Much Ado About You

by Samantha Young

  Halfway through his magnificent speech, I’d reached Caro and stopped to take hold of her hand. I squeezed it now, unable to tear my gaze from Roane, who had never been more appealing to me than he was in that moment standing up for his cousin.

  Helena stared at him as though she loathed him, and after a moment of contemplation, she leaned back into the door so it swung open. “Very well.” She cut Caro a look. “Get your things and then get out. The devil will take care of you.”

  “Did you just make a threat to Miss Caroline’s person in front of a police officer, Ms. Mordue?” Patrick asked.

  She shrugged. “A warning.”

  He stepped toward her, his expression cool, unyielding. “Funny, it sounded like a threat to me. That’ll be going in my report.”

  He brushed past Roane to step into the house, and Roane gestured to us to follow. Caro let go of my hand, and I was so proud of her as she walked past her aunt, ignoring the way the woman stared at her as if she were the serpent in the Garden of Eden. As for me, my skin crawled as I moved past her. I’d forever associate the smell of rosewater with this woman. It was unnerving how normal she seemed for someone who had no soul. Of course, normal went out the window when she started threatening people with the devil. There was nothing I detested more than people who twisted religion to suit their agenda.

  The front door led into a large hallway big enough to fit a reading area. There was a doorway on either side of us, and a doorway behind the reading nook.

  “Take Caro to get her things.” Roane gestured to the door behind the reading nook.

  I nodded to Caro to show me the way, concerned by her paleness. Despite her obvious distress, she kept her chin held high as she led me to the dark wooden door. “Watch your step,” she murmured as she opened it.

  Three small stairs led down into a dark corridor. From the outside the cottage was cute, but inside . . . I shuddered. It was gloomy, dreary, and did not have a good vibe. That pang echoed in my chest again at the thought of Caro spending most of her life here. She turned right and led me to a door at the end of the hall.

  Her room was surprisingly bright. A large wooden-framed window allowed a lot of light in despite the surrounding trees outside. The walls were covered in old-fashioned ivory wallpaper with little blue birds all over it. There was a white Shaker-style bedside cabinet to match the dresser, armoire, and single bed.

  The floorboards were old and a little warped.

  It was a pretty room in the summer, but I could only guess at how cold it was during the winter.

  Caro opened a cupboard door on the wall opposite the window and pulled out an old leather suitcase.

  “What can I do?” I asked.

  She blinked rapidly as if she’d forgotten I was there. “I can manage. I’m not taking much.”

  True to her word, she only packed underwear, socks, and an extra pair of shoes, and removed a mere two outfits from the armoire. “I . . .” She glanced up at me shyly. “Things are moving so quickly, and I know I shouldn’t try to do too much at once, but I think I’d like some new clothes.”

  I gave her a small smile. “We could make a day or two of it. Maybe go to Newcastle to shop.”

  Caro nodded and then picked up the picture frame sitting on her bedside cabinet. “My mother and father,” she whispered, placing it gently in her case.

  According to Roane they hadn’t been much in the way of parents, but I’m sure they were a far sight better than her aunt Helena.

  When Caro dropped to her knees by the floor at the window, I raised an eyebrow in curiosity. Her small, elegant hands pried at the floorboards, and to my surprise two boards gave way. She reached into the hole in the floor and pulled out a large shoebox. I stepped forward and peered in as Caro removed the lid. Inside was what looked like a journal, a pile of comic books, and to my surprise, three historical romance paperbacks. They looked like they’d been read many, many times.

  Caro smiled tremulously. “My contraband.”

  I crouched beside her, incredibly sad that a twenty-two-year-old woman had to hide these things. My fingers brushed the cover of one of the books. “You’re a romance fan.”

  Her cheeks flushed a lovely rosy color. “They’re wonderful escapism.”

  “They are,” I agreed.

  “One of the first things I’m going to do once I have access to my accounts is buy an e-reader and just stock it full of romance novels.”

  She sounded so young in that moment, it broke my heart a little. Her aunt had kept her in a perpetual state of confusion—repression versus teenage rebellion. Caro hadn’t been given the chance yet to become an adult. I shrugged off my sadness because she was still so young, and it was happening now. Her life was about to change for the better. I’d called Penny in the early hours of the morning, knowing it was early evening for her in Melbourne, and asked permission to allow Caroline to stay in the second bedroom until we could find her a more permanent situation. Penny, unsurprisingly, had been all for it.

  “Buying an e-reader would be the first thing I’d do,” I chuckled as I straightened. “Come on. Let’s pack this stuff too.”

  Caro emptied the contents of the shoebox into her suitcase and closed it.

  “Ready?”

  “Just one last thing.” She reached up behind her neck and unclasped the gold cross.

  It fell on the wooden bedside cabinet with a delicate clatter and a hiss of the chain. At my questioning look, Caro’s expression tightened. “It’s the only gift Helena ever gave me. I’ve had to wear it every day for ten years, shackled to her, not to Christianity, just as she always intended.”

