A smidgeon of guilt elbowed its way through her indignation. Laura shrugged and ignored it. ‘We had a quickie. It was no big deal.’
His eyes glittered. ‘If it was no big deal why did you run?’
‘Like I told you at the time, I had plans.’
‘Right.’
He fixed her with a gaze that had her squirming in her chair until she couldn’t stand it any longer. So much for thinking she might have had the upper hand. Matt made one formidable opponent.
>
‘OK, fine,’ she said, throwing her hands up in exasperation. ‘I guess I panicked.’
‘Why?’
‘I’m not entirely sure,’ she said, forcing herself to look him in the eye. ‘It was kind of intense. For me, at least. I don’t know. Maybe for you it’s like that all the time.’
‘Not all the time,’ he muttered, looking less than thrilled by the admission.
At his obvious discomfort Laura suddenly relaxed. ‘It was kind of amazing, wasn’t it?’
‘Hmm.’
Matt regarded her thoughtfully and she bit her lip. It wasn’t his fault she’d been spooked. He didn’t know about the battle she’d had with herself. And now it seemed that fate had decided they were going to have to work together. Unless she cleared the air the tension that simmered between them would soon reach an unbearable level. ‘I’m sorry I rushed off like that.’
He shrugged. ‘It really doesn’t matter. I put it out of my mind weeks ago.’
‘Oh,’ she said, stamping down on the perverse disappointment that he could dismiss it quite so easily. ‘Well, that’s good, seeing as we’re going to be working together.’
Matt’s gaze jerked to hers and his eyebrows shot up. ‘You don’t really think you can stay, do you?’
Laura went very still and felt her face pale. ‘What do you mean?’
He leaned forwards and clasped his hands on the desk. ‘I appreciate the fact that you’ve been given the job, and I realise there’s nothing I can do contractually, but in the light of our recent history don’t you think it would be wise if you refused?’
What? Refuse? He wanted her to give up the job she so badly needed? Over her dead body. Sticking her chin up, she fixed him with a firm stare. ‘No.’
For a second there was a stunned silence. Matt looked as if she’d slapped him. Clearly no one had ever said no to him before. Well, that was tough, thought Laura, folding her arms over her chest and crossing her legs. Her days of endless people pleasing, of always acquiescing, were over.
‘No?’
‘Absolutely not,’ she added, setting her jaw and glaring at him just in case he still didn’t get the message. ‘I’m not going anywhere.’
Matt’s brows snapped together and he shoved a hand through his hair. ‘There’s a conflict of interest,’ he said tightly.
‘Then you leave.’
‘Don’t be absurd.’
‘I’m not the one being absurd,’ she said coolly. ‘Yes, I agree that the situation is far from ideal but I want this job. And you need an architect. The palace is falling apart and bullet holes are so last century.’
His jaw tightened. ‘I don’t mix business with pleasure.’
‘Neither do I,’ she fired back. ‘Believe me, the last thing I’m looking for is a repeat of that afternoon.
‘Nor am I.’
‘Then I really don’t see that there’s anything to worry about.’