Watch for Me by Twilight

by Kirsty Ferry

  Cassie’s stomach knotted and she stared at them. Her first thought was for the twins; her second was that Alex had found yet another pile of unresolved debt from their father.

  ‘Oh, God, is everything all right?’ She rushed over, took Elodie’s hand in hers and looked at her anxiously.

  Elodie smiled weakly. ‘Not really. You should probably ask Alex.’

  Cassie looked at her brother. ‘Alex?’ Her stomach somersaulted.

  Alex glared at her, his eyes glinting like granite. It was a face she recognised, but she knew that the glare wasn’t really directed at her. It was just his way. Elodie had once confessed, giggling, she found Alex’s stormy face one of his sexiest; it was something about how his eyes darkened, she’d said. But that thought seemed to have evaporated here today.

  ‘I’ve had a letter,’ he said, without preamble. ‘You might want to read it.’

  He shoved a crumpled piece of paper at her. In fact, when Cassie straightened it with shaking hands, she saw it had been ripped neatly into four pieces. Someone – probably Elodie, judging by the roll of Sellotape next to her – had stuck them together again.

  ‘What is it?’ Cassie scanned the letter, then, her face blanching, read it again. She looked up at Alex. ‘Our mother? It’s from her?’

  Alex nodded briefly. Cassie tore her eyes away from her brother – she truly thought he’d implode any minute, he seemed so wound up. She forced herself to read the note again:

  To my dearest Alexander and Cassandra,

  Forgive me for writing to you. Forgive me for waiting so long – I only learned about your father’s death recently, and didn’t dare get in touch with you before that. I’m so sorry I left you behind, when I left your father. It was never my intention for us to be parted for so long, and I have missed you every day of my life since.

  I wanted you so badly. I tried to fight for custody through the courts, but at the time I had no money and he had everything. He had power and influence and friends in so many high places, although even I could see, by the time I left him, that the money was going to run out. He was full of wild schemes and nothing he did ever made sense to me. I stood it as long as I could, then I had to leave before it drove me mad. I was painted as a scarlet woman and God knows what he told you about me. I can promise you, I never stopped loving you. Yes, I admit I had a lover, eventually, and he has remained by my side all this time. He loves me and I know you would love him if you met him.

  I am so sorry I left you both – and Cassandra, you were so young! Far too young for me to walk out of your life. But I had what I now understand as post-natal depression, and I thought my only avenue was to escape from Hartsford. I could see the money slipping through your father’s hands and worried so much about your welfare. I left, with the intention of having you both with me, but it never happened and it is the biggest regret of my life.

  I will be travelling to England this summer, and would be so grateful if you could find it in your hearts to meet me. I know we can never have the relationship I would have wished, but if I could only meet you both, even once, then I would be the happiest woman on earth.

  Your ever-loving and ever-hopeful mother,

  Anne

  ‘Good grief.’ Cassie stared at the letter, then looked up at Alex. ‘What shall we do?’

  ‘Do you believe her?’ His voice was as dark as his expression – cold and deadly. ‘Do you seriously bloody believe her?’

  Cassie shrank back a little. She hadn’t seen Alex like this for years – since, in fact, Elodie had come back. This was dangerous, dangerous territory.

  ‘Alex—’ Elodie’s voice was quiet, and she reached out for his hand, but he shook her off and prowled over to the far corner of the room, where he stood leaning against the wall, his arms and legs crossed. With his face all in shadow and his body all hunched up, he looked quite terrifying.

  ‘She left us to live with another man, and now there’s conveniently nobody left who can give us our father’s side.’ Alex’s voice was too controlled, too cold.

  ‘Do you think she means it? Do you think she did want us?’ Cassie was clutching at straws. Somewhere deep inside, that abandoned little girl had yearned for her mother. Part of Cassie wanted to believe her mother had yearned for her just as much. She flicked a glance at the address on the top of the letter. France. Like her father had told her.

  ‘Do I hell.’ Alex launched himself out of the corner and snatched the letter out of Cassie’s hand. Like a tornado, he whirled past her and slammed the door on his way out. It swung back on itself and he was framed, loping along the path away from the Hall. He got a few strides in, then suddenly started to run.

