the Riverside.’

‘Fair enough. But if you think I’m letting you off the hook...’

She smiled at his persistence and tactfully changed the subject. ‘How long are you here for?’

‘Six months. Before that I was doing a course in the States.’

‘What do you think of the standard of medicine there?’

Marly had hit on one of his hobby-horses, and for the remainder of the evening she managed to keep the conversation away from herself.

‘I’ll call you in a couple of days,’ Kevin said when he delivered her home.

‘Fine. By then I should know what free time I’ll have.’

As she let herself into the house, she forgot him completely. Strange that one uncaring man could bowl you over in a second, and another—striving for hours to make a good impression—could leave no impression whatever.

‘Enjoy yourself?’ Nan asked, bouncing into Marly’s room as she climbed into bed.

‘It was pleasant enough.’

‘Poor Kevin! That sounds like the kiss of death!’

‘He’s a nice guy but—’

‘He doesn’t set you on fire.’

‘That’s the story of my life!’ Marly yawned and stretched her arms above her head. ‘Are you rehearsing tomorrow?’

‘Until late afternoon. And you?’

‘I’m going to take it easy.’

‘You’ve done nothing else for a week!’

‘Blame Mr Hamilton,’ Marly said sleepily. ‘See you at breakfast.’

‘I’ll be gone before you get up,’ Nan answered, and switching off the centre light, left the room.

Emerging from the shower next morning, Marly heard a light tap at her door, and Ying, the youngest of the family’s four servants, told her she was wanted on the telephone. It was probably Kevin. He had not believed her excuse and had decided to try his luck again. Wrapping a towel round her, she hurried down to the living-room and picked up the receiver.

The voice at the other end was so unexpected, she nearly dropped it.

‘Andrea! How marvellous to hear from you. You sound so close.’

‘I am. I’m at Bangkok airport. The plane made an emergency landing here due to engine trouble.’

‘Have you finished your teaching job in Singapore?’

‘Yes. Well, to be honest, I resigned. I had to get away.’

‘What went wrong?’

‘I can’t talk on the phone. Is there any chance of you coming to the airport to see me?’

‘Of course,’ Marly said instantly. ‘How long do you have?’

‘A couple of hours. Get here soon, will you? I’ll wait for you in the main cafeteria.’

Marly hurried to her room to dress. She, Nan and Andrea had been inseparable at school, and had remained in touch through lengthy letters and the occasional telephone call. It was almost six months since she and Andrea had met, and it would be wonderful to see her again, though her tone of voice did not augur a happy meeting. Still, that was when one needed one’s friends.

Nan’s driving was as nothing to the forty-five-minute taxi ride Marly had to endure along the Expressway to Don Muang Airport, and as she entered the air-conditioned concourse she felt more in need of a stiff brandy than mid-morning coffee!

Her first sight of Andrea gave her a shock, for the radiant blonde she had last seen was now a picture of abject misery: hair without lustre, eyes puffy with unshed tears, and a once curvaceous figure angular.

‘Darling!’ Marly exclaimed, clasping her close. ‘What’s happened to you?’

Tears spilling over, Andrea told her.

It was a man, of course. The most fabulous man in Singapore—an Adonis, naturally!—with wit, charm, and money in abundance. A whirlwind courtship had been followed by a proposal of marriage, after which she had moved in with him. Then six weeks ago he had announced that he had changed his mind about marriage, packed his bags and departed for Italy.

‘Try a Dutchman next time,’ Marly advised, trying to lighten her friend’s mood. ‘Italians are known for their roving eye.’

‘He’s English,’ Andrea corrected. ‘He was going to Italy to take charge of a hotel his family owns there, and I’m pretty certain he’s got another woman in Rome.’

‘Odd that he’s in the hotel business,’ Marly put in ironically. ‘So is my temporary boss, and he’s also a walking Adonis.’

‘Steer clear of him, then,’ Andrea muttered. ‘At least ugly men are grateful if you fancy them! Alex simply took it for granted. Not surprising, considering the way the girls chased him.’

‘Alex?’ Marly echoed, her pulse jumping erratically. ‘What’s his last name?’

‘Hamilton.’

Unbelievable! It was her boss. So much for meeting the man of her dreams. After the story she had just heard, he could best be described as every girl’s nightmare.

Marly wondered whether to tell her friend that her ex-fiancé had lied about going to Rome, and was actually in charge of the family hotel in Bangkok where, far from being with one woman, he would happily be taking his pick of a line-up! But Andrea was unhappy enough as it was, and it would serve little purpose to inform her that the man she still loved wasn’t merely a philanderer but a liar into the bargain!

‘He sounds a real swine,’ she said instead. ‘Forget him.’

‘I wish I could,’ Andrea answered miserably. ‘But I still love him. Perhaps I shouldn’t have moved in with him. I feel as if I’ve let myself down.’

‘That’s crazy talk, Andrea. It’s Alex who’s let you down, not yourself.’

Yet though Marly said this she found it easy to empathise with her friend, who was echoing Nan’s feelings as well as hers. At sixteen they had all made the same vow, and maturity had not changed their minds. Sex without love was something they abhorred, and no matter how much their other friends teased them for their old-fashioned views, they had held firm to them.

‘Perhaps if I hadn’t gone to bed with him, he might have married me,’ Andrea said into the silence.

‘You can’t believe a marriage licence would tie down a man of his type?’

‘I suppose not.’ Tears fell fast and Andrea fumbled for her handkerchief. ‘He was so wonderful, Marly. Unbelievably handsome and charming.’

‘Unbelievable being the operative word,’ Marly retorted. ‘Forget him. He’s not worth a moment’s thought. You’re young and beautiful, and you’ll soon be rhapsodising over someone more worthwhile.’

Having almost convinced Andrea of this by the time her plane was ready to continue its flight, Marly returned to the city a little easier in her mind. What a nasty trick of fate that Alex Hamilton should turn out to be the biggest pig this side of Eden! Who cared if he was Adonis in looks and charismatic in character? Much better if he had been honest and loyal. But why was she getting so hot under the collar over a man she had merely glimpsed in the entrance lobby of a hotel? It was quite on the cards that if she waited by the magazine stall again she would see a dozen equally handsome and magnetic men!

‘Enjoy your day?’ Nan enquired, coming into Marly’s bedroom later that afternoon, where she sat brushing up her Thai from a television film.

