A Little Revenge Omnibus (24 page)

‘Ward... Ward...’ she whispered frantically in his ear. ‘Let’s go upstairs...to bed...’

The sound of her voice brought Ward back to reality. What on earth was he doing? Yes, what was she doing? His body protested as he slowly released Anna’s nipple and slid the silky fabric of her bra back over her damp breast.

As Anna slid shakily off his lap Ward knew he had to do something—say something—and quickly, because if—once they were upstairs... His body was already very powerfully making its protest felt. It wanted Anna right back where she had been, or, even better, where she had been last night—in his bed, in his arms, her body clothed only in the heat generated by their mutual desire. But Ward couldn’t afford to give in to the dictates of his body, no matter how urgently it was expressing them.

Instead, he caught hold of Anna’s hand whilst determinedly keeping some distance between them.

‘Anna...’ When she looked at him like that he lost all sense of what he wanted to say; all he could do was shake his head and tell her bluntly and hoarsely, ‘I can’t...’

He couldn’t! Anna’s eyes widened. What on earth...? And then she flushed as she realised what he must mean. They weren’t a young couple at the height of their sexual powers, after all, and last night and then this morning they had—

It was different for a woman. She didn’t need...she could... But then Ward had...

As he saw the uncertain, discreet little look she gave his body Ward suddenly realised what Anna was thinking.

A little wryly he wondered how she would react if he were to tell her that not only was he perfectly capable of making love with her but that if he took her to bed now he doubted that once was going to satisfy the fierce, pulsing ache which was tormenting a body almost incandescent with desire for her. The barrier which was preventing him from making love with her wasn’t a physical but a moral one. But he could hardly tell her that! And perhaps it might be a good idea to make sure that he was not confronted with any more temptation.

To that end, as soon as they had finished clearing away after their meal Ward said to Anna, ‘It’s a nice day; I was wondering if you would like to go out somewhere, perhaps for a drive or a walk...’

‘Well, we could possibly do both,’ Anna answered. ‘We could call at the garden centre; I noticed when you were out this morning that I must have been working on planting up some containers when I had my accident and I obviously need some more plants to finish them off. There’s a good garden centre on the other side of town, and since it’s not far from the river we could park the car and walk along the river path, if that appeals to you.’

At the sound of the word ‘walk’ Missie, who had been lying in her basket, jumped up and started to bark excitedly.

‘Looks like the decision’s already been made for us,’ Ward told Anna ruefully.

‘What are your hobbies?’ Anna asked him hesitantly half an hour later when she was seated beside him in his car as he drove in the direction she had described to him.

‘Work, work and more work,’ Ward told her dryly and honestly. ‘I like walking,’ he added equally truthfully, ‘but I’m afraid I seldom make time to do any even though my farmhouse is right up in the hills.’

‘You’re a workaholic, but you said you were retired,’ Anna pointed out, confused.

‘Yes, I am, sort of... I sold up my company but I’m still involved in consultancy work.’

‘You mentioned investments before,’ Anna remembered, her forehead crinkling as she gave a small shiver. For some reason the word ‘investments’ made her feel anxious and tense, as though a large shadow had been cast over the warmth of the sun shining so brightly outside the car.

Ward gave her a quick look. Was she going to start remembering, and what was she going to do if she did—no, when she did? he corrected himself sternly. When she did he would be only too relieved, because then he could insist on her repaying Ritchie’s money and then once that was done he could walk away from her and get on with his own life.

‘Is that how we met? Were you...did you advise me on my investments?’ Anna asked him uncertainly, repeating her earlier question to him. She didn’t understand why the subject should make her feel so unhappy and ill at ease.

‘Hardly,’ Ward told her curtly, unable to stop himself from adding, ‘Investment advice is the last thing you’d need or want from anyone.’

Confused, Anna was just about to ask him to explain his cryptic remark when she realised they were coming to a roundabout and that she’d have to give him directions. By the time they were on the right road, a small inner voice of caution had warned her that some things, like Pandora’s box, were best left unmeddled with. Maybe she and Ward had quarrelled over the subject; maybe he had offered her advice and help and she had been too independent to take it. Whatever the case, she would be much better able to deal with it once her memory had returned, she told herself firmly.

Ward wondered suspiciously why Anna was not pursuing the subject and demanding to know more. Had she remembered? Instinctively he knew that she couldn’t have done, but who knew how far back in her past her double dealings went? Who knew how long she had been cheating and deceiving others?

