Risk of a Lifetime (Mills & Boon Medical) (11 page)

‘OK, here we go.’ He swabbed gently, but the tug on his scalp didn’t change, and he finished both knees and then looked at her hands, sighing quietly with relief when she let go of his hair. One palm needed a quick swipe, but the grazes were all clean, there was no sand embedded in any of them, luckily, and once they were protected by plasters he sat back on his heels and grinned at her.

‘Brave girl. I definitely think that deserves an ice cream, don’t you, Mummy?’

‘I think so,’ she said, her smile rueful and her eyes filled with gratitude. ‘Thank you, Ed.’

‘You’re welcome.’

‘Aren’t you going to kiss it better?’ Chloe asked him. ‘Mummy always kisses us better if we get an owie.’

‘Well, maybe we’d better let Mummy do it, if it’s her job,’ he said, jackknifing to his feet and taking a step back. ‘I tell you what, why don’t we go and get the ice creams, and Mummy and Grace can stay here and have a cuddle. OK?’

Anything rather than crouching there looking down the gaping cleavage of Annie’s swimming costume.

Annie rummaged in her bag for her purse. ‘Here, Ed, take some money—’

‘Don’t be ridiculous.’ She opened her mouth to protest, but he ignored her and looked down at her now happier daughter. ‘What would you like, Grace?’

‘Can I have one of those squishy ones with the chocolate in it?’

‘A ninety-nine? It’s OK by me, that’s what I’m going to have. Annie?’

She gave up the unequal struggle and smiled at him. ‘Ditto. Thank you.’

‘You’re welcome. Marnie?’

‘No, darling. You take Chloe and get the ice creams. I’ll put the kettle on, and we can all have tea and get to know each other.’

He hesitated for a moment, torn between honouring his promise to the girls and the danger of leaving Annie alone with Marnie, but he would be gone only moments. Realistically, what harm could come of it? He shrugged and looked at Chloe. ‘Coming?’

‘Yup.’ She skipped up to him and threaded her hand in his, and after a heartbeat he tightened his grip and set off towards the kiosk.

CHAPTER SIX

A
NNIE
WATCHED
THEM
go, a lump in her throat. The trusting way Chloe had gone to him, the way she’d taken his hand—and they were supposed to be keeping their families out of this!

She’d been so relieved to see him when Grace had fallen over that the implications of him riding to the rescue on his white charger had gone straight over her head.

Not now. Damn.

And talking of families, she turned belatedly to his grandmother and smiled, holding out her hand.

‘I’m so sorry about the intrusion. We haven’t really been introduced. I’m Annie Brooks. Ed and I work together.’

Marnie took her hand but, instead of shaking it, she squeezed it gently in both of hers. ‘I know. It’s nice to meet you, Annie, I’ve heard a lot about you. I’m Julia, really, but everyone calls me Marnie. And this is Ned.’

He was slightly behind her and to one side, and as Annie shifted in her chair and turned to look at him properly for the first time, she felt her smile falter. He was in a wheelchair, which she’d expected from what little Ed had told her, but it was the stiffness of his body, the slow lifting of his hand and the remoteness in his eyes that stopped her in her tracks as everything toppled gently into place.

So that was it. The reason Ed was so wary of relationships, so determined not to settle, so driven by his career. The reason this man for whom family was so important didn’t seem to want a family of his own? Because he—?

She felt the shock wave right down to her bones, and it was a second before she caught herself and dredged up a proper smile. ‘Hello, Ned,’ she said, her voice a little over-bright. ‘I’m Annie.’

His words were slurred. ‘Do I know you?’

She shook her head. ‘No. We’ve never met, but Ed talks very fondly of you.’

‘Ed?’

‘Edward, darling. Stephen’s boy.’

‘Well, say Edward.’

Marnie met her eyes with an apologetic smile. ‘Ignore that, please, it’s not a good day today,’ she said softly, and perched on a chair next to Annie. ‘So, Grace,’ she said with a big smile, ‘are you the oldest or the youngest?’

‘I’m the oldest but Chloe doesn’t listen to me, she’s naughty.’

Annie chuckled and hugged her close. ‘Not always. And you can be naughty, too.’

Marnie laughed. ‘All children are naughty. It’s healthy. Ed was the most mischievous child I’ve ever met, but he’s turned into the kindest and most dependable man you could ever wish to meet.’

