Reckless Runaway at the Racecourse

by Ros Clarke

  The crowd were cheering wildly, practically drowning out the official commentator. The Zhaos were jumping up and down in a very undignified fashion. Fliss was yelling and screaming as if she could propel Chrysanthemum past the winning post herself.

  Luke did nothing. He narrowed his gaze and blocked all the distractions out of his mind. Chrysanthemum was tiring. His stride was less even and he was blowing hard. Foxtrot Road was pushing on again. His grey nose was just ahead of Chrysanthemum’s dark bay. Half a head. A head.

  That was it, then.

  He’d lost the race, but Fliss was here. Luke tightened his hold, determined not to let her slip through his grasp again. She’d come today. She’d smiled at him, she’d held onto his hand when he needed it. She’d let him put his arms around her and hold her close. She’d trusted him to keep her safe.

  Luke hardly dared to start hoping that she planned to come back home.

  This was Fliss, after all. Running away was her speciality. For all Luke knew, she could be planning to head off on her round the world trip later that evening.

  A sudden gasp brought Luke back into the present moment. He blinked down at the track in amazement, hardly able to credit what his eyes were seeing. Chrysanthemum was rallying. The horse was proving himself a real fighter, battling his way back into the race with every stride.

  The winning post was getting closer and closer.

  The two horses were level again.

  Luke held his breath as they both plunged past the finish line together.

  The crowd were subdued, waiting for the official announcement of the photo finish. Up in the box, everyone turned to Luke for his opinion.

  He shrugged slightly. ‘On the nod. Too close to call.’

  Fliss eyed him closely. She knew. Luke squeezed her hand and tugged her away from the railings.

  ‘Don’t say anything,’ he murmured. ‘Not until they announce it for certain.’

  If the past ninety seconds had been stressful, the next five minutes were agonising. Fliss went down to the Winner’s Enclosure with Luke and the Zhaos, to greet Chrysanthemum with lots of congratulatory pats. Fliss dug out a packet of mints from the bottom of her handbag which the horse gobbled up greedily.

  Finally there was a whine from the tannoy, then the deep voice of the steward. The whole racecourse fell silent.

  ‘The results of the photo finish are as follows: First, number 17, Chrysanthemum…’

  The resounding cheers obliterated the rest of the announcement. Fliss was kissed and hugged by a hundred people she’d never met before. Mr Zhao gave her a big smacker on the lips and Mrs Zhao cried all over Fliss’s new dress.

  Fliss looked around for Luke but he was caught up in the hordes of racegoers reaching out to shake his hand and fling an arm around his shoulders in congratulations. While she was watching, someone caught hold of her arm and planted a firm kiss on her cheek.

  ‘Thomas!’ Fliss beamed at Luke’s father. ‘Isn’t it incredible?’

  ‘The boy’s done all right,’ he said but Fliss could see pride filling his eyes.

  ‘He’s done brilliantly.’ Fliss glanced at Luke, still being lauded on all sides. ‘Will you come for lunch tomorrow?’

  ‘If you promise to cook another fabulous roast dinner, darling.’

  ‘It’s a deal.’

  She smiled briefly at Thomas but her eyes slid back, like a magnet, drawn instinctively towards Luke. A tall, blonde-haired, middle-aged woman had stepped out of the crowd in front of him. Fliss couldn’t see his face but from the tension in his shoulders she knew this was trouble.

  ‘Is that…?’ she asked under her breath.

  ‘My ex-wife,’ Thomas confirmed.

  ‘Should I go and rescue him?’

  ‘The boy can look after himself.’

  Fliss wasn’t quite so sanguine. She’d had a glimpse of just how deeply his mother had hurt Luke in the past and she didn’t want anything to spoil this day for him. He deserved to enjoy his victory to the full.

  She pushed her way through to stand beside Luke. His mother was hardly recognisable from the photos she’d seen in Luke’s sitting room and Fliss recalled the scathing way Luke had spoken of her plastic surgery.

  Fliss looked at her curiously, noticing the the puffed up lips, the unnaturally smooth flesh around her eyes, the tiny scars that showed where the skin under her chin had been tightened. When she spoke, her mouth barely opened. Everything about her dripped of designer labels and the latest fashions. Gold and diamonds hung from her ears and around her neck. Fliss instantly identified the wildly expensive Christian Loubotin heels that were sinking into the soft grass.