‘Here we are; it’s this lane on the left,’ Anna told him, directing his attention to the entrance to the garden centre.

* * *

A
T
A
NNA
’
S
SUGGESTION
Ward remained in the car with Missie whilst she went to get her plants. Although she would not have dreamed of saying so to him, Ward’s cryptic remark to her had left her feeling hurt and confused, her manner towards him noticeably cooler than it had been, Ward was aware as she gently refused his company. This was a woman who would never descend to angry arguments or sullen silence but who could, nevertheless, very firmly retreat into her own space when she felt the need, Ward recognised, unwillingly admiring her distancing air of dignity as she quietly closed the car door and walked away from him.

Everything about her spoke of gentleness and dignity, of a woman who put the needs of others above her own, a woman whose behaviour was governed by a slightly old-fashioned moral code, a code which he acknowledged was very similar to his own. And yet she had still joined forces with Julian Cox in his despicably fraudulent activities. On her way towards the store, Ward was not surprised to see her stop to aid an elderly couple who were having trouble lifting an unwieldy pot plant into the boot of their car.

CHAPTER SEVEN

W
ARD
GLANCED
FROWNINGLY
at his
watch.

Anna had been gone for over half an hour, having told him she
would be about ten minutes.

He looked at Missie. She was fast asleep, curled up on the
blanket on the back seat of his car. Checking that a window was open enough to
let in fresh air for her, he climbed out of the car and locked it, setting out
in the direction Anna had taken.

He found her less than five minutes later, standing next to a
car filled with plants. She had her back to him and her face was turned up
towards that of the man standing next to her, who, if his besotted expression
was anything to go by, was thoroughly enjoying the experience. As Anna’s soft
laughter rang out, Ward was suddenly stabbed by a surge of dislike for her male
companion that was so strong, it literally momentarily deprived him of
breath.

Angrily he told himself that the feeling pounding through him
was caused merely by his apprehension that Anna’s companion might inadvertently
have said something to her to make her suspicious of his own supposed
relationship with her, thereby foiling his plans to punish her, and that it had
nothing to do with something more personal—something, in fact, which was far,
far more dangerous.

Anxiously he hurried towards Anna but, as Ward approached her,
the man with her reached out and touched her arm, drawing her closer to him in
order to allow someone to pass her. As he saw the man put his hand on Anna’s
arm, a murderous flash of emotion sliced through Ward. Without knowing how he
had got there he suddenly discovered he was standing at Anna’s side, his gaze
challenging the other man’s right to touch her.

‘Oh, Ward!’ Anna exclaimed. His appearance at her side had both
startled her and somehow made her feel a little guilty. ‘I’m sorry I was so
long,’ she said, mistaking the cause of his black-browed look. ‘There was a long
queue at the till and then I was just on my way back when I bumped into
Tim.’

As Anna started to introduce them Ward forced himself to
respond to the other man’s uncertain smile.

He knew from the look in Anna’s eyes that she had no suspicion
whatsoever that he wasn’t who she thought him to be, but for some reason his
angry anxiety refused to subside, and so did his dislike of the man at her side.
What was the matter with him? he asked himself irritably. Anyone would think he
was jealous. Jealous. The very idea was ridiculous...laughable, impossible. He
never got jealous. In fact he didn’t have a jealous bone in his body.

‘I’m sorry you had to wait so long.’ Anna apologised again
quietly once they were on their own.

She was silent after that as they walked back to the car but
Ward was well aware that she kept watching him, looking at him.

‘I only came to look for you because Missie was getting
fretful,’ Ward told Anna untruthfully as they approached the car. Anna said
nothing but Ward could see the quick look she gave the peacefully sleeping dog
as he placed her plants into the car boot.

Ten minutes later, as they headed silently for the river path,
Missie tugging a little impatiently on her lead, Ward acknowledged that he had
perhaps overreacted. Had the situation been different, had they been a real
couple, he might have been able to lower his pride enough to admit his jealousy,
but how could he admit to feeling jealous about a woman he didn’t even like,
never mind love?

It was just his natural male instincts coming to the fore, he
tried to tell himself as he helped Anna over the stile that led to the
footpath.

As they walked side by side along the river, Anna acknowledged
how daunting she was beginning to find the fact that she knew so little about
Ward. His anger had confused and upset her. It had seemed completely at odds
with the way he had behaved towards her previously. Was he, perhaps, a very
impatient man?