She met Annie’s eyes, the subtext clear, and it was only the piercing whistle of the kettle on the little gas ring in the back of the beach hut that broke her gaze.

‘Tea, Annie?’

But she could see Ed approaching, had seen him all but flinch when Chloe had slipped her hand in his, and she thought they’d probably intruded enough. Not to mention the hero-worship she could see in Chloe’s eyes. And now she knew the truth, there was no way she was letting her children get involved with him. Panic swamped her and she had to crush it down.

‘No, thank you, Marnie. I’ll just have the ice cream. We’ve got a sandcastle to finish before the tide comes in and swallows it.’

‘Oh, well, never mind. Perhaps another time? Then we can have a proper chat.’

She nearly laughed out loud. Not if she could avoid it, and there was no way her mother and Marnie were
ever
going to get together. They were far too alike and she could just imagine the conversation and the ensuing interrogation. So much for all that privacy they’d talked about on Monday!

‘That would be lovely,’ she said, crossing her fingers as Grace wriggled off her lap and ran to meet Ed and Chloe. Pity. Having Grace on her lap had acted like a shield to hide behind, and now Ed’s eyes were raking over her body in the inadequate little black one-piece and she wanted to run away, her thoughts in turmoil.

‘Hi, there,’ she said, getting to her feet to start the process of escaping. ‘Is that mine?’

He smiled innocently. ‘It is. I had to lick it, it was starting to melt and dribble down the cone. You wouldn’t want it to get soggy.’

She could see the mark of his tongue all around the base of the pale creamy spiral where it met the sugar cone, and his eyes twinkled at her over the top. So much for innocence.

‘I had to lick Grace’s,’ Chloe told her, breaking the thread that held their gazes locked.

‘Did you? That was kind.’

‘You can’t have it, it’s mine,’ Grace said, taking it from her sister in case she lost any more.

‘Careful, mind you don’t drop it. Girls, say thank you to Ed.’

‘Thank you for my ice cream,’ they chorused, and he smiled at them.

‘My pleasure. How are the knees, Grace?’

‘Better now. Mummy, can we go and finish the sandcastle?’

She heaved a silent sigh of relief. ‘Good idea. We’ll get out of your hair. Thank you for the rescue mission. I’m sorry we invaded your privacy.’

‘Don’t be silly,’ Marnie said, emerging from the beach hut and smiling warmly at her. ‘You’re welcome to join us any time.’

Not if he had anything to say about it, Annie was sure, and not if she did either, but she thanked his grandmother anyway, waved to his grandfather and then turned back to Ed. ‘Thank you, too. For the first aid, for the ice creams. It was very kind of you.’

‘Any time.’ His eyes held hers again. ‘I’ll see you at nine,’ he murmured softly, and she nodded.

‘Yes.’

Then his eyes slid down her body, back up to her face and his lips shifted into a mischievous smile he’d probably been perfecting since before he’d learned to walk.

‘I’ll look forward to it.’

She turned away before her legs melted like the ice cream, and ran her tongue round the same spot that he’d licked just moments before.

Me, too, but at some point we have a lot to discuss. Like why you haven’t told me what’s really wrong with your grandfather, and what it means for you...

* * *

She was aware of his presence in every cell of her body.

Every time she glanced up through her lashes, he was there, watching her surreptitiously. It made her feel oddly self-conscious, but also curiously comforted.

She guessed Marnie would be giving him the third degree, and she just hoped her mother didn’t turn up any time soon to add fuel to the fire, because she was more sure than ever now that this relationship was going nowhere.

She didn’t come, but the next time Annie looked up, the hut was closed and they’d gone. And she felt bereft.

Stupid. So stupid. This was no-strings, just an affair, a little light recreational sex to add another dimension to their lives. She didn’t need to feel
bereft
, for goodness’ sake, just because he’d gone!

But she did, and the rest of the day stretched out in front of them like a yawning void. It was still hours before she’d see him again, hours before she could ask him the questions that were burning a hole in her. Hours before she could hold him—

‘There’s MamaJo!’ Chloe cried, and she felt a surge of relief. Something to take her mind off Ed, she thought, but of course it didn’t work like that.

‘Oh, Grace, what happened to your knees, darling?’ her mother asked, and then it all poured out and of course Ed’s name came up.

Out of the mouths of babes, Annie thought wryly.

