by Lynda Stacey
But Ella falling into his life had been more than he could have wished for. His mother would have loved her, just as much as he did. The thought made Will jerk back to reality. Did he love Ella? Was that how he felt? He tried to be objective, tried to rationalise, but the more he considered it, the more he realised that Ella was the first person he thought about when he woke up each day and the last person on his mind before falling to sleep.
‘Knock, knock. Can I come in?’ Ella stood at the door in a black, fitted, off the shoulder dress. The soft curls of her auburn hair hung loosely around her shoulders, framing her face. It was still daylight and Will had thought about eating in the garden, but now, looking at Ella, he was pleased he hadn’t decided to. She was hardly dressed for al fresco dining. He stood for just a moment to take in the view. ‘Is it too much? Sarah made me go shopping.’
Will shook his head. ‘Not at all. I’ve … I’ve made roast beef, roast potatoes and … and greens. Is that okay?’ The nerves once again escalated through his body and he turned around to pull the potatoes out of the oven. ‘It’s almost ready,’ he said, shaking the tray, before putting them back inside. He stood and looked her up and down. She looked amazing.
Ella stepped towards him. ‘The flowers are gorgeous, thank you,’ she whispered as her arm went around his neck. She pulled him towards her and her lips grazed his, as she glanced into the lounge. ‘Wow, table looks great.’
Will led her into the room where the wine already stood on the table. ‘Here, I’ll pour.’
‘Actually, wait. There’s something missing. Wait there.’ Ella ran from the room, out of the door and into her own cottage. Two minutes later, she was back. ‘Candles, we need candles.’ She held a box of candles in her hand and Will felt the colour physically drain from his face.
‘Ella—’ He stopped abruptly; how on earth did he tell her about his family? ‘Ella, please. I don’t like candles. Please don’t light them.’ He knew the words were weak, and knew that Ella had no way of understanding.
She looked at him with puzzled eyes. ‘Don’t be silly. They’re lovely. I have candles everywhere, all the time.’ She began to pull one out of the box, making Will grab at it.
‘Ella, I said no. I don’t want them in my house, nor do I want them in yours.’ He took in a deep breath, knew he sounded insane and pulled Ella to a seat on the settee. With tears in his eyes, he began to explain.
Ella listened intently as Will recounted the night his whole family had died. She closed her eyes and felt tears drop down her face as she saw the vulnerability in his. Now, everything made sense. She thought of the day at the beach, the way he’d looked into the fire beacons, how sad he’d been and how she’d wondered even back then what his story was. It also explained to her why he’d come to live up in the north.
She held him close. She now knew what she wanted and Will Taylor was at the top of her list. She knew he’d gone to the trouble of cooking, but she wasn’t hungry. Since seeing him today, standing at the door looking in at Rick Greaves, with all that doubt on his face, she’d thought of nothing else but convincing him that he was the one she wanted and had no intention of wasting another moment.
‘Will?’ Ella grazed her lips with his.
A look of uncertainty flashed across his face and Ella held her breath with anticipation, but then felt him pull her towards him. His lips touched hers once, twice and then with a passion she’d never known, he parted her lips. He was strong and demanding. His tongue sent shivers racing down her spine, making her moan with desire.
Ella took in a breath; the soft undertones of his aftershave roused her senses as for a moment his lips left hers and began working their way down her neck. Ella gasped. She knew that this, tonight, here in this cottage was more than just a kiss. And she responded eagerly as the desire engulfed them both.
‘Ella …’ Will stopped. His breathing was laboured but he searched her eyes. The word was simple. One word, one tiny question that meant so much.
But Ella had no doubts and she nodded without hesitation. ‘Will, take me to bed.’ Her eyes locked with his.
‘Ella. Are … are you sure? I need to know that you’re sure.’
Ella pulled away, suddenly doubting her actions and began to turn towards the door. ‘I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have …’ Ella felt tears spring to her eyes. She’d been too forward and embarrassment flooded through her. But Will’s arms went around her waist.
‘Don’t … Ella … Don’t go. Please.’