‘Not especially. I saw Andrea.’

‘She’s here?’

‘Not any longer.’ Briefly Marly recounted Andrea’s story, and had the dubious pleasure of seeing Nan become as furious as herself.

‘I know Mr Hamilton plays the field, but I never imagined he’d ask a girl to marry him and then walk out on her. Are you sure she wasn’t exaggerating?’

‘Oh, come on, Nan, you know Andrea better than that. She may look like a dumb blonde, but she certainly isn’t one. Believe me, I’ve never seen her so devastated.’

‘I wish you’d persuaded her to stay with us for a week or so.’

‘I was going to suggest it, but I was worried she might bump into him here. I didn’t tell her he hadn’t gone to Rome.’

‘I’d forgotten that.’ Nan sank cross-legged to the floor. ‘A good thing you discovered the sort of man he is. From the way you reacted when you saw him, you might have become the next discard!’

Marly was honest enough not to deny it.

‘Think you can take another shock?’ Nan ventured.

‘Depends.’

‘We need someone to replace Siri, the other Thai girl in the cabaret. She’s gone down with bronchitis.’

‘So why tell me?’ Marly asked.

‘Because the part calls for a Thai, and you can pass for one.’

‘But I’ve never acted in my life!’

‘All females know how to act!’

‘Maybe, but not on stage.’

‘What’s the difference? Be a sport, Marly. Siri was only in one sketch, and with your photographic memory you’ll waltz through it.’

Marly sighed, swayed by Nan’s downcast expression. ‘Very well, but don’t blame me if I flop.’

‘You won’t. You’ll be wonderful!’

‘What if Mr Hamilton won’t give me time off to rehearse? Now he’s back he may expect me to get cracking on the software.’

‘Find out and let me know.’

Next morning Marly hung around restlessly in her office waiting to be summoned to meet Alex Hamilton, and when lunchtime came and went without a call, she bearded his English secretary, Miss Granger.

‘Sorry I didn’t contact you before now,’ the girl apologised. ‘I meant to, but it’s been hectic here. Mr Hamilton asked me to apologise on his behalf, and say he won’t be able to see you for several days. He was away longer than he anticipated and has a mass of work to catch up on.’

Far from being upset by this, Marly was relieved. She was still seething over his treatment of Andrea, and might have found it difficult to hide her feelings. But this respite would not only give her a chance to learn her lines and rehearse for the show, but also enable her to get used to the idea of working for a man she thoroughly despised.

CHAPTER TWO

‘YOU’RE not totally deaf, I presume?’

The raised male voice coming from the next-door office to Marly’s made her look up from her terminal in surprise, and unashamedly she eavesdropped. From his tone, the man was in a rousing temper.

‘Or perhaps you’re on a higher plane and haven’t heard anything I’ve told you?’ he went on.

‘I did exactly what you asked me to do, Mr Hamilton,’ a woman protested, and Marly instantly recognised it as Alex Hamilton’s secretary.

‘In your own stupid way, Miss Granger!’

‘Look, Mr Hamilton—’

‘No, you look! If you can’t follow simple instructions, maybe you should return to the typing pool.’

‘Maybe I will!’

There followed a burst of tears and a sharp male curse, and Marly, on the verge of going to comfort the girl as she heard a door slam, stopped at the sound of Alex Hamilton’s voice. It was his secretary who had stormed out, not him.

‘Personnel!’ she heard him bark. ‘Assign Miss Granger to someone more long-suffering than me, and send me a replacement. What? No, keep her on the same salary she was receiving.’

To pay off his conscience, no doubt, Marly seethed, casting daggers at the wall dividing her from this most horrible of men. If she were self-employed and did not have a responsibility to her company, she would walk in and tell him what she thought of him! If he was expecting her to bow and scrape to him, he had another think coming!

She was still seething when she arrived for rehearsals in the hotel ballroom late that afternoon, though she soon calmed down as Richard, the young director of the cabaret, who normally worked in Accounts, put her through her paces. Her part couldn’t have been easier, given her retentive memory, for all she had to do was to learn six pages of dialogue, and spend the rest of her time looking sweet and gentle and quietly amused by the embarrassing antics of the Western visitors to her stage parents’ home.

‘You were terrific!’ Richard exclaimed as rehearsals ended for the day. ‘For a gag, we won’t put your surname in the programme and will just name you as “Marly”. Then the audience will automatically assume you’re Thai.’

‘Which they’d never do if you printed ”Amalia Bradshaw”,’ she chuckled, and was glad she had let Nan persuade her to participate in the show. It would at least keep her occupied while she was waiting for Alex Hamilton to clear his desk and spare her his time.

By the evening of the performance she was proficient in every word and mannerism of her part, and took equal pains with her appearance, emphasising the exotic slant of her eyes by skilful use of black eyeliner, and parting her hair in the centre so that it fell in a black satin curtain down either side of her face. Wow! She looked just like her great-grandmother.

The sketch she was in was the most successful one of the show, and as it came to an end many people in the audience called out to her in Thai as she accepted a vociferous ovation.

However, some of her pleasure ebbed when she saw Alex Hamilton sitting in the front row, vigorously applauding her. Their eyes met and he half inclined his head and raked her from head to toe as he continued clapping, the gesture truly revealing the sort of man he was! Poor Andrea! If this two-timing Lothario thought he had found another heart to break, he could go jump in a lake—and drown there while he was about it!

With a sigh of relief she watched the audience disperse for the Christmas party that was being held in an adjacent conference-room, and suddenly decided not to attend.

‘Where are you going?’ Nan stopped her halfway down the corridor, as Marly made for the powder-room to change out of her stage clothes.

‘Home,’ she replied. ‘I’m tired.’

‘And I’m Mickey Mouse! For heaven’s sake, this is your friend you’re trying to kid. What’s up? You were the star of the show and everyone will want to meet you.’

‘That’s what worries me. Did you see the way Alex Hamilton eyed me? As if I were a nut cutlet and he was a starving vegetarian!’

‘So what? You’ll have to meet him soon anyway. That’s why you’re here, remember?’

‘You have a nasty habit of being right,’ Marly sighed. ‘I suppose I’d better go change and join you.’

‘You look marvellous as you are!’

‘But—’

‘Come on, Marly, if we hang around any longer, the party will be over.’

