by Anna Jacobs
Love! She blinked and stilled against him, looking up at his face. And then said it without thinking twice. 'I think I'm in love with you, Cal Richmond.'
'Good, because I'm definitely in love with you, Judith Horrocks.'
'So quickly?'
'Yes.' He cocked one eyebrow at her then looked upwards. 'Do we sleep together tonight?'
She hesitated, tempted, but shook her head. 'Mitch won't be asleep for ages, and it doesn't set a good example, does it?'
'I think they're both more liberal about those things than you are.' He grinned. 'Good thing I'm tired or I'd have trouble sleeping.'
She wasn't tired and she had great trouble sleeping. She nearly went along to Cal's room, but the fear of waking up either of the children held her back. They were both old enough to be fully aware of what it would mean. And if they heard anything . . . She shuddered at the thought.
Kerry looked at Wayne. 'We can't leave for America without Lily.'
'I know how you feel, honey. I've already postponed our flight.' He slapped one hand down on his thigh. 'Damn! I hate being bested by a twelve-year-old girl!'
'Me too. But if she's so determined, perhaps we should consider letting her stay with Cal.'
He gave her one of his icy looks. 'I've never backed off from a fight and I don't intend to do so now.'
'But we've looked for her everywhere. She must be with Cal, the way he gave you the slip, only I can't think where he could have taken her.'
'We need to have a brainstorming session. I'll get some paper.'
She smiled as she waited for him. His masterful behaviour might be considered old-fashioned by some, but she enjoyed the way he looked after her and made her life easy. It was good to have someone to turn to again. She hadn't had anyone permanent in her life for a long time and would be glad to be settled. Maybe she was growing older, getting tired of chasing around.
He came back and sat down beside her, putting a cushion on his knee to hold the pad in place. 'Right, let's go through everything you know about your ex's past, where he grew up, who his friends are, what he likes to do in his spare time. I'm sure we'll find a clue somewhere in there.'
An hour later she felt wrung out and more like having a glass of wine than continuing to work on the puzzle of where Cal could have gone, but Wayne was still going strong. He was staring at the paper as if one of the neatly listed place or people names would leap off and declare itself to be sheltering Cal and Lily.
He tapped one name. 'I think this is the clue.'
She fought back a yawn and tried to concentrate. 'What is?'
'This. His childhood. The way he loves to go back to the north and walk on the moors.' He nodded slowly and emphatically. 'If you ask me, that's where he's gone. And the best of it is, with that big bike of his, he'll be far easier to track than he would in a car. How you came to choose a loser like him, I can't figure, Kerry. He doesn't even try to make real money and he could in the IT industry.' He tapped the paper again. 'If nothing's cropped up by tomorrow morning, we'll take a little run up north to the place where he was born and poke around.'
'But he has no family left there.' She hesitated. "Shouldn't we call the police now?"
'No. I'd rather settle things myself. We know she's safe with Cal.' Wayne tapped his nose. 'Anyway, I've got a feeling about this. We'll get up early and I'll see if it still seems a hot trail to me. I'm at my best after a good night's sleep. Now, that's enough of your daughter.' He swung her up into his arms. 'Let's go to bed. We have the place to ourselves tonight.'
Excitement ran through her and she put her arm round his neck as he carried her upstairs. His caveman approach was definitely a turn-on. She'd never met a man who gave her such pleasure in bed.
Twenty-Two
Dawn transforms a sepia landscape into full technicolour, invites birds to strut their stuff, sends insects into a whirring frenzy.
Kate woke with a feeling of happy expectation and a totally clear head for the first time in months. She went down for breakfast and found some special rice bread set out by the toaster and beyond it, gluten-free cereal in a labelled jar.
Lena peered through the door. 'Bacon and scrambled eggs?'
'Yes, please. Lovely.'
Andy came in as she was starting to eat. 'You look better today.'
'I feel better. I'm even hungry. I'm really looking forward to going out sightseeing with Mark. I'm even looking forward to getting the results of the tests and finding out what's wrong with my body's biochemistry.'