  Neither Luke nor his mother were speaking. Fliss looked from one to the other. It was amazing how loud the silence could be in the middle of a noisy crowd.

  ‘I’m Felicity Merrick,’ she said cheerfully, offering her hand.

  ‘Annabel Stanley-Smythe.’ The older woman took Fliss’s hand in a perfunctory greeting.

  ‘Fliss,’ said Luke in warning tones.

  ‘Hasn’t Luke done brilliantly?’ Fliss went on, ignoring him.

  ‘He’s been very lucky.’

  Luke gave a humourless laugh.

  ‘Well, of course,’ Fliss agreed brightly. ‘But people make their own luck, don’t you think?’

  ‘I wouldn’t know.’ Annabel pursed her lips even more tightly.

  ‘Why are you here, Mother?’

  Annabel met Luke’s cold gaze. ‘A mother isn’t allowed to congratulate her own son?’

  He shrugged. ‘I suppose there’s a first time for everything.’

  Luke remained distant and upright as his mother leaned forward to kiss the air on either side of his cheeks. She put a hand on his arm and paused for a moment.

  ‘I’m sorry I’ve let you down, Luke. I hope you can be happy now.’

  Luke’s eyes softened and Fliss could see how desperately he longed for the love of his mother.

  ‘And you, Mum.’

  ‘Well,’ Fliss asked, golden eyes sparkling in the summer sunlight, ‘can you be happy now, do you think?’

  Annabel had disappeared back into the crowd, leaving Luke and Fliss facing each other.

  Luke’s lips curved hesitantly into a hopeful smile. ‘That depends.’

  Fliss stepped closer. ‘On what?’

  ‘Mr Caldecott? Mr Caldecott, can we have a word?’

  A TV presenter thrust a microphone in Luke’s face. He frowned but Fliss shook her head and indicated that he should do the interview.

  He turned reluctantly to face the camera.

  ‘Mr Caldecott, congratulations. That was a brilliant race and a brilliant training achievement so early in your career.’

  ‘Thank you.’

  ‘Can you tell us a little bit about the horse?’

  ‘He’s a fine colt, bred out of Orchid Rise, by Fabled Dancer. I’ve had him since he was a yearling. He’s always had great speed but we weren’t sure that he’d get the distance here today, especially on this softer ground.’

  The presenter asked a few more technical questions about the race, then finally gave Luke the opportunity he’d been waiting for.

  ‘Winning the Derby must be an incredible experience. Can you sum up for us how it feels?’

  Luke took hold of the microphone, looked past the camera until he found Fliss’s face, breathed deeply and took the biggest gamble of his life. ‘It feels amazing. In fact, it’s the second best thing that’s happened to me all day.’

  The presenter looked shocked. ‘The second best? You’d better tell us what beats winning the Derby.’

  ‘I’ll tell you when it’s happened.’

  ‘Mr Caldecott? I think perhaps the magnitude of your achievement is overwhelming you at the moment. You don’t seem to be making much sense. What are you talking about?’

  ‘I’m talking about the woman I love. And whether she loves me.’ Luke knew his voice had gone croaky and his knees seemed to have transformed into jelly.
But Fliss was still looking at him. And she was still smiling. And she hadn’t run away. Yet.

  He handed back the microphone and walked unsteadily towards Fliss.

  ‘What do you think?’ he asked cautiously. ‘Want to make this a day to remember?’

  ‘It’s already a day to remember,’ she pointed out. ‘Unless you plan to make a habit of winning the Derby.’

  Luke laughed and took hold of her shoulders. ‘You came back,’ he murmured. ‘I know I rushed you. I know you were scared. But you came back and I was hoping that meant something.’

  ‘I’ve been working on overcoming my fears,’ Fliss told him.

  ‘I can tell. I was impressed on the balcony earlier.’

  ‘I couldn’t have done it without you.’

  ‘But you did it.’

  ‘I did.’

  ‘So about that other fear?’

  Fliss searched his face, looking for him to provide her with the courage she needed to go through with her plan.

