Flash

that she also invited Andy Andrews."
    "So?"
    "Did he ever get hold of you yesterday?"
    "No." She frowned. "I was out of the studio most of the afternoon. Lot of last-minute stuff. He left three or four messages. I didn't return any of them."
    "Hmm." Jasper glanced across the room, his expression thoughtful. "Maybe that's why he's still so interested in us tonight."
    "What do you mean?" Olivia followed Jasper's glance and saw a short, round man in an ill-fitting dinner jacket. He had a glass of champagne in one hand. In the other he held a large plate piled high with canapés, fancy cheeses, and smoked salmon. He was watching Jasper and Olivia. She could see the shrewd gleam in his pale eyes from halfway across the room. "Is that Andrews? He looks like a teddy bear."
    "Don't let the innocent, slow-on-the-uptake look fool you. I've known Andy for years. He has a sixth sense when it comes to the gossip side of a business story."
    Olivia gave Andrews her most charming smile and then turned back to Jasper. "He looks pretty harmless to me. I fail to see the problem here."
    "You will if Andrews decides to do a story in
Hard Currency
with a headline like FEUD AT GLOW."
    "I think you may be overreacting, Jasper."
    His eyes narrowed. "I know what I'm talking about. I've been down this road in the past with other firms."
    "Really?" She gave him a politely inquisitive look. "Are you dancing with me to show Andy Andrews that all's well between the two partners of Glow?"
    To her surprise a dull red appeared on Jasper's high cheekbones. Irritation gleamed briefly in his eyes. "That's one of the reasons."
    His answer tripped a switch somewhere inside her. Anger surged. The memory of the torrid kiss on her balcony flashed through her brain. She wondered if it had been prompted by something other than mutual attraction.
    "I see," she said coldly. "Tell me, is pretending to romance potentially difficult business partners a routine technique in your line of work?"
    She regretted the reckless words as soon as they left her lips, but it was too late. Jasper gripped her hand so tightly she was surprised he did not mash her fingers. He continued to smile down at her, but she saw that there was a new and rather dangerous expression in his eyes.
    He bent his head closer, in what no doubt looked like an intimate manner to onlookers. He spoke directly into her ear.
    "No," he said very evenly. "
Pretending
to romance difficult business partners is not part of my usual approach. In my professional opinion, it's an inefficient, tiresome, and extremely frustrating method of controlling a company."
    "I'm sure it is." Olivia felt heat in her own cheeks. She hoped she was not blushing.
    He met her eyes. "If I decide to romance a business partner, you can be sure of one thing."
    "What's that?"
    "I won't be pretending."
    The heat in his eyes kindled the smoldering embers that she had not realized had been left behind by his kiss. Olivia stumbled. She had to clutch wildly at his shoulder to steady herself.
    "Sorry," she gasped. "I tripped over my own feet. Haven't danced in quite a while."
    "Let's get something to drink." He came to a halt, took her hand, and led her off the floor.
    Olivia caught another glimpse of Andy Andrews as they walked toward the silver-spangled bar. The journalist was skulking behind a silver palm and fountain display.
    "I don't think we're going to be able to avoid Mr. Andrews," she said.
    "I don't intend to avoid him. But I would prefer to make him come to us."
    "I can't hang around here very long, in spite of what Mrs. Silverthorne said. I've got a job to do."
    "I know." He brought her to a halt at the foiled bar. "Do you have time for one drink?"
    She hesitated and then shrugged. "I could use an espresso."
    Jasper groaned. "Don't you worry about building up an immunity to caffeine?"
    "It's been a long day." For some reason she felt obliged to defend herself. "And it won't end anytime soon."
    Jasper shook his head and then turned to the silver-jacketed bartender. "One espresso and one cognac."
    "Make that espresso a double," Olivia said.
    "Coming right up." The bartender moved off to fill the order.
    Jasper leaned one elbow on the gleaming bar and glanced casually across the dance floor. Olivia knew he was watching Andy Andrews slink toward them.
    "When do you get off duty?" Jasper asked without shifting his gaze away from Andrews.
    "Technically, not until the
Private Island
docks back in Seattle tomorrow morning and the ship