Somewhat apprehensively, Marly followed her friend into the green and gold reception-room where the theatre party was being held. Not only were all the clerical and senior staff there, but their families too, and she was soon surrounded by an admiring throng, compliments falling thick around her.

‘You’re a natural actress...’

‘I’ve never laughed so much...’

‘You should be on the stage.’

‘You were marvellous...’

‘You’re also very beautiful,’ added a deep, resonant voice, and she looked up, startled, the smile on her lips freezing as she saw Alex Hamilton staring intently down at her.

Close to, he was even more devastating than when she had espied him in the lobby; his tawny, lion’s mane hair was flecked with gold where the sun had touched it, and his skin was the colour of pale honey, making his smoke-grey eyes even more remarkable.

‘I’m Alex Hamilton,’ he introduced himself. ‘I see from the programme that you are Marly.’

‘Yes,’ she managed to say, her mouth so dry she could barely twist her tongue around the word.

‘It’s a lovely name for a lovely young woman. And you played your part very amusingly; but I suppose it came naturally.’

‘Naturally?’

‘I assume you’ve met many Westerners who are as ignorant of your customs as the two actors were in your sketch.’

Heavens, she thought, he also thinks I’m Thai! Unable to stop herself, she smiled, and he smiled back. It riveted her eyes to his lips, which were beautifully shaped, the top one well curved, the lower one fuller and sensuous. How many other lips had they kissed? she wondered. How many lies had they told? How many women had he deceived, as he had Andrea?

Drawing herself up to her full height of five feet two inches, she was on the point of telling him exactly who she was, when he spoke again.

‘I think it’s important to understand the customs of the country one is living in, but sometimes it’s not easy to follow them.’

‘Are you thinking of anything in particular, Mr Hamilton?’

‘Very much so. Normally I’d have no hesitation in asking you to have dinner with me tonight, but since I don’t know whether your parents are strict on protocol, I can only suggest that you allow me to take you home and ask them if I may see you again.’

Open-mouthed, she stared at him, and he instantly misinterpreted it.

‘I’m sorry if I’m coming on too strong, but you’re the loveliest girl I’ve seen and I’m not letting you walk out of my life.’

Beyond his shoulder she glimpsed Nan mouthing words she could not understand, and she seized this as a means of escape.

‘Excuse me a moment, please. I have to give my friend a telephone number.’

‘I’ll only excuse you if you promise to come straight back,’ he said, and turned to watch her as she hurried across to Nan.

‘What were you trying to tell me?’ Marly asked as she reached her side.

‘I wanted to know if you needed rescuing.’

‘Every woman under the age of fifty needs rescuing from that man! Talk about charm.’ Marly lowered her voice, laughter trembling in it. ‘Believe it or not, he thinks I’m Thai. He wants me to have dinner with him but isn’t sure whether he has to ask my parents’ permission!’

Nan stifled a giggle. ‘That must be a first time for him, then.’

Marly nodded, then narrowed her eyes as a thought struck her. A man who had treated Andrea the way Alex Hamilton had clearly had little respect for women. Yet how deferentially he was behaving towards the unliberated girl he thought her to be. And not just deferential, but anxious to know her better. Was that because he believed her to be different from the girls he usually favoured? If so, he had just given her a golden opportunity to teach him a well deserved lesson.

Instead of enlightening him, she would continue with her act until he had fallen for her hook, line and sinker. Only then would she disclose her identity, and he would discover that a woman had finally given him his come-uppance, instead of the other way around!

‘What scheme are you cooking up?’ Nan enquired, recognising from old the mischievousness on Marly’s face.

Slanting a glance in Alex Hamilton’s direction, and seeing him still watching her, she hurriedly answered her friend’s question.

‘You’ll never be able to keep it up,’ Nan gasped.

‘Yes, I will. I can’t go into it now, there’s no time, but we’ll talk it over later.’

Leaving Nan still protesting, she glided back to the man waiting for her and gave him a respectful wai. ‘Thank you for being so patient.’

‘You’re worth waiting for,’ he responded, smoky eyes serious.

For answer, she lowered her head.

‘You work here obviously,’ he went on, ‘or you wouldn’t have been in the show, but I don’t remember seeing you around.’

‘Why should you? You employ so many people.’

‘I wouldn’t miss you.’

‘I only started a few days ago.’

‘That explains it, then. What do you do?’

‘I—I’m a—’

‘Never mind,’ he cut in, eyes ranging over her butterfly-wing cheong-sam and back to her face. ‘You look pale. If you’re tired, I’ll drive you home.’

‘I’m not tired,’ she replied softly. ‘If your dinner invitation is still open, I will be honoured to accept. You are an important man, and I know my parents would not object.’

‘That’s marvellous.’ Alex Hamilton could not quite hide his elation. ‘There are a few people I should say hello to first, then we’ll go.’

‘As you wish,’ she murmured.

‘Give me fifteen minutes.’

As he moved off, Nan rushed to her side. ‘You were fantastic! Carry on as you are, and you’ll have him eating out of your hand.’

‘If he doesn’t bite it off first!’

‘Are you kidding? From the way he was ogling you, it won’t take you long to bring him to his knees. It’s my bet he’ll proposition you before the year’s out.’

‘That’s still ten days away,’ Marly hissed, watching the tall, athletic figure circulate among the hotel guests and staff, every movement relaxed and unhurried, his smile sincere and unforced. ‘What do I do when I meet him as his computer expert after Christmas? Keep acting gentle and acquiescent?’

‘Obviously. That’s if you want to finish what you’ve started.’

‘Oh, I do. When I remember how dreadful Andrea looked... Yes, I will do it.’

‘He’s coming back. Good luck.’

Nan melted away, and Marly softened her features as she turned to face Alex.

Gently he took her elbow and steered her from the room and across the grey and blue carpeted lobby to the entrance, where a chauffeur stood holding open the back door of a silver-grey Mercedes.

Settling in the soft leather seat, she was all too aware of the man close beside her, the spicy scent of his aftershave prickling her nose, the warmth of his body seeming to permeate hers, even though he had made no move to touch her. Watch it, she warned herself. You’re supposed to be paying him back for the way he treated Andrea, not falling for him yourself!

‘We’re dining at the Shangri-la,’ he said. ‘Is that all right with you?’

‘Of course, Mr Hamilton. I’m happy to go wherever you wish to take me.’

He gave her a quick glance, as if not sure whether she was teasing, but her calm stare assured him otherwise, and he gave a little sigh of satisfaction.