She watched as he paused whilst a young woman with three young
children and two dogs went through the turnstile ahead of them. One of the dogs
and the youngest child had to be coaxed through. Ward waited patiently, even
offering to hold one of the dogs’ leads for the harassed young mother, who
flashed him a grateful smile. Not the action of an impatient man, Anna admitted
as she instinctively moved closer to him, her hand touching his arm in a gesture
of female possession. The young woman meant no harm, but even so...Anna was both
surprised and a little bewildered by the strength of her own feelings.

Her eyes flashed a little as she saw the way Ward was smiling
at the young mother. How dared he look at her like that, smile at her like
that...flirt with her like that?

Her head had begun to ache and she felt tired.

‘I think I’d like to go back to the car,’ she told Ward
woodenly. Without waiting for his response she turned round and started to walk
quickly in the direction she had just come, both ashamed of and overwhelmed by
her own emotions.

As he drove them back to Anna’s house, Ward reflected inwardly
that Anna had every right to be annoyed with him. He had overreacted in the
garden centre, but admitting his fault and his jealousy would mean admitting
emotions he couldn’t possibly allow himself to feel. He was losing track of the
real reason for his presence in Anna’s life, her home...her bed... His body was
confusing and betraying him with its passionate response to her.

By the time they reached her house Anna’s head was pounding
nauseously, but a headache was no excuse for her behaviour. How could she have
been so jealous of that poor, harassed young mother? She could sense that
ordinarily such emotions were totally foreign to her and yet she had experienced
them and that confused her. Even frightened her, she admitted to herself.

The telephone was ringing as they walked into the house. Anna
went to answer it, one hand massaging her aching temple as she recognised her
god-daughter’s voice.

‘Beth! How are you?’

‘Fine...and you?’

Anna hesitated for a moment. She just didn’t feel up to coping
with Beth’s concern and questions if she told her the truth.

‘I’m fine,’ she fibbed.

‘I meant to ring earlier,’ Beth told her, ‘but I didn’t get
back until this morning. The family all send their love, by the way. Mum said to
remind you that it’s their silver wedding soon; she’s planning a big party and,
of course, she wants you there.’

Anna released her breath slowly. Beth must have been home to
visit her parents in Cornwall. No doubt she, Anna, had known about her trip even
though she couldn’t remember.

‘Look, I must go. We’ll talk again soon,’ Beth was saying, and
before Anna could reply the younger woman was saying goodbye and ending the
call.

* * *

I
N
THE
LIVING
room of the
accommodation above the shop, Beth closed her eyes and gave a small sigh.

She knew she had been a little abrupt with Anna, but her
godmother was always so intuitive and aware that Beth was afraid she might
guess... Quickly she scanned through the post she had picked up on her way in,
her body tensing as she saw the airmail envelope from Prague.

Her mouth went dry as she ripped it open. Inside was a copy
despatch note for some of the pottery she had bought for the shop during her
buying trip to Prague earlier in the year. She was still waiting for the
gorgeous reproduction antique crystal. Only the previous week her partner,
Kelly, had mentioned that it was disappointing that it had still not
arrived.

‘When exactly is it coming? What exactly did happen about
that?’ she had asked curiously.

‘Soon,’ Beth had told her quickly, crossing her fingers behind
her back. ‘Very soon.’

She had been conscious of the searching look Kelly had given
her. They had known one another since university and she was just grateful that
Kelly’s newly engaged status meant that she was too involved with her new fiancé
to probe too deeply into the delayed arrival of the Czech crystal. It had been
bad enough having her stupidity over Julian Cox made public without...

Angrily Beth closed her eyes. Her emotions were still too raw
and sensitive. It was just as well that Kelly was out of town with Brough,
visiting his family. Her godmother’s voice had sounded a little strained on the
telephone. If she had hurt her feelings by being distant with her recently, she
would have to find a way of making it up to her...later...when she felt more
able to. For now she intended to avoid her godmother as much as she could. The
last thing she wanted was for Anna to guess... To guess what? That she had made
a fool of herself over a man a second time?

* * *

‘W
HAT
IS
IT
?
What’s wrong?’ Ward
asked Anna sharply as he saw the way she was massaging and rubbing her temple.
She looked very pale, very heavy-eyed.

‘I’ve got a headache,’ Anna told him warily.

‘A headache!’ Immediately Ward was at her side. ‘Since when?
Why didn’t you say something? Do you feel sick? Can you—’

‘Ward, it’s a headache, that’s all,’ Anna snapped, immediately
regretting her small loss of patience when she saw his expression.

