That was probably it, Bastien thought. Terri was probably already back at the hotel and looking for him to fetch the key. He suddenly grinned to himself. He'd pay the taxi and have his driver take them to Kate's so she could change. Then, if he had it his way, they wouldn't bother returning to the reception. At least not for a while.
"Back to the hotel,"he instructed, relaxing back into his seat. Terri was probably in a tizzy right this moment. He'd have to calm her down. Bastien could think of lots of ways to do that. Most of them didn't include clothes.
Terri settled in her seat on the plane, and immediately felt some of the tension leave her. She hadn't been at all sure she'd make it. She'd half feared that Bastien would show up looking for her. Surely, the message she'd left earlier had been given to Kate? If not, then someone would have certainly noticed her missing by now. She hoped no one was too worried.
Terri glanced at the phone set into the seat in front of her. Just in case Kate's message had gone astray, she would call the hotel and leave a message for Vincent as well. But she wouldn't risk it until the flight was in the air.
"Cousin!»
Bastien stopped his pacing-a pacing he'd been doing for the last hour and a half-and glanced at the man rushing toward him. Vincent. Bastien had returned to the hotel to find that Terri hadn't come back. He'd decided then that her cabbie had probably had a fit when she admitted she couldn't pay, and had refused to return her to the Hilton. He'd imagined her walking the streets of New York, and had made his driver drive him back and forth along the routes she could have taken, but found no sign of her. Then Bastien had resigned himself to pacing here, every moment making him more tense as he imagined all the ways she could be hurt or killed before she made it to the hotel. A beautiful woman, dressed in a long, possibly stained maid-of-honor gown, walking alone down the street? The imaginings he'd come up with were nightmares.
He was actually grateful for the distraction Vincent offered. "Are Kate and Lucern leaving?»
"Actually, they are. But that's not why I'm here. I just got a call from Terri.»
Bastien relaxed and tensed all in the same moment. A call from her meant she was all right and able to make the call, but she was probably in trouble somewhere-especially if Vincent's grim expression was anything to go by.
"Where is she?"he asked, cutting to the heart of the matter.
"On a plane on her way back to England.»
"What?"Vincent couldn't have shocked him more if he'd said she was calling from jail.
His cousin nodded. "I happened to be passing the desk on my way out here to see you when I heard my name mentioned. The clerk was taking a message for me, so I took the phone. It was Terri. She was calling from the plane.»
"But, what is she-Why did she-?"Bastien struggled to understand.
"It seems she overheard Kate and Lissianna talking in the ladies' room,"Vincent said grimly. "They were discussing your not having told her about your 'state.' "
Bastien's shoulders slumped. She knew what he was. Now she was running from him just as Josephine had done.
"No. Terri misunderstood. She thought they meant you were terminally ill. When I said that wasn't so, she said not to bother lying to her-she'd seen the medicine and blood. She said she knew you were ill. Terri thinks you're dying, like her mother did, like her husband did, and she said she can't watch you die, too. She loves you too much to be able to bear it.»
"She loves me?»
Vincent nodded, then grinned. "Well? What are you waiting for? Get in your car and get to the airport. Follow her,"he said. "You have to go explain the truth. Tell her everything. She loves you, Bastien. You need to tell her you aren't dying, and that she will never have to watch you die a long lingering death.»
"Yes!"Bastien grinned as he realized that, in this instance, his state could be an advantage. Chuckling, he turned and gestured to his driver. Thinking he would need it when Terri arrived, he'd made the man stay here with the car. Now, the engine started and the car moved forward.
"Have a good trip, and give her a hug and a hello for me,"Vincent said. He walked with Bastien to the curb, then added seriously, "I'm happy for you, cousin.»
"Thanks, Vincent,"Bastien said. He slid into the backseat of his car.
"No problem. Just don't mess up, huh? She's perfect for you. Much nicer than that holier-than-thou Josephine.»
Bastien paused in surprise. He'd been about to pull the door closed. "I thought you liked Josephine.»
Vincent wrinkled his nose and shook his head. "None of us did. But you thought you loved her, so we would have put up with her. The good news is, none of us has to pretend to like Terri. She's a sweetheart."Then Vincent slammed the door closed and gave him a thumbs-up. The car pulled away.
