Chapter 5

On the wall across from the stove hung a painting of a fierce old man. 'Your father, Geet?'

'Grandfather,'she replied. 'My father thought that paintings were a waste of time and money. Please sit.' She indicated the couch. He chose the adjacent Morris chair and sank into it with a comfortable sigh.

'There's never been a more comfortable chair than a Morris,' he commented as his big hands patted the worn wooden arms. And all the while his eyes had been studying her. There was no doubt in his mind that tension was building within her, that she had kept something of extreme importance to herself that she wanted to tell him,and that she was not the type of woman to stand for delays. So he changed his tactics—for the moment. 'I take it you want to tell me something?'

The air came out of her lungs in an explosive gasp as she collapsed on to the couch and tucked her skirts in.'Yes. This month in front of us is to be a sort of test run, an opportunity for you and me to get to know each other better. There are other people on the ranch, but they will stay out of our way. Mrs Manchanda will come over every afternoon and fix us supper. There are a few head of cattle around the area, and perhaps enough outside work on the spread to keep us busy, but that's not terribly important to the test. Except for Mrs Manchanda, we will have to make do for ourselves.'

'This is a test? Which one of us, do you suppose, is being tested?' Her fleeting blush was back again, for longer than before. 'That remains to be seen, doesn't it?'

'And that's all I'm to be told about it?'

'Oh,no,' Geet said coolly. 'There is one more item. If the test is successful,and you comply with all the terms, you will be paid a ten thousand dollars a week. I imagine that a month will be enough to complete the— er—tests.'

And that, Maan Singh Khurana told himself, is enough of all this stalling around.He pushed himself up out of the Morris chair and strolled over in front of her. 'I think I could save you two or three weeks of your valuable time, and maybe a couple of thousand dollars,' he offered as he pulled her up off the sofa.

'What-?'

'I have this theory,' he told her. 'When two people want to get close to each other, they really have to get close. No amount of talking will help. Close —like this.' Her hands were resting in his as she glared at him.He offered her another one of those vacuous smiles, then tugged her closer. Her breasts served as a capable bumper. She almost bounced off his chest, but his hands were on her shoulders before she could slip away from him. 'And then, like this,' he said softly.

Geet whimpered as his head bent over her, blocking out the light from the windows.One of his hands moved to the small of her back, bringing her tightly into his web. His mouth moved gently down on hers, brushed against her lips, and then fled upward to the lobe of her ear. She managed a breath, and a phrase.'Don't-' she started to say, and then his lips were back on hers, sealing off her mouth in a heady attack that registered shock, amazement, fear.

Maan could feel her fear, read the shock. He lightened the pressure against her mouth. 'It's all right,' he murmured in her ear. 'It's all right; relax, you could get to like it.' And then he sealed her mouth again with his own. Geet felt the first returning shock, but from then onward she experienced the wild, roiling flashes of excitement that shot up and down her spine, blinded her to everything else, left her hanging in his arms because her own knees refused to function.

He moved her slightly away from his steel frame. She sobbed for breath. Only his arms supported her. 'See,' he murmured again. 'That's all there is to it.'Gently, as if she were a china doll, he deposited her back on the couch, where she slipped sideways, still struggling for breath.

'Now I'm sure we've saved at least a thousand dollars,' he observed gently. 'Care to make it two?'

'No,'she whispered, and then shouted, 'No! Damn you, no!'

'OK,OK.' He spread his placating hands out in front of her.

'Don't take it too hard, Geet. It was only an experiment, nothing more. If you liked it we could try it again some day. If not, just say the word and I'll be off back to the city.'

'I—no,'she stammered.

'No what? No city? No more kisses?'

'Just no,' she said, and then staggered to her feet. Another one of her father's platitudes: To dominate people you have to be standing toe to toe with them!

But when she came that close she was trembling. She balled her fingers up into fists, but left them hanging at her side. It was only a kiss, she told herself fiercely. Plenty of women get kissed in all sorts of ways. All I have to do is settle down. Count to ten.

Get the breathing settled, and then tell him off. Or do I want to do that? If this is the best man to be winnowed out of the field, I don't really want to lose him.After all, it certainly can't take long for me to get what I want from this—giant—and then I can write him off to expenses and forget about him! Two more breaths. She was so close that her breasts were rubbing gently across that steel chest of his. She blushed and put more space between them.

'I realize, Maan, that you are—sort of—in the dark about what's going on. And I won't be surprised to learn that in Texas your sort of—enticement—might work very well.'

He had both hands in his pockets, his head slightly cocked to the left, and a wide grin on his face. But there's more-than that, Geet told herself. Look at those eyes. Deep, dark brown. Behind his face there was a calculation going on, as if his mind were a computer. How in the world did this man get by her screening process? She coughed a couple of times to hide her embarrassment.

'Butup here in Kansas we don't go on like that,' she continued quickly.

'Well,you could have fooled me,' he said, chuckling. 'There seem to be plenty of kids all over this part of Kansas.'

'Stop that!' She tried to stamp her foot, but the rug was too thick to make a practical noise.

'I understand—Handa.' He reached over and wiped away the tiny bit of tear-drop that was working at the corner of her left eye. 'I really understand. It isn't that sort of test, huh?'

And that left Geet Handa far up the creek without a paddle. Lying was not her usual cup of tea, but how could she answer truthfully?Because that was exactly the kind of test it was to be.

'Excuse me,' she said, all in a rush. 'I forgot the coffee. Please sit down,Mr—Maan.'

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