‘Not Mr Hamilton, Marly, my name is Alex.’

‘I couldn’t call you that. You are my employer and it wouldn’t be seemly.’

‘But I’m asking you to do it.’

‘No, it is not the custom.’

‘I don’t believe I’m hearing this,’ he muttered.

‘I’m sorry if I’ve offended you.’ Putting her palms together, she lowered her head till her chin touched the tops of her fingers in a traditional wai. ‘I do not wish to make you angry, but—’

‘I’m not in the least angry. In fact, I think you’re very sweet.’

If only you knew, she thought, doing her best to look demure. ‘And I think you’re very nice, Mr Hamilton.’

‘I hope you’ll let me show you just how nice I can be,’ he said gruffly.

Beginning to enjoy herself, she gave a laugh, but made no reply.

‘We’ve arrived,’ he stated as their car eased up a ramp and came to a stop outside the entrance of the Shangri-la. Not waiting for the chauffeur, he opened his door and hurried round to help her out, cradling her hand in his as he did, and not releasing it.

She could not believe he normally acted this way with his girlfriends, and stifled a giggle at his oldfashioned behaviour.

‘May I have my hand back?’ she whispered. ‘It is not seemly for you to touch me in public.’

‘Sorry.’ He dropped it fast, but as they entered the vast reception area, milling with people, and a stout man toting a camera backed into her, he automatically cupped his hand under her elbow in a protective gesture, then gave another strangled ‘sorry’ and let it go.

‘In this instance it is quite seemly for you hold my arm, Mr Hamilton,’ Marly said, struggling hard not to laugh.

‘Then I’ll have to make sure we’re always in a crowd,’ he came back fast, ‘because I like the feel of your skin!’

Awarding him full marks for making the most of the situation, Marly glided along beside him. She had been out with many tall men, but there was something about this one that made her feel extra-tiny and helpless. Perhaps it was the aura of invincibility that emanated from him. The divine right of the arrogant male, she supposed, and as she remembered Andrea’s tear-stained face, her resolve to give him a taste of his own medicine hardened.

CHAPTER THREE

‘WHICH of the Shangri-la restaurants do you fancy going to?’ Alex Hamilton asked Marly. ‘They have several.’

‘I don’t know any of them. Thais rarely come here.’

Disconcerted, he stopped in his tracks. ‘Why is that? I’ve only been in Thailand a couple of months, and working flat out at the hotel most of the time, I’m still a stranger to the social scene. If there’s any reason why your countrymen don’t dine here, we can—’

‘Only because we prefer to go where there are fewer tourists.’

Unexpectedly he gave a rich, deep chuckle. ‘I’m not doing too well with you, am I? Perhaps we should go outside and begin again?’

About to laugh, she remembered the role she was playing, and said piously, ‘Please forgive me, Mr Hamilton, it was rude of me to be so frank.’

‘Not at all. I dislike pretence of any kind.’

Oh, he did, did he? Then how would he excuse his dishonesty where Andrea was concerned?

‘...if that suits you?’ he questioned.

Not having heard a word he had said, she nodded and followed him past a huge, perfume-drenched bank of flowers to a lift that took them down to the ground floor and the long, wide terrace that overlooked the lush gardens of the hotel, and the Chao Phraya river that bisected the city.

Small trees, festooned with hundreds of tiny silver lights, illumined a scene of fairy-tale splendour: candlelit tables, an enormous buffet, some twenty feet long, filled with assorted cold foods, a dozen or more barbecue carts, each with its chef cooking his own speciality, be it Tiger Bay prawns, lobsters, poultry or meats, and white-jacketed waiters staggering under trays laden with every kind of vegetable.

To Marly, it seemed there wasn’t an empty space anywhere, and she happily waited for Alex to be told there was no room for him. But it was not to be.

‘A moment, please, sir.’ The maître d’ himself came hurrying over. ‘We are arranging a table for you.’

As he spoke, two waiters were busy setting one up beneath a palm tree, and with a flourish he led them to it. As they sat down, a third waiter came forward with two glasses and a bottle of champagne in an ice-bucket.

‘With the compliments of the Shangri-la, Mr Hamilton,’ the maître d’ smiled, and bowed away.

‘Why are you known here?’ Marly asked. ‘You told me you’re a stranger in my city.’

‘I am. But my face isn’t. It’s been in your papers and magazines for weeks.’

‘Ah... Because of your hotel?’

‘Yes.’

‘It must make you feel good to be so important.’

He stiffened, as though wondering if she was being sarcastic, but she fixed him with a wide-eyed stare and he relaxed.

‘It’s the job that’s important, Marly, not me personally.’

‘But you are the job,’ she said with pretended naïveté. ‘You wouldn’t have it if the Riverside didn’t belong to your family.’

He choked on his drink and hurriedly set it down. ‘Hamilton Hotels may be a family concern, but we have a tough board of directors, and no one gets to be in a top position unless they’ve proved themselves capable of handling it.’

‘I think you’re extremely capable, Mr Hamilton.’

‘I can be gentle and caring too, if you’ll give me the chance.’

Wishing she could blush to order, Marly lowered her head and tried to look discomfited.

‘I’ve embarrassed you, haven’t I?’ he went on softly.

‘No, but you worry me.’

‘Why?’

Keeping her head low to hide the mischief in her eyes, she said, ‘Your staff call you a lady-killer.’

‘Do they, by God?’ His voice was sharp, and she recoiled from him as though nervous. ‘What do you think?’ he asked, softening his tone.

‘It isn’t seemly for me to comment on the behaviour of my employer.’

‘If you had anything nice to say, I think you’d find it very seemly,’ came his dry comment. ‘Which reminds me, you never did get to tell me what you do at the hotel.’

Here was the moment of truth—well, partial truth, Marly thought and, drawing a deep breath, took the bull by the horns—a singularly apt phrase in the circumstances! ‘I’m here to set up a software program for you.’

Astonishment held him silent. ‘You are?’ he said finally. ‘What’s happened to Miss Bradshaw?’

‘She was taken ill as she was leaving England, and 3S called and asked me to replace her.’

‘I can’t believe it.’

‘Don’t you think me capable?’ Marly questioned in her haughtiest manner.

‘No, not that. But you seem so young and innocent I can’t imagine you in such a high-powered job.’

