Monsoon Mists by Christina Courtenay Page B

towards the desk and forgot all about his surroundings as he took in the lovely sight before him. Mrs Miller, standing demurely to one side, was dressed in another shimmering silk gown, this time in pale green. Shafts of sunlight slanting in through the windows made her dark hair gleam and turned her eyes into liquid pools of turquoise and mossy-green, surrounded by those phenomenally long lashes. Jamie had a sudden urge to undo the heavy plait which once again hung over one shoulder. It was so long he felt sure that, unbound, her hair must reach well below her derrière. Hanging loose around her, it would be a silky curtain enveloping her smooth skin like a cape, outlining the contours of her body and …
    He quelled the rest of the thought before his body had time to do more than stir in response. He wasn’t here to admire the Ice Widow, he was here on business. And he wasn’t interested in her. Definitely not. Taking a deep breath, he resolutely turned to face William Miller. He wouldn’t let a woman, even one as beautiful as Mrs Miller, distract him from his purpose – to help Akash.
    ‘Thank you. It was good of you to see me on such short notice.’
    Not that the man looked pleased to see him. On the contrary, he wore a sulky expression and twitched, as if impatient to get the meeting over with. Since they barely knew each other, that was intriguing. Jamie settled into his chair and waited.
    William was all urbane hospitality as he ushered Mr Kinross across the divan and over to the desk, but Zar knew it was just a façade. He was still angry at what he’d called her ‘embarrassing behaviour’ towards his friend Richardson, and had been more than usually cross about having to allow Zar to be present at this meeting. He’d also been grumbling earlier about having to do business with Kinross.
    ‘He’s probably another amateur trader who thinks he can pull the wool over my eyes and sell me inferior gemstones. A waste of my time.’
    Zar refrained from mentioning that most merchants sold William mediocre stones unless she intervened, because he simply didn’t have an eye for quality. He was fascinated by large gems, no matter their lustre, which made him buy them whether they were good or not. It was infuriating, but she’d given up trying to advise him and now attempted to help out unobtrusively instead, usually by speaking directly to the vendors. Most of them respected her and listened to her views, but a few unscrupulous ones still took advantage of William’s gullibility. It was something she’d had to learn to live with.
    It was the same with most of the other goods they traded in, but luckily they had a very clever broker to help them make profitable deals. William was too lazy to concern himself much with anything other than gemstones, which was both a blessing and an annoyance.
    Zar sat down a little to one side now, while William took the chair behind the large desk that had once been his father’s. Mr Kinross made himself comfortable on the opposite side, facing them both. He glanced at Zar, but didn’t seem surprised to see her, like some of the other merchants. She surmised he’d been told about her role in the company by someone and it was a relief not to have to explain her presence.
    ‘You had something to discuss with me, er … us?’ William sent a glare in Zar’s direction, still visibly irritated at her presence. She ignored him.
    ‘Yes. I’ve recently been to Golconda and thought you might be interested in some of the stones I purchased there. I’m not returning to Europe myself quite yet, but I understand you have contacts who travel back and forth? I think my finds might be eminently suitable for the European market.’
    ‘You’ve been to the actual mines?’ William stared at Kinross. ‘I didn’t think foreigners were permitted to travel inland, and certainly not to that destination.’
    It was well known that the local rajahs had control of the mines and not many people