Marion Lennox: A Millionaire For Molly

‘You’re kidding!’

‘By this time we were in the airport car park. And I told him where he could put his tickets. When he told me not to be stupid, I grabbed Sam and started to leave. Then he took the contracts and tore them up. And he hit me.’

She’d been hit!

Jackson turned her then, twisting her in his hold so he could examine the bright angry bruise. And he uttered an expletive that made Molly catch her breath.

‘Yes,’ she said, but she wasn’t upset by the bruise. The tone in her voice was one of satisfaction. ‘But it did achieve one useful purpose.’

‘Which was?’

‘You don’t think I’d let him hit me and get away with it, do you? Do you have any idea how much security there is at airports these days?’

‘Well-’

‘I screamed,’ Molly carried on, considering his answer inconsequential. ‘There were loads of people about, and I screamed the place down. My nose started to bleed, which was terrific. It’s wonderful what a bit of blood can do for a drama. And then Sam head-butted him. He went to slap Sam and suddenly there were four hefty security guards holding him down and any number of witnesses. Plus a security camera. We’ve had him arrested.’

Her voice was suddenly almost joyous. ‘He’s in jail right now. Sure, he’ll get bail, but I have heaps of witnesses, and the police say if I press charges I’ll certainly get a conviction. Plus damages.’ Her hand touched her cheek. ‘For any amount of emotional trauma.’

‘You’re not emotionally traumatised at all,’ Jackson said on a note of discovery, and she chuckled and, just naturally, her arms came around and hugged him back.

‘No. I’m just very, very pleased that finally Michael has blotted his too-perfect copybook. There’s a whole bunch of stuff a lawyer can’t do once he has a conviction, and I can’t wait to get it in place.’ Then she lifted her chin and stared at Roger. ‘So Guy and Angela brought us down here- ventreà terre, as the saying goes-which was very exciting, wasn’t it, Sam? And now… I don’t know how we’ll deal with you, Roger, but Guy seems to think it’s illegal to try to sell your client something without disclosing ownership. We might just get you, too.’

And Roger was stuttering. ‘I don’t… I haven’t… The girl’s…’

‘Get out,’ Jackson said grimly. He was staring at Roger as if he was some sort of pond scum. ‘Get out!’

‘I never-’

‘You organised your thug to hurt Molly!’

And that was the nub of the matter. Everything else-the lies-the deception-they were things that would make him angry, but not to the point of white-hot fury. He looked down at Molly’s face and he wanted to kill someone. The problem was there was only this weaselly little man in front of him to be killed.

But there were better ways of punishing than murder. So, with what seemed an almost supernatural effort, he stopped himself from picking Roger Francis up by the shoulders and heaving him through the French windows and made his voice cool, controlled and icy calm.

‘Get out, Francis.’

‘I can explain. She’s mistaken. For heaven’s sake…’

‘You told me Molly was leaving for Hayman Island. You told me you spoke to her. There’s no explanation other than that you were acting in collusion. Miss Copeland…’ He turned to Hannah. ‘Will you be willing to back me up as witness?’

‘I surely would.’ Hannah was staring at Francis as if he was some particularly repugnant insect. ‘I’d be delighted. Hanging’s too good for the likes of him.’

‘It might not come to that, but what will happen will be effective for all that. I’ll see you in court, Francis. Now get out.’

‘But-’

‘Now!’

For a minute after the lawyer left there was silence. They listened as he gunned his car into action and headed off down the track, and they waited until the sounds of his car died to silence. Then Molly made to pull herself away from Jackson’s arms, but was promptly pulled back again.

‘Where do you think you’re going?’

‘I…um.’ She thought about it and came to a fast decision. ‘Nowhere?’

‘Dead right. Nowhere.’

She liked masterful men, she decided happily. Okay, Michael had been masterful- ‘Here are tickets to Hayman Island and you’re coming with me!’ -but there was masterful and masterful.

This masterful was just plain wonderful.

‘Thank you for bringing her down.’ Jackson was speaking to Angela and Guy, but Molly was absorbing the soft texture of his shirt. Nice. And the feel of his heartbeat. Nicer still.

‘Think nothing of it.’ Guy waved an airy hand. ‘The fact that my car blew a gasket or six and Angela and I missed a perfectly good day in bed-’

‘Guy!’ Angela gasped, but Guy only grinned. ‘Well, we did.’

‘I’ll give you a decent car for a wedding present,’ Jackson told them, and Angela rolled her eyes.

‘Wow. That’ll look good beside the casseroles and toasters.’

But Molly had hauled back, stunned. ‘Jackson Baird, do you think you can just splash your money about in that obscene-?’

‘Hey, who’s complaining?’ Angela interrupted. ‘Let him splash all he wants.’ Her eyes were brimming with laughter. ‘What about putting diamonds on the shopping list while you’re at it?’

Molly caught her breath. ‘Angie-’

‘Don’t tell me. You were about to say shut up.’ She held her hands up in laughing protest. ‘Okay. I know when I’m butting into something that doesn’t concern me.’ Angela looked down at Sam. ‘Sam, the Lionels have been in that box for far too long.’

‘They have,’ Sam agreed.

‘Then let’s show them to their new home.’ She took Guy’s hand and Sam’s hand and smiled at Hannah. ‘How about it, Miss Copeland? Would you like to see a frog launch and leave these two alone?’

‘I’d be delighted,’ Hannah said, and tossed aside her walking stick. ‘If what I think is about to happen is about to happen then I’m about to sell my farm. And if I’m selling this place then I want to leave a healthy frog population behind. Lead on, young Sam.’

‘Hey, I’d like to see the frog launch too,’ Molly said, stung.

‘You want to see a frog launch or you want to spend a bit more time right where you are?’ Angie demanded. ‘Choose now. Frog or prince? What’ll it be?’

And there was only one decision to make after all.

‘Prince, please,’ Molly said, and sealed her fate right there.

Then, finally, they were alone. Together. Standing locked in each other’s arms. So much had to be said, but now wasn’t the time for its saying. There was only time for each other. The feel of each other’s bodies. Two hearts beating as one.

It was a joining without words. It was a feeling of such blessed peace-of rightness-of joy-that Molly could scarcely take it in.

Jackson was holding her to him as if he would never let her go. His hands were softly stroking the small of her back. Her aching face was leaning against his shoulder and his fingers came up to trace it through the tumble of her bright curls.

This was right.

This was for ever.

‘Where’s Cara?’ Molly whispered at some point, but it no longer mattered. Cara no longer mattered. What true love had joined let no man put asunder-and true love had joined this pair as truly as any wedding vow.

He thought about that for a while. ‘Cara and I decided living together at the farm would be crazy.’

She pulled away from him then, wanting to see his face. Wanting to understand. ‘Why?’

He smiled down at her with an expression on his face that made her heart do handsprings. Oh, the joy of it. The pure, blessed joy.