‘I fail to see why. Children of twelve and fourteen can create software packages, and at thirty, in this profession, you are considered over the hill. I’m sure I can do the work as well as Miss Brigshade.’

‘Bradshaw,’ Alex Hamilton corrected automatically, ‘and I’m sure you can too. It’s just that you took me by surprise. Do you work for 3S or are you a freelance?’

‘I’m a freelance,’ Marly replied. ‘3S were put in touch with me by my friend Nan, who also works at your hotel. I live with her and her family.’

‘I see.’

Glad that he didn’t, she searched for a means of changing the subject. ‘I hope you won’t consider me rude, Mr Hamilton, but I’m very hungry.’

‘Good heavens! How remiss of me. I’m so interested in knowing more about you that I forgot about food. Do you want to order from the menu or try the buffet?’

‘The buffet, please.’ Rising, she glided towards the long table, Alex following on her heels. Here, the food was cold, each dish and tureen so wonderfully decorated that it could have been framed and hung on a wall. ‘Don’t you think it looks too good to eat, Mr Hamilton?’

‘I can’t tell. My eyes are blinded by you.’

‘Are you usually so complimentary to the women you take out?’

‘Yes. But until tonight, I’ve never meant it!’

Biting back the urge to tell him that this line was so old it had cobwebs hanging from it, she gave him a gentle smile instead, and he instantly smiled back. As if it were an actual radiance enveloping her, her body grew hot and her limbs trembled. Watch it, she warned herself. This man is dangerous and not to be taken seriously.

Quickly skirting the buffet, she headed for a barbecue cart serving an assortment of shellfish. She was careful not to look directly at Alex Hamilton, though a swift glance showed he was studying the food served by each cart, and she wondered if the same things would be featured on the Riverside menu before the week was out. Smiling at the thought, she watched him, noting how thick and dark his lashes were, and how the deep cleft in his firm chin saved it from hardness. As he bent towards the chef who was filling his plate with slivers of barbecued meats and stuffed chicken wings, a tawny lock of hair fell on his forehead, and she experienced a strong urge to touch it and see if it was as silky as it appeared.

Annoyed with herself, she picked up her plate and returned to their table, and as she did, common sense reasserted itself. It wasn’t surprising she was responding to Alex Hamilton’s blatant good looks. After all, dozens—maybe hundreds—of girls had already done the same, and in that respect she was no different. But where the difference lay was the manner in which she responded to the man himself. And since she despised his morals and was disgusted by his lack of principle, there was no fear of her falling for him.

Alex joined her, a waiter following with a tray stacked with food. Her eyes widened at the amount but she said nothing.

‘I noticed you only took a few Tiger Bay prawns,’ he commented, settling opposite her. ‘I wasn’t sure if well brought-up Thai ladies don’t consider it good form to eat too much in public, or whether you were too shy because you work for me, so I thought I’d tempt you with a few more dishes.’

She was touched by his thoughtfulness, until she realised it was part and parcel of his armoury for disarming his prey before going in for the kill.

‘How kind you are,’ she simpered. ‘And you were right.’

‘Which one was the reason?’

‘Both!’

‘A pity,’ he drawled. ‘That will make it doubly difficult for me to get to know you.’ He paused. ‘Difficult, but I hope not impossible.’

Hiding the thrill of triumph that shot through her, she began to eat. ‘My father says hope is one of the most important emotions a person can have.’

‘Your father sounds a man after my own heart. Does he live in the city?’

‘Not at present. He and my mother are in Dallas for a year. My father’s a lawyer with an oil company.’ At least that part of her story was true, which meant one lie less to remember.

‘So that’s why you’re living with Nan,’ Alex Hamilton said. ‘Wouldn’t you have preferred to live on your own?’

Did she detect a note of regret in his voice that his evening with her wasn’t going to end up in her bed? Hiding her amusement, she decided to give him a few other things to mull over.

‘Thai children rarely leave home until they marry—and not always then, if the parental house is large enough.’

‘Wouldn’t you prefer to have your own place?’

‘Why should I? I have no desire to have an affair, and living with my family is far more convenient.’

Startled grey eyes met hers. ‘For a shy young lady, you can be remarkably frank.’

‘We see nothing wrong in talking honestly about our feelings.’

‘Only talking?’

Deliberately she stared him full in the face. ‘I am a virgin, Mr Hamilton, if that is what you are asking.’

‘I—I—’ Flummoxed, he stopped, his heightened colour showing that again she had taken him by surprise.

‘When will you have time to discuss the software programs you want me to do?’ she asked before he could recover. ‘I’m bored doing nothing.’

‘If I’d known you were waiting for me,’ he replied, his wits returning, ‘I’d have seen you the instant I got back! Beats me why my secretary didn’t tell me Miss Bradshaw wasn’t able to come. I—’

‘I’d like to start earning my salary,’ Marly cut in, intent on showing him she was uninterested in further flattery. ‘I assume you’ll want the software in Thai as well as English?’

‘Yes, but concentrate on the English version first, so I can make sure it covers everything I want, before you start on the translation.’

‘I’ll bring in someone else to do that,’ she said quickly. ‘Your requirements will be complicated enough to require several programs, and a translator can start on one while I’m devising another.’ Suddenly aware she sounded too assured, Marly gave a nervous cough. ‘If that meets with your approval, of course?’

‘Everything you say meets with my approval, other than your refusal to use my first name.’ Spoon and fork poised to help himself to a succulent mix of chicken and baby aubergine, each one no bigger than a walnut, he gave her the full battery of his deep grey eyes. ‘Can’t you forget tradition and call me Alex? After all, I call you Marly.’

‘You’re my employer.’

‘Who wants to be your friend. Come on, say it,’ he cajoled.

Fluttering her lashes at him, she whispered his name.

‘There,’ he said, satisfied. ‘That wasn’t too painful, was it?’

‘No, Mr Ha—Alex.’ She tilted her head towards him. ‘I’ve never met an Alex before.’

‘And I’ve never met a Marly.’ He began to eat. ‘That bodes well for us.’

‘Why?’

‘Because we don’t have any preconceived associations with each other’s names. If you’d been called Sandra, I’d have had a problem. She was the first girl I fell in love with—I was fourteen at the time—and she broke my heart.’

‘You mean she turned you down?’

‘Worse. She called me fat and spotty!’

For the first time Marly’s laugh was genuine. ‘How long did it take you to recover?’

