“That’s Shrek. The Hulk is misunderstood.”
“Pity, I have a thing for violent beasts with a penchant for growling and ripping my clothes off.”
James lunged at me and did both. My teasing words must have worried him though, because he redoubled his efforts to convince me to move in. And in the morning I rested my head against his chest and gave him the answer he wanted.
Living together would be far from easy. James was arrogant and high-handed and I was brash and straight-talking. He was the posh blue blood from the manor and—#p#分页标题#e#
“I don’t care,” he murmured, moving inside me. “You’re mine.”
Chapter Twenty-Four
Emerald Green on Sapphire Blue
“Life’s a bitch.”
“And then she dies,” Marcia said, handing me a mug of mint tea.
I grimaced, both at her words and at the TV screen. Marcia was watching Medical Emergency Room and there was blood and gore in my peripheral vision.
“How bad was it?” she asked.
I sighed heavily. “As bad as watching your mother die can be, I guess. James was strong for Ryan but it was hard on him.”
Francesca had declined rapidly after Christmas. In the final two months of her illness I’d spent all of my time with James and Ryan, keeping the house running and providing a steady base for them. Towards the end, James had hardly left Francesca’s side. His eyes were shadowed and his face lined with resignation. There were no words or tears of sorrow but after Ryan was asleep he would let down his guard. Then he would take me to bed and desperate with grief and need, he would find solace in the driving rhythm of my compassion.
“Was Caroline at the funeral?” Marcia asked.
“Lord and Lady Scott-Thomas deigned to grace us with their presence at the manor afterwards.”
“And?”
I glanced at the TV. “That’s gross.”
Marcia grinned. “You plastered yourself all over James and rubbed her face in it, didn’t you?”
I rolled my eyes. “I could hardly do that at a wake, Mar. Besides, I’m not that petty teenager anymore, remember?”
“But you wanted to, didn’t you?”
My lips refused to stay in a straight line. What can I say? The savage woman who thinks she owns James can strike at any time. If Caroline was watching when he put his arm around my waist then so be it. I could hardly stand there immobile, could I? My kiss gave him the strength to get through the day and it satisfied that other self at the same time. I wasn’t going to lose any sleep over the expression on Caroline’s face when she saw our embrace.
There were much better things keeping me awake at night. Mainly, the man who would arrive at any moment and drive us to Heathrow. I chatted and laughed with Marcia and all the while my heart was skipping with glee, thinking of Casa Escondida. Matham Manor was up for sale but we weren’t waiting around for a buyer. Almost one year to the day I’d arrived back in Britain, I was going back to Spain.
Back home.
When the time came Marcia’s eyes welled and so did mine. I read her hopes for me and the sadness at our parting and we embraced tightly. She pushed me into James’s arms and he pulled me into his side.
“Happy birthday for tomorrow, Paisley,” she said. “Tarzan’s coming around after mass so we can celebrate that you’re gone. Now get the hell out of my flat.”
A few weeks later, Ryan and I were walking along Puerto Escondido beach looking for the dolphins he’d seen from the balcony. So far, nothing. James had disappeared in the early hours, telling me he had to pick something up in Valencia and would be back before lunch. Lunch had come and gone and there was still no sign of him.
I looked up at Casa Escondida and saw James’s tall figure climbing down the recently rebuilt staircase. My brows shot up and Ryan laughed.
“Surprise!”
Behind James were Tarzan and Fleur Anise. Marcia lagged farther back, picking her way down the steps with a scowl on her face. I would have run towards them but Ryan tugged me back.
His face was serious. “You’re supposed to wait for Marcia.”#p#分页标题#e#
James and Tarzan stood at the base of the cliff, watching me. My heart sank as I saw the tense, worried look on James’s face. Tarzan’s face was serious too. He was wearing that sober minister look he’d sported at my parent’s funeral.
There was nobody left in my family to die, was there? Caroline’s demise would hardly bring Tarzan and Marcia all the way to Spain. Hell, Tarzan would break into prayer and Marcia would break into the champagne.
It had to be something else. Something bad.