  Cassie watched as he disappeared across the estate, her heart pounding. ‘I haven’t seen him so angry for ages,’ she almost whispered.

  ‘He’ll come out of it.’ Elodie’s gaze also followed his trajectory. ‘It’s a shock. That’s all. He’ll have some time with Hughie and he’ll be okay.’

  ‘That is what he was like – all the time. All the time, before you came back.’ Cassie pointed to the open door.

  ‘Then it’s a good job I’m not going anywhere.’ Elodie sat down heavily and leaned her elbows on the table, resting her chin in her hands. ‘Do you believe her?’

  Despite it not being her home any more, Cassie automatically reached for the kettle and switched it on. She dragged two mugs towards her and busied herself making tea. ‘I don’t know. I want to believe her. I just think I don’t want to feel abandoned. You need some more teabags. Here, I’ll jot it down for you. Baby brain and all that.’ She scribbled a note down on a shopping list pad on the counter and tore it off, putting it down by the kettle. She jotted something else down and slid another piece of paper into her pocket.

  ‘Post-natal depression.’ Elodie’s voice was carefully even. ‘Worrying.’

  Cassie walked over to the table and put a mug in front of her friend. She pulled a chair up. ‘It doesn’t happen to everyone,’ she said, half-smiling. ‘But it’s good to be aware of it, I think.’

  Elodie nodded and sighed. She sat back and pulled her mug towards her. She wrapped her hands around it and fixed Cassie with her blue gaze. ‘That letter’ll be destroyed by now. You do realise that, don’t you?’

  Cassie grimaced. ‘Yes. With her address on and everything.’ She stared studiously into her mug of tea and watched the liquid swirling gently. ‘Unless you kept the envelope?’ She looked up hopefully at Elodie. ‘She might have put it on there as well?’

  ‘It’s in his pocket.’

  ‘Oh.’ She looked down at the tea again. There was no need to tell Elodie she had tried to memorise the address before Alex snatched it away, and written it down for herself at the same time as the teabag note. It was safely in her very own pocket until she decided what to do with it. ‘I only came to tell you I’ve got some help for the weekend. I wasn’t expecting a scene.’

  ‘Oh, well that’s good news, anyway!’ Elodie smiled, then her face dropped again. ‘I’m sorry I haven’t been much use to you.’

  ‘You’ve had other things to think about.’ Cassie grinned. ‘But I’ve got a civil engineer on board now. He’s going to get me a quote.’

  ‘A quote? For what?’

  ‘The Spa area. It needs a bit more work than I anticipated.’

  Elodie’s eyes widened. ‘Oh, does it now?’

  In contrast, Cassie’s eyes narrowed. ‘Maybe just a little.’

  ‘Is he a trustworthy civil engineer though?’

  Cassie thought of his dark eyes and his dark hair and his smile. She didn’t know if he was trustworthy, exactly, but she would be willing to bet that in certain situations she wouldn’t be able to trust herself with him …

  ‘He’s coming back.’ She skirted the issue expertly. ‘I’ll see what he suggests.’

  ‘It’s a good idea to get a couple of quotes, you know.’ Elodie sounded amused. ‘But seeing as how you’ve gone the colour of a tomato, I don’t expect
you’ll be looking much further, will you?’

  Cassie tried hard to look insulted. But then she thought of Aidan’s smile again, and couldn’t help but smile herself. ‘No. I probably won’t look much further if I can help it.’

  ‘Then I hope he gives you a jolly good price.’

  ‘Me too.’

  Elodie smiled, a little wanly. ‘I just hope Alex is okay. I hate seeing him like that.’

  Cassie shuddered, remembering the years of anger and frustration Alex had endured when he inherited the Hall. The last thing he needed when his life was coming together so well now, was his mother turning up. They’d all written her off twenty-odd years ago.

  ‘Well. She might not come. For Alex, that might be the best thing.’ Cassie omitted to mention herself in that comment. She suddenly longed to meet her mother and give her the benefit of the doubt.

  Chapter Eleven

  Early May, Present Day

  Aidan pulled up at the gates, an odd sort of feeling in his stomach that he recognised as excitement. It had been nearly two weeks since the last time he’d been to Hartsford; two weeks that for some reason had felt like two years.

