The Antique Love by Helena Fairfax Page A

tiny, mechanical steps to the tinny beat. A little group had gathered to watch, and there was a burst of laughter. Kurt smiled to himself.
    He was still gazing in Penny’s direction when Tehmeena broke in on his thoughts.
    “Why don’t you ask her out?”
    “What?” Tehmeena’s question hit him like a bull out of nowhere, and he straightened in his chair.
    “Ask her out.” She gave him one of her mischievous smiles and put her head on one side, ignoring his stunned expression. “Ask her out for lunch .” She gestured to the clock on the wall. “It’s twelve o’clock. What did you think I meant?”
    With a flutter of her eyelashes, she wandered off to the cash desk, giving Kurt an airy wave and leaving him considerably thrown. He’d guessed how much of a friend Tehmeena was to Penny. She had soon demonstrated her vivacity and her lively sense of humour, teasing Kurt in a bantering way which he enjoyed. As the boss at White River, none of his staff would have dared take the mickey out of him, as the British put it. Even his own sister didn’t really dare tease him all that much. The gap in their ages meant she treated him more like a father figure. So he liked the way Tehmeena bantered with him, making him feel at home, but then she had caught him totally off guard. Was she really hinting he should ask Penny out? He cast another glance in Penny’s direction. Ask her out as on a date out?
    Kurt picked up the remaining papers on his desk and began shuffling them until he realised he had no idea what he was doing. He replaced them in a heap then looked over again to where Penny was now replacing the toys. The pencil skirt of the first time they met had gone. Today she was wearing a vintage cream dress in some floaty type of fabric, and as she bent over to lock the cabinet, she was presenting him with a view he felt he had no right to be enjoying. He looked away hastily. With every movement she made around the shop that morning, the dress had flowed with her, draping softly over her breasts and hips and drawing Kurt’s eyes far too frequently from the files in front of him.
    Penny turned round to find his eyes had returned to her, and he stood up quickly, reddening a little under his tan. All of a sudden, he felt gauche.
    “Finished?” she asked.
    “Yeah.” He watched her approach, her dress clinging to her thighs with each step, and he lifted his hand to the back of his neck, rubbing it nervously. “That is, no,” he added.
    For a couple of minutes, Penny stared at him whilst he busied himself with straightening the folders on the desk. Then he cleared his throat and turned to her, gesturing towards his papers.
    “I’ve been through all the files for the past twelve months,” he said. “The good news is the figures basically look pretty healthy to me. Your cash flow should be picking up by the end of the month. That is, if you can hold your creditors off for that long and put off spending on new stock for now. If the worst comes to the worst, I can pay you up front for the job in Richmond. That should definitely tide you over.”
    Penny nodded with relief. “That’s great. And the bad news?”
    “Something doesn’t add up. Nothing to worry about for the moment,” he added, seeing the look of concern on her face, “but I’ll need to come back for at least another morning. And I’d like to check your bank records.”
    “Oh?” Penny searched his face. “Well, okay,” she said, puzzled. “I’ll organise all the paperwork for next Saturday. Thanks so much.”
    “No problem.” He bowed his head, and Penny smiled widely. “How about lunch?” she said. “On me this time.”
    “Yeah, Tehmeena thought I should…” He broke off in confusion and shifted a couple of the papers on the desk. Penny gazed at him in astonishment. He cleared his throat for the second time. “Tehmeena said it was about time I took you for lunch.”
    She continued to stare at him for a little longer, and Kurt knew he