Deceit of Angels (14 page)

“What’s
this all about, Jason. You’re not playing a joke on me are you?”

“Certainly
not! I don’t go around playing practical jokes on people.” She squinted eagerly
at his expression, trying to understand, but all she saw was his charming smile
and an intriguing glint in his eyes.

They
left the Grange through the main entrance.  She followed Jason along the drive
that led to the far end of the building, her thoughts in confusion and yet,
excitement made her tingle.  As they rounded the corner, the stables came into
sight. These were a row of low structures with half a dozen split doors opening
onto a large cobbled area, where riders used to mount and dismount. However,
standing in the centre of this courtyard was a brand new Peugeot, its red
paintwork gleaming in the bright morning sun.

Jason slipped
his arm round her waist.  Anna looked to left and right in bewilderment.

“I
don’t know what you’re up to, but I’m starting to get very nervous!” she
muttered.

“Nothing
to get nervous about, we’re here now and there’s my present to you.”

She
glanced at him and then her eyes followed his line of vision to the new car.

“You’re
looking at the car,” she commented dryly.

“I
know. That’s my present.”

“You’ve
bought me a car?”

He
didn’t answer, but his smile showed his delight at her total surprise. They
walked towards it, Jason sweeping his eyes over the sleek bodywork, making sure
it was exactly to his specifications. Anna couldn’t speak. Her heart thudded
loudly and she found it hard to catch her breath with excitement.

“Well!
Do you like it?” he asked giving her a huge squeeze.

“How
can I not like it!  I don’t understand, why did you buy me a car?”  She
narrowed her eyes at him.  “Is this a company car?  Do I have to return it when
you sack me?”

He
chuckled.  “I thought it time you had your own transport and it’s yours for as
long as you wish.”

She
grimaced, knowing her own car was still parked in the driveway of the home she
shared with her husband, but then she smiled.  “I love it. I really, really
do.  But I can’t accept it.”

“Why
not?  And if you so much as mutter, ‘what will people say’, I’ll pick you up
and throw you in the stable.  With any luck I might even find some manure to
drop you in!”

“I
feel embarrassed.  It’s so lovely.  How can I thank you.”

“A
kiss will suffice for now.”

She
entwined her arms about his neck and only after the lingering kiss had floated
away, did she suddenly remember she still had to tell him about her husband. 
Nausea gripped her insides, since now the guilt she carried had been compounded
by the giving of his marvellous gift.  She held him close and took in a deep
breath, painful tears aching at the back of her eyes.  He didn’t say anything,
but tenderly moved his hands down her back and over her buttocks.

After
a couple of minutes, he dipped into his trouser pocket and pulled out some
jangling keys.

“Well,
milady, where are you going to take me?”

“You
want me to drive now?”

“Of
course! This is your car so let’s see how you can handle her.”

“But
I don’t know any places to drive to.”

“Then
we’ll go up to the lake.  It’s only about three or four miles.  I’ll direct
you.”   

Excitedly,
Anna took the keys and opened the driver’s door. As she climbed in and unlocked
the passenger side, she looked around.  Everything was spanking brand new, with
shining knobs and an intoxicating smell of leather. They started their
excursion, a journey that only took about ten minutes along the twisting
country roads.

By
the time they reached the lake and parked, Anna’s spirits had started to soar
and she believed that whatever the outcome of the next hour or two, at least
she would have the most wonderful memories to take back to West Yorkshire with
her.

Hand
in hand, they started their walk round the lake. It was a popular spot for
families and courting couples and the weather had brought many people out of
doors. The sun felt gloriously warm on their faces and occasionally they would
stand and watch the glittering lake with the boats and windsurfers gliding
across the surface, the sails a riot of colour against the blueness of the
water.  At one point, two young boys came screeching past on bikes.  They found
an empty bench and took a rest.  They didn’t speak for a while, their eyes
drinking in the beauty of the scene before them.

After
a couple of minutes, Jason pointed to a young man wobbling about in a canoe. 
“I hope that young man can swim.  It looks as though he might go over any
minute. Whoops! There he goes!”

“Shouldn’t
laugh, really. After all, it looks fairly difficult to do.”

“Just
technique really. After a bit of practice, it’s quite easy.”

“Can
you canoe?” Anna asked incredulously.

“Yes.
We did it at school. I used to come here with my friends when I was a boy. I’ve
had a great deal of fun here. This is a special place for me. That’s why I
wanted to bring you.”

She
sighed.  “It’s very beautiful. A place where you can forget all your problems.”

“Have
you any problems?”

“Why
do you ask?”

“Just
wondered.” His eyes remained fixed on the boats.

Casting
him a sidelong glance, she bit her lip nervously.  “Are you talking about last
night?  I’m so sorry about that, I really am. It must have been the ghastly day
I had.”

“What
happened that was so ghastly?  Mother didn’t say anything when I phoned. In
fact, she gave me the impression you were absolutely fine.”

She
paused slightly before continuing.  “To begin with, I found out you had gone to
Bristol. That was a good start to the day!”

“No
one was more disappointed than me, I can tell you.  But that’s the business I’m
in.”

Then
Anna took in a deep breath and began to tell him of the incident in the kitchen
and how she had disgraced herself so miserably.

“I
didn’t realise that a few glasses of sherry would affect me so much and I was
sleeping it off when you rang the first time.  I felt so ashamed, but your
mother was charming about it all.” 

All
through the narrative, Jason had listened with great delight, bursting into
laughter when she came to the part about misunderstanding Margaret’s comments.

“My
mother has a strange sense of humour,” he smiled.

