would be in a position to contact Noah next week.
Elexa full well knew that she could have phoned him at any time to tell him of her findings, but the rest of the week went by without her once dialling his number. She wasn't trying to get out of it, she told herself. It was purely that it seemed to her to call for a little more delicacy than just to ring him with the hold request that he leave next Wednesday evening free.
By Saturday night, the night of Idris Young's party, Elexa had still not telephoned Noah. `Enjoyingyourself ?' Paul-that was what she thought his name was-asked.
`Super,' she replied, and listened with half ,in car as he chatted away, until it became obvious he was leading up to asking her out. `I'm spoken..." she interrupted him. `Where is he?' Paul asked looking around. `I wouldn't neglect you if...'
'I'm sure you wouldn't,' she smiled, and, since she'd accepted the invitation, made a great effort to be a good guest, and went through the motions of asking him what sort of work he did, and appeared to listen intently until a moment came when she could make her escape.
She arrived home around midnight, the party long gone from her mind. She went to her bedroom and, slipping her shoes off, spotted her wedding ring where she had left it on her dressing table. For no reason, she slipped it on. Noah Peverelle, and how she must give him a call, again occupied her mind, much as it had all that week.
But, in the act of unzipping her dress, she stopped, startled, when her phone suddenly rang. She looked at her watch: ten past twelve! Who on earth- The sound of the telephone ringing had been remarkable by its absence thatweek. Fearing some emergency, she hurried to answer it.
`Hello?' she enquired urgently.
`Where the hell have you been?' snarled an aggressive harsh male voice. Noah? He sounded more annoyed than worried, so Elexa realised that nobody had fallen down and broken a leg. `I've been to a party,' she replied, as evenly as she could in the circumstances.
`Who with?' he gritted bossily.
She'd had enough of him! Nobody bossed her around. `You sound like some irate husband,' she answered acidly.
`That's because I am a husband. Yours! If you're playing around-' He broke off, but only for a moment, because in the next instant he was snarling, `When you have that baby, I want to know for certain that it's mine!'
If he was furious, she was outraged. `You pig!' she yelled, and slammed the phone down on him.
Tears spurted to her eyes. How could he? How could he? The phone rang again; she ignored it. It carried on ringing-she went into the bathroom and drowned out the sound by taking a shower. She was stilll outraged when, nightdress-and dressing-gown-clad, she paced about her sitting-room. Then the door buzzer sounded. She stopped pacing and automatically glanced at her wrist. She wasn't wearing a watch, but knew,if it wasn't Saturday-night revellers going along ringing doorbells for a lark, that it would have taken Noah Peverelle half an hour to get here.
She went to the intercom. 'Yes!' she snapped.
`I don't find apologising very easy.'
`Don't strain yourself!"
'I think I should do it face to face.'
'I'll get the sackcloth and ashes ready!' she hissed, but thumped the button to let him up.
He wasn't long in getting there. She had left the door ajar and he came straight in, quietly closing the door behind him. `I rang earlier to let you know I was back.' `I didn't know you'd been away!'
`You're determined to give me a hard time.'
`Nobody talks to me like that!' she flared.`Nobody!' She wanted to hate him, but found that she didn't.
`I was out of order. I can't tell you how sorry I am.'
`You still don't trust me."
'That's the hell of it,' he answered. `I rather think I do.'
`Rather?' `Okay, then, yes, I do. I suppose, after chasing around this week sorting out various crises, for some unknown reason I imagined you enjoying a phone-free week staying home in your
Elexa full well knew that she could have phoned him at any time to tell him of her findings, but the rest of the week went by without her once dialling his number. She wasn't trying to get out of it, she told herself. It was purely that it seemed to her to call for a little more delicacy than just to ring him with the hold request that he leave next Wednesday evening free.
By Saturday night, the night of Idris Young's party, Elexa had still not telephoned Noah. `Enjoyingyourself ?' Paul-that was what she thought his name was-asked.
`Super,' she replied, and listened with half ,in car as he chatted away, until it became obvious he was leading up to asking her out. `I'm spoken..." she interrupted him. `Where is he?' Paul asked looking around. `I wouldn't neglect you if...'
'I'm sure you wouldn't,' she smiled, and, since she'd accepted the invitation, made a great effort to be a good guest, and went through the motions of asking him what sort of work he did, and appeared to listen intently until a moment came when she could make her escape.
She arrived home around midnight, the party long gone from her mind. She went to her bedroom and, slipping her shoes off, spotted her wedding ring where she had left it on her dressing table. For no reason, she slipped it on. Noah Peverelle, and how she must give him a call, again occupied her mind, much as it had all that week.
But, in the act of unzipping her dress, she stopped, startled, when her phone suddenly rang. She looked at her watch: ten past twelve! Who on earth- The sound of the telephone ringing had been remarkable by its absence thatweek. Fearing some emergency, she hurried to answer it.
`Hello?' she enquired urgently.
`Where the hell have you been?' snarled an aggressive harsh male voice. Noah? He sounded more annoyed than worried, so Elexa realised that nobody had fallen down and broken a leg. `I've been to a party,' she replied, as evenly as she could in the circumstances.
`Who with?' he gritted bossily.
She'd had enough of him! Nobody bossed her around. `You sound like some irate husband,' she answered acidly.
`That's because I am a husband. Yours! If you're playing around-' He broke off, but only for a moment, because in the next instant he was snarling, `When you have that baby, I want to know for certain that it's mine!'
If he was furious, she was outraged. `You pig!' she yelled, and slammed the phone down on him.
Tears spurted to her eyes. How could he? How could he? The phone rang again; she ignored it. It carried on ringing-she went into the bathroom and drowned out the sound by taking a shower. She was stilll outraged when, nightdress-and dressing-gown-clad, she paced about her sitting-room. Then the door buzzer sounded. She stopped pacing and automatically glanced at her wrist. She wasn't wearing a watch, but knew,if it wasn't Saturday-night revellers going along ringing doorbells for a lark, that it would have taken Noah Peverelle half an hour to get here.
She went to the intercom. 'Yes!' she snapped.
`I don't find apologising very easy.'
`Don't strain yourself!"
'I think I should do it face to face.'
'I'll get the sackcloth and ashes ready!' she hissed, but thumped the button to let him up.
He wasn't long in getting there. She had left the door ajar and he came straight in, quietly closing the door behind him. `I rang earlier to let you know I was back.' `I didn't know you'd been away!'
`You're determined to give me a hard time.'
`Nobody talks to me like that!' she flared.`Nobody!' She wanted to hate him, but found that she didn't.
`I was out of order. I can't tell you how sorry I am.'
`You still don't trust me."
'That's the hell of it,' he answered. `I rather think I do.'
`Rather?' `Okay, then, yes, I do. I suppose, after chasing around this week sorting out various crises, for some unknown reason I imagined you enjoying a phone-free week staying home in your