Forbidden Night with the Duke

by Annie Claydon

  * * *

  Megan rolled over in her bed, reaching for something. Someone. It took a few moments to slough off the remains of sleep and remember that Jaye wasn’t there.

  They’d talked for a long time last night. Favourite films, favourite books. Best music tracks had been a hard-fought one. Jaye preferred jazz and she liked rock. And lubricated by a long day, a dark evening and more than one measure of brandy, they’d both probably said far more than they’d intended about themselves.

  And when finally he’d propelled her towards her bungalow, both stumbling and laughing quietly in the darkness, he’d lingered for a few moments on the porch. So close that Megan had found herself melting at the thought of a goodnight kiss.

  But she hadn’t been that drunk. If the darkness would cover anything they did, if Jaye’s sense of discretion could be relied on to keep it away from anyone here, it would still have been a secret. And Megan wasn’t like her mother. She didn’t do secret relationships, and she didn’t do relationships with her boss.

  The banging on the door made her jump. It was far too loud to be Jaye, he would have knocked. Megan crawled out of bed, disentangling herself from the mosquito net and grabbing her dressing gown, and headed blearily for the door.

  ‘We have many people for clinic today.’ One of the junior nurses stood on the porch. ‘Dr Jayananda says no time for sleep.’

  A faint remembrance of how they’d come so close to having no time for sleep once before drifted into her mind. Megan was sure he would have woken her himself then, and in quite a different way.

  But this was... If it wasn’t quite so delicious, she could live with that. A busy clinic was something she could share with Jaye, and feel that it was a worthwhile thing and not an exercise in doing all the things she’d sworn to herself that she’d never do.

  ‘Thanks. Will you tell him I’ll be there in fifteen minutes?’ A lukewarm shower would do wonders in getting those thoughts out of her head. Which would start the day the way she meant to continue it.

  * * *

  Megan shone a little bit more each day. Jaye had known that she would be the person he wanted as the charity’s overseas co-ordinator almost from the start. Seeing her do what needed to be done, picking up a spade as readily as a medical bag when the situation called for it, had confirmed him in that thought.

  He’d spoken with John Ferris, and they’d agreed that John would offer her the new job when she returned to London after her three-month placement here. And then Jaye had fallen back into the comfortable routine of working with Megan, pretending that he wasn’t quite a boss and she wasn’t quite a friend.

  But he hadn’t reckoned on how hard she was finding it to leave here. Every day the sadness in her eyes seemed to grow, and he longed to tell her that she’d be back. Finally, he broke.

  The lights were on in her bungalow, and he could see her shadow against the thin curtains in the living area. Megan was obviously still up and still working. Jaye tapped on the door, holding the folded offer letter in his other hand.

  ‘Have you got a moment? There’s something I want to discuss with you.’ Her gaze flipped behind him in the direction of his open-air office. ‘In private.’

  ‘Yes, of course. Come in.’ She stood back from the door and started to gather up the papers and maps that had been spread out on the sofa. ‘Sit down...’

  ‘It won’t take a moment.’ Jaye felt his hand tremble, and put it in his pocket. He hadn’t realised how very much this meant to him. ‘I’ve been talking with John Ferris and he’s asked me to give you this.’

  ‘An official letter...?’ She grimaced at the headed notepaper. ‘Is it ominous?’

  ‘No, it’s not ominous.’ Jaye hadn’t been sure quite why he had gone to these lengths to step back from this. Rather than just tell Megan, he’d typed out the letter and signed it on John’s behalf. It occurred to him that if she turned the job down, it might not be such a personal rejection that way.

  She read the letter through, flipping through the pages. As she did so, a smile began to grow on her face. ‘You’re offering me... Overseas Development Co-ordinator?’

  ‘Yes. Don’t be fooled by the co-ordinator part. We’re hoping that you’ll have hands-on, day-to-day contact with patients. A practical assessment of their needs is what drives us.’

  She nodded. ‘So...pretty much what I’ve been doing here for the last month?’