'Maeve will want to see you before you go out. She likes to keep tabs on us, even now.'
Kate stopped eating for a moment. 'How ill is she, Andy?'
'Very.'
'Terminally?' He nodded, looking so sad she could have wept for him.
'We think we've bought her a little extra time with this new treatment, though.'
She'd said it before she'd time to consider whether it was wise. 'You love her, don't you?'
He nodded. 'She's more like an aunt than an employer.'
'It shows in how you look at her and talk about her. And you just said, "we" when you talked about buying time.'
'You go straight to the point, don't you?'
She grinned. 'I'm an Aussie. We don't pussy-foot around. Besides, I like her too. She's such fun, so alive in the head.
I wish my Dad hadn't kept us apart.' She picked up her knife and fork again and picked up a piece of bacon. 'I haven't been so hungry for ages.'
'That's good.'
Kate went up to see her aunt just before she left. 'How are you?'
'Resting. It feels to be the right thing to do at the moment. I got angry the other day and that tired me out too much, made me feel—' She waved one hand about as if searching for the right word '—strange.'
'Aunt Maeve...'
'Yes?'
'I don't know how to thank you, but I just want you to know that I'm truly grateful for your help. I feel better already, just by giving up wheat. Why did no one even consider that before, when it's so simple?' Her voice came out a littlexhoked. 'I thought I was going to be an invalid all my life. I even wondered if I had Alzheimer's, my brain got so cloudy.'
Maeve smiled and held out her arms, hugging her niece, something which also felt very right to her. 'The only thing that's certain in this life is that things change, for better as well as for worse. And look - if you want to ring your parents, go ahead. Don't stay estranged from them.'
'I might ring at a time when Mum is on her own. I think it's too soon for Dad and he'd put the phone down. He's good at holding grudges.'
'Typical Corrigan stubbornness. My grandfather was famous for it.'
'What other traits do we Corrigans inherit? Dad's always refused to talk about his family.'
'Red hair, obviously. I had it too once. We're strong-willed, rather too fond of getting our own way, generous, lusty in bed,' she winked. 'Some of us are good at making money but not always as good at keeping it. I'm the exception there. My father made plenty of money and if he hadn't died young, would have lost every penny again, was well on the way to doing so. As it was, I inherited an ailing business, which he left mainly to me because he knew I might be able to pull it together again. I think Des takes after him where money is concerned. Your father's more like my mother, though - a plodder, not at all money hungry.'
'I think he's most upset about not getting this house. He loved it.'
'Is he still upset about that?'
'Yes. It all came out just before I left.'
'I hadn't realized he felt so bad about it. Not that it'd have made a difference. I love it too, you see, and was determined to get it.' She gave one of her wry smiles. 'I'm as selfish as the next person.'
'What about my grandparents? They both died young, didn't they? I hope that's not another Corrigan legacy.'
'Not unless you think car crashes can be inherited. My Corrigan grandparents lived well into their eighties. You could have met them when you were young if your father
had kept in touch. They were always sad about that.' She sighed and got lost in her thoughts for a moment, then shook her head as if to banish the sad memories and smiled at Kate again. 'Well, we can't change the past, only the future. Today you should go out and enjoy yourself with Mark.'
'Do you mind?'
'What?'
'Me having a date with him?'
'No, of course not. Good luck to you both. It's about time he found himself a woman. Just don't rush into anything. You're fairly vulnerable at the moment.'
Kate found herself humming and walking in rhythm to the tune as she went downstairs. She felt as if a load of worry had been taken off her shoulders. Hope was very invigorating.
And this was all thanks to Maeve. If the worst happened and Maeve died, that gift of better health would be her aunt's best legacy to her.
Des got up to find his dirty clothes still scattered over the floor. Tiff wasn't around, so he stepped over them and went looking for her. She was in her office typing, didn't even hear him come up behind her and jumped like a startled rabbit when he asked the question nearest his heart, 'What's for breakfast?'
