Got your number from Chloe. Hope you don’t mind. This isn’t me calling you, it’s me texting you. I’m back home now. And missing you. A x
Fresh tears fell down her cheeks but her heart felt lighter as she typed out a reply.
I love that you texted me. I miss you too. Faith x
Chapter Twenty-Five
Two days after Christmas
Adam stood on the doorstep, hands fisted at his side. You can do this, he told himself for the umpteenth time since he’d arranged to meet her. After all, he’d done the hardest part already. Making that first contact, that first call, had taken every ounce of strength he’d possessed. Why was he so damn scared of seeing her? It didn’t matter any more what she thought, did it?
Drawing in a deep breath he pressed the buzzer.
One second, two, three … his heart sped up as he waited for the door to open.
Suddenly there she was. A hesitant smile on the face he knew so well.
‘Adam.’ She looked as awkward as he felt.
‘Ruth.’ He took a moment to study the woman he’d once known so intimately. Her hair was shorter now, with blonde highlights he didn’t remember. Her eyes were the same blue as her sister’s. Her face looked calmer, softer than the last time he’d seen it. When she’d been yelling at him.
The image flashed back to him and he slammed his eyes shut, bracing his hand on the door frame.
Dimly he heard her voice beckoning him into the house. On legs that felt wooden and unstable he followed her through into her sleek modern sitting room. No wood-burning stove or exposed bricks for her, he noted, his mind unconsciously making comparisons with Faith’s cosy front room.
‘Can I get you a drink?’
It was polite to accept one, but Adam didn’t want to linger, to draw this conversation out. He wanted them to say what they needed to say to each other, and then he’d get the hell out of here. ‘No thanks.’
Her lips curved in a sad smile. ‘I suspect I’m the last person you want to share a drink with.’ Because she was right, he kept quiet. ‘Thank you for coming here anyway.’
‘Emma said you wanted to see me.’
‘Yes.’ She indicated for him to sit down, then carefully sat on the opposite end of the sofa. Her eyes were downcast and he knew, because he knew her, that she was trying to remember the words she’d been practising since his phone call. Finally she looked up at him. ‘I wanted to apologise for what I said the last time we saw each other.’
It was a sad fact that they hadn’t spoken since the funeral. After she’d refused to answer his calls he’d retreated into his own shell, giving up on them just as surely as she had. On his first wedding anniversary, he’d found himself served with divorce papers. Bitterly he’d signed everything asked of him. Friends for ten years, lovers for eight, yet they’d managed only five months as man and wife. ‘You were upset.’
‘Yes.’ She wrung her hands together. ‘That didn’t excuse what I said.’
He felt his throat begin to tighten. ‘You spoke the truth as you saw it.’
‘No.’ Her reply was so sharp it startled him. ‘I was lashing out, desperate for someone to blame,’ she continued, more measured now, but still as firm. Words she’d rehearsed? ‘It didn’t seem right that I should lose a child … we should lose a child,’ she corrected, her eyes seeking out his. ‘That we should lose something so precious, to an accident. A bit of ice on the road and suddenly our whole world turned upside down.’ Her blue eyes clouded, the hands resting in her lap becoming agitated. ‘I needed it to be more than that.’
She drew in a deep breath and rose to her feet. Because he couldn’t think of anything to say, Adam kept quiet.
Suddenly she was walking towards him. Sitting right next to him and taking his hand. ‘It wasn’t anything more though,’ she said quietly, eyes looking directly into his. ‘Two years of therapy has told me that. There was nothing either of us could have done.’
His hand felt stiff inside hers. ‘Except not get in the car.’
She held his tighter. ‘Perhaps. But that was a joint decision. I might have suggested staying at my parents, you might have said you wanted to go home, but we both took the decision to get in the car. And who’s to say if we’d driven over the next morning instead, things would have been any different? It was still cold. That ice would still have been there.’
‘Maybe.’ It would take a long time to fully convince himself of that.
She withdrew her hand from his and lightly touched his beard. ‘This is new.’