  I released a slow, heavy breath. “I hope this doesn’t sound condescending or patronizing because believe me it’s not meant to be taken that way . . . but I am so, so proud of you.”

  The right corner of her mouth quirked up. “You made me brave enough to do this. All of you—you, Roane, Viola, even Patrick. I—I couldn’t have done it without you.”

  “You could have,” I disagreed. “And I think you’ve been thinking about this for a really long time. This didn’t just happen overnight, or because we offered you support to do it. You’ve mentally prepared yourself for this moment and finally got yourself to a place where you could do this. The credit is all yours.”

  She released a shaky sigh and gave me a small nod. “Let’s go see how Roane and Patrick are faring.”

  Roane and Patrick were waiting for us in the hall, Roane holding a manila folder in his hand. Shadow loped forward at the sight of us, and Caro reached for him gratefully. As if he knew she needed him, Shadow was loyally sticking by her side. That’s what I loved about dogs. Some were very attuned to our emotions and offered their loyalty and love in return for the same.

  Affection wasn’t a game with dogs like it could be with humans, who often withheld it out of pettiness or in one-upmanship and doled it out when it suited their purposes. I guess that’s why I liked dogs more than I did some people. You always knew where you stood with a dog. Either they liked you or they didn’t.

  “Got everything?” Roane’s voice was gentle, but his expression was not.

  Caro nodded and he put his arm around her. “Then let’s go.”

  I followed them out, thankfully without having to lay eyes on Helena again.

  “You call if you need anything else,” Patrick said once we drew to a halt at the vehicles.

  “Thanks, Trick.” Roane held out his hand to shake his friend’s. “I owe you.”

  “You owe me nothing. It was my pleasure”—he shot the house a dirty look—“believe me.”

  “Thank you,” Caro offered shyly.

  “You’re going to be fine, Caro.” Patrick gave her a soft smile, nodded at us, and then got into his car.

  “Let’s go.” Roane held open the passenger-side door for Caro while I got in the back with Shado
w and Caro’s small, lonely suitcase. Before Roane put on his seat belt, he handed the manila folder to his cousin.

  The tension radiating from Roane was incredible, and I squeezed Caro’s shoulder as she shifted uneasily.

  We followed Patrick’s car down the driveway. He turned left toward Alnwick, and we turned right toward the village. It was only then that Roane spoke, nodding his head toward the folder on Caro’s lap. “It holds your bank details. The investment portfolio, everything. Patrick warned her if she changed those passwords, he’d be back to arrest her for theft and fraud, but the first thing you do is log on to those accounts and change the passwords. Then contact the financial adviser and see what the bloody hell has been happening to your money. If she’s diverting any of it, we need to know immediately.”

  I understood Roane was concerned that Helena was swindling Caro out of her inheritance, but his hard, demanding tone wasn’t exactly what his cousin needed right now. I knew what was eating at him, and I hated it, but we had to talk. Caro didn’t need this attitude right now.

  Viola was waiting for us in the living area of the apartment and stood up to greet us, only to be stopped by the abrupt thump of Caro’s suitcase hitting the floor.

  Roane had dumped it. “Do what I said. I’ll be back in a bit. Shadow, come.”

  With that, he strode past us without another word, his dog following at his heels.

  “Uh . . . what did I miss?” Viola wrinkled her nose in confusion.

  Caro appeared to be seconds from bursting into tears.

  “Viola, can you help Caro get settled? I’m going to speak to Roane.”

  Then I was out the door before either girl could protest, hurrying down the stairs and through the front of the shop. His SUV was still parked out front, and Roane was nowhere in sight toward the harbor or the road up to the main village. Although he had long legs, he couldn’t have disappeared that quickly, which meant he’d turned left toward the cliffs.

  I hurried around the corner of the building and saw his figure marching up the path that cut along the grassy cliff top behind the bookstore.

  “Roane!” I shouted, my voice thrown backward by the sea breeze.

  Shadow, however, heard me and hurried to me, causing Roane to halt and look back. His shoulders tensed at my approach. “You should be with Caro,” he said.

  I reached out for his hand as soon as I drew to a stop. “You should be with Caro.”

  He tugged on his hand but I refused to let go. He scowled. “Evie, just let me be.”

  “So you can brood and beat yourself up with guilt and self-condemnation?”

  Roane’s dark eyes flashed with surprise.

  My smile was an unhappy one. “Yeah, I know what’s going on in your head right now, and I won’t let you mentally berate yourself. No one shits on my friends. Not even themselves.”

  His lips twitched, but the sound of my name that followed was pained.

  Without thinking, I threw my arms around him, drawing him tight, holding him as close to me as I could get him. “You are not to blame for what happened to her.”

  Roane fisted my shirt in his hands, his embrace a vise, close to bruising. “I knew it was bad. I knew it was bad, but I didn’t know it was that bad and I should have known, Evie. I should have known. I failed her.”