  Evidently she took too long about it because Luke spoke again. ‘It’s okay,’ he assured her, ‘if it’s still too much. Just come home with me. Please?’

  She reached up to push back a strand of hair that had fallen over his eyes.

  ‘The kitten misses you. Benjy misses you.’

  Fliss smiled. ‘I missed them, too.’

  ‘So do the horses and the stable lads. The yard doesn’t run without you, Fliss,’

  ‘You seem to have managed all right this week.’

  Luke raised an eyebrow. ‘Only because we followed your plans.’

  ‘Ah! Now we’re getting to it. You’re just looking for an unpaid secretary.’

  Luke slid his hands into her conker-bright hair and lifted her face up to his. ‘I’m not actually looking for a secretary at all right now.’

  He dropped a soft, questioning kiss against her lips. ‘Okay?’ he muttered, searching Fliss’s eyes for a clue to her feelings.

  She cocked her head to one side and winked. ‘Could do better.’

  Luke choked back a laugh as he pressed her body tightly against his own and kissed her again. Properly. With everything that was in his head and his heart.

  Fliss sighed with pleasure as Luke’s hands roamed expertly over her body, caressing and teasing her. She’d definitely missed this. She moulded her body to fit against Luke’s, pressing every possible square inch against him. Her mouth met his and she kissed him back with fierce determination.

  When she was completely out of breath and dizzy with desire, Luke pulled away slightly. ‘So, do you have a spare pair of knickers in your bag, or not?’

  Fliss grinned. She just couldn’t resist one last chance to tease him. She pulled herself out of his embrace and smoothed her dress down. ‘Meet me in the car park later? You can give me a lift to the station and I’ll tell you what’s in my handbag.’

  Luke was waiting by the car, scanning the crowds anxiously, when he felt Fliss’s arms slide around him from behind.

  ‘Luke Caldecott, I believe.’

  ‘Felicity Merrick,’ he responded. ‘But I think I’ll call you Fliss.’

  ‘Thanks for saving my life,’ she said, with her head resting against his back.

  ‘That was a long time ago,’ Luke pointed out. ‘And you thanked me then, as I recall.’

  ‘I didn’t actually mean that. I was talking about the way you’ve saved my life again since then.’

  He laid his hands over hers and prised them away so that he could turn to face her, frowning. ‘Fliss? What do you mean? How have I saved your life again?’

  This was it. This was the edge of her cliff. Fliss grasped onto Luke’s hands more tightly. He would catch her, she was sure of it. But it still took every ounce of her courage to step forward and jump into the unknown.

  ‘I’m talking about the way you’ve made me see that all those defences I’d constructed so carefully to stop anyone getting too close and hurting me – they’d become like a prison, trapping me in a safe cell. You’ve dared me to break free. To stop running away and start living my life.’

  She stepped forward so that her face was close to Luke’s. ‘I love you,’ she whispered, amazed at how easy it was to say it in the end, because it was the simple truth. ‘I love you with all my heart.’

  They didn’t say anything for a long time after that. Luke held her close and pressed kisses to her temple and her hair and her forehead. Fliss snuggled into his embrace and wondered why she’d spent so many years pretending that she didn’t need this.

  Eventually Luke threaded his hands into her hair and looked her straight in the eye. ‘I love you,’ he told her again.

  Fliss returned the sentiment, adding a kiss for good measure.

  ‘Does this mean you’ll come home?’ he checked. ‘You don’t have to marry me. You don’t have to make any promises. Just come. For as long as you want. We can take it six weeks at a time, if you like. Temporary contracts. No strings.’

  Fliss’s heart leapt. She knew that wasn’t how Luke liked to live his life. He hated uncertainty and, judging by the way his mother had treated him earlier, he had good reason to crave security and reassurance. But he was willing to do it for her.

  ‘Fliss?’ He was waiting for her answer. She opened her handbag and extracted a pair of chartreuse green silk knickers with fuchsia pink lace trim. Luke’s face broke into a wide grin.

  ‘I asked your father to come for Sunday lunch tomorrow, by the way,’ Fliss announced.

  Luke nodded. ‘Fine.’

