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out of mid-air.

      ‘Companionship?’ He didn’t know whether to believe her or not. She could see the dark light in his eyes was tinged with just a hint of uncertainty.

      ‘Well yes…’ She held his dark gaze determinedly. ‘What’s the matter—isn’t that practical enough for you?’

      ‘We’re not talking about me…we are talking about you and what you would want,’ Marco corrected her softly. ‘And would companionship really be enough for you?’

      She wished those dark eyes of his weren’t so intense…Companionship would be good but she knew deep down it would never be enough for her. She would want a deep and passionate love…nothing less would suffice. She wished she’d never stated this lie now. Charlie glanced away from him. ‘Obviously the guy would have to care deeply about Jack and be good with him.’ She added the provision hastily. That at least was the truth.

      ‘Obviously.’ Marco nodded.

      ‘As you said in your book, it’s important not to allow emotions to cloud reality.’ She threw the line in for good measure.

      ‘You have been paying attention.’ He smiled.

      She frowned; was he being facetious? ‘No, I’ve been through a divorce and, as I said before, it has a way of grounding the senses. Why do you think I’ve chosen internet dating? Let’s face it; it is the ultimate practical way to meet someone. You read through a list of a person’s attributes and decide from that if you have something in common. There are no hearts and flowers about choosing a partner using that method, I assure you.’ She left out the fact that it had been her friend Karen who had talked her into it.

      ‘I guess so.’ Marco frowned for a moment. ‘Maybe you are a little more practical than I gave you credit for.’

      ‘A lot more practical,’ she corrected him quickly. Even though she veered towards the romantic, that didn’t mean she wasn’t sensible.

      Marco held up his hands. ‘Obviously I was very wrong in my assessment of you.’

      ‘Yes, you were.’ She smiled, pleased with the new note of respect in his tone. And now she knew why she had felt so compelled to lie. The label of incurable romantic was not a good one to have around Marco.

      His eyes swept over her thoughtfully. He’d always had Charlie down as someone who could never view a relationship in just practical terms, but now that she had convinced him otherwise perhaps she was just what he needed…‘So, now that we have established the fact that we are both on a similar wavelength…so to speak…how about shelving your internet-dating idea for a while and coming out to dinner with me?’

      The question was asked so nonchalantly that for a moment Charlie wondered if she had misheard. ‘I beg your pardon?’

      ‘I was asking you out for dinner…you know, the meal that comes after lunch and before bed.’

      The teasing, provocative words caused Charlie’s heart to slam hard against her chest. She didn’t know how to take this sudden turn of conversation at all. ‘As in…a date?’

      ‘Yes…as in a date,’ Marco said softly and suddenly his tone was very serious.

      As their eyes met Charlie felt a flare of pure sexual attraction so raw it took her breath away. She couldn’t deny that she was wildly attracted to him. Then common sense kicked in as she reminded herself that Marco was not only her boss but also a man who only dated women who looked as if they’d come straight off a catwalk.

      She tilted up her chin. ‘And why would you do that?’

      Marco noted the expression of surprise and consternation in her eyes.

      ‘Why not?’ he countered quietly.

      ‘Well, for one thing, you’re my boss and it’s not good to mix business with pleasure.’ She decided to concentrate on practicalities, with her words stiff and formal.

      ‘I didn’t realise you were so conventional.’ His mouth slanted in a half-smile.

      ‘I was being sensible.’

      ‘Well, as you know, I’m all for being sensible.’ He regarded her with a wry, teasing gleam in his eye. ‘But you’ve intrigued me now and I want to find out more about this deeply practical side of your nature and what you are searching for in your next relationship.’

      ‘I’m not really searching for anything!’ Charlie said hurriedly.

      ‘That’s not what you just said.’

      ‘I was just speaking hypothetically…. just…you know…proving that my poker skills are better than yours.’

      ‘But you told me that you were specifically looking for a realistic type of relationship.’ Marco murmured the words silkily, knowing how she would react. ‘I kind of got the impression that you might have been sussing me out…testing the water…finding out if I was up for the idea.’

      ‘I certainly was not!’ Charlie was furious. ‘How could you think such a thing?’

      ‘Very easily when you are laying out your requirements in such an open and honest way.’

      ‘Oh, for heaven’s sake…’ Charlie trailed off as she suddenly noticed the glint of devilment in his dark eyes. ‘Are you winding me up?’ she asked suspiciously.

      ‘Just a little…’ He smiled and his eyes moved over her countenance thoughtfully.

      Something about the way he was looking at her made her feel extremely self-conscious. ‘Well, I think the joke has gone far enough.’ She glanced away from him, feeling foolish now. ‘We should get back to work—’

      ‘Hey, not so fast.’ He put a hand on her arm as she made to turn away from him again. ‘You still haven’t given me your answer. Will you have dinner with me?’

      She turned back and regarded him with a frown. ‘I told you the joke has gone far enough, Marco.’

      ‘I wasn’t joking about dinner,’ he said quietly.

      He watched the scepticism flicking through her eyes. ‘Of course I was serious,’ he added gently. ‘I told you…you’ve intrigued me.’

      She noticed how his gaze moved over her with leisurely appraisal. There was something in its warmth that touched her defences for a second. ‘And why is that?’ she asked huskily before she could stop herself.

      ‘Well, for one thing, it’s very rare that I meet a woman who views relationships in my level-headed terms.’

      The matter-of-fact answer snapped her quickly back to reality. ‘Let me guess. You want to get inside my brain to research a woman’s take on practicality.’ She tried to sound flippant, but deep down she was aware of an irrational curl of hurt. She knew he wasn’t asking her out for her beauty, but did he have to be so blunt about it?

      ‘I wouldn’t have worded it quite like that,’ he contradicted her softly. For a moment his eyes drifted down over the soft curves of her body.

      In fact, whom was he kidding? he thought drily. He wouldn’t put it like that at all. Perhaps the reason he had been so concerned about her internet dating last night was more complex than he’d first thought. He was a man who had a healthy sexual appetite and during the last couple of days he had been surprised to find that there was something about the way she looked at him sometimes…the way she moved…that turned him on. But, as she so rightly had pointed out a few moments ago, business and pleasure did not mix.

      He had mockingly accused her of being conventional for having such sentiments, but in truth weren’t they part of the reason he had felt so at ease around Charlie these last few months? After the uncomfortable atmosphere his last PA had generated it had been great to be around someone who thought like him and wanted to keep the working environment strictly complication-free. In fact he had been so at ease with Charlie that he had enjoyed trying to

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