  I pressed my lips to his ear. “You didn’t fail her,” I whispered, squeezing him to emphasize my point. “You were wonderful today. You make her feel safe. And right now she’s probably in that apartment thinking you’re pissed that you had to do what you had to do. She doesn’t know this reaction is guilt because it hasn’t even occurred to her that you could possibly have anything to feel guilty about.” I pulled back to clasp his face in my hands, his beard tickling my palms. “Because you have nothing to feel guilty about. And I will tell you that until I’m blue in the face or for however long it takes to sink in.”

  He gripped my waist, his brows drawn together, his expression fierce. It felt like forever that he just stared at me.

  Finally, I smoothed my hands down his neck to his hard chest and gave him an affectionate pat. “Come back. Hug your cousin. And then later we’ll all eat out to celebrate today. Because it is a day of celebration.”

  After searching my gaze, Roane finally came to a decision. He nodded, releasing me, and I gestured for us to walk back to the store. The path was single track, so I started walking ahead.

  “Evie.”

  I glanced over my shoulder at Roane, stopping at his pensive expression. When he drew up to me, his gaze searched my face again, and then he almost sounded like he was pleading when he said, “I wish you’d do something to make me like you a little less.”

  For a moment he looked and sounded so young, it made my breath catch.

  With that heart-flipping comment, he brushed past me, he and Shadow striding on ahead.

  As I followed him, butterflies fluttered in my belly as it occurred to me Roane Robson was mine for the taking if I wanted him.

  Rattled but determined to stay true to myself, I pondered the idea of putting distance between Roane and me.

  That would certainly make him like me less.

  Except I couldn’t do it today. Not with everything going on with Caro. However, if I was to stay in Alnster for another three months, it might be better for both Roane’s and my hearts if we saw each other a little less.

  The mere thought made me feel panicked and restless.

  Thirteen

  With tourists descending upon the Northumberland Coast in higher numbers now that it was summer, I’d asked Viola to call her mom to reserve a table at the pub. It was a good thing too. Viola had left just before dinnertime to help her parents out, and when we walked in later that night, the place was packed. Viola and Milly waved at us from behind the bar at the exact same time, in the exact same way, making me smile.

  “Usual table,” Milly called to us, and I let Roane steer us through the heaving dining room to a table near the unlit fireplace. There was a couple seated at the one closest to it, but Shadow didn’t care. Even without a fire in the grate, Shadow promptly took his place sprawled in front of it, making the couple laugh.

  I smiled at Roane, who just rolled his eyes as he, Caro, and I took our seats at the larger table against the back wall.

  It had been a weird day.

  After Roane had returned to the apartment with me and he and Caro had disappeared into her bedroom for a chat, things were easier between the cousins. However, Roane had work to do and took off for a few hours. He’d left Shadow with us since the dog was offering so much comfort to Caro, and Viola and I sought to find a way to distract our friend from the magnitude of the day.

  Since Roane insisted I should have a lesson on driving here before I attempted it, I’d taken his advice not to rent a car just yet. Both Viola and Caro could drive, so Viola had us climb into her Fiat 500 to take Shadow for a long walk down the beach. Considering the dog took up most of the back seat, it was kind of hilarious and just what Caro needed.

  We didn’t travel far, just fifteen miles north to Low Newton-by-the-Sea, a small village with a beautiful stretch of coastline. We struggled to find a place to park because it was so busy. Once on the soft sand, we whiled away the hours walking and playing with Shadow, and generally not talking about the emotional morning Caro had had.

  “At least people aren’t looking,” Caro muttered, glancing shyly around The Anchor.

  “No one knows you left Helena,” Roane assured her. “Those of us who do aren’t going to say anything.”

  “There’s going to be gossip eventually.”

  He rubbed her shoulder in comfort. “And you’ll get through it.”

  “Roane!”

  At the high-pitched noise, almost squeal, we all whipped our heads up to see an attractive brunette maneuvering through the busy tables. At the delight on her
face and laser focus on Roane, I stiffened as she drew to a halt at our table. She beamed at Roane, apparently not seeing either Caro or me. “I was hoping I’d see you here.”

  She had delicate lines around her pretty blue eyes that made me think she was a little older than us, and while she was tall like me, unlike me she was all slender curves in her slim-cut T-shirt and yoga pants.

  I turned to Roane, who seemed surprised to see her. “Poppy . . . what are you doing here?”

  Poppy’s expression made it look like she wanted to eat him up. Irritation made my blood hot. “You mentioned this place so much, a friend and I decided to reserve a table.”

  He mentioned this place to her?

  Was Roane seeing someone this whole time he was making eyes at me?

  No. No, Roane wouldn’t do that.

  Not him.

  He wasn’t like other men.

  He couldn’t be.

  It would . . . it would break my heart.

  My overreaction to this woman was somewhat terrifying, and I sat stiff, unmoving, afraid it would all flood out of me if I did.

  “Ah, I see.” Roane’s smile was polite, a mere pressing of his lips together with a slight curl.

  It eased some of my concern.

  When Roane liked you, he released the full force of that sexy smile on you.

  She didn’t seem to notice his lackluster response, but she did finally become aware of Caro and me. A little frown puckered between her brows. “And who is this?” she asked, like she had a right to know.

  Did she? that insidious voice whispered.