Lindsay Armstrong - Married For Real

‘A little,’ he said reflectively, ‘but I’d always rather you were honest with me, Arizona, so don’t worry about it too much.’ And so saying; he raised her hand to his lips and kissed it.

Arizona was frozen for a long, strange moment during which she was assaulted by the oddest sensations. She seemed to tingle all the way up her arm. If she’d thought she was conscious of Declan Holmes before, she was doubly so now, and she got the unnerving impression that if he chose to draw her into his arms, she’d be unable to resist.

What did happen was that the door opened and Ben stood there, damp, windblown and breathless, and he took one look at the frozen little scene before his eyes and said in a voice quite unlike his own, ‘Let her go, damn you, Declan! I knew that’s what you were here for, but she was my father’s wife.’

‘Ben!’ Arizona protested, as Declan released her hand unhurriedly. ‘Ben, what are you doing here anyway? You—’

‘You thought I’d be well out of the way, didn’t you, Arizona? Well, I couldn’t stand those stupid boys so I came back.’ And with a furious gesture he turned and flung out of the room, slamming the door.

‘Ben!’ Arizona whispered and turned to Declan Holmes. ‘Now look what you’ve done!’

‘Something that doesn’t quite meet the eye?’ he suggested with his own eyes narrowed and thoughtful. ‘If he’s run away from his troop, is there any way you can get in touch with them to let them know he’s safe?’

‘I... yes,’ Arizona said agitatedly. ‘They have a mobile phone with them that they operate from the battery of their vehicle, only I can’t remember where I put the slip of paper...’ She looked around feverishly then took hold. ‘I know where it is—I’ll ring them. But what are we going to do with him? He—’

‘Leave him to me,’ Declan said evenly. He added, ‘Don’t go to bed until I see you again, Arizona.’

She opened her mouth to say something angry but changed her mind at his look and turned away as he strode out.

It was an hour before he came back to her, during which she’d been able to settle to nothing, and she was sitting disconsolately drinking another cup of coffee.

‘How is he? Is he all right? You weren’t too hard on him, were you?’

He answered none of her questions as he closed the door and poured himself a cup of coffee.

‘Well?’ Arizona said impatiently.

‘Calm yourself, my dear,’ he murmured. ‘He’s fine—or rather, he will be fine soon. I made a suggestion to him that will, I think, solve a lot of his problems.’

‘What?’

‘Boarding school.’

‘No! Don’t you think he’s feeling lonely enough as it is without being sent away from us? And then there’s Daintry—’

‘He can take Daintry. The school I have in mind, as well as being a particularly good school, has a riding school attached.’

‘But—’

‘Just listen to me, Arizona,’ Declan Holmes commanded and waited pointedly.

‘Go on,’ she said with a shrug after their gazes locked and she detected a will in this matter stronger than her own.

‘Thank you,’ he said with irony. ‘He can come home for the weekend once a month and we can visit him one Sunday a month.’

‘It sounds as if we’re putting him in jail,’ she commented curtly.

‘What we’ll be doing, in fact, is putting him in the company of other boys his age, providing him with a first-class education, plenty of sport and little time to—mope.’

Arizona stood up. ‘I still don’t like the thought of it one little bit.’

‘Then let me tell you what else we’ll be doing for him,’ he said dryly. ‘I hadn’t wanted to go into this and I promised him I wouldn’t so you’ll have to act as if you don’t know, but we’ll be removing him from the sheer torment of your presence.’

Arizona turned and stared incredulously at Declan Holmes. ‘What do you mean?’ she whispered.

‘I mean that Ben is wildly, miserably and hopelessly in love with you, my dear Arizona, or thinks he is.’

She gasped and paled. ‘I...he told you this?’

‘Yes, but only because I suspected it and—’ he gestured ‘—brought the subject up.’

Arizona sat down abruptly. ‘But he’s only a boy!’

‘He’s fifteen, Arizona, and I can assure you it’s neither impossible nor anything particularly unusual.’

She blinked rapidly. ‘But—I feel terrible!’

Declan Holmes smiled slightly. ‘It’s not your fault. But do you see now why he’ll be much better off at boarding school?’

‘I suppose so,’ she said miserably then looked at Declan suddenly. ‘What does he think, though?’

He shrugged. ‘He’s not exactly jumping for joy at the moment, but I think it’s helped to have a man-to-man chat, and I promise you, he’ll be fine.’

‘A man-to-man chat,’ she echoed.

‘Yes.’ He grimaced. ‘I told him I was in a similar position.’

She stared at him and felt herself colour. ‘Not wildly, miserably, hopelessly in love with me, surely!’ she said to cover it.

He returned her look with a little glint in his eyes of wicked amusement. ‘I told him I was greatly attracted and planned to marry you—after the first shock of it and after relieving himself of some bitter sentiments on the subject, we discussed it more rationally. I don’t suppose he’ll get over you immediately, Arizona, but he’s at least admitted to himself now that it’s out of the question.’

‘And he doesn’t—hate you?’

‘No—would you like him to?’

‘Of course not! I just...’ She looked confused and exasperated.

‘Don’t understand men?’ he said with a genuine grin. ‘He is only fifteen, not too young to think he’s in love but young enough for someone like me to be firm but understanding with him. I’m quite sure that before long a girl of his own age will come along and...’

‘Oh, I do hope so,’ Arizona said fervently. ‘Poor Ben.’

Declan Holmes raised a wry eyebrow at her. ‘No spare sympathy for me? Considering that we were more or less in the same boat.’

She tightened her lips and started to say something scathing but stopped as she was attacked by another thought. ‘So he knows—that means they’ll all know by tomorrow!’

He regarded her narrowly. ‘Yes. But they had to know sooner or later. Why does it suddenly upset you, Arizona?’

‘Because I feel more trapped than ever.’ The words were out before she could stop them, and she saw his eyes change and harden. ‘I mean—’ But she couldn’t go on, and she was suddenly claimed by exhausted frustration so that the only thing to do was turn and walk out. He didn’t attempt to detain her.

CHAPTER THREE

THEY had a custom, she and Cloris, that on Saturday mornings, Cloris brought her tea and toast in bed, and on Sunday mornings she did the same for Cloris. Not that Arizona took the opportunity to rise late often on Saturdays, but Cloris very much enjoyed being cosseted on a Sunday morning and having the opportunity to read the Sunday papers that were delivered early in peace.

But on this Saturday when Cloris came with her tea, Arizona woke from a deep sleep after spending most of the night tossing and turning, felt dreadful and unwisely mentioned this to Cloris while she was still half asleep then said that she wouldn’t be down early if Cloris could hold the fort.

The result of this was that ten minutes later there was a knock on her door. She called out wearily to come in, expecting one of the children, but it was Declan Holmes who did.

She was lying back against the pillows with her knees drawn up and her cup of tea in her hands resting on them, and for a moment she stared at him, stunned. He wore jeans, a khaki shirt with patch pockets and short brown riding boots, he was shaved, his thick dark hair was still damp from the shower and he looked alert but inscrutable.