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Alex was looking a particularly devastating form of wonderful, and she didn’t dare give her infatuation any rein tonight. He was certainly the best-looking man in the room. His presence was commanding, and even amongst the noise of the crowd she was tuned in to the low gravelly timbre of his voice as if they were the only two people in the room.
People drifted towards them, and a small circle of delegates surrounded them, seemingly for the duration. Alex seemed to know everyone, and he was the epitome of charm as he introduced her around. After her initial misgivings, Isobella relaxed and enjoyed herself. She was, after all, talking on a topic very close to her heart. She could talk about her project all night.
‘Ah, Jenny!’
Isobella looked up from her conversation with a general practitioner to see Alex kissing the cheeks of a gamine strawberry blonde. She gave him a warm hug, and laughed at something Isobella couldn’t catch.
‘Isobella, come and meet Jenny,’ Alex interrupted.
‘Hi.’ Jenny smiled, holding out a hand. ‘I’m Jenny Bosworth.’
‘Oh, hi,’ Isobella said, returning the friendly smile and trying to not act starstruck. Jennifer Bosworth was an eminent expert in the field of marine envenomation. ‘It’s a pleasure to meet you, Dr Bosworth. I’m really looking forward to your paper on Portuguese Man O’ War behaviours in Hawaiian waters. Your data on envenomation and anaphylaxis was amazing.’
‘Thank you,’ Jenny said. ‘I can’t wait to hear where you’re up to in your study.’
Isobella blushed. Jennifer Bosworth was interested inher research?
‘Jenny and I go way back,’ Alex explained, grinning down into his colleague’s face. ‘In fact it was a trip to Hawaii that got me interested in this field of research.’
Isobella nodded, noticing that Alex’s arm was around Jenny’s back, his hand resting on her hip. It looked very intimate. Were they more than colleagues?
‘Alex was on a Hawaiian beach when a Man O’ War claimed another victim. A six-year-old male. He came to see the little boy the next day and we got talking.’
‘We’ve consulted a lot over the last couple of years.’
Isobella smiled while they chatted, watching their easy interaction. She’d never seen Alex this candid. They were obviously friends.Close friends.
Jenny was called away, and was quickly replaced by the CEO of a company that had donated a substantial amount of money to Alex’s projects after his teenage grandson had been stung by aFleckeri a few years back. Alex updated him on the project, and invited the company director to a guided tour of the Brisbane facility.
Isobella was content to sit back and watch. And listen. Hell, the man could read theConcise Oxford Dictionary to her and she’d listen. His professionalism was outstanding. He could quote figures and summarise reports and give educated opinions on all aspects of his operations. He knew what every one of his staff were doing, and their up-to-date findings. He had an air of authority that no one questioned.
‘Alex Zaphirides! Oh, my God, itis you!’
Isobella saw Alex’s jaw clench slightly, and turned to look in the direction of the voice as the CEO excused himself. A curvy siren with glossy long black hair, plush cherry lips and a killer cleavage sashayed towards him.
Alex stared.This could not be happening. ‘Sonya?’
He did that polite old-fashioned inclination of his head thing again, but not before Isobella noticed his Aegean gaze frost over. In fact everything about him had become rigid, even his usually deadly smile. It barely made an impression on his dimples.
The woman stepped right into Alex’s personal space, tottering on her sexy six-inch heels. She lifted herself on her tippy-toes, slid her hands up his jacket front and pressed her pouty mouth to both of Alex’s cheeks. ‘I do declare,’ she said, wiping away her lipstick brands, ‘you’re looking fab. It’s been too long, Alex.’
Not long enough as far as he was concerned.He removed her hand and was pleased to see her smile slip a little.
‘Time flies, Sonya.’When you’re having surgery and radium and worrying about whether you’ll see next year and your life is generally falling apart. ‘May I introduce one of my colleagues, Isobella Nolan?’
Isobella took an instant dislike. This woman redefined fawning. Her scarlet fingertips clung to Alex’s lapel and she had the uncharacteristic urge to bat them off. Jenny’s familiarity had been intriguing, but this woman’s was plain suffocating.