'Whatever you get for yourself She got up and pushed him gently out of the room. 'Des, morning is my best writing time, so please, just let me get on with it.'
'But you won't need to write once we're married. I'll have enough money for both of us.'
'That attitude is what I'm afraid of. Let's get this straight from the very start: whatever we decide to do, I'm not giving up writing. I love doing it. And I'm not turning into a glorified housekeeper and social secretary.'
Their eyes met in a challenge and it was he who looked away first.
She closed the door in his face and he stood for a moment scowling at it then tied his dressing gown more tightly at the waist and went into the kitchen. When he inspected the fridge he found nothing there except fruit and yoghurt and a loaf of heavy, dark bread. His eyes brightened when he saw a jar of honey in the cupboard and a few minutes later he sat down to enjoy six slices of the most delicious toast he'd ever eaten, licking the runny trails of honey off his fingers. He'd enjoyed it far more than his usual full cooked breakfast. There was, he decided, something to be said for getting your own food and choosing what to eat.
He was just about to go and get dressed whenHie noticed how untidy the kitchen now was. After hesitating for a moment, he cleared the mess up, muttering under his breath about paying for a woman then having to do things himself.
His thoughts now focused on what he had to do that day, he got ready, putting on the spare shirt he kept here. He'd have to bring some more clothes and get these dirty ones washed.
Surely Tiff could sling them in the washing machine with her own things?
He remembered how firmly she'd dismissed him this morning and grinned. She always had been decisive about what she wanted, both in their life together and in bed. She'd made him sign a legal contract before she'd agreed to live here as his permanent mistress, with specified redundancy payments in case he tired of her. Well, he hadn't tired of her because she wasn't at all like any of the other women he'd had.
And they were going to get married. He was quite determined about that.
But everything depended on him getting out of this financial hole. He didn't know what he'd do if his business went under.
Kerry woke with a start as Wayne shook her. 'Wassa matter?'
'You need to get up. I told you last night, I have a gut feeling about your ex. He's gone back to his roots, I know he has. Where else could he take Lily that's out of our way? This is a small island and we can drive to Lancashire in a few hours. It's not even worth taking the plane. Come on.' He flung off the covers and leaped out of bed.
She groaned and covered her eyes with her forearm. She hated early mornings.
He chuckled as he yanked her upright. 'Come on! We have to get going.'
'I need coffee.'
'It's waiting for you in the kitchen.'
She stumbled downstairs and took a big gulp of coffee, then another. 'But how will we know where to look?'
'You said Cal came from a village called Blackfold, didn't you? Quite a small place. There's bound to be someone there who's noticed a Harley-Davidson. They don't exactly blend in with the scenery, you know.'
It made sense, it really did. She set the empty cup down. 'Give me fifteen minutes. And put some toast on.'
But she felt guilty, as if she was hounding her daughter. She'd never dreamed Lily would go to such lengths to get away.
On Monday Judith sneaked a look at her emails before she went to get breakfast, smiling as she read Cal's email of two days ago. He was very eloquent and although she'd worried during the night at being the first to express her love, she could see that she needn't have, because he'd said it in the email, and very tenderly too. She couldn't imagine Des writing anything like this, she thought as she printed it out and put it in her top drawer.
Just before lunch Lily came into the kitchen as Judith was finishing putting the top layer of pastry on an apple pie. Glancing from time to time at her half-brother, Lily wiped and put away the breakfast dishes without being asked to, then fiddled around with a bowl of apples.
Mitch sat and chatted cheerfully to them, clearly not intending to go anywhere, so in the end Judith put the pie in the oven, set the timer then went over and pulled him to his feet. 'Go and do something for half an hour, darling. We need to have some girls' talk.'
'Oh, sorry!' He ambled out and up the stairs to where Cal was working on Judith's computer and soon the two of them were deep in a technical discussion.
The huge relief on Lily's face told Judith she'd guessed right, so she shut the kitchen door. 'You do need to talk privately, don't you?'