  The time had dragged, and one particular client, a lady called Kim Barrett, hadn’t helped matters. Kim was trying desperately to monopolise his time. And as she wasn’t Cassie, he, equally desperately, didn’t want her to monopolise his time. Kim’s latest trick had been to decide she wanted a water feature behind the barn she was converting into a shabby-chic boutique and tea room.

  ‘Can you come and sort my little problem out please?’ she had asked. ‘It won’t take long.’ Aidan established she’d hired some suspect brothers who owned a small JCB and asked them to dig a deep hole until they found water. They hadn’t found water and had vanished into the sunset, leaving something that resembled a small, badly designed quarry behind.

  ‘While you’re here,’ she told Aidan, as if she had just thought of it, ‘would you draw me some plans so I can make a little interpretation centre by my new lake please? And maybe a country walk plan for the area around it? Just while you’re here, yes?’

  But, at last, Aidan had fended her off, given her the plans, arranged some damage-limitation and was free to concentrate on Hartsford Hall … and Cassie. He rang the mobile number he had called yesterday, when he had arranged his visit, and smiled as she answered it. ‘Hey. Can I interest anyone in a quote for a blue-tiled swimming pool and some squash courts?’

  ‘Only if you throw in some tennis courts. Are you here?’

  ‘I’m here. And I’ve brought the sketch book back as well.’

  ‘Oh, thank you. I’ll come to the gates.’

  ‘I’ll be waiting.’

  It didn’t take her long to appear around the corner and wave a greeting to him.

  He jumped off the bike and walked up to the gates, smiling. ‘Reasonable rates. I promise.’

  ‘Excellent.’ She pressed the buttons and the gates opened. ‘Come on, then. Bring the bike in while I watch jealously.’

  ‘No. You can bring the bike in. If you can ride it, of course,’ he teased.

  Cassie looked at him, then a grin to match his spread across her face. ‘Of course I can ride it. What do you take me for?’

  Aidan laughed and handed the keys over. Cassie took them and walked over to the T5. She ran her fingers delicately across the shiny, black paintwork, then mounted it. She started the bike, her eyes widening at the roooooar the machine greeted her with. Then she lifted her other foot off the ground, kicked the stand away expertly and sped off through the gates, her dark hair flying out behind her like a raven’s wing.

  ‘Nice,’ murmured Aidan. And he wasn’t talking about the T5 either.

  Cassie laughed out loud as she stopped the bike and dismounted. ‘Woah. That was something a bit more intense than I’m used to. Very nice. I’d watch that, if I was you. It might easily go missing if you’re distracted enough.’

  ‘I could easily get distracted.’ Aidan didn’t necessarily mean by his work, but he didn’t tell Cassie that. By the way her cheeks flushed suddenly, he had a feeling she’d read his thoughts anyway. ‘Shall we make a start?’

  But before she could answer, a voice interrupted them. ‘Cassie? Is that you trading the Yamaha up?’ A man appeared from behind the building and grinned cheerfully at Aidan. He had brown eyes and messy, strawberry-blonde hair, teamed with a beard. ‘I never thought I’d see the day.’

  Cassie smiled back. ‘Oh, Tom! You know me too well. No, I’m just borrowing it. Very briefly.’

  ‘Oh, that’s all right then. I can’t imagine you ever not riding the Yamaha. Okay, I shall love you and leave you if you’re entertaining.’ He flashed another smile at Aidan. ‘I’m just popping back to the museum, and then I’ll have to head back to Hever. Anne Boleyn waits for no man, not even me. Although Blickling Hall was rather spectacular. And you were right. Framlingham was worth a visit.’ He came up to Cassie and hugged her, then kissed her on the cheek. ‘I’ll catch you soon, darling.’

  ‘Okay, Tom, see you.’

  The man, Tom, blew another kiss and sauntered off, letting himself out of the gates.

  Cassie laughed and shook her head, then turned her attention back to Aidan. ‘That’s Tom. He’s mad keen on the Tudors and does this endless research on them for his PhD. I haven’t seen him for a few weeks, so he called in on his way to the next destination in case, and I quote, I’d missed him. He offered to help out for the weekend, but to be truthful I don’t think Henry VIII belongs in our Country House Party. Anyway – you said you wanted to make a start.’ She smiled up at him. ‘Come on. This way.’ Cassie began to walk over to the pool.