Ella could hear the nerves in his voice. His hands gripped her hips and lingered there for just a moment, before he turned her around. ‘Don’t go.’ His eyes implored hers. ‘Because, Ella, if you go, I don’t know what I’d do. You’re everything to me … you’re so beautiful and I, well … right now, I really want to kiss you.’ She felt his lips touch hers. His mouth moved slowly, sensually and his hands pulled her hips closer to his. She could feel his arousal, could feel his need and once again she responded urgently to his kiss. Ella lifted her hands up and ran them over his shoulders. She could feel the muscles flex beneath her touch. She began to unbutton his shirt and the urgency between them increased. Will picked Ella up, her legs wound around his waist and he moved them both toward the bottom of the stairs, his eyes continually searching hers.
Ella felt him take two of the steps. She knew the staircase was steep and she had no intention of allowing him to carry her the whole way up. Her hands tore at his shirt, her tongue teased his and she felt herself being lowered to the steps, where his hand began to unzip her dress.
‘Shall we?’ She pointed up the stairs and smiled seductively, pulling Will up the stairway behind her.
She caught the deep, sensitive sparkle in his eyes and thought carefully before she spoke again. ‘Will. I really want this, I want us,’ she whispered as her arm hooked him behind the neck and pulled him into the bedroom. His shirt immediately dropped to the floor and once again she kissed him. Slowly this time, sensual, and at an unhurried and gradual pace. Every touch was one of meaning, every kiss one of passion.
‘Oh, Ella, I want you so much. But please, I … I have to tell you something first.’ He once again searched her eyes. ‘Please … you have to understand that I’ve wanted to tell you this for ages.’ She saw the panic in his eyes.
‘Will …’ She wanted to stop him, wanted to tell him that she knew, but she realised that this was something that he needed to do. Her eyes closed and she waited for him to speak.
‘Ella, I should have told you before. There can’t be any more secrets, not between us, not if …’ He sighed and then purposely took a step away from her. His hands went to his head, obviously struggling with his thoughts. ‘Ella, I’m a reporter. No, damn it. I’m the Editor at the Scarborough Star.’ He closed his eyes, before opening them to search her face. ‘I swear to God, I’ve tried to tell you before. So many times.’
‘Will, I know.’ She teased his lips with hers. ‘I’ve known for ages and it doesn’t matter. What does matter is that right now, all I want is for you to make love to me.’ She looked into his eyes, saw the relief and laughed, before pulling him onto the bed. Her lips were crushed against his, as the strong, muscular contour of his body pressed passionately against hers, his arousal now fully apparent.
‘Ella, you’re so beautiful.’ His words were a whisper as his lips began to work their magic. ‘Please let this be true. Please want me.’
The words were soft, gentle, yet heartbreaking all at the same time. Ella had never wanted anything so much in her life. Her heart pounded like a bass drum. Her hands moved to his jeans in a single silent answer to his question. She pulled at them with urgency as she lifted her face back to his. Their mouths and tongues moved together in a unison she’d never previously known and their hunger grew with each moment that passed.
‘I want you so much,’ Will whispered, between kisses. He skimmed her hips and thighs with one hand, as the other moved up her spine sending currents of desire spinning through he
r entire body.
Instinctively, Ella arched towards him. Her dress had long since been removed and as she lay beneath him she heard the last piece of her underwear drop to the floor. She gasped as Will pressed against her. His deep eyes once again locked with hers and she gently nodded, giving him all the permission he needed. Will slowly began to explore her. He took his time to arouse, to give pleasure and to show the affection that she desperately needed. Ella lay back to surrender to his touch as Will’s hands carefully touched her with a pleasure that was explosive and pure, and then the deep sparkle of his eyes caught hers. His mouth once again descended and their bodies became one. They moved together in a deep, rhythmic motion and Ella allowed herself to shout out with desire as her body responded with the intensity of an erupting volcano.
‘I love you,’ Will whispered as he supported himself above her. ‘I loved you from the first moment I spied on you through the fence.’
Ella’s eyes lit up. ‘Did you really spy on me?’
He nodded. A cheeky grin crossed his face and his hands moved down and he began to tickle her.
