Philip was absent but Delia was too overjoyed at being reunited with Demon to give him much thought that day. Her beloved horse was still hard to handle and it took a while to saddle him up as he wouldn’t keep still until she stood in front of him, raised the flat of her hand to his face and commanded him to ‘stand’. As excited as he was, he remembered the instructions she had taught him when he was a foal and although snorting fiercely, did as he was told, desperately eager for her to mount him so they could be off. Even with Philip’s expertise, Demon hadn’t been allowed his head as he was now with his mistress. They tore out of the yard at a terrific pace, heading for the empty fields and the woods they knew so well. Delia was in heaven. On Demon’s back she could forget all her troubles and best of all, her ghastly disfigurement. He didn’t care what she looked like. He just wanted to be with her.
Although Delia enjoyed playing with her daughter in the mornings, she was always impatient for lunch to be over so she could deposit her at Canleigh and then drive over to Tangles. Philip was never around, careful to keep out of her way, but on learning he stabled a cocky little piebald Shetland named Tufty, on whom Stephen was learning to ride, Delia made a point of turning up early one morning, in the hope of catching Philip before he commenced lessons, having left Lucy in the care of Mrs. Forest. She saw him as soon as she drove the Ferrari into the stable car park. He was leaning on a stable door talking to one of the stable girls and her heart missed a beat. There had been no other real love in Delia’s life. Lust was all that was felt for the many men she slept with, including Barrie, and none of them held a candle to Philip. She had wondered for a long time how it would feel when they met again and that time was here.
Darling, darling Philip. Tall and handsome, with fair hair which wasn’t admittedly as thick as it used to be, dressed in a dark green shirt, unbuttoned at the top, jodhpurs and knee length black leather riding boots. Gorgeous. Simply gorgeous and he was going to be hers. There was no-one to stand in her way now but she had to play it just right. Mustn’t take him for granted. Take it slowly, she told herself. There was all the time in the world. Taking a deep breath to steady herself she got out of the car and walked towards him, carefully pulling her hair as far as she could over the scar and keeping her face at an angle so that Philip would see very little of it.
“Hi, how are you?” she asked cautiously.
He nodded to the stable girl who moved away to the tack room and then turned to Delia. “Not bad. You?” he asked. He had known they would bump into each other eventually but still felt at a disadvantage and didn’t quite know what to say.
“Terrific, actually. It’s so good to be back at Canleigh … and to be able to ride Demon every day. You don’t know how grateful I am that you’ve looked after him so well … and you don’t mind him staying here.”
“It’s best for him in the long run. He’s well into our routine, reasonably well behaved with me, but does give some of the staff a really hard time if I can’t see to him for any reason. You need to be really firm with him. I don’t wholly trust him … and I know you love him but you shouldn’t either. He could be lethal if allowed to have his own way.”
“Yes, you’re right,” she agreed, fully aware of how Demon must appear to others, “and I will … however, I’ve another favour to ask,” she said cautiously.
He looked at her, his eyes distant and remote. Delia’s heart flipped again. She still loved him. There was no doubt about it. He had been her man and he would be again. She badly wanted to throw her arms around him but knew she couldn’t. She had to control herself. Play it cool.
“Go on,” he said, avoiding her eyes, hoping her request was going to be something to do with horses and not him.”
“It’s Lucy … my daughter. She’s nearly three and not been on the back of a horse yet. I naturally want her to ride and I was wondering … is there any chance I could buy a small pony for her and keep it here too please?”
“Sure,” Philip said, with relief. “We’ve plenty of room … and I shan’t charge a livery fee.”
“But that’s crazy. I’m more than happy to pay, as I do for Demon.”
“Yes, but now you’re back and riding that beast every day that frees me up. He took up a lot of my time, I can tell you … no, you can stable a pony here for your daughter free of charge … for old times’ sake … and let me know when you find what you want and you can borrow a horsebox to collect it.”
Delia felt an overwhelming urge to cry. He was being so nice to her and she didn’t deserve it. Did
