His Miracle Bride

‘Tell me about the paintings.’

‘Blake got an injunction,’ he said-with a visible effort. ‘On those forms you signed you said the partnership was over the day of the water tossing. Blake cancelled the card retrospectively, claiming Mike had no legal right to use a card in your name once the partnership was void, and anything he did buy certainly shouldn’t be his. On that basis Blake got an injunction to seize the paintings, and he moved so fast Mike had no room to object. The paintings will be sold on and used to pay off the card. Seeing Mike bought astutely, Blake seems to think they’ll more than pay off the card, with quite a lot left over. Legally you might have to spilt the profit with Mike, but with records showing you were paying him a salary then there’s a strong case for the entire profit being yours.’

‘Oh, Pierce…’ She was suddenly holding onto the door jamb herself. ‘Oh…’

‘He’s good, our Blake.’

‘He is.’ She wanted to cry.

‘Anyway that’s all I wanted to tell you,’ he said, sounding uncomfortable. ‘I’ll go.’

She wanted to throw her arms round his neck. Dammit…Dammit…

She did throw her arms round his neck. She indulged herself, for one wonderful moment, in burrowing her face in the lovely deep hollow above his collar bone, smelling the clean salt smell of him, feeling his warmth and his strength.

‘I don’t know how to thank you,’ she said, her voice muffled by neck.

But he was putting her away from him, gently but firmly, setting her at arm’s length.

‘That’s fine. You rescued Donald. I rescued you. We’re square.’

Right. Why did she feel like sobbing?

‘Oh, and the letters you wrote to my foster brothers…’

Whoops. Was this why he was holding her at arm’s length? She was so interfering. That was her life skill. To butt into other people’s lives, even if in the process it destroyed her own.

‘They’ve accepted it,’ he said. ‘They don’t understand, but they’ve agreed.’

She’d written to every one of them. Bullied into it, Ruby had given her their email addresses. Blake’s, Connor’s, Sam’s, Darcy’s, Dominic’s and Nikolai’s. She’d said simply that Pierce had adopted five children and had not told Ruby for fear of her wanting to be involved. She’d said that she was Ruby’s niece, that she’d discovered what was going on and that she’d told Ruby. She’d said the biggest way they could hurt Ruby was not to let her share their lives, and that what Pierce had done was cruel. She’d also said their stipulation that Ruby not share her home with whom ever she wanted was leaving Ruby with a lifetime of macrame and no pleasure. So could they please lift their stupid stipulation.

Uh-oh.

‘You read it?’ she whispered.

‘The whole six of them sent it on to me,’ Pierce said. ‘They’ve agreed. The stipulation’s lifted.’

But there was no pleasure in his words. ‘They don’t get it?’

‘They don’t get it.’

‘But you do?’ She held her breath.

‘Maybe I’m beginning to,’ he said. ‘You’ve taught me a bit. Ruby and her niece Shanni-taking in the waifs and strays of the world.’

‘Hey, it’s not me who’s taught you anything. I’d have hoped the kids could.’

‘How do you mean?’

‘If you have to ask then you really don’t understand. It’s just…’ She took a deep breath. ‘You know, being part of a family, a proper family, leaves you open for all sorts of hurt.’

‘Like when your parents change the locks?’

‘Exactly,’ she said, struggling to figure out what to say next. She was feeling more than a little disadvantaged. He was looking so damned sexy and she was in pyjamas. And she was in no position to lecture him when he’d just saved her financially.

‘But it’d hurt worse if I didn’t have them to change the locks,’ she said.

‘That’s because you haven’t learned to be independent.’

‘I hope I never have to.’

He didn’t reply. He was looking at her but he was looking through her, she thought. Holding himself in check. Not making real contact…

‘What will you do now?’ he asked, and she started, jolted out of preoccupation.

‘What do you mean?’

‘You’ve lost the lease on your gallery, but there are others. Blake has contacts in the art world. The story about what happened is already in circulation. I think you’ll find it’s Mike who’s the bad guy in all this.’

‘And I’m just the dope.’

‘The story doing the rounds is that he swindled you out of what was legally yours. Your artists would be more than happy to start sending work your way again.’

‘You have been busy.’

‘Blake has.’

‘Wow.’ She hesitated. ‘I’ll write and thank him. And try and explain a bit more about Ruby.’

‘He still won’t understand. And no thanks are necessary. Maybe you could have a drink with him when you go back to London.’

‘Maybe I won’t be going back to London.’

‘No?’

‘I don’t know. I have this fantastic position here, starting Monday.’ No need to tell him it was as a waitress in a railway cafe.

‘Oh.’

‘But thanks,’ she said awkwardly, and he nodded.

‘My pleasure.’ He hesitated. ‘If you stay…the kids would like to see you again.’

‘I have plans to see them.’

‘You do?’ Was she imagining it or was there eagerness in his tone.

‘You know Ruby’s interviewing housekeepers?’

‘She told me. I knew she’d interfere.’

‘She’s loving it. Shut up and let her be. So, anyway, the day you come home from the farm…Saturday week?’

‘Yes.’

‘Ruby’s never been to the farm, and she doesn’t drive long distances. I said I’d take her down to see it. If she finds someone suitable as housekeeper we thought we’d take her down and introduce you. See if you like her. Maybe we could light the stove before you get home-make it a bit welcoming.’

‘There’s no need.’

‘There is a need,’ she said. ‘Ruby wants to do it, and for me it’d be a better sort of goodbye.’

‘Are there variations of goodbye?’

‘Yes,’ she snapped, suddenly angry. ‘I don’t want the last time you see me to be when I’m wearing pig pyjamas and watching Dallas with chocolate on my nose. I have some pride.’

‘You look cute.’

‘I’m a businesswoman,’ she snapped. ‘A career woman. Not that you’ve noticed.’

‘I’ve noticed.’

‘Then we’ll be down there.’

‘Shanni…’

‘What?’

‘I wish-’

‘So do I,’ she snapped before he could say another word. ‘You have no idea how I wish. But it’s not going to happen. Now, if you don’t mind, I have things to do. I need to wash chocolate off my nose and see whether JR gets it.’

‘But…’

‘That’s all,’ she said with a lot more finality than she was feeling. ‘Unless you’re delivering roses, I’m closing the door.’