When he got back to the hotel, Laura's lights were out. He hoped she would get a good night's sleep—he wanted her to feel well enough to come to Barcelos with him. Daniel sighed. He'd been spoiled this week, having her with him. He'd thought he liked travelling alone, not having to worry about what someone else wanted to see or do—that was one of the reasons he hadn't wanted Natalie with him—but with Laura, all that had changed. He would never have guessed how much he appreciated her input, her knowledge, and, more than anything, her company.
But it was temporary. Next week he was back to being on his lonesome. He wasn't sure he liked the idea anymore.
****
When he knocked at her door early the next morning, she opened it looking much better. His heart lifted to see the colour in her cheeks as she grabbed her things.
"You're sure you're up to this?" he asked.
"You try and stop me! I need a new handbag, and Barcelos' market is just the place to find one."
By the time they were approaching the town, the roads leading in were already ridiculously busy. Laura narrowed her eyes as they crawled along.
"I think you need to grab the first space you can get at the side of the road," she told him. "It's going to be quite a walk in from here, but I don't think you'll get any nearer."
Taking her advice literally, Daniel skilfully parked the car in an improbably small space—put off a little by Laura squeezing her eyes shut and refusing to open them until he'd done it without dinting anything—and they walked hand in hand towards the Campo da República where the market was in full swing.
Daniel had seen plenty of markets before, but this was something else. Fruit, vegetables, bread, cheese, crates of live chickens, ceramics, crafts, leather goods . . .
"What on earth are those?" He pointed to a stand laden with yards and yards of curling yellowish tubes.
Laura laughed. "Sausage skins."
"What?"
"Skins for sausages. Now there's a souvenir for you to take home for the family."
Daniel shook his head. "They sell everything here, don't they?"
As Laura browsed the leather stalls, Daniel marvelled at the number of wares on display involving cockerels. There were ceramic cockerels, dishes and mugs hand-painted with pictures of cockerels—the creatures were everywhere.
When Laura found a handbag she liked, he insisted on buying it for her. "A thank-you present," he told her. "For helping me out this week."
And when they finally decided they were going no further without coffee and found a tiny table on a corner, he decided to ask the expert.
"Okay, so what's the deal with the cockerels?" He gestured at a nearby stall laden with hundreds of the things.
Laura laughed. He loved it when she laughed.
"It's all to do with a legend about a pilgrim who was passing through here on his way to Santiago de Compostela," she told him. "There was a crime committed and because he was a stranger, he was accused of it and sentenced to hang. He asked to see the judge, who was at a banquet. There was a roasted cockerel on the table and the condemned man told the judge that if he was innocent, the cockerel would rise up and crow three times. According to legend, it did, and the pilgrim got a last-minute reprieve at the noose. The cockerel is a symbol of good luck nowadays, and the pilgrim came back later to build a monument to the Virgin Mary."
Daniel raised his eyebrows. "And to set up a factory producing every kind of cockerel ornament known to man, by the looks of it." Regretfully, he glanced at his watch. "Well, I could stay here all day, but unfortunately we have a hotel to see."
He damped down his resentment as they walked back to the car and drove to their working lunch. By the time they had finished their meeting, Laura was a little pale, so he suggested driving back early.
"Don't you need to look around town?" she asked him.
He shook his head. "No, I need to get you back to the hotel to rest." When she opened her mouth, he warned, "Don't argue with me, Laura." She closed it again without a peep.
On the drive back to the Quinta, Daniel's mind was only half on the road. What was happening to him, putting his business in second place like this?
A small, quiet voice within whispered that it was about time he put his own needs first for a change, but a bigger voice shouted it back down. Nothing could come of this. He was leaving tomorrow, Laura couldn't or wouldn't come with him, and they would soon both be back in England with their own lives and jobs and commitments. And that was that.
****
When they arrived back at the Quinta, Daniel was in a strangely quiet mood. He said he had things to do in town, and Laura didn't argue when he insisted she take a nap. She woke an hour or so later feeling better and decided to sit by the pool in the shade. No more sunstroke for her!
As she made her way down the path, she bumped into the Hursts.
"I'm so glad you're feeling better," she told Mr. Hurst. "Will you be alright to drive back to the airport tomorrow? If not, I could find a different way to get you there and then get your hire car returned."
Mr. Hurst smiled his appreciation. "I'll be fine. It's just the one journey and then we'll be on the plane. I can manage."
"Well, if you're sure. But please let me know if you change your mind."
"You've been so good to us, Laura," Mrs. Hurst said. "And your young man, too. He said you weren't well yourself, yesterday. I hope you're feeling much better today?"
"Er—yes, thanks," Laura blustered.
"It's a shame you missed coming out for a meal with us. Daniel took us to a lovely restaurant." Mrs. Hurst winked. "You're a lucky lady. You hang on to that one!"
They carried on to their room, leaving Laura to settle herself by the pool, somewhat bewildered by the conversation. Clearly Daniel had taken them to dinner last night, which was kind of him, but why they thought he was her young man, she couldn't imagine. Surely it couldn't be anything Daniel had said to them? And then she remembered the night when Mr. Hurst was taken so ill. Daniel had been at her side the whole time. Of course they would assume they were dating!
