Jill Mansell Boxed Set

by Jill Mansell

  Daisy realized she was holding her breath. He didn’t know that she and Josh were no longer a couple. He didn’t know about Josh and Tara…

  ‘I don’t want to talk about Josh,’ she whispered.

  ‘I tried to kiss you once before.’ Dev’s dark eyes never wavered from hers. ‘And you slapped my face.’

  He knew.

  The corners of Daisy’s mouth pulled up, just slightly. ‘Well, you could always try again.’

  The doors were locked. Clarissa was back at the hotel being looked after by Rocky. They were all alone in the house. Daisy wondered when, subconsciously, she had made up her mind to do this. Just once, to satisfy her curiosity and see what Dev Tyzack was really like.

  He didn’t disappoint. In slow motion, she found herself being led back up the stairs. They barely made it to the top. Magical kissing was followed by frenzied removal of clothes. Daisy, running her hands greedily over Dev’s hard athlete’s body, could scarcely bring herself to tear her mouth from his in order to breathe. She wanted him so badly she could have made love right then and there on the staircase. It was only thanks to Dev exerting a little self-control that they managed to reach the bedroom. Leaving behind a trail of abandoned clothes, they finally made it to the king-sized bed.

  ***

  ‘What are you thinking?’ Dev, leaning up on one elbow, pushed a tangle of hair out of her half-closed eyes.

  Daisy lay on her back, one hand flung above her head, listening to her breathing slowly return to normal.

  ‘Just wondering how many other women have looked up at this ceiling.’

  ‘You’re the first.’

  ‘Of course I am.’

  ‘You are,’ Dev insisted, before breaking into a grin. ‘This ceiling was only replastered last week.’

  Daisy smiled. ‘You certainly know how to make a girl feel special.’

  ‘You are special.’

  ‘Oh, please!’

  ‘I mean it,’ said Dev, suddenly serious. ‘I’ve waited a long time for this.’

  He sounded so convincing, Daisy marveled. As if he truly meant it.

  Then again, this was undoubtedly how he bowled over his numerous conquests in the first place. An expert like Dev knew just how to flatter a girl, how to make her feel important and desirable. It was an elemental part of his seduction technique, one he would have used countless times.

  The only difference with her, of course, was that she hadn’t jumped into bed with him months ago; she had done the unthinkable and actually kept him waiting. But the wait was over now. He’d got what he wanted. All that remained was for Dev to see her a few more times, make her fall head over heels in love with him, get bored with her in true serial seducer fashion, and finally dump her, just as he had dumped all the rest. Pausing only to add her poor broken heart to a pile the size of a coal tip.

  Oh yes, Daisy thought. That was exactly the way it would happen.

  ‘This is it,’ said Dev, his fingertips trailing down her arm. ‘You don’t know how much you mean to me.’

  Yeah, yeah, heard it all before. From Steven, actually.

  But it wasn’t so easy to ignore the physical sensations he was arousing with those philanderer’s fingers of his. Trembling with renewed longing, Daisy arched towards him. An hour ago she’d told herself, just this once.

  Oh well, what the heck. Just once more.

  ***

  ‘Six o’clock,’ Daisy lazily observed, having reached for Dev’s arm and glanced at his watch. Their second lovemaking session had been slower, less frenetic and more sensuous than the first. Dev was indeed proving himself an expert. It had been glorious.

  ‘You don’t really have to get back, do you?’ He kissed her neck, his warm tongue teasing her hypersensitive skin.

  ‘Oh, I do.’ God, I definitely do. If I don’t leave now…

  ‘I’ll come back with you,’ said Dev. ‘You have to tell Josh.’

  Daisy closed her eyes. ‘Tell Josh what?’

  ‘You know. That it’s over. This is it now.’ Beneath the tangled duvet, he ran a warm hand over her stomach. ‘You’re with me.’

  Listen to him, just listen to him. As far as Dev was concerned, it was a foregone conclusion. It simply hadn’t crossed his mind that she might not want her heart broken and tossed onto the coal tip along with all the rest.

