‘We probably won’t have to!’ Charlotte said but when she saw Ben raise his eyebrows and glance over her shoulder she knew that pretending was precisely what they were going to have to do. She looked around to find Riccardo and his Amazon model girlfriend approaching their table. Together they made a striking couple, and as Charlotte had predicted Lucinda was hanging onto his arm, making sure that any greedy female knew that this was her man. Poor, misguided woman, Charlotte thought.
‘Riccardo!’ She was aware of Ben playing his little game of ownership by placing his hand possessively over hers. ‘You’re still here! And you must be Lucinda?’ She smiled broadly and then, wide-eyed and the picture of innocence said, ‘Riccardo couldn’t stop talking about you when we were dancing!’ Oh yes, that met with the predictable response. Delight in her, tight-lipped disapproval in him. ‘I gather you two are in a very serious relationship. Tell me, Riccardo, are congratulations in order?’ It was all she could do not to burst out laughing as he tried to back out of the corner into which he had been pushed. He deserved it. Any man who made it his business to string women along deserved to occasionally face the consequences of his actions.
If looks could kill, Charlotte thought that she would have been six feet under by now. She was playing with fire but, with her so-called fiancé at her side, was safe in the knowledge that there was no way she could be burnt.
‘Because they are for us!’ Ben piped up while Riccardo continued to seethe. ‘I’ve found the perfect woman!’ He leant towards Charlotte and playfully rumpled her hair, which didn’t strike her as the most romantic of gestures but it worked, judging from the brooding frown on Riccardo’s face.
‘And Charlie has spoken a lot about you,’ Riccardo said smoothly, detaching Lucinda from his arm so that they could sit. He had used her nickname deliberately, knowing that it would resurrect memories she wanted to exorcise. If she wanted to play games with him, then who was he not to oblige?
‘Yes, I have!’ Charlotte gritted her teeth at the familiar use of ‘Charlie’ and gave Ben a wide, Tinseltown smile. ‘I’ve told him what a gem you are! Always there, making sure I eat well and look after myself.’ She looked at Lucinda. Lord, but the woman was a beauty. Right now a vaguely bored looking beauty, but she even managed to pull off bored without losing her glamour. Something about the way she tossed that mane of hair and let her lips fall into a natural pout. ‘Guess you find that yourself…?’ She flashed a woman-to-woman smile at her and felt Riccardo’s glare.
Lucinda gave her a blank look. ‘Well, Ric doesn’t cook much, if you know what I mean…’
‘No?’
‘No,’ Riccardo said flatly. ‘Why cook when someone else can do it so much better?’
‘I guess it depends on how much money you have to toss around in restaurants.’
‘Oh, I also have my own personal chef.’
‘And so do I,’ Charlotte returned snidely.
‘Bossy lady, isn’t she?’ Riccardo said to Ben, who had been following their back and forth conversation with interest. ‘Like being called someone’s “personal chef”, do you?’
Charlotte felt a flare of anger and swallowed it back. Bossy lady! Coming from the king of arrogance, that was rich! She stood up, not giving Ben time to try and think of something clever to say. He was no match for Riccardo and she wasn’t going to sit back and watch him demolished.
‘Aubrey says you haven’t been in touch about the house,’ she said, changing the subject. ‘Have you found a better investment somewhere else?’