Breaking the Rules by Barbara Taylor Bradford

‘Congratulations again, Dax. I think it’s wonderful that you have this part. Miraculous, I’d say, since you got it on the Coast. One never knows what’s going to happen in life.’
    Dax laughed, his happiness apparent, his eyes sparkling when he said, ‘You can say that again. It was like…well, meant to be, I guess.’ He then told them the story of how he had met Iris Ingersoll at a dinner party in Bel-Air, had been taken to it by the English actor, Colin Burke, a new friend, and how Iris had thought he would be perfect for the play she was producing on Broadway. Second lead, no less.
    M was listening, but her eyes were all over the room. Much to her relief she could not see anyone present who might know her family, and she relaxed. She was also growing aware that James Cardigan was as alert and as curious about everyone as she herself was, perhaps even more so.
    His eyes were everywhere, and it seemed to her that there was nothing and no one he missed. She had taken an instant liking to this rather attractive, wiry Englishman, slight of build and slender, with his dark auburn hair and hazel eyes. She decided he was in his forties and worldly wise. He had a sense of humour, and there was a naturalness, an easiness about him. It was obvious to her that he was successful, if his clothes were anything to go by. Although he was as informally dressed as the other men present, without a tie, wearing a white, open-necked shirt and grey trousers with a dark sports jacket, she had noticed the excellent quality of the fabric and the cut of the jacket. She wondered what he did. Banker? Broker? Business executive? Real-estate tycoon? Instantly she dismissed all these professions, and unexpectedly thought, no, not James. He’s a cop. Where this thought came from, she had no idea, and it so startled her that she took a quick sip of the champagne and stared at him, frowning.
    At this exact moment James moved closer to her, and said, ‘Are you in the theatre too, M? Are you an actress?’
    She shook her head. ‘No, I’m a model. And what do you do, James?’
    ‘I have my own company—’
    ‘What kind of company?’ she asked swiftly, cutting across him.
    ‘It’s a Security and Investigation company, but on an extremely high level. I can provide someone with a bodyguard or minder, pull up a detailed dossier on almost anybody in the world, find a missing person, or missing valuables. You name it, we can do it. We offer a unique service and work with absolute discretion. And this is all within certain boundaries, of course.’
    ‘You are a cop!’ she cried, staring at him harder, her eyes twinkling. ‘That’s exactly what I thought you were, a moment ago.’
    ‘Well, well, well, did you really? But I wasn’t a cop, not exactly—something similar, though. However, I do have a lot of former law enforcement officers working for me.’
    ‘Where were you not-exactly-a-cop? In London?’
    He leaned into her, and said, sotto voce, ‘I was with MI6, and obviously operating abroad, as MI6 agents always do. Only MI5 agents can work in the UK.’
    ‘Oh, my God! A spy! A proper Walsingham, eh?’
    He burst out laughing. ‘Aren’t you the one, M! You’re certainly up on your English history.’
    ‘Especially when it comes to the men who worked for Elizabeth Tudor. Anyway, why did you get out? Did you get bored?’ she probed, riddled with curiosity.
    ‘Not at all, I like danger. But I decided it would be a good idea to make some money, and so I completed the assignment I was working on and resigned. Or rather, I retired from the agency. I started my company in London five years ago, then decided I wanted to be in New York, so here I am, running this end of the operation.’
    Before M could respond, Dax and Geo, who had been talkingquietly, now came closer and Dax said, ‘I think I ought to go and find Iris, our hostess, to introduce you both. You must meet her. Don’t go away. Stay right here, I’ll be back in a