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suppose it is I who should be sorry for having put you out,’ she replied with a sarcasm that was completely lost on her opponent.
    ‘True.’ He nodded. ‘Apology accepted.’
    She opened her mouth to say something else but he waved a hand to stall her next rebuke. ‘Oh, very well. I
suppose
I will give your “list of items” a onceover. Have it ready and I’ll come pick it up after work on . . .’ he seemed to pick a day at random ‘. . . Friday.’
    It was apparent to Will that Charlotte seemed to be having some sort of internal struggle before she said with tight-lipped politeness, ‘Thank you. What time should I expect you?’
    ‘I have no idea,’ said Caesar as he walked around her, opened his door and let himself out.
    She turned on Will, who grimaced apologetically. ‘That man,’ she announced, ‘wasn’t beaten enough as a child.’
    Will grinned. ‘Well, maybe you’ll just have to take a stick to him now.’
    She gave him an answering smile. ‘Maybe I shall.’

It was Friday morning and Charlotte Templeton was desperately trying to get off the phone.
    ‘So I’m going to the Port Pub in Mackay tonight,’ said the male voice on the end of the line. ‘You should come.’
    ‘Er . . .’ She fingered the cord. ‘I have paperwork to do. Lots of paperwork.’
    ‘Oh,’ came the hesitant response, ‘because I was thinking . . .’
    Don’t think.
    ‘. . . that you’d love it. It’s ladies’ night.’
    She’d hate it.
    Apart from the fact that she just didn’t have the time for dating, she wasn’t interested in Jared, her plumber, that way. Not that there was anything wrong with him. He was certainly nice enough.
As a plumber
. ‘Er, thanks for the offer but I think I’ll have to pass.’
    ‘You work too hard.’
    He said the words like he knew her. The truth was he’d fixed her leaky taps and changed her showerheads twice. He didn’t have a clue what was going on in her head or how much baggage she had. If he knew, he’d be glad he’d got off lightly.
    ‘Well, you know,’ she tried to make light of his comment, ‘running a business single-handedly is no laughing matter.’
    ‘Yeah, you’re one smart lady.’
    Charlotte glanced at her watch. She was beginning to feel uncomfortable. Hopefully, he’d say goodbye soon and they could both get on with their lives. She glanced at the computer screen in front of her. She really had to get this invoice done and off within the next half hour. Not to mention the stack of other chores she had lined up for the day, as well as a meeting with the emperor himself at TBA o’clock that evening.
    ‘Would you like me to come and service your hot-water system some time?’ His languid tone broke her thoughts. ‘It was looking pretty run down when I was there yesterday.’
    Were they back to business again or was that a trick question?
    Regardless, her hot-water system did need a service. Ever since Silver Seas had entered ‘the slump’ she had been letting things like that slide. ‘Yeah okay,’ she finally agreed. ‘I’ll give you a call about it later. But I really must go now.’
    Thankfully he didn’t protest and they rang off. Charlotte put the receiver back on the phone and sighed. It wasn’t that she was against relationships exactly. It was just that she had two already that were taking up most of her time. A fifteen-year-old sister, whom she was practically raising, and a mum who needed almost twenty-four-hour care. Where was she supposed to put a boyfriend in that mix?
    Besides the fact that Jared’s double-pierced ears, neck tattoo and bleached hair with red roots didn’t even slightly get her ticker counting faster. In fact he probably made her double her resolve to save herself the pain. She didn’t have anything against the ‘bad boy’. He just lacked that charismatic, irresistible something that . . .
    Her thoughts dissolved as the lithe, masculine figure of Barnes Inc’s notorious project manager sauntered past the