Ruby was torn between being flattered and still annoyed. Not with him. With herself.
It was an effort to put aside her exasperation and find a small smile from somewhere. ‘I have been known to put the odd man or two in his place,’ she said, her voice still on the crisp side. ‘You really don’t have to worry, Sebastian. You’re right. I can handle myself. But thank you for the apology. I admit I did feel upset that I hadn’t made a good first impression on you.’
Sebastian did his best not to let his face reveal his reaction to her words. He’d come down to the kitchen to smooth things over, knowing full well that he’d been less than welcoming so far. Having a long, cold shower had helped with his frustrated male body, but there was no help for the memory of what had happened when he’d first come home.
No, she hadn’t made a good first impression. She’d made a very bad, very lasting impression, one that he suspected would torment him for the entire length of her time as his housekeeper. Not her fault, of course, but unfortunate just the same.
It had taken every ounce of his willpower to come in here and act the part of a boss for whom she might actually like to work, instead of the jerk she possibly thought he was. There was no doubt he hadn’t made a good first impression on her, either. Sebastian was a reasonable judge of body language and he could see Ruby wasn’t too happy with him. Which in one way was a good thing. But possibly awkward in the long run. If they were to coexist for the next few months, they had to establish a bearable working relationship. Sebastian had already decided to make himself scarce till Georgia came back but he couldn’t be absent all the time. When he was home, however, he was determined to be polite, and pleasant.
‘I’m sorry I made you feel that way,’ he said. ‘Let’s start again, shall we?’
Her face showed that she was not going to be won over that easily. Her dark eyes flashed in a way that hinted at something close to annoyance, and her smile looked a little forced.
‘But of course,’ she agreed stiffly.
‘Good. Now I’ll just pop downstairs and get myself a bottle of red. I like wine with my meal at night.’
Sebastian was glad to escape down into his wine cellar where the air was almost as frosty as Ruby. His smile was wry as he pulled a bottle of his favourite Merlot from the shelves. If only she knew the R-rated thoughts that kept going through his head about her. No doubt she would quit on the spot.
Which might not be a bad idea. But he could hardly confess to the feelings that had rampaged through his body when he’d first sighted her in that damned bikini, and which he was only now getting under control. Because quitting would not be the only fallout to such a confession.
Sebastian had no intention of saying a single word on the matter, but the irony of the situation appealed to his sometimes dark sense of humour. He was still smiling when he reappeared in the kitchen.
Ruby, however, was not.
She had already set a tray with cutlery, a serviette and a wine glass. The correct wine glass for red, he noted. The only thing missing was the meal.
‘Would you like a bread roll with your stroganoff?’ she asked crisply.
‘No. No dessert either.’ Sebastian was suddenly tired of being accommodating. Or perhaps he was just tired. It had been a long and difficult day.
‘How long will dinner be?’ he asked.
‘Not long at all.’
‘See you soon, then.’
Swooping up the wine glass, he stalked off to his study. By the time Ruby arrived with the dinner tray he was already on his second glass. The alcohol hit his empty stomach hard, making him tetchy rather than mellow.
‘Just put it down here on my desk,’ he grumped.
‘Right.’ She put it down as ordered, her eyes speaking volumes. Clearly, he’d blotted his copybook again.
‘What time would you like breakfast in the morning?’ she asked in what could only be described as a cool voice. ‘Georgia told me you like a cooked breakfast on Saturdays as opposed to weekdays when you just have coffee. She said you make the coffee yourself because you leave for work before most people are awake.’
‘True,’ he said, thinking Georgia made him sound like the worst kind of workaholic. ‘I like to beat the traffic. But I actually won’t need breakfast in the morning, Ruby. I intend to sleep in, then go out for brunch with some work colleagues. We have a lot of catching up to do after my trip. But I’ll need dinner tomorrow night. At seven-thirty rather than eight. That spaghetti bolognese you mentioned will do fine.’
‘Very well.’
‘Did Georgia also mention you have Sundays off?’ he asked, already looking forward to a day when she wouldn’t be around.
‘Yes.’
‘Good. That’s all for now.’ As he dropped his eyes and picked up his fork, Sebastian was sure he heard her sigh. Not a big sigh. A small exasperated sigh. But he didn’t look up. He just started eating, refusing to feel in any way guilty for his autocratic manner. He was, after all, not Ruby’s friend. He was her boss. And Sebastian aimed to keep acting like a boss for the duration of her stay. That way, he might just stay sane.
CHAPTER SEVEN
RUBY BREATHED A sigh of relief when Monday morning came. Sebastian was up and gone with the dawn, leaving her with no one to please but herself for the day. Janice arrived at nine to clean, followed shortly after by the guy who picked up the laundry each Monday morning. Ruby had intended to help Janice upstairs after he left but was stuck downstairs answering phone call after phone call.
First there were her brothers, each making polite enquiries about the job, as well as asking her if she wanted to join them for Christmas lunch at the restaurant they went to every year and which required early booking. Ruby hadn’t returned to Sydney for Christmas during the last five years and had been rather looking forward to a traditional Christmas at one of their places. She hated the thought of being the fifth wheel in their happy foursome and had declined their kind invitation, making some excuse about having to be on deck at the Marshall household.
Before she could surrender to guilt over this little white lie, Barbara rang from Housewives For Hire, wanting to know how she was getting along. No sooner had she finished with Barbara than Georgia rang with similar questions.
She told all of them the same thing: that she was fine, the job was fine, her boss was fine, and that she didn’t foresee any problems. And brother, was that a big white lie!
Saturday had been sheer torture, especially after Sebastian came home around five and went swimming in the pool for over an hour. Which hadn’t been too bad until he’d called out to her, asking her to bring him a towel, which he’d obviously forgotten. She had done as ordered, of course, which would have been okay if he’d stayed in the pool, but he’d chosen that moment to climb out.