Mindful of what the consultant had said to him, Ward watched
her grimly. The last thing he wanted to do was panic her, but...

‘Come on,’ he told her quietly, taking hold of her arm.

‘Where are we going?’ Anna protested. ‘I was just going to put
the lunch on...’

‘Hospital,’ Ward told her, ignoring the second half of her
statement.

‘Hospital? Why? I...’

‘The consultant warned me to be alert for any symptoms such as
a headache, nausea, or blurred vision,’ he told her gently.

‘It’s just a headache...that’s all... I haven’t got blurred
vision.’ Anna started to panic but she still allowed Ward to guide her out to
the car.

Luckily the hospital’s casualty department was relatively
quiet, and even more fortunately the consultant who had seen her last night was
actually on duty. At Anna’s insistence Ward remained with her whilst the
consultant questioned her and then examined her.

‘Hmm...’ he announced when he had finished. ‘Are you normally
prone to headaches?’ he asked Anna.

‘Sometimes... I do get the odd tension headache,’ she
admitted.

‘I tend to think that this is what this one is,’ he diagnosed.
‘So far as I can judge there certainly isn’t anything to indicate that it might
be anything else. You say that so far you haven’t remembered anything of the
time that you’ve lost...no flashbacks...?’

‘No, nothing,’ Anna told him dispiritedly.

* * *

‘Y
OU
SEE
, I
told you it was just a headache,’ she said
tiredly once they were back in the car.

‘I know, but it still had to be checked out,’ Ward
responded.

She had looked so forlorn, so...so sad, sitting there whilst
the consultant asked her if she could remember anything yet, that Ward had ached
to take hold of her, to wrap his arms protectively around her and tell her that
everything was all right, that she was safe; that it didn’t matter a damn to him
if she never remembered... That he would—

Anna gave a startled gasp as he changed gear almost viciously,
throwing her against her seat belt.

‘Sorry,’ he muttered, avoiding meeting her gaze as he swung the
car into her drive.

Once they were back in the house Ward went straight upstairs.
He had seen some headache tablets in the cabinet in the bathroom. Removing two,
he went back downstairs and filled a glass with water.

Anna had her back to him as she placed the lamb in the roasting
tin. Going up to her, he tapped her on the shoulder and handed her the glass and
the tablets, saying quietly, ‘Take these. They might help.’

Tears blurred Anna’s eyes. She was so unused to having anyone
look after her, take care of her...love her. To her own consternation as much as
Ward’s, her whole body started to shake as her emotions overwhelmed her.

Pushing past Ward, she dashed upstairs. This was ridiculous.
She was behaving idiotically.

Ward caught up with her just as she pushed open her bedroom
door.

‘Anna, what is it? What have I done?’ he demanded
worriedly.

What had he done. Anna shook her head.

‘It isn’t you, it’s me,’ she told him through her tears. ‘This
morning, on the footpath...that young mother... I was so jealous, but I don’t
get jealous, and you were just helping her, but I thought...I felt... For a
moment I wanted...’ Anna stopped, too ashamed of herself to go on.

‘I hated her, Ward,’ she finally admitted huskily. ‘I hated the
way she smiled at you and...and the way you looked back at her...I
wanted...’

Ward stared at her.

‘Was that what caused your headache?’ he demanded.

Anna gave a small smile.

‘No, the headache was already there, but it did cause me some
heartache,’ she admitted ruefully. ‘Ward, I was so jealous...’

Ward took a deep breath. Her honesty and her bravery compelled
him to be equally open with her.

‘I was jealous too...earlier...in the garden centre. That
man...Tim...he was touching your arm and I wanted to...I could have...’

‘You were jealous of Tim and not angry because I had been so
long? Oh, Ward, Tim is just a friend and he’s very happily married...’ Laughter
gurgled in Anna’s throat. ‘You couldn’t possibly have been jealous of
him...’

‘And you couldn’t possibly have been jealous of that poor young
woman.’

Somehow or other Ward discovered he had taken Anna in his arms
and now she was nestling happily against his body, lifting her tear-stained face
to his.

‘I suppose the trouble is that our love is still so new that we
aren’t quite sure of one another yet. Our feelings are still very...very
intense...very...passionate...’ Anna concluded, her voice dropping to a whisper
and her glance following the gentle touch of Ward’s fingertip as he started to
trace the shape of her jaw and then her mouth.