A Stranger's Kiss

weren’t here when I got in.’ Which on reflection she decided, was probably just as well. Adam was not likely to be amused at having to send him packing two days running.
    ‘Oh, I’ve been wandering around,’ he said, absently. ‘It’s given me a great idea for a book. Have you any idea how terrifying those cat’s eyes in the road are when they look up at you? Suppose they were real — have you got a notebook handy, I ought to make a few notes...’
    ‘No!’ Tara shuddered. ‘And I don’t want to hear about your horrible cat’s eyes. It’s time you gave up, Jim and accepted the fact that I’m never coming back. You’ll have to find someone else. I’m not the only...’ She stopped as another thought struck her. ‘How on earth did you manage to find out where I live? I’m quite certain that Beth wouldn’t take your money. No matter how much you offered.’
    ‘She was very rude, Tara. I was shocked to hear such language from a woman.’ He sank onto her sofa.
    ‘Well?’ she demanded.
    ‘There are always ways to find out things. You just have to think it through.’ He shrugged. ‘I wrote detective stories for a while you know. I just imagined this was a detective story. How would my hero find out where the lovely lady lived?’ He glanced at the table. ‘Is that cocoa?’ He picked up the cup and ignoring her outraged protest he began to drink it. ‘This is wonderful. I’m absolutely freezing.’
    ‘I’m not surprised. You’re not wearing a coat.’ She put her hands on her hips. ‘You haven’t answered my question.’
    ‘It wasn’t difficult. I just went to the public library and searched through the electoral rolls.’
    ‘Good lord!’ His persistence stunned her. ‘How long did that take?’
    ‘Mmmm? Oh, not long. I had narrowed the area down quite a bit. I knew which side of town, and that you walked, even when it was raining, so it couldn’t be that far. But I admit that I was damned lucky you live in Albert Mews rather than Washington Lane.’
    ‘Well, your luck just ran out, Jim Matthews. If you don’t leave right now you had better prepare yourself—’ A thunderous knocking at the door stopped whatever she was going to say. ‘What on earth...’
    She ran to the door, fully expecting it to be her next door neighbour with some emergency.
    Instead Adam Blackmore burst through the door. ‘Tara, are you alright?’ He grabbed her arms, staring at her as if to reassure himself. ‘I’d just got back to the penthouse and I realised I hadn’t got the report you typed, so I went into the office.’ He’d been running and he paused to catch a breath. He shook his head. ‘I saw that man who was bothering you last night. He was headed this way. I know you said he wasn’t dangerous, but he was walking down the middle of the road poking about in the cat’s eyes. Quite odd and I thought—’
    He stopped as a movement behind Tara alerted him to the fact that she was not alone. He stepped forward as if to protect her, then halted as he took in the casual manner with which Jim had made himself totally at home on the sofa, feet propped upon the coffee table, the cup of cocoa warming his hands.
    His mouth a thin, angry line, Adam allowed his gaze to travel around the comfortable room, taking in every detail, the small circular window set into foot thick walls, the posts and beams that framed the building decorated with bunches of dried flowers, the little red pot belly stove in the hearth. It came finally to rest on Tara, hair tumbled about her shoulders, feet bare. Dressed for bed.
    ‘I was concerned.’ His eyes, dark and deep as a glacier, met Tara’s. ‘But I see that I needn’t have worried.’ His mouth managed a smile, but it didn’t quite make it to his eyes. ‘I told you he would wait.’
    ‘Adam...’
    He ignored her. He nodded, tight lipped, at Jim. ‘My apologies for the interruption.’ Jim raised a languid hand in acknowledgment. ‘I’ll see you in the morning, Tara.’ There was nothing reassuring in this utterance. Nothing reassuring about the careful way he shut the door on his way out.
    Tara turned and stared at her intruder, wondering just what he had cost her. He looked so harmless, so insignificant, totally unaware of the havoc he had caused and the unaccountable misery that lay like a lump of lead in her stomach.
    ‘Truly, Jim Matthews,’ she declared with a sudden burst of anger, ‘you are the most annoying man it has ever been my misfortune