‘Not really. I’ve had it for nearly three years.’
Her eyes closed and she bit into her lip. ‘I used to know everything about you. When you had a haircut. When you went a day without shaving.’ She dropped her hand to her lap and let out a deep sigh. ‘You grew it after what I’d said, didn’t you? Tried to become someone different because I made you hate the person you were.’
‘Not consciously, no.’ At least he hadn’t at first.
Tears welled in her eyes. ‘I made you think it was your fault. All this time, that’s what you believed, isn’t it? Emma told me as much, but I didn’t want to accept it. Now I’m looking at you, I know she was right.’
‘I was driving.’
She let out a strangled sounding laugh. ‘And thank God you were. If it had been me driving we might all have been killed.’
Incredibly his lips twitched. ‘Driving wasn’t one of your strong points.’
‘I was crap. Still am.’ Her hands reached for his again. ‘I’ve missed you, Adam. I’m so sorry I pushed you away.’
‘You were hurting.’
‘Yes, but I should have turned to you for comfort. We should have been able to comfort each other. Instead I drove a wedge between us.’
Faith had said something similar. The fact that Ruth hadn’t turned to him in her hour of need, and that he’d given up on her, made him wonder if their marriage would have survived even without the accident.
Her big blue eyes lifted to his. ‘Do you think you can ever forgive me?’
‘There’s nothing to forgive,’ he told her gruffly. ‘I never blamed you for what you said. How you felt towards me.’
She looked stricken. ‘No, you blamed yourself, which is worse. If you can forgive me, you have to forgive yourself. Please.’
‘I’m working on it.’ He’d said the same words to Damon, not long after meeting Faith, only then he’d meant he was working on being happy.
Forgiving himself would be a huge step in that direction.
He stayed with Ruth for another hour, finally accepting that drink. They filled each other in on the last three years and it felt, if not like old times, then at least like two friends. She told him of the new man in her life and he listened, happy for her.
At the same time wondering if he, too, would have that second chance at happiness.
On his way home, he swung by Damon’s house.
His friend greeted him in paint-spattered jeans. Adam tried, and failed, not to smirk.
‘Wife’s got you working, I see.’
‘I’m my own man. If I’m painting the bedroom it’s because I want to.’
Adam laughed. ‘Sure it is. I mean, what man wants to be watching sport instead of painting his bedroom two days after Christmas?’ He peered at the brush Damon was holding. ‘Good shade of pink, too. Matches your cheeks.’
Damon let out an expletive before standing aside to let him in. ‘If you’re coming in, I’ll give you a brush. You can say goodbye to those fancy jeans.’
‘I’ll pick up a brush if you promise to listen to what I have to say.’
Damon held out his paint-spattered hand. ‘Deal.’
Five days after Christmas
It had been four days since Adam had walked out of the hotel. Fo
ur days in which, aside from his first text, Faith hadn’t heard from him.
Damn the man, she wasn’t going to think about him. She’d meant what she’d told him right at the beginning. She was far too busy for a relationship right now.
Speaking of busy. Faith slipped behind the reception desk and clicked open the bookings. Her eyes skimmed the calendar, noting with satisfaction they’d had another booking since she’d last looked. On seeing the name, her heart jumped.
‘Chloe. This booking for tomorrow.’ Her niece was sitting on the stool, staring down at the phone that was a permanent fixture in her hand. Thankfully now what she read on there made her smile. Faith knew Hope had offered to speak to the parents of the so-called friends leaving snide comments, but in the end it hadn’t been necessary. Now Chloe had a boyfriend of her own, a boy a year older and at a different school, which was apparently legit cool, the nasty comments had dried up.
‘Earth calling Chloe. I’m sure Stuart won’t mind if you leave it, say a minute, before replying?’
Finally her niece glanced up, rolling her eyes. ‘Okay, okay. What?’
‘When did you take this booking for an A. Hunter?’
‘Oh, yeah. Five minutes ago. This woman called, wanting a double room for two nights.’