‘As long as it took me to become spotless and skinny!’ A well shaped hand, the fingers long and artistic, rubbed the side of his face. ‘I suppose that with your Thai passion for honesty you’d have said the same as she did?’

‘Never.’ Marly quickly slipped back into the role she was playing. ‘We are taught to be frank without being hurtful.’

‘Does that mean that when I ask to see you again you’ll turn me down politely?’

‘I’ll always be polite.’

‘And always turn me down?’

‘It depends how busy I am. I’m only contracted to work for you for two months, and we’ve already wasted ten days of it.’ Primly she regarded him. ‘Will you be going away again soon?’

‘Not as far as I know. I’m here for six months—until all the bugs are ironed out and the hotel is running smoothly. Then I move on to wherever I’m needed.’

‘Are you what they call a trouble-shot?’

‘A trouble-shooter,’ he corrected, his grin making him look younger than the thirty-four she knew him to be.

‘Do you normally travel a lot?’ she asked, hoping to lead him into discussing his stay in Singapore.

‘Yes. For the past two years I’ve moved between the Far East and Australia.’

‘Where were you before you came to Thailand?’

‘Sydney, Tokyo, Hong Kong, Singapore—’

‘I’d love to go to Singapore,’ she interjected. ‘Did you like it?’

‘It isn’t my favourite place,’ he answered flatly. ‘I prefer Bali and—’

‘Why don’t you like it?’ she persisted.

‘I had an unpleasant experience there that left a rather sour taste.’

What a hateful way of describing Andrea! A sour taste! ‘Is it anything you can discuss?’ she asked, oozing sympathy.

‘If I did, you’d find it extremely boring.’ He raked a hand through his tawny hair, as if trying to throw off the memory of it. ‘Anyway, why waste this lovely setting talking of unpleasant things when we could be talking about you?’ He leaned towards her, his chiselled features softened by desire. ‘Do you have a boyfriend, Marly?’

‘No,’ she replied truthfully.

‘It has to be from choice. I can’t believe no man has wanted you.’

‘I’ve never met one I wanted.’ Until I saw you walking across the lobby, she thought, though the feeling had died when she had discovered how heartless he was. But none of her thoughts was apparent on her face as she met his gaze. ‘I believe marriage is for life, Mr Hamilton, and I will have to be absolutely certain about a man before I commit myself to him.’

‘How young you sound,’ Alex stated, a long-fingered hand playing with the stem of his wine glass. ‘When you’re my age you’ll know nothing is certain in life.’

Except for one thing, Marly knew: her determination to cut this man down to size.

‘I’m surprised to hear you say that,’ she said dulcetly, ‘because in the last hour I’ve become very certain of you.’

Beautifully marked eyebrows arched above smoky grey eyes. ‘Now that’s an intriguing statement. Care to explain it?’

She nodded. ‘I’m certain you have a strong sense of honour; that you never wittingly break your word, and that you respect the feelings and wishes of anyone you care for.’ Her lids lowered and thick black lashes, long and straight as a doll’s, fanned her cheeks as she prepared to deliver the final blow. ‘I’m also certain you will respect my wish to remain untouched until I marry. Only on that basis am I willing to see you again, should you do me the honour of asking me.’

Alex leaned back in his chair, his body motionless, his face so devoid of expression that she wondered if she had gone too far. The intention was to intrigue him by being different from his previous girlfriends, not frighten him off completely! Around her she was aware of waiters moving, diners leaving, the clink of glasses, the throb of a passing river boat, the splutter of the pink candle glowing between herself and the man opposite her.

‘Marly, I...’ His voice was husky. ‘I wouldn’t be doing you an honour to ask you out. You’d be doing me the honour by accepting. And I will always respect your wishes. You can trust me completely.’

As a chicken could trust a fox! she thought, but blinked her lashes and glowed at him. ‘Thank you for saying that.’

‘My pleasure.’ He raised his glass to her. ‘No more worries, eh? Any change of mind will have to come from you.’

His strategy was as clear as if he had handed it to her on a sheet of paper. She could see every move. Romantic dinners in glamorous places, the serious conversations, the light wine, the chaste goodnight kisses... Until one night when they would dine alone in his suite, and the talk would be more sensuous than serious, the wine heady, the kisses deep and drugging... So drugging that she would be begging him to make love to her. What a swine he was!

Furiously she flung out her arm and the glass in front of her shattered to the floor.

Startled, Alex jumped to his feet and came round to her. ‘Marly! What’s wrong?’

Bemused, she stared at him, then shook her head. ‘An insect, I think. It bit me.’ With an effort she gathered herself together. ‘I’m sorry I startled you.’

‘Are you sure you’re all right?’

‘A little tired perhaps.’

‘Then I’ll take you home.’

Within moments they were in the Mercedes. Alex made no attempt to move close to her, but she was intensely conscious of his tall frame in the confines of the car, and carefully looked away from him, relieved that he seemed content to sit in silence.

‘When may I see you again?’ he asked as the car stopped outside the timbered house and he escorted her to the locked gates leading into the compound surrounding it.

‘In the hotel,’ she replied, stepping into the courtyard as the family’s night-watchman unbolted the gate.

‘That isn’t what I meant.’

‘I know.’

With a laugh she lifted her long skirt and ran gracefully up the steps and into the house, firmly resisting the urge to turn and see if he was watching her. But the instant she closed the door, she peered through the peep-hole and saw he was still standing by the gate, a tall, wide-shouldered figure exuding a power and purpose that would brook no denial.

Yet deny him she would, and enjoy herself immensely in the process.

CHAPTER FOUR

NAN almost choked herself laughing when Marly told her that Alex Hamilton had treated her as though she were a fragile piece of china.

‘When are you going to give him his come-uppance and tell him you’ve made a fool of him?’ she asked when she could finally speak.

‘Not until he’s fallen for me good and hard.’

‘I hope you can keep up the butter-wouldn’t-melt-in-your-mouth act?’

‘That’s the only problem. A few times this evening I almost forgot myself and verbally slew him!’

‘If you wore Thai clothes it might remind you to curb your tongue! I’ll lend you some of my cheong-sams,’ Nan encouraged.

‘Do you think I should wear them the whole time?’

‘Well, women staff at the hotel do, though I suppose you could change when you’re off-duty. Except that you were wearing one when he first saw you, and that might be part of your attraction.’

‘Won’t the staff find it strange if they see me pretending to be Thai?’