Laura sighed. Her initial shock that she had so blindly fallen in love with him had gradually worn off, leaving a despondent cloud to settle over her. What was the point of mooning over him when there could be no future in doing so? And if Daniel hadn't made that abundantly plain, then Natalie already had.
"I saw your Daniel Stone just now," Teresa declared as she bounced over and dropped her towel on the grass. "Did you have a nice morning?"
"Yes, we had a nice morning, thank you. But he's not my Daniel Stone, Teresa," Laura said a little sharply. If only!
The girl shrugged her shoulders. "Anyway, I finally plucked up the courage to have a proper conversation with him." She blushed. "So far I've only managed hello and goodbye—and what to do about you fainting!"
And accepting room keys, Laura thought, then couldn't help but smile. Teresa was obviously so infatuated with the man that her nerves got the better of her tongue every time.
"What do you mean by a 'proper' conversation?"
"I asked him when he was leaving," Teresa said proudly. "He said tomorrow. Do you know he's leaving tomorrow?"
"Yes, I know." Laura tried to ignore the way her heart sank at the prospect.
Teresa nodded. "He said he had some business meetings in Porto."
Laura glanced at her with trepidation. She'd already told Maria and Teresa he was a businessman, but . . . "What else did he say?" she asked as casually as she could.
"That he was looking forward to speaking to Paulo when he got back home. I didn't understand, because he's leaving tomorrow and Paulo won't be here until the day after. I tried to tell him, but he seemed to give up. He said he had to go."
Teresa was comically forlorn at the breakdown in communications with her idol, but Laura shifted uncomfortably, wondering what Daniel had made of their little chat.
Had he assumed she'd filled the family in? Had he wondered why Teresa didn't seem to know w
hat was going on? Or would he have just put it down to language difficulties, as Teresa had? Fervently, she hoped for the latter. She hadn't bargained on Teresa practising her English on him to such an extent.
Laura could have kicked herself. She'd been so busy protecting Maria from worry, it had never even occurred to her to wonder whether Daniel might have expected her to tell them about him. She'd already told him Maria didn't deal with that side of things, and he'd seemed happy to wait to speak to Paulo.
Still tired from their morning out, she put him out of her mind as best she could, closed her eyes, and slipped into a light doze, lulled by the warmth of the sun and the gentle lapping of the water against the sides of the pool as Teresa swam. But her peace was soon broken.
"I'd like a word. In private."
Daniel's deep voice cut across her hazy sleep, and Laura knew he was angry before she even opened her eyes. He was standing above her, legs planted apart and arms folded in a confrontational stance. Laura felt at a distinct disadvantage as she lay on the grass. Squinting against the sun, she sat up.
"I assume you're talking to me," she said stiffly, not wanting to rile him further but not liking his tone of voice either.
He ignored her. "Perhaps we can talk in your office?"
Laura protested, but he'd already marched off up the path. Shrugging her shoulders in answer to Teresa's mystified expression, she pushed her feet into her sandals, grabbed her bag, and strode after him. What on earth had got into him now?
As she came fully awake, a sinking feeling came over her as she remembered what Teresa had said earlier . . . but surely he couldn't be so cross about a young girl's misunderstanding? Whatever it was, he wasn't happy, waiting impatiently as she unlocked the door. It was days since they'd had a confrontation like this.
"What game do you think you're playing?" he asked, closing the door with a bang.
Chapter Twenty
"I don't have any idea what you're talking about." Laura replied cautiously, not quite sure where this was going yet.
He took a sharp breath. "I'm talking about the Silvas' total ignorance as to why I'm here. Why haven't you told them about me?" He paced the room like a caged panther. "Are you so much in charge here that you don't even need to tell the owners of the hotel that they might have a business deal in the offing? Or have you so little faith in me and my company that you didn't think it worth mentioning?"
Laura watched aghast as he paced and her heart sank in her chest like a stone. She'd never seen him so mad. There was nothing more behind this than her not seeing the need to raise false hopes, and not thinking to check with him exactly what he wanted. How could he think she had no confidence in him or his business? She loved him!
Of course that was the last thing she could tell him.
"That's not the way it is at all!" she spluttered finally.
But it seemed his mind was already made up. "I think that's exactly the way it is. I would have thought after the past week we've spent together, you would have seen how I operate and had a little more respect for me than that, but you obviously think I'm wasting everybody's time. Well, don't worry, I shan't waste any more of yours. I may not even bother to waste any of Senhor Silva's!"
He yanked the door open but before he could stalk through it, Laura had grabbed it from him and slammed it shut again. She stood in front of it, her arms folded across her chest. No way was she having this row in public.
"You've got it all wrong," she told him. "You have no right to make assumptions about me or my actions. And don't you dare presume to read my mind!" Even as she said it, she thanked the stars that wasn't possible. "I didn't say anything to Maria because I know how much she worries about the business, but she doesn't deal with it. Paulo does. I already told you that. Why involve her in something she can't do anything about? You said yourself you didn't need to speak to her. That you'd wait to speak to Paulo."
