by Julia James
He kissed her again. Devouringly, possessively. Wrapping her in a bear hug that enveloped her completely.
‘And now I’ve got you!’ he said. ‘And I am never, never letting you go again! So get your things and tell your boss you’re leaving. Tell her to hire as many agency staff as she needs to cover for you and send me the bill! Because I am taking you away with me right now.’
He straightened, holding her elbows, looking down at her. Then, abruptly, he frowned.
‘You’re crying,’ he said. His frown deepened. ‘Why are you crying?’
His answer was a convulsive sob, and Flavia threw herself into his arms again. He held her as she cried, weeping out the tears inside her, weeping out all the guilt that had racked her for so, so long. Held her and soothed her, his strong, protective palms smoothing down her back, his lips brushing her eyelids. When all the tears were shed he kissed her again gently, so gently.
‘All done?’ he asked, his eyes as soft as his voice.
She nodded. All she was capable of doing.
‘Good,’ he said. ‘Let’s go.’
He led her towards the door, taking her hand. She would go with him to the ends of the earth now, and never leave him again.
Gratitude, wonder—love—filled her like light pouring through a window.
‘Where to?’ she asked, gazing lovingly up at him.
He smiled down at her. ‘Where do you think?’ He paused to kiss her nose. ‘I’ve recently become the extremely satisfied owner of an exceptionally beautifully country house.’ He paused again, this time to brush her lips with his. ‘I think you’ll like it,’ he said. ‘It’s a place filled with love—a place where a beautiful, brave girl once lived. She did the wrong thing for the right reason and then found it was the right thing after all. And as her reward—’ he smiled ‘—she got to live there happily ever after …’
He gazed into her eyes. ‘Does that sound good?’ he asked.
She lifted her mouth to his.
‘Blissful,’ she whispered. ‘Because it comes with the one thing I want more than anything in the whole world—the one thing I can’t live without.’ She kissed him softly, with all the love in the world in it. ‘You,’ she said.
EPILOGUE
‘HOW would you feel,’ Leon said, with a slightly tentative questioning note in his voice, his arm around Flavia’s shoulder as they stood on the terrace at Harford in the autumnal air, ‘about having a helipad here? It would mean I could commute to the City and so spend more time here.’
Flavia leant into his shoulder and smiled warmly up at him. ‘It’s a brilliant idea. The lawn really isn’t a good place to land.’
He gave a rueful laugh. ‘No, I can see that. Not good for your herbaceous borders.’
It was Flavia’s turn to sound tentatively questioning. ‘Are you sure you want to be based here, Leon? You’re not used to country living …’
‘Cities are overrated,’ he said dryly. ‘Even now that I can live in penthouses and not on the streets. But even though I would love to be based here at Harford, there will still be more times than I would like that I have to travel abroad. Especially when I’m checking up on my South American pro bono projects.’
Her eyes warmed. ‘Will you let me come with you?’ she asked. ‘I’ll learn Spanish, I promise, so I won’t be a total waste of space! I’d love to see all the good work you are doing.’
‘I would love to show it to you. My endless concern is how few the projects are, compared with the need for them. So many lives need to be transformed to lift people out of poverty.’
She heard the frustration in his voice and kissed him softly on the cheek. ‘You’re a good man, Leon Maranz. A better man than so many who have made it in this world. Think of men like my father, who’s used people all his life for his own selfish ends, caring for no one but himself!’
Anger was etched into her voice. Leon looked down at her.
‘Maybe there is a cosmic karma after all. His Far Eastern bail out came to nothing, and after I’d made it crystal clear to him my offer was off the table because of the way he’s treated you and your mother’s family he lost everything. Including the lovely Anita, who wanted a more solvent protector.’
Leon’s voice changed from harsh to reassuring. ‘But you needn’t be afraid that he’ll try and contact you. I’ve done a deal with him. While he leaves you totally alone and stays out of the country I’ll pay him a modest monthly pension. He’s taken himself off to Spain, and the last I heard he was trying to set himself up as a property developer. Don’t worry,’ he said caustically, ‘I’ve got someone keeping tabs on him, and if his business ethics veer towards the dodgy I’ll be leaning on him painfully. He won’t intrude into your life any more.’ He paused. ‘Our lives,’ he amended.
He turned her towards him, gazing down at her uplifted face. Flavia felt her heart squeeze and melt with love, as she was bathed in the love-light in his dark, expressive eyes.
‘Our lives, my beautiful, adored Flavia. Our lives together from now onwards. Never to be parted again.’
Softly he lowered his mouth to hers, kissing her gently with sweet, possessing passion. He cupped her face with this hands.
‘I wish I could have met your grandparents to tell them how wonderful a granddaughter they raised. To tell them how grateful—how profoundly and eternally grateful I am to have found you. And to tell them—’ he glanced around at the autumn splendour, framing the house in a blaze of colour ‘—how beautiful their house is. How wonderful a home it will continue to be for you and me—’
‘And for our children?’ There was a wistful note in Flavia’s voice.
He gave a warm laugh. ‘Oh, yes, for our children. Definitely, definitely for our children. You were happy here when you were a child, and you know all the secret places in the house and in the grounds. Our children can roam wild here, be happy and carefree. And you and I—’ he kissed the tip of her nose, sliding his arm around her shoulder and strolling with her towards the open French windows leading into the drawing room ‘—will watch them grow well and strong, and safe and loved. All our days. All our years together.’
At the entrance to the drawing room he paused and looked out over the lawns. ‘We’ll make a happy home. A happy family.’ He drew her fast against his heart. ‘A blissful, perfect marriage. Wouldn’t you agree, Mrs Maranz?’
She clutched him close, radiant with happiness. ‘Absolutely,’ she breathed.
He laughed, happiness in his voice as in his heart. ‘Then let’s crack open that waiting bottle of champagne and drink to our marriage! And then …’
The expression in his eyes altered and Flavia felt a quickening of her pulse, a breathlessness in her lungs.
‘And then, my beautiful, beautiful bride, I’m going to carry you upstairs and remove you from that exquisite but really quite unnecessary bridal gown you look so breathtaking in. We shall have a wedding night that will melt the very stars in heaven!’
She frowned. ‘I don’t think stars can melt, can they?’ she queried.
‘Whatever,’ he said airily, and hefted the champagne bottle out of its ice-bucket. Then he paused. ‘On second thought …’
He scooped up two flutes, hooked his fingers around the neck of the champagne bottle, and then, with effortless strength, scooped up Flavia as well. She cried out in laughing surprise and he grinned down at her.
‘The champagne can come with us,’ he said.
‘Whatever,’ she answered airily.
He grinned again, kissed her nose, and carried her and the champagne upstairs.
* * * * *
All the characters in this book have no existence outside the imagination of the author, and have no relation whatsoever to anyone bearing the same name or names. They are not even distantly inspired by any individual known or unknown to the author, and all the incidents are pure invention.
All Rights Reserved including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form. This edition is pub
lished by arrangement with Harlequin Enterprises II BV/S.à.r.l. The text of this publication or any part thereof may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, storage in an information retrieval system, or otherwise, without the written permission of the publisher.
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First published in Great Britain 2012
by Mills & Boon, an imprint of Harlequin (UK) Limited,
Eton House, 18-24 Paradise Road, Richmond, Surrey TW9 1SR
© Julia James 2012
ISBN: 978-1-408-97409-4
Table of Contents
Cover
Excerpt
About the Author
Title Page
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Epilogue
Copyright