‘Not if you say you’re doing it to play a joke on someone. Then they’ll never give you away.’

* * *

Apart from a great sense of humour, Thais were among the most generous people on earth, Marly mused one morning after Christmas as she riffled through the brocades, silks and cottons Nan had placed in her wardrobe. Even though she knew cotton was cooler for day wear, she plumped for a peach silk, its long narrow skirt slit up the side to facilitate walking, the tight-fitting, short-sleeved top cut short to show an intriguing two-inch expanse of skin between top and skirt. It was a more constricting outfit than her normal casual summer wear, but needs must when the goal she hoped to achieve was going to give her so much satisfaction.

She reminded herself of this as she touched eyeliner to her chestnut-brown eyes, and centre-parted her hair for it to fall sleek and straight to below her shoulders.

If my family saw me now, she thought humorously, they’d walk right by me!

She proved this conclusively when a security guard she had seen for the past seven days stopped her and asked whom she wished to see as she crossed the hotel lobby and mounted the stairs to the mezzanine floor and offices. Hiding a smile, she answered him in Thai, telling him who she was.

His astonishment was gratifying, and in a conspiratorial whisper she fed him the story Nan had suggested. He chuckled and slapped his thigh, and enjoining him to warn his colleagues to keep her secret, she went into her office.

The air-conditioning kept the Riverside comfortably cool, yet despite this she found working in a cheong-sam too warm, and was wondering how to make herself comfortable when Alex Hamilton strode in, thick, tawny hair ruthlessly brushed flat, though an errant strand in the front was beginning to curl.

Gracefully she rose, placed her palms together, and waied him.

‘Don’t do that to me,’ he said instantly. ‘It isn’t necessary.’

‘We always greet our superiors this way.’

‘I’m not your superior; I’m your employer.’

‘You are playing with words, Mr Hamilton.’

‘You agreed to call me Alex.’

‘Not in the office. It wouldn’t be seemly.’

‘Now how did I know you were going to say that?’ he smiled, coming to stand directly in front of her. ‘I must be psychic!’ Wood-smoke eyes ranged slowly over her as if committing her to memory. ‘Since we met, I haven’t been able to stop thinking of you.’

Many men had said the same to her, but none had made her heart beat faster, as it was now doing, and she wondered if it was because of the intensity of his gaze, as if she was the only woman in his world worth concentrating on. But then he was the sort of man who would do everything with intensity: loving and hating, working or playing. And playing the field too, she thought grimly. Like it or not, he was a born heart-breaker.

‘Have you been thinking of me?’ he broke into her thoughts.

‘Oh, yes.’ He looked delighted, and she added prosaically, ‘I’ve been working out the software you will require, and I’d like to discuss my ideas with you.’

‘I’ve more than a few ideas for you myself,’ he quipped, the smile on his lips dying as she froze him with a look.

‘Please don’t make it embarrassing for me to work with you, Mr Hamilton, or I’ll have to ask 3S to find a replacement.’

‘Are you always such a stickler for protocol?’

‘We are brought up to believe in it.’ Marly pretended to hesitate, then said diffidently, ‘You may find it interesting to read a book on our customs. There are several good ones available.’

‘I’ll ask my secretary to get them all! It won’t do me any good if I keep offending you!’

‘You haven’t offended me. I always make allowances for people.’

His startled expression showed he was unused to being put in his place, and she hoped she hadn’t overplayed her hand. But the wry smile he gave her was reassuring, and she glided over to her desk, wondering how to appear gentle and shy while talking high technology. It was going to be tricky but she had to manage it.

‘While I was waiting for you to return from abroad,’ she said, careful to keep her voice soft, ‘I prepared a questionnaire I would like each hotel guest to fill in when they arrive.’

‘What sort of questions?’

For answer, she took a four-page folder from the drawer of her desk and gave it to him.

Raising an eyebrow in surprise at the size of it, he perched on the side of her desk to peruse it. From beneath her thick, straight lashes, she studied him. This morning he was formally dressed in a dark business suit—the only concession to the tropical climate being its lightweight material.

It was the first occasion she had seen him close up in daylight, and not even the bright sunlight could find a flaw in the symmetry of his features. Indeed he was so preposterously handsome that he might have been thought effeminate, were it not for the firmness of the wide, sensual mouth, the imperiousness of the long, firm nose, and the strength in the well defined eyebrows, several shades darker than the tawny hair swept back from his high forehead.

‘This questionnaire is very in-depth,’ he commented, raising his head. ‘I’m impressed.’

‘Thank you. If I know the likes and dislikes of everyone who stays here, I can devise software to help you solve any problems that may arise with food, recreational facilities, bedroom requirements and—’

‘Bedroom requirements?’ His mouth quirked, though his voice remained serious.

‘Yes, Mr Hamilton.’ Her voice was as serious as his. ‘Some guests dislike room service entering their suite, others object to their beds being turned down, and when it comes to air-conditioning, your staff say the complaints are legion.’

‘And how! We’ve even had requests for duvets. Duvets in the tropics,’ he reiterated. ‘They must be bloody mad!’

Deliberately she flinched, and he stopped short. ‘Anything wrong?’

‘I’m not used to obscenities.’

‘I’d hardly call bl—’ He stopped abruptly. ‘Sorry.’

‘I accept your apology,’ she said primly, wondering how he’d react if she repeated some of her brothers’ colourful language.

‘I don’t believe your fellow countrymen never swear,’ Alex muttered.

‘Only when they lose their temper. But you hadn’t. You were merely expressing a thought aggressively.’

She hid a grin as chagrin darted across his face, and silently applauded herself for making him feel uncomfortable. ‘Forgive me for commenting on your behaviour, Mr Hamilton. You’re my superior and—’

‘Not that again,’ he cut in. ‘And stop this “Mr” nonsense. When we’re alone, it’s Alex.’

Afraid she had annoyed him, she smiled at him tentatively, and the way he studied her mouth gave her the assurance she required. Alex Hamilton might have a love ‘em and leave ‘em reputation, but right now he was definitely at the love ‘em stage!

‘May we continue our business discussion?’ she asked.

‘By all means. But first you should realise that most luxury hotels offer the same facilities we do, but where I believe we can score points is by making our guests feel at home.’

‘How?’