Ella giggled. ‘Stop tickling. I’m too busy thinking of what you’ve just said!’ She slapped his arm and then immediately rubbed it better. ‘So, you were watching me that day, before you leaped over the fence and frightened me half to death?’ Ella poked him in the ribs as he curled up behind her. His arms protectively enveloped her body and for a few moments they lay together in silence.
‘Are you sleepy, Ella?’ he whispered gently, closing his eyes, just as Ella jumped out of bed, grabbed Will’s shirt and pulled it on.
‘Not a chance, Mr Taylor.’ She limped towards the door. ‘My ankle still hurts, but I’m hungry and, as far as I’m aware, there’s roast beef downstairs.’ She began to hop down the stairs. ‘I’ll race you for it.’
Chapter Thirty-Two
Will stared at the laptop and at the picture that glared back at him. ‘Damn it.’ He shook his head. ‘It’s so damned obvious.’ He stood up, paced up and down and then grabbed his jacket. ‘Why didn’t I see this before?’ He leaned forward, pressed print and waited for the picture of Nina, with her mother and stepfather, standing next to a dark blue Golf to emerge.
Will hesitated. Ella was still sleeping upstairs. But he had to go. The fact that Nina or her stepfather owned a blue Golf was far too significant. He had to see if they still had the car, especially after the night he’d spent with Ella. He’d lain awake watching her for hours. He’d held her and comforted her through disturbed sleep. She’d had nightmares and he’d watched her pain as she’d tossed and turned with the torment. The memory and emotion of that night was more than obvious. He hated that her dreams were so vivid and hated that on most nights she went through them alone. Well, that wouldn’t happen any more. From now on, provided she wanted him, he was determined to look after her, determined to be there for her and determined to find out who had attacked her that night. He wanted them brought to justice, in the hope that seeing them locked up for good would help Ella sleep.
He looked at his watch and hesitated. ‘Can I do it? Can I get there and back before Ella or Millie Moo wake up?’ After eating dinner the night before, Ella had gone back to her cottage to bring Millie over to Will’s for the night. He was amazed that Millie hadn’t already bounced down the stairs and he silently gave himself permission to go. ‘I won’t be long and if I find the car, I’ll phone the police. By tonight we could have justice.’ It was what he wanted more than anything. He headed out through the back door, closing it carefully behind him.
Will jumped into his car. ‘I won’t be long,’ he whispered to the bedroom window behind which Ella slept. He looked across to the farm. The morning sun began to creep up in the sky and Bobby was already sitting on his tractor, waving enthusiastically. Will smiled and waved back. He felt sorry for Bobby. He was lonely, and only the week before Will had explained to Ella about how Bobby had been cuddling Millie on the day of her fire. How he’d been upset that she’d shouted at him and that all he’d wanted was to be friends. He was sure that Bobby was harmless and Ella had agreed that the next time she saw him she’d speak to him.
The mere thought of Ella put a smile on his face. ‘A new sun, a new beginning,’ he whispered as he thought of the night before. Of how he and Ella had tenderly made love. Of how cautious, yet demanding their bodies had been and then of how they’d fed each other the roast dinner and laughed. It had felt like years since he’d laughed so much and then, once the laughing had turned back into passion, they’d moved back to the bedroom, where they’d made love repeatedly right through the night until every millimetre of his body had been on fire with desire. But then, as he watched Ella sleep, she’d screamed. She’d grabbed hold of his arm in her sleep and he’d been so full of adrenaline that he tossed and turned for hours. In the end, it had been easier to go downstairs. To make a drink and open the laptop. He began scanning through social media, through images and through any data that he could find in the hope that something would jump out, something new, something of value. He looked at anything and everything that might point to Ella’s attacker. He’d flicked through many pages over and over again. And then he’d seen it. A photograph that had been sent to Nina’s social media two years before. The words, ‘Hey, do you remember this day?’ beside it. And there it had been. The car, a dark blue Golf, her family and the fairground behind them.