  ‘No I’m not.’ Daisy removed his wandering hand and slid out of bed. ‘This is just something that happened this afternoon. You kept dropping hints that I was missing out on a treat—and I admit it, I was curious.’ She shrugged casually as she reached for her bra and—where were they? Oh yes, dangling from the door handle—knickers. ‘But just because we’ve been to bed doesn’t turn us into an instant couple. I’m still with Josh and I’m going to stay with him.’

  Dev’s face was expressionless, almost mask-like. ‘Are you joking?’

  ‘Never been more serious.’ Bra fastened, knickers on, Daisy opened the bedroom door and saw her skirt and shoes strewn across the landing. ‘Now I don’t need to be curious anymore.’

  ‘But—’

  ‘This is never ever going to happen again,’ Daisy went on. ‘And Josh is never ever going to find out. You’re leaving the hotel, you and I will never see each other again, and we’ll all live happily ever after.’

  Dev lay there, very still, propped up on one elbow. ‘Is that what you want?’

  ‘Absolutely.’ She flashed him a bright, must-dash smile. ‘And it’s what I’m going to get.’

  Chapter 61

  So much had happened in the past fortnight. First Paula Penhaligon had left the hotel, then Dev and Clarissa had abruptly departed. Within days, Maggie had pretty much moved in with Hector. Next, the rewiring and repairs having been completed, Barney and Mel had moved out of the hotel and back into Brock Cottage.

  Tara smiled to herself, having saved until last the most important move of all. Josh was, needless to say, now staying with her at Maggie’s cottage. As Josh had remarked in bed only this morning, it was like a complicated game of musical chairs.

  And now this.

  The man sitting next to her finished writing on his clipboard and turned to speak.

  Tara braced herself.

  ‘Congratulations, Miss Donovan,’ said the examiner who’d looked so scary earlier. ‘I’m delighted to tell you that you have passed your test.’

  Tara promptly burst into tears.

  ***

  ‘I thought you’d blown it.’ Josh enveloped her in a bear hug. ‘When I saw you crying I thought you’d failed.’

  ‘I was just so happy. That poor man looked so confused. God, I can’t believe it!’ Doing a little jig for joy on the pavement, she grabbed Josh’s hand and dragged him across the road. ‘I’m not a learner anymore! He said I did really well! You’ll have to drive us home by the way.’

  ‘Why?’

  Tara pushed him through the swing doors of the wine bar opposite the test center.

  ‘Because, you wally, I’m going to celebrate with a great big drink.’

  At the bar, Tara was so busy feeling fantastic, she missed the first part of the sentence. All she managed to catch was ‘…with me.’

  ‘What was that? Whoo, sorry.’ She rubbed spilled Frascati into the denim stretched across Josh’s gorgeous thigh, then waggled her finger playfully through the frayed bit on his knee. ‘Did you know you have the most feelable knees I’ve ever seen?’

  ‘You’re not paying attention,’ said Josh.

  Tara beamed. The alcohol—on an empty stomach because she’d been too nervous to eat breakfast this morning—was fizzing like sherbet through her veins. She was feeling fantastic, fabulous, and… frisky.

  ‘I don’t just like your knees, you know. There are other bits I’m very fond of too.’ Tipping forward at a precarious angle on her bar stool she whispere
d lasciviously, ‘I really love your… tummy button.’

  ‘Never mind my adorable body parts.’ Josh rolled his eyes. ‘I’m trying to talk about Miami.’

  ‘Oh.’ That was a coincidence; she’d spent the last couple of weeks trying not to talk about Miami. Or to even think about it.

  ‘I want you to come with me,’ said Josh.

  Oh.

  ‘With you where?’ To the airport, did he mean? To wave him off?

  ‘To Miami. I love you.’ Josh’s big hands closed round hers. ‘It’s a great place, you’d have the time of your life. And we’d be together.’ He paused, his eyes searching her face. ‘So, what d’you think?’

  Tara thought it was a good job he was holding her hands. Otherwise she was in danger of toppling off her stool.

  Moving to America. With a man who adored her. What an offer.

  The old Tara would have leapt at the chance. Riddled with insecurity, the most casual boyfriend could have suggested practically anything—living with him in a wooden hut in Siberia, setting up home in a manky tent on the hard shoulder of the M25—and she’d have been there like a shot, not caring how horrible it might be, just pathetically grateful that someone actually wanted her to wash their socks for them.