‘A woman? Are you sure?’
Chloe looked at her in a way that only a teenager could. ‘Duh, I do know the difference.’
Still, Faith couldn’t stop the butterflies buzzing in her belly. ‘Was she booking for herself? Did she give a first name?’
Chloe gave a frustrated huff. ‘I don’t know, right. She just asked for a double room for an A. Hunter for two nights. I said great and entered it in the computer like you told me to. She gave a number.’
Faith studied the number. It wasn’t one she recognised. And why would it be? There must be thousands, no millions of A. Hunters. It had to be a coincidence, that’s all. It didn’t stop her mind from imagining it was Adam though.
Perhaps Adam and a woman.
Dread rose inside her, sending cold shivers down her back. Adam wouldn’t be so cruel as to book into her hotel with another woman. He’d known how she felt about him. It had to be an Alice, or an Amanda Hunter looking to spend New Year in the Lakes. With a huff of annoyance at herself, Faith stepped away from the screen.
‘You’re wondering if it might be Adam, aren’t you?’ Chloe asked quietly.
‘You said it was a woman who called.’
Chloe lifted her shoulders. ‘She could be booking it for him.’
Or for both of them. Faith pushed the unhelpful thought away. ‘The idea had crossed my mind.’
‘I can always phone her back. Ask her.’ Before Faith had a chance to say anything, Chloe grabbed at the phone and began dialing the number on the screen. Faith’s pulse began to rocket. Oh God, she was going to be sick, she was going to …
‘It’s gone to voicemail. Woman’s voice says we’ve reached Anita. We can leave a message if we want.’
‘No.’ Faith pressed a hand to her churning stomach. ‘No, let’s just forget it. It’s clearly not Adam.’
Chloe gave her a sympathetic smile. ‘You miss him, huh?’
Briefly Faith shut her eyes. The moment she did, an image of Adam came into view. It always did. Sometimes he’d have that small smile on his face. Sometimes his gaze was heated. Often, she saw just his eyes; beautiful yet at times so horribly sad. ‘Yes,’ she whispered, answering Chloe’s question. ‘I miss him.’
Chapter Twenty-Six
New Year’s Eve
Though she’d told herself a hundred times it wasn’t Adam – it was Anita Hunter who’d be checking in – Faith still found herself watching the hotel door like a hawk. It was five o’clock on New Year’s Eve and here she was, sitting by herself on the reception desk, pining after a man who wasn’t going to turn up.
Next year she needed to get a life. Maybe keep her vague promise to phone Patrick.
The thought made her shudder, and once again she cursed Adam Hunter. She couldn’t even imagine being with another man now.
Just then the door creaked open. Faith’s head snapped up and over towards the entrance.
Immediately her heart leapt, bouncing off her ribs. Tall like Adam, muscular like Adam. Dark-haired, too. The same clear, smoky grey eyes. But this man was clean-shaven. No heavy stubble hiding the strong line of his jaw. Where Adam had been sexy, rugged, this man was stunning.
His eyes swept across the reception desk, halting when they found her.
‘It is you.’ She could barely manage the words.
His mouth lifted in the small smile that made her heart ache and every cell in her body sigh. ‘How many other Adam Hunters do you know?’
She knew she was gaping at him like some half-wit but she couldn’t seem to do anything else. Her body was frozen to the stool. ‘The booking said A. Hunter. Chloe took it. Said it was a woman’s voice on the other end.’
‘Yes, I’ve been a bit busy. I asked Anita to book it.’
She swallowed the lump now sticking in her throat. ‘Anita?’ Automatically she angled her head, trying to look past him.
A frown formed on his face and he ducked, meeting her eyes. ‘What are you looking at?’
‘Not a what, a who. You said Anita …’
‘Our office manager.’ The bag he’d been holding slumped to the floor. ‘Good God, you didn’t think I’d be bringing another woman with me?’