‘Well, how lucky he was here,’ her mother said, and then looked up and caught her eye. ‘Or had you arranged to meet?’

It took a huge effort not to look away. ‘No. It was just a fortunate coincidence.’

‘Hmm,’ her mother said, as if she didn’t believe a word.

And that was the end of any semblance of privacy.

* * *

The gates were open when she arrived a moment after nine, but his car wasn’t there.

Maybe he’d parked it somewhere else, she thought, and ducked through the wisteria curtain into the garden proper just as he reversed the car in. She went back out to the carport as he unfolded himself from the driver’s seat and straightened up.

‘Hi, there.’

He turned to her, ran a hand through his hair and smiled distractedly.

‘Hi. Sorry, I was a bit on the drag. Have you been waiting long?’

‘No, you’re fine, I’ve only just arrived.’

‘Good. I left the gates open for you in case I was held up.’

His voice was low, and it wrapped around her like the scented garden. He brushed past her, shutting the gates, and then turned to her with a slow, sexy smile that made her toes curl. She went up on tiptoe and brushed her lips against his, but apparently that wasn’t enough. He caught her against his body, threaded his fingers through her hair and kissed her properly.

Improperly?

Whatever, she was more than happy for him to kiss her, to hold her, to give her a chance to hold him after the past few hours of tumbling thoughts.

He slowly pulled away, ending the kiss with a soft sigh that drifted over her face, and let her go, dropping his hands to her hips and looking down at her with that lazy, sexy smile playing around his mouth. ‘Oh, that’s better. I needed that. It’s been ages.’

‘What, since this morning?’ she teased, keeping it light for now, and he laughed.

‘No. Since I kissed you on Monday. Come on, I’ve got some wine in the fridge with our names on it.’ He slid an arm round her shoulders and steered her under the arch into the garden and through to the house. ‘How’s Grace?’

‘Bit sore, but she’ll be fine. Thank you so much for your help.’

‘No probs. It was a pleasure. They’re lovely kids.’

‘They are,’ she said softly. ‘They’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me, and I’d move heaven and earth to protect them, but you can’t always prevent them from getting hurt.’ And then, since they were talking about relatives, she went on with her voice carefully neutral, ‘How’s your grandfather? Did you have a good day after you left?’

‘Oh, he’s fine. He slept most of the afternoon, he was a bit tired. All that fresh air.’ He straightened up from the fridge, wine bottle in hand, and eyed her thoughtfully. ‘You’ve caught the sun,’ he said, changing the subject, and she let it drop. For now.

‘The curse of fair skin.’

He smiled and ran the pad of one thumb over her cheek, sending a tingle through her. ‘Your freckles have come out.’

‘Always. First sign of summer, out they pop. And before you ask, yes, I wear factor fifteen moisturiser every day and put on sunscreen. And the kids were smothered.’

He laughed. ‘Good. Take this,’ he said, handing her the wine bottle, and led her back out to the garden, a tray full of goodies in his hands. ‘Sit down, make yourself comfortable. I need to chill for a bit.’

‘That’s fine. I’m more than happy to sit here. It’s a lovely garden and the company’s all right.’

‘Only all right?’

‘Are you fishing for compliments?’

‘Would I?’ His grin was wry and touched with mischief as he handed her a glass of the perfectly chilled sauvignon blanc, and she sipped it appreciatively, snagging one of the lovely olive breadsticks that he’d brought out, too.

‘Oh, that’s good,’ she said, sighing contentedly and settling back in the chair. ‘Perfect end to a gorgeous day. It was fabulous on the beach—well, injuries aside. I’m really sorry we invaded your personal space, but I’m just so glad you were there because my first-aid kit was in the car and it would have been an ergonomic nightmare otherwise.’

‘That’s the handy thing about the beach hut. Home from home, and you don’t have to lug all that stuff. It makes a day on the beach so much easier.’

‘Oh, I can see how that would work. Getting all the stuff down there is like a polar expedition, and getting it back is worse. Do you often use it?’

A little frown creased his brow, but so fleetingly if she hadn’t been watching him she would have missed it. ‘Not so much now. We used to, all the time. They’ve had it for ever. Now we only go down there when Grumps is up to it, which is increasingly rare. You should borrow it. I can let you have a key, I’m sure Marnie won’t mind. It’s standing idle and the girls would enjoy it.’

‘But what if your grandfather’s having a good day? Won’t they be there?’