  But the last few weeks had been a revelation, a truly exhilarating experience. Like a scratchy old sweater introduced for the first time to the joys of fabric softener, she felt silky and cared-for, desirable and re-born… And confident enough to say no if she wanted to.

  ‘You’re going to turn me down, aren’t you?’ The hope faded from Josh’s speckled greeny-brown eyes.

  ‘I love you.’ As she wrapped her arms round his neck and kissed him, Tara thought how much she owed him for having made her feel this good about herself. Josh was her very own human fabric conditioner.

  ‘You love me but,’ he prompted.

  ‘I love you and I’ll come out to Miami.’

  ‘I can still hear that but.’

  Tara kissed him again, then smiled. ‘But not straightaway.’

  ***

  ‘It’s all over. I’ve left him. Well, that’s not true—I kicked him out.’

  ‘No! Oh my God. How do you feel?’

  ‘Truthfully? Fantastic.’

  Tara had been wary at first when Annabel had rung up and asked to see her. But Annabel had stressed that everything was fine, she just wanted to update her on the Dominic situation. She’d sounded so cheerful that privately Tara had guessed she was going to hear that Annabel was pregnant, Dominic had vowed to turn over a new leaf, and the two of them were going to put the past behind them and embrace parenthood with a vengeance. She’d even pictured them, hand in hand, attending prenatal classes together.

  Just as well she’d never been tempted to set up in business as a clairvoyant.

  ‘Tell me what happened,’ Tara urged. ‘I want to hear everything.’

  It was a sunny Sunday afternoon, warm enough to sit outside. Josh had tactfully removed himself from the cottage and was playing a round of golf with Hector. There were, appropriately, birds and bees darting around the back garden, and even a few butterflies investigating the lush delights of the flowering magnolias.

  ‘I came to my senses, basically.’ Annabel, sipping her tea, seemed remarkably sanguine. ‘Dominic’s a liar and he’ll always be a liar. When I confronted him, he tried to persuade me I’d made a huge mistake. When I showed him the photos the private detective had taken, he instantly switched to grovel mode and swore he’d never ever look at another woman. Well, that’s like—’

  ‘A fox promising not to eat a chicken,’ said Tara. ‘So, let me guess. You caught him out again?’

  Vigorously, Annabel shook her head. ‘Not at all. Oh no, Dominic was on his very best behavior. It was me. I just realized I’d never be able to trust him again. All of a sudden I knew I couldn’t spend the rest of my life being married to someone like that. So I told him to go.’ She pushed up the sleeves of her pale blue sweater and rested her elbows on the arms of the wrought-iron garden chair, her manicured fingers loosely laced together. ‘Dominic didn’t take it well. He begged me to change my mind. When that didn’t work, he shouted and called me a fat cow. I told him to leave and he called me a lot more names. Then he left. That was two weeks ago. I haven’t seen him since, but I know where he is.’

  Riveted, Tara said, ‘Living in a cardboard box somewhere?’

  Annabel giggled. ‘Oh, please. This is Dominic we’re talking about. Can you seriously see him roughing it?’

  Fair point.

  ‘OK, a mink-lined cardboard box with en suite bathrooms and jacuzzi.’

  ‘Getting warmer. Jeannie does have two en suites and a jacuzzi.’

  Jeannie? Who was Jeannie? Belatedly, Tara’s eyes widened in recognition. ‘Your sister? She’s letting him stay with her?’ Heavens, that was a bit much—surely everyone had the right to expect a show of solidarity from their own sister!

  Annabel smiled at the look of indignation on her face. ‘He’s doing more than just staying with her. It turns out Jeannie’s had a massive crush on him for years.’

  ‘Nooo! You can’t mean it!’ But since Annabel clearly did, Tara shrieked, ‘That is bizarre.’

  Annabel’s blue eyes twinkled. ‘Not really. After all, she inherited just as much money as I did.’

  ‘But how can she do that to you! My God, she was mad as a snake when she caught me and Dominic in the summerhouse, she went mental.’

  ‘Exactly,’ said Annabel. ‘Of course we all thought she was going mental on my behalf. But it turns out she was just furiously jealous of you.’