  ‘And…’

  Tension flitted across his face. ‘Please tell me you didn’t invite my mother for Sunday lunch.’

  Fliss raised a hand to soothe his jaw. ‘No, I didn’t invite your mother.’ She grinned up at him. ‘I invited mine.’

  ‘What?’

  ‘I invited my mother for Sunday lunch,’ Fliss repeated patiently. ‘And her boyfriend. I think you’ll like him.’

  Luke was frowning at her in utter bewilderment. ‘But why?’

  She smiled. ‘They want to meet you.’

  ‘Fliss, I have absolutely no idea what’s been going on or what you’re talking about. Can you please just answer a straight question with a straight answer for once? Will you come home? For six weeks?’

  Fliss shook her head. ‘No. I don’t want to come home for six weeks.’

  With trembling hands, Luke cupped her face and looked straight into her eyes. ‘What do you want, sweetheart?’

  Fliss met his gaze steadily. ‘I want forever.’

  Luke gasped and stared at her. When he found his voice, he questioned her huskily. ‘Truly? I don’t want you to feel trapped or forced into it.’

  She was laughing at him. ‘Truly. I promise. Always. Whatever it takes.’

  Luke laughed with her. ‘It takes all of that. And this.’

  In the middle of the muddy field that served as a car park on race days, Luke flicked his coat tails back and knelt elegantly in front of Fliss’s pink shiny boots. He produced a familiar small velvet box from his pocket and took hold of her hand.

  ‘You really are a reactionary chauvinist, aren’t you?’ Her eyes twinkled in amusement at the lengths he was prepared to go to. It looked like this proposal was going to be a whole lot better than the last two.

  Luke nodded. ‘Better get used to it, darling.’

  ‘That’s fine with me, honeykins.’

  ‘Honeykins?’ he repeated in a voice practically dripping with disdain.

  ‘How about Booboo Bear? Or Sweetie Puff?’

  ‘How about,’ he said with dry emphasis, ‘you let me get on with this before my morning suit suffers permanent damage from the grass stains?’

  Fliss zipped her lips shut and waited patiently.

  Luke’s eyes took on the earnest look that she most loved. For the third time in a week, he asked the question that had always terrified Fliss more than any other.

  ‘Will you marry me, Felicity Merrick?’

  A dozen snapp
y retorts sprang to her mind but Fliss didn’t say any of them. Because for the first time in her life she had realised that her mother was right. When you met the one, you just knew.

  She didn’t have to be afraid any more. She had Luke, always. Now and for ever.

  Fliss fell to her knees in front of Luke, eyes bright with tears. ‘Yes. Yes, Luke Caldecott, I’ll marry you.’

  He slid the sparkling diamond ring onto her finger but Fliss barely noticed it before she flung herself against his chest, tumbling them both onto the muddy grass.

  ‘So much for my suit.’ Luke didn’t sound especially bothered. He held out a hand to Fliss and helped her to her feet.

  ‘So much for my dress.’ Fliss looked gloomily at the mud and grass stains. ‘I’ve no idea where my hat’s got to, either.’

  Luke retrieved it from under his car and surveyed the wreckage. ‘I’m not sure it’s worth taking home.’

  ‘Oh, dear. Maybe I shouldn’t have spent all my savings on it after all.’

  ‘Fliss?’ Luke’s voice was deceptively casual.

  She shrugged. ‘It seemed like a good idea at the time.’

  ‘All your savings?’ he asked, in resigned tones.

  ‘Well, I’ve got about twenty quid in my purse. Should I put it on a horse?’

  ‘No!’

  Fliss favoured him with her naughtiest smile. ‘In that case, I suppose I’ll just have to find a rich man to keep me in the style I’d like to become accustomed to.’

  Luke opened the passenger door and waited for Fliss to get in.

  ‘You could just find a job.’

  ‘Actually, I was going to tell you about that.’

  He switched the ignition on. ‘Yes?’

  ‘I won’t be staying on as your secretary. I’ve applied for that vet nursing course in Huntingdon.’

  Luke turned to her, his face lit up with a wide smile. ‘That’s wonderful.’

  ‘Charlie thinks so. He’s offered me a work placement at his surgery.’