by Amanda Ward
Purposefully, Laura found the offices and after knocking on the secretary’s door, walked in. The outer office was deserted. She could hear muffled voices behind the adjoining door. Laura opened it, and there in front of the desk, were her husband and her younger sister in what at first appeared to be an intimate embrace.
“Get the hell off my husband, you bitch!” Laura yelled. She pulled Nicki away from Rhean and slapped her hard on the cheek. Laura’s hand stung with pain and she hissed inwardly. Rhean quickly moved behind Laura. She pushed Nicki onto a chair and commanded her not to move. Then Laura whirled to face her husband. Her hazel eyes blazed with fury.
“Care to explain this to me?” Despite the pain, her hands were curled into fists at her side. Never again would a man make a fool of her. She was worth so much more. Hell, she deserved so much more.
Rhean sighed. “I can tell by the look on your face and your tone of voice that whatever I say, you won’t believe it.”
Looking up at her husband and then over at her sister, Laura felt conflicted. What had she seen? Her sister with her arms around Rhean, kissing him? Rhean pushing Nicki away from him, moving his head so that she couldn’t kiss him on the mouth? Laura’s heart shouted inwardly that he did love her. He really did. Love for Rhean flooded through her body and her fury abated. But she kept up the pretense of fury and anger.
“I’ll deal with you in a minute,” Laura told Rhean sharply, “For pity’s sake, tidy yourself up.” Stepping over to the desk, she leaned against it, her arms crossed.
“What the fuck were you doing with my husband?” Laura demanded of Nicki who was huddled in the chair. Nicki’s head snapped up. Never in her life had Laura used the ‘F’ word.
“I wanted what you have,” she said defiantly.
Laura ears strained to hear. “Oh right. And coming here, trying to seduce my husband was the answer?” Laura’s voice became shrill. “Seriously Nicki, what the hell is wrong with you. You’re sick. You need help,” Laura told her in a derisive tone.
Looking at her younger sister, Laura could see the damage that her obsession with having children had done to her. Nicki’s once youthful face was gray and drawn, her eyes sallow and instead of beautiful golden blonde hair, it was lank and lacked color and life.
Laura felt compassion for her but it did not atone for what Nicki had done. Trying to ruin her life once was bad enough—but twice? There had to be an end to this. Kneeling down in front of her, Laura could see tears dripping down her sister’s cheeks and falling onto the tight camel- colored skirt she wore.
“Nicki, you have to stop now,” Laura told her softly. “I have had enough of you trying to steal my life, my husband and now my children. I will not be a victim any longer.” Laura heard footsteps and raising her head saw Max in the doorway leaning against the door frame
“You will get help, you will leave my family alone and you will never contact me again. Is that understood?”
Nicki nodded, her eyes red-rimmed with crying.
Laura continued in a low tone, “Because if you do, I will have you locked away so fast your feet won’t touch the ground. You really don’t know how lucky you are Nicki. You have a man who will stand by you no matter how much crap you pull. If I were you, I’d hang on to him. Get better, and live your life. You only have one, Nicki, so don’t fuck it up again!” Laura glared at her sister again, willing the words she spoke to get through to her, then she stood up and moved to the door. “She’s all yours, Max. Get her the help she needs and make sure she never contacts any of us again. Stay away from us. Do you understand?”
Max nodded and rushed over to his wife then gathered her into his arms.
Laura looked up at Rhean and said in a flippant tone, “Families eh, who’d have them?” She swept out of the room as Rhean opened his mouth to reply.
****
He was dumbfounded by her strength and compassion in dealing with Nicki. The past twenty or so minutes had gone by in a blur. One minute he was dealing with a possible suspension of a pupil, and the next a woman burst into his office and started to kiss him. It was only when he pulled away and she mentioned something about him not wanting Laura but her, had he known who she was. Seeing Laura fly into his office and seize control had stunned him, and only made him love her more. Looking over at the couple huddled together, Rhean decided to leave them to it and follow his wife.
He rushed out of the offices and passed Maisie in the corridor.
“Your dad’s in my office if you want to see him,” Rhean told her.
“No thanks, I’m already talking to my dad,” she said with a grin.
Rhean asked Maisie to let her brothers know they were to wait for Graham that afternoon, as he was picking them up. As he hurried off after Laura, he heard, “Okay dad,” echo down the hall. He smiled broadly as he opened the doors to the car park.
Rhean sat in his car for a moment, mulling over where on earth Laura could have gone. He started the motor and drove to where everything began for them—the moors.
He slowed down as he drove down the road intersecting the moorland. Just in front of him he saw Laura’s car. Rhean pulled over and parked behind it.
He grabbed his coat and got out. Desperately looking for his wife, he saw the same ram from a few months ago. He wasn’t alone and the ewe beside him looked very pregnant. Rhean smiled at them. “Lucky sod,” he muttered then looked around for Laura. In the distance, he saw a solitary figure standing on a hillock. He could hear her yell, scream and cry. Racing over to Laura, Rhean called her name, but it was carried away on the wind that whipped his face.
****
Laura heard her name whispered on the wind and turned toward him. Holding her arms outstretched, when he fell into them, she clasped him tight, as if to say I am never letting you go.
Looking into his enigmatic midnight blue eyes, Laura stroked his face with her fingertips, her mouth kissing away his tears with her fingers and lips.
“I love you,” she told him, relieved to get her feelings finally out in the open. “I should never have doubted you, even for a second.” Laura looked away guiltily.
Rhean touched her chin with his finger and tilted her head back. “No Laura-mine, it was my fault. I rushed you into all this my love. But I need to know once and for all. Did you marry me out of love, or out of pity and for the security I brought to our relationship?” he asked
“I married you because I love you, Rhean. Would I have made love with you or had the bollocks to hit my sister if I didn’t? And do you hear me complaining?” Laura teased him. She stood up on her toes and kissed him deeply, her tongue stroking his velvet softness. With him she was free, able to give her love without fear of being hurt again. Her friendship for him had turned into a deep love, and she was filled with the exhilaration of being in his arms.
“No,” he said gently. “But this all happened too soon for you.”
Laura shook her head. “We were meant to happen this way.”
“When did you realize you were in love with me?” Rhean asked.
“The afternoon at the moor. That’s when I suspected. It only really hit me when I saw Max again. I’m just sorry I denied myself and you for so long.” She took Rhean’s left hand, holding it to her abdomen. “I denied all of us,” she said softly.
“A baby?” Rhean asked. Exultation flooded through him as Laura nodded in confirmation.
“Yay!” he cried, then lifted her up and swung her around. Laura buried her head against his throat and snuggled close.
Rhean leaned down to cover her mouth sealing the vow with a kiss as Laura drew him into her arms, down onto the moorland where their romance began and without saying a word, their bodies and their lives became one.
THE END
If you have been affected by any of the issues raise
d in this book please contact the following help lines or websites.
In the UK
0808 200247
www.womensaid.org.uk
I
n the US
Domestic Abuse Helpline
1-888-7HELPLINE
(1-888-743-5754)
www.dahmw.org
And
www.helpguide.org
In Australia
www.aureachout.com
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Table of Contents
Copyright
Dedication
Prologue Two years earlier...
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
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