'Yes. Look, I'm just about to start my period and I've nothing with me. Could we go out and buy something, do you think? Dad will give you the money. I need some more knickers too. I've only got what I was wearing when I ran away and a couple of pairs he brought with him.'
'I should have thought of that. Get your coat and we'll nip into Rochdale. The men can watch the apple pie. I'll just tell them we're going out.'
When he heard the sound of a car pulling up outside the house, Mitch looked out of the window. 'I thought it didn't sound like Mum's car. There's a big Landcruiser just pulled into the drive.'
Cal shoved his chair back and went to join him just as'two people got out of the vehicle. 'Oh, hell, it's Kerry and Wayne. How could they possibly have tracked me here?'
'Who?'
'Lily's mother and her new guy.'
'She doesn't take after her mother, does she? She's much more like our side of the family. I don't like the looks of that man - he has a brutal face.'
The visitors disappeared from view and the doorbell rang twice.
Cal sighed and braced himself. 'I'd better go down. You might like to stay up here.'
'Give you space? OK.'
The bell rang again as Cal reached the bottom of the stairs. As he opened the door, Kerry moved forward into the house.
'I've come for Lily.'
'She isn't here.'
'You won't mind if I do a quick search, will you?' Kerry moved towards the stairs.
Mitch, who had gone to the top of the stairs to listen, moved to block the head of the stairs. 'This is my mother's house and you have no right here.'
Closely followed by Wayne, Cal ran up the stairs. 'Let them look. They'll not find her.'
'They still have no right to do this.'
'Any more than he has a right to kidnap Lily,' Wayne snapped.
Mitch swung round to glare at him. 'He didn't kidnap her. She ran away - from you. And I can see why.'
Wayne simply pushed the boy aside and went to help Kerry search.
Cal held Mitch back. 'It's not worth it. They won't find her here, but it'll keep them occupied. Let's go and put the kettle on.'
When they got back to the kitchen, Mitch said, 'We should just tell them to leave.'
'I'd rather keep my eye on them.'
'But what are we going to do when Lily gets back?'
'We're going to hope she'll see his car and tell Judith to drive past. If they don't, I'll tackle him and give you a chance to run out and tell them to get away.' He grimaced. 'Though I'm not a good fighter and he looks as if he is.'
'He does look like brute force on wheels, doesn't he?'
Footsteps on the stairs heralded the return of their unwanted visitors. Without a word, Wayne went out into the garden and began searching the sheds.
'She's not here, you know,' Cal said to Kerry.
'I prefer to make sure of that. And she's been here. We found some of her clothes.'
'Coffee?'
She hesitated.
'I'd like to be civilized about this.'
'You're too soft for your own good, you always were,' she snapped. 'Why are you doing this to me, Cal?'
'I might ask you the same question, though what matters most is why you're doing it to Lily. I've never seen her so unhappy and jumpy.'
Kerry swung away from him. 'Black, no sugar, if you remember. The same for both of us.'
He watched her for a minute, shaking his head at how intransigent she could be when she'd set her mind on something, then began to make the coffee.
Wayne came in a few minutes later. 'Not out there.'
Kerry looked at Cal. 'We're staying 'til she gets back.'
'Whatever.'
She sat down opposite Mitch, glanced at him, then looked again. 'Who are you?'
'I'm Lily's half-brother. We look alike, don't we? This hair comes from the Corrigan side of the family.'
She gaped at him, then glanced at Cal. 'How the hell did you find out?'
'From Mitch's mother. She's Des's ex-wife and had her husband investigated.'
Kerry pressed her lips together, but her eyes kept straying towards Mitch and she didn't look happy.
Cal passed a mug to Wayne. 'Coffee?'
'Thanks.' He stood up. 'We'll go into that room at the front if you don't mind. Be able to see them return then. My guess is they've gone shopping and won't be long.'
The only thing Cal could do was choose a chair nearer the door than Wayne and pray he'd hold the man back for long enough to allow Judith and Lily to get away again.