  It wasn’t exactly how Aidan had envisaged this day panning out. Yes, he would have been here in a professional capacity anyway, but he had harboured a hope that he could maybe make more of their budding relationship. There had, undeniably, been a connection there. He was sure of it.

  But he hadn’t factored Tom in. He frowned as he recalled him hugging and kissing Cassie. Oh, well. That was it, then. Over before it had started. Damn and blast it. Maybe he’d read the signals all wrong this whole time. Shit.

  ‘Here you go.’ Cassie’s voice broke into his thoughts. When they reached the Spa area, it did look pretty bad, now he had a proper professional eye on it. And yes, it was professional. Thanks to bloody Tom.

  Taking a notebook and a tape-measure out of one pocket, and the stub of a pencil out of another, Aidan tried to forget his ideas of what might have happened today, and began jotting measurements and plans down instead. He narrowed his eyes as he tried to imagine the pool fully restored and walked around the perimeter of it. Then he stopped outside something that looked like an old brick shed. The changing rooms, of course.

  The windows were grimy and cracked, the glass plastered with spiderwebs and their residents. And also, he noted distastefully, with the carcasses of their lunch.

  ‘We had a wasps’ nest here a couple of years ago.’ Cassie was standing next to him with her arms folded and almost reading his mind. ‘Nasty little buggers. The nest was a work of art though. Alex insisted we keep it and display it in the cabinets in the Long Gallery with the stuffed monstrosities so beloved of our ancestors.’

  ‘Stuffed monstrosities? What, like animals? Or maiden aunts?’

  ‘Maybe a few of both.’ Cassie laughed. ‘I expect I’ll be a maiden aunt one day. I hope they have a cabinet big enough for me. My brother and his wife are expecting twins.’ She smiled suddenly, her whole face brightening. ‘I’m not at the taxidermy stage yet though. They’ll have me bothering them for a while, I’m sure.’

  ‘I’m sure they will. Look, I’ve been assessing this area and I think I need to tell you that you need to do a—’

  ‘—risk assessment? Yes, thanks. It’s in hand. In fact, it’s done.’

  ‘Great.’ Aidan nodded. ‘Because the state of this place is pretty hazardous if—’

  ‘—if I want visitors here.’ Sh
e unfolded her arms and put her hands on her hips. ‘I don’t want them suing us. That would just make things a hundred times worse than they are at the moment.’ Her face shadowed for a second, her mind obviously somewhere else. ‘Anyway. I do have a risk assessment.’

  ‘I’m glad to hear it. You understand I have to advise you from my perspective?’

  ‘Yes, of course. As well as giving me a quote. It makes perfect sense.’

  ‘Yes. Because my staff will have to come onto your land and work. I’ve got a right to ensure their safety, but some clients don’t see it that way unfortunately.’

  ‘Ah, I see.’ Cassie blushed, a pretty pink colour that matched the flowers on the rosebay willow herbs that waved chest deep out of the cracks in the paving stones in front of the changing rooms. ‘I do.’

  ‘And thank you for doing so.’ Aidan made as if he was studying his notebook, but it was more to hide his smile. Despite the fact he was determined to remain professional, she was just beyond charming. ‘Anyway. Is there a chance of me getting inside this building at all? I think it’s worth seeing what the interior is like. You might want to open the changing rooms up at some point, so the visitors can get changed. Or at least smarten the building up a bit. Unless that’s not on your project chart?’

  ‘Oh, it most certainly is! Yes. I’ve got the keys with me. I had a feeling you’d need to be in here.’

  ‘Okay.’ Aidan stepped to one side. He indicated the door with a little bow and a smile, and pointed to the rusted padlock. ‘If you would be so kind as to get us in here that would be wonderful.’

  Cassie fiddled with the padlock for the longest time, aware that Aidan was watching her. She could practically feel the waves of amusement coming off him.

  Of course she’d never thought of opening this bit of the estate up. It wasn’t in her plan at all. But, she conceded as she finally managed to wrench the key around in the padlock and heard it click satisfactorily, it was a jolly good plan. And of course she did have a project chart sorted out, as well as having had a risk assessment done. Thank goodness none of that was a lie.