a flat denial about seeing anything suspicious between Simon and Monique but her face was twisted with anxious uncertainty. He couldn’t mislead her.
“Simon and Monique got out of the cab but instead of going straight inside they talked for quite a while; five minutes or so. I didn’t know it was Simon at that stage but I have to say that from their body language I assumed he and Monique were a couple.”
“What do you mean?”
“How do you explain the signals people give off? If you’re asking me did they touch one another at all, then the answer is ‘no’.”
“Why didn’t you tell me this before?” Alex snapped, battling to keep her voice from escalating into something that was loud and edgy.
“Because you’re no fool, Alex. I knew that if there was something going on between Monique and Simon you’d work it out for yourself. And I didn’t want you thinking I was trying to undermine your relationship with him because of the way I feel about you.”
“Well, thanks very much for your support,” she answered peevishly.
JP laughed in disbelief. “Don’t attack me. I’m not one of your gossipy girlfriends.”
“I just think you could have told me.”
“When I got into your parents’ house and saw the way he looked at you I discounted what I thought I’d seen but obviously you’ve found out there’s something’s between them. What’s happened?”
But Alex wasn’t able to reply because a whistling Mark Jackson suddenly bowled through the door laden with glasses, mineral water, potato chips and a topped up bottle of scotch, ready to move on to page thirty-six of his statement.
Hours later dinner was brought to the table for them all but it didn’t improve the client’s mental faculties. Finally, at close to eleven, JP sat back in his chair and announced he could do no more that evening. Mark Jackson swore in slurred speech and then announced he was going to buy both his guests a drink at the bar downstairs. He would not take ‘no’ for an answer.
JP looked across at Alex to gauge her reaction to Mark’s unappealing offer. She shrugged indifferently; he suspected she was too exhausted to resist.
Minutes later the three of them were watching a handful of couples moving around a dance floor as an immaculately turned out gentleman played note perfect torch music on a grand piano. Mark Jackson swayed at the bar as he ordered a champagne cocktail for Alex, a beer for JP and another Scotch for himself.
But at that point JP remembered he’d made no arrangements to remove Mark’s documents into safe storage overnight. He excused himself and wandered out into reception to discuss it with the night staff and as he hadn’t been gone more than two minutes he was staggered to see Alex dancing with Mark on the dance floor when he returned.
He shook his head in disbelief that she would have agreed to it before noticing that she was in fact struggling to escape Mark’s hold. She was no match for him. He had her well and truly pinned against his body, his hand slipping down and over her bottom where it parked itself.
With anger roaring up inside him he reached Mark and Alex in a few strides. Taking Mark’s arm in a vice-like grip, he removed it from around Alex’s waist.
“Sorry old man,” JP explained. “We have a strict rule at the firm—no fraternising with the clients. I’m going to have to take over.”
Mark Jackson’s blood shot eyes had a dangerous glint to them. “Alex doesn’t want to dance with you McKenzie. You ask her.”
“Well actually Mark I did promise I’d have one dance with JP,” she explained quickly, sinking with relief into JP’s arms and allowing him to move her away to the other side of the dance floor. Behind them Mark tripped and stumbled his way back to the bar and JP suspected he’d spend the rest of the evening there until the hotel staff threw him out.
“Thank you,” she said quietly to him. “I was scared to death. He literally dragged me onto the dance floor and then began to grope me. God, it was hideous! Can we get out of here JP, please? He really creeps me out!”
JP glanced across at Mark Jackson. He’d taken up his pew again at the bar but was watching the two of them dance with a dark and violent expression. “Let’s just have this one dance as you said. If we leave now it might provoke him. He has