  ‘And now he’s moved on to her.’ Tara shook her head in disbelief. ‘Doesn’t that make you mad?’

  Annabel smiled. ‘She’s my little sister. She always used to want to play with my toys when we were kids. If I fell for Dominic’s lies, how can I blame Jeannie for doing the same? Anyway, I don’t suppose it’ll last long. She’ll see through him in the end.’

  Crikey, talk about tolerant.

  ‘You’re taking it so well,’ Tara marveled. ‘You’re so calm.’

  Annabel shrugged. ‘I’ve stopped kidding myself. I made a mistake and now I’ve sorted it out. To be honest, it’s a relief. I feel great. My mother keeps telling me I’ll meet someone else one day, but I’m really not interested. I just want to enjoy myself for a while, do all the stuff I’ve always wanted to do.’ As she flipped back her blonde hair, Tara noted the confidently ringless left hand. ‘Anyway, enough about me. How have you been?’

  Oh dear. Tara hesitated for a moment; was this going to be like telling a bankrupt you’d just won the National Lottery? Still, at least Annabel appeared to be a cheerful bankrupt.

  ‘Well, I have met someone else.’ She couldn’t not tell her; in her smitten state it was so hard not to talk about Josh. ‘And I’ve never been happier in my life. He’s everything I’ve ever wanted.’

  ‘Married?’ Annabel grinned to show she was joking.

  ‘Not even married. It’s like a miracle. I love him to bits. And he loves me.’

  ‘Good grief, this sounds serious. Can I be bridesmaid?’

  ‘He’s off to Florida in a fortnight to start a new job.’

  Annabel’s fair eyebrows shot up. ‘And you’re going with him?’

  ‘He wants me to, but I said no.’ As she spoke, Tara swelled with pride. Thanks to Josh, she now had the confidence not to scurry after him, petrified that the moment she was out of his sight he’d be up to no good with any number of bronzed blonde beach babes. He was the one who had made her feel secure enough, for the first time in her life, to turn him down.

  ‘But Florida—wouldn’t that be a great place to live?’ Annabel was clearly confused. ‘Are you saying you’d really rather stay here and carry on working in the hotel?’

  More pride welled up i
n Tara’s chest. Any minute now she’d pop like a helium balloon. ‘I’ve handed in my notice. Florida’s fantastic, but so are loads of other places in America. Ever since I was little, I’ve wanted to see New York, California, the Grand Canyon—do the whole sightseeing bit. I knew I’d never really see them because I’ve never had the guts to actually do anything about it.’

  Cottoning on, Annabel said, ‘Until now?’

  ‘Until now.’ Tara hugged her knees with delight. ‘I just realized there was nothing to stop me. I’d been saving up for a car, but now I’m going to buy a ticket for a Greyhound bus instead and see as much of the country as I can. Wyoming,’ she said dreamily. ‘Seattle. Boston. Los Angeles. And when I’ve done all that, well, then I’ll go to Miami.’

  ‘Where your wonderful man will be waiting for you.’ Annabel looked thoughtful.

  Tara instantly felt mean and tactless. ‘I’m sorry, this isn’t what you need to hear.’

  ‘Don’t be daft, it’s brilliant. I was just thinking how much I envy you.’ Twirling a strand of long blonde hair meditatively around her finger, Annabel said, ‘In fact, if you fancied some company on the trip, I’d be there like a shot.’

  Tara’s mouth dropped open. ‘Are you serious?’

  ‘Why not? I could do with a change of scenery. It sounds fantastic. Two girls traveling together is safer than one. And I wouldn’t throw myself into your boyfriend’s arms when we reached Miami,’ Annabel promised with a grin. ‘You can do that bit.’

  ‘Are you seriously serious?’

  ‘I’d love to come with you. By the time I got back, Dominic will have been dumped by Jeannie. A couple of months out of the country is just what I need… My God, if we’re going to Wyoming, I could meet a cowboy out there…’

  ‘Not for any kind of meaningful relationship,’ Tara put in sternly. ‘Just sex.’

  ‘Oh, goes without saying. Definitely just sex. So,’—Annabel leaned forward, her eyes dancing—‘what d’you think?’

  Blimey. Tara glanced at their empty cups, then over at Annabel, who was looking eager and excited.