CHAPTER 19
Ter!»
Terri glanced up and spotted Dave at once. It would be impossible not to spot her brother-in-law. Being tall, prematurely gray, and good-looking made him stand out in most crowds. Forcing a weary smile, she turned in his direction as she came through the arrivals gate. "Dave. Thank you for coming to get me.»
"No problem."He gave her a hug in greeting and took the handle of her suitcase in one smooth move. "How was your flight?»
"Long,"she said on a sigh.
"Isn't it always?"he asked. "A shame they got rid of the Concorde.»
"Yes.»
"You look…"Her brother-in-law hesitated to say it, but he didn't have to; Terri knew how she looked.
"Awful?"she suggested helpfully.
"Well, I wouldn't have put it quite so bluntly, but yes, you look awful,"he admitted, concern now crowding his eyes.
"Wore herself out with all that partying she did in New York, no doubt. It's a good thing she's home and can rest now.»
"Sandi!"Terri turned to embrace the shorter redhead, who had appeared from the crowd. "When I didn't see you, I thought perhaps you were working on a deadline or something.»
"She is. But that wouldn't stop her coming to pick up her favorite sister-in-law,"Dave said staunchly, slipping his free hand around his wife's shoulder to hug her close.
"No, it wouldn't,"Sandi agreed, hugging him back. She smiled, then explained, "I was in the ladies' room… as I usually am when the important stuff happens.»
Her words made Dave chuckle, and they brought the first sincere smile to Terri's lips since she'd left Kate and Lucern's wedding reception.
"Well, come on,"Dave said suddenly. "Let's get you out of here and home.»
He ushered the two women to the parking elevators. The couple chatted about the traffic on the ride in, and about what had happened while Terri was away, leaving her to merely listen and absorb the fact that she was home again. The funny thing was, it didn't feel like home anymore. Nothing seemed quite the same as when she'd left. Their accents-accents she had lived among for ten years, and probably picked up a bit of herself over time-sounded foreign to her ears. The cars they passed as they walked through the parking garage to Dave's black Jaguar seemed oddly shaped, small and strange after two weeks among larger, sleeker North American models. Even riding on the left-hand side of the road no longer seemed normal. In truth, Terri had adjusted so quickly to being back in the States, England now felt as foreign as it had the first time she came.
"So, tell us about the wedding. Did it go off without a hitch?»
A small burst of laughter slipped from Terri's lips.
Sandi, who had asked the question and turned in the front seat to include her in the conversation, raised her eyebrows slightly at Terri's response. "Oh, now you have to explain that reaction,"she said. "It sounds like quite the story.»
"The wedding,"Terri said with a hollow smile; then she launched into a recounting of the calamities that had befallen Kate's wedding and what she and Bastien had done to resolve them. She managed to fill the entire ride back to Huddersfield with the tale, winding down just as they turned onto the street where Dave and Sandi lived.
"We thought you'd like to stop in for tea before we take you home,"Dave explained. "We knew you wouldn't have anything at home to eat, and thought this would give you the chance to unwind a bit. We'll take you to Sainsbury's to pick up groceries before we drive you home, too. Is that all right?»
"Yes, that's fine. Thank you."Terri met his gaze in the rearview mirror and nodded. It was more than fine with her. She really didn't look forward to being on her own in her little cottage again. Terri knew, the moment she was alone, all those thoughts and memories she was trying so hard to forget would come crowding in.
"I'll make the tea while you girls catch up,"Dave offered as he parked the car.
"You're a good man, Dave,"Terri said with affection.
"He's better than good,"Sandi announced. They got out. "He's a star.»
"So are you, flower,"her husband responded, taking her hand and dropping a quick kiss on her forehead before turning toward the house.
Terri smiled as she followed the couple inside, but her heart was aching a little at their easy affection. It reminded her of Bastien.
"Well!"Sandi led the way into the living room and dropped onto the couch with a sigh, then raised her eyebrows at Terri. "Now that we're alone, would you care to talk about this Bastien and what he did to break your heart?»