Will had stared at the teenage Nina. He thought of how petite and vulnerable she’d looked. Yet now, even though she was still petite, she came over as strong and capable, albeit a little in need. Was this your family car? Did it belong to your stepfather? Will quickly looked back at his notes. Nina’s stepfather was Peter Hannigan. Was that whose car it was?
And the main question was, if it had been his car, did he still own it? Or was it just a huge coincidence that he’d once owned a blue Golf? Will knew from the phone conversations he had heard Nina having that her stepfather was controlling. But was he capable of murder? And if so, why? A million questions flew around Will’s mind. Will had seen the way Nina had looked at Rick. She’d told him of their one night stands, of how Rick would take her to his bed and then a few days later he’d move onto the next woman, girlfriend or wife. Had Nina told her stepfather what had happened? Had he taken revenge on her behalf, or had he been protecting her interests? Looking after his little girl? But if he had, why had he killed Rick’s wives or Michelle? Why attack Ella? There were so many unanswered questions and, from what Will surmised, all of them could probably be answered by Peter Hannigan.
Will pulled the car to a stop. He looked down at the address he’d written down and then back up at the farm. This was where Nina was supposed to be living, but the house looked as though no one had been there for years. To say it looked run-down was an understatement. Trees and bushes were overgrown, the hedges hadn’t been cut in years and the five-bar gate was broken and rusty. Will slowly pushed it open. He listened for signs of life, for livestock or dogs. And, after a few minutes, he took a tentative step forward, and then another. The farm was quiet, far too quiet, and Will’s eyes searched his surroundings constantly as he crept towards the outbuildings. They stood to one side of the house and had no doubt been where the livestock had been housed. But now nothing looked used. Even the house didn’t look lived in. It looked old, disused and possibly haunted, just like those houses he’d seen in films and he felt pleased that he’d come here in daylight and not late at night. He stared up at the property. He’d never seen anything like it. The windows were beyond dirty. Most of the curtains were closed; some hung in pieces like rags, with nets so dirty they obviously hadn’t been washed in years. If he didn’t know better, he’d have thought it derelict, forgotten and unloved. But this was Nina’s home; this was where she and her stepfather lived. Or was it?
Will stepped to one side. What he’d come to find wouldn’t be in the house, and he turned his attention to the outbuildings, which were in a worse state of decay than the house.
Most were derelict and others had fallen into complete disrepair. There were either holes in the roof or no roof at all and Will wondered how much maintenance Peter Hannigan had actually done over the years.
‘What kind of a man are you?’ Will whispered as he crept from one building to the next. He looked through holes in the walls or doors, but saw no sign of life, no livestock, no machinery.
Will then made his way towards the only barn that didn’t have a door. He stepped forward cautiously and peeped inside. ‘Okay, what have we here?’ he sang out as he pulled at the edge of a tarpaulin. It looked as though it had been quickly thrown over a dark blue vehicle. Will pulled his phone from his pocket and took pictures from different angles. He then pulled at the tarpaulin until it fell to the floor to fully reveal the dark blue Golf, its bonnet still damaged and bloodstained.
‘Oh, boy.’ Will looked down at his phone. His hands were shaking so much he dropped it; he knelt down to catch his breath. ‘I really have to phone the police. No, Sarah. No, the police,’ he whispered to himself as he looked down at his phone, picked it back up and began to tap at the screen. ‘Sarah, yes, Sarah, she’ll know what to do.’ He pressed the icon and watched as Sarah’s name flashed up on his screen as it began to call.
There was a noise. It came from behind him and for a moment he froze on the spot, glancing down at the screen. ‘Come on, answer,’ he whispered, but then a torturous pain suddenly surged through every part of his body.
Chapter Thirty-Three
Ella woke and stretched. She could hear Millie whining and for a moment she felt disorientated and just a little confused. She turned over against the white duvet and pillow and caught the shaft of sun that had found its way between a gap in the white curtains. She sat up to see Millie bouncing around on the floor, waiting to be let out. ‘Morning, puppy,’ she said as she smiled and then laughed as the memory of the night before came flooding back. She climbed out of bed and began to search the floor. She had no idea where her clothes were, and, worse than that, the bed beside her was empty. Will had gone.