“If
that had been all, then I would have got over it, only something else happened
and this one scared me a little.”  Anna continued, telling him about the events
in the morning room and how Tess had rushed at her, making her knock over a
vase.  “I’m not used to dogs and for one dreadful moment I thought she was a
wolf or something.”

Jason
grinned.  “There’s been no wolves in England for quite some time and Tess won’t
hurt you.”  Sitting forward in the seat, his elbows resting on his knees, he
couldn’t hold back his amusement.  “I’ll ask Mother to keep her in the kitchen
for the duration of your visit.  I want your stay at the Grange to be
pleasant…and comfortable.”

“You’ll
do no such thing!  I’ll get used to her.”  She looked away for a moment and
then smiled.  “A wolf!  How ridiculous is that.  My husband always tells me I
have a lively imagination!”

Jason
paused for a second, his eyes searching across the surface of the lake. When he
spoke it was quiet, almost a whisper.  “Your husband always ‘tells’ you?”  She
looked at him puzzled, not understanding. He decided to make it clearer.
“You’ve done this before, used the present tense when referring to your
husband.  Surely if you’re a widow, it should be your husband always ‘told’
you.”

Anna
sat still, barely daring to breathe. Tears stung her eyes. She turned her head
away so she couldn’t see his face. She blinked hard, fighting to control the
surge that was threatening to spill over at any minute.  The moment had finally
arrived.  “I’m not a widow,” she said quickly. “I have a husband in Wakefield.
I left him to come and work for you.”

She
stared down at her fingers clenched so tightly the white of her knuckles showed
and waited for Jason to say something as she gulped hard and tried to steady
her breathing.  She felt him lean back on the bench and take in a sharp
breath.  But he remained silent and the silence cut through her and made her
wince with the pain.  It was then she realised she had been right all along. 
He was disgusted with her for her deceit; he hated her for her betrayal of his
trust.  She couldn’t bear it any longer and sprang from her seat.  Without daring
to look back she hurried towards the car her only thought to get away from
him.  She didn’t want to see the anger and disappointment in his eyes.

It
was when she reached the car that he caught up with her, grabbing her by the
shoulders and bringing her to a sudden stop.

“I
hope you’re not thinking of leaving me to walk back?” he asked.

She
didn’t dare turn round, tears ran down her face in an endless stream.  “You
take the car.  I’ll walk home,” she sobbed.

“Now,
that’s being silly.” He offered her a white folded handkerchief.  “Give me the
keys.”

She
passed them to him and he opened the door and put her in the passenger’s seat. 
Walking round, he got in behind the wheel.

Anna
lifted her head and was surprised to see his expression passive.  There was no
hate in his eyes just a look of resignation.

She
began to talk quickly.  “If you take me back to the Grange, I’ll pack my things
and leave.  I’m sure Ben would give me a lift to the station and I’ll send
for…”

She
got no further.  To her utter amazement he suddenly reached out for her and
before she could catch her breath his mouth was on hers, pressing down with the
passion and intensity he had shown her the night before.  At first she
struggled, not understanding, almost frightened of him.  But then his kiss
became gentler and she relaxed, sinking against him.  It seemed a long time
before he finally released her.  And when she opened her eyes, he was smiling.

“I
don’t understand,” she said, shaking her head.

“Well,
if you’d given me the chance, I would have explained.”

“Explained
what?”

He
waited a few seconds, before pulling her close once more and kissing her hair.

“I
know, Anna.  I know about your husband.  That’s why I hesitated.  I was trying
to pluck up the courage to tell you,” he whispered.

She
jerked her head round to look at him.  “You...You knew!  But how?”

He
smiled meekly.  “Oh, little clues you kept giving away.  I told you, I’m a good
judge of character.  I also have an instinct about people.”  He saw the blank
look on her face and took in a breath.  “When you came into my office for your
interview, I knew you were hiding something. That interested me. A woman with
an intriguing secret! There’s not many about, I can tell you.  And it was so
obvious you were watching your every word in case you let something slip.”

“You
could see all that?”

“It
wasn’t very difficult.” He held her closer a small smile hovering around his
lips.  “Did you know that when a person lies, they can’t look you in the eye? 
You averted your gaze so often, I knew you were…what should I call it? 
Stretching the truth somewhat.”

“That’s
an understatement!  I’ve been lying through my teeth since the day I read your
advert!”

He
threw back his head and gave an incredulous laugh, before saying,  “Anyway, by
the time you received the letter, the one you burnt, I knew that things were
very, very wrong.”

“So
you put it all together and worked out that I wasn’t a widow after all and that
I did have a husband tucked away somewhere,” she said crisply.

“In
actual fact, I knew the real truth about you long before that. A month after
you arrived I discovered all about you.”

“A
month!”

“I
had a phone call from a…well, suffice it to say I ended up speaking to your
husband.”

Anna
opened her eyes in horror, putting her hand to her mouth to stop the scream
that wanted to make itself heard.  “You spoke to my husband!”

“You’re
starting to sound like a parrot,” he chuckled, but then continued more
seriously, “I found myself talking to a very angry, rude guy. At first, I
didn’t know who he was, but then when he said your name, and how you’d run off
and left him and the boys, his words not mine by the way, I got the general
idea.  He was very furious about the fact I’d taken you away from him.  You
see, sweetheart, he thought I was the ‘other’ man.  I found that quite
interesting at the time.  Of course, after I discovered I really did love you
and after what nearly happened last night, I suppose I am the ‘other’ man now.”

“But
I had to leave him, Jason.  Please understand.  I told you I was a widow, because
I didn’t think you would give me the job, if you knew I had responsibilities in
Wakefield.”