Daniel's eyes narrowed. "That's true, but I was talking in terms of full-on business discussions. I had no idea you didn't care enough to even mention it to the family in passing!"
"I've just told you why I didn't. Besides, you didn't bother to tell me whether you were still playing the mystery shopper." When he continued to glare at her, she unfolded her arms and banged her fist against the door in pure frustration. "This has nothing to do with what I think about you or your wretched company!"
"Are you going to let me out of here or shall I move you bodily aside?" was his only response.
Her anger spent, Laura moved. "You're in the wrong, Daniel," she told him quietly as he reached for the door. "And if you had any decency, you'd admit it instead of being such an arrogant know-all."
His answer was a slam of the door that made the windows rattle.
She waited several minutes for him to get well out of the way before going to her room. No one could make her lose her temper as quickly as he could. How could she even contemplate being in love with him when he thought so little of her that he could form such a quick opinion, and a low one at that? He'd been pretty good at that his first week here, but Laura had thought once they'd become friends, she'd put a stop to all that. It seemed he was always going to put his business first and be bad-tempered about it.
Well, he was leaving tomorrow and then she wouldn't have to worry what he thought about her, would she?
Back in her room, she changed and got ready to go back up to reception. All her energy had been sapped by the negative anger she felt. She couldn't even be bothered to fix up her hair, but brushed the thick chestnut waves to hang loosely over her shoulders instead.
****
Daniel appeared in the doorway as Laura was showing a final guest the best route to take back to the airport. The sight of his tall figure, handsome in a soft sweater and dark jeans, took her breath away despite her lingering fury with him, and she stammered her way through the rest of the directions in a haze. Daniel moved out of the way as the guest thanked her and left, then came in, closing the door behind him.
"Do you have a secret admirer?" He pointed to a box of chocolates and a bunch of flowers on her desk.
Laura shook her head, trying not to interpret his expression the way she wanted to, not daring to believe it might be one of jealousy.
"No. Not secret, anyway. They're thank-you gifts from guests who are leaving tomorrow," she told him curtly.
"I'm surprised Paulo doesn't try to persuade you to work here full time," he said gently. "You seem to be popular with the guests."
"With most of them, yes."
Daniel nodded. "You are with me, too. It's just that I've been too busy or tired, or maybe too stupid, to notice it half the time. This trip . . . I had a lot of work to get through. I'd only just got back from my last trip and I was still tired from that. I hadn't expected the owners to be away . . . and I didn't expect or want any distractions." He shrugged. "A whole list of excuses, I know, but they've all added up to make me say things I shouldn't have. Things I'm sorry for. I am sorry, Laura."
He smiled apologetically, and her heart melted. It seemed he'd listened to her rant after all, and now he was making an effort to eat humble pie, although she doubted he'd had much practice in the past.
"You have jumped to some pretty outrageous conclusions about me," she grumbled half-heartedly.
Daniel raised a quizzical eyebrow. "And you haven't about me? You assumed I was ruthless and heartless in business. You thought I was out to seduce a teenage girl." When Laura looked sheepish, he said quietly, "And you're such a lovely distraction. Will you come out with me tonight?"
"Yes," she answered simply. How could she not? It would be bittersweet to spend the evening with him, knowing he was leaving tomorrow and most likely she would never see him again, but it would be worse if they parted on angry or awkward terms. At least this way she might have some pleasant memories to see her through the first few miserable weeks back home while she got over him. And get over him she would.
Forcing a smile on her face, she picked
up her bag and keys and locked the door behind them. "Where are we going?"
He shot her an enigmatic look. "I'm not telling. You'll have to wait and see."
Laura climbed into the car beside him. She loved it when he was like this, lighthearted and teasing. Too often he was intent on his business, making him confrontational and difficult to talk to, but tonight he had decided to be charming and a little mysterious. She relaxed, determined to enjoy it while it lasted. When they reached Viana do Castelo, she realised where they might be headed as the car climbed the steep curving road above the town. "We're going up to Santa Luzia?"
Daniel nodded. "Why not? Apparently it's a beautiful view."
Laura looked at him, surprised. He was right, but she'd only ever been up the hill in the daytime to see the church at the top and to gaze at the view across the town and river. And she'd never driven up here – she'd always used the funicular railway that rattled its way up the hillside, but she supposed it didn't operate so late in the evening. The drive was a little hairy along the climbing road, and she suppressed a sigh of relief when Daniel stopped the car and they got out.
"What's that?" she asked with suspicion as he lifted a basket from the back of the car.
"What does it look like? We're going to have a picnic."
Laura watched in amazement as he spread a rug on the grass and began to unpack the box. There were a half bottle of wine and two glasses, plates, cutlery, cold chicken, salad, bread, sweet pastries—even a flask of coffee. When he'd laid everything out, he laughed at the startled expression on her face, the sound vibrant in the open evening air.
"Before you start interrogating me about the source of all this, I'll confess I had an accomplice in Maria," he said in mock apology.
She raised her eyes skywards. "I might have known." Sitting on the rug, she took the glass of wine he offered her. "What would you have done with all this if I hadn't come?"
"I suppose I would have had an extremely large supper on my own in my room."
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