Anger edged his usually quiet voice. It seemed to bump her out of her trance. ‘No. I … no. I didn’t think the booking was for you. But then I saw you, and you mentioned Anita, and for a horrid moment I didn’t know what to think.’ Her words were tumbling over each other. ‘What happened to the beard?’ It was just one of the hundreds of questions running through her mind. Was this for real? Had he come to see her, or was he just passing through?
He walked towards her. Three of those long, long strides and he was standing right up against the reception desk. ‘Faith.’ His voice was back to soft, back to the voice that spoke to her in her dreams. ‘I know we have a lot to talk about but can we just. Can I just …’ He exhaled in frustration, moving round the counter so he was standing next to her. Towering over her. Then, with a tenderness that totally belied his appearance, he placed one arm under her legs and another round her shoulder, lifting her up.
Before she knew what was happening, he was kissing her. And kissing her. His mouth hungry, as if whatever he was taking he couldn’t get enough of. It seemed kissing her like that wasn’t enough though, because soon she was eased onto the reception desk and he was standing between her legs, his hands on her face. Kissing her again, his whole body pressing into her.
She closed her eyes and gave in to the pleasure, inhaling him, running her hands up and down those big muscular arms.
‘Hi there Adam.’
Faith froze at the sound of Chloe’s highly amused voice. Hell, she’d forgotten her niece was changing in the office, ready for her New Year’s Eve date with Stuart.
Adam drew back and laughed, looking slightly embarrassed. ‘Hey there Chloe.’
‘I’m, err, about to go.’ Chloe’s eyes danced with barely suppressed glee as she looked back at Faith. ‘I just wanted to let you know Stuart’s step-mum has just given birth. He’s got a baby sister.’
‘That’s …’ Faith coughed and tried again. ‘That’s wonderful.’ All the questions she’d usually ask – the weight, how Mary was – just weren’t there. Not with the force of Adam’s smouldering gaze on her.
‘Well then.’ Chloe smirked, giving them both a little wave. ‘Happy New Year.’
As the front door clunked shut behind Chloe, Adam pressed his forehead to hers. ‘That,’ he murmured huskily. ‘I just needed to do that.’
Laughter caught in her throa
t. ‘I’m a big fan of that. Though I’d rather not have had an audience.’ Her fingers shook as she ran them over his face, along his clean-shaven jaw. ‘I loved the beard, but I have to admit. I’m also a big fan of this.’
‘I was hoping you would be.’
‘Why?’
He smirked. ‘Because I want the woman I plan on taking to bed to fancy me?’
‘No, no.’ She smoothed her hand across his chin. ‘I mean why did you shave it off?’
‘Ah.’ He caught her hand, wrapping his fingers round it. ‘I don’t feel the need to hide who I am any more. Adam Hunter was always clean-shaven. I guess I figured it was time he made an appearance again.’
Faith studied him. The lines of his face, the depths of his eyes. ‘You look more at peace. Happier.’
He smiled then, properly, bringing her hand to his mouth and kissing it. ‘I’m working on it.’
For a few magical, humming seconds they gazed into each other’s eyes.
A cough from the other side of the reception desk interrupted the moment, making her jump. Not again. With a rush of horror Faith realised where she was sitting. And who was between her legs.
Adam saw her expression and grinned, lifting her up and onto the floor. When she turned to greet the visitor, her stomach dropped. ‘Mrs Bannister. Sorry. I … err—’
Sally Bannister put up her hand. ‘No need to explain.’ Her eyes ran appraisingly up and down Adam. ‘I can understand the distraction. I just wanted to check everything is ready for tonight? My party are on their way.’
Faith grappled for her professionalism. ‘The room is all ready, the tables set up.’ She was aware of Adam easing back, out of the way. ‘Mario and Antonio are in the kitchen prepping as we speak.’
Sally finally cracked a smile. ‘Good. I’ll go and get ready. If you could make sure my guests—’
‘Are checked in, shown to their rooms, told where the dinner will be? Of course. We thought champagne and canapés by the tree at 7.30?’
Sally’s smile actually widened. ‘Excellent. Thank you.’
A Little Christmas Faith Page 20