‘By ensuring that the second time they stay in one of our hotels, that hotel knows their foibles before they arrive; that way we can put their favourite drinks and flowers in their room, the reception clerk can enquire about their children or their wife—’

‘Whether they prefer morning coffee to tea,’ Marly cut in, ‘or bath-towels to robes! That’s easy. All I need do is enlarge the questionnaire.’

‘How long before you can let us have the software?’

‘It depends on the problems I come across.’

Alex’s mouth crooked in a half-smile. ‘I suppose it’s part of your job to make it sound complex. How else could 3S justify their fee?’

‘If you think I’d be party to such a—’

‘I was teasing,’ he said quickly. ‘I’ve no idea of their charges. That’s our finance director’s province.’

‘I see.’ Her annoyance, which was genuine, faded. ‘I’m sorry I misunderstood you.’

‘Misunderstandings seem par for our course.’

‘I agree.’ She paused deliberately before continuing. ‘For that reason, it would be better if we didn’t see each other socially.’

‘You’re joking?’ The astonishment on his face told her no female had ever said such a thing to him. ‘I thought you liked me.’

‘I do.’

‘Then why—?’

‘Because it will create problems.’

‘How?’

‘Do you often date your staff?’

‘No. This is a first.’

‘Why are you making an exception of me?’

‘Because you’re an exceptional young woman.’

‘Exceptional?’ Wide-eyed, she gazed at him, and he lowered his head towards her so that she saw the silver flecks in his grey eyes.

‘You are intelligent, charming, and very feminine.’

‘So are thousands of other women.’

‘But you don’t flaunt your intelligence.’

In other words I’m docile, Marly thought, and knew her plan was succeeding. He had probably dated intelligent women by the hundred, but one who also deferred to him constantly was a novelty not to be lightly discarded! Slowly she turned away, affording him a view of her small, straight nose and sweetly curved mouth.

‘Are you always embarrassed by compliments?’ he quizzed.

‘If they come from my employer.’

‘Can’t you just see me as a man who wants to know you better?’

Certain that he meant ‘know’ in the biblical sense, Marly longed to cut him down to size, but knowing this would put paid to her plans for him, she swallowed her ire and gave him one of her shy smiles.

‘No comment?’ he ventured.

‘It wouldn’t be seemly.’

‘I bet I’m going to hear that pretty often!’ He leaned closer to her. ‘Are you free to have dinner with me tonight?’

‘I have another engagement,’ she lied.

‘Tomorrow, then?’

His persistence was gratifying, but she had no intention of making it easy for him. Let him sweat a little!

‘I’m sorry, but I promised Nan’s mother I would be home to dinner.’

‘Have a drink with me beforehand?’

‘Thank you.’

‘I’ll call for you here and we’ll go up to the Rivertop. We promote it as having the best view and the best cocktails in Bangkok, and I’d like to see how honest our advertising is!’

As the door shut behind him, Marly danced a little jig around the room. Her long, tight skirt hampered her and she sat down giggling, and stared at her blank computer screen. Blank? Then why was Alex Hamilton’s face filling it? She poked her tongue at it and the image vanished.

Although she had no regrets about her charade, she knew that by encouraging him to fall in love with her she was playing a dangerous game. He was the handsomest, most interesting man she had met, and if she wasn’t careful she could emulate Andrea and, she suspected, every other woman with whom he came in contact, and fall madly in love with him.

Yet she had one advantage. She knew the man behind the mask. Not for her the rose-coloured spectacles of innocence. She saw him for the philanderer he was, and that should be enough to keep her immune to him.

So absorbed was she in thought that the telephone rang twice before she heard it. It was Kevin, to see if she was free to go to the cinema with him that evening. Glad the engagement she had pretended to have was now an actuality, she accepted at once. Besides, it would be a relief to be herself again.

‘What are we seeing?’ she asked.

‘The new Spielberg. It’s the opening night, and I’ve unexpectedly been given two tickets. I’ll pick you up at seven-thirty.’

An evening with a nice uncomplicated man would help her put Alex into perspective, and remind her he wasn’t the only handsome male in the world. Except that Kevin, attractive though he was, left her cold. On the credit side, though, she couldn’t envisage him two-timing anyone, and that, as far as she was concerned, was a great big plus.

CHAPTER FIVE

RETURNING home to shower and change, Marly wished Nan wasn’t working late, for they both enjoyed their pre-dinner gossip, and right now she had plenty to gossip about!

She was dressed and ready half an hour before Kevin was due, and enjoyed wearing her own clothes. She had gone slightly overboard, with citron and white linen a dramatic contrast against her olive skin, and the smooth sleekness of her centre-parted hairstyle had been replaced by her usual one of tonged curls cascading to her shoulders.

‘Here comes the Marly I recognise!’ Nan’s mother exclaimed as the girl she had seen grow from a tomboy into a beautiful woman entered the living-room, high-heeled sandals clicking on the polished wood floor. ‘I take it you aren’t seeing Mr Hamilton tonight?’

‘Thank heavens, no. It’s an awful strain pretending to be a docile young lady and agreeing with everything he says.’

‘There’s no reason why you can’t disagree with him,’ the older woman stated. ‘In the last ten years my countrywomen have become much more emancipated, and many of them run big companies and are highly successful.’

‘Alex hasn’t realised that, so I’m still playing up to his outmoded ideas!’

‘He’ll change them when he’s lived here a little longer.’

Marly knew this to be true, for the twentieth century, with its satellite television and world-wide communication, was having the same impact here as in the West. Yet family bonds were still important, religion remained strong, and young people continued to treat their parents with respect.

Professor Damrong came in, and watching him greet his wife—smiling without touching, the smile itself being an embrace—Marly thought it a nicer salutation than the meaningless peck on the cheek of a Western couple.

A few moments later Kevin arrived, and after a drink and the usual social chat they set off for the cinema.

‘The professor was telling me what a success the show was,’ he commented as they strolled down the street in search of a cab. ‘I wish I could have seen your act.’

Marly almost told him she was still acting, then decided against it. Alex Hamilton was occupying enough of her thoughts without allowing him to impinge on her evening with Kevin.

An empty cab cruised past and he flagged it down and ushered her inside. But they had only gone a few blocks when she asked the driver to stop.

‘I think we’ll be better off walking the rest of the way,’ she suggested. ‘This traffic jam is dreadful.’

‘Suits me.’ Kevin paid the fare and helped her out. ‘As long as your high heels are up to it!’

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