  ‘Not quite. You’ll have more authority, and a number of different sites to cover. There’s travelling involved, but it won’t be just a whistle-stop tour and then back to London. We’ll be expecting you to stay with the various projects for a few months and get acquainted with what really makes each of them tick. Then work up proposals with the various directors of each centre and report direct to John Ferris and the board of trustees.’

  ‘It sounds...’ She smiled suddenly, flushing pink and pressing the letter to her heart. ‘This is the job of my dreams, Jaye.’

  And the quiver in his stomach wouldn’t let up until he had a yes from her. ‘And...?’

  Suddenly she stepped forward, flinging her arms around his neck, and burying her face in his shoulder. It so surprised Jaye that he wasn’t sure what to do, other than keep his hands hovering inches behind her back, not touching her.

  As quickly as she’d done it, she backed off again, her cheeks bright red.

  ‘What do you say, Megan?’ He had to know. Now.

  ‘Yes. Thank you, Jaye. It’s what I really want. More than what I want. Thank you so much.’

  ‘I can tell John that you’ve accepted the offer, then?’ Jaye struggled to maintain his distance when all he really wanted to do was to hug her back and accept her thanks for himself.

  ‘Yes. Should I write something?’

  Probably not, since John would be expecting her to reply direct to Jaye. ‘That’s okay. I’ll tell him, and you can sort out all the details when you get back to London.’

  ‘And... Will I be working with you? From time to time?’

  ‘Since I’m planning on spending more time here and with our other projects, I imagine our paths will cross fairly regularly. But we’ll both be working quite independently of each other.’ He saw Megan’s cheeks burn hot again. If that was going to be a problem, then it was a big enough world, and he could contrive to avoid her. And he’d remind her that she’d already said yes and that he considered it binding.

  ‘I’m so glad. I’ve seen what you’ve done here and it’s... I really respect it.’ She turned her gaze up to him, her eyes shining, and Jaye almost fell to his knees with a mixture of relief and sudden pleasure that she’d been taking notice and she approved.

  ‘There’s plenty more to do.’ He risked a step further. ‘I’m looking forward to tackling it with you.’

  Megan was smiling now, a great big beautiful Cheshire cat smile, and as excitement set in, she could hardly keep still. She practically danced across to the small kitchenette, and Jaye watched her, allowing pleasure to seep into his bones.

  ‘Coffee...? We have to celebrate, and this is the last I have left.’

  Much as he would have loved to celebrate with her, in just about any way that Megan would let him, it was a bad idea. His own excitement and hers were an explosive mix, and Jaye already had what he wanted. He’d never forgive himself if he spoilt it all now.

  ‘It’s...a bit late for coffee.’

  ‘You think I’m going to sleep? After this? Coffee’s not going to make any difference. I can make you a cup of tea if you prefer it.’

  ‘Thanks, but I need to turn in. But I’m really pleased you’ve said yes.’ Jaye had reckoned on leaving the next bit for tomorrow, but he was on a roll. And he wouldn’t be sleeping tonight either. ‘There’s one more thing. I want you to take a day off.’

  Her eyebrows shot up. ‘A day off? I don’t have time. I’d set aside the ne
xt few weeks to finish up the plans for the women’s centre with Ranjini.’

  ‘You’ll be coming back to do that. And you’ve been working twenty-four seven since you got here.’

  Megan shrugged. ‘Okay. I can...read a book, I suppose. Or sit under a tree.’

  ‘And how long will you be able to keep that up for before you decide there’s something pressing you need to do in the clinic?’ Jaye grinned.

  ‘A couple of hours. Possibly more.’ Megan grinned back.

  ‘That’s what I thought. Which is why I have a proposal for you. I promised my parents I’d go up to their house here, to make sure it’s okay. Since things are running pretty well now at the clinic, I have time to do it. It’s thirty miles from here and we can be there and back in a day...’ Jaye couldn’t quite say the words.

  Come with me. I want to spend the day with you.

  ‘It’s a long way to go just to make sure I take a day off.’

  ‘If that’s what it takes... Or I could lock you in your bungalow.’

  ‘Nah. I’d find a way out.’ Megan laughed. ‘Okay, I’ll come. Thank you.’

  Chapter Thirteen

  MEGAN HAD HARDLY expected the house to be anything other than beautiful. Set in the mountains, a little way back from the road, it was surrounded by lush trees, the roof sprawling out over a wide veranda that ran all around the building. It looked cool and serene after a hot and sticky drive.

  Inside, the huge shaded windows, mosaic-tiled floors and pale walls gave the place an air of calm and quiet. White muslin curtains billowed lazily in the breeze, like flapping sails on a great ship, and the view across the mountains was spectacular.

  ‘This is lovely, Jaye.’ Despite the silence, the house was clearly regularly cleaned and aired. ‘Is there anyone here?’

  ‘The housekeeper and her husband. I’ve asked Mrs Jayasuna to make lunch but I have time to show you the garden before it’s ready. Would you like to go upstairs and freshen up?’

  He led her up the stairs to a large bedroom, dominated by a carved teak bed.

  ‘You’re going to tell me that this was all made in a little workshop that the charity sponsors, aren’t you?’ Taking an interest in the provenance of the furniture kept Megan’s mind off the use to which the great bed could be put to.

  Jaye chuckled, gravitating away from the bed and towards the table that stood by the window. Perhaps he was of the same mind, but somehow that didn’t seem quite as challenging as it should be.

  ‘Quite a big workshop, actually. And we don’t sponsor them, they don’t need it. But they do pay their craftsmen a fair wage and they only use sustainable timber.’

  ‘For a better night’s sleep?’

  He grinned. ‘Yes, much better. This was my parents’ first home after they were married. When they got to the point of settling for long enough to have a home.’

  ‘They travelled a lot?’

  Jaye nodded. ‘When you interviewed my parents, did my father tell you the story about pursuing my mother through five countries and two continents?’

  ‘Yes. He went into some detail. He said that he met her here in Sri Lanka, while she was travelling. She didn’t want to settle down, but he knew that she was the one for him. I thought that the five countries and two continents might be an exaggeration.’

  ‘It’s no exaggeration.’

  ‘So she did play hard to get?’ Megan couldn’t imagine Jaye’s parents ever having hesitated over making a commitment to each other. They seemed so right together.

  ‘Not that hard. She always left a forwarding address. After a while, they decided that it was a lot easier to just travel together. Then they settled here and I was born.’

  ‘Here? I didn’t realise...’

  ‘They came back to England to live when I was eighteen months old. I was born in this house.’ He gave the bedroom one last look, and then turned quickly. ‘I’ll see you downstairs.’

  Fifteen minutes later, Megan appeared on the veranda. She’d changed out of the chinos and blouse she’d travelled in and into a sleeveless blue dress that Jaye hadn’t seen before. She looked lovely, and the thought that she’d done this just for him brought a lump to his throat. Maybe he should have dressed for the meal too, instead of just changing his shirt.

  They had coffee on the veranda, and just to set the tone, Jaye brought up the subject of the women’s centre. It was a delight to see Megan’s eyes shine as they discussed the plans and delved more fully into the possibilities that she and Ranjini were hoping to make into realities. Then a turn around the gardens, stopping to identify trees and plants and to dangle their fingers in the shaded pool, where koi nibbled at their fingers and a grey heron eyed them beadily from its perch on one of the rocks at the centre of the pond.

  Lunch was set out on the veranda. It was easy to keep talking because Megan was easy to talk to—always interested in the world around her. And talk warded off the silence, where nothing else lay but passion.

  ‘You haven’t played carrom, then?’ Megan had asked him about the game that she’d seen Dinesh playing with one of the other men.

  ‘No. Does it always involve shouting at one another?’

  ‘No.’ Jaye chuckled. ‘The shouting’s an optional extra. It’s a bit like a combination between billiards and draughts.’

  ‘Oh. Do you have a set here? Can you show me?’

  Her glistening enthusiasm hovered in the air between them. Jaye fetched the polished carrom table, setting out the pieces and letting her choose one of the striker pieces from the box.

  ‘This is so pretty.’ She turned the heavy piece, inlaid with a carved flower, in her hand. ‘What do I do with it?’

  ‘Flick it with your finger, like this...’ Jaye demonstrated with one of the other striker pieces. ‘The idea is to get all nine of your pieces into the pockets at the corners of the board, and then the queen.’ He indicated the red circular piece.

  ‘Right. I’ve got it. I imagine there are tactics.’

  ‘Of course. Concentrate on flipping the striker piece first.’

  ‘So you’re not going to employ your tactics first time around?’ She shot him a reproving smile. ‘Where’s the fun in letting me win?’

  ‘You think I’m going to let you win?’ Jaye had reckoned on doing so for the first couple of rounds at least.

  She flipped her striker piece carefully across the board. Not quite enough to make much of an impression on the cluster of pieces in the centre of the board, but not bad for a first try. Then she leaned back, folding her arms.

  ‘Come on, then. Let’s see how it’s done.’

  He won the first round, not as easily as he should have done, but Jaye laughingly declared himself out of practice. Megan’s teasing encouraged him to try his best and win the second round more definitively. By the third round it had become a pitched battle.

  ‘Uh...’ Jaye winced as she deftly pocketed one of her own pieces. ‘I’m going to have to watch your technique. Are you sure you’re not an expert, and you’re just suckering me in?’

  ‘I play a decent game of bar billiards.’ She grinned at him. ‘And if I were suckering you in, you wouldn’t know about it.’

  ‘Think so? I’m not such an easy victim.’ Jaye flipped his striker piece, missing the intended target completely.

  ‘Ha! Sure you’re not suckering me in?’ Megan took her turn, pocketing the Queen, and Jaye totted up the scores.

  ‘That’s twenty-four points to sixteen.’ He was still eight points in the lead, and the growing competitiveness between them made Jaye resolve to widen that gap in the next round.

  ‘All right.’ She rubbed her hands together, blowing on her fingers. ‘Next round I’m going to take you down.’

  He broke away with an effort, getting to his feet and walking back to the lunch table to retrieve the full bottle of wine they�
��d ignored over lunch in favour of sparkling water. Maybe a drink would stop his head spinning.

  ‘I can see why you love this place so much.’ Megan accepted the glass of wine with a nod of thanks. ‘I wouldn’t want to leave.’

  ‘We always come back. When I was little, we used to come to Sri Lanka every summer. We caught up with our relatives on Dad’s side, had a bit of a holiday, but my parents were already involved with some healthcare projects here.’

  ‘As well as running the estate in Gloucestershire? It’s a lot to do.’

  ‘We have a lot of help to do it. My mother runs the estate when I’m away, but there are a whole army of people working there.’

  ‘And you knew you’d be a duke? When you were a child?’

  ‘Pretty much. My uncle died when I was nine, but he’d been ill for years before that, and he had no children. My mother and father never made too much of it but...’ Jaye could still feel the sinking feeling when he’d been called into the headmaster’s study the first term back at school after his uncle had died.

  ‘Other people did?’ Megan leaned forward in her chair, losing interest in the carrom table.

  ‘The headmaster at my school told me that I was different. That I was going to have responsibilities and that I had to be prepared for them.’

  ‘That’s no kind of thing to tell a nine-year-old...’ Outrage flashed in her eyes.

  ‘Maybe. He was right, though. People treat you differently when you’re a duke. It’s the first thing they notice about you, and some people don’t bother to look any further.’

  She nodded, sitting back in her chair and sipping her drink. It seemed that she was content with just that, and Jaye felt a tenuous sadness that Megan was willing to accept the idea without some kind of protest.

  ‘Is that what Sonia did?’ Megan finally spoke.

  ‘What makes you say that?’ Even now, Jaye couldn’t quite bring himself to admit it.

  ‘Because... I was never that close to Sonia but whenever I did see her she